Power Octagon for Invocation

I have already described in detail the nature of the Power Octagon that is used to generate and summon an Elemental. I have also indicated that the Elemental is the building block for advanced magickal workings, such as invocation and evocation. With these two points already made, I would like to demonstrate how the Power Octagon can be modified to generate what would be described as an energy envelope or container through which a spirit can be summoned and given a quasi energy form.

Since the type of magickal system that I use to invoke spirits seeks to define their strategic components, and then when combining them through magickal fusion, generate a simulacrum of that spirit, the foundation for that kind of working lies in the specialized Power Octagon that is used to materialize an aetheric body. The basic premise that I use is that a qualified energy formulation (Power Octagon) is joined to a precise expression of a spiritual intelligence (Activated Septagram), and through an empowered gateway of invocation (Mystery Gateway), these parts are caused to join to become a fully realized and manifested spirit, emulating the entity that the magician sought to invoke. In such a system, developing and refining a highly condensed and relational symbolic matrix through which a spirit is defined and invoked is of paramount importance. However, the specialized Power Octagon acts as the foundation, and we need to analyze this specialized ritual and its structure to help us make sense of the entire process of invocation, as it is deployed using this methodology.

The ritual devices used in the specialized Power Octagon are the inverted and obverse invoking pentagrams, the pylon and the cross roads. An inverted invoking pentagram produces a kind of anti-element force, and is rarely used by most other organizations. It is much more common in the ritual workings of the Order, since it is the natural compliment of the obverse invoking pentagram. Inverted devices are selectively used in the Order, so not every device has its inverted opposite. The pylon has already been discussed, and for that matter, so has the creation of a cross roads through the use of opposing Watchtowers or Angles. Still, this Power Octagon uses two sets of cross roads to produce two different phenomena simultaneously - a vortex container and a mystery domain where the worlds of spirit and matter intersect. Thus eight points are drawn together at the Infra-point (nadir) of the magick circle. In that nexus point is placed a rectangular talismanic trigon, which has painted on it the Lamen of the magician or the temple.

Four pylons are erected at the four Watchtowers, with each one consisting of supporting element invoking pentagrams at the base and the apex. The base of the pylon is set with an obverse invoking pentagram and the apex, with an inverted invoking pentagram, symbolizing the joining of the base element with its anti-element qualifier. Each pylon is characterized by a specific Elemental force, summoned with its own Enochian call, and these four pylons are drawn together through the device of a cross-roads that connects the Watchtowers to the Infra-point in the center. The second set of cross-roads, applied to the four Angles, establishes a kind of anchor that bestows a high degree of stability to the overall ritual structure (making it into a rather solid focal container). Because the four Elementals are drawn together, they no longer function as separate forces or entities, but as a collage or a fusion of energies blended into a singularity.

Since the Watchtowers function as placements for four selected Elementals, the Angles are used to hold devices representing some variation on the symbology of the divine tetrad. In the case of the Order, the Angles are set with devices characterizing the tetrasacramentary of Thelema (Rose or Iron Cross), Thanatos (Pshent or Pisces Cross), Agape (Hexagramic cross) and Eros (Rose Ankh). Each Angle would also be set with some kind of formula and declaration.

A final action performed in this ritual structure of the angular cross-roads is where a penultimate magickal device is drawn in the Ultra-point (zenith) of the magick circle, and a pylon (consisting of an invoking spiral) joins the trigon in the Infra-point with the device in the Ultra-point. This device, as depicted in the Order, is a symbol of the Grail itself, which looks like the antique version of the symbol of the planet Pluto. (You can find this engraved on the central chalice in the Lamen of the Order.) Coincidentally, the devices and declarations established at the four Angles and the Ultra-point are also depicted in some geometrical manner on the Lamen trigon placed in the center of the circle. Thus, the four Angles and the Ultra-point give a kind of metaphysical qualification to the foundation of the Power Octagon.

The last two elements of this specialized Power Octagon consist of widdershins and deosil vectors set at the periphery of the magick circle, thereby joining all eight points into a unified expression of both coalescing and exteriorizing forces. Once this is done, the Power Octagon is fully activated and able to function as a power-base for other types of ritual workings, most notably, the rite of invocation.

Further workings, such as an invocation of a spirit, would require the preliminary steps of performing a magickal Mass and a benediction, which would make the temple domain highly sacralized and energized. These two rituals are part of the essential repertoire of the practicing ritual magician who would seek to use this methodology. 

To continue, the magician then proceeds to build other structures overlaying the Power Octagon, beginning with the Activated Septagram. I have discussed this structure previously, but this ritual structure consists of the drawing of an inner circle, then the placement of the charged Septagram talismanic trigon therein, and finally, the erection of four Rose Ankh devices (charged with an ultra-violet colored energy) to the four Watchtowers, joined to a Rose Ankh device set at the Infra-point, overlaying the Septagram. The four Watchtowers are joined to the Infra-point, and then a widdershins spiral is set over them, producing a magnetically charged invoking vortex. For this particular working, the Septagram talisman would be placed on top of the Lamen trigon, thus physically demonstrating the layering of ritual structures.

Once this is accomplished, then the magician intones the first invocation of the spirit proper and declares the authority (spiritual hierarchy) through which that is accomplished, ritually establishing that the summoning of that entity has been initiated. Then the magician performs a series of planetary invocations, progressing through all seven planets and qualifying them with astrological signs, thereby building a kind of neural network of planetary intelligences that are specifically associated with the spirit. Once this has been completed, then a second invocation is performed, and also the Imago of the spirit is declared. The imago is a qualified description of all of the various characteristics of the spirit, which can include physical features. The final act is where the magician performs another invocation of the spirit, but this time using a sacred language or barbarous tongue as a kind of empowered exhortation compelling the spirit to appear.

