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!*** Commentaries on Liber 65 by ? ***!

The five chapters refer to the five Elements.  1 -- Earth, 2 --  Air, 3 -- Wate
r, 4 -- Fire, and 5 -- Spirit.  Each shows its Element in the light of the rela
tion between the Adeptus Minor and his Holy Guardian Angel.  Thus in Chapter I
the material world or sensible aspect of Nature is shown to be a mere symbolic
picture of something altogether different.

CHAPTER I

1
Invocation of Kundalini

The adept ``dies'' to the natural world and blooms as a Lotus.  He ceases: and
enters the midnight silence where he adores Khephra.  Then he awaits  the comin
g of his Lord.

2 -- 11
The Angel says:  Each men sees Nature in his own particular way.  What he sees
is only an image. k All images must be ignored; the adept must aspire single-ha
rtedly to the Smooth Point.  This matter cannot be discussed in common language
; the king must speak of kingly things in a kingly way.

12
Silence.  The Adept reports his impressions.  (a) The highest degree of any giv
en kind of energy surpasses the receptive power of the observer.  This it appea
rs as if of some other order.

13
The subtler the form of energy, the more potent, but it is less easily observed
.

14
Truth destroys the reason.

15
Life distrubs the placidity of the mind's acceptance of dead symbols as reality
.

16
The Knowleldge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel gives a new and high
er form of energy which destroys the grosser types of existence.

17
The process continues until complete.

18
Phenomena result from resistance to ``love.''  Perfect union is silent.

19 -- 21
V.V.V.V.V. being perfectly Adeptus Minor appears evil.

22
Those who understand all this Work praise V.V.V.V.V.

23 -- 24
They do so in secret ways.

25
Perdurabo hindered his own success by over eagerness.

26 -- 27
Union once made is permanent.

28
The Angel is crowned with the Zodiac.  His body is that of Nuit.

29
Stability has been fofund on a basis of change.

30
Seems an injunction to the Holy Guardian Angel to keep in close touch with the
Adept.

31
The Adept accepts this as a definite promise.

32 -- 33
Proposal to view phenomena from the new standpoint.

34 -- 36
Two points of view:  as a girl's smile involves the death of many cells in her
body.

37
The above explains why men should resent their savior.  They misinterpret his a
cts as destructive.

38
He in his human mind, is distressed at this.

39 -- 40
But the whole relation is allusion.  In reality the Angel and the Adept are sim
ply arranging to sail through eternity together; the Work of the Adept in redee
ming Mankind is only an image seen as he fashions his mother-of-pearl.

41 -- 42
The human mind demands to be relieved of its sorrow by seeing Nature in this li
ght on the ground that it has served the Masters with unselfish devotion.



43
The mind demanded complete relief.



47 -- 48
Persephone, the earth-bound soul.  Corn = material nourishment; its result is s
orrow.

Narcissus = the sexual instinct flowering as Beauty.

Instantly the soul forgets the ``corn'' and desires the flower, Hades comes and
 carries her off.  Hades is the lord of ``Hell,'' i.e., the dark and secret but
 divine Soul within every man and woman.  The rape thus means that the desire f
or Beauty awakes the Unconscious Self who then takes possession of the Soul, an
d enthrones her, only allowing her return to earth (Knowledge of the material w
orldl) at certain seasons, in order to attend to the welfare of mankind.

49
I was seized by the impulse to adore Beauty, and felt ashamed at my inability t
o write a poem on the spot which should be worthy of the theme.

50 -- 58
An elaborate Parable in dialogue.

50
The Angel bids the Adept rejoice in certain events which are about to occur on
earth.

51
The Adept doubts whether his doctrine will be understood rightly by mankind.

52
The Angel agrees; but is more sceptical still, suggesting that any event may be
 taken as meaning anything one chooses.

53
The Adept claims to be able to interpret phenomena rightly; that there is one s
pecial relation which is true, and all others falso.  He reminds the Angel that
 he realises Himself (as an unique Being always identical with Itself) alike in
 the lowest matter and the highest spirit.

