Further Thoughts About Crystal Magic

I discussed the art of Crystal Magic in a previous blog article, but I didn’t really focus on it as an important part of the energy model of magic and I would like to address those ideas here. Crystals of various kinds have been an integral part of the magic that I work for many years, but I haven’t emphasized in print their importance to me, what I do with them magically, and the role that they play in the workings that I perform. Anyone who would carefully examine my personal magical temple would find a number of crystals placed at strategic locations. These are not used as New Age props nor do they function as interesting but useless esthetic “eye candy.” They have an important functional use in the magic that I work, but that importance is only made possible because of the way that I have developed the energy model of magic.

I started using crystals in my magical workings back in the early 70's. This was way before crystals became a big fad in the New Age community some years later. The way that I discovered crystal magic is an interesting tale all by itself. So, I should tell this tale since it does deviate considerably from how crystals came to be used by adherents of the New Age.

What was my source of inspiration? I blush to reveal that what inspired me was a daffy movie I loved and celebrated which came out during that time (1974). It was the movie “Zardoz” (believe it or not), and I the first time I saw it I was quite stoned. (A few of my friends have also told me this tale about seeing the movie while stoned, so maybe it’s part of the movie cult.)

The use of crystals in that movie were quite futuristic, or perhaps even based on pure fantasy, since the AI computer system (called the Tabernacle) that empowered the “Eternals” living in their isolated vortex was centrally stored in a large crystal diamond, and each “Eternal” had a smaller version of that crystal planted in their foreheads to facilitate a conscious link to that computer system. They also had a crystal ring that functioned as a kind of AI interface. The Tabernacle became the repository of all their knowledge and even their memories and personalities, and when one of them died, they were brought back to life with all their memories intact. They also remained in a state of perpetual youth, a kind of haunting image of pretty young lithe “ambisexual” adults living with the eyes and jaded sensibilities of a people hundreds of years old. 

I was quite fascinated by the various astonishing ideas and visions depicted in that movie, but I didn’t make the connection between crystals and magic until I went through a period of taking LSD while performing magical experiments not long afterwards. The whole premise of crystal magic that I use today was based on what I saw when playing with multifaceted man-made crystals along with small ultra-bright flashlights, strobe and black lights. I saw the lines of force being stored in the crystal, and I could not only enter into the crystal, but could replay certain ritual workings collected in it. It was revelatory, and the insights that I gleaned from these experience became the basis to the methodology that I developed for my version of crystal magic. I can say that having learned to see into crystals in this manner, I have retained that visual ability. Needless to say, it was quite different than what the New Age passed off as “crystal work.”

Anyway, for me to state that the basis of my techniques of crystal magic were based on some very fascinating hallucinations induced by several acid trips is probably not something that anyone would declare as the source of magical ideas or insights. However, this is the truth of the matter, and sometimes strange experiments done in the spectrum of the highly irrational can produce amazingly great results. I don’t recommend either myself or anyone else using this approach to magical experiments at the present time, since I am now of an age that such experiments would represent a potential mental or physical health hazard. Still, my magical system was founded on the enthusiasm of youthful experiments, when such actions are acceptable risks in the delusional mental background of immortality and invincibility that haunts the young. There was a bit of the Zardoz “Eternal” in what I was doing back then. Thankfully, I am more cautious today about engaging in such crazy exploits, but I am no less curious or optimistic - that part of me hasn’t changed.  

Let us start by examining the basic elements of crystal magic that I wrote up six years ago (found here) so we can then examine the attributes of a “strong” energy model of magic and how it works. I am taking the portion of text from this article that specifically deals with crystal magic, since it was well written and helped to define what crystal magic is and how it should work. I associate the crystal in magic as representing the element of spirit, as far as the elemental tools are concerned. I think that this association is intriguing and gives considerable creative flexibility for the use of crystals in the practice of magic. (Note: I have made some edits on the following text to improve its readability and deepen what is presented.)

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Spirit - Crystal or Stone - The quality of Spirit has some particular correspondences associated with it, and these are determined by the definition that Spirit is the unique joining of the previous four elements, producing a synthesis which is also their source. The crystal is uniquely qualified to fill this position, and has many useful and important magical properties. 

