Thelemapedia - User contributions [en]

File:Featured tree.gif

2005-06-07T05:44:38Z

LVX23:

Featured: [[Tree of Life]]

User talk:Ash

2005-06-07T05:42:10Z

LVX23:

Please feel free to leave me a note if you have any comments or questions about the site or myself. [[User:Ash|Fr. Ash]]
------------------

Hi Ash, thanks for the tip. I had inherited the Agape(tilde) link from the page on 93. I wouldn't know how to add a tilde if my life depended on it. Anyway, I've straightened it out and redirected it to the existing page (and added a few of my own bits). I'm glad to see that there's so much info on the site already!

Best,

[[User:LVX23|LVX23]]

== Copyright notice in articles ==

You do realize that GFDL is not compatible with trying to maintain control of distribution/modification of an article, don't you?

Adding material to the Wiki does not negate the original copyright, which is still held by the author. BUT, once released under GFDL, nothing can prevent anyone from reproducing the article, nor can you prevent the removal of the copyright notice by others. The only requirement of the GFDL is that the source be cited with a link.

There is no way you can include Sabazius' work here without relinquishing his control of the work, and only he can give permission to do that. Do make sure he understands that regardless of notice, if the works remain here they can be legally copied under the GFDL into ''Wikipedia'', ''Free Enclyclopedia of Thelema'', ''Sourceryforge'', and probably many other locations, as long as they use the GFDL... --[[User:Aleph|Aleph]] 15:34, 31 May 2005 (CDT)

Of course, you actually have to delete them to protect them. Anything in the history is fair game under GFDL. I can see what my brother means about you not discussing things, even when an attempt is made. Oh, well, more work for you, I guess. --[[User:Aleph|Aleph]] 17:07, 31 May 2005 (CDT)

: *sigh* I DID discuss things: with Sabazius. I appreciate your comments here, but what was there to discuss exactly? I am not an expert in legal contracts, so by all means keep informing me when issues arise. If there is something you need from me, then ask me. Otherwise, please stop with the confrontational mode...it is needless and counterproductive. [[User:Ash|—Fr. Ash—]]

IMO, you need to adjust your attitude. I am not intending to be confrontational, you simply feel confronted. That's because you haven't bothered to try to really understand the GFDL, and won't admit that you don't really understand it. As for what is there to discuss, even an acknowledgement of the receipt of the message would be nice - on ''my talk page'' where I'll get notified about it. A simply "thanks for the heads up" would go miles toward your not coming off like an arrogant know-it-all who can't be bothered to let someone else help them out with something that could become a problem. Actually engaging in discussion about the license to get a better understanding of it would be even better. I'm happy to help with that, but you have engage me in dialog to accomplish it. Unless you have someone else who can help you with it. I guess you'd rather I should shut up and let O.T.O. lawyers contact you after something becomes a real problem if that's how you'd rather handle it... --[[User:Aleph|Aleph]] 14:58, 1 Jun 2005 (CDT)

:My attitude is fine. I never disagreed with you about anything. I brought up your concerns to Sabazius, he made a decision, and I abided by it. At no point was there a matter of contention, but you are acting like there was. The fact that I took your comments at face value is powerful evidence that I do not consider myself a GFDL expert, since I trusted that you were giving me accurate and wise advice. No, I didn't leave a note, and it probably would have been more polite if I had, but the ultimate acknowledgement of your comments is my swift actions in accord with them. If anything, I ''honored'' you by taking your advice. You simply believe I am arrogant, therefore you interpret anything I do as such. I challenge you to drop that (untrue) filter and see me rather as someone who is doing the best he can with a site that requires a lot of time, effort, and eduation during a time when I am in the middle of a major shift in my life.

:By all means, continue giving me GFDL advice. I will continue to listen. When I have a question or point of contention, I will voice them. But please, drop the "Ash is arrogant" thing, because I don't have time for that. [[User:Ash|—Fr. Ash—]] 15:31, 1 Jun 2005 (CDT)

User talk:Ash

2005-06-07T05:38:49Z

LVX23:

Please feel free to leave me a note if you have any comments or questions about the site or myself. [[User:Ash|Fr. Ash]]
------------------

Hi Ash, thanks for the tip. I had inherited the Agape(tilde) link from the page on 93. I wouldn't know how to add a tilde if my life depended on it. Anyway, I've straightened it out and redirected it to the existing page (and added a few of my own bits). I'm glad to see that there's so much info on the site already!

Best,

LVX23

== Copyright notice in articles ==

You do realize that GFDL is not compatible with trying to maintain control of distribution/modification of an article, don't you?

Adding material to the Wiki does not negate the original copyright, which is still held by the author. BUT, once released under GFDL, nothing can prevent anyone from reproducing the article, nor can you prevent the removal of the copyright notice by others. The only requirement of the GFDL is that the source be cited with a link.

There is no way you can include Sabazius' work here without relinquishing his control of the work, and only he can give permission to do that. Do make sure he understands that regardless of notice, if the works remain here they can be legally copied under the GFDL into ''Wikipedia'', ''Free Enclyclopedia of Thelema'', ''Sourceryforge'', and probably many other locations, as long as they use the GFDL... --[[User:Aleph|Aleph]] 15:34, 31 May 2005 (CDT)

Of course, you actually have to delete them to protect them. Anything in the history is fair game under GFDL. I can see what my brother means about you not discussing things, even when an attempt is made. Oh, well, more work for you, I guess. --[[User:Aleph|Aleph]] 17:07, 31 May 2005 (CDT)

: *sigh* I DID discuss things: with Sabazius. I appreciate your comments here, but what was there to discuss exactly? I am not an expert in legal contracts, so by all means keep informing me when issues arise. If there is something you need from me, then ask me. Otherwise, please stop with the confrontational mode...it is needless and counterproductive. [[User:Ash|—Fr. Ash—]]

IMO, you need to adjust your attitude. I am not intending to be confrontational, you simply feel confronted. That's because you haven't bothered to try to really understand the GFDL, and won't admit that you don't really understand it. As for what is there to discuss, even an acknowledgement of the receipt of the message would be nice - on ''my talk page'' where I'll get notified about it. A simply "thanks for the heads up" would go miles toward your not coming off like an arrogant know-it-all who can't be bothered to let someone else help them out with something that could become a problem. Actually engaging in discussion about the license to get a better understanding of it would be even better. I'm happy to help with that, but you have engage me in dialog to accomplish it. Unless you have someone else who can help you with it. I guess you'd rather I should shut up and let O.T.O. lawyers contact you after something becomes a real problem if that's how you'd rather handle it... --[[User:Aleph|Aleph]] 14:58, 1 Jun 2005 (CDT)

:My attitude is fine. I never disagreed with you about anything. I brought up your concerns to Sabazius, he made a decision, and I abided by it. At no point was there a matter of contention, but you are acting like there was. The fact that I took your comments at face value is powerful evidence that I do not consider myself a GFDL expert, since I trusted that you were giving me accurate and wise advice. No, I didn't leave a note, and it probably would have been more polite if I had, but the ultimate acknowledgement of your comments is my swift actions in accord with them. If anything, I ''honored'' you by taking your advice. You simply believe I am arrogant, therefore you interpret anything I do as such. I challenge you to drop that (untrue) filter and see me rather as someone who is doing the best he can with a site that requires a lot of time, effort, and eduation during a time when I am in the middle of a major shift in my life.

:By all means, continue giving me GFDL advice. I will continue to listen. When I have a question or point of contention, I will voice them. But please, drop the "Ash is arrogant" thing, because I don't have time for that. [[User:Ash|—Fr. Ash—]] 15:31, 1 Jun 2005 (CDT)

User talk:Ash

2005-06-07T05:38:31Z

LVX23: talk back at Ash

Please feel free to leave me a note if you have any comments or questions about the site or myself. [[User:Ash|Fr. Ash]]

Hi Ash, thanks for the tip. I had inherited the Agape(tilde) link from the page on 93. I wouldn't know how to add a tilde if my life depended on it. Anyway, I've straightened it out and redirected it to the existing page (and added a few of my own bits). I'm glad to see that there's so much info on the site already!

Best,

LVX23

== Copyright notice in articles ==

You do realize that GFDL is not compatible with trying to maintain control of distribution/modification of an article, don't you?

Adding material to the Wiki does not negate the original copyright, which is still held by the author. BUT, once released under GFDL, nothing can prevent anyone from reproducing the article, nor can you prevent the removal of the copyright notice by others. The only requirement of the GFDL is that the source be cited with a link.

There is no way you can include Sabazius' work here without relinquishing his control of the work, and only he can give permission to do that. Do make sure he understands that regardless of notice, if the works remain here they can be legally copied under the GFDL into ''Wikipedia'', ''Free Enclyclopedia of Thelema'', ''Sourceryforge'', and probably many other locations, as long as they use the GFDL... --[[User:Aleph|Aleph]] 15:34, 31 May 2005 (CDT)

Of course, you actually have to delete them to protect them. Anything in the history is fair game under GFDL. I can see what my brother means about you not discussing things, even when an attempt is made. Oh, well, more work for you, I guess. --[[User:Aleph|Aleph]] 17:07, 31 May 2005 (CDT)

: *sigh* I DID discuss things: with Sabazius. I appreciate your comments here, but what was there to discuss exactly? I am not an expert in legal contracts, so by all means keep informing me when issues arise. If there is something you need from me, then ask me. Otherwise, please stop with the confrontational mode...it is needless and counterproductive. [[User:Ash|—Fr. Ash—]]

IMO, you need to adjust your attitude. I am not intending to be confrontational, you simply feel confronted. That's because you haven't bothered to try to really understand the GFDL, and won't admit that you don't really understand it. As for what is there to discuss, even an acknowledgement of the receipt of the message would be nice - on ''my talk page'' where I'll get notified about it. A simply "thanks for the heads up" would go miles toward your not coming off like an arrogant know-it-all who can't be bothered to let someone else help them out with something that could become a problem. Actually engaging in discussion about the license to get a better understanding of it would be even better. I'm happy to help with that, but you have engage me in dialog to accomplish it. Unless you have someone else who can help you with it. I guess you'd rather I should shut up and let O.T.O. lawyers contact you after something becomes a real problem if that's how you'd rather handle it... --[[User:Aleph|Aleph]] 14:58, 1 Jun 2005 (CDT)

:My attitude is fine. I never disagreed with you about anything. I brought up your concerns to Sabazius, he made a decision, and I abided by it. At no point was there a matter of contention, but you are acting like there was. The fact that I took your comments at face value is powerful evidence that I do not consider myself a GFDL expert, since I trusted that you were giving me accurate and wise advice. No, I didn't leave a note, and it probably would have been more polite if I had, but the ultimate acknowledgement of your comments is my swift actions in accord with them. If anything, I ''honored'' you by taking your advice. You simply believe I am arrogant, therefore you interpret anything I do as such. I challenge you to drop that (untrue) filter and see me rather as someone who is doing the best he can with a site that requires a lot of time, effort, and eduation during a time when I am in the middle of a major shift in my life.

:By all means, continue giving me GFDL advice. I will continue to listen. When I have a question or point of contention, I will voice them. But please, drop the "Ash is arrogant" thing, because I don't have time for that. [[User:Ash|—Fr. Ash—]] 15:31, 1 Jun 2005 (CDT)

User:LVX23

2005-06-07T05:35:40Z

LVX23: adding User info

Thelemic in foundation and inclination though in no way affiliated with any order or fraternity, I consider myself a sort of Crowleyan shaman trying to bring the Old Ways into the new millenium. The occassional ramblings that bubble up from this ongoing process and congeal into concrete words usually wind up on my own blog [http://www.lvx23.com/weblog LVX23], the group blog [http://www.key23.net Key23] of which I am a co-founder, and/or [http://www.futurehi.net FutureHi] where I'm an editor. I'm also working to further inoculate the [http://www.ultraculture.org Ultraculture] mycelia.

I'm anxiously awaiting the publication of Jason Louv's ''Generation Hex'' from The Disinformation Company where I'll debut an article detailing a 33-day long ritual in which I Foolishly hurled my aetheric self at Fox News Corp in an attempt to nudge their employees towards acts of loving rebellion in the halls of their employer.