54
The Angel asks why one who possesses absolute Sight and Lordship and power to s
oar (the Head of the Hawk) who has creative energy able to fertilize Nature, hi
s mother, sister, and wife (The Phallus of Asar) one who knows the paris of opp
osites, and the fact of their identity, should trouble to calculate the equatio
ns which express the relations between the illusory symbols of diversity.

55
The Adept replies that he must understand the laws of illusion in order to work
 in the world of illusion.

56
The Angel replies that such calculations lead odne to believe in the reality of
 the illusions, to become confused by their complex falsities, and ultimately,
mistrusting one's own powers, to fail to act for fear of making mistakes; where
as it does not really matter what one does, since one set of illusions is just
as good as another.  The business of the Adept is to do his Work manfully and j
oyously, without lust of result or fear of accident.  He should exercise his fa
culties to the full; the free fulfilment of their functions is sufficient justi
fication.  To become conscious of any organ is evidence that it is out of order
.

57
The Adept takes this advice, and puts forth his energy.  The apparent result of
 his Work is disaster.

58
But the whold idea of his relation with Mankind as a Redeemer proves phantasmag
oric.  The truth of the matter is that he has ``eaten a grape.'' i.e., begun to
 enjoy the banquet with his Angel proposed in Verse 50.  (Cf. CCXX, I, 31)>

59
Every act of the Adept is really the kiss of his Angel.

60
The ecstasy of the relation between the Adept and his Angel disperses ``normal'
' thoughts; the Ego fears to lose control of the course of the mind.  This (of
course) occurs in a less real sphere, that of normal consciousness.  The Ego is
 justly apprehensive, for this ecstasy will lead to a situation when its annhil
ation will be decreed so that the Adept may cross the Abyss and become a Master
 of the Temple.  Remember that the Ego is not really the centre and crown of th
e individual; indeed the whole trouble arises from its falso claim to be so.

61

The ecsatsy of the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel brings
 peace to ``the soul of the scribe'' (his conscious mind) by impressing such en
ergy on his thoughts that their normal conflict (which causes sorrow) becomes n
egligible, just as the personal antagonisms in a cavalry regiment are forgotten
 in the excitement of a change.



62




But the mind, knowing that the old quarrels will revive when the ecstasy has pa
ssed, asks that this anaesthesia may be removed.  It aspires to enter into the
rapture with every element of its being, no matter of the pain.  It knows that
it can never be truly content until each separate fibre thrill harmoniously to
that supreme enchantment.



63




It knows that the lower types of intoxication were excitements, and in stupor a
nd senility.  It demands the Madness of Pan, the building up of every particle
of its being into a single symbol to include All.  This symbol is to combine th
e intelligence (omniscience) of Man with the omnipotence typified by horns, and
 the creative rapture of the leaping Goat.  This Pan is not intoxicated, but wh
olly insane, being beyond distinction (knowledge) as including all in itself; h
e is also immune to time, since whatever happens can only be within himself; th
at is, all events are equally the exercise of his functions, and therefore acco
mpanied by rapture, since He has included all possibilities in His unity so tha
t any change is part of His life, an act of love under will.



64




This is presumable once more the voice of the Angel.  He bids the Adept pay les
s attention in the future to the transmutation of gross impressions into the ra
ptures of union.  The greater work is to cause the Unconscious to interpenetrat
e with the Angel.  For such is the ultimate Sacrement is only too liable to be
contented with the conscious joy of causing just those thoughts which have alwa
ys been the source of error to glow with thoughts which have always been the so
urce of error to glow with purity and splendour at the touch of the Angel.  But
 it is far more important to renounce those rewards, ineffably holy and delight
ful though they be in order to perfect the Inmost Self, to purge it of personal
ity and unite it with the Universe, though such Attainment lie too deep for dir
ect conscious apprehension.