Crystals come in many different sizes, shapes, either naturally occurring or man-made; they have the variable qualities of hardness, cleavage, optical properties (clear, opaque, translucent, colored) and electrical conductivity. Some crystals have quite unique electrical qualities, such as quartz, which demonstrates piezoelectric phenomena (where mechanical stress produces electricity). Other crystals, such as germanium or silicon carbide, are used as semiconducting rectifiers, such as what has been used in the various layers of a computer chip. Crystals also exhibit the qualities of resonance and oscillation when a small current of electricity is passed through them (an anti piezoelectric effect). Thus, from a purely metaphysical perspective, crystals receive and store, unleash and vibrate or oscillate; these qualities make them uniquely useful in a magical context.

The basic magical premise of crystal magick is that a crystal can capture and contain the etheric or “fusion-like” energy that is produced in a magical ritual. This is particularly true when the ritual magician bases all of her workings on the prismatic ritual structure of the magnetic spiral vortex. Vibrating patterns of magical energy trace patterns within the crystal, and it can hold that energy indefinitely. That same energy can be retrieved or tapped by the will of the magician so that it can be replicated and projected into a magic circle for reuse. A crystal can accumulate the etheric energy tracings of many ritual workings so that over time it will house a representation of all of the workings that are performed in its presence.

So a crystal can act as a kind of magical memory receptacle, holding the energy until it’s needed or discharged by the magician. From a magickal perspective, crystals can be natural (hopefully, ethically harvested) or man-made. Each crystal has a unique magical effect depending on its shape, size, clarity, color, facet characteristics and whether it is natural, manufactured, or made from molded and polished, lead crystal glass. All of these crystal types are useful in ritual magick, and the only factor is the esthetic sensibilities and tastes of the magician. Cleaning a crystal in salt water will clear it of all influences, yet anointing it with oil or a liquid sacrament does just the opposite - empowering and emphasizing a certain event.

Crystals have the following qualities:

Collectors of magical power - not only do they collect the light frequencies of discrete magical workings, they can store them almost indefinitely, allowing the magician to retrieve either part or the full energy signature of a specific spell performed in its midst. (This can be done multiple times with the same specific energy signature. This would indicate that retrieval doesn’t necessarily discharge what is stored in the crystal.)

Emitters of magical power - crystals not only collect magical power, but they also can transmit that power as well. What is transmitted appears to be more similar to the “information” attribute of a magical power instead of actual magical energy. The energy signature is what is emitted from the crystal, and this seems to become an actual energy field when projected into a consecrated magical circle.

Processors of magical power - multiple magical workings stored in a crystal can be condensed averaged, summed and even multiplied. A magician can retrieve certain aspects or a ritual working to examine independently from the rest of the stored signature. 

Crystal magic as I employ it uses three crystals strategically placed in the magical temple, and these are used in a specific functional manner. These are:

1. Base Crystal or Collector - This is a large crystal, usually natural and consisting of many terminated points. Can be clear, smokey quartz, or of any color, as long as it retains some clarity, allowing light to pass through it. The collector crystal is kept either on or at the foot of the main altar. The collector is used as a kind of recording system for any and all magical rituals performed in the temple. It can recall any part of any ritual performed, recall a series of rituals in a working, or process the magical power collected to extract the overall meaning of a single or multiple workings.

2. Controller or Transformation Crystal - This is a small crystal that is worn around the magician’s neck on a necklace. The controller is a crystal that records the impression and energies associated with the individual magician. The controller can automatically or on command draw and direct power from the collector into itself for the magician to use at any given moment, regardless of the actual physical distance between them. The controller can be worn underneath a shirt or blouse when the magician is in the mundane world, allowing him/her to access and project magical power from the temple complex while far outside of its normal influence. When used during an evocation using both the energy and spirit models, it is called the “crystal of transformation,” since it assists the wearer to fully experience the domain of the spirit that is invoked. It helps to process the phenomenon of evocation so that it is instantly intelligible and meaningful to the magician.

3. Transmutar - this is a wand or stave that has a small crystal affixed to its tip. The transmutar wand is a specialized hybrid tool used in energy magic. It is the curious amalgamation of a wand and dagger, thus it can function as either one or both simultaneously. The transmutar wand can draw power into itself or send it out using either the controller or collector crystals. There is a strong connection between these three crystals and they function as a single unit when a magician wields them in a magic circle. The transmutar wand is used to project energy and information to a given target, make lines of force, invoke or evoke spirits, or even defend the magician from any hazards (just like the wand and the dagger).

