Is Achieving K & C of the HGA Important?

Some magicians in the blogosphere have recently stated that they think that the huge importance placed on a magician achieving the knowledge and conversation with his or her holy guardian angel is rather overblown. It has become something of a badge of honor for some, but I couldn’t agree more with the pundits’ opinion. However, I would stress that some cautionary insights be included to the overall argument.

While it seems to be have become something of status symbol for individuals who have claimed to have undergone the traditional Abramelin ordeal, the actual achievement represents something that harkens back to antiquity itself. In those times, the signature achievement of any sorcerer of repute was that he had acquired, in some manner, a familiar spirit. Whether you call it a person’s genius, higher self, indestructible spirit, over-soul, augoeides, eudaimon or holy guardian angel, it is, in my opinion, variations on the theme of possessing a familiar spirit. I think that all of these entities are one and same, although not everyone would likely share my point of view.

Anyone who has perused the spells listed in the PGM will quickly discover that there were quite a number of different techniques for acquiring the vaunted familiar spirit, and this is still true today. While some purists would thumb their noses at anyone who had claimed to achieve the K & C without performing either the six or eighteen month Abramelin ordeal, I believe that there are as many different ways of achieving this important goal as there are magicians currently practicing the Western mystery tradition. The Bornless One invocation rite (ala Crowley or the Golden Dawn), the Abramelin Lunar ordeal, the Pyramidos rite (again, Crowley), the rite of Beatification (as found in Liber Juratus), summoning a spirit guide, family animal totem, departed ancestor or nature ally (as found in various earth-based religions), and numerous other rites represent the same analogous trial, which is achieving the intimate companionship of a spiritual mediator.

(We won’t spend any time here discussing my belief that there should be some kind of mechanism or peer group assessment to validate that a magician has indeed succeeded in this quest other than just taking his or her word on it. Presently, it seems like many individuals are claiming to have undergone the traditional Abramelin ordeal. Still, it seems to me like there are far too many who are making this claim in order for it to be credible, but woe betide to anyone who would contradict or challenge the claimants to somehow prove their claims. That, of course, is another topic for another time.)

Another point about this whole theme is that acquiring a familiar spirit was one of the first steps that any credible magician would undertake in order to be considered a legitimate sorcerer for-hire. It would seem that having this spiritual aid was what separated the adepts from the would-be dabblers, and I think that this is still a valid consideration. Achieving this quest doesn’t represent the end of all quests for the magician, instead, it represents the very beginning of a more serious practice of ritual magick.

In other words it is just one of many steps to becoming an adept magician, so it is neither a mark of prestige or specialness. It represents that the magician has the ability to mediate the world of spirits with the mundane world, and that he or she has the ability to enact changes in both worlds. A magician with a familiar spirit could also be assumed as having access to inner plane contacts, since he or she would be able to make important spiritual associations through the intercession of that spirit agent.

So it would seem that this achievement, although important, should be never seen as some kind of exclusive club for purist aficionados of the Abramelin system of magick. While I honor those who have taken the time and effort to perform the original Abramelin ordeal, I don’t believe that their achievement somehow makes them better than any other magician.

Unlike the adherents of the “grimoire only” crowd, I happen to know that there are many ways of achieving this goal, and that each ordeal should actually be unique and appropriate to the magician and his or her path. To my way of thinking, successfully mastering a custom path is much more legitimate and authentic than just following what is written in some book or grimoire. We are all impacted by our choices, but one path or choice is not necessarily superior to another for everyone. Anyway, that’s my two cents on this controversy.

Frater Barrabbas  

Phase Two of Final Abramelin Lunar Ordeal Working

The strenuous labor and long period of discovery for this ordeal is now over, and I can begin to relate my final experiences of the last two evenings and Sunday morning. On Friday, May 13, I performed the Bornless One Envisioning Rite in its entirety, even though the directions specified a three day period of meditating before completion. I felt that having undergone this process for over eighteen months, I didn’t need to wait any further to complete this ordeal. Within myself, I felt as if everything was completely in order and in readiness. So, I followed my intuition as is my rule in the art of magick, and was not disappointed with the results. It was wholly and completely mind blowing, and I am still reeling from its effects.

My dreams leading up to this event have been quite vivid and instructive, and they gave me a strong sense of completion and fullness. I was more than ready to begin this working, and therefore more than prepared to undergo whatever impact it was to have on me. I am delighted to state that I found the Bornless One Envisioning ritual itself to be highly effective and more intense and powerful than anything that I have previously experienced. I had no difficulties in performing it, and was able to get everything worked out, particularly the substitutions that needed to be incorporated.

The Abramelin Lunar Ordeal, now a completed suite of rituals and workings, is not only highly effective, but is even more resplendent in its overall effects for the adherent than what I had originally thought. I can’t but recommend this new method to others who are interested in experiencing a pathway to personal illumination through the art of ritual magick. With respect to those who have faithfully followed the traditional Abramelin ordeal, I believe that I have developed a suitable alternative that others, who do not have the privilege of devoting from six to eighteen months exclusively to this working, may follow and achieve a similar end. That is, of course, my opinion, and those who might be critical of my efforts will have to at least judge it by performing the rituals and experiencing them for themselves. Needless to say, I should report what I experienced as part of my final engagement with this ordeal, since nothing more afterwards will need to be said.

I have completed this long struggle and I am so very glad that it is finally done - but what an amazing journey it has been! The total irony of this working is that it took me exactly, to the day, eighteen months to complete, which is the same amount of time specified for the German version of the traditional Abramelin ordeal. It has been something of wild ride at times, where I seemed to be floating a foot or two off the ground, so intense was the overall impact and its affect on me. Presently, I feel quite grounded and completely sober, which is so unlike what I felt over a year ago. Then, I needed to process everything that hadn’t been processed in my past, and I needed to figure out the final and most important ritual in the working, which was the Alchemical Hierogamy Rite of Union, based on the Chemical Wedding of Christian Rosencruetz.

Determining and developing that last rite took me over a year, but once I was able to deploy it, the other pieces all fell into place. I would assume that anyone else who would perform this ordeal,  now that the complete suite of rituals has been written up, would take them around seven weekends to complete. Then, of course, the envisioning rite would be performed at the next available full moon. Still, that final working shouldn’t be performed until the magician’s internal state is fully resolved and all issues, past and present, have been adequately processed.

For those who might not fully understand the functionality of this rite, the Bornless One Envisioning is used to both realize and project into the future the full nature of one’s True Will, incorporating a charged and consecrated black mirror for this purpose. This ritual was distilled and developed from a group of rituals in the PGM (Greek Magical Papyrus in Translation) used for performing divination by skrying into a pool of ink. I had adapted these rituals into one monumental working that would divine through the HGA the nature of the magician’s past, present identity and future destiny. The divination rite is therefore split into three parts, representing the necessity for the magician to know his past, know who he is, and know what his future will be. Some of these questions can be answered by the magician, others require the intermediation of the HGA. This rite incorporates a two way methodology in regards to divination - passive perception and active projection. The objective of this rite is to project the magician’s desired and realized destiny into the future, thereby making it fully capable of being realized in the present.

Let me now relate all that happened to me on that last set of days when I performed the final ritual working in the Abramelin Lunar Ordeal.

Envisioning Rite - First Evening - Friday, May 13, 2011 (from 9:45 pm to around 12:45 am)

As I have stated previously, I decided to do the entire ritual the first night of the working. I would follow it up with smaller workings on Saturday evening and Sunday morning. On Saturday, I would just say the Mass of the Goddess and intone the Hidden Stele and the Death Delivering Stele. On Sunday, I would just intone the two Stele to complete the working. I would perform an impromptu skrying session on Saturday evening after the Mass, but only briefly connect with the black mirror on Sunday morning. Two other substitutions were also decided on for the working. I would forgo wearing a crown of ivy (because the season is still so early) and I would bless my cincture instead of using a strip of linen with words written on it, functioning as a kind of phylactery.

These are the order of ritual actions to be performed the first evening before performing the Envisioning rite:

1. Perform ablutions and then set a consecrated magick circle.
2. Bless the cincture before saying Mass, intoning the invocation instead of wearing it around my waist as a phylactery. This was well received, so I then completed the vesting for the Mass.
3. Perform the Mass of the Great Goddess up to the point of performing communion, then perform the following operations while there is still sacrament available.

• Intone the invocations of the Hidden Stele and Death Delivering Stele
• Bless the magick ring for a second time (the ring is the link to the HGA). I put on the ring, said the activating word and then summoned the HGA. The result of these operations produced a highly enhanced sensation of the HGA, and the ring was tingling with magick power.
• Consecrate the magick squares from the Book of Abramelin (selected squares printed on parchment) with sacral wine and charge with the directed power of the HGA.

I then completed the magickal Mass and proceeded with the Envisioning rite.