Combining the specialized Power Octagon with the Activated Septagram functioning at its core can, by itself, materialize a spirit into a proper type of invocative manifestation. This union produces what is called in the Order, the Quintedecim Complex, or the ritual structure of Fifteen (8 + 7). There is a custom rectangular trigon that has painted on it an octagon, with a septagram and a triangle within it. That device is placed over the stack of the Lamen and Septagram trigons in the center of the circle. (The logo for this blog is represented by that image of the superimposition of octagon, septagram and triangle.)

Still, to fully realize the power and intelligence of the summoned spirit, the magician performs another specialized ritual that incorporates additional attributes into this working. Such additional elements that it contains are the trapezoidal vortex, an empowered underworld gateway, and through the artifice of sacramental alchemy, the magician charges an internal triangle of invocation and installs therein the blessed sigil of the spirit. Then to gain full immersion, the magician performs the bodily discipline of chakra alignment and assumes a deep trance state induction facilitated by the Lotus 7-Breath prana-yama technique. Through these additional ritual actions, the magician enters completely and thoroughly into the domain of the spirit, therein fully experiencing, through immersion, its manifested personality and actualized spiritual attributes. This gateway operation is a Mystery Gate, and is rightfully called, in the Order, the “Gate of Revealing.”

I will discuss the Activated Septagram and the Gate of Revealing in future articles, but let us recap the ritual structure of the specialized Power Octagon that is used as the foundation for the process of invocation. This ritual pattern contains six basic steps, and I will highlight those steps, so that a capable student could write their own ritual. It is assumed that these steps are performed within a fully consecrated magick circle.

1. Place the rectangular Lamen talismanic trigon in the center of a consecrated magick circle. The blessed sigil of the spirit (if this is to be an invocation) is placed on the trigon, and both are charged with an inverted invoking pentagram of spirit superior (masculine).

2. Set the four watchtowers with a pylon characterized by a specific Elemental. The celebrant begins in the South, then proceeds to the North, then to the East, and finally, to the West. The first cross-roads is established by the activation of this ritual structure. The celebrant performs the following actions at each of the four Watchtowers.

• Draws invoking pentagram of base element at base of pylon.
• Draws inverted invoking pentagram of qualifying element at apex of pylon.
• Draws invoking spiral joining base and apex together into a pylon structure.
• Makes sign (representing element of Watchtowers), charges with visualized colored energy, declares formula letter/word.
• Intones Enochian Call for Elemental.

3. Set in the center of the circle at the Infra-point with an invoking pentagram of Spirit Superior (masculine), then make the appropriate sign, charge with a visualized energy, and then declare the formula letter/word. The Enochian Call of Spirit (#2) should also be intoned.

While still in the center, the celebrant faces East and intones the formula keyword and gives a declaration of its meaning and significance. This action joins the primary five points of the circle into a unified structure.

4. Set the four Angles with the devices of the divine tetramorph, proceeding from the Southeast, to the Northwest, then to the Northeast, and finally, to the Southwest. The second cross-roads is established by the activation of this ritual structure. The following ritual actions are performed at each of the four Angles.

• Draw tetramorphic device.
• Charge device with a visualized colored energy.
• Declare formula word and specific significance or meaning (can also use special invocation).

5. Set in the center of the circle at the Ultra-point the device of primacy (representing the joining of the tetramorph), charge device with colored energy, and then declare formula word and specific significance or meaning (can also use special invocation).

While still in the center of the circle, facing the West, the celebrant intones the formula keyword and gives a declaration of its meaning and significance. This action joins the secondary five points of the circle into a unified structure.

6. Celebrant, using the sword, draws the four Watchtowers and four Angles to the Infra-point, beginning in the South and proceeding widdershins around the circle. Then using either the sword or the staff, the celebrant traces the outer magick circle, first proceeding widdershins, then deosil. The celebrant then intones the intention of the work, usually in a sacred language that will also be used in the final invocation.

So, these are the six steps that are used to produce the specialized Power Octagon, a ritual structure that functions as a foundation for many other more advanced ritual workings. An important consideration for using this ritual structure is the variation associated with the magician’s choice of the four Elementals. Obviously, a magician could choose different Elementals, or Elementals with the same base element, or even the same Elemental at each of the four Watchtowers. There is also a slight variance depending on which Watchtower a specific Elemental is deployed, although when they are fused together, that variance would disappear. The specialized Power Octagon is the “work horse” for advanced ritual workings in the Order, and I have presented it here because I think you’ll find it both useful and interesting.

Frater Barrabbas

Secrets of the Power Octagon

 (Pentagram Tile)

Sherlock Holmes (shaking his head): “Elementals, my dear Watson, Elementals.”

One of the most useful ritual structures in my personal arsenal is the Power Octagon. It’s not only essential to my own personal magickal work, but it’s also the basic tool in the repertoire of the Order of the Gnostic Star. You might ask the simple question why is this ritual structure so useful, and the basic answer is that it generates the prismatic double vortices of the Elemental. So, the Power Octagon is useful in generating the Elemental, whether that quality is defined as an energy, spirit, or both.