User:LVX23

2005-06-07T05:33:35Z

LVX23:

Thelemic in foundation and inclination though in no way affiliated with any order or fraternity, I consider myself a sort of Crowleyan shaman trying to bring the Old Ways into the new millenium. The occassional ramblings that bubble up from this ongoing process and congeal into concrete words usually wind up on my own blog [http://www.lvx23.com/weblog LVX23], the group blog [http://www.key23.net Key23] of which I am a co-founder, and/or [http://www.futurehi.net FutureHi] where I'm an editor.

I'm anxiously awaiting the publication of Jason Louv's ''Generation Hex'' from The Disinformation Company where I'll debut an article detailing a 33-day long ritual in which I Foolishly hurled my aetheric self at Fox News Corp in an attempt to nudge their employees towards acts of loving rebellion in the halls of their employer.

Agape

2005-06-07T05:23:39Z

LVX23: adding agape to the original entry

{{93}}
'''Agape''' (''AH-gah-pay''), sometimes rendered as Agapé, is the English transliteration of the Greek word Αγαπη, meaning "love". Specifically, Agape refers to spiritual or "higher" love as opposed to Eros, the "lower" or sexual love.

In the original Greek text, I Corinthians chapter 13 concerns ''agape''. In later Latin Bibles, the translated term was ''caritas''.

Early [[Christians]] refered to their rite of common worship as an "Agape feast", which appears to have been characterized by group sexual activity as well as the sharing of the eucharist.

==Agape and Thelema==

The word Agape is important to [[Thelemites]] for numerological reasons. <cite>[[The Book of the Law]]</cite>, Chapter I, verse 39 states that "The word of the Law is Θελημα" ([[Thelema]]), which means "Will" in classic Greek. Using the most common form of Greek [[gematria]], Thelema adds up to [[93]], which is therefore an extremely significant number to Thelemites.

Verse 57 of the same chapter contains the sentence "Love is the law, love under will." This seems to indicate that love and will are to be balanced or equilibrated. As it turns out, though the word does not appear in the book, Agape also enumerates to 93, so it is commonly used as an equivalent Greek term for "love" in the sense appearing in this verse, balancing Thelema. It is indeed the devotional Love of agape that flows through the 93 Current.

[[Aleister Crowley]] suggested that Thelemites use "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law" as a greeting, and "Love is the law, love under will" as a farewell. Using the numerology above, it is common to abbreviate both of these to "93", especially in verbal communication. In informal written communication between Thelemites, it is common to see the greeting rendered as "93", and the farewell as "93 93/93", which is shorthand for "Love (the left 93) is the law, love (the denominator) under will (the numerator)".

Agape can be considered as a devotional love of adoration, perhaps exemplified by the love of a devotee for their guru/patron/deity etc... Within Thelema it is often used to denote the Love that permeates and impels creation, filling the heart and eyes of the aspirant as they gaze upon the reflection of G_d in the Kingdom of Malkuth.

==Agape and the OTO==

The word "Agape" has played several roles in the history of [[Ordo Templi Orientis]]. The first chartered local body in North America was Agape Lodge #1 in Vancouver, Canada; the second was Agape Lodge #2 in Los Angeles (later Pasadena), California. 

When [[Hymenaeus Beta]] became the Outer Head of OTO in 1985, he designated the United States governmental apparatus of OTO as "Agape Grand Lodge" to distinguish it from the earlier seat of Order government under [[Hymenaeus Alpha]], Thelema Lodge. This practice persisted until 1994 when [[U.S. Grand Lodge]] was officially established as a separate entity from OTO International, at which time the "Agape" name was dropped. However, the name survives in the title of the official U.S. Grand Lodge periodical <cite>Agapé</cite>.

Agapé

2005-06-07T05:19:28Z

LVX23: redirect - I inherited the tilde from someone else's entry

#REDIRECT [[Agape]]

Jack Parsons

2005-06-07T05:15:29Z

LVX23: adding incomplete poster

{{partial}}

'''John Whiteside (Jack) Parsons''' (1914-1952) was a rocket propulsion researcher at the California Institute of Technology and co-founder of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). His research was central to the United States rocket program in the 1930s and '40s, notably in the development of space-capable rocket fuels and the invention of JATO units for aircraft.

He is less well known than Wernher von Braun or Theodore von Karman in the rocket program and the origins of JPL. Nonetheless, von Braun remarked that Parsons, and not he, should be regarded as the father of the American space program.

Parsons was also an avid practitioner of the [[magick|magical]] arts, and a follower of [[Thelema]]. He was chosen by [[Aleister Crowley]] to lead the Thelemic movement in California in 1941. He was also the sometime magical partner of L. Ron Hubbard. The two participated in a ritual known as the [[Babalon Working]]. This relationship lasted until 1947, when Hubbard defrauded Parsons of a sum of money (and ran off with his wife).

Jack Parsons died in 1952 in a laboratory explosion which is generally regarded as accidental.

A crater on the far side of the Moon has been named after him.

==Books==
He is the author of ''[http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=scarletwomanl-20&path=tg/detail/-/1561841161/qid%3D1086890950/sr%3D1-4 Freedom Is a Two Edged Sword]'', a collection of essays regarding freedom, [[magick]], the [[Gnostic Creed]], witchcraft, [[Babalon]], and other subjects.

==Links of Interest==

*[http://www.babalon.net Babalon.net] An extensive online library of his seminal writings regarding the Babalon Working that has been maintained since 1997.

==References==

*Wikipedia (2004). ''[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Parsons Jack Parsons].'' Retrieved June 10, 2004.

[[Category:Scientists]]
[[Category:Thelemites]]
[[Category:Ordo Templi Orientis]]

Hadit

2005-06-07T00:50:09Z

LVX23:

{{egyptiangods}}
{{stub}}

'''Hadit''', "the great god, the lord of the sky," is depicted on the [[Stele of Revealing]] in the form of the [[winged disk]] of the [[Sun]].

Hadit is the principal speaker of the second chapter of the [[Book of the Law]], where he identifies himself as the point in the center of the circle, the axle of the wheel, the cube in the circle, "the flame that burns in every heart of man, and in the core of every star," and the worshipper's own self. Hadit has been interpreted as the inner spirit of man, the Holy Ghost, the sperm in which the DNA of man is carried, the Elixir Vitae. When juxtaposed with [[Nuit]] in Liber Legis Hadit represents each unique point-experience. These point-experiences in aggregate comprise the sum of all possible experience, Nuit.

[[Category:Thelema]]
[[Category:Thelemic terms]]

Nuit

2005-06-07T00:48:57Z

LVX23:

{{egyptiangods}}
{{partial}}
==History==
In Egyptian mythology, '''Nuit''' was the sky goddess, in contrast to most other mythologies, where the Sky Father is nearly always male. Nuit is a daughter of [[Shu]] and [[Tefnut]]. She was one of the [[Ennead]].

The sun god [[Ra]] entered her mouth after the sun set in the evening and was reborn from her vulva the next morning. She also swallowed and rebirthed the stars.

She was a goddess of [[death]], and her image is on the inside of most sarcophagi. The [[pharaoh]] entered her body after death and was later resurrected.

In art, Nuit is depicted as a woman wearing no clothes, covered with stars and supported by [[Shu]]; opposite her (the sky), is her husband, [[Seb]] (the Earth). With Seb, she was the mother of [[Osiris]], [[Horus]], [[Isis]], [[Set]], and [[Nephthys]].

Alternatives: '''Nu''', '''Nut'''

==Nuit & Thelema==
Nuit is the main speaker in the first chapter of the ''[[Book of the Law]]'' and the feminine compliment to the deity [[Hadit]]. Nuit is the infinitely vast circle whose circumference is unmeasurable and whose center is everywhere. [[Hadit]] is the infinitely small point within the core of every single thing. The union of the two is yet another glyph of the [[Great Work]].

==References==
* Wikipedia (2004). [http://www.wikipedia.org/Nuit Nuit]. Retrieved Oct. 19, 2004.

[[Category:Thelema]]
[[Category:Book of the Law]]
[[Category:Godforms]]
[[Category:Egyptian Godforms]]
[[Category:Egyptian Goddesses]]

Nuit

2005-06-07T00:48:05Z

LVX23: /* Nuit & Thelema */

{{egyptiangods}}
{{partial}}
In Egyptian mythology, '''Nuit''' was the sky goddess, in contrast to most other mythologies, where the Sky Father is nearly always male. Nuit is a daughter of [[Shu]] and [[Tefnut]]. She was one of the [[Ennead]].

The sun god [[Ra]] entered her mouth after the sun set in the evening and was reborn from her vulva the next morning. She also swallowed and rebirthed the stars.

She was a goddess of [[death]], and her image is on the inside of most sarcophagi. The [[pharaoh]] entered her body after death and was later resurrected.

In art, Nuit is depicted as a woman wearing no clothes, covered with stars and supported by [[Shu]]; opposite her (the sky), is her husband, [[Seb]] (the Earth). With Seb, she was the mother of [[Osiris]], [[Horus]], [[Isis]], [[Set]], and [[Nephthys]].

Alternatives: '''Nu''', '''Nut'''

==Nuit & Thelema==
Nuit is the main speaker in the first chapter of the ''[[Book of the Law]]'' and the feminine compliment to the deity [[Hadit]]. Nuit is the infinitely vast circle whose circumference is unmeasurable and whose center is everywhere. [[Hadit]] is the infinitely small point within the core of every single thing. The union of the two is yet another glyph of the [[Great Work]].

==References==
* Wikipedia (2004). [http://www.wikipedia.org/Nuit Nuit]. Retrieved Oct. 19, 2004.

[[Category:Thelema]]
[[Category:Book of the Law]]
[[Category:Godforms]]
[[Category:Egyptian Godforms]]
[[Category:Egyptian Goddesses]]

Nuit

2005-06-07T00:47:17Z

LVX23: /* Nuit & Thelema */

{{egyptiangods}}
{{partial}}
In Egyptian mythology, '''Nuit''' was the sky goddess, in contrast to most other mythologies, where the Sky Father is nearly always male. Nuit is a daughter of [[Shu]] and [[Tefnut]]. She was one of the [[Ennead]].

The sun god [[Ra]] entered her mouth after the sun set in the evening and was reborn from her vulva the next morning. She also swallowed and rebirthed the stars.

She was a goddess of [[death]], and her image is on the inside of most sarcophagi. The [[pharaoh]] entered her body after death and was later resurrected.

In art, Nuit is depicted as a woman wearing no clothes, covered with stars and supported by [[Shu]]; opposite her (the sky), is her husband, [[Seb]] (the Earth). With Seb, she was the mother of [[Osiris]], [[Horus]], [[Isis]], [[Set]], and [[Nephthys]].

Alternatives: '''Nu''', '''Nut'''

==Nuit & Thelema==
Nuit is the main speaker in the first section of the ''[[Book of the Law]]'' and the feminine compliment to the deity [[Hadit]]. Nuit is the infinitely vast circle whose circumference is unmeasurable and whose center is everywhere. [[Hadit]] is the infinitely small point within the core of every single thing. The union of the two is yet another glyph of the [[Great Work]].

==References==
* Wikipedia (2004). [http://www.wikipedia.org/Nuit Nuit]. Retrieved Oct. 19, 2004.

[[Category:Thelema]]
[[Category:Book of the Law]]
[[Category:Godforms]]
[[Category:Egyptian Godforms]]
[[Category:Egyptian Goddesses]]

Nuit

2005-06-07T00:47:03Z

LVX23: minor edit to Nuit

{{egyptiangods}}
{{partial}}
In Egyptian mythology, '''Nuit''' was the sky goddess, in contrast to most other mythologies, where the Sky Father is nearly always male. Nuit is a daughter of [[Shu]] and [[Tefnut]]. She was one of the [[Ennead]].

The sun god [[Ra]] entered her mouth after the sun set in the evening and was reborn from her vulva the next morning. She also swallowed and rebirthed the stars.

She was a goddess of [[death]], and her image is on the inside of most sarcophagi. The [[pharaoh]] entered her body after death and was later resurrected.