The transmutar wand is also a powerful emitter, drawing magical power into itself and amplifying it into the temple confines or to a specific target. Because of its obvious nature, a transmutar wand is usually used in a temple or a grove, but it can be hidden on the person of the magician and used in the mundane world, like the controller crystal necklace. The transmutar wand is the instrument that is used by the magician to access the base crystal, recall previous energy structures, and re-emit them into the magick circle, condense them with other structures or even erase them.

How I achieve this interaction with crystals is through a process of employing sensitive touch and focused visualization projected into the crystal. Sometimes it helps to have a very bright LED with a very narrow focus or a LASER light source to aid this process. Strobe lights and black lights can also be used to access the contents of a crystal, if you have the ability to creatively visualize. Once a magician is able to readily sense, touch and visualize the magical energies stored in a crystal, it then becomes a natural part of his or her regimen.

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Crystals and the Energy Model

The use of crystals in magic relies heavily on various premises established in the energy model of magic. Without a strong definition of the energy model then the whole basis of these techniques becomes meaningless. The media that is captured, refracted, processed and emitted from crystals is magical energy. The definition of magical energy has many different frames of reference, whether it is an actual energy unknown as of yet to science or representing something of a metaphor for a process that resides wholly and independently in consciousness. What seems to determine the amplitude of magical energy is more driven by the magician’s emotions and feelings than by anything that might be capable of being measured or controlled, such as capacitors, resistors and the like.

Since crystals also seem to store the information or the essence (signature) of a thing or process, one could also say that the information model of magic is also used by this powerful magical tool. Crystals are unique because as a tool, they straddle more than one magical model. The energy and information models are used, but then so is the psychology model, since one must use the “As If’ formula to actually make a crystal perform as required. If the crystal is a smooth ball or an oblong shape it becomes a window (or even a repository) into the Spirit World, thus additionally harnessing the spirit model of magic. The fact that crystals can bridge all of these models of magic individually or simultaneously makes them uniquely suited as the most excellent magical tool . 

While the belief in a collective magical energy field has been around since the beginning of human consciousness, being variously called Mana, Chi, Vital force, Life-Force, among others, the belief in individual based energy (or energy generated from a person’s body) is more recent. Added to the metaphorical layers of the meaning of magical energy or power are many of the characteristics of electromagnetism, even though such a borrowing is not accepted as fact by science. My opinion is that both individual and collective definitions of magical energy or power are useful and important, as well as the other aggregated metaphors that we use to describe something that is tangible to the senses but not empirical in the laboratory. One of the more mysterious attributes of magical power is that it seems to extend lines of force that connects everyone and everything into a holistic union. I saw this phenomenon early on when I was working magic as a youth, so it was for me not some Neoplatonic pipe dream but a real characteristic of magical power and magic in general. This would indicate to me that what I am experiencing and perceiving is more of a “collective” energy model, since it readily extends far beyond myself.

We are all part of the web of magical energy, and that allows for a certain interaction between individuals and even inanimate objects. I can still see these lines of force today, although it helps me greatly if the lighting is dim (indoors) or spectrally illuminated by moonlight or firelight (outdoors). Whenever I would connect with one of these lines of force I immediately felt a kind of link between myself and to whomever or whatever the line was connected. These lines of force also led to me realize that behind the individuality of everything there was a point where all lines converged. I realized then that in this interconnected web was a unified source, which I emotionally experienced as ecstasy or ultimate power. At that time I had never read any Plato and I was probably not up to reading anything so intellectual or complex. It was a natural experience for me, and one that I always associated with my energy model of magic.

Magical power is never static. It is always in movement. Even when I peer into my crystals to see the lines of force they are in constant movement. The prismatic energy fields that I experience when working energy based forms of magic are also moving, fluctuating, vibrating, pulsating and seemingly forever forming new connections and lattice structures or disappearing or dissolving old connections. When I concentrate magical power in my body, focusing it in my hands or feet, it causes them to feel the vibrations and pulsations of that energy. My hands shiver and shake, and my body moves, sometimes causing me to briefly dance so as to express the energy that I am feeling. Utilizing this model to directly “feel” and “experience” magical power in the body as an individual is even more heightened and amazing when working forms of sexual magic with a partner. This kind of energy based magic powerfully impacts the body, and it is there that the most fundamental of magical changes can be made.