Elementals are used in talismanic work as well as theurgic invocations and evocations. It could be easily said that the Elemental is the building block for many forms of magick performed in the Order of the Gnostic Star. This is why it is such an important part of the training of a ritual magician, since it is used so ubiquitously in the art of magick as practiced in the Order. The first ordeal that a newly initiated neophyte in the Order is given is to invoke an Elemental into manifestation, both within the temple and in an outdoor grove. Later on, considerations for the lunation cycle are integrated into this magickal working, making it quite effective for any material based magick that a magician might need to perform.

So what are the Elementals, you might ask? Are they those cute looking creatures that are so often seen in books on magick, where they’re typically shown looking like fiery salamanders, winged sylphs, fish-tailed undines and gnarly gnomes? They may be called elementals, yet they aren’t quite Elementals, at least not according to the definition that I use. They are elemental archetypal creatures, but they aren’t what I am referring to when I write about Elementals, using a capital “E” to distinguish them. The elemental archetypal creatures are an effective mechanism for manipulating the pure energy of the four elements, so my quip about them being “cute” was more an attempt at humor than any kind of dismissal.

When I am writing about Elementals, though, I am discussing something else altogether. Classical elemental creatures can be attributed originally to Paracelsus and his alchemical writings, but they have found their way into many forms of essential magick. These creatures embody the basic qualities of a specific element and act as a kind of mythological being associated with that element. There is also a supposed King, Queen or leader who has a magickal name associated with each of these creatures, but once again these are animated qualities for a specific element. What I am talking about when I say “Elemental” represents the first articulation of the basic four elements, and that is to be understood as combining or doubling the four elements to produce sixteen unique qualities.

An Elemental is operationally defined as the qualification of a base Element by another Element, or by itself. The qualities of these sixteen Elementals is that they can be divided into two groups, where there are twelve combinations of unlike elements and four that are a combination of like elements. Elementals are represented as the permutation of the number four, or four times four. Elementals consist of a base of any of the four elements, and a qualifier, which may be any of the four elements. 

If we define the base as representing one of the four suits of the Tarot (Wands = Fire, Cups = Water, Swords = Air, and Pentacles = Earth), and the qualifier as one of the four stations of dignity, such as Kings, Queens, Princes and Princesses, then combining them together will equate an Elemental with one of the court cards in the Tarot. Thus there are sixteen Elementals (4 x 4), which are characterized by the sixteen Dignitaries or Court cards of the Tarot. An example: Fire of Fire is the King of Wands, Water of Fire is the Queen of Wands, Air of Fire is the Prince of Wands and Earth of Fire is the Princess of Wands. Each of the Elementals corresponds to one of the 16 Court Cards of the Tarot. With this correspondence firmly determined, we may use these court cards of the Tarot to further develop the magickal images and qualities of the Elementals.

Other methods exist for the determining of the quality of the Elemental, whether perceiving it purely as an energy construct or as a spirit, or both. I prefer to use the Enochian Godname Pair as the name and quality of the Elemental, which allows me to pull the entire hierarchy of the four elemental tablets of the Enochian system into my elemental workings. This could also include the famous Enochian Calls, which would be used to summon the Enochian Elemental Godname Pair, and from them, the four angelic gateways. I have found that the I-Ching can fit into this system, and also Geomancy. There are other useful source themes that can be used as well, which are only limited to the extent of one’s imagination.

An animal totem could represent an Elemental (such as four animals within a prism of four colors), as well as a pantheon of lesser gods and goddesses in any number of pagan religious systems. In fact, there are sixteen spirits in the Theurgia-Goetia that could function as elemental spirits if one chose to use them in that manner, half of which would be daemonic and the other half, angelic. A fourfold division and a matrix of sixteen cells has room for an endless number of variations. Still, the sixteen court cards of the Tarot is the perfect foundation for determining the meaning and significance of the sixteen Elementals.

The key to the ritual practice of generating an element, and thereby, generating Elementals, is found in the device of the invoking pentagram. I have already discussed this device in great detail in a previous article, which you can find here. You can also examine that article for a discussion of the ritual structures of squaring the circle, the pylon and the pyramid (all of which are found in the Power Octagon).

Yet if the invoking pentagram is the device that generates or invokes the energy of the element, then the octagon is the ritual structure that is used to generate an elemental. An octagon is two interlocking squares drawn within a magick circle, thus it doubles the power of a magickal squaring of the circle. An octagon ritual structure, when it is fully formulated, also contains two opposing pyramid structures, causing a polarity to be generated between them. Still, we should examine the ritual structure of the power octagon, step by step, so we can minutely examine and figure out how it works, and why it is so effective.

 

In order to make use of the Power Octagon, we must expand the basic magick circle used in Witchcraft to contain not just the four directions and the zenith and nadir in the center, but to also incorporate the four points in between the cardinal directions, and determine a midpoint between the zenith and nadir, which is called the meso-point. Expanding the magickal circle to contain these additional points allows the magician to practice a more advanced kind of ritual magick. Instead of six points in the magick circle, there are now eleven. You can also increase the number of nodes in a magick circle by expanding the number of points used in the outer circle, increasing the number from four, to eight, from twelve to sixteen. However, for the purposes of our discussion here, we will talk about the use of the four Watchtowers and their in between points, the four Angles. These eight points are used to define the octagon within the magick circle.

I have already written an article on the amazing and wonderful qualities of the vortex, you can find it here. Suffice it say that a vortex is loosely defined as a magickal energy structure that consists of a widdershins spiral and the four opposing Watchtowers or Angles being joined to the center. The Power Octagon actually contains two superimposed vortices, so in addition to generating an Elemental, it also generates the container that holds and amplifies it, all at the same time. A Power Octagon functions as a fused combination of both the Spiral Vortex and the Pyramid of Power, and in fact, it has even greater flexibility and utility.

