Foundation of the Four Ecclesias in the Order of the Gnostic Star

 

Gnosis, in its more modern definition, and the four Ecclesias, temples, or churches are a feature of much of the inner order work of the Order of the Gnostic Star. It is used in most of the ordeals and workings that span the fourth-degree through the seventh, and even beyond into the mythical eighth-degree. However, there was very little documentation that defined this archetypal structure, nor any kind of explanation as to its importance and how it fits into the Order’s symbolic correspondences.

I have written this article to help to define the four Ecclesias and to show their importance and ubiquity within the workings of the Order. I believe, however, that what has precedence in the Order can certainly be applied to other traditions and be shown to have a universal utility in the Western Mystery tradition. I will need to define the term gnosis in how it is used in modern ritual magic, and also discuss the four archetypal religious and magical philosophies that underlie nearly everything that is associated with the practice of ritual magic. Gnosis is an important key, as anyone can imagine, and it does not relate well to the gnostic beliefs of late antiquity - this is a break with the past representing a uniquely modern approach.

Since the pattern of four and five in occult correspondences has a wide association with nearly every aspect of occult philosophy and magic, extending it to qualified philosophical approaches and developing liturgical and magical rites and rituals to accommodate them has been the approach that the Order had taken to best represent the full spectrum of its ordeals and practices. This body of lore, grouped under each of the four Ecclesias, are called sacramentaries, which is the name used by the early Christian church to designate the book of rites and liturgies used to celebrate the full practical application of the clerical elite. The Order has picked this definition for the works associated with the four Ecclesias, and an extensive body of lore was developed to support them.

Introduction - What is Gnosis to Ritual Magicians?

The academic study of Gnosticism examines the beliefs and practices of the various groups and institutions in late antiquity that were based on the tenets of Neoplatonism and Neopythagorianism, which later produced the medieval philosophical systems of the Jewish Kabbalah, Christian and Islamic Hermeticism, practical and esoteric astrology, ceremonial magic, alchemy and occultism. Those who practice these arts today owe a great debt to the brilliant minds who built and developed them, although many of their names and identities are obscured or lost in the passage of time. However, classical Gnosticism, as practiced by the Sethians, the students of Valentinus, Marcion, Simon Magus, or a myriad of others, proposed that nature was corrupt and the source of evil in the world because it was formulated by a flawed and deluded godhead who was not the originator of the perfect spiritual creation called the Pleroma or Fullness. The myths of the Hebrew Bible were turned upside down in an antinomian exposition that was both startling and bizarre to later accepted orthodox theologies.

This antinomian perspective produced a kind of dualistic theology that promoted spirit over matter and thereby rejected the material world and its predicaments. The spiritual nature of humanity was believed to be trapped in the material world and needed to be redeemed so that it could escape the material world and the tyranny of the Demiurge, the deluded godhead who kept it imprisoned. While we can understand and perhaps appreciate the perspectives of the Gnostics of antiquity and realize that Neoplatonic Christianity, which produced these variations, had many different theologies and spiritual perspectives in its genesis, in our modern world occultists need a completely different approach that is more in tune with our post modern world. This is particularly true for those who espouse an earth-based spirituality. It is also important to subscribe to an occult philosophy that is ultimately non-dual, positive, constructive and life-affirming.

A question that must be answered, however, is whether the concept of gnosis, as it was defined in late antiquity is still relevant today. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines the word gnosis in the following manner.

Gnosis - “esoteric knowledge of spiritual truth held by the ancient Gnostics to be essential to salvation”

The Greek definition of the word gnosis is ‘knowledge’ yet it was defined as a special kind of knowledge, and it was considered a mystical knowledge based on direct experience with the divine. I believe that this definition is still relevant, especially if we understand that mystical or esoteric knowledge is something that a person must fully experience in order to realize it. This is not the kind of knowledge that can be conveyed by books or teachers. It must be experienced by the individual, and therefore, it is very subjective, individual, intimate, and inexplicable. Perhaps this is why the writings of the Gnostics were so difficult to understand or unusual, since they were based on individual visionary experiences of divine revelations.

I would define gnosis in the following manner. Gnosis is defined as the intuitive apperception of Spirit and its Mystery. While it is based on the beliefs, training, and prior experiences that the individual undergoing gnosis possesses, it is also characterized by new insights, visions and revelations that ultimately instruct one with newly acquired ideas and translations of existing knowledge. While gnosis might seem to be the proclivity of the mystic or the spiritual seeker, it is also within the purview of the ritual magician who is practicing any kind of theurgistic magic involving Deity. A magical engagement of Deity will produce the realization of gnosis in the experiential field of the ritual magician. In fact, for any kind of progressive initiatory process that a ritual magician might be engaged in, whether traditional or extemporaneous, gnosis will be a key part of their practice and spiritual process.