In art, Nuit is depicted as a woman wearing no clothes, covered with stars and supported by [[Shu]]; opposite her (the sky), is her husband, [[Seb]] (the Earth). With Seb, she was the mother of [[Osiris]], [[Horus]], [[Isis]], [[Set]], and [[Nephthys]].

Alternatives: '''Nu''', '''Nut'''

==Nuit & Thelema==
Nuit is the main speaker in the first section of the ''[[Book of the Law]]'' and the feminine compliment to the deity Hadit. Nuit is the infinitely vast circle whose circumference is unmeasurable and whose center is everywhere. [[Hadit]] is the infinitely small point within the core of every single thing. The union of the two is yet another glyph of the [[Great Work]].

==References==
* Wikipedia (2004). [http://www.wikipedia.org/Nuit Nuit]. Retrieved Oct. 19, 2004.

[[Category:Thelema]]
[[Category:Book of the Law]]
[[Category:Godforms]]
[[Category:Egyptian Godforms]]
[[Category:Egyptian Goddesses]]

Nuit

2005-06-07T00:44:50Z

LVX23: adding a little more info to Nuit, though more is needed

{{egyptiangods}}
{{partial}}
In Egyptian mythology, '''Nuit''' was the sky goddess, in contrast to most other mythologies, where the Sky Father is nearly always male. Nuit is a daughter of [[Shu]] and [[Tefnut]]. She was one of the [[Ennead]].

The sun god [[Ra]] entered her mouth after the sun set in the evening and was reborn from her vulva the next morning. She also swallowed and rebirthed the stars.

She was a goddess of [[death]], and her image is on the inside of most sarcophagi. The [[pharaoh]] entered her body after death and was later resurrected.

In art, Nuit is depicted as a woman wearing no clothes, covered with stars and supported by [[Shu]]; opposite her (the sky), is her husband, [[Seb]] (the Earth). With Seb, she was the mother of [[Osiris]], [[Horus]], [[Isis]], [[Set]], and [[Nephthys]].

Alternatives: '''Nu''', '''Nut'''

==Nuit & Thelema==
Nuit is the feminine compliment to the deity Hadit. Nuit is the infinitely vast circle whose circumference is unmeasurable and whose center is everywhere. [[Hadit]] is the infinitely small point within the core of every single thing. The union of the two is yet another glyph of the [[Great Work]].

==References==
* Wikipedia (2004). [http://www.wikipedia.org/Nuit Nuit]. Retrieved Oct. 19, 2004.

[[Category:Thelema]]
[[Category:Book of the Law]]
[[Category:Godforms]]
[[Category:Egyptian Godforms]]
[[Category:Egyptian Goddesses]]

Holy Guardian Angel

2005-06-07T00:35:29Z

LVX23: adding some detail to HGA & Black Magick

{{93}}
The '''Holy Guardian Angel''' is representitive of one’s truest divine nature. The term is equivilent with the Genius of the [[Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn|Golden Dawn]], the Augoeides of [[Iamblichus]], the [[Atman]] of [[Hinduism]], and the Daemon of the [[gnosticism|gnostics]].

In the system of [[Magick]], the single most important goal is to consciously connect with one’s HGA, a process termed “Knowledge and Conversation.” By doing so, the magician becomes fully aware of his own [[True Will]]. For [[Aleister Crowley]], this event was the single most important goal of any adept:

:''It should never be forgotten for a single moment that the central and essential work of the Magician is the attainment of the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel. Once he has achieved this he must of course be left entirely in the hands of that Angel, who can be invariably and inevitably relied upon to lead him to the further great step—crossing of the Abyss and the attainment of the grade of Master of the Temple.'' (Magick Without Tears, Ch.83)

==The Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage==
Crowley became aware of the book entitled ''The Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage'' from [[George Cecil Jones]], a member of the Golden Dawn. The book descibes the full procedure for “Knowledge and Conversation” and gave him the term "Holy Guardian Angel." Crowley sums up the book in ''The Equinox of the Gods:''

:''The aspirant must have a house secure from observation and interference. In this house there must be an oratory with a window to the East, and a door to the North opening upon a terrace, at the end of which must be a lodge. He must have a Robe, Crown, Wand, Altar, Incense, Anointing Oil, and a Silver Lamen. The terrace and lodge must be strewn with fine sand. He withdraws himself gradually from human intercourse to devote himself more and more to prayer for the space of four months. He must then occupy two months in almost continuous prayer, speaking as little as possible to anybody. At the end of this period he invokes a being described as the Holy Guardian Angel, who appears to him (or to a child employed by him), and who will write in dew upon the Lamen, which is placed upon the Altar. The Oratory is filled with Divine Perfume not of the aspirant's kindling.''

:''After a period of communion with the Angel, he summons the Four Great Princes of the Daemonic World, and forces them to swear obedience.''

:''On the following day he calls forward and subdues the Eight Sub-Princes; and the day after that, the many Spirits serving these. These inferior Daemons, of whom four act as familiar spirits, then operate a collection of talismans for various purposes. Such is a brief account of the Operation described in the book.''

This book clearly had a powerful impact on Crowley, who adopted its general terms and concepts, and applied it to his own system developed in the [[A.'.A.'.]] Moreover, he actually attempted the full procedure as descibed in the book, which resulted in the purchase of [[Boleskine House]] and his [[Abramelin Operation]].

==HGA and Black Magick==
Crowley felt that attaining Knowledge and Conversation was so important, that he staked the claim that any other magical operation was, in a sense, evil. In ''Book 4'' (Ch. 21) he explains:

:''As was said at the opening of the second chapter, the Single Supreme Ritual is the attainment of the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel. It is the raising of the complete man in a vertical straight line...Any other operation is black magic...If the magician needs to perform any other operation than this, it is only lawful in so far as it is a necessary preliminary to That One Work.''

He then softens his position somewhat:

:''There are, however many shades of grey. It is not every magician who is well armed with theory. Perhaps one such may invoke Jupiter, with the wish to heal others of their physical ills. This sort of thing is harmless, or almost so. It is not evil in itself. It arises from a defect of understanding. Until the Great Work has been performed, it is presumptuous for the magician to pretend to understand the universe, and dictate its policy.''

The impication is that only magick devoted to the spiritual evolution of the individual and their attunement to the global and cosmic [[Will]] is honorable and in line with the ultimate goals of [[Thelema]]. Any magick that is self-serving or results-oriented is regarded as impure and in contradiction to the necessary evolution of the species.

==Methods of Achieving K&C==
Crowley said that the Abramelin proceedure was not the only way to achieve success in this endevour:

:''It is impossible to lay down precise rules by which a man may attain to the knowledge and conversation of His Holy Guardian Angel; for that is the particular secret of each one of us; as secret not to be told or even divined by any other, whatever his grade. It is the Holy of Holies, whereof each man is his own High Priest, and none knoweth the Name of his brother's God, or the Rite that invokes Him.'' (Book 4, "One Star in Sight")

Since the operation described in “Abramelin” is so complex and requires time and resources not available to most people, Crowley wanted to provide a more accessable method. While at the [[Abbey of Thelema]] in Italy, he wrote [http://www.hermetic.com/crowley/libers/lib800.html Liber Samekh], a ritual designed specifically for attaining the Knowledge and Conversation with one’s HGA. In his notes to this ritual, Crowley sums up the key to success: “INVOKE OFTEN.”

He also explains, in more detail, the general mystical process of the ritual:

:''The Adept will be free to concentrate his deepest self, that part of him which unconsciously orders his true Will, upon the realization of his Holy Guardian Angel. The absence of his bodily, mental and astral consciousness is indeed cardinal to success, for it is their usurpation of his attention which has made him deaf to his Soul, and his preoccupation with their affairs that has prevented him from perceiving that Soul.''

:''The effect of the Ritual has been''

:# ''to keep them so busy with their own work that they cease to distract him;''
:# ''to separate them so completely that his soul is stripped of its sheaths;''
:# ''to arouse in him an enthusiasm so intense as to intoxicate and anaesthetize him, that he may not feel and resent the agony of this spiritual vivisection, just as bashful lovers get drunk on the wedding night, in order to brazen out the intensity of shame which so mysteriously coexists with their desire;''
:# ''to concentrate the necessary spiritual forces from every element, and fling them simultaneously into the aspiration towards the Holy Guardian Angel; and''
:# ''to attract the Angel by the vibration of the magical voice which invokes Him.''

:''The method of the Ritual is thus manifold.''

Another detailed description of the general operation is given in ''The Vision and the Voice'', [http://www.hermetic.com/crowley/libers/lib8.html Aethyr 8].

==HGA in writing==

Crowley often wrote about his own experiences with his Holy Guardian Angel, whom he often referred to as [[Adonai]], but also claimed to be [[Aiwass]], the intelligence that dictated [[The Book of the Law]] to him in 1904. The key texts regarding the HGA are:

*[http://www.hermetic.com/crowley/libers/lib65.html Liber Cordis Cincti Serpente]— An account of the relations of the aspirant and his Holy Guardian Angel.
*''[http://www.hermetic.com/crowley/libers/lib95.html The Wake World]''— A poetical allegory of the relations of the soul and the Holy Guardian Angel.
*[http://www.hermetic.com/crowley/libers/lib800.html Liber Samekh]— Being the Ritual employed by the Beast 666 for the Attainment of the Knowledge and Conversation of his Holy Guardian Angel, along with many comments.
*[http://mysteria.com/liber/L_418.txt The 8th Aethyr in ''The Vision and the Voice'']—descibes the Angel and the operation for attaining K&C.

==See also==

*[[Abramelin]]
*[http://www.sacred-texts.com/grim/abr/index.htm ''The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage'']
*[[Atman]]
*[[Attainment]]

==References==
*Crowley, Aleister. (1997). Magick: Book 4. 2nd ed. York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*___. (1982). ''Magick Without Tears.'' Phoenix, AZ : Falcon Press
*___. (1998). ''The Vision & the Voice : the Equinox, IV(2).'' York Beach, Me. : Samuel Weiser.
[[Category:Thelema]]
[[Category:Thelemic terms]]

Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram

2005-06-07T00:25:29Z

LVX23: adding italics to entry additions for LRP

{{MTP}}

'''The Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram''' (sometimes shortened to the "LBRP") is a fundamental ritual of ceremonial and [[Thelema|Thelemic]] [[magick]]. It was originally taught by the [[Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn]] as a [[banishing|banishing ritual]].

==The ritual==
[[Image:Pentagram_earth.gif|right]]
From ''Liber O:''
<blockquote>
(i) Touching the forehead, say Ateh (Unto Thee). 
(ii) Touching the breast, say Malkuth (The Kingdom). 
(iii) Touching the right shoulder, say ve-Geburah (and the Power). 
(iv) Touching the left shoulder, say ve-Gedulah (and the Glory). 
(v) Clasping the hands upon the breast, say le-Olahm, Amen (To the Ages, Amen). 
(vi) Turning to the East, make a pentagram (that of Earth) with the proper weapon (usually the Wand). Say (i.e. vibrate) I H V H. 
(vii) Turning to the South, the same, but say A D N I. 
(viii) Turning to the West, the same, but say A H I H. 
(ix) Turning to the North, the same, but say A G L A. 
''(Pronounce: Yeh-ho-vah, Ad-oh-nye, Eh-hee-eh, Ahg-lah).'' 
(x) Extending the arms in the form of a Cross, say: 
(xi) Before me Raphael; 
(xii) Behind me Gabriel; 
(xiii) On my right hand Michael. 
(xiv) On my left hand Auriel; 
(xv) For about me flames the Pentagram, 
(xvi) And in the Column stands the six-rayed Star. 
(xvii-xxi) Repeat (i) to (v), the "Qabalistic Cross." 
</blockquote>

In certain texts after the publication of Liber O, the word "Aiwass" and a touch to the breast or solar plexus is added to the Qabalistic Cross.