I have already written quite a number of articles about the energy model of magic in my blog, and you can find an index for all 14 of them following this link.

Lines of force, geometric prismatic energy shapes, vortices, pylons, pyramids, gateways - these are some of the many magical energy patterns that I have developed and use with the energy model of magic. All of these qualities are perceived, recorded, processed and emitted through the use of crystals in a form of crystal magic. Crystals are just another magical tool, but they are associated with the element of spirit, and this makes them capable of working and channeling all four elements, including the union of the elements known as Spirit. Crystals are the quintessential element in the magician’s repertoire of magical tools. I have performed some of my workings using only a transmutar wand, dispensing with wooden wands, daggers, swords, and staffs. The crystal has an earth based attribute, particularly if it a natural crystal, and it also seems to be like a liquid frozen into solidity, thus emulated the earth and water elements. Dipping a crystal into a chalice of sacramental wine or touching a sacramental host assists it to capture the signature of that magical sacrament. This use causes the crystal to function as another tool type, and that is a magical reliquary - another topic we should discuss in the future.

As you can see, crystals are eminently useful to a magician, and they are a key instrument employed in my extended version of the energy model of magic.

Frater Barrabbas

Temple Architecture - Why and Wherefore - Part 2

A Temple Shrine

 This is the second part of the two part series on temple architecture. This article concerns itself with the more advanced architecture needed for working advanced ritual magick. 

Temple Architecture for Advanced Ritual Magick

Once you get past the basic workings and start performing more elaborate ordeals, such as those that are practiced in the Order of the Gnostic Star, then you will require some additional tools, but these can be either made or purchased by you without jeopardizing your monthly budget. Additionally, you might find that performing more elaborate ritual workings might require somewhat more temple space, which would be a consideration. These extra tools are particularly used in the ritual workings of invocation, evocation and more advanced types of workings. Having a separate room of some kind makes these kinds of working far less intrusive then they might be otherwise.

Central Altar: Whether you decided to place your altar in the center of the circle or not, to work more advanced ritual workings, you will need to have a special small altar in the center of the circle. I typically use a small folding table, which I can remove if I need more space in that area. If you have placed your simple altar in the center of the circle, you will have to move it to one of the watchtowers, if possible. The central altar is used for establishing a powerful focus at that point in the magick circle, and this is important for invocation and evocation magick, as well as all forms of talismanic magick. Having a central altar is a way of being able to accumulate magickal tools and devices within the inner magick circle, when that structure becomes important to the magick that you might perform.

Watchtower Altars: More advanced magical workings require the building up and the focusing of certain activities at each of the cardinal points. The four Angles will still need to be marked, but the Watchtowers now assume a more important and layered kind of ritual structure, similar to what was done by having a central altar. Correspondences can now be placed at each of the Watchtowers so as to establish a greater and permanent kind of magical power associated with each. These tables can be quite small, but they have the added advantage of being able to hold multiple open flames or oil lamps without endangering oneself. In my temple, I actually use lamps that have each of their glass shields tinted to one of the four colors that are used as representations for the four Elements, so that they illuminate the colors that I use for symbolizing the Watchtowers. By doing this, I have added the correspondence of color to the Watchtowers. Also, in my temple, I have arranged my furniture so that I also have some kind of table space for the four Angles as well. Yet this has made the periphery of the temple a bit crowded with furniture, but it does work out quite well, ensuring that the lamps placed in the Angles are elevated.

Temple Shrine: A temple shrine is a table that is placed at one of the four Watchtowers to hold the statues, symbols and offerings for the magician’s personal pantheon of Gods and Goddesses. Offerings include flowers, incense, food and drink, as well as some kind of vigil lights. I have actually placed three animated statues on my shrine, which represent my three personal Goddesses who powerfully operate in my personal magick. Before I perform any kind of magical operation, I often say a Mass and feed these statues, so as to awaken and fortify them.