Tools that are used to perform the ritual working that generates the Power Octagon are the dagger (athame) and the Sword, although one could also use the transmutar wand. The dagger is used to draw the invoking pentagrams and the sword is used to draw the lines of force in the magick circle. Additionally, a staff can be used to wind up the power and establish the vortices, although the magician usually needs a bit of head room to manipulate a staff, such as either twirling it over one’s head (with one hand) or holding it with both hands over one’s head and spinning in place.

The most simple version of the ritual of the Power Octagon has nine steps, although these can be consolidated into two basic phases. Here are the nine steps that can be used to build a version of this ritual for your own use.

1. Set the four Watchtowers with an invoking pentagram of the base element. Proceed in a deosil vector of the circle, starting in the East. When completed, draw the four watchtowers together to form a square.

2. Go to the center of the circle and draw an invoking pentagram of the base element to the infra-point.

3. Set the four Angles with an invoking pentagram of the qualifying element. Proceed in a deosil vector of the circle, starting in the Southeast. When completed, draw the four angles together to form a square.

4. Go to the center of the circle and draw an invoking pentagram of the qualifying element to the ultra-point.

5. Draw the four Watchtowers together to the infrapoint, proceeding in a widershins vector, starting in the North. (Establishes the first vortex)

6. Draw the four Angles together to the Ultra-point, proceeding in a widershins vector, starting in the Northeast. (Establishes the second vortex)

7. Stand in the center of the circle and draw the Ultra-point down to the Infra-point through your body. (You can also use a staff or a stang to do this action.) - both vortices are now in union.

8. Power can be imprinted with sigil or with a single intention (relative to the quality of the Elemental) or drawn into the body to be projected into whatever is required.

9. Resonate the power by performing a widdershins vector, circumambulating the circle three times, starting in the center and proceeding to the periphery. (You could also use a staff, picking it up horizontally over your head, then spinning in place in a widdershins vector.)

You can use one of the Enochian calls to help charge the energy before exteriorizing it. You can also use a Tarot card depicting the Elemental (one of the 16 court cards) to help in its visualization and realization.

So those are the nine steps used to generate an Elemental, using the most simplistic pattern available. One could condense these nine steps into just two phases; the first would establish the base element, and the second phase would establish and join into the fusion the qualifier. The base element uses the ritual points of the four Watchtowers and the Infra-point, and the qualifier, the four Angles and the Ultra-point. The Elemental is generated through the joining of the Infra and Ultra points, and this can be done with a staff, Stang or even just the body of the magician.

Now that I have presented the standard and most simplistic version of generating an Elemental, I can also talk about some of the variations that can be found in the ritual lore of the Order of the Gnostic Star. Certainly, the over loading of the ten points used in the Power Octagon will greatly empower this ritual, and that is what is done in the more elaborate versions. Some of the additional aspects that can be added to the ritual are found in the following list.

Special formula letters and words can be used to qualify the meaning of the points of the ritual structure. These formula letters and words are pulled together to build a unified formula word that functions as a keyword (i.e., compare to the GD Analysis of the Keyword in the Rose Cross ritual). The unified formula (keyword) is declared at steps 2 and 4 above.

Projecting colored energies into the ten points.

Giving the Watchtowers, Angles, Infra-point and Ultra-point a gender characterization, such as five goddesses and five gods, or five pairs of mythological personages. A magician can also use inverted invoking pentagrams (for the qualifying element) set to the four Angles and Ultra-point to further polarize the invoked energies.

Breathing and exhaling the base and qualifying elements into the ten points (taken from Franz Bardon’s techniques).

In addition, a further ritual structure or layer can be added to the basic Power Octagon, building a more three dimensional prismatic energy signature. This additional structure would represent a third phase or level to the already established two phases. How this is done is through the building of pylons set to the four Watchtowers, these are then drawn to the meso-point (in the center of the circle) with a deosil vector, and charged with the spiritual hierarchy of the four Qabbalistic Godheads and the four Element Archangels. This additional structure is actually a positive or solar vortex formulation (because of the deosil vector), set to the meso-point in the center of the circle. The establishment of the tetramorphic spiritual hierarchy and the erection of four additional pylons to compliment the central pylon (now with three points) generates the optimal polarity of the highest and lowest aspects, unified into a single expression of magickal power and spiritual materialization.

To recap the additional steps, the following executions and modifications would be added to the basic Power Octagon ritual structure.

1. Perform steps 1 through 6.
2. Set the following devices and declarations at the four Watchtowers while standing in the center of the circle - start in the East and finish in the North (deosil).

• Draw equal arm cross above invoking pentagram.
• Declare Godhead Element
• Invoking spiral joins cross and pentagram into a pylon
• Declare Formula Letter (optional)
• Declare brief summoning of the Archangel.

3. Establish meso-point in the center of the circle, perform the following executions:

• Draw equal arm cross
• Declare fifth unified Godhead Element
• Invoking spiral joins cross and middle pentagrams into a pylon
• Declare Formula Letter and Keyword (optional)
• Declare brief summing of the fifth Archangel (Ratziel)

4. Perform steps 8 and 9. (Step seven has been replaced by the above executions)

As you can see by the above examples, the Power Octagon can be made more elaborate and much more intense by adding further elements to the ritual structure, building it out and greatly empowering it. There are also other rituals and features that can be added to this basic Elemental working to make it even more effective. I will list and briefly define each of these other rituals, but I will attempt to explain them and how they can be developed in future articles.