I believe that gnosis is an important key in the practice of ritual magic because it is revelatory, instructive, progressive, and leads to the development of new lore and expanded practices. It is for this reason that all my magical workings, initiations, philosophy and foundational beliefs are involved with forms of personal gnosis that are used to stimulate growth and produce a greater understanding of oneself and the world at large. It is important to experience gnosis in magical workings and ordeals, but it is also important to analyze, examine, and where possible, corroborate those revelations and insights with what is already known, whether in books, traditional teachings, or the affirmation of peer review.

Revelation of the Four Gnostic Philosophies

My own repeated gnostic experiences engaging with Deity in my magical workings have revealed to me a simple philosophy that has allowed me to organize the various religious and occult perspectives of the Western Mystery tradition into a simple set of binary structures. All of these are based on the fundamental modern Pagan perspective that existence on this planet represents the interaction and confluence of light and darkness, life and death. It is also determined by the idea of thesis, antithesis and synthesis. It is the joining of the archetypal masculine and feminine to produce both the offspring of creation and the essence of union, however brief, to emulate the greater mystery. All polarities resolve themselves into union, and union is the source of all polarities. There is the One, there is the None, and there are the Many, and they are connected in a web of conscious meaning and significance. It is the nature of the process of material nature and spirit, which both emanate from a common source.

This process is known as the way of all things, and it is called the Tao (path or way) in Chinese philosophy, whose origins can be traced to religious philosophies of Darshan (insight into the nature of reality) in India. This is analogous to the concept of the Prisca Theologica that developed out of the study of Hermeticism during the Renaissance. What these different perspectives have in common is that there is a source to everything that is intrinsic, essential to nature and spirit, and that it is found where all things converge in union into a singular One, which is changeless, immutable and all pervading. It is the particular phenomenon of the material and spiritual universes, and it is invested in the consciousness of all sentience.

With these basic principles in mind, the domains of religion, mysticism, and magic can be seen as a simple four-fold distinction. These are exemplified as polarities, even dualities, although they are ultimately dissolved into the One.

Therefore, Life is contrasted to Death. Individual Will is contrasted to Sodality, and these four ideas represent four distinct spiritual perspectives that are archetypal and occur in combination in the religions of the West, and perhaps also in the World.

I have given the name to the religious philosophy of Life as Eros, representing the elements of procreation, ecstasy, material bounty, and the mystery of creation and birth. Eros is the philosophical and religious celebration of life in all its manifestation, thus making the occurrence of life sacred and the act of creation a religious rite. Life affirmation, joy, ecstasy, creation, agriculture and its bounty, renewal, the healing arts and the Hippocratic oath are the religious beliefs and practices of this religious philosophy. The sacralization of sexual union and its holy products would represent the core practice of this magical and religious philosophy. The hieros gamos would be the apex rite, and the visions of healing wisdom, and the fertility rites of agriculture and animal husbandry would round out the practices of this religious philosophy. The religious Deities of Eros would be Aphrodite, Eros, Demeter, Artemis, Dionysus, Zeus (as progenitor), Asclepius, Hygeia, Priapuis, Pan and Plutus.

Correspondingly, I have given the name to the religious philosophy of Death as Thanatos, representing the truth and sobering realization that all life must end in death, and that preparation for that event, and its requirement for balance, abstinence, atonement, forgiveness, material renunciation, redemption, and sobriety is significantly important. Thanatos also represents transformation, charity, humility, asceticism, self-denial, temperance and compassion for the widow and the orphan. While requiem rites are to aid the living to deal with the loss caused by death, the Bardo aids and assists the individual in making the transition from life to death more acceptable and less traumatic. The Elusian Mysteries were a way that the living could accommodate the reality of death, but also the domain of dreams, sleep, and even ecstasy (little death) could be considered elements of this religious philosophy. The religious Deities of Thanatos would be Hades, Poseidon, Thanatos, Persephone, Ker, Nyx, Hypnos, Erebus, and Morpheus.

Different than either Life or Death are the antipodal religious philosophies of Individual Will and Sodality. These are humanistic activities that occur in the social domain of humanity, but they are represented by opposing and polarized religious and philosophical perspectives. These different perspectives represent the belief in the destiny and the outcome of the individual, shown as the Hero, Warrior, Great Statesman, King, Teacher, Artisan, Poet, or Philosopher, and the belief in the collective accomplishments of the social organization, the promotion of collective action, projects, and the social forces of democracy, justice, equality, government institutions, and law enforcement. We see this polarity not only in religious philosophy, but also in local and collective politics, media and cultural phenomena.

The destiny of individuals and the celebration of the will to power I have given the name Thelema, which means ‘will’ in Greek. This represents the fact that all sentient beings are given the freedom to choose their path and forge their own destiny, with certain material, social and psychological limitations. This is the religious philosophy of the mythic Hero who has a myriad of faces and roles in the history of the human race. Despite the collective nature of human existence, there have been and will likely always be individuals who will powerfully shape the world in which we live, for good or ill. Tied to this religious philosophy is the transformative cycle of the Hero, and its association with the initiation and apotheosis of the individual. Awards, recognition, election, fame, infamy, and the development of personal power and wealth are very much a part of this pathway. It is the temple of the individual genius, and immortalizing of mortal men and women. The religious Deities of Thelema would be Ares and Nike  at one extreme, and Hermes at the other, populated by Heros, some of whom became Gods, such as Heracles, Achilles, Perseus, Bellerophon, Odysseus, Theseus, Orpheus and Atalanta.

Contrasted to Thelema is the religious philosophy of the masses, the social organizations that have helped humanity survive and thrive. From this perspective, the individual is not as important as the group, and that the greatest achievements produced by humanity have been done through the social organization and the combined efforts of many individuals. It is the sodality of human kind that have made the most collective and constructive changes in the world, from the most distant times in our history to today.

Along with this ideal of collective effort is also collective support, which functions as the humanizing and social equality that proposes the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the individual. While collective actions have accomplished the construction of great cities and edifices of note over the ages, like the seven wonders of the ancient world, they have also accomplished great destruction through conquest and war. However, the religious philosophy of Sodality, which I have called Agape, is a fundamental constructive force of good and progress, relying on group consensus, democracy, justice, equality to achieve a harmonious union and cooperative action. This religious philosophy is driven by compassion for the needy and the bereft, and seeks to uplift everyone to a better level of existence, leaving none to fall behind. Agape, which is the Greek word for ‘love’, represents the power that unites individuals into groups, nations and ultimately, planetary species and beyond. It’s ultimate goal is Utopia for everyone, where all human needs and wants, within limits, can be uniformly achieved. The religious Deities of Agape would be Apollo, Zeus, Hera, Athena, Eunomia, Themis, Eleos, Epiphron and Hestia.  

These four religious philosophies, Eros, Thanatos, Thelema and Agape, as defined, represent the archetypal systems present in the various religions of the West. These archetypal philosophies have their own religious systems and practices, and their own particular magical systems as well. However, no actual religious institution functions with only one of these pure archetypal perspectives, since they have many complex interacting attributes, some of which are contradictory. Thus, Christianity would ideally function as a combination of Agape and Thanatos, having placed restrictions on the acceptable associations of Eros and Thelema. Judaism would function as a combination of Agape and Eros, and Islam would be considered a combination of Agape and Thelema, where Mohammed would be considered the ideal intermediary of Allah, but where compassion, mercy and the guardianship of the religious warrior would establish its foundation. Modern Witchcraft and Paganism has brought back Eros into a religious faction, but has also taken attributes from Thelema and even Thanatos to establish its religious and magical works. Even Crowley’s Thelema actually incorporates Thelema and Agape together into a practical synthesis, heavily adding attributes of Eros as well.

The Tetra-Sacramentary

Therefore, these four religious philosophies that I have outlined here are pure archetypal models that can be used to define the attributes of a practiced religion or philosophy that has occurred in the past or exists in the world today. However, as models they can also be useful to organize and structure magical workings, and this is what I have chosen to do with them. I have developed four systems of gnostic magic based on the sacramental theurgy produced by the model Ecclesias or churches, and I have named this system a tetra-sacramentary (four liturgical ritual systems in books or grimoires), consisting of the rituals of a mass, benediction excerpts, seasonal calendar rites, initiations and holy orders, the invocation rites for the associated demigods or avatars, and an ordeal for the generating of a magical relic housed within a consecrated crystal. The stages of holy orders for each of these sacramental systems begins with the Deacon, then proceeds to Priest or Pontifex, to the Sacred King or Queen, and from there to the Bishop or Hierophant. These stages represent the four degrees of fourth-degree through seventh in the Order, straddling the threshold of the outer to the inner order; but they are magical and liturgical initiation degrees. Each system has its own book of liturgical and magical workings, representing the sacramentary established for each one.

All this lore has been developed into three major magical workings and represent the practices of four distinct archetypal gnostic religious and magical systems. The first of these is known in the Order as Ordeal XV, which introduces the seeker to the four sacramentaries and their specific liturgical and magical practices. The second ordeal is known as the Tessarenoi, or Four Ecclesias working, which seeks to produce a sacramental relic containing a talismanically charged crystal for each of the sacramental systems. The third ordeal is known as the Stellar Seven-Rayed Gnosis, which presents the fifth foundational aspect of the four sacramentaries, which is their unified synthesis.

As I have stated previously, the many are dissolved into the One, and in the case of the four Ecclesias, these four different gnostic sacramentaries are resolved into a fifth, which I have called Astris, or the Star. Thus, life and death, will and sodality are unified into a system of sacramental theurgy that is beyond all Deities and Spirit itself, although it is the source of Spirit, and therefore aligned with it. The sacrament of Astris is spiritual union or enlightenment, a full conscious realization of the One. This specially achieved sacrament is called by me Stellar Gnosis, or the intuitive apperception of the One, and the magical order that I founded is based on this achievement as the ultimate experience in the process of conscious evolution through the art of magic.

These four sacramentaries and the fifth, which is their union, are also represented by the five attributes of the Grail, which is a foundational symbol in the Order. Thus, the sacred sword is the grail of the warrior or Thelema, the sacred spear is the grail of the warden or Thanatos, the sacred chalice is the grail of the priestess or Agape, and the sacred dish is the grail of the bachae or Eros. The fifth grail is the diamond crystal, dragon’s eye or diadem of Lucifer, it is the grail of the shadow or Astris. These grails represent the emblems of the four different sacramentaries, but the fifth contains them and is the synthesis of them all.

The five grails are also symbolized by the five mysteries of the sun, moon, seasons, life-cycle and the all-pervading mystery of spirit and the unity that lies beyond it. These are associated with Eros, Thanatos, Agape, Thelema and Astris, respectively. This five-fold system is the foundation for all of the ritual magic and liturgy of the inner order, or that state of religion and magic that lies above the lesser veil between initiate and adept. It’s mastery represents the mastery of life and death, light and darkness, and the necessity of integrating them into a wholeness that reveals the inner state of all beings, which is the One. These five stages are also attributed to the cosmogonic cycle, representing the eternal cycle of creation and dissolution, and the unchanging source from which these emanations proceed and to which they ultimately return.

The four grails are also known as the Tetrapatron powers, the sacramental energies that are an integral part of the mysteries of the Undecigram, or eleven-pointed star. There are also seven virtues of the Goddess known as the heptamatrons, which are aligned to the seven planetary rays and those Sephirah of the Qabalah that reside above the base of Malkuth. The four powers of the Tetrapatron, united with the seven virtues of the Hepamatrons produce the overall pattern of the Undecigram, which is the conduit for the crossing of the Greater Abyss, uniting the Solar virtues of Tiphareth with the Saturnine virtues of Binah. There are two ordeals that work with these attributes, and these are the Seven-Rayed Star and Cross, and the Portae Lucis working. There is also the Abramelin Lunar Ordeal to assist with the spiritual transfiguration. There is the work of Archeaomancy, for both the 40 Qabalistic Worlds and the 18 Spiritual Dimensions, but these ordeals can be presented and discussed in isolation, since they do not use the tetrasacramentary. All of these ordeals, however, represent the mechanism to achieving full mastery of one’s spiritual and magical process.

Yet above and beyond this mystical structure arises the veils of the uncreated, the emptiness beyond the One, which I have named the Nought, which appears in our world of manifestation as the Goddess of Wisdom, Sophia, which is the attainment of wisdom through the establishment of a more permanent state of enlightenment. This is the core of the non-dual world, where emptiness pervades as the primal state and the final end of all emanations, since it is the mother and genetrix of the One. Yet of this mystery we can only wonder and be amazed, since in our limited minds and souls, we can realize the light and magnificence of Sophia, which is the final state of all magical transformations that stand before the dissolution of our mortal coil.  

The Gnostic Tetrasacramentary is the four-fold foundation for the workings and ordeals of the Inner Order of the Gnostic Star. It is the starting place for all initiates who have achieved the fourth-degree and seek to achieve a three-fold transformation that will lead them ultimately to mastery. This is the road map to the higher degrees of the Order, and it is also the pathway for ritual magicians to progress to the highest levels of consciousness, whatever their traditional base.

Frater Barrabbas

Toward Self-Mastery - Future Path of Witchcraft

Recently, I wrote an article entitled “Of Shadows and Darkness - Future Path of Witchcraft” and it got quite a bit of attention. In case you missed the article, you can find it here. Despite the length and detail of that article, I was just warming up to my subject. This is because the next part of this article has to discuss where this path leads and what are its goals and purpose. So, in this article I will attempt to briefly talk about the revelation of this path, what it means, why it is important, and where it ultimately will lead those who follow it.


To begin this article, let us review what one of my readers said regarding what I had stated in my article. She goes by the moniker of “Anna Munda at Enchanted Body” and she asked what I consider to be the most crucial question of all, which I am quoting here.

“A question: what does all of this get a person, in the end? When you've consorted with all the goetic spirits and the dark, chthonic spirits of the Underworld, and mined those mysteries, and conjured all the conjurations ... where does it leave one? I'd say, material riches and [longevity], but I'm not seeing a lot of long-living, rich shamans or witches of any stripe. (In fact, often the opposite.) Worldly power? Illuminati rumors notwithstanding, worldly power deals seem driven more by the boardroom and the backroom than the underworld.

Peace of mind? Feeling at one with all creation? Certainty of one's place in the scheme of things? The ability to have deeper, sweeter and more meaningful relationships?

I mean, it all sounds very sexy, but what's the point?”

The another reader, whose moniker is “YowYow” posted another question, which I feel is equally valid. I will also quote it in full.

“Having read Marlowe's version of Dr. Fautus, what would having access to all this knowledge do for others? As you remember, all Dr. Fautus did with his knowledge and power was conjure grapes for a princess.

At the same time, do I want to interfere with the world? As I travel my little path, I often wonder if I should butt in. I see the necessity of the slowness of change in society. The in-fighting and compromises made on a short-term and long-term basis enables a stronger foundation to be built through the development of alliances rather than tyranny.

And what of my attitude. I'm more of a dilettante rather than devotee. I've spent many decades at this stage. But the unicorns and wizards costumes have become trite and childish. Where were I fit in this new cosmic world?”

My friend Jack Von Faust responded to these questions in his own way, and you can look over the article and the comments and read them all if you wish. I want to focus on a few things that can quickly answer these questions and allow my readers to more concisely understand what I was getting at when I wrote that article.

First of all, the supposition that I stated in my article is that all true transformative initiations occur in the underworld. That means that any spiritual change or evolution that an individual might achieve is done so through a dark process of doubt, fear, dissolution and then, reconstitution and psychic rebirth. For the mystic, this is the dark night of the soul, and for the magician, it is the challenge of dealing and integrating with the dark image of the self. Without this process of total and complete transformation, there can be no deep kinds of changes needed to truly grow in a spiritual manner. Without transformation, then only translation occurs, which is just a surface change. If we are not truly challenged to the core of our being, then we remain in a kind of stasis where mediocrity prevails.

Secondly, there is always the feature of self-discovery that occurs during transformation, and that can assist us in knowing the God/dess Within, also known as the Higher Self or the Atman. The reason why such a discovery is important is because it reveals the path of ascension. This is because the underworld contains and also hides the gateway to ascension, and specifically, the portal whereby we might realize ourselves as gods. Yet without the powerful challenge of having to periodically re-invent ourselves, such a gateway will remain unknown and unknowable. It would seem that we cannot obtain ascension towards union with the One without first undergoing a profound series of internal transformations. I might also add that the place of transformation is the underworld - our collective psychic place of death and darkness, but also light and rebirth.

Thirdly, while the potential for material gain resides in the underworld, so does the potential for any kind of achievement whatsoever. In the material world proper we are faced with an immediate inertia, and then due to entropy, all things succumb to dissolution, death, and a return to their basic elements. Great civilizations fall into decay, buildings and statues crumble into dust, and inexorable powers of the wind, rain and sunlight, erase all traces that anything ever existed. What does remain, however, are the fragments of that psychic life process and the core spirit that sheathed them. Yet only that core spirit actually lasts forever, since it is immortal and immutable - that is where we should focus our efforts.

The cycles of fortune occur regardless of what we do or how we act in our short lives, and afterwards, our achievements fade away. We might be able to bend the probabilities of our lives to affect a slightly different outcome, but that is the best that can be done on the material plane. Those who are dedicated to gaining the greater share of the world’s material fortune have little time for anything else in their lives, and certainly, a serious undertaking such as sorcery would not likely be one of them. Those who take up the challenge of pagan magic and sorcery must precariously balance between these two worlds, with an emphasis on the domain of spirit to ensure a more profitable outcome in the arena of magick. Such individuals will half-heartedly seek out their material fortunes, while eagerly pursuing their magical muses into the nether realms of magic and mystery. Therefore, those who are proficient in magic are likely to be only moderately successful in the material world.

Even as the underworld contains the potential for any possible change, those who are able to travel into that world seldom take the path to acquire great wealth and power. This is because to change themselves into a wealthy and powerful man or woman would also have the effect of short-circuiting the entire process of the path of sorcery, and nullify one’s ability to gain entrance into the domain of the underworld. These two pursuits are diametrically opposed because one focuses on the inward and unseen world, and the other is focused exclusively on the material world. In my life experience so far I haven’t met anyone who is both a highly successful businessman who has built up a wealthy estate with his or her own hands and who is also a great magician.

How this typically works out in life is that someone who is born into wealth (and who doesn’t have any desire to acquire more) applies themselves to the exclusive study of the occult and magick. Some would classify this as a decadent path of slow dissolution itself. I have met and known individuals who fit this model, and Aleister Crowley, as a supreme example, comes to mind, as well as others. Still, it would seem that being an empire builder and a competent magician might actually be mutually exclusive. Thus the riches and wealth to be found in the underworld only allows the successful sorcerer to live a materially modest and comfortable middle-class existence, often with little influence or social power.

What then is the whole purpose for engaging in the forces and spiritual entities that reside in the underworld if it is not to materially enrich oneself? The purpose is to gain a special kind of spiritual knowledge, called “gnosis,” and this knowledge helps the magician to discover the path of ascension, and therein, to ultimately become a god. This is not a material process. It is a mental and spiritual process whose outward manifestation is enlightenment and at-one-ment with the Absolute Spirit. Enlightenment and union with the One is the ultimate purpose of both magick and mysticism; but they each take a completely different path to achieve that end. What I am saying is that without the powerful transformations that occur exclusively in the dark domain of the underworld, both the mystic and magician will fail to achieve this goal.

The state of enlightenment does one thing besides giving those who achieve it an inner core of imperturbability, insight into the problems of life, compassion for all, joy, bliss and an overall powerfully attuned psychic sensibility. It allows one the ability to understand the meaning of their life. It gives purpose, direction and certainty to the process that one is following. It also gives one knowledge of what comes after that final transition of death, since to be enlightened means that one is connected to that imperishable spiritual source residing in the core of one’s being. We all live and die regardless of our allotment of material wealth and power in this world or our achievements, but to have that kind of knowledge and awareness eliminates the fear of death and also the fear of not knowing what comes after when our life is finally extinguished. This is, in word, a form of psychic and spiritual immortality that one can acquire and realize in this life, living in the ever changing material world. I can’t think of a more powerful and eminent place to reside than to live in this state, and it is therefore, my ultimate objective.

Therefore, I say to Anna and YowYow, to gain a form of psychic and spiritual immortality and to be conscious of it is a profound and great achievement. I don’t believe that such a state is guaranteed to everyone simply because they are born with a mind, body and a spirit. To engage that spiritual essence that resides within us is a very difficult and nearly impossible feat, but to achieve that state is to pass through death and into a greater conscious life alive within the spirit that is a seamless facet of the One. It is, in a word, to complete the archetypal process of involution and evolution, and that is the nature of the Great Work, in my opinion. For those who believe in reincarnation, it is where the constant cycle of rebirth is nullified, and where the self and the spirit finally become one with the One.

After reading this article, my readers will no doubt understand that this is very much a monistic perspective of magic, paganism and witchcraft, and that some (if not many) will not share my perspective. I will attempt to write about how a monistic perspective is not only essential, but it is a natural evolution of the belief in a pantheon and a plethora of Gods and Goddesses. Still, I will write about this and other topics in future articles that will appear in this blog.

Frater Barrabbas

Path to Enlightenment Through Magick

The Order of the Gnostic Star has plotted a step by step process using ordeals to assist an initiate to achieve the various levels of transformation and spiritual evolution. The Tree of Life is the model that is used to define and determine the nature of these ordeals and their expected outcome. All of these ordeals represent incremental tasks and challenges that I had undergone following my own personal spiritual path. What that means is that I, Frater Barrabbas Tiresius, have used the path and progression of my own spiritual process as the model or blue-print for magickal spiritual ascendency as defined in the Order. One would have to assume that I at least know what I am doing in order to be presumptuous enough to use my own life process as the initiatory directive for the Order and its supposed spiritual progress. I have explained this process in detail and compared it to the Sephiroth on the Tree of Life, and I have left these ordeal based processes open-ended enough to accommodate anyone who would seek to follow them.

Adepts have the legitimate right to modify or change any of the ordeal rituals to more aptly reflect their own spiritual perspectives. However, it is my wish that adepts should study the rituals and the journal entries where I have made them available before attempting to rewrite any of these workings. Since I know that these ordeals work as they have been written, at least for me, I would hope that anyone who would seek to change them would know their innate mechanics and magickal architecture first. In this manner, the wisdom of the original ordeal is preserved, and can be examined and compared to what the adept has rewritten. It is my hope that the spirit of the ordeal will be preserved in any new version or variation that the adept has deemed to develop and use, otherwise, the careful structure of personal development might be thwarted or short circuited.

I have been following this ordeal based path in ritual magick for nearly 40 years, and I have not yet completed all of the ordeals to the highest level. Why this effort has taken me so long is that I have had to invent and develop from scratch each of the ordeals for each level. Think of this as the analogy of the carpenter who is building a staircase one step at a time while simultaneously attempting to climb to the top. Often, this has required me to spend an inordinate amount of time engaged in creative speculation, experimentation and soul searching on a level that seems to push the envelope of what I know and understand. I have found that published books and materials can either directly help me or inspire a new insight or connection, but by themselves, published materials are limited and can never simply reveal the way for someone who is an adept. Since most of the population has not even achieved levels of consciousness normally experienced by an adept, most of the available media (which was produced for the majority of the population) will have little or nothing to aid the adept in determining the next stage in his or her development.

The path to enlightenment, as determined and followed by ritual magicians operating in the context of the Order, is a delicate balance between the paths of mysticism and magick, where the two are inexorably blended together to form a single hybrid spiritual technology. We can see this very clearly if we look at these two paths in isolation of each other.

Pure magick, without any mystical elements is nothing more or less than where a magician seeks to change physical reality according to his or her will - it is, in a word, a form of thaumaturgy. Hoodoo and other forms of operant magick, where a formula of action and result are tied together (such as “assemble these items, do these actions, and this result will occur”) have little or no spiritual elements involved in their performance. This is a dispassionate kind of cause and effect magick that is merely a technique for making something happen that might not ordinarily occur. It is a system that bends the possible outcome or probabilities in such a manner that the desired result has a better chance to happen than it would otherwise.

The role or function of priest or spiritual intermediary is not required in this kind of work, since it is devoid of any spiritual considerations. In some cases, even altered states of consciousness are not required for the magick to work. Whether the magician uses the energy theory of magick, the spirit theory, the psychological theory, or any combination of all three, all of the techniques, models, symbols and intermediaries are nothing but tools through which the magick is performed. For the magician, it is his or her power, inherent will and passionate desires for the result that are paramount, everything else is irrelevant to the overall goal.

Mysticism can be considered a passive approach to enlightenment, even when the supplicant is engaged in good works in the mundane sphere. It is wholly immersed in the spiritual dimension, but that the deity or deities are perceived as vastly superior entities than humanity, with whom one must become bonded and subordinate in order for a spiritual awakening and transformation to occur. The discipline of the mystic is a form of spiritual service to the godhead that includes devotion, surrender and the complete sublimation of the self. Even supposed magickal actions, liturgical works and other kinds of godhead mediation are performed in a selfless manner for the greater good of the spiritual community.

An initiate or devotee of a mystical path may perform operations that seek to channel the power and authority of the godhead in this world, but the prerogative of that work is completely vested in the deity and not the individual. Thus, mysticism is passive because it seeks to devalue and diffuse the power of the individual for the sake of the deity and the religious community through which it operates. This path is nearly the opposite of the classical magician performing operant forms of magick for his or her own benefit.

Where these two paths can merge and blend is where we need to consider the theme of the magician-priest, whose role is the particular method of becoming an adept in our Order. The two pure approaches above are brought into a mutual harmony, where the magick, the magician and his or her associated godhead act as a single spiritual agency in the material and spiritual world. 

 

This hybrid pathway is neither passive nor arrogantly active, since the individual magician is allowed to perform works for his own benefit, but whose ultimate mission must be to serve the will of the deity, and thereby aid the overall spiritual community as a whole. The magician-priest is a mediator, but not a passive one, since he has determined his role as that of an elite path-finder, teacher and master of life itself. This role even allows for magickal failure, since it represents that often the will of the individual can fail when it runs against the will of the deity or the overall fate of that individual. Service to the deity is still important and central, but then, so is the magickal liturgy of godhead assumption, which is never used in actual exoteric religious liturgies. Godhead assumption is analogous to publically admitting that one is God, which in nearly all spheres (except in forms of highly ecstatic mysticism or deliberative magick) is considered impious and even blasphemous. Yet godhead assumption is considered the core of spiritual and magickal operations within the Order, and for very good reason. If we, as magicians of the Order of the Gnostic Star, are to be considered priests and priestesses of the occult magickal succession, then being able to directly mediate the deity is an important technique.

The magician-priest is then required to master the techniques of mediating the deity, and there are several important ritual and liturgical operations that she may perform to advance and evolve this ability. All of these are the exercises of spiritual alignment, which are crucial to our initiatory lineage. These practices produce a kind of personal religious cult that acts as the very center of the rites and obligations of a ritual magician functioning through our Order. This cult is kept up and regularly practiced by the ritual magician, who acts as both prelate and congregation, and the center of this activity is the personal religious shrine representing the godhead to which the magician seeks alignment.

The shrine is a separate altar where the statues, relics, artifacts, and fetishes are kept. This altar can reside in the magician’s temple, or in a separate room set aside for that exclusive use. Offerings are given to the deity or deities ensconced therein, and these consist of flowers, incense, food and drink. This shrine represents the very heart and spiritual center of the magician, and is a place of regular and periodic attentions. It is important for the magician-priest to maintain a potent alignment with the various entities that reside in his or her magickal pantheon.

A magician’s spiritual alignment consists of those practices that allow her to be a mediator of the godhead. Ostensibly, the practices can be broken down into the following list. In my book “Disciple’s Guide to Ritual Magick,” I state that there are four basic practices, but for an initiate in the Order, there are eight.

1. Devotion - any act of giving an offering of love and veneration to the godhead. These should include incense, flowers, special candles being kept lit (vigils), appropriate offerings of food and drink, music, songs and orisons of praise, and the focused contemplation of spiritual love. These practices can be performed at any time of the day or night, since they are not constrained by liturgical rites.

2. Invocation - magickal summoning of the godhead. Specific invocations are regularly performed to ensure a potent connection between the operator and the deity or deities. These invocations can be in one’s native tongue, or written in a sacred language. They are to be written and then used exclusively and regularly during certain liturgical operations, such as during communion, godhead assumption and even the holy office. They can also be used alone during periods of contemplation and prayer.

3. Communion - magickal rites of the Mass and the Benediction. The Mass is used to consecrate bread and wine (or some other suitable offerings), and then these sacred substances are used to bind oneself to that godhead by eating and drinking them. Other sacraments can be represented by other kinds of food and drink, and even oils and balms. A Benediction rite is used to empower and charge a temple and/or magick circle. The celebrant uses the consecrated bread to perform this operation.

4. Godhead Assumption - a magickal rite that aids the magician to assume the mantle and consciousness of the god into him/herself. This is a powerful transformative ritual that uses a combination of devotion, invocation, contemplation, trance assumption, and the assana of opening the self and the heart for reception, to deliberately assume the imago and character of the godhead into the core of oneself.

5. Spiritual Service - mundane actions done in the community for the godhead, to help and aid others, even those not aligned to the deity. These should be periodic and regularly performed if possible. Spiritual service is always performed as a charitable contribution of time and personal effort.

6. Spiritual and Religious Celebrations - magickal and religious rituals performed, both in private and even in public, to express the joy and happiness of the godhead in the material manifestation of the world and its mysteries. In pagan traditions, these are represented by the eight Sabbats, but also other traditions can be culled, such as the old Catholic calendar, the Orthodox Christian or Jewish calendars.

7. Holy Office - hourly exercises, meditation sessions, qabbalistic contemplations, path workings, sun salutation, and established prayers. These methods mirror the holy office that was said by Catholic clergy, nuns and monks every three hours, starting at sunrise and through the day and night to the following morning for each and every day. It was part of their spiritual discipline and a daily requirement. For magicians, an occult office probably only needs to be done on days when they are to engage in rigorous magickal workings.

8. Holy Orders - the basic initiatory structure of the Order of the Gnostic Star is modeled after the holy orders of the Catholic church, beginning with acolyte, and continuing with pontifex (priest) and hierophant (bishop). These initiations should also involve and include the specific godhead and its associated pantheon, so as to assist the initiate in establishing themselves as a prelate in their own personal religious cult.

While these orders might be considered valid by outside exoteric religious organizations, they are not meant to be used as such, since there is no exoteric church through which one might operate. This was done to preclude the temptation of establishing a kind of hierarchy in the Order and within autonomous temples.

Other ritual actions and practices, besides the Mass, Benediction, Godhead Assumption, Seasonal Celebrations and the Holy Office would include special mystery celebrations (Grail Mysteries and Lunar Mysteries) and the specialized rite of the Beatification, which incorporates elements of the Feminine mysteries to be used by both men and women in the Order. All of these rites and practices help to establish a powerful alignment and bond between the magician and the chosen godhead, and this bond is the foundation upon which much of the greater magickal operations are formulated.

The Holy Orders are the bridge that draws the initiate from a mastery of the four elements to a mastery of the self and one’s spiritual source, a sure sign of being an adept. The transition from acolyte (4th degree) to pontifex (5th degree) symbolizes the assumption of all of the responsibilities of being a mediator for the chosen godhead. This mediation has additional levels and degrees, since the sacred king or queen (6th degree) assumes the role of material mediator of the godhead, and the hierophant (7th degree) is the living representative of that godhead, performing all of the spiritual and magickal tasks necessary for the continuance of that deity and its mission in the world.

The final bridge from adept to high adept is found in the rituals of assuming the highest expression of the godhead capable of being known to the initiate, and that is the HGA or Higher Self (inner master). There are a number of initiatory challenges that cause the adept to transform to higher levels. Certainly, the ordeals of Archaeomancy would, by themselves, cause the initiate who underwent them to achieve the level of the Supernal Triad of the Tree of Life. While I have not yet undergone all of these operations yet, I have identified at least five of them that would represent this transition, and I would assume that all five must be performed in order for it to become completely stabilized.

These five operations are as follows:

1. Bornless One Invocation Rite - within the Etheric Pyramidal Temple
2. Abramelin Lunar Ordeal
3. Talismanic Portae Lucis
4. Invocation of Azrael - Conquering the Angel of Death
5. Abysmal Crossing (Daath Portal) and Qliphotic Path Working Ordeals

Another working that would aid in this process would be the full activation and operation of the Grimoire Armadel. I am certain that as time goes on, I will likely find other ordeals and operations that will aid the magician in achieving the highest level of personal achievement - accessing the Supernal Triad and assuming one’s own godhead in the material world.

These workings are made far more potent (and in some cases even possible) through the established role of the magician-priest. I would assume that many of these operations would make little sense or even be necessary for a magician who was following a completely different path, such as one where the practice of magick was achieved without any mystical pretensions or spiritual perspectives. To such a one, the ultimate achievement of union with the Godhead is completely irrelevant, therefore all such operations that facilitated this process would also be irrelevant. However, for the magician-priest, who must mediate the godhead through himself, this path and these operations are critically important. This is why I have made them part of the ordeals of the initiatory grades of the Order of the Gnostic Star.

Therefore, it is my earnest belief, and it is the path that I have established for the Order, that a practicing ritual magician should be both a priest/ess and a magician, mixing and blending the arts of magick and mysticism. This is why the Qabbalah is equally important to the work of performing magickal ordeals, and why a ritual magician should act as the high priest of his own personal religious cult. There might be other ways to ensure this harmonious blend of magick and mysticism, but this is the solution that I discovered, and it is the one that I have passed on to all initiates of the Order.

Frater Barrabbas