The intoned invocations from the Hidden Stele and the Death Delivering Stele (both of which are from the PGM) produced an incredible intensity of magickal power. I felt myself briefly enter into a trance state where I saw points of light form various kinds of star formulations and even heard some kind of celestial tinkling, like some vast, distant glass wind chime. I felt intoxicated, and a rush of euphoria filled my heart. I had to rest momentarily while I processed these experiences. I thought to myself that this is certainly quite an auspicious occurrence for the beginning of this working.

Bornless One Envisioning Rite: I wrote this ritual more than eighteen months ago, but it has never been performed by me until now. I was amazed at how well it flowed and appeared to build up the power. The invocations taken from the PGM were astonishingly powerful. I could not believe how potent these incantations were, and their overall magickal effect was completely amazing. I doubt that some of these incantations have been used in magick for nearly a couple of millennia, but they had lost nothing in the passage of time. I performed the macro-rite to summon the HGA, but of course, it was already very much present. Still, I sensed it joyously respond to the remedial summoning, making me feel as though I were enclosed in golden column of light. I then set the inverted Rose Ankh device to each of the four Angles and the center of the circle, and the accompanied incantations taken from the PGM made the performance vastly more intense and powerful. At this point in the ritual, the combined devices generated a kind of network of manifesting and empowering forces that seemed to transform the temple into some kind of royal emplacement. I almost expected to see a throne room and the royal chambers of some magnificent palace. The vortex had generated through its fused energies a kind of royal domain with the black mirror set at its core.

These final actions brought me to the place where the black mirror was ensconced, and as I sat before it I made invoking spirals over it with my transmutar wand. As I did this, while intoning additional PGM incantations, the black mirror began to glow and pulsate, going from an obsidian black to a silver white orb at intervals. I felt myself pulled into this pulsating orb, and it opened up, becoming like a vast tunnel or worm-hole between worlds, revealing itself as a kind of silver lattice structure surrounded by inky blackness. I found myself drawn deep into it, and it was as if I was within a tunnel, but it also seemed like it was within me, simultaneously. When I got to the point in the incantation where I was supposed to utter a series of magickal words like an Egyptian Baboon, the illusion ceased for a moment (due to my mirth), but then quickly reasserted itself. I then proceeded to contemplate upon the vastness of the black mirror, performing first an inquiry and projection for my past, present self-definition, and then my life’s destiny. These were the three Eyes (or I’s) in the Triangle - and I made this sign into the black mirror before starting each period of contemplation.

Contemplation on where I have been: I saw so many images of my past consisting of all of the most important and strategic moments, all of which led me to become who I am today. I saw these as a very rapid progression from the earliest memories to the present moment, yet each scene evolved slowly and fully, while my mind’s eye had already gone on to the next event. After a short while it seemed that all of these memories were unfolding simultaneously, creating a vast illusion of time and events occurring all at once. It was an amazing thing to behold, and I imagined that one perceives this when death is fully realized. At that moment, I felt a powerful thought overwhelm me that “I must fully accept everything that has happened to me as a product of my True Will and the power of fate and necessity.” I bowed to this wisdom, and felt all of these memories coalesce into a single point of light, and then enter deep into my soul. The black mirror became dark again, but only for a moment.

Contemplation on who I am - my true identity: The mirror blazed forth again, but this time I saw and felt the full force of my HGA, it entered into my being and filled me with joy, happiness, wholeness and an intoxicating euphoria. Because I had wed my HGA with the Element Godhead, it appeared to have a greater power and affinity for me, unlike at any previous time when I had performed the Bornless One invocation. Through the HGA I received a powerful and total sense of who I am, where I have been and what I must do to complete my life. I was told by it that the key to my future spiritual enfoldment was to cultivate spiritual love, bliss and ecstasy, and to realize this when summoning my higher self. Through this agency, I will experience the continual spiritual evolution that leads to mastery. Then the mirror went dark for the second time.

Contemplation on my ultimate destiny: I have accepted that I am now gone deep into middle age, and that I am passing into my final years of life. I have accomplished much, but so much yet remains to be done. My inner fear is that I will not have time to complete everything that I want to complete, in order to leave behind an effective legacy - a true measure of immortality. Yet what I have seen is that the most interesting and amazing events of my life have not yet occurred, and that I must learn to live at a far greater level than what I have been doing lately. I asked for the time and longevity to complete my work, and saw that indeed I could very well be long lived, if I work at ensuring that my gift of life is not squandered. I must work at being more healthy, and I can’t take anything for granted. The future is indeterminate, so what I have left of my years of productive life may be a decade, two or even three, but I can, by my actions, extend my life.

Yet death comes to all living beings, and I am no exception. Nothing is granted or pre-ordained to me or anyone, everything must be earned by steadfast commitments and hard, tireless work. I sensed that a number of procrastinating issues and tasks for me had been overturned, and I was now free to complete a number of outstanding tasks. I felt blessed, protected, loved and wisely guided by the HGA that was now fully activated and enshrouding me like a luminous golden cloud. Yet this great spirit was also inside of me, looking at the world through my eyes, and feeling the joy of life through my heart.

Once these events had transpired, the black mirror seemed to turn silvery white, and felt my will come from within me and project into the future that has not yet been determined. I sought to know in the remaining years of my life a profound stable simplicity, to be divested of all of the clutter and chaos of competing desires and ambitions, and to be refined and honed to one single aspiration. This aspiration was to be one with my HGA, and to waken from death seeing through its eyes and thinking and feeling with its mind. More of this incredible phenomena I can’t relate, but it went on for seemingly forever, extending from my mere physical form into the infinity of the Godhead itself, where the boundaries of time and space melted away to nothing, revealing a single blazing supernova that filled my eyes and mind with dazzling and brilliant light. I sensed during this extended moment that the HGA was with me and in me, my eternal companion in all things.

I pulled myself away from looking into the black mirror and laid down to rest, to close my eyes so that they wouldn’t see anything more. But still I saw the brilliant light and felt the bliss and ecstatic happiness until I passed into unconsciousness for a time. Finally, I woke up, and the temple atmosphere was alive with tiny sparks of light barely perceived. I marveled at these for a moment, but then sealed the circle, covered up the black mirror and magickal tools, extinguished the lamps and candles and retired for the night. Yet I was given so little peace that evening afterwards, for the visions continued on in my head deep into the night.


Continuing the Working - Saturday, May 14, 2011 (from 9:55 pm to around 11:28 pm)

The second evening came, but I was exhausted and tired from the previous evening’s working. I stumbled through the days activities, but after a couple of naps and a good meal, I felt more refreshed and ready to start the next part of the working. But in truth, the greater part of the working was already completed, and it seemed that the next two incidents were just merely the final parts of an already magnicent conclusion.

I said the Mass, and then intoned the two Stele incantations, which were just as powerful as they were previously, and after the rites were completed, I unsealed the vortices and sat before the black mirror. I uncovered it, and expected that it would be dark and lusterless, but I was surprised that it was still luminescent, but not as startling as it was previously. However, what was imparted to me indicated that the greater manifestation had already occurred, but what remained was just as important.

I was told in some manner (perhaps in my head) that the past is now completed - there is no more to be extracted from it other than memories of what had once been. The future potential is there for me to harvest, since so much has already been established by years of practice, work and research. I have not been lax all of these years of my life. Yet the key to it all is the present moment - what I do here and now will give a final shape to my remaining years. There is so much to do before I finally experience an end to this life, and previously I had so much doubt and despair as to whether all of it could even be completed. Yet now I am not alone or without an important powerful spiritual ally. The HGA has now engaged itself to me in my quest for completion, and the addition of that magick should make the future to be quite interesting. Whatever my work brings to fruition, the greatest work is the simple process of bringing my higher self incrementally closer to me, until there is no difference. I have already begun this process, but its maintenance and continuation is both simple and succinct. It is wholly up to me to ensure that it is brought to complete manifestation and total realization. So what I felt from this revelation was the impending urge and need to get to work - there is so much to do, but the joy is in the doing!

That is all I received this night, and the next day, I just performed the intonation of the Hidden Stele and the Death Delivering Stele in the morning, and lit a stick of incense. I felt completely resolved. The working was completed, and so was the ordeal. I collected up all of the sigils that had been placed in the temple so many months ago, and now I could move on to other and newer challenges. I am grateful for what I have experienced, and I feel optimistic and blessed for what the rest of my life has in store for me.