An Elemental working, using these additional rituals, has three stages, which are performed at different points in the lunar cycle. These three stages are performed just before the first quarter, just before full moon, and just before the last quarter. These strategic dates used in the combined working will make more sense when we examine the lunation cycle and how it is used to work more effective material based magick.

Lunar Mystery Vortex - this ritual is used to lock a temporal signature to the elemental working. By adding the qualities of the lunar phase, lunation type, sun sign and the temporal location, the generated Elemental will have a context within which to operate. The lunar mystery vortex is used as the outer shell for the three basic workings - the Qualified Power, the Elemental and the Elemental Gate.

Qualified Power - we have already discussed the 40 Qualified Powers and how they can be used in ritual magick. In the more elaborate ritual working that generates an Elemental, the Qualified Power is used to build a greater energy context and refinement for it to operate through. Therefore, the Qualified Power would be set first before performing the Elemental Octagon to generate the Elemental, and it is performed within the Lunar Mystery Vortex.

Power Octagon - the magician would perform the Elemental Octagon just before the full moon, within the Lunar Mystery vortex.

Elemental Gate - this ritual is used to focus and project the qualified Elemental matrix into the domain of the material plane. An additional element qualifier is added to it so that is refined to an even greater degree. The Elemental Gate employs the four Enochian Angels associated with each Elemental, and it can also be associated with the sixty-four I-Ching Hexagrams (16 times 4). The Elemental Gate is deployed just before the last quarter, and is also performed within the Lunar Mystery vortex.

I believe that I have shown you just how versatile the Elemental working can be. It can be refined down to almost a laser like point of projected will, empowered and qualified with the tetramorphic hierarchy of the Four Elements. An Elemental working that spans a lunar cycle might seem cumbersome, time consuming and rather involved, and indeed, it certainly is, but it also has a profound ability to radically change a person’s material circumstance. The scope of this kind of working appears to cover all of the factors that a magician might seek to make manifest, from healing, to getting a job, getting restitution or justice, material assistance, finding a mate, energizing and inspiring oneself; the list of potentialities is almost endless. Of course, one should always consider the limitations of the possible probabilities involved in any outcome, but the possibilities, as defined by the vast array of the Elemental working, are quite enormous.

Frater Barrabbas

Golden Dawn and British Tradition Witchcraft Magic - Blending Into New Forms

As I have stated previously, the Golden Dawn system of magic has strongly influenced many other systems of magic in use today. I would like to focus on how the Golden Dawn influenced the method and techniques of working magic in the Gardnerian and Alexandrian traditions of Witchcraft, and also on how I was able to derive a completely new system of magic by blending them together.

Basically, the typical Wiccan Esbat as practiced in the Gardnerian and Alexandrian traditions of witchcraft has the following structure.

1. Circle Consecration
2. Raising the Cone of Power - first iteration
3. Imprinting the power and releasing Cone of Power
4. Godhead assumption - particularly the rite - Drawing Down the Moon
5. Blessing and communion
6. Circle banishment

This ritual working structure may seem unique, but it’s really a clever adaption of the Golden Dawn ritual working.

To recap, this is the typical ritual pattern for a Golden Dawn working. Notice the similarities.

1. Temple opening rites - banishing and purification - lesser banishing rituals of the pentagram and hexagram, and performing the rite of purification with water and consecration of fire - unwrap specific tool (element or specific invoking wand).

2. Qabbalistic cross, invocation of the Highest Divine Force

3. Core rite to invoke aspect of spiritual hierarchy - using the greater invoking ritual of the pentagram or the hexagram to each quarter beginning in the east and ending at the altar. Assume Egyptian godform, draw devices (invoking pentagram/hexagram with color and associated symbolic character), give secret name and grade signs. Trace appropriate sigils and Hebrew Godnames over altar, vibrating spirit names of the hierarchy in a descending order, and ending with the incantation of one of the Enochian calls.

4. Circumambulation of the circle specific number of times and perform the Rite of the Adoration of the Lord of the Universe. State magical intentions and then perform the middle pillar exercise. Skry into the corresponding plane of the spiritual hierarchy - one can also perform specific practical magical workings.

5. Rewrap tool(s) and any other charged devices. Reverse circumambulation of the circle the same number of times and then perform the godform divestment.

6. Perform Greater Banishing rite of the Pentagram or Hexagram. Perform lesser banishing rituals of the pentagram and hexagram. Declare temple to be closed.

Wiccan magic incorporates a magic circle in its rites, so the first ritual in a Wiccan working is called a circle consecration rite. However, if one were to pull together the rite of purification with water and consecration of fire, and follow it with the setting of the four cardinal directions with invoking pentagrams, then one would have a rite similar to the circle consecration rite. The cone of power would be understood to be a simpler version of the Golden Dawn ritual working used to invoke and project an Element. The Qabbalistic Cross and the godhead assumption have been incorporated into the rite Drawing Down the Moon.

Both magical systems begin with the creation of sacred space, build up an Element power using deosil circumambulations, and complete the working with a proper circle banishing rite. The consecration of the magic circle in the Wiccan rite uses a variation of the invoking pentagram drawn to each of the four cardinal directions, erecting four empowered wards. However, the circle in Wicca is used to gather the power together and focus it, establishing a boundary between the inner sacred domain and the outer profane worlds. A magic circle is not used in the Golden Dawn system of magic unless one is performing a goetic evocation, and then it functions as a protective barrier between the magician and the domain of the demon. So there are some differences and variations (as would be expected), but both systems seem very closely related.