65




In a secret code the Adept affirms that he is of the same vox; (so to speak) as
 his Angel.  It is not a union of opposites to produce a Tertium quid, but a re
alization of identity, like the return to consciousness from delirium, whose ec
stasy bears no fruit involving new responsibilities, new possibilities of sorro
w, but is all-sufficient to itself, with neither past nor future.

The ``peeleld wand'' is the creative Energy of the Angel, stripped of all veils
, pointing to the Zenith, ready and eager to act.  The Adept exclaims with joy
that he has aspired to unite himself with this Idea, and has attained.

This concludes the description of the relations of the Adept and his Angel so f
ar as the element of Earth, the concrete and manifest aspect of Nature, is conc
erned.  The whole illusion has been destroyed; the bread has become the body of
 God.  Yet this is but the lowest form of existence; in the next chapter we sha
ll understand how the mind -- as distanct from the matter of thought is concent
rated and sanctified by the Magick of the Angel.



CHAPTER II




The previous chapter describes the effect wrought by the Knowledge and Conversa
tion of the Holy Guardian Angel upon the outward appearances of things and the
sensations caused and the corresponding part of the Soul, Nephesch. We now turn
 to the element of Air, the faculties called Ruach, that is, the mind considere
d as an instrument of intellectual apprehension, a machine proper to the analys
is of impressions and their interpenetration in terms of conscious thought. The
 Work of attaining to the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel
 being in Tiphereth, the Centre of the Ruach, the result of success is to harmo
nise, concentrate, and glorify the medley of loose ideas which are suggested by
 the meaningless multiplicity of mental concepts.



1





Describes the passage of the Divine Consciousness (the Hawk) coloured by love (
green) into the world of starry space (lapis-lazuli, which is blue with specks
of gold) by a balanced path from earth to heaven (the pillars of turquoise). Th
e East is the quarter attributed to Air, and the Hawk is there ``seated,'' i.e.
 stable, not to be distracted by whatever thoughts arise in the mind.



2




Being now open to the whole Universe, the Soul hears whatever is spoken. (Air i
s the vehicle of sound).



3




A ``Veiled One'' (Isis) explains that no individual consciousness can be more t
han the sphere of which it is born and which constitutes its environment. It is
 equally supreme and vile, these qualities being illusions produced by artifici
al relations, which may be chosen at will.



4




The Godhead, in order to realize itself, must involuntarily submit to undergo t
he experience of imperfection. It must take the Sacrament which unites it with
the dark glamour of ``Evil,'' the counterpart of that which exalts the ``Sinner
'' to Godhead.



5




It accepts the formulae of

;tab2ll

   (a) Duality,i.e., life as vibration.
   (a-1) Death.
   (a-2) The illusion of Knowledge.
   (b) Exile.
   (b-1) The Hunger of Lust.
   (b-2) Labour.

;endtab

It acquiesces in the shame of being a God concealed in animal form.



6




The object of this act is to realize the possibilities of one's unity by repres
enting its wholeness as an infinite number of particular cases, just as one mig
ht try to get an idea of the meaning of ``poetry'' by studying all available po
ems. None of these can be more than one imperfect illustration of the abstract
idea; yet only through these concrete images can one get any understanding of w
hat it means.



7 -- 16





The river is the stream of thought. The boat is the consciousness. The purple s
ails are the passions that direct its course, and the woman is the pure Ideal w
hich one seeks to make the constant occupant and the guiding principle of one's
 conscious life. Thus ``woman'', though of gold, is only a lifeless image. The
river is of blood; that is, the current of thought must be identified with the
object of one's like, not a mere medium for reflecting every casual impression.

The boat is of steel; that is, the consciousness must be able to resist the int
rusion of all undesired thoughts.

Loving this ideal, the Aspirant frees himself from all that binds him (shame, s
elfishness, etc. -- ``loosing my girdle'') and loses his ego in Thought itself
(cast myself into the stream).



8




He identifies himself with pure consciousness, immune from, yet floating upon,
the course of Thought, and devotes himself to this Ideal, with poetical and rel
igious fervour.



9




He consecrates his creative energy to the Ideal.