Trigons and Gate Keys: I have found that the use of charged and consecrated trigons and the three gate keys are quite strategic in the advanced workings that I perform. A trigon can be placed on one of the four Watchtower altars, or the central altar if it is to be used in conjunction with an inner circle ritual structure. A trigon can even be used as a base for standing on during a godhead assumption, where all of the chakras would be super-charged and imprinted by the figures and devices painted on its surface. Gate keys are talismanic images placed at each of the three gate points for a Gateway ritual structure. When deploying a Gateway ritual structure, I often place a Tarot trump over the gate key so as to further qualify them as I place them on altars at the periphery of the magick circle.

How I came up with the name that I use for a trigon is that it’s based upon the very first trigon that I developed so many years ago. It consisted of the symbolic structures of a circle containing an equal-lateral triangle depicted upon a rectangular piece of wood. The trigon is typically made out of wood and is a rectangle measuring 18 inches long and 14.5 inches high. The trigon is typically painted a flat black for the background, and has the designs and other decorations painted over it. I usually either spray the trigon with a protective latex covering, or brush over the dried and finished design with a glossy clear latex gel.

In my collection of trigons I have created one for each of the four Watchtowers and I also have one that is used specifically for Godhead assumption. I have trigons that are used in the central magical circle, and they incorporate the star pattern designs of the Septagram, Eneagram, Undecigram (eleven pointed star) and the Quintedecigram (septagram enclosed within an octagon).

As for the gate keys, some years ago I devised three gate keys and then manufactured them. I used three blocks of wood that were approximately 3.5 × 7 × 1 inches (being length, height and width, respectively); and upon a flat black background I painted the magical squares and sigils to empower them. Over the years that I have used these gate keys, I have found them to be quite powerful and extremely useful. Having a special marker for each of the three gateway points is also an important feature in my system of magick, since it helps one to be visually aware of the overlaying of the previous ritual structures with that of the gateway ritual structure.

Other Considerations: An elaborate temple can have some additional features, which I have found to be both useful and esthetically pleasing. When I lived in apartments, I would use the master bedroom in a multi bedroom apartment for the temple, and in some cases, this master bedroom came with an adjoining bathroom as well. You could sequester yourself in the master bedroom temple space and have access to the bathroom to perform your magical ablutions (taking a sumptuous bath for cleansing and anointing) without ever having to either leave or re-enter the temple confines. Once the door was closed, I wouldn’t have to re-emerge until the magical work was completed.

A painted or tiled magick circle graphically depicted on the temple floor is another one of those esthetically pleasing tools that I would love to own. Early in my magical career, I had an elaborate magick circle painted on two sheets of very thin particle board, and these were nailed to the floor. Of course, since that time, I have mostly lived in apartments that had wall to wall carpeting. So such a split circle painting proved to be not very practical, since it couldn’t be easily secured to the floor, and I didn’t want to punch holes through the carpet and into the floor boards using nails. I also had to tape the two halves together, and this required constant maintenance because the tape would loose its adhesion over time.

I quickly abandoned that large painted circle even though it was quite beautiful. However, it was awkward, required regular maintenance and it was difficult to move around. An alternative to such a contraption would be to use some kind of canvas floor cover with a circle painted over it, but I never found anything that would really work for me. Perhaps the optimum would be to have a special tiled floor installed with a magick circle depicted on it as a kind of beautiful mosaic. That would certainly be costly (and permanent), but it would also be highly esthetic, at least to me.

A more elaborate temple would also have corresponding elaborate decorations. You could put up appropriate pictures, have banners in the East and West, floor length curtains, veiled sections of the temple, black and white pillars (either painted or constructed) on either side of the altar. Instead of using pillars, I have a decorated obelisk placed in the center of the circle. I also use various natural and faceted crystals in my magick, including the use of a crystal wand (transmutar wand), crystal athame, base crystal (placed on or below the main altar) and a large crystal on a necklace (controller or transformation crystal). I have previously posted an article about how I use crystals in my ritual magick, and you can read that here. Additional esthetic elements would be colored lights, a strobe light, a stereo system (for music - a very important element indeed), and lots of handy storage areas for all the supplies and various accouterments used in the performance of ritual magick. Keep in mind that I like having everything that I need around me in case it might be needed, even if it wasn’t actually called for in the ritual text.   