==Explication==

Crowley writes in his ''Notes on the Ritual of the Pentagram:''

:''Every man has a natural fortress within himself, the [[Soul]] impregnable. ...Besides this central citadel, man also has outerworks, the [[Body of light|Aura]]. ...It is the duty of every person to see that his Aura is in good condition. There are two main methods for doing this. The first is by a performance two or three times daily of the Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram. Its main point is to establish in the Astral four [[Pentagram]]s, one in each quarter, and two [[Hexagram]]s, one above, the other below, thus enclosing the Magician, as it were, in a consecrated box. It also places in his Aura the Divine Names invoked.''

The ritual can be a banishing or an invocation of any of the 5 elements, depending on the type of [[pentagram]] drawn. See ''Magick, Book 4'' for illustrations of the elemental pentagrams. In it's most basic form, the LRP creates a magickal space within and around the practitioner, acknowledging the sacred and inviting angelic intervention. Although it's elemental, it's an invocation of the [[macrocosm]] (represented by the [[hexagram]]) to unite with the [[microcosm]] (represented by the [[pentagram]]).

Crowley considered the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram to be fundamental to the student of magick:

:''Neglect not the Performance of the Ritual of the Pentagram and of the Assumption of the Form of Hoor-pa-Kraat.'' (Liber Aleph, ''De cultus'')

:''Those who regard this ritual as a mere device to invoke or banish spirits, are unworthy to possess it. Properly understood, it is the Medicine of Metals and the Stone of the Wise.'' (The Palace of the World)

==See also==

* [[Greater Ritual of the Pentagram]]
* [[Lesser Ritual of the Hexagram]]
* [[Greater Ritual of the Hexagram]]
* [[Magick in Theory & Practice#Rituals of Thelema|Rituals of Thelema]]

==Links of interest==
* [http://www.hermetic.com/crowley/libers/libero.html Liber O]
* [http://www.hermetic.com/sabazius/palace_world.htm The Palace of the World.]

==References==

*Crowley, Aleister. (1997). ''Magick: Book 4. 2nd ed.'' "Liber O." York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*___. (1997). ''Magick: Book 4. 2nd ed.'' "Notes on the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram." York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*___. (1974). ''Collected Works of Aleister Crowley.'' "The Palace of the World." Chicago, IL : Yoga Publication Society.
*___. (1991). ''Liber Aleph vel CXI : the Book of Wisdom or Folly.'' York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*Frater Chanokh. ''The Stone of the Wise: A Study of the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram.''
[[Category:Ritual]] [[Category:Magick]] [[Category:Works of Aleister Crowley]]

Ritual

2005-06-07T00:24:53Z

LVX23: adding a few rituals (and remembering to add a edit summary)

{{Thelema}}

A '''ritual''' is a formalised, predetermined set of symbolic actions generally performed in a particular environment at a regular, recurring interval. The set of actions that comprise a ritual often include, but are not limited to, such things as recitation, singing, group processions, repetitive dance, manipulation of sacred objects, etc. The general purpose of rituals is to express some fundamental truth or meaning, evoke spiritual, numinous emotional responses from participants, and/or engage a group of people in unified action to strengthen their communal bonds. The word '''''ritual''''', when used as an adjective, relates to the noun 'rite', as in ''rite of passage''.

==Religion==

Rituals may express a part of a larger social doctrine, or simply of a personal one. In religion, a ritual can comprise the prescribed outward forms of performing worship, the ''cultus'' or cult of a particular observation within a religion or religious denomination.

Although ritual is often used in context with worship performed in a church, the actual relationship between any religion's doctrine and its ritual(s) can vary considerably from religion to religion. Ritual often has a close connection with reverence, thus a ritual in many cases expresses reverence for a [[deity]].

Religious rituals have also included [[human sacrifice]] and other forms of ritual murder.

==Sociology==

Rituals have formed a part of human culture for tens of thousands of years. The earliest known evidence of burial rituals dates from around 20,000 years ago. (Older skeletons show no signs of deliberate 'burial', and as such lack ritual.)

==See also==
[[Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram]]

[[Lesser Ritual of the Hexagram]]

[[Greater Ritual of the Hexagram]]

==References==
*Wikipedia (2004). [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ritual]. Retrieved Jan 17 2005.

Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram

2005-06-07T00:18:25Z

LVX23: /* References */

{{MTP}}

'''The Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram''' (sometimes shortened to the "LBRP") is a fundamental ritual of ceremonial and [[Thelema|Thelemic]] [[magick]]. It was originally taught by the [[Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn]] as a [[banishing|banishing ritual]].

==The ritual==
[[Image:Pentagram_earth.gif|right]]
From ''Liber O:''
<blockquote>
(i) Touching the forehead, say Ateh (Unto Thee). 
(ii) Touching the breast, say Malkuth (The Kingdom). 
(iii) Touching the right shoulder, say ve-Geburah (and the Power). 
(iv) Touching the left shoulder, say ve-Gedulah (and the Glory). 
(v) Clasping the hands upon the breast, say le-Olahm, Amen (To the Ages, Amen). 
(vi) Turning to the East, make a pentagram (that of Earth) with the proper weapon (usually the Wand). Say (i.e. vibrate) I H V H. 
(vii) Turning to the South, the same, but say A D N I. 
(viii) Turning to the West, the same, but say A H I H. 
(ix) Turning to the North, the same, but say A G L A. 
''(Pronounce: Yeh-ho-vah, Ad-oh-nye, Eh-hee-eh, Ahg-lah).'' 
(x) Extending the arms in the form of a Cross, say: 
(xi) Before me Raphael; 
(xii) Behind me Gabriel; 
(xiii) On my right hand Michael. 
(xiv) On my left hand Auriel; 
(xv) For about me flames the Pentagram, 
(xvi) And in the Column stands the six-rayed Star. 
(xvii-xxi) Repeat (i) to (v), the "Qabalistic Cross." 
</blockquote>

In certain texts after the publication of Liber O, the word "Aiwass" and a touch to the breast or solar plexus is added to the Qabalistic Cross.

==Explication==

Crowley writes in his ''Notes on the Ritual of the Pentagram:''

:''Every man has a natural fortress within himself, the [[Soul]] impregnable. ...Besides this central citadel, man also has outerworks, the [[Body of light|Aura]]. ...It is the duty of every person to see that his Aura is in good condition. There are two main methods for doing this. The first is by a performance two or three times daily of the Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram. Its main point is to establish in the Astral four [[Pentagram]]s, one in each quarter, and two [[Hexagram]]s, one above, the other below, thus enclosing the Magician, as it were, in a consecrated box. It also places in his Aura the Divine Names invoked.''

The ritual can be a banishing or an invocation of any of the 5 elements, depending on the type of [[pentagram]] drawn. See "Magick, Book 4" for illustrations of the elemental pentagrams. In it's most basic form, the LRP creates a magickal space within and around the practitioner, acknowledging the sacred and inviting angelic intervention. Although it's elemental, it's an invocation of the [[macrocosm]] (represented by the [[hexagram]]) to unite with the [[microcosm]] (represented by the [[pentagram]]).

Crowley considered the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram to be fundamental to the student of magick:

:''Neglect not the Performance of the Ritual of the Pentagram and of the Assumption of the Form of Hoor-pa-Kraat.'' (Liber Aleph, ''De cultus'')

:''Those who regard this ritual as a mere device to invoke or banish spirits, are unworthy to possess it. Properly understood, it is the Medicine of Metals and the Stone of the Wise.'' (The Palace of the World)

==See also==

* [[Greater Ritual of the Pentagram]]
* [[Lesser Ritual of the Hexagram]]
* [[Greater Ritual of the Hexagram]]
* [[Magick in Theory & Practice#Rituals of Thelema|Rituals of Thelema]]

==Links of interest==
* [http://www.hermetic.com/crowley/libers/libero.html Liber O]
* [http://www.hermetic.com/sabazius/palace_world.htm The Palace of the World.]

==References==

*Crowley, Aleister. (1997). ''Magick: Book 4. 2nd ed.'' "Liber O." York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*___. (1997). ''Magick: Book 4. 2nd ed.'' "Notes on the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram." York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*___. (1974). ''Collected Works of Aleister Crowley.'' "The Palace of the World." Chicago, IL : Yoga Publication Society.
*___. (1991). ''Liber Aleph vel CXI : the Book of Wisdom or Folly.'' York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*Frater Chanokh. ''The Stone of the Wise: A Study of the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram.''
[[Category:Ritual]] [[Category:Magick]] [[Category:Works of Aleister Crowley]]

Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram

2005-06-07T00:18:06Z

LVX23: /* Explication */

{{MTP}}

'''The Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram''' (sometimes shortened to the "LBRP") is a fundamental ritual of ceremonial and [[Thelema|Thelemic]] [[magick]]. It was originally taught by the [[Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn]] as a [[banishing|banishing ritual]].

==The ritual==
[[Image:Pentagram_earth.gif|right]]
From ''Liber O:''
<blockquote>
(i) Touching the forehead, say Ateh (Unto Thee). 
(ii) Touching the breast, say Malkuth (The Kingdom). 
(iii) Touching the right shoulder, say ve-Geburah (and the Power). 
(iv) Touching the left shoulder, say ve-Gedulah (and the Glory). 
(v) Clasping the hands upon the breast, say le-Olahm, Amen (To the Ages, Amen). 
(vi) Turning to the East, make a pentagram (that of Earth) with the proper weapon (usually the Wand). Say (i.e. vibrate) I H V H. 
(vii) Turning to the South, the same, but say A D N I. 
(viii) Turning to the West, the same, but say A H I H. 
(ix) Turning to the North, the same, but say A G L A. 
''(Pronounce: Yeh-ho-vah, Ad-oh-nye, Eh-hee-eh, Ahg-lah).'' 
(x) Extending the arms in the form of a Cross, say: 
(xi) Before me Raphael; 
(xii) Behind me Gabriel; 
(xiii) On my right hand Michael. 
(xiv) On my left hand Auriel; 
(xv) For about me flames the Pentagram, 
(xvi) And in the Column stands the six-rayed Star. 
(xvii-xxi) Repeat (i) to (v), the "Qabalistic Cross." 
</blockquote>

In certain texts after the publication of Liber O, the word "Aiwass" and a touch to the breast or solar plexus is added to the Qabalistic Cross.

==Explication==

Crowley writes in his ''Notes on the Ritual of the Pentagram:''

:''Every man has a natural fortress within himself, the [[Soul]] impregnable. ...Besides this central citadel, man also has outerworks, the [[Body of light|Aura]]. ...It is the duty of every person to see that his Aura is in good condition. There are two main methods for doing this. The first is by a performance two or three times daily of the Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram. Its main point is to establish in the Astral four [[Pentagram]]s, one in each quarter, and two [[Hexagram]]s, one above, the other below, thus enclosing the Magician, as it were, in a consecrated box. It also places in his Aura the Divine Names invoked.''

The ritual can be a banishing or an invocation of any of the 5 elements, depending on the type of [[pentagram]] drawn. See "Magick, Book 4" for illustrations of the elemental pentagrams. In it's most basic form, the LRP creates a magickal space within and around the practitioner, acknowledging the sacred and inviting angelic intervention. Although it's elemental, it's an invocation of the [[macrocosm]] (represented by the [[hexagram]]) to unite with the [[microcosm]] (represented by the [[pentagram]]).

Crowley considered the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram to be fundamental to the student of magick:

:''Neglect not the Performance of the Ritual of the Pentagram and of the Assumption of the Form of Hoor-pa-Kraat.'' (Liber Aleph, ''De cultus'')

:''Those who regard this ritual as a mere device to invoke or banish spirits, are unworthy to possess it. Properly understood, it is the Medicine of Metals and the Stone of the Wise.'' (The Palace of the World)

==See also==

* [[Greater Ritual of the Pentagram]]
* [[Lesser Ritual of the Hexagram]]
* [[Greater Ritual of the Hexagram]]
* [[Magick in Theory & Practice#Rituals of Thelema|Rituals of Thelema]]

==Links of interest==
* [http://www.hermetic.com/crowley/libers/libero.html Liber O]
* [http://www.hermetic.com/sabazius/palace_world.htm The Palace of the World.]