Israel Regardie published his multi-volume book The Golden Dawn in the 1930's, so it is very likely that Gerald B. Gardner would have had access to it and could have built up his system of magic from it. He also had access to other materials written by Aleister Crowley and a copy of the Key of Solomon. So it shouldn’t be surprising that the methods of working basic magic in Wicca would have been remarkably similar to the Golden Dawn and also influenced by Crowley and the Key of Solomon. There are some differences, as I have already pointed out, but the similarities are quite striking. Since the source materials existed long before Gardner had built out his system of Wiccan magic, then it is not inconceivable that they influenced his writings (and not the other way around).

The Alexandrian tradition of Wicca, although a mirror image of the Gardnerian tradition, did have some additional lore, although it may be more specific to my initiatory line than to the tradition as a whole. The Rose Cross ritual was used to model a new ritual called the Rose Ankh. The ritual pattern was analogous to the Rose Cross, although I am not at liberty to discuss it in much detail. One could consider the Rose Ankh ritual to be a derivative rite of the Rose Cross ritual, and it generated a specific energy associated with the Goddess that was similar but different from the Rose Cross. There was also another version of the Analysis of the Key Word that was associated with the Rose Ankh rite, and used Goddess names and their associated aspects instead of the LVX God names associated with the Rose Cross version of that rite.

In summation, the above six step ritual working for Wicca was, I believe, derived from the Golden Dawn ritual working of the Greater Invoking Pentagram rite. Alexandrian tradition added a couple of additional rituals (as stated above), but beyond that, there was no additional lore developed. That represented the collective lore that I received years ago when I was initiated into the Alexandrian tradition of Witchcraft. The coven that I practiced with also used the Golden Dawn rituals, but there was little guidance as to how to formulate a complex working using the Greater Hexagram rite and other rituals, but the material was presented and explained in the classes that we held. So that was the source material that I had to build a new system of magic.


Extending Beyond the Two Traditions - My Work

Needless to say, I took these rituals and the class notes and began to experiment with them, particularly the Greater Pentagram rite. I also made it a point to study in great detail the Rose Cross ritual, since it seemed to me to have a quality that other rituals lacked. I felt that the Rose Cross ritual was very powerful and that if one could understand the structure of that ritual, one would discover a important key to working ritual magic. In fact, as time went on, I merged these two rituals together to produce a ritual that I later called the Pyramid of Power ritual, but what I was seeking was a method of making the Wiccan cone of power ritual more efficient and more powerful. I was also putting together a system of magic that would invoke powers and intelligences through a matrix.

It had always seemed to me that the cone of power ritual, when analyzed, had a masculine property. It was obviously phallic shaped, following a sun-wise circuit around the circle, and it modeled the masculine cycle of orgasm - building the energy up to a plateau, then imprinting it, and then pushing it to a final climax. I always saw the power projected out of a cone of power as being like a pulse of energy or a fire bolt or lightening bolt, and it was also like the ejaculation of semen.

However, if there was a masculine power in the cone of power rite, then there should be a feminine energy that would balance it. What would that rite look like, what would be its form and how would its energy work? It would, of course, be the opposite of a cone of power. Let’s contrast these two types of energy to each other - starting with the cone of power.

• Follows a deosil circuit
• Polarized along its periphery
• Spirals up to the center of the circle and beyond

So the opposite kind of magical power would have the following opposite qualities.

• Follows a widdershins circuit
• Polarized to the center of the circle
• Spirals down to the center of the circle and below the plane of the ground/floor

This feminine force is called a vortex and it is the opposite of a cone of power. The simplest way to create a vortex is to polarize the four points in the magic circle, join them together in the center of the circle (creating a cross roads), and then raising the energy by circumambulating widdershins along the periphery to the center of the circle and projecting it down to the lowest point (below the plane of the floor) called the nadir. Where a cone of power is imprinted with a charged desire and released at the ritual’s climax to perform a specific task or impact a specific target, the vortex acts like a container for magical powers, preserving them and focusing them to a greater intensity.

While a cone of power is built up and then released, a vortex perpetually contains the powers generated within it. When a vortex reaches a kind of critical mass, it releases waves of force that circle around the epicenter of the vortex, much like a pebble dropped into a pond creates circular waves around it. And these subtle and powerful waves influence and bend reality in a manner that is much more effective than a cone of power. The vortex has to have a certain level of power built up within it before that power can be released in a wave-like manner. Yet like a cone of power, a vortex releases its power through resonance. A vortex can’t be banished since it’s structure remains in place with a residual force even when the energy that it contained is released. A cone of power requires banishment after the rite is completed, but the vortex is just sealed in place until the next time that magic is performed. One would only need to unseal a vortex and it would be ready for use, containing the same level of intensity when it was previously sealed. For some unknown reason a vortex always seems to contain energy, acting like a bottomless well. Whatever energy is released is always renewed within it.

The technique of generating and working with a vortex was something that I had actually invented myself. Previous rites had only indirectly produced a vortex like energy field. I discovered this bit of magical lore when I examined how the Rose Cross and Rose Ankh rituals worked. I had also experimented with the Rose Ankh device, learning that it produced a kind of powerful magnetic magical energy when drawn. So I decided to use the Rose Ankh device, and I drew it in the four points of the magic circle, thus polarizing them to create the base of the magnetic energies of the vortex. I used a magic sword to draw the four points together in the center of the circle and perform a widdershins circuit, and the resultant ritual produced astonishing results. All of the qualities that I described above were realized through the use of this new ritual. With the Rose Ankh device and the ritual structure of the vortex, I had my first really potent hybrid ritual structure to build a new magical system.