Still other additional tools that are good to have around would be a nice collection of swords and daggers, an assortment of wands for various uses, a staff or two, a besom for ritual cleansing, and a Mass kit. If you are going to say a Mass as part of your magical regimen (and this is required in the magick of the Order of the Gnostic Star), then you will need a special set of tools and vestments. A basic Mass kit consists of a golden chalice, paten, a pix (small golden container used to store hosts), cruets (for the wine and water), and some vestments for the chalice and paten. These vestments are the corporal, purificator, the pall, the chalice veil, and the burse (for carrying the unconsecrated hosts). 

The corporal is a piece of plain white cloth that is 15 inches square, and this cloth is laid down on the center of the altar cloth, and the chalice is placed upon it. The purificator is a plain white cloth that is about 14 inches long and 9 inches wide. It is folded three times along its length, becoming a narrow band of cloth that is 14 inches by 3 inches. The purificator is used to wipe the fingers, mouth, cleaning and drying the mass chalice. The purificator is placed on the top of the chalice, with its ends hanging equally over either side. The patten is placed on top of purificator, centered over the chalice. The pall is a double piece of linen about 5 to 7 inches square, and has a piece of flat cardboard inserted into it, to stiffen it. The pall is placed on top of the patten, purificator and chalice. It’s used to cover the hosts that are placed on the patten prior to saying mass. The chalice veil is placed over the pall, veiling the chalice completely. The chalice veil is often made out of the same material and color as the special mass vestments.

There are also vestments that the celebrant wears to perform a Mass. These would be, at the very least, a chasuble, cincture and a stole. The stole is a long strip of cloth about 3 to 4 inches wide and from 7 to 8 feet in length, made of the same material as the chasuble. The stole is worn centered around the neck, across the shoulders, crossed over the chest and fastened in place with the cincture, which is a cord worn around the waist. The cincture is a thick cord with tasseled ends that’s usually four to five yards in length. It’s doubled around the waist, tied in the front, and the ends are tucked at either side so they don’t interfere with walking and moving. Over the stole and the cincture is placed the chasuble, which is a poncho like covering that has a hole for the head and neatly lays over the shoulders and down on both the back and front, covering the inner robe almost to the feet. The chasuble is usually worn over an inner robe (called the alb, because it was white), but I typically wear my working robe as my inner robe in these situations.

As you can see, more advanced and elaborate ritual workings require more tools, equipment, furniture, vestments and other supplies. Adopting this system of magick will ultimately require a large room to perform the rituals and store all of the furniture and equipment. In the days when I lived in apartments, I would typically look for one that had at least two bedrooms, and that the master bedroom would be roughly 13 square feet (4 meters), or slightly more. I have found that many two bedroom apartments have a master bedroom that is at least this size. In fact, I even found an appropriate sized affordable apartment when I lived in Santa Fe, which was a very restrictive and expensive housing market. So I believe that finding a suitable place to live and also have access to a large enough temple is quite achievable, depending on your budget and living arrangements.

Of course, if you are thinking of hosting a group in your temple, then having more space is even more of a requirement. The above dimensions for a standard temple that would make use of the space in a typical two bedroom apartment would only be sufficient to house a handful of members, and we are talking about maybe two or three people actively performing ritual in the temple space. You might get a few more people in that space, but they would have to be consigned to the temple’s periphery, either standing or sitting on a cushion so there would still be enough room for ritual activities.

If you had a group of more than five individuals, then you would need to add and extend a few more feet to the dimensions of the temple. Finding an apartment with a master bedroom that large would be difficult and quite probably hard to afford. This is where the group would have to consider pooling their resources and renting a separate space for group ritual activities.

All you really need is a large room and some storage space, and that’s it. However, you would have to equip this temple with everything needed, and it would have to be in a secure and relatively quiet location. This might be a rather expensive and involved proposition for any group to contemplate. However, depending on the number of members and their level of financial commitment, enforcing a strict payment of monthly dues might be able to cover such an expense without it becoming a financial burden to any of the members. Having the use of an external temple space that is not attached to one’s living space could also be used by individuals performing their own personal magick. Such a convenience might be well worth paying into a financial pool that would be used to rent and equip an external temple for individual and collective use. 

Temple of My Dreams

I am lucky that I have had access for many years to a temple that has allowed me to work fairly elaborate rituals and even involve a few friends in that magick. My current home has both an indoor temple (with a fire place) and an outdoor grove that is completely sequestered. However, the home that I own was not designed specifically with a temple in mind, so it has some irregularities and slight inconveniences, such as the fact that the temple space isn’t rectangular and there is no adjoining bathroom with a large tub, which is something that I do occasionally miss.

So if I were a rich man and money wasn’t a concern, what kind of temple living complex would I design? In other words, what is my optimum fantasy in regards to a temple. I have had my dream temple in my mind for many years, but I have never had either the opportunity or the money to make it a reality. Considering my age and the financial restrictions of retirement, I doubt that I will have such an opportunity in the future, either. Yet putting aside all of the practical considerations and other reasons why such a dream temple could never be realized, I would like to share that dream temple with you. Who knows, maybe someday, some wealthy magician will incorporate my dream temple into their building plans.

The most elaborate temple complex that I have considered is one where each cardinal direction or Watchtower would have its own complete magick circle and central altar complex. So there would be four complete magick circles each with their own Watchtowers and Angles, and these four magick circles would intersect to form a large central magick circle, with its own altar, shrine and other furniture. All five central altars would be fully equipped with their own chalices and patens, lamps of art, daggers, swords, wands, staffs, and any other equipment needed to work magick. The central magick circle would house the pantheon shrine and represent the central or core magical work. The four outlying Watchtower circles would represent an Element based magical system, such as what I have called the Tetrasacramentary, which would be a entire system of magick for each element sacramental system.

Certain classes of rites would be performed at one of the outlying Watchtower circle complexes, and elaborate rites involving a synthesis of all four would be performed in the central circle complex. Each Watchtower circle complex would have its own coordinated colors for the altar cloths and decorations, making each nearly a distinct and separate temple, or four temples in one. I actually have a system of magick called the Tessarenoi (Greek for Four Temples) that works a complete ordeal for each of the four sacramental systems. The fifth sacramental system has the emblem of the Star, and symbolizes all four sacraments merged into quintessence. When I work with these systems of magick, I perform them within the same temple complex - only the vestments, sacraments and some decorations are changed. In my ideal environment, I would use a separate temple complex to work each one.  

Therefore, my dream temple consists of a building whose main design would be an equal arm cross. The center would be occupied by the central magick circle temple complex, and the four wings would house the four Watchtower circle temple complexes. I would also install a system of portable walls, so that each wing could be isolated from the rest of the structure if that was required. By opening or closing the portable walls, the wings and the central area could become separate chambers or a single massive temple area, shaped like an equal arm cross. Additionally, each wing would be decorated and the walls painted an element color, and the tile floor would also be of a matching color. I would want vaulted ceilings in the wings, and a circular skylight in the central temple. The windows in the wings would be high, circular shaped, and filled with appropriately colored stained glass. The lighting would be computer controlled and would consist of a combination of indirect lighting and strategically placed spotlights, some of which would use colored filters. There would also be a digital sound system, with hidden speakers placed in all four wings and in the central area, as well as a video recording system that would cover every area of the temple complex.

An example of such a temple complex can be found in the horror movie “Masque of the Red Death,” which is a 1964 Vincent Price movie. Surrounding the great ball room are a series of four temples devoted to various spiritual perspectives, and painted and decorated in a single color. The last temple in the series, which is colored black, was dedicated to the Devil himself. My dream temple is somewhat based on that series of different colored temples depicted in that movie.

The temple would also house a large elaborate bathing facility, with showers, wardrobes, and a large Jacuzzi pool conveniently located in adjacently to the equal-arm temple complex.

As for living space, I would choose to locate that in a separate building altogether, with an enclosed walk-way between the temple building and the residence. The living space would be able to accommodate several adults comfortably. Bedrooms would consist of small simple sleeping cells, with most of the living space allocated to the dining room, kitchen, meeting rooms and the library. There would also be a recreation room to watch video, listen to music, play games and just socialize. If this residence sounds like an elaborate and expensive kind of magical monastery, then that would a good label for it. I could also imagine that the location for this place would somewhere in the pristine mountains, so that one could easily find amazing vistas at any time of the day or night.

So that’s my dream temple, and if you inspired by it, maybe it could be your dream temple as well. I doubt if I will ever get to realize this amazing place in the material world, but it is a place that I do seem to visit, sometimes even often, in my dreams and astral projections.

Frater Barrabbas