==References==

*Crowley, Aleister. (1997). ''Magick: Book 4. 2nd ed.'' "Liber O." York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*___. (1997). ''Magick: Book 4. 2nd ed.'' "Notes on the Lesser Ritual fo the Pentagram." York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*___. (1974). ''Collected Works of Aleister Crowley.'' "The Palace of the World." Chicago, IL : Yoga Publication Society.
*___. (1991). ''Liber Aleph vel CXI : the Book of Wisdom or Folly.'' York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*Frater Chanokh. ''The Stone of the Wise: A Study of the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram.''
[[Category:Ritual]] [[Category:Magick]] [[Category:Works of Aleister Crowley]]

Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram

2005-06-07T00:16:38Z

LVX23: /* Explication */

{{MTP}}

'''The Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram''' (sometimes shortened to the "LBRP") is a fundamental ritual of ceremonial and [[Thelema|Thelemic]] [[magick]]. It was originally taught by the [[Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn]] as a [[banishing|banishing ritual]].

==The ritual==
[[Image:Pentagram_earth.gif|right]]
From ''Liber O:''
<blockquote>
(i) Touching the forehead, say Ateh (Unto Thee). 
(ii) Touching the breast, say Malkuth (The Kingdom). 
(iii) Touching the right shoulder, say ve-Geburah (and the Power). 
(iv) Touching the left shoulder, say ve-Gedulah (and the Glory). 
(v) Clasping the hands upon the breast, say le-Olahm, Amen (To the Ages, Amen). 
(vi) Turning to the East, make a pentagram (that of Earth) with the proper weapon (usually the Wand). Say (i.e. vibrate) I H V H. 
(vii) Turning to the South, the same, but say A D N I. 
(viii) Turning to the West, the same, but say A H I H. 
(ix) Turning to the North, the same, but say A G L A. 
''(Pronounce: Yeh-ho-vah, Ad-oh-nye, Eh-hee-eh, Ahg-lah).'' 
(x) Extending the arms in the form of a Cross, say: 
(xi) Before me Raphael; 
(xii) Behind me Gabriel; 
(xiii) On my right hand Michael. 
(xiv) On my left hand Auriel; 
(xv) For about me flames the Pentagram, 
(xvi) And in the Column stands the six-rayed Star. 
(xvii-xxi) Repeat (i) to (v), the "Qabalistic Cross." 
</blockquote>

In certain texts after the publication of Liber O, the word "Aiwass" and a touch to the breast or solar plexus is added to the Qabalistic Cross.

==Explication==

Crowley writes in his ''Notes on the Ritual of the Pentagram:''

:''Every man has a natural fortress within himself, the [[Soul]] impregnable. ...Besides this central citadel, man also has outerworks, the [[Body of light|Aura]]. ...It is the duty of every person to see that his Aura is in good condition. There are two main methods for doing this. The first is by a performance two or three times daily of the Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram. Its main point is to establish in the Astral four [[Pentagram]]s, one in each quarter, and two [[Hexagram]]s, one above, the other below, thus enclosing the Magician, as it were, in a consecrated box. It also places in his Aura the Divine Names invoked.''

The ritual can be a banishing or an invocation of any of the 5 elements, depending on the type of [[pentagram]] drawn. See Magick, Book 4 for illustrations of the elemental pentagrams. In it's most basic form, the LRP creates a magickal space within and around the practitioner, acknowledging the sacred and inviting angelic intervention. Although it's elemental, it's an invocation of the [[macrocosm]] (represented by the [[hexagram]]) to unite with the [[microcosm]] (represented by the [[pentagram]]).

Crowley considered the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram to be fundamental to the student of magick:

:''Neglect not the Performance of the Ritual of the Pentagram and of the Assumption of the Form of Hoor-pa-Kraat.'' (Liber Aleph, ''De cultus'')

:''Those who regard this ritual as a mere device to invoke or banish spirits, are unworthy to possess it. Properly understood, it is the Medicine of Metals and the Stone of the Wise.'' (The Palace of the World)

==See also==

* [[Greater Ritual of the Pentagram]]
* [[Lesser Ritual of the Hexagram]]
* [[Greater Ritual of the Hexagram]]
* [[Magick in Theory & Practice#Rituals of Thelema|Rituals of Thelema]]

==Links of interest==
* [http://www.hermetic.com/crowley/libers/libero.html Liber O]
* [http://www.hermetic.com/sabazius/palace_world.htm The Palace of the World.]

==References==

*Crowley, Aleister. (1997). ''Magick: Book 4. 2nd ed.'' "Liber O." York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*___. (1997). ''Magick: Book 4. 2nd ed.'' "Notes on the Lesser Ritual fo the Pentagram." York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*___. (1974). ''Collected Works of Aleister Crowley.'' "The Palace of the World." Chicago, IL : Yoga Publication Society.
*___. (1991). ''Liber Aleph vel CXI : the Book of Wisdom or Folly.'' York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*Frater Chanokh. ''The Stone of the Wise: A Study of the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram.''
[[Category:Ritual]] [[Category:Magick]] [[Category:Works of Aleister Crowley]]

Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram

2005-06-07T00:14:11Z

LVX23: /* Explication */

{{MTP}}

'''The Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram''' (sometimes shortened to the "LBRP") is a fundamental ritual of ceremonial and [[Thelema|Thelemic]] [[magick]]. It was originally taught by the [[Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn]] as a [[banishing|banishing ritual]].

==The ritual==
[[Image:Pentagram_earth.gif|right]]
From ''Liber O:''
<blockquote>
(i) Touching the forehead, say Ateh (Unto Thee). 
(ii) Touching the breast, say Malkuth (The Kingdom). 
(iii) Touching the right shoulder, say ve-Geburah (and the Power). 
(iv) Touching the left shoulder, say ve-Gedulah (and the Glory). 
(v) Clasping the hands upon the breast, say le-Olahm, Amen (To the Ages, Amen). 
(vi) Turning to the East, make a pentagram (that of Earth) with the proper weapon (usually the Wand). Say (i.e. vibrate) I H V H. 
(vii) Turning to the South, the same, but say A D N I. 
(viii) Turning to the West, the same, but say A H I H. 
(ix) Turning to the North, the same, but say A G L A. 
''(Pronounce: Yeh-ho-vah, Ad-oh-nye, Eh-hee-eh, Ahg-lah).'' 
(x) Extending the arms in the form of a Cross, say: 
(xi) Before me Raphael; 
(xii) Behind me Gabriel; 
(xiii) On my right hand Michael. 
(xiv) On my left hand Auriel; 
(xv) For about me flames the Pentagram, 
(xvi) And in the Column stands the six-rayed Star. 
(xvii-xxi) Repeat (i) to (v), the "Qabalistic Cross." 
</blockquote>

In certain texts after the publication of Liber O, the word "Aiwass" and a touch to the breast or solar plexus is added to the Qabalistic Cross.

==Explication==

Crowley writes in his ''Notes on the Ritual of the Pentagram:''

:''Every man has a natural fortress within himself, the [[Soul]] impregnable. ...Besides this central citadel, man also has outerworks, the [[Body of light|Aura]]. ...It is the duty of every person to see that his Aura is in good condition. There are two main methods for doing this. The first is by a performance two or three times daily of the Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram. Its main point is to establish in the Astral four [[Pentagram]]s, one in each quarter, and two [[Hexagram]]s, one above, the other below, thus enclosing the Magician, as it were, in a consecrated box. It also places in his Aura the Divine Names invoked.''

The ritual can be a banishing or an invocation of any of the 5 elements, depending on the type of [[pentagram]] drawn. See Magick Book 4 for illustrations of the elemental pentagrams. In it's most basic form, the LRP creates a magickal space within and around the practitioner, acknowledging the sacred and inviting angelic intervention. Although it's elemental, it's an invocation of the [[macrocosm]] (represented by the [[hexagram]]) to unite with the [[microcosm]] (represented by the [[pentagram]]).

Crowley considered the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram to be fundamental to the student of magick:

:''Neglect not the Performance of the Ritual of the Pentagram and of the Assumption of the Form of Hoor-pa-Kraat.'' (Liber Aleph, ''De cultus'')

:''Those who regard this ritual as a mere device to invoke or banish spirits, are unworthy to possess it. Properly understood, it is the Medicine of Metals and the Stone of the Wise.'' (The Palace of the World)

==See also==

* [[Greater Ritual of the Pentagram]]
* [[Lesser Ritual of the Hexagram]]
* [[Greater Ritual of the Hexagram]]
* [[Magick in Theory & Practice#Rituals of Thelema|Rituals of Thelema]]

==Links of interest==
* [http://www.hermetic.com/crowley/libers/libero.html Liber O]
* [http://www.hermetic.com/sabazius/palace_world.htm The Palace of the World.]

==References==

*Crowley, Aleister. (1997). ''Magick: Book 4. 2nd ed.'' "Liber O." York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*___. (1997). ''Magick: Book 4. 2nd ed.'' "Notes on the Lesser Ritual fo the Pentagram." York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*___. (1974). ''Collected Works of Aleister Crowley.'' "The Palace of the World." Chicago, IL : Yoga Publication Society.
*___. (1991). ''Liber Aleph vel CXI : the Book of Wisdom or Folly.'' York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*Frater Chanokh. ''The Stone of the Wise: A Study of the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram.''
[[Category:Ritual]] [[Category:Magick]] [[Category:Works of Aleister Crowley]]

Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram

2005-06-07T00:13:48Z

LVX23: /* Explication */

{{MTP}}

'''The Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram''' (sometimes shortened to the "LBRP") is a fundamental ritual of ceremonial and [[Thelema|Thelemic]] [[magick]]. It was originally taught by the [[Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn]] as a [[banishing|banishing ritual]].

==The ritual==
[[Image:Pentagram_earth.gif|right]]
From ''Liber O:''
<blockquote>
(i) Touching the forehead, say Ateh (Unto Thee). 
(ii) Touching the breast, say Malkuth (The Kingdom). 
(iii) Touching the right shoulder, say ve-Geburah (and the Power). 
(iv) Touching the left shoulder, say ve-Gedulah (and the Glory). 
(v) Clasping the hands upon the breast, say le-Olahm, Amen (To the Ages, Amen). 
(vi) Turning to the East, make a pentagram (that of Earth) with the proper weapon (usually the Wand). Say (i.e. vibrate) I H V H. 
(vii) Turning to the South, the same, but say A D N I. 
(viii) Turning to the West, the same, but say A H I H. 
(ix) Turning to the North, the same, but say A G L A. 
''(Pronounce: Yeh-ho-vah, Ad-oh-nye, Eh-hee-eh, Ahg-lah).'' 
(x) Extending the arms in the form of a Cross, say: 
(xi) Before me Raphael; 
(xii) Behind me Gabriel; 
(xiii) On my right hand Michael. 
(xiv) On my left hand Auriel; 
(xv) For about me flames the Pentagram, 
(xvi) And in the Column stands the six-rayed Star. 
(xvii-xxi) Repeat (i) to (v), the "Qabalistic Cross." 
</blockquote>

In certain texts after the publication of Liber O, the word "Aiwass" and a touch to the breast or solar plexus is added to the Qabalistic Cross.

==Explication==

Crowley writes in his ''Notes on the Ritual of the Pentagram:''

:''Every man has a natural fortress within himself, the [[Soul]] impregnable. ...Besides this central citadel, man also has outerworks, the [[Body of light|Aura]]. ...It is the duty of every person to see that his Aura is in good condition. There are two main methods for doing this. The first is by a performance two or three times daily of the Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram. Its main point is to establish in the Astral four [[Pentagram]]s, one in each quarter, and two [[Hexagram]]s, one above, the other below, thus enclosing the Magician, as it were, in a consecrated box. It also places in his Aura the Divine Names invoked.''

The ritual can be a banishing or an invocation of any of the 5 elements, depending on the type of [[pentagram drawn]]. See Magick Book 4 for illustrations of the elemental pentagrams. In it's most basic form, the LRP creates a magickal space within and around the practitioner, acknowledging the sacred and inviting angelic intervention. Although it's elemental, it's an invocation of the [[macrocosm]] (represented by the [[hexagram]]) to unite with the [[microcosm]] (represented by the [[pentagram]]).