While I was experimenting and formulating the vortex, I was working on other rituals, too. These were based on the Golden Dawn rites and what I had learned in Wiccan circles. I wanted to produce new forms of raising energy that were more powerful, structured and detailed than the cone of power. So I began to experiment and in the process discovered completely new ritual structures.

Perhaps one of the most interesting and startling discoveries that I made was the pylon. A pylon is nothing more than two devices placed one above the other with an invoking spiral drawn through them so that they are connected into a line of power or a pillar of light. I called this new structure a pylon because it was used to erect magical geometric structures, just like a pylon is used in modern architecture.

The pylon was not an entirely new ritual structure, since a form of it had been used in the Greater Pentagram ritual of the GD. In that ritual the invoking pentagram of the Element and the invoking pentagram of active or passive spirit are drawn to the same cardinal point, but the pentagram of spirit is drawn above the pentagram of the Element. There was also an implied line drawn between them, and they were both drawn together in a line drawn to the next cardinal point. However, I made this action into a deliberate ritual structure, and that was different than what was implicitly done in the Golden Dawn rite.

A pylon allows two different devices to be bound into a single line of force. Typically I use invoking pentagrams for a specific Element for the base of the pylon, and the qualifier is set with the invoking pentagram of spirit active or passive, depending on the quality of the base Element. A pylon consisting of invoking pentagram devices produces a great deal of magical energy, since they combine together and also polarize each other. This kind of pylon can be used in two different manners to produce two kinds of pyramid structures. The first is where a pylon is set to the center of the circle, and invoking pentagrams of the base Element are set to each of the four points in the magic circle. When the four points are drawn together, and then drawn to the apex of the central pylon, a pyramid of Element power is created. The second is where one sets four pylons to each of the four points and a pylon to the center of the circle, and then draws the four points together (in a square), followed by drawing the four points to the apex of the center pylon, then a greater pyramid of power is created.

Each of these two ritual structures produce a great deal of magical power, due to the polarities produced, the joining of forces and also because of the squaring of the circle. A deosil spiral from the periphery of the circle to the center is used to draw the power into a point, and a widdershins spiral that exits the center of the circle and disperses the energy out through the periphery of the circle are employed to resonate and exteriorize the magical power.

The pyramid of power is much more efficient and refined than the cone of power, since it can define a specific element power which can be imprinted with one of the attributes (Godnames) of the ten Sephiroth. I call this combination of Element and Sephirah one of the Qualified Powers, and they are analogous to the 40 cards of the Lesser Arcana of the Tarot. The Pyramid of Powers rite was also the first ritual to work through a matrix of spirits and powers.

Through creative experimentation I was thus able to derive a Pyramid of Powers ritual and a Rose Ankh Vortex rite. I began to use the Pyramid of Power rite within the core of an established vortex and discovered that I could layer and accumulate the power generated through several sessions of magical workings before they would be induced to a climax. The vortex could not be banished, it was instead sealed and unsealed as needed. I learned to use the devices of the sealing and unsealing spirals which I set to all of the circle nodes. The combination of these two rites allowed me to build up a magickal working over numerous sessions, so I didn’t have to complete a working in a single evening. I also noticed that my temple began to accumulate a great deal of power, since whatever was periodically discharged was readily replaced in the “well” of the vortex, and the accumulation of ritual workings naturally accumulated the power in the sealed vortex.

Another ritual structure that I discovered in my experimentation was the Western and Eastern gateway. I had deduced the great magical importance of Joseph Campbell’s Cycle of the Hero, particularly the remarkable fact that it had twenty-two stages and that these stages matched the twenty-two Trumps of the Major Arcana of the Tarot. However, I was also able to boil down the underworld descent and the re-ascent to three stages each, instead of the twenty-two stages that Campbell discussed. The three stages of descent or ascent are represented by the process of the dialectic method, which consists of thesis, antithesis and synthesis. The descent into the underworld is facilitated by the actions of the spirit helper or guide (thesis), the guardian of the threshold (antithesis) and the transformative ordeal itself (synthesis). The ascent out of the underworld is symbolized by the assistance from without (thesis), the guardian of the return threshold (antithesis), and the ordeal of re-translation (synthesis). These are the themes that are used to establish the full cycle of descent and ascent that represents transcendental transformation.

The gateway of transformation uses these thematic images of descent and ascent at each of the three points of the gate ritual structure, where they are superimposed to give them meaning. The gateway ritual structure is also erected within the magic circle, which is fitting for a Wiccan type magical working. The opening and closing portal gestures are a final dramatic flourish given to the two gateway rituals. They are done to mime the action of opening and closing the gateways.

The Underworld gateway is oriented to the West; the three points are the Northeast and Southeast angles, and the cardinal direction of the West. The Ascension into Light gateway is orientated to the East; the three points are the Northwest and Southwest angles, and the cardinal direction of the East. The three gate nodes are drawn together to form a triangle within the magic circle, and this becomes the gate ritual structure. The magician stands in the opposite point of the circle and faces the gate (West or East), sets invoking spirals to the three gate nodes, draws them together (into a triangle) and then proceeds to walk up to the gate threshold, performs the opening portal gesture, turns and proceeds to the center of the circle. Each of the three gate nodes can be qualified with a specific symbolic characteristic of the gateway ordeal. In addition to the three gate nodes discussed above, a fourth point can be used which is in the center of the circle at the zenith. The fourth point represents the resolution of the three gateway ordeal processes, which is implied when one proceeds to the center of the circle after opening the portal of the gate. Using a fourth point in the gate ritual patten produces the ritual structure of the tetrahedral gateway.