10




This process destroys the superficial beauty of the Ideal. Its purity is corrup
ted by the contact of mortality.



11




Despite the disappointment, the Aspirant persists in ``love under will''. He gi
ves himself up utterly to Truth, even now when it seems so dark and dreadful.



12




The Ideal now breaks up into loathsome forms, no longer recognizable as the obj
ect of his love. He is tempted to abandon her, and to seek refuge from Consciou
sness by drowning himself in those distracting thoughts which surround him.




13

This despair suddenly vanishes. His ideal appears in its true form, a living wo
man instead of a dead image of gold. He substance is now purer than starlight i
tself; her lips -- the instruments of her speech and her caresses -- are full o
f life and warmth as the sunset -- i.e., they promise repose, love and Beauty (
Hathor, goddess of the West). She is alive with the pure energy of the centre o
f the system to which the Aspirant belongs; i.e., she is the realization of the
 creative idea of which he has till now been only one part.



14




The darkness of the past disappears as his Ideal possesses the Aspirant; and hi
s Ego dissolves in the ecstasy of union with Her; he becomes the essence of all
 Joy.



15




Now then do his thoughts themselves become immortal; his consciousness is under
stood to be the vehicle of his physical life -- instead of vice-versa, as the u
ninitiate supposes. His passions are no longer symptoms of discontent, but iden
tical with his individual life. There is thus no conflict with Nature. The Will
 is itself the Self.



16


My own conception of Nuit is the result of the Magical Operation which I perfor
med to give life to the ideal which I originally had in my heart, adored, and r
esolved to realise.

The whole passage describes the process of dealing with any given idea so as to
 bring it to perfection.



17 -- 26



17




The swan is the ecastatic Consciousness of the Adept. It is poised in infinite
space, supported by Air -- i.e., the medium of thought.



18




In Ecstasy time does not count.



19




The Ecastasy moves from one sublimity of Joy to another; but there is no progre
ss possible in perfection, therefore no aim to be attained by such movements.



20




The boy is the human reason, which demands measurement as the first condition o
f intelligible consciousness. Aware of time, he cannot understand why all this
motion has not brought the swan nearer to some fixed point, or how the relation
 of the point of origin to its present position is not an ever-present anxiety.
 He cannot conceive of motion without reference to fixed axes.



22




I reply that, apprehending the continuum (Nuit) as such, no ``space-marks'' exi
st.



23




The swan is of course silent: Ecstasy transcends expression. Reason asks the mo
tive of motion, in the absence of all destination.



24




The Adept bringing this thought closes to Ecstasy, laughs, both for pure joy, a
nd as amused by the incongruous absurdities of ``rational'' arguments from whic
h he is now for ever free, expresses his idea thus: Thus free exercise of some
object thereby, it would imply the pain of desire, the strain of effort, and th
e fear of failure.



25




Ecstasy remains undisturbed. But the dialogue has caused the Adept to reflect m
ore deeply on his state of bliss, so that the Ecstasy becomes motionless, reali
sing its perfect relation to the Infinity of the continuum.

The Adept demands that ecstasy shall be constant.



26




Silence ends the imperfection implied in speech -- all words being evidence of
duality, of a breach in Perfection.

Rapture: the end of the conflict between any two things; they are dissolved by
Love; and, losing the sense of the Ego which caused the pain of feeling its sep
arateness from the All, its imperfection, the release from strain is expressed
as rapture.

''O end of all things visible and invisible!'' This not only means that all thi
ngs -- being imperfect -- are destroyed, but that this is their true end -- ;GR
EEK their perfection.

''This is all mine, who am Not.'' The Adept is now possessed of all things, bei
ng come to the state called ``Not'' which contains them all, and of which they
are merely images.

So long as he was a positive Ego, he was one of them, and opposed to them; they
 were not his. To make them his he must become the continuum in which all thing
s exist potentially as members of any series that may be selected to illustrate
 any desired properties of its Nature.