Crowley considered the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram to be fundamental to the student of magick:

:''Neglect not the Performance of the Ritual of the Pentagram and of the Assumption of the Form of Hoor-pa-Kraat.'' (Liber Aleph, ''De cultus'')

:''Those who regard this ritual as a mere device to invoke or banish spirits, are unworthy to possess it. Properly understood, it is the Medicine of Metals and the Stone of the Wise.'' (The Palace of the World)

==See also==

* [[Greater Ritual of the Pentagram]]
* [[Lesser Ritual of the Hexagram]]
* [[Greater Ritual of the Hexagram]]
* [[Magick in Theory & Practice#Rituals of Thelema|Rituals of Thelema]]

==Links of interest==
* [http://www.hermetic.com/crowley/libers/libero.html Liber O]
* [http://www.hermetic.com/sabazius/palace_world.htm The Palace of the World.]

==References==

*Crowley, Aleister. (1997). ''Magick: Book 4. 2nd ed.'' "Liber O." York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*___. (1997). ''Magick: Book 4. 2nd ed.'' "Notes on the Lesser Ritual fo the Pentagram." York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*___. (1974). ''Collected Works of Aleister Crowley.'' "The Palace of the World." Chicago, IL : Yoga Publication Society.
*___. (1991). ''Liber Aleph vel CXI : the Book of Wisdom or Folly.'' York Beach, Me. : S. Weiser.
*Frater Chanokh. ''The Stone of the Wise: A Study of the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram.''
[[Category:Ritual]] [[Category:Magick]] [[Category:Works of Aleister Crowley]]

Gaia (mythology)

2005-06-07T00:05:41Z

LVX23:

Gaia is the name used to represent the feminine deification of the Earthly biosphere planetary consciousness.

James Lovelock wrote a book called "The Gaia Hypothesis" which examines the ecology and biology of Earth as a vastly complex, nonlinear, self-regulatory system.

Gaia (mythology)

2005-06-07T00:03:19Z

LVX23:

Gaia is the name used to represent the feminine deification of the Earthly biosphere planetary consciousness.

Pentagram

2005-06-07T00:01:49Z

LVX23: /* The Pentagram and Thelema */

[[Image:Pentagram.gif||right]]
A '''pentagram''' or '''pentacle''' is a five-pointed star. Pentagrams were used symbolically in ancient Greece and Babylonia. The Pentagram has [[Magick|magical]] associations, and many people who practice [[paganism|pagan]] faiths wear them. [[Christianity|Christians]] once commonly used the pentagram to represent the five wounds of [[Jesus Christ]], but nowadays some Christians associate the symbol with [[Satanism]].

Some sources refer to the pentagram as the '''Star of [[Solomon]]'''.

The word ''pentagram'' comes from the [[greek language|Greek]] word πεντάγραμμον (''pentagrammon''), a [[noun]] form of πεντάγραμμος (''pentagrammos''), πεντέγραμμος (''pentegrammos'') a word meaning roughly "five-lined" or "five lines".

==History of the pentagram==

[[Image:Pentagram_agrippa.jpg|right|frame|Pentagram image from Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa's "Libri Tres de Occulta Philosophia" illustrating the golden symmetry of the human body. The signs on the perimeter are astrological.]]

The first uses of the pentagram we know of is in Mesopotamian writings dating to about 3000 B.C. The Sumerian pentagrams served as pictograms for the word UB; meaning "corner, angle, nook; a small room, cavity, hole; pitfall," suggesting something very similar to the pentemychos (see below on the Pythagorean use for what pentemychos means). In the [[Labat]] (dictionary of Sumerian hieroglyphs/pictograms) it is the number 306, and it is shown as being two points up. In the [[Babylonia]]n context, the edges of the pentagram were probably orientations: forward, backward, left, right, and "above". These directions also had an [[Astrology|astrological]] meaning, representing the five planets [[The Planets:Jupiter|Jupiter]], [[The Planets:Mercury|Mercury]], [[The Planets:Mars|Mars]] and [[The Planets:Saturn|Saturn]], and [[The Planets:Venus|Venus]] as the "Queen of Heaven" ([[Ishtar]]) above.

===The Pythagorean use of the pentagram===

The [[Pythagoras|Pythagoreans]] called the pentagram ύγιεια ''Hygieia'' ("health" also the Greek goddess of health, [[Hygieia]]), and saw in the pentagram a mathematical perfection: among other things, the pentagram hides the [[golden mean]], φ = (1+√5)/2 = 1.618…. When drawn with perfect angles each line is divided into several smaller segments, and if you divide the length of the longer segment with the shorter segment of any pair of segments you will get φ.

The five vertices were also used by the medieval neo-pythagoreans (whom one could argue were not pythagoreans at all) to represent the five [[Elements|Classical elements]]:

*ύδωρ, ''Hydor'', [[water]]
*Γαια, ''[[Gaia (mythology)|Gaia]]'' [[earth]]
*ίδέα, [[Idea]] or ίερόν, ''Hieron'' "a divine thing"
*έιλή, ''Heile'', [[heat]] ([[fire]])
*άήρ, ''Aer'', [[air]]

The vertices were labeled in the letters of υ-γ-ι-ει-α though the ordering (clockwise or counter-clockwise) used, and starting vertex, could vary.

[[Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa]], and others, recognized the letters as being the five beginning letters of the words: ''udor'' (water, often transliterated as hydor), ''ge'' (earth, Agrippa used gaia), ''idea'' (idea as in The [[Platonism|Platonic]] Idea), ''eile'' (sometimes written as heile, heat, it meant that in the Greek known to Agrippa), and ''aer'' (air). However, note that even if one uses the "elemental" scheme that Agrippa used, it's a definite stretch because it uses heat (heile), which is not an element but a quality OF the element fire. Had Agrippa used the Attic Greek, which is the language Pythagoreans back then actually spoke and wrote, he could have used (phonetic) "empreesis" for fire or conflagration.

The ancient, and one could argue real, Pythagorean pentagram was two points up and represented the doctrine of ''Pentemychos''. Pentemychos was the title of a work written by Pythagoras' teacher and friend Pherecydes of Syros. Pentemychos means five "recesses" or "chambers" also known as the pentagonas—the five-angle. (This is actually a lost book whose contents are preserved in ''Damascius de principiis'' (quoted in Kirk and Raven, The Pre-Socratic Philosophers, Cambridge Univ. Press, 1956, page 55). It was also the "place" where the first pre-cosmic offspring had to be put in order for the ordered cosmos to appear. The pentemychos is in Tartaros.

In very early Greek thought, Tartaros was the first existing Darkness from which the cosmos is born. While it was locked away after the emergence and ordering of the cosmos, it still continued to have an influence. In fact, it was known as "the subduer of both gods and men" ([[Homer]]), and it was from this that the world got its "psyche" (soul) and its "daimon". The Boundless Darkness held influence through Mychos or Krater. Apart from being the gateway from "there" to "here" it was also a way in the opposite direction, from "here" to "there", as is evident in the many tales about how Greek heroes, philosophers and mystics descended through Mychos/Krater to Tartaros/[[Hades]] (the distinction between the two was very optional back then) in quest for Wisdom. The Underworld as the source of wisdom was the rule.

The notion of Health that is within and inside a living being, is "bounded between the rings". According to myth, Tartaros was locked away by iron (fashioned by [[Zeus]]) and bronze (fashioned by Zeus' brother [[Poseidon]]. The iron of Zeus is the aither spoken of earlier ("space") and the bronze is demiurgos, or the waterforce which binds things into matter (Poseidon was often referred to as "he who shakens the earth" and the god Proteus, who carries the seals of Poseidon has ever since Antiquity been seen as a representation of matter.) To sum it up; even if seen as the medieval elements, Living Things are the things traveling the Wheel of Life, and ''not'' directly connected to or part of the Pythagorean pentagram itself, which is at their core in the center, a Core of Inner Being (the "soul" of "the stuff"). When one had Health, they were considered [[Zoös]] and in their hearts there was [[Eros (love)|Eros]] (the word did not mean "erotic" in the sense we mean it today at all). To not have Health was to be [[Thanatos]] - a word that does not exactly mean dead as in "dead and buried," but means dead inside but alive, like a shell.

This is an [[esoteric]] connection, but note that the Core is the Greek Goddess Kore (another name for [[Persephone]], alongside [[Hecate]] queen of the underworld), whose symbol was the apple. If you cut an apple transversally through its core, it reveals a pentagram. The apple is also still, despite Christian ideas over the years, a symbol of health. (An apple a day keeps the doctor away.)

==The Pentagram and Thelema==

In [[Thelema]] and much of western hermeticism, the pentagram is used to represent the [[microcosm]] - the earthly Kingdom of [[Malkuth]]. Traditionally, it represents the 4 elements - Fire, Air, Water, Earth - surmounted by the crown of Spirit (the inverted pentagram subjugates Spirit to the material world). Crowley has made many correspondences between these elements and various aspects of the Thelemic mythic complex, though it's perhaps best illustrated in his [[Thoth]] [[tarot]]. Though the pentagram is linear there is a constant flow and dynamic between the 5 elements that give rise to the foundations of human experience.

The most common application of this symbol within Thelemic magick is the [[Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram]]. This deceptively simple ritual is used to invoke or banish a given element within a defined space, attuning the practitioner to the [[microcosm]] and drawing down the [[macrocosm]]. This daily practice is no less than the foundation of the [[Great Work]] - the spiritisation of matter and it's resultant exaltation. It can be regarded as the single most important ritual in Crowley's system.

==Satanic use of the pentagram==

[[Satanism|Satanists]] use the Pythagorean pentagram (one point down) inscribed in a double circle, with the head of [[Baphomet]] inside the pentagram. They use it much the same way as the Pythagorenas—after all, Tartaros does mean [[Hell]] in Christian teminology (the word is used as such in the Bible, referring to the place where the fallen angels are fettered). The pythagorean Greek letters are most oftenly replaced by the [[Hebrew alphabet|Hebrew]] letters לויתן forming the name [[Leviathan]]. Less esoteric Satanists ([[Anton Szandor LaVey|LaVeyan types]]; the ones that exist in abundance) merely use it as a sign of rebellion.

==See also==
*[[Pentagon]]
*[[Hexagram]]
*[[Symbols|List of symbols]]

==References==
* Agrippa, Heinrich Cornelius. ''[[Libri tres de occulta philosophia]]'' (book III, chapter xxxi).
* Cartari, Vincenzo. ''Le Imagini degli Dei degli Antichi''.
* Wikipedia (2004). [http://www.wikipedia.org/Pentagram Pentagram]. Retrieved Oct. 18, 2004.

==External links==
*[http://www.geocities.com/go_darkness/god-pythagorean-pentacle.html The Pythagorean Pentacle]
*[http://mathworld.wolfram.com/Pentagram.html The pentagram as geometry]
*[http://irelandsown.net/penta2.html The Pentagram by DMGould Ireland's Own Mytyhs & Magic:]
* [http://freemasonry.bcy.ca/anti-masonry/pentagram.html The Pentagram and Freemasonry]
*[http://users.ucom.net/~vegan/ Pythagoreanism Web Site]

[[Category:Symbols]]

Pentagram

2005-06-07T00:01:18Z

LVX23: /* The Pentagram and Thelema */

[[Image:Pentagram.gif||right]]
A '''pentagram''' or '''pentacle''' is a five-pointed star. Pentagrams were used symbolically in ancient Greece and Babylonia. The Pentagram has [[Magick|magical]] associations, and many people who practice [[paganism|pagan]] faiths wear them. [[Christianity|Christians]] once commonly used the pentagram to represent the five wounds of [[Jesus Christ]], but nowadays some Christians associate the symbol with [[Satanism]].

Some sources refer to the pentagram as the '''Star of [[Solomon]]'''.

The word ''pentagram'' comes from the [[greek language|Greek]] word πεντάγραμμον (''pentagrammon''), a [[noun]] form of πεντάγραμμος (''pentagrammos''), πεντέγραμμος (''pentegrammos'') a word meaning roughly "five-lined" or "five lines".

==History of the pentagram==

[[Image:Pentagram_agrippa.jpg|right|frame|Pentagram image from Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa's "Libri Tres de Occulta Philosophia" illustrating the golden symmetry of the human body. The signs on the perimeter are astrological.]]