The use of the two gates, besides adding a powerful thematic element to a ritual, represents the passage of transformative powers into the deeper unconscious of the magician and out again, having been transformed and translated into a new perspective. The underworld gate is used to push down the energies of all prior workings and unite them into a single symbolic expression, where a new level of power and being is established. To fuse prior magical structures and workings together, a gateway is established. To gain a greater depth, the underworld gateway is used. To bring these forces and aspects of being into the greater light of consciousness (as revealed knowledge), an ascension gateway is used. Both of these gateway ritual structures are very important in the construction of complex workings and the performance of the mysteries.

The points of the magic circle, when limited to just the four cardinal points and the center of the circle, produces only a total of five. I had already worked out that pylons produced points above and below the standard five, so there were at least two points in the center of the circle. I had deduced that the center of the circle contained the zenith, which I called the ultra-point, and the nadir, which I called the infra-point. I found that it was very useful to have an eight point magic circle, and this ritual structure had been used in a simplistic fashion with the Alexandrian Rose Ankh ritual. There were the four cardinal points, which were called Watchtowers (for various reasons), and there were four additional points, called the four Angles, or cross-quarter points. So instead of just having four points in the magic circle, there were now eight, which contributed to a very important ritual structure, which is called the Octagon or double squared circle. If squaring the circle helped to generate a powerful magical charge, doubling that square should create even more magical energy, and indeed it does.

I also discovered that there was a point in the circle that represented the magician in the magic circle, and that point was in the center of the circle, at a point between the ultra-point and the infra-point, which I called the meso-point. It was imagined to be at the exact height in the circle as my heart, being therefore, the magician’s heart in the center of the circle - where all points converge in the power of spiritual love. So now I had the four Watchtowers, the four Angles, the Infra-point, the Ultra-point, and the Meso-point - a total of eleven points in the circle. From these eleven points I was able to build any complex ritual structure.

The ritual structure of the Octagon was very useful for generating a magical power called an Elemental. An Elemental is defined as a base Element qualified by another or the same Element. Therefore, Fire of Earth, Water of Air, and Fire of Fire are all Elementals. There are sixteen Elementals, and these beings of magical power correspond to the 16 court cards of the Tarot, and the sixteen Enochian calls in the Enochian system of magic. These 16 Elementals are also spiritual powers that are based on a matrix, so an octagon ritual structure is made to activate that specific matrix, since there are four Watchtower and four Angles used to differentiate the power.

A basic premise of the ritual of the octagon is that a base Element is set to the four Watchtowers, and a qualifying Element is set to the four Angles. This is done using the invoking pentagram of that Element. The four Watchtowers are drawn to each other (to form a square) and to the center of the circle in the infra-point. The four Angles are drawn to each other (to also form a square) and to the center of the circle in the ultra-point. The magician stands in the center of the circle with his staff and draws the powers fused in the infra-point through the staff to the ultra-point. The magician may at this point intone the specific Enochian call for the Elemental, and may also summon the Godname pair of the Elemental entity - drawing the power of Elemental from the staff into his body. An Octagon ritual pattern, as it turned out, became the building block of many new and additional magical workings, and the eight point magic circle was also very useful as well.

Another ritual structure that I discovered was the internal circle that enclosed a star talisman, like the septagram, drawn or painted on a rectangular piece of wood. This new structure assisted me to develop some very complex workings, namely forms of talismanic magic and magical evocation. The internal circle was drawn in the middle of the circle, typically in a deosil circuit, and the opening portal gesture was performed over it to show that a new and more intensely circumscribed concentric circle structure had been activated. Within that new smaller internal circle was placed a rectangular piece of wood upon which was painted a septagram, eneagram or an undecigram. This painted talisman functioned as a powerful focus where one could further perform the drawing of complex devices and the using of larger array structures than either the pentagram or the hexagram. I also found that the septagram was much more appealing to use as a device to invoke planetary intelligences. However, I also discovered how difficult it was to draw an invoking septagram on demand in a magic circle. Instead of drawing the invoking septagram to each of the four cardinal directions, I traced the invoking septagram just a single time on the septagramic talisman. Along with the incantation of the planetary hierarchy and a derived Enochian call of the planet, I was able to establish in the inner circle the full invocation of a planetary intelligence.

So, after several years of experimentation, I had developed a whole new set of ritual structures that I could use to develop my own personal system of magic. This system was based on the original Golden Dawn rituals, but had expanded far beyond them in regards to ritual structure, flexibility and usefulness. These ritual structures are geometric in their construction, but the original Golden Dawn rites were also geometric as well, but using a more limited and simplistic structure. What seemed like just some simple extensions to the basic ritual structures of the Golden Dawn lore actually opened up a whole new system of possible magical rites. Even to this day, some thirty-five years later, I have not even begun to exhaust the possibilities. The new techniques have given birth to hundreds of ritual workings, and helped me develop a whole new system of evocation and a new type magic called Archaeomancy, which are subjects for future articles. So, too, is a discussion of the use of sacred geometry in these ritual structures.

To recap: the following new techniques were derived by me from the original Golden Dawn rituals:

• Rose Ankh Vortex
• Pyramid of Power Ritual
• Greater Pyramid of Power Ritual
• Western and Eastern Gateways - tetrahedral gateway
• Octagon Elemental Vortex
• Eleven Point Circle
• Inner Circle Star (Septagram, Eneagram, Undecigram)

Frater Barrabbas Tiresius