27




The Adept is moved to manifest the Godhead which he has beheld by means of poet
ry. He foresees that the vulgar will be enraged, despise his books and stamp th
em under foot; but by their thus acting, their eyes will be opened to the glory
 of the God. This may mean that my work may reawaken real religious fervour in
those who have lost all faith and vision; their wrath against me will arouse th
em to realize that at the bottom of their hearts there is the instinct that the
y are spiritual beings.



28




My religious work will not result in my bing acknowledged as the Redeemer: but
men will admit that the Spirit of the Sun God Horus has breathed upon them and
infused their clay with life.



29




Horus will be recognised as the explanation of all those energies of the Univer
se which we know must exist, although our senses cannot perceive them.

Men shall perceive Horus when they explore the mysteries of Nature -- e.g., the
 Unconscious in Man, or the structure of the Atom. He shall compel them to admi
t that He is the ultimate principle underlying all manifestation, against their
 old theories.

(The exact meaning of ``Horus'' in this passage must be drawn from CCXX Cap; II
I.)



30 -- 36




The Boy is Ganymede, the eagle, the bird of Jupiter. Here he is an image of the
 Adept.



30




He is pale, as having given his blood to his Work.

He is sad, as understanding the Sorrow of the Universe. (His Work has itself ma
de him aware of this).

He is lying down, as weary and in doubt whether it be worth while to work.

He is on the marble; that is, the hard bare facts of existence, despite all pol
ish, hurt his flesh.

He is in the sunlight; he sees only too clearly into Nature. His Angel shines u
pon him, but from inaccessible heights.

We weeps; he whose duty is to pour wine for the Gods, can but shed forth salt w
ater upon the bare ground.

He has laid down and even forgotten his lute. He cannot make music; he has even
 lost the memory that he could do so of old.



31




The Eagle symbolizes the influence of the Father of the Gods, also the highest
form of Magical Life, and the Lordship of Air, i.e., power to rule the world of
 thoughts. This overshadows him so as to conceal his personality from sight.



32




Thus inspired, he resumes his music joyfully; the air itself becomes still, tha
t is, no thoughts disturb him, and it is blue, being filled with the spirit of
holiness, love and purity.



33




The Adept invokes the Word of his Angel to silence all personal thoughts.



34




He will accept this in whatever from it may appear; whether death itself be nec
essary to end the annoyance of the Ego, or Disgrace to make it ashamed to asser
t itself, or Love to destroy its ambitions.



35




His ``rational'' prejudices will presumably ask -- in such a case -- ''What of
your magical ambitions? You are not the Master that you wanted to be; you are s
imply the slave of this Angel of yours --
whatever that may mean -- your personality smothered, your ambitions crushed, y
our sole occupation to echo his remarks, of which you do not even approve.''

''You have destroyed your Self; you have earned the abuse of your friends; you
have abandoned your career, and tied yourself to a woman's whims.''



36




The Adept admits that his body and mind, left to their fate, have met with thos
e disasters. But the intimacy with his Angel to attain which he deliberately di
smissed all care of his personal affairs justifies his conduct; and the reproac
hes of his intellectual ideas are not realised as such: they are to him a stirr
ing of the hair of the Beloved One (radiant energies of the individuality of th
e Angel) that is, they call his attention to one of His Glories.



37 -- 44




This passage is a parable with several applications.

1. It describes the method of attaining Concentration by ``the Ladders'' (See L
iber Aleph).

2. It indicates how to deal with people whom one wishes to initiate.

3. It gives a method for passing from one state of mind to another at Will.

The main idea in all three matters is that one must apply the appropriate remed
y to whatever malady may actually exist, not some ideally perfect medicine.

The first matter must be brought step by step through each stage of the process
; it is useless to try to obtain the Perfect Tincture from it by making the Fin
al Projection.

4. It describes the whole course of Initiation.

These four meanings demand detailed exposititon, verse by verse.

(1)


37




The Abyss is the Mind; the Dolphin the uneasy Consciousness.



38




The harper is the teacher whose praise of the Path of the Wise induces the prof
ane to seek initiation; he is the Guru who stills the mind by making it listen
to harmonious sounds, instead of torturing itself by thinking of its pains and
its passions. These sounds are produced by mechanical means; they refer to prac
tices like Asana, etc.



39




Freed from its grossness and violence, the consciousness aspires to lofty ideal
s. It is, however, unable to keep quiet, and has little intelligence. It is tra
ined by hearing the harmony of life -- breath inspiring a reed, instead of musc
le agitating metal. This refers to Pranayama, but also to apprehending that ins
piration is in itself more fluttering; it must learn the art of using every bre
ath to produce harmony.



40




The consciousness now acquires divine and human completeness. The faun symboliz
ed firm aspiration, creative power, and human intelligence. The wings of ideal
longing are laid down; the thought accepts the fact of its true nature, and aim
s only at possible perfections.

It now hears the harmony of the Universe as expressed in the human voice; that
is, as articulate and intelligible, so that every vibration, besides its power
to delight the senses, appeals to the soul. This represents the stage of concen
tration when, being fixes in meditation upon any subject, one penetrates the su
perficial aspect and attempts to reach its reality, the true meaning of its rel
ation with the observer.



43




The final stage is reached. All possible positives are known to be errors from
the Negative. There is Silence. Then the faun becomes the All. Gone is the limi
ted forest of secondary ideas in which he once dwelt, and left in order to foll
ow the Word that enchanted him. He is now in the world of Ideas whose nature is
 simple (primal) and are not determined by such conditions as Time.

(A tree is an idea, being phallic and bearing branches.)



44




Practice Elementary Yoga until you are perfect: do not try to attain Nibbana ti
ll you know how.



37




Men are ruled by pride and other passions.

(2)


39 -- 40




When taught to aspire, and clean of the baser appetites, teach them the seven s
ciences.



41 -- 42




Having instructed them till they are really complete and ready for true initiat
ion, tell them Truth.



43




Once they are on the Path, be silent; they will naturally come to Attainment.



44




Many are the virtues of Silence: but who so is vowed to help men must teach the
m the Next Step.

(3)


37




The dolphin signifies any state of mind that is uneasy, ill-content, and unable
 to escape from its surroundings.



38




Cure this by reflecting that it is the material of Beauty, just as Macbeth's ch
aracter, Timon's misfortunes, etc. gave Shakespeare his chance. Make your own t
rouble serve your sense of your own life as a sublime drama.



39




Your thought will thus become lyrical; but this will not satisfy your need. You
 will feel the transitory nature of such a thought.



40




Transform it by looking at it as a necessary and important fact in the framewor
k of the Universe.



41




The lyrical exaltation will now pass into a deep realization of yourself and al
l that concerns you as an Inhabitant of Nature, containing in your own consciou
sness the elements of the Divine, and the Bestial, both equally necessary to th
e Wholeness of the Universe. Your original discomfort of mind will now appear a
s pleasant, since, lacking that experience, you would have been eternally the p
oorer.



42




Now interpret that experience ``as a particular dealing of God with your soul.'
' Discover an articulate explanation of it: compel it to furnish an intelligibl
e message.



43




Follow up this train of thought until you enter into Rapture, caused by the rec
ognition of the fact that you -- and all else  -- are ecstatic expressions of a
 sublime Spiritual spasm, elements of an omniform Eucharist. Truth, no matter h
ow splendid, will now lose all meaning for you. It belongs to a world where dis
crimination between Subject and Ppredicate is possible, which implies imperfect
ion; and you are risen above it. You thus become Pan, the All; no longer a part
. You thrill with the joy of the lust of creation, become a virgin goddess for
your sake. Also, you are insane, sanity being the
state which holds things in proper proportion; while you have dissolved all in
your own being, in ecstasy beyond all measure.



44




Do not attempt to cure a fit of melancholy by lofty ideas: such will seem absur
d, and you will only deepen your despair.

(4)


37




The dolphin is the profane.



38 -- 39




Realizing his evil state, and delighting in