The first uses of the pentagram we know of is in Mesopotamian writings dating to about 3000 B.C. The Sumerian pentagrams served as pictograms for the word UB; meaning "corner, angle, nook; a small room, cavity, hole; pitfall," suggesting something very similar to the pentemychos (see below on the Pythagorean use for what pentemychos means). In the [[Labat]] (dictionary of Sumerian hieroglyphs/pictograms) it is the number 306, and it is shown as being two points up. In the [[Babylonia]]n context, the edges of the pentagram were probably orientations: forward, backward, left, right, and "above". These directions also had an [[Astrology|astrological]] meaning, representing the five planets [[The Planets:Jupiter|Jupiter]], [[The Planets:Mercury|Mercury]], [[The Planets:Mars|Mars]] and [[The Planets:Saturn|Saturn]], and [[The Planets:Venus|Venus]] as the "Queen of Heaven" ([[Ishtar]]) above.

===The Pythagorean use of the pentagram===

The [[Pythagoras|Pythagoreans]] called the pentagram ύγιεια ''Hygieia'' ("health" also the Greek goddess of health, [[Hygieia]]), and saw in the pentagram a mathematical perfection: among other things, the pentagram hides the [[golden mean]], φ = (1+√5)/2 = 1.618…. When drawn with perfect angles each line is divided into several smaller segments, and if you divide the length of the longer segment with the shorter segment of any pair of segments you will get φ.

The five vertices were also used by the medieval neo-pythagoreans (whom one could argue were not pythagoreans at all) to represent the five [[Elements|Classical elements]]:

*ύδωρ, ''Hydor'', [[water]]
*Γαια, ''[[Gaia (mythology)|Gaia]]'' [[earth]]
*ίδέα, [[Idea]] or ίερόν, ''Hieron'' "a divine thing"
*έιλή, ''Heile'', [[heat]] ([[fire]])
*άήρ, ''Aer'', [[air]]

The vertices were labeled in the letters of υ-γ-ι-ει-α though the ordering (clockwise or counter-clockwise) used, and starting vertex, could vary.

[[Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa]], and others, recognized the letters as being the five beginning letters of the words: ''udor'' (water, often transliterated as hydor), ''ge'' (earth, Agrippa used gaia), ''idea'' (idea as in The [[Platonism|Platonic]] Idea), ''eile'' (sometimes written as heile, heat, it meant that in the Greek known to Agrippa), and ''aer'' (air). However, note that even if one uses the "elemental" scheme that Agrippa used, it's a definite stretch because it uses heat (heile), which is not an element but a quality OF the element fire. Had Agrippa used the Attic Greek, which is the language Pythagoreans back then actually spoke and wrote, he could have used (phonetic) "empreesis" for fire or conflagration.

The ancient, and one could argue real, Pythagorean pentagram was two points up and represented the doctrine of ''Pentemychos''. Pentemychos was the title of a work written by Pythagoras' teacher and friend Pherecydes of Syros. Pentemychos means five "recesses" or "chambers" also known as the pentagonas—the five-angle. (This is actually a lost book whose contents are preserved in ''Damascius de principiis'' (quoted in Kirk and Raven, The Pre-Socratic Philosophers, Cambridge Univ. Press, 1956, page 55). It was also the "place" where the first pre-cosmic offspring had to be put in order for the ordered cosmos to appear. The pentemychos is in Tartaros.

In very early Greek thought, Tartaros was the first existing Darkness from which the cosmos is born. While it was locked away after the emergence and ordering of the cosmos, it still continued to have an influence. In fact, it was known as "the subduer of both gods and men" ([[Homer]]), and it was from this that the world got its "psyche" (soul) and its "daimon". The Boundless Darkness held influence through Mychos or Krater. Apart from being the gateway from "there" to "here" it was also a way in the opposite direction, from "here" to "there", as is evident in the many tales about how Greek heroes, philosophers and mystics descended through Mychos/Krater to Tartaros/[[Hades]] (the distinction between the two was very optional back then) in quest for Wisdom. The Underworld as the source of wisdom was the rule.

The notion of Health that is within and inside a living being, is "bounded between the rings". According to myth, Tartaros was locked away by iron (fashioned by [[Zeus]]) and bronze (fashioned by Zeus' brother [[Poseidon]]. The iron of Zeus is the aither spoken of earlier ("space") and the bronze is demiurgos, or the waterforce which binds things into matter (Poseidon was often referred to as "he who shakens the earth" and the god Proteus, who carries the seals of Poseidon has ever since Antiquity been seen as a representation of matter.) To sum it up; even if seen as the medieval elements, Living Things are the things traveling the Wheel of Life, and ''not'' directly connected to or part of the Pythagorean pentagram itself, which is at their core in the center, a Core of Inner Being (the "soul" of "the stuff"). When one had Health, they were considered [[Zoös]] and in their hearts there was [[Eros (love)|Eros]] (the word did not mean "erotic" in the sense we mean it today at all). To not have Health was to be [[Thanatos]] - a word that does not exactly mean dead as in "dead and buried," but means dead inside but alive, like a shell.

This is an [[esoteric]] connection, but note that the Core is the Greek Goddess Kore (another name for [[Persephone]], alongside [[Hecate]] queen of the underworld), whose symbol was the apple. If you cut an apple transversally through its core, it reveals a pentagram. The apple is also still, despite Christian ideas over the years, a symbol of health. (An apple a day keeps the doctor away.)

==The Pentagram and Thelema==

In [[Thelema]] and much of western hermeticism, the pentagram is used to represent the [[microcosm]] - the earthly Kingdom of [[Malkuth]]. Traditionally, it represents the 4 elements - Fire, Air, Water, Earth - surmounted by the crown of Spirit (the inverted pentagram subjugates Spirit to the material world). Crowley has made many correspondences between these elements and various aspects of the Thelemic mythic complex, though it's perhaps best illustrated in his [[Thoth]] tarot. Though the pentagram is linear there is a constant flow and dynamic between the 5 elements that give rise to the foundations of human experience.

The most common application of this symbol within Thelemic magick is the [[Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram]]. This deceptively simple ritual is used to invoke or banish a given element within a defined space, attuning the practitioner to the [[microcosm]] and drawing down the [[macrocosm]]. This daily practice is no less than the foundation of the [[Great Work]] - the spiritisation of matter and it's resultant exaltation. It can be regarded as the single most important ritual in Crowley's system.

==Satanic use of the pentagram==

[[Satanism|Satanists]] use the Pythagorean pentagram (one point down) inscribed in a double circle, with the head of [[Baphomet]] inside the pentagram. They use it much the same way as the Pythagorenas—after all, Tartaros does mean [[Hell]] in Christian teminology (the word is used as such in the Bible, referring to the place where the fallen angels are fettered). The pythagorean Greek letters are most oftenly replaced by the [[Hebrew alphabet|Hebrew]] letters לויתן forming the name [[Leviathan]]. Less esoteric Satanists ([[Anton Szandor LaVey|LaVeyan types]]; the ones that exist in abundance) merely use it as a sign of rebellion.

==See also==
*[[Pentagon]]
*[[Hexagram]]
*[[Symbols|List of symbols]]

==References==
* Agrippa, Heinrich Cornelius. ''[[Libri tres de occulta philosophia]]'' (book III, chapter xxxi).
* Cartari, Vincenzo. ''Le Imagini degli Dei degli Antichi''.
* Wikipedia (2004). [http://www.wikipedia.org/Pentagram Pentagram]. Retrieved Oct. 18, 2004.

==External links==
*[http://www.geocities.com/go_darkness/god-pythagorean-pentacle.html The Pythagorean Pentacle]
*[http://mathworld.wolfram.com/Pentagram.html The pentagram as geometry]
*[http://irelandsown.net/penta2.html The Pentagram by DMGould Ireland's Own Mytyhs & Magic:]
* [http://freemasonry.bcy.ca/anti-masonry/pentagram.html The Pentagram and Freemasonry]
*[http://users.ucom.net/~vegan/ Pythagoreanism Web Site]

[[Category:Symbols]]

Hexagram

2005-06-06T23:59:41Z

LVX23:

While the pentagram represents the [[microcosm]], the hexagram can be said to represent the [[macrocosm]]. It's 6 points are accorded to the planetary bodies of Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sol, Venus, Mercury, and Luna. These in turn are related to 6 [[Sephiroth]] of the [[Tree of Life]], as can be seen when aligning the Hexagram with the Central Pillar. If the [[Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram]] is elemental magick, then the [[Lesser Ritual of the Hexagram]] involves planetary magick, as covered in the Aurum Solis work.

Though it's often regarded as macrocosmic, closer inspection reveals that the hexagram is the union of elemental glyphs for Fire and Water and, as such, is also a symbol of the [[Great Work]] - the union of opposites. The symbol can be further analyzed to reveal the glyphs of Earth and Air as well, indicating that it's not simply macrocosmic, but includes the microcosm as well. From this it can be seen that the Hexagram is similar to the [[Rosy Cross]].

Crowley searched for a means to create a hexagram composed of only a single, continuous line. His efforts brought him to the [[unicursal hexagram]], which further codifies the symbolism contained within the hexagram, the Rosy Cross, and the Ankh.

-this entry deserves more info-

Hexagram

2005-06-06T23:58:22Z

LVX23:

While the pentagram represents the [[microcosm]], the hexagram can be said to represent the macrocosm. It's 6 points are accorded to the planetary bodies of Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sol, Venus, Mercury, and Luna. These in turn are related to 6 Sephiroth of the Tree of Life, as can be seen when aligning the Hexagram with the Central Pillar. If the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram is elemental magick, then the Lesser Ritual of the hexagram involves planetary magick, as covered in the Aurum Solis work.

Though it's often regarded as macrocosmic, closer inspection reveals that the hexagram is the union of elemental glyphs for Fire and Water and, as such, is also a symbol of the Great Work - the union of opposites. The symbol can be further analyzed to reveal the glyphs of Earth and Air as well, indicating that it's not simply macrocosmic, but includes the microcosm as well. From this it can be seen that the Hexagram is similar to the Rosy Cross.

Crowley searched for a means to create a hexagram composed of only a single, continuous line. His efforts brought him to the unicursal hexagram, which further codifies the symbolism contained within the hexagram, the Rosy Cross, and the Ankh.

-this entry deserves more info-

Hexagram

2005-06-06T23:57:40Z

LVX23:

While the pentagram represents the microcosm, the hexagram can be said to represent the macrocosm. It's 6 points are accorded to the planetary bodies of Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sol, Venus, Mercury, and Luna. These in turn are related to 6 Sephiroth of the Tree of Life, as can be seen when aligning the Hexagram with the Central Pillar. If the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram is elemental magick, then the Lesser Ritual of the hexagram involves planetary magick, as covered in the Aurum Solis work.

Though it's often regarded as macrocosmic, closer inspection reveals that the hexagram is the union of elemental glyphs for Fire and Water and, as such, is also a symbol of the Great Work - the union of opposites. The symbol can be further analyzed to reveal the glyphs of Earth and Air as well, indicating that it's not simply macrocosmic, but includes the microcosm as well. From this it can be seen that the Hexagram is similar to the Rosy Cross.

Crowley searched for a means to create a hexagram composed of only a single, continuous line. His efforts brought him to the unicursal hexagram, which further codifies the symbolism contained within the hexagram, the Rosy Cross, and the Ankh.

-this entry deserves more info-

Hexagram

2005-06-06T23:57:21Z

LVX23:

While the pentagram represents the microcosm, the hexagram can be said to represent the macrocosm. It's 6 points are accorded to the planetary bodies of Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sol, Venus, Mercury, and Luna. These in turn are related to 6 Sephiroth of the Tree of Life, as can be seen when aligning the Hexagram with the Central Pillar. If the LRP is elemental magick, then the Lesser Ritual of the hexagram involves planetary magick, as covered in the Aurum Solis work.

Though it's often regarded as macrocosmic, closer inspection reveals that the hexagram is the union of elemental glyphs for Fire and Water and, as such, is also a symbol of the Great Work - the union of opposites. The symbol can be further analyzed to reveal the glyphs of Earth and Air as well, indicating that it's not simply macrocosmic, but includes the microcosm as well. From this it can be seen that the Hexagram is similar to the Rosy Cross.