Frater Barrabbas

Phase One of Final Abramelin Lunar Ordeal Working

Not everything turns out as you would like it to, but most often, it turns out as it needs to be. This is certainly true about the first phase of the two phase final part to the Abramelin Lunar Ordeal. As you may remember, I had scheduled to work magick for the weekend of April 16 and 17 during the full moon. I was going to re-establish contact with the previous structures of the Ordeal, which would include the Ogdoadic Godhead Vortex ritual, the Triple Tetrahedral Gate ritual, to be followed the next day with the Bornless One invocation (Stellar Gnosis version). Typically, if I schedule myself to work magick on a particular day, I will move heaven and earth to make certain that it gets done on that date. This is part of my magickal and spiritual discipline, and I am proud to say that most of the time, I adhere to this rule without prevarication. However, I found myself unprepared mentally and physically to do these rites for the scheduled weekend. Something seemed wrong about doing it then, and I also felt very much compelled to spend the time instead with my girlfriend, since she was leaving for nine days in the middle of the coming week. So I decided to perform the two day working on the following weekend, since I would be alone and able to better focus on my intention to do the work. It was also quite interesting that my plans intersected with the Christian observance of Easter and the Jewish observance of Passover.

Changing the date to the following weekend (April 22 & 23) seemed like a good idea to me. But then I started to think about what I was going to do and the sequence how I was going to do it. I had planned on doing the Alchemical Hierogamy Rite of Union during the next month as part of the second phase, but for some reason I felt driven to add it to the Friday working, so its effect would be in place before I performed the Bornless One invocation the next day. I could make this change because I had previously performed these rites back in December of 2009. I wanted to experience the joining of the Element Godhead with the HGA before I re-performed the Bornless One invocation. I felt obligated to do this, and so I listened to my intuition and decided to act on it. I am very glad that I listened, since the end results were quite splendid.

I now realize how important that ritual was, and how fortunate that I was able to figure it out and write it up. Had I managed to develop this ritual back in the autumn of 2009, I believe that the period of the overall ordeal would have been significantly shortened. At any rate, often the pioneer and trail blazer has to do things the hard way and experience the creative process of developing an ordeal with all of the half hazard, chaotic and serendipitous occurrences that happen along the way. Had I not delayed the working, then I might have done it the way that I originally planned. By letting the date slip a weekend, I came up with a different, and I think, better plan. We shall see over time how it works out, but so far I am very pleased with the results.

Additionally, I also decided to dispense with using the planetary hours for the two workings. Since most of the rites have been performed before as part of the original ordeal, I felt that it wasn’t necessary to enclose the working with planetary hours. I will, however, use planetary hours for the last working in May, because it has not yet been attempted. I also felt that the Benediction rite was unnecessary, since the temple was quite properly aligned and fully charged. Since I completed the first part of the ordeal back in December 2009, the sigils and other regalia for this working has been kept in the exact place where I left them. The forces and intelligences that were contacted back then are still quite active. I also felt that the auspiciousness of the dates precluded the need to somehow make the whole operation more sanctified and spiritually blessed than what it already was.  The important part of this working was to perform the Rite of Union, and to do it before the Bornless One invocation.

Needless to say, those (in the Order) who choose to undergo this ordeal as it has been established will perform it with the Rite of Union being done after the Bornless One invocation. I also will recommend that it be executed very quickly afterwards, perhaps the next day after the invocation. It was important for me to perform the Ogdoadic Godhead Vortex ritual and the Triple Tetrahedral Gate ritual in order to re-awaken and re-connect with the ordeal where I left it. Since the Rite of Union was supposed to be worked while the HGA and the Element Godhead were active, I felt that I needed to re-immerse myself in this work. So I assumed that the second time through these rituals wouldn’t really been very illuminating. The key, of course, was with the Rite of Union and the effect that it would have on the overall working. I was looking forward to that event with a great deal of anticipation.

Astrological considerations for the dates April 22 and April 23 were not particularly auspicious. The moon was in the sign Capricorn and it was five days from the full moon, or two days before the last quarter. Moon in Capricorn is not an emotionally effusive aspect - it is, in fact, cold and inhibited. However, the lunation cycle for the moon was at type 6, which was the disseminating type, useful for communication and guidance. I could expect a stable and placid, if not subdued, lunar impact, particularly with the sun recently entered into Taurus. Still, this was the date for Good Friday and Earth Day, with next day of Saturday (Holy Saturday) representing the transition from death to rebirth, at least in Christian practice.

In the tradition of the Roman Catholics, the church altar was stripped on Holy Thursday after the mass rite, and no mass was actually said after that event until Easter Sunday. Good Friday was a time of prayer, adoration of the cross, a procession of the Holy Eucharist and a mass of the pre-sanctified, using sacraments produced on Thursday. Holy Saturday continued the abstinence of saying mass, but consisted of the blessing of the fire, reading of the prophecies, blessing of the baptismal font (in preparation for a special baptism in the old rite), and at vespers, the first celebration of Christ’s resurrection. All of these rites commemorated the execution, death and rebirth of the founder and savior, Jesus Christ. So I was undergoing my personal rites of the Abramelin Lunar Ordeal when the rest of the Christian world, orthodox as well as the other denominations, was celebrating their holiest weekend of the year, next to Christmas. Therefore, the timing was particularly auspicious, if one considers the impact of performing personal magick during a religious holiday.

On Friday and Saturday (starting during the evening on Friday) the Passover Shabbat is celebrated, representing the most auspicious moment in the eight day celebration after the two Seder meals and before its final end, which is Tuesday. These are the fourth and fifth days of Passover, known as the Choi Hamoed, or intermediate days. The intermediate days represent the Hebrew’s deliverance from bondage in Egypt and their travels to the Red Sea. They are still in danger of being captured or killed by pharaoh’s soldiers, and it is the seventh day when the miracle of the Red Sea splitting is performed by Yahweh, allowing the Hebrews to cross over and safely begin their sojourn to the promised land.

Let me now relate what happened to me during these two events, since we have established the reasons and the context for their operation. I will write up edited notations from my journal, excluding only those entries that I consider too personal to relate here.

Friday, April 22: Began the working at approximately 8:30 pm. I completed setting the magick circle just after the clock signaled the half hour, so I was able to determine the start time. I performed the Mass of the Goddess to charge the temple, and the rite proceeded without any incident. I felt in high spirits for this work, and body was without fatigue or any pain - not at all like the last time I did this working. I performed the Ogdoadic Godhead Vortex ritual and found that the individual Seraphim and Cherubim had become completely fused into union. I received no sense of any individual messages or insights, instead they manifested as a powerful combination of force and intelligence, which was quite remarkable! I was nearly taken aback by the powers and the sense of the coalesced entities that I had awakened.

Once I had completed the invocation of the Element Godhead of Water, I did reconnect and re-encounter the Goddess aspect that I had encountered nearly sixteen months ago. I found myself returned to the peaceful misty beach, where I had met a youthful barefoot woman with a white lace shift, tanned body and face, blond hair in french braids, green eyes and a friendly smile. I could once again smell the sea salt and hear the gentle sound of the waves lapping against the shore. I also heard sea gulls in the background, but noticed that the sun was completely occluded by the enveloping mist. I communed with her a little while, and felt comforted and refreshed by her presence. I had a strong sense of well being and happiness, as if anticipating a time of joy. I now wonder if the Goddess was anticipating her wedding to the HGA, feeling the joy that one would expect to feel for such a glorious union.

The next ritual in the series for that evening was the Triple Tetrahedral Gate ritual. I found this rite to be easy to perform and did so without incident. There were no striking visitations or other magickal phenomena. I could feel the power of the ritual reach a kind of crescendo with the opening of the Great Gate, and I also sensed or even saw the Goddess and the HGA meeting each other on either side of the gateway. This rite set the stage for the next and final rite, having awakened and pulled together all of the elements from the last working. I was ready to proceed to the next level of the working.

Performing the rite of the Alchemical Hierogamy Rite of Union was effortless, flowing and nearly flawless. I marveled at how well the ritual worked, even though this was the first time that I had performed it. The first stage of the rite held an element of sadness, since that is where the young King and Queen are executed and drained of blood, preparing them for the alchemical resurrection. However, instead of sensing the Goddess and the HGA going through this process, I felt myself going through it instead. I could visualize myself progressing through the three steps of alchemical dissolution, where my sense of ego based selfhood was completely destroyed and made ready for distillation and regeneration. However, when I got to the central part of the rite, and began to perform the rites of Conjuction, where the Goddess and HGA were to be wed, I found that they had returned to my vision’s sight, and I drew them together through the wedding rite.

I then envisioned a scene right out of the Lovers Card in the Tarot, with me acting as the prelate who officially joins the two young lovers together. Once this act had reached it climax, I felt my heart filled with an indescribable joy and a blissful happiness. It was a powerful sense of ecstatic union, and I even saw in my mind’s eye where the two youthful lovers embraced and became as one great being of light and love. I had to stop the working at this point for a while as I fully processed these new sensations. I fully sensed and felt the mysterious “Lover Within” as I had never sensed it before.

The rest of ritual proceeded without any further interruption, but as in the first part, I saw myself being reconstructed and made alchemically whole, fulfilled, regenerated and renewed. The end of the rite had me feeling as if I were reborn and made completely new.

Once the final rite was finished, I had to sit and meditate for awhile. I felt that the Rite of Union was very likely the most magnificent ritual that I have ever experienced. I was so powerfully affected that I couldn’t go to asleep right way. The rite had been completed at around 11:30 pm, which was a three hour period of intense ritualizing, but I was not at all tired. Later that evening, my dreams were very vivid and active, and I felt a blissful kind of joy and happiness that I haven’t felt in some time, as if the weight of all my cares and troubles had been completely removed from my shoulders.

Saturday, April 23: This time there was a bit of a delay before I was able to begin the working. I had some tasks to complete for the day, and then afterwards, I wanted to take short nap to catch up on my sleep. Unfortunately, I slept for around two hours, which meant that the time at my waking was around 7 pm. It was still light out (because of daylight savings time and because the days get so much longer in Minnesota the closer one is to the solstice), so I was at first confused by the time. I hadn’t done the preparations for the Bornless One rite, so I had to focus on getting them completed before starting the work. I decided not to perform the Mass of the Goddess for this evening’s work, and instead, I would focus on just doing the Bornless One rite. I finally got everything ready, took a shower and properly anointed myself. The magick circle was fully erected at around 10:00 pm.

I then went through the five stages of the Bornless One invocation rite, where I set up the four Qabbalistic Worlds as the platform steps to a raised energy temple, with the fifth stage functioning as a trapezoidal prismatic temple at the very top. I was able to pace myself and make it through these five arduous stages without difficulty or fatigue slowing me down. I felt ebullient, inspired and fully empowered, so I managed to work through all of the operations until I got to the Bornless One invocation. I then went through this invocation and the final experience was far more powerful and remarkable than I have ever experienced it before. The ecstatic feeling from the previous evening was greatly amplified, and by the time I had completed the invocation, I felt a truly great joy and happiness overpower all of my senses. I felt that the HGA and it’s apparent manifestation was supremely energized by the Rite of Union of the previous evening. It was so apparent to my senses that I felt as if I were two individuals and not one. I could sense its thoughts and feelings as if they were my own. The union between us was neither complete or perfect, but it gave me a strange kind of doppelganger effect, where I moved and sensed myself in space and time in two places at once, even though both bodies were very close. It’s the oddest sensation that I have ever experienced, but it does represent to me that I am getting very close to my objective of being fully unified with the Higher Self.

Once the rite had achieved it’s climax, I found myself blissfully enclosed in a state that was absolutely wonderful. I saw the world through the HGA’s thoughts, and could even engage in an internal dialogue with my higher self, even anticipating the answers! I wanted to know my destiny, at least for the rest of my life, and I saw that there was still so much more to experience and learn, even though I have lived more than half of life so far. Could that mean that I have a long life ahead of me? I could interpret it that way, or it could just mean that my last days will be very busy, allowing me to complete my travels and studies in good order. I now realize that I have built a good solid foundation, and the HGA showed me this, and so much more.

After I sat in meditation for a while, the superimposition of the HGA and myself merged until I felt it in my body, or perhaps I was in its body - I couldn’t tell. He was talking to me inside my head as if it were just another facet of myself (or like to friends in a casual conversation), and I felt just blissful, whole and completely happy. Then when there was nothing more to say, we both became quiet but fully aware of and delighting in our merged beings. This state of mind continued as I completed the ritual and finally retired for bed. I felt like I was a container for this being, sharing the space of my thoughts, feelings and sensations with it. The whole thing was indescribable - and it is still very much active, even now, many hours after it was completed.

One thing that I did ask my HGA was to help me to determine a theme for the Theurgia-Goetia spirits. Looking at this problem through the eyes of my Higher Self, I found it to be all quite simple. The spirits of the Theurgia-Goetia are based on the sixteen directions of the winds, since they are winged air spirits who fly. Half of them are good, and the other half are demonic, so they would represent the spirits that ward the gateway of the Abyss - half of them are on this side, and the other half are in the night side of the abyss. They form a circle whose center is the abysmal gateway. I am sure that this will help me develop a magickal system to invoke and evoke those spirits, and I believe that more information will be forthcoming, but it was fascinating to ask this question and have it so easily answered.

The working was completed at around 1:15 am Sunday morning, and after shutting everything down, I tried to sleep. I have to admit that it was difficult to sleep, even though I was tired, because another part of me (the HGA?) was still awake and processing everything at light speed. I even had the odd thought of: “so this is what its like being in a body and seeking the succor of sleep - how interesting!”

On Sunday, which was Easter, I decided to rest somewhat, but I did feel moved to perform a Thanksgiving mass, which I did after completing my journal entries. I had woken late in the morning and still felt tired. I also felt like something was still moving around inside my head, inspiring me with all sorts of visions and insights. I said the Mass of the Goddess with all of the solemness and joy of the moment, but I also was very tired. I cooked for myself a wonderful feast and thoroughly enjoyed eating it, since my senses had been so much enhanced from my experience. I felt that I had successfully completed the first phase, and felt a great deal of wonder and amazement at the magickal process that produces these experiences. There was much to grateful about, and felt gratitude at the deepest levels.

I am looking forward to the next and final phase of this ordeal, which (unless something peculiar happens) will be Saturday, May 14. At that time, I will attempt to perform the Bornless One Envisioning rite. I will produced an edited version of my experience and also probably put together an epilogue for the whole ordeal. Stay tuned, because it only gets more interesting!

Frater Barrabbas

Abramelin Ordeal and Bornless One Invocation - Final Actions

I have completed the Abramelin Lunar Ordeal and I must proclaim that is was not only a success, but it was also the three most difficult days of the entire seven week process. Never have I been so thoroughly tested by an ordeal, and never having successfully concluding it have I ever been so completely relieved and full of joy. I have performed the Bornless One invocation before, but never have the results been so clear and powerful. What I can say is that I have achieved the knowledge and conversation with my Holy Guardian Angel, whom I have perceived as my higher self or augoeides. I have the magickal name of this entity, which I can use to call and summon it to me whenever needed, the magickal ring that acts as a constant link to this being, and it also revealed to me its image and essence, all of which has never happened before. So I would grade the newly developed ordeal as highly successful and much more accessible to individuals who don’t have a large amount of time on their hands to perform the original ordeal, as found in either the French or German versions of the Book of Abramelin. I believe that I have personally proven that this new ordeal not only works, but could represent a new and exciting path for ritual magicians to follow. It also brings to mind the issue of whether one must as a rule follow the dictates of the old grimoires in performing these workings, or whether a new and more accessible methodology can be developed to replace the older traditional ways. I will take up this issue in a future article, since I certainly have an opinion on the matter and experience to back it up. For now we will focus on what I can tell you of the last three days of my ordeal.


December 28 through December 29

I began the Abramelin ordeal - the three days of atonement, purification and spiritual surrender, at dawn on Monday. I anointed my forehead with scented oil and placed upon it a sprinkling of ash from my thurible. I spent probably a good forty minutes of prayer before my shrine, reciting the mantram over and over “I am unworthy to come nigh unto you, Oh my God!” I abased myself completely and felt loathsome and miserable, as I believed I should feel to accomplish the task of full and complete atonement. I was fully expecting to continue this process for some time when I felt a powerful presence come before me and a voice commanded me to cease this activity at once. Of course this interrupted what I was doing, and the voice continued to instruct me in a milder tone. It told me that when the Book of Abramelin was written centuries ago that the Jewish tradition of allocating “holy guardian angels” did not exist (it was developed as part of the unofficial doctrine of Christianity). God would set a guardian angel upon a prophet or a holy man, but not an ordinary person. Thus one would be required to perform exceptional acts of piety and atonement in order to achieve this great boon from God. However, Christian doctrine had (since the 5th century) adopted the belief that everyone had a guardian angel, who acted as an intermediary, so anyone could access their holy guardian angel as a matter of their birth right. The voice said: “You are only presuming to seek union with your higher self, which is your right, not attempting to assume and pretend to be God."

So atonement in this ordeal is not required to be excessive, only to purify myself and to make me ready to surrender to the greater power of my higher self. I may pray, meditate, make heartfelt and soulful devotions to the Godhead (that I have already invoked), enact fasting and purification, and seek to open myself completely to what will follow on the third day. The six previous weekends have already taken my measure, as it were, so there is little reason to abase myself at this juncture.

I acknowledged this wisdom, bowing my head, and proceeded to the next task, purification and devotions. I read the various poems of Rumi, Hafiz, Kabir, and others (Song of Songs) to prepare my mind for the working. Other than some very mundane tasks (such as shoveling snow) I did nothing else for the duration of this time. I fasted the whole first day, and ate only bread and drank water to break my fast after the sun had gone down. I also noticed that the ash had quickly disappeared from my head, and so later that evening I performed a thorough ablutions as part of the purification process.

I slept in the library annex of the temple (all three nights) to ensure that I would be close and resident to whatever transpired in the temple during the night. This meant that I had many really strange dreams and visions that haunted my sleep. I particularly remember meeting the young woman with the braided hair and strange eyes, who seemed also to be far older than she appeared. She brought me to a pavilion up on the sands of the beach that was open to the air but filtered the rays of the sun (which by now had become brilliant, driving away the mists and the fog). In the pavilion were many oriental carpets, pillows, plates of middle eastern delicacies, an oriental tea set, and a large hookah was placed in the center. The hookah was quite ornate but was not burning, so it was hard to determine what it would be used for (tobacco or hashshish). We sat down together and leaned onto the pillows and proceeded to have an animated and pleasant discussion about philosophy, ancient history and spiritual love. A cool breeze blew through the pavilion, spiced with brine and exotic incense smoke. Perhaps we even made love, but I don’t remember that part, if indeed it even happened.

Day two was begun with body aches and a migraine headache, which abated somewhat into the morning’s devotions. But the body aches continued, and centered into my lower back, getting more severe as the day worn on. I continued to perform my purification exercises, including a deep cleansing bath and laxatives, which seemed to work somewhat, although not as well as I would have liked. I was also haunted by occasional visions of forbidden food (meat), since I was continuing my fasting again until sunset. My lady Grace told me that I still seemed to be in my mind and not in my body, and perhaps that was because I was becoming aware of a truly unfortunate pain and stiffness in my lower back. I was supposed to perform some rituals in the evening, but by that time, I was starting to be distracted by the pain and the stiffness. I medicated myself adequately, and then sought to perform that evening’s working.

I performed the circle consecration, the Mass of the Goddess, and then performed again the Triple Tetrahedral Gate ritual from the previous Saturday night. I discovered that the powerful Godhead aspect that I had invoked was still very much active and in force, and I communed with it for a time. I also completed the rite to consecrate the magick ring and proceeded to put it on my finger. I felt a powerful intense tingling from it, down my finger to my hand and into my body, making my head feel light and my mind, giddy. I asked the Godhead of the ring to help me to energize my body and to temporarily heal it, although whatever I had done to my body was already powerfully effecting me. Perhaps all of the time I spent on the floor meditating and praying, reciting mystical poetry, and the moderately uncomfortable futon bed was taking its toll on my body - not to mention the fasting.


Day 3 - December 30

This day began with the pain and stiffness in my back having reached a climax. It was difficult to stand erect for any length of time (or to sit for too long either), and it also affected my sense of balance. I felt like I had two left feet, and had to stand in a kind of bull legged manner to remain erect for any length of time. This situation was not at all expected, nor did it bode well for the evening’s climactic working - the Bornless One invocation. Since that rite is very physically demanding, taking as much as three hours to complete. I began to wonder if I might have to postpone the working, and I was quite dejected by having to consider this option. I wanted desperately to complete the ordeal, since the next day would be the Full Moon, and the end of the period for the Lunar Ordeal. I was very troubled by all of these considerations, and had to medicate myself as much as I could just to get through all of the preparations. The thought of attempting to complete the ordeal under such conditions seemed extremely daunting to me. Yet I knew that I had to at least attempt the ritual working, so I continued the preparations as best as I could.

Grace decided that she should attend that evening’s working. She had previously decided not to attend, initially because she felt it was private and personal, and she wanted to give me as much privacy in these final operations as possible. Now, she felt instructed and compelled to help me complete the working that evening, offering whatever assistance was needed, perhaps even helping me to do the ritual actions. I was profoundly grateful for Grace’s help and support, and it made me a bit more confident that I would be able to complete the ordeal. The pain and stiffness of my back made it quite difficult to focus my mind on the objective of the rite, I attempted some further meditations and devotions, but these were not very successful because I was constantly being distracted and unable to find an asana that was comfortable enough to be endured for very long. That evening, I medicated myself as much as I dared and then sat down to meditate. I was wearing my magick ring, and I sought whatever healing power I was able to command from it to help me get through this evening and complete the working. I completely surrendered myself to the process, opening myself to whatever occurred that evening, but I would endeavor to work the ritual from beginning to end and not let my physical condition get in the way of my ritual performance and the reception of the HGA.

I began the rite of the Bornless One invocation, and at first I seemed a little bit shaky and not clearly focused, but that quickly changed as I got into the ritual. Despite the medication that I had taken, my mind became completely clear and all of the stiffness in my back and the pain completely disappeared. I functioned as if nothing was wrong with me and proceeded to perform the ritual at the very best level of my abilities, which was quite a marvelous occurrence. I managed to effortlessly perform the first two stages of the rite without a break, proceeding up the steps of the concentric pylon pyramid, then went on with the next two stages after a short break of around 15 minutes. The healing power that I had invoked from the ring had not only sustained me, but allowed me to become loose in my body. I was riding a wave of ascending power that increased in intensity and building up to a euphoric feeling of ecstasy. It literally pushed me through the final steps, so I went from Assiah, to Yetzirah, Briah and up to Atziluth, into the Eye of the Holy Dragon and beyond. Grace informed me that I was glowing, and that a tangible power was emanating from my body. I felt exhilarated and greatly empowered, I could have danced a Scottish reel or even stood on my head - but I focused resolutely on performing the ritual, making hardly no errors and enunciating all of the words of power and the descriptive text. Thus I achieved in building the four levels of the step-pyramid ritual structure, and achieved the glorious apex at the Qabbalistic world of Atziluth.


The final stage of the actual Bornless One invocation was performed as if I were on fire and fully empowered. I have never said this rite as well or in such a focused manner. I felt a closeness and intimacy of the Holy Guardian Angel, which I have never felt before, even before the invocation was completed. Once it was done, there were waves and reverberations of power as I felt and began to see the materialization of my higher self, the augoeides, the one that is self-begotten (autogenes) and eternal.

I have performed this rite many times (although not in its current revised form), but never have I experienced a manifestation of this magnitude or awesomeness. This was now the climax of six weekends of workings, resting as it were on a foundation of eight super-archangels (Seraphim and Cherubim), who had become the emissaries of the manifested godhead of Shadia El Chai as the Goddess Isis-Sophia. At the apex of these six weeks of arduous workings, I erected the step pyramid-pylons of the four Qabbalistic worlds, and upon its summit I generated the inner sanctum or etheric temple of my highest self, a veritable “vault of the adepti.” Within that sacred vault, I intoned the powerful invocation of the Bornless or Headless One. Needless to say, it appeared to me (as a pillar of rich azure light) and gave me its name so I could summon it whenever I had need of it. Within that blue pillar of light I saw an idealized image of myself as a flawless and perfect youth, full of vigor, sweet happiness, optimism, love and joy. It was a breath-taking experience to see myself in that guise, one that I had never assumed in life. I also felt the magick ring pulsing with power and felt the essence of the HGA flowing from it into me. I felt so very high and full of joy - having left my body of pain and imperfection far behind - at least for the moment. Then I sensed and heard it speak to me of many things, and some of what it said I may impart to all of my readers.

The HGA, augoeides or higher self is an intimate spirit that is directly connected to one. It is such for all human beings. The HGA is the sum total of everything good that I have ever realized and accomplished in my entire life, from infancy to the last breath that I will draw - it is all that and much more. It is also connected to the Godhead and transmits all spiritual realization directly to me, whether I ask for it or not. It is like my future self that is wholly spiritual and beyond the moment of my death. All things of the flesh, emotions (except love), mind and soul are part of the corporeal self and shall perish at the end of this life time, never to be seen or known in this world forever more. Through the HGA I may sense and “see” all aspects of Spirit and the Godhead, without it I would be spiritually dead, a malady that is ironically called a “loss of soul.” I may worship the Gods and Goddesses, feel them and hear their words and blessings, venerate the ancestors, summon angels, demons, spirits of the dead and earth spirits, but always and only through the mediation of the HGA, whether I am aware of it or not.

Most religions, except those that are wholly occult or mystical based, actually worship this personal atman or higher self and never really engage directly with the Godhead, so there is a superficial and even delusional quality to exoteric religion, affecting its doctrines, dogma and fixed practices.  One can find many references to this idea, especially in the mystical poetry of Rumi, Hafiz and Kabir, which I recited and read for hours before this final working. Only through occult practices and profound mystical experiences is this hidden nature of the higher self revealed. All outward practices, however engaging, are as nought when compared to the revelations of the higher self, our personal intermediary of the Godhead.

So what has been revealed to me is that the HGA is integral to one’s being and functions as one’s spiritual dimension. What I was seeking and attempting to connect with was always there. When I apprehended this truth, it was so simple and so familiar to me. It was all of the “good” that I have ever felt or shown to others, the love and devotion that I have shown the Godhead, my true spiritual self from infancy to death and beyond. It was such a miraculous and minor thing, always attached to me and a part of me, even though I was unaware of it most of the time. However, I needed to perform this massive and difficult ordeal to get me to detach enough from my mundane preoccupations to become truly aware of it, probably for the first time in my life - although I realized that it had been always there at the very pinacle and edge of my being. As time goes forward from this point of realization, a greater awareness will unfold, teaching and guiding me, helping me to elevate my consciousness in a manner that nothing else could compare. The world has become my teacher, and my HGA is the master guide who will aid me in my lessons of life, death and the Greater Spirit.

Through this divine union and awareness I may experience a kind of immortality, though I shall be totally subsumed into the body of my HGA, and nothing of the terrestrial me will be left once I have died. This was quite a revelation to me and I am still attempting to process it. It is not a death wish nor a desire to seek death, as much as it is a desire to live a long and productive life, however many years are left to me. I feel that although I have already lived more than half of my allotted life span or perhaps even more, the best and most productive years lie yet ahead of me, where the greatest challenges and accomplishments await. This pathway of the higher adept has not ended now or anytime in the future - it has only humbly begun, with the initial smallest steps - this simple realization. It’s now up to me to make it grow into maturation, so that I may know my full potential self.

I was also told that the rite of assumption does not have to be performed by me, since I have already completely achieved the assumption of my higher self. It is a ritual where the helpers or attendants of the rite may be empowered and blessed by it performance, sharing in a full measure of what the main celebrant has been able to achieve. I will have to note this in ritual and work it out accordingly.

So I have completed the ordeal, and it seems like I have only achieved what was just simply right in front of me all along, although I was unaware. Perhaps that is my folly, but I suspect that we are all so afflicted. I am now tied to spiritual service, but how that is defined and is worked out remains to be seen. There was much more that was communicated to me, some of it I have revealed, other secrets I have kept to myself because of it’s personal nature, and much will be revealed as time goes on. I now feel very “other worldly” and I need to reconnect with my body in order to be able to function. Grace has noticed this about me - I seem so much happier, joyful - there is a light in my person, perhaps a kind of illumination. But I am also distant and deep within my own spiritual process. I need to surface and re-examine my life, ironically, just as the New Year begins.

I have forged a new path and hopefully others will seek it, take it upon themselves and attempt to complete it. I have found it a daunting ordeal despite its brevity. For now, there is yet another method to invoking and manifesting the Holy Guardian Angel.

Frater Barrabbas

Abramelin Lunar Ordeal

This is the second part of this article - where I actually specify the Abramelin Lunar Ordeal as an alternate to the normal 6 month or 18 month ordeal.

The lunar ordeal requires six to seven weeks of intensive magickal workings. It is begun at the advent of the New Moon, and proceeds without interruption or deviation for the duration of the ordeal. If one begins this working, then it must be completed or not begun at all. Once started, it must be performed entirely and without interruption. I suspect that there might be repercussions that would occur for an aborted ordeal, and the extent of those repercussions would depend on how far into the ordeal one progressed before quitting. If you don’t have the resources or time to perform this ordeal through all three phases of ritual work, then I would advise you not to begin. All of the rituals that are to be used in this ordeal must be completely understood and familiar to the magician.

(The fifth weekend may require a break from the activity, depending on the lunar phases. For an early start, the magician will actually get ahead of the lunar cycle, and have to wait for the final two workings to complete the working in the final full moon.)

Basic practices and requirements for this period of working are as follows.

• Daily meditation - to be performed at least once or twice a day (at waking, and then before retiring). These practices should use asana, pranayama, mantra and mandala to establish the proper mind-state. Then contemplation on the intent of the working as well as seeking a special kind of illumination or grace from the Deity.

• Partial fasting - eat lightly and often - avoid excessive meals. Eat less meat than usual or become vegetarian (dairy, eggs, vegetables and fruit).

• Keep a special journal - note down everything - from dreams and musings to the actual results of the ritual workings.

• Weekends are reserved for at least two major magical workings. These times must be reserved and not be used for anything else. Saying the magical mass and other liturgical ceremonies (a benediction) will generate the proper atmosphere and energy for these workings, this would include a circle consecration rite. Also, one should spend at least an hour or more meditating before performing the ritual working. I would recommend that the ritual workings be performed on either Friday and Saturday night, or Saturday and Sunday night. I would not recommend skipping a day between the weekend workings.

• Special emphasis should be placed on observing the phases of the moon, particularly when they change. These times should involve some degree of meditation and focused awareness, particularly if they occur during the waking period.

The first part of the ordeal covers four weeks, representing the full cycle of the moon from new, to full and then back again to new. During the weekend ritual workings, the magician will invoke the four Seraphim and Cherubim for the four Elements, starting with Earth, then Air, Water and finally, Fire. This activity will require separate ritual workings for each Super Archangel invoked, so for each of these four weekends, two invocations will be performed on separate evenings. The Archetypal Gate ritual will be used to invoke the Super Archangels.

Performing an invocation of just one of these powerful angels during a period of three to six months would be more than adequate for any aspiring magician. However, we are proposing invoking all eight of these entities in a single period of a month! You can easily see why this would be a very intensive series of workings, and also why it would be prudent to not start this ordeal unless one were intent on completing it. The reason for invoking all eight of these angels is that the magician is seeking full and total illumination, and the combination of Seraphim and Cherubim would inspire and teach the magician all that is required to achieve this end. Not completing the ordeal would show a high degree of superficiality and insincerity, which might set up a very terrible backlash or wave of retribution, since these entities do not suffer fools gladly and have the power to punish as well as grant requests. If the magician is not fully convinced of the “rightness” of this ordeal, then he may receive a warning from the very first angel invoked, and such a warning should be immediately acknowledged and obeyed. If, on the other hand, the magician receives blessings and grace from all eight of these angels, then that would indicate that one is prepared and ready to meet the challenges of the next two weeks.

The fifth weekend has nothing scheduled, so it would be a time of rest, meditation and contemplation. It is also a time when the magician can charge and consecrate the magickal ring, which is used in the Bornless Invocation rite to establish a material link between the Bornless One and the magician. It’s also necessary to have this break point to catch up on any other required work that might be done. The break usually occurs because the lunar cycle may start early in the week with the first working weekend, and this will cause the workings to get ahead of the actual lunar cycle. It’s critically important that the final working be performed exactly on or just prior to the timing of the full moon.

The sixth weekend continues the activity of the previous four, and the magician uses the Archetypal Gate ritual to invoke an Elemental Godhead to act as the central and unifying entity to the ogdoad of angelic spirits. It’s assumed that the magician will discover which Elemental Godhead to invoke by successfully invoking the previous eight super archangels, or that information might be communicated in some other fashion. The magician may further qualify that central entity and even make it representative of one’s personal Godhead; but the qualification does not replace the basic Qabbalistic Elemental Godhead, it only augments it.

The next evening working is where all of the previous entities and structures are brought together into a complete synthesis. This is where the magician establishes the holy ogdoad of four Seraphim, four Cherubim, and the Elemental Godhead. This is done through the artifice of the magical structure of the octagon. The four Seraphim are each summoned and set to one of the four Watchtowers, and the four Cherubim are summoned and set to one of the four Angles. The Elemental Godhead is summoned and set to the Ultra-point, and all nine points are drawn together to form an octagonal vortex. Over this vortex structure is set the triple gateway - the double gateway with an ascension gate. Then all of these entities and forces are drawn together as the collected focus of the Ultra-point is drawn down into an inner circle, and into the heart and soul of the magician, where one performs a deep trance .

The basic premise of the Triple Gateway is to establish three concurrent gateway ritual structures - the Western Gateway into the underworld, the Eastern Gateway of the “Coming forth by Day”, and perhaps a gateway of ascension. The gateway of ascension would occupy the Western and Eastern points of the circle, and the Ultra-point - drawing all of the points of the three gateways together into a grand gateway. The purpose for this ritual is establish the mystery system of the three phases of the Lunar ordeal, which represents a trigon of the moon. This ritual is called the Triple Tetrahedral Gate ritual, and the companion rite is called the Ogdoadic Godhead Vortex rite - both to be used on the second evening of the sixth weekend.

The completion of the workings for the sixth weekend brings the ordeal to the point of the first quarter phase of the moon. This is the last major phase before the full moon occurs and completes the ordeal. The final weekend can be either just before or just after the full moon - even to the point of the next lunation cycle type.

The final weekend working is where the magician starts the process by performing a kind of macro ritual during the previous evening, drawing down the Element Godhead into one’s person, and assuming all of that power, authority and majesty prior to actually performing the Bornless Invocation rite. The magician will then perform the Triple Tetrahedral Gateway rite a second time to ensure that the Element Godhead is present for the next and final working. Thus all of these entities and forces are drawn together as the collected focus of the Ultra-point is drawn down into an inner circle, and into the heart and soul of the magician, where one performs a deep trance and begins to summon the Bornless One.

After this rite, the magic circle is not sealed and the magician spends the evening alternately dozing and meditating until the next day. A solemn high mass is said in the morning, and a meditation vigil and partial fast is adhered to (bread, water, and some dried fruit and cheese). Intense ablutions are also performed to prepare for the final evening working.

The last evening is where the magician performs the newly revised Bornless rite in its entirety, including the assumption rite. This is followed with an evening of meditation and deep trance, and the next day with another mass, this time aligned to the holy spirit as a form of thanksgiving. Then the magician seals the temple and avoids entry into it for at least a week (seven to nine days). After that time, the magician re-enters the temple, says a mass, sets the magic circle, and then performs once more the Triple Tetrahedral Gateway rite, and at the climax of that ritual, charges a specially made book containing all of the magical squares of the Abramelin system, as well as other sigils and characters (like those from the Grimoire Armadel). This book will be blessed by the HGA and fully activated. The magician then would only have to re-enter the Triple Tetrahedral Gateway in order to access the internal spiritual chamber of the Bornless One and seek to unleash the powers of one or more of the squares or sigils. Once unleashed, a magic square can be used at any time or place, even kept on the magician’s person when in the mundane world. The Bornless One would also teach, guide and give assistance in mundane matters to the magician - but the Eneagramic Gate would be the mystikon domain where all of that would be possible.

Also, on the following Full Moon, the magician will perform the third rite in the Bornless rite series, and this called the Bornless Envisioning rite. This is where the magician, fully vetted with the Bornless One, will perform a divination task that will project one’s highest will (i.e., the Will of the Deity) into the material world. Preparation would include determining what that will consists of and what are the mundane steps that the magician is expected to perform to fulfill it. During the period of that month from the invocation and assumption of the Bornless One, the magician will have determined the nature of that mystery.

A synopsis of this ordeal would be as follows:

1. Begin ordeal on the advent of the new moon
2. First weekend - invoke the Seraphim and Cherubim of Earth
3. Second weekend - invoke the Seraphim and Cherubim of Air
3. Third weekend - invoke the Seraphim and Cherubim of Water
4. Fourth weekend - invoke the Seraphim and Cherubim of Fire
5. Sixth weekend - invoke the Elemental Godhead, establish the Ogdoadic Tabernacle  and open the Triple Gateway
6. Seventh weekend - re-open the Triple Gateway, perform a vigil, and then perform the Invocation of the Bornless One with the Assumption rite.
7. Ancillary workings include the unleashing of the Abramelin grimoire (7 - 9 days) and the Bornless Envisioning (next Full Moon).


This is the revised version of the Abramelin Lunar Ordeal and all its various steps and tasks. The magician who undergoes this ordeal should remember that he or she is performing this ordeal under completely different circumstances than the original ordeal, whether consisting of the six month, three phase double lunar version or the 18 month solar cycle version. Since claiming to have successfully completed this ordeal carries with it a certain notoriety or fame, the magician who completes the Abramelin Lunar Ordeal should always state that he or she has undergone a modified version of this working and not claim to have performed the traditional one. I strongly advise this since it would be disrespectful to those who have undergone the traditional ordeal and also quite misleading, which would not be faithful to the aim of this revised version.

Keep in mind that not everyone would agree with this revised version, and that others, who are highly respectful of tradition, wouldn’t see it as being the same thing. There is certainly a place for those who would seek to perform the traditional ordeal and for those who have found alternative approaches. So we, as magicians, celebrate both the traditional approach and creative re-interpretations.


A note about the demons and their servitors: In the original book there are an ancillary set of tasks that consisted of summoning and mastering the unredeemed spirits, namely the demonic kings and their dukes, and that these same demons gave servitors who operated the many magic squares. It is my belief that summoning demons and gaining servitors from them is magically superfluous. This is just my opinion, of course, yet since I have rewritten the entire ordeal then I can also modify the manner that the magical squares are deployed. Some have found this linkage between the magic squares and the demons troubling, and some have sought to white-wash or explain it away as some kind of cathartic ordeal. Yet in all versions of the book, it is quite plain that the purpose of invoking and manifesting the HGA is to gain mastery over the demons, to seek from them servitors to perform tasks directly, or to use them to empower and activate the magic squares. It’s also possible to seek from the HGA or the demons additional magic squares. The magic of the Abramelin system is powered by demonic spirits existing in a rigid spiritual hierarchy, even if they are completely dominated and mastered by the magician through the assistance of the Godhead and the HGA.

It’s my belief that the HGA, who is like a personal godhead for the magician, can do all of these tasks. If one is successful in invoking the HGA into some form of manifestation, then there is little need to command demons to do certain tasks. The power of the magician’s magick, the depth of his wisdom and the strength of his will, fortified and magnified greatly by the HGA will enable him to perform any working or accomplish any possible objective. The Abramelin book dictates that the magician should not summon the HGA unless absolutely required. My theory is that the HGA would become ever-present to the magician who successfully invoked it into manifestation, and that the magician would function almost like an avatar, having the vision and depth of a godhead acting through his conscious mind. It could be easily argued that such a great accomplishment would allow the magician to find a route to complete enlightenment and union with the Godhead, and that all of the other operations may seem irrelevant or even grossly petty to such a mind-state. So for this reason, I doubt needing the supernatural intercession of demons to perform magical feats - they should be possible by the magician’s will, fortified as it is with the power, wisdom and majesty of the Augoeides.

Frater Barrabbas

Thoughts About the Abramelin Ordeal

This article is the first part of a two part article that is based on my study and analysis on the Abramelin Ordeal. I decided to break up the original article and post the two halves for you to examine and think about. Considering that I am about to begin working the Abramelin Lunar Ordeal, which is different than the one proposed in the book, putting out these ideas would be both pertinent and relevant to my own magical workings.

I have been puzzling over the Abramelin magical system for over 30 years, ever since I got my first hard bound copy of that tome, Book of Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage, translated by MacGreggor Mathers. The book was reputed to be written by a historically obscure individual, a Jew named Abraham who lived in the town of Worms during the early 15th century. I have previously deduced that there was a very advanced Jewish occult community in that town, since nearly a hundred years earlier another important work was written called Sepher ha-Ratziel or the Book of Ratziel. So the Book of Sacred Magic was part of a plausible historical line of occultism and ceremonial magic. It’s fairly certain that there was a sharing of lore between Christian and Jewish occultists, and so it is one of the areas where Jewish magic and occultism was appropriated and used by Christians.

One of the main features of the Book of Sacred Magic is that it contains a very long and intense ordeal that many magicians have attempted and failed to complete. Aleister Crowley was reputed to have attempted this working twice at Boleskine Castle in Scotland, and Alex Sanders was also supposed to have performed the ordeal and completed it; there are numerous others as well. The ordeal is arduous and difficult because it spans a period of 18 months, using the two sacred Jewish holidays of Pesach (Passover) and Sukkot (Feast of the Tabernacles) to break up the year into six month periods. There are three of these six month phases that represent the stages of the Abramelin working.

Mather’s version of the Book of Abramelin has only 6 months or three phases of two lunar cycles for the duration of the ordeal. However, Mather’s version is from a later French manuscript that was very corrupt. I suspect that the 6 months duration is a modification that did not exist in the original. I am using the duration of the ordeal from the German edition, which appears to be more authentic. Mather’s edition also has the requirement of a virginal male child to accompany the practitioner the first time the Holy Guardian Angel is summoned. The role of the child is to act as an innocent and unbiased channel, but this is completely omitted from the German edition, and I suspect that it is a superfluous addition.

The final working in this ordeal is performed after the second Sukkot, where the magician summons into manifestation his Holy Guardian Angel through the grace of God and by means of the successful but long period of fasting, expiation, purification, consecration, devotional prayer and contemplation. There is little in the way of tools that are required for this working (a special wand, incense brazier, balm, lamps and at least two different robes, head band and cincture), but the building of a special prayer room with windows facing the East and West, an outdoor arbor and a floor covered by sand or the potential requirement for an outdoor tabernacle may have posed a daunting series of preparatory tasks. Once the prayer room is completed and the other required items are obtained, the ordeal basically consists of a regimen of devotional prayer, frequent ablutions, expiation, contemplation and various forms of abstinence (renunciation). However, performing this rigorous regimen for 18 months would guarantee that something would certainly happen, if not that which the magician sought at the start of the ordeal.

Many magicians have attempted this working, but few have questioned the necessity of its arduous discipline and practices. The supposed outcome is the manifestation of the Holy Guardian Angel, yet that event only begins a long process of spiritual indenture. It’s done for the exclusive purpose to master the good spirit (the HGA), the unredeemed spirits (demons), and to unleash the power and potency of hundreds of magical squares contained in book four of the grimoire. The achievement of the ordeal is just the beginning of this process of spiritual mastery, but the key is to have access to the Holy Guardian Angel, without which, the rest of the magic is pointless and incapable of being realized. From the standpoint of the Book of Sacred Magic of Abramelin, the ordeal is just the initiation rite for becoming a magician, the rest of the specific ritual lore would be provided and expounded upon by the HGA. It would seem then, that the HGA acted as a kind of lofty magician’s familiar spirit, and was a required part of this magical tradition. Many magicians have desired the powers and abilities associated with the fabulous and mysterious magic squares that are a hallmark of this system of magic, but few had the time or the ability to achieve the basic requirements for the ordeal.

So that is the essential conundrum underlying this system of magic. The bar for success was placed very high for the would-be apprentice magician to pass over, and so few actually managed to complete it. I suspect that was the purpose of the ordeal, to separate the goats from the sheep as it were. The ordeal also required a strict discipline of piety, renunciation and spiritual devotion that many would have understood back then, but few if any could comprehend now centuries later. Abraham the Jew makes allowances for those who might have businesses or need to work in order to survive, yet the times have dramatically changed since then and this system of magic hasn’t changed. We are talking about a magical system that was derived in the early Renaissance, a time which held a completely different mental outlook and way of life than today’s modern world. There simply isn’t an opportunity to retire from the world for the last six months of the ordeal unless the magician is independently wealthy and can support a mono-mania for several months without interruption.

Since the central ordeal to the Book of Sacred Magic is so rigorous and difficult, I have decided to forgo this regimen and find other activities and practices that are more immediately rewarding and capable of being sustained while living in the twenty-first century. I have a job and career, a home, a relationship, friends and family that require much of my time. What time I have left over is given to my magical and occult studies. But I don’t have time to devote 18 months to perform a powerful ordeal, and I couldn’t function in semi-retirement for the last six months. It would seem that the Abramelin system of magic is a tradition that I admire and study, but not one that I could possibly even perform the basic initiatory ordeal. I have had to put this book and its system aside for other more pressing activities and studies; but it’s always there on the periphery of my mind, tantalizingly near yet out of reach, waiting ultimately to be resolved. 

 Recently, I have been examining the power and potential of lunar based magic and its associated mysteries. I put the entire Elemental and Talismanic Elemental systems of magic squarely into the matrix of lunar based magic. Of course, talismanic magic makes use of the 28 lunar mansions, and elemental magic uses the moon and the sun to imprint a powerful time-stamp onto the magical working, so as to assist it in focusing changes into the present world. Both of these approaches have worked marvelously well, and in fact, even after performing a series of these rites in June, July and August of 2007, they are still aiding and rewarding me with renewed and unexpected sources of money. Certainly, these kinds of magic work very well through the use of the lunar mysteries. However, I had not attempted to apply any other magical system to the lunar cycle, that is, until I began to re-examine the Abramelin ordeal.

Since purchasing the newest version of the Book of Sacred Magic, which was translated from a completely intact German manuscript by Steven Guth and Georg Dehn, and giving it a thorough study, I have found myself rethinking the entire structure of the ordeal. Previously, if you wanted to perform this ordeal, there wasn’t any room or ability to make substitutions, since the time-line appeared to be firmly determined and that is what made the ordeal so effective and difficult. The regimen of prayer and contemplation was not particularly demanding, nor were the tools required, although the requirement for the prayer room might be difficult for some, and this might be where some substitutions could be made. However, the time-line was based on the religious holidays of the Passover and the Feast of the Tabernacles, these being roughly six months apart in the Jewish calendar. One might even substitute these Jewish holidays with Christian ones, such as Easter and maybe Michaelmas, but that would be the extent of the possible alternatives.

See The Book of Abramelin - A New Translation - edited by George Dehn, translated by Steven Guth, Ibis Press 2006. This edition of the Book of Abramelin seems to have a number of variances with the version published by Mathers. There is no mention made of the Passover and the Feast of the Tabernacles in the ordeal, so it would seem Mathers’ version has been sanitized of all Jewish traces. Also, many of the magic squares are incomplete (160 out of 242), there are 9 missing squares, and an entire book is missing from the Mathers edition. Since that version appears to be a later incomplete French manuscript, I suspect that we can rely on the German manuscript to be more authentic and definitive of this system of magic.

Yet this ordeal is decidedly solar based, since each phase is six months in length, and there are three phases. I began to ponder that since I am neither Jewish nor Christian, and since my faith is an earth-based spirituality, why would I follow a solar cycle for this kind of ordeal? Why not a lunar based cycle? Since a lunar cycle takes only 28 days to complete, then breaking it in half and building an ordeal that would cover three phases or one and a half cycles of the moon would be quite appropriate. Like the traditional Abramelin working, there would be three phases, but instead of using an annual sacred holiday, like the Passover as the starting point, I would start at a point in the lunar cycle that would connote “beginnings,” and that would most certainly be the new moon. Then the ordeal would span the lunar cycle of new moon, to full moon, to new moon again, and finally, to  full moon. The duration of the lunar ordeal would last approximately 40 to 42 days. This period of time seems analogous to the ubiquitous forty days and nights of the old testament, which is used to denote an archetypal duration. It would seem that the period of one and half lunar cycles is just as auspicious as the solar cycle of 18 months, not to mention that it would have the added power of being very significant to someone who practiced an earth based spirituality.

So I would substitute the three phases of the solar cycle with the three phases of the lunar cycle, and establish a time period that would be quite doable for a person of the post-modern world of the twenty-first century. That being said, I was quite pleased with the new structure of the ordeal, but I began to see other possibilities as well. The regimen of devotional prayer, expiation of sins, contemplation, fasting and ablutions performed in ever more rigorous fashion represented the only activity that the practitioner engaged in for months, only increasing the intensity and frequency as the ordeal approached its final six months. Since I am already initiated and functioning in a spiritually transformed state, and I am also quite capable of performing rituals and ceremonies during the shortened lunar ordeal, I have decided to completely modify and change the regimen of the ordeal to make it even more powerful and demanding in the area of applied rituals. What I decided to do was to merge the Invocation of the Bornless One, as derived from the Golden Dawn system, with the Abramelin ordeal to produce a working that would, at its climax, assist in invoking the Holy Guardian Angel as an aspect of the magician’s absolute self, or the God/dess Within. Other workings also emerged in my thoughts, and an entire ritual magickal ordeal took form in my mind.

Is the Bornless One the same or at least closely analogous to the Holy Guardian Angel? Now that’s a question that any knowledgeable occultist would ask. The key word that links them is found in the term Augoeides, which was used in the Golden Dawn and in Theosophical circles to denote the luminous radiance of the self as godhead. It has cognates in the related terms Daimones (Greek), Atman (Sanscrit), Genius (Latin) and the Holy Guardian Angel.  The source of this term is obscure, but it seems to have originated in the writings and thoughts of the Neoplatonists, most notably Iamblichus and Porphyry, but was promulgated by theurgists in late antiquity. To quote a reliable source:

“Augoeides (Greek, "shinning image") is a term that has had various definitions within Western occult tradition over the past two thousand years. The Greek Neoplatonic writers of the late Roman period first used it to refer to the Body of Light or the transformed spiritual body worn by the initiate who had overcome the materialism of the physical world.” (See the online web page for the following quote here. I have found it quite complete and illustrative of my point.) 

An examination of this term would seem to link it even more closely to that aspect of the self called the “higher self” or “absolute self”, and it would therefore be more bonded to the individual than what was believed of this term in the middle ages. (Not to be confused with any aspect of the self that is associated with the ego or persona. A better term would be the self as godhead.) Aleister Crowley himself referred to the Holy Guardian Angel as the personal godhead Augoeides, and I think that we can safely assume this to be correct. Therefore, it would seem that the invocation of the Bornless One would represent a magical process used to summon the highest aspect of the self as deity, and that this operation would be quite analogous to the invocation of the Holy Guardian Angel. Some may dispute this linkage, but I believe that it is adequately supported by past usage and associations. (See Crowley’s articles - Liber Samekh and Liber VIII. Liber Samekh associated the HGA with the Bornless One, and Liber VIII proposes an alternate form of the Abramelin ordeal that lasts 91 days.)

This leads us to examine the nature of the revised ordeal that I am proposing to establish, and to carefully examine its various steps. The following is a detailed analysis of this newly devised Abramelin Lunar Ordeal, which takes around 40 days to complete and is actually much more ritually demanding and intensive than the original solar ordeal. The prerequisites are that this new ordeal be performed only by an adept, analogous to the sixth or seventh degree of the E.S.S.G. or Order of the Gnostic Star. This level of ability requires that the magician be capable of performing a magickal mass on a weekly basis and performing the Archetypal Gate rituals as well as the newly formed version of the Invocation of the Bornless One. The magician would have to be competent at performing magical evocations and all of the rigors that such a discipline would require. I suspect that if someone were to undertake this ordeal who does not have these requirements, then either nothing at the very least or complete personal disaster at the worst would be encountered through the misapplication of this ordeal.

Frater Barrabbas