Crowley searched for a means to create a hexagram composed of only a single, continuous line. His efforts brought him to the unicursal hexagram, which further codifies the symbolism contained within the hexagram, the Rosy Cross, and the Ankh.

-this entry deserves more info-

Hexagram

2005-06-06T23:56:38Z

LVX23:

While the pentagram represents the microcosm, the hexagram can be said to represent the macrocosm. It's 6 points are accorded to the planetary bodies of Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sol, Venus, Mercury, and Luna. These in turn are related to 6 Sephiroth of the Tree of Life, as can be seen when overlaying the Hexagram on the Tree. If the LRP is elemental magick, then the Lesser Ritual of the hexagram involves planetary magick, as covered in the Aurum Solis work.

Though it's often regarded as macrocosmic, closer inspection reveals that the hexagram is the union of elemental glyphs for Fire and Water and, as such, is also a symbol of the Great Work - the union of opposites. The symbol can be further analyzed to reveal the glyphs of Earth and Air as well, indicating that it's not simply macrocosmic, but includes the microcosm as well. From this it can be seen that the Hexagram is similar to the Rosy Cross.

Crowley searched for a means to create a hexagram composed of only a single, continuous line. His efforts brought him to the unicursal hexagram, which further codifies the symbolism contained within the hexagram, the Rosy Cross, and the Ankh.

-this entry deserves more info-

Hexagram

2005-06-06T23:56:19Z

LVX23:

While the pentagram represents the microcosm, the hexagram can be said to represent the macrocosm. It's 6 points are accorded to the planetary bodies of Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sol, Venus, Mercury, and Luna. These in turn are related to 6 Sephiroth of the Tree of Life, as can be seen when overlaying the Hexagram on the Tree. If the LRP is elemental magick, then the Lesser Ritual of the hexagram involves planetary magick, as covered in the Aurum Solis work.

Though it's often regarded as macrocosmic, closer inspection reveals that the hexagram is the union of elemental glyphs for Fire and Water and, as such, is also a symbol of the Great Work - the union of opposites. The symbol can be further analyzed to reveal the glyphs of Earth and Air as well, indicating that it's not simply macrocosmic, but includes the microcosm as well. From this it can be seen that the Hexagram is similar to the Rosy Cross.

Crowley searched for a means to create a hexagram composed of only a single, continuous line. His efforts brought him to the unicursal hexagram, which further codifies the symbolism contained within the hexagram, the Rosy Cross, and the Ankh.

Pentagram

2005-06-06T23:42:46Z

LVX23: /* The Pentagram and Thelema */

[[Image:Pentagram.gif||right]]
A '''pentagram''' or '''pentacle''' is a five-pointed star. Pentagrams were used symbolically in ancient Greece and Babylonia. The Pentagram has [[Magick|magical]] associations, and many people who practice [[paganism|pagan]] faiths wear them. [[Christianity|Christians]] once commonly used the pentagram to represent the five wounds of [[Jesus Christ]], but nowadays some Christians associate the symbol with [[Satanism]].

Some sources refer to the pentagram as the '''Star of [[Solomon]]'''.

The word ''pentagram'' comes from the [[greek language|Greek]] word πεντάγραμμον (''pentagrammon''), a [[noun]] form of πεντάγραμμος (''pentagrammos''), πεντέγραμμος (''pentegrammos'') a word meaning roughly "five-lined" or "five lines".

==History of the pentagram==

[[Image:Pentagram_agrippa.jpg|right|frame|Pentagram image from Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa's "Libri Tres de Occulta Philosophia" illustrating the golden symmetry of the human body. The signs on the perimeter are astrological.]]

The first uses of the pentagram we know of is in Mesopotamian writings dating to about 3000 B.C. The Sumerian pentagrams served as pictograms for the word UB; meaning "corner, angle, nook; a small room, cavity, hole; pitfall," suggesting something very similar to the pentemychos (see below on the Pythagorean use for what pentemychos means). In the [[Labat]] (dictionary of Sumerian hieroglyphs/pictograms) it is the number 306, and it is shown as being two points up. In the [[Babylonia]]n context, the edges of the pentagram were probably orientations: forward, backward, left, right, and "above". These directions also had an [[Astrology|astrological]] meaning, representing the five planets [[The Planets:Jupiter|Jupiter]], [[The Planets:Mercury|Mercury]], [[The Planets:Mars|Mars]] and [[The Planets:Saturn|Saturn]], and [[The Planets:Venus|Venus]] as the "Queen of Heaven" ([[Ishtar]]) above.

===The Pythagorean use of the pentagram===

The [[Pythagoras|Pythagoreans]] called the pentagram ύγιεια ''Hygieia'' ("health" also the Greek goddess of health, [[Hygieia]]), and saw in the pentagram a mathematical perfection: among other things, the pentagram hides the [[golden mean]], φ = (1+√5)/2 = 1.618…. When drawn with perfect angles each line is divided into several smaller segments, and if you divide the length of the longer segment with the shorter segment of any pair of segments you will get φ.

The five vertices were also used by the medieval neo-pythagoreans (whom one could argue were not pythagoreans at all) to represent the five [[Elements|Classical elements]]:

*ύδωρ, ''Hydor'', [[water]]
*Γαια, ''[[Gaia (mythology)|Gaia]]'' [[earth]]
*ίδέα, [[Idea]] or ίερόν, ''Hieron'' "a divine thing"
*έιλή, ''Heile'', [[heat]] ([[fire]])
*άήρ, ''Aer'', [[air]]

The vertices were labeled in the letters of υ-γ-ι-ει-α though the ordering (clockwise or counter-clockwise) used, and starting vertex, could vary.

[[Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa]], and others, recognized the letters as being the five beginning letters of the words: ''udor'' (water, often transliterated as hydor), ''ge'' (earth, Agrippa used gaia), ''idea'' (idea as in The [[Platonism|Platonic]] Idea), ''eile'' (sometimes written as heile, heat, it meant that in the Greek known to Agrippa), and ''aer'' (air). However, note that even if one uses the "elemental" scheme that Agrippa used, it's a definite stretch because it uses heat (heile), which is not an element but a quality OF the element fire. Had Agrippa used the Attic Greek, which is the language Pythagoreans back then actually spoke and wrote, he could have used (phonetic) "empreesis" for fire or conflagration.

The ancient, and one could argue real, Pythagorean pentagram was two points up and represented the doctrine of ''Pentemychos''. Pentemychos was the title of a work written by Pythagoras' teacher and friend Pherecydes of Syros. Pentemychos means five "recesses" or "chambers" also known as the pentagonas—the five-angle. (This is actually a lost book whose contents are preserved in ''Damascius de principiis'' (quoted in Kirk and Raven, The Pre-Socratic Philosophers, Cambridge Univ. Press, 1956, page 55). It was also the "place" where the first pre-cosmic offspring had to be put in order for the ordered cosmos to appear. The pentemychos is in Tartaros.

In very early Greek thought, Tartaros was the first existing Darkness from which the cosmos is born. While it was locked away after the emergence and ordering of the cosmos, it still continued to have an influence. In fact, it was known as "the subduer of both gods and men" ([[Homer]]), and it was from this that the world got its "psyche" (soul) and its "daimon". The Boundless Darkness held influence through Mychos or Krater. Apart from being the gateway from "there" to "here" it was also a way in the opposite direction, from "here" to "there", as is evident in the many tales about how Greek heroes, philosophers and mystics descended through Mychos/Krater to Tartaros/[[Hades]] (the distinction between the two was very optional back then) in quest for Wisdom. The Underworld as the source of wisdom was the rule.

The notion of Health that is within and inside a living being, is "bounded between the rings". According to myth, Tartaros was locked away by iron (fashioned by [[Zeus]]) and bronze (fashioned by Zeus' brother [[Poseidon]]. The iron of Zeus is the aither spoken of earlier ("space") and the bronze is demiurgos, or the waterforce which binds things into matter (Poseidon was often referred to as "he who shakens the earth" and the god Proteus, who carries the seals of Poseidon has ever since Antiquity been seen as a representation of matter.) To sum it up; even if seen as the medieval elements, Living Things are the things traveling the Wheel of Life, and ''not'' directly connected to or part of the Pythagorean pentagram itself, which is at their core in the center, a Core of Inner Being (the "soul" of "the stuff"). When one had Health, they were considered [[Zoös]] and in their hearts there was [[Eros (love)|Eros]] (the word did not mean "erotic" in the sense we mean it today at all). To not have Health was to be [[Thanatos]] - a word that does not exactly mean dead as in "dead and buried," but means dead inside but alive, like a shell.

This is an [[esoteric]] connection, but note that the Core is the Greek Goddess Kore (another name for [[Persephone]], alongside [[Hecate]] queen of the underworld), whose symbol was the apple. If you cut an apple transversally through its core, it reveals a pentagram. The apple is also still, despite Christian ideas over the years, a symbol of health. (An apple a day keeps the doctor away.)

==The Pentagram and Thelema==

In Thelema and much of western hermeticism, the pentagram is used to represent the microcosm - the earthly Kingdom of Malkuth. Traditionally, it represents the 4 elements - Fire, Air, Water, Earth - surmounted by the crown of Spirit (the inverted pentagram subjugates Spirit to the material world). Crowley has made many correspondences between these elements and various aspects of the Thelemic mythic complex, though it's perhaps best illustrated in his Thoth tarot. Though the pentagram is linear there is a constant flow and dynamic between the 5 elements that give rise to the foundations of human experience.

The most common application of this symbol within Thelemic magick is the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram. This deceptively simple ritual is used to invoke or banish a given element within a defined space, attuning the practitioner to the microcosm and drawing down the macrocosm. This daily practice is no less than the foundation of the Great Work - the spiritisation of matter and it's resultant exaltation. It can be regarded as the single most important ritual in Crowley's system.

==Satanic use of the pentagram==

[[Satanism|Satanists]] use the Pythagorean pentagram (one point down) inscribed in a double circle, with the head of [[Baphomet]] inside the pentagram. They use it much the same way as the Pythagorenas—after all, Tartaros does mean [[Hell]] in Christian teminology (the word is used as such in the Bible, referring to the place where the fallen angels are fettered). The pythagorean Greek letters are most oftenly replaced by the [[Hebrew alphabet|Hebrew]] letters לויתן forming the name [[Leviathan]]. Less esoteric Satanists ([[Anton Szandor LaVey|LaVeyan types]]; the ones that exist in abundance) merely use it as a sign of rebellion.

==See also==
*[[Pentagon]]
*[[Hexagram]]
*[[Symbols|List of symbols]]

==References==
* Agrippa, Heinrich Cornelius. ''[[Libri tres de occulta philosophia]]'' (book III, chapter xxxi).
* Cartari, Vincenzo. ''Le Imagini degli Dei degli Antichi''.
* Wikipedia (2004). [http://www.wikipedia.org/Pentagram Pentagram]. Retrieved Oct. 18, 2004.

==External links==
*[http://www.geocities.com/go_darkness/god-pythagorean-pentacle.html The Pythagorean Pentacle]
*[http://mathworld.wolfram.com/Pentagram.html The pentagram as geometry]
*[http://irelandsown.net/penta2.html The Pentagram by DMGould Ireland's Own Mytyhs & Magic:]
* [http://freemasonry.bcy.ca/anti-masonry/pentagram.html The Pentagram and Freemasonry]
*[http://users.ucom.net/~vegan/ Pythagoreanism Web Site]

[[Category:Symbols]]

Agapé

2005-06-06T23:30:20Z

LVX23:

Agape can be considered as a devotional love of adoration. Differing from romantic love, it is asexual by nature and is exemplified by the love of a devotee for their guru/patron/deity etc... Within Thelema it is often used to denote the Love that permeates and impels creation, filling the heart and eyes of the aspirant as they gaze upon the reflection of G_d in the Kingdom of Malkuth.

It's valuation using Greek gematria is 93 placing it squarely within Crowley's central maxim: "Love is the Law. Love under Will. Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law." It is indeed the devotional Love of agape that flows through the 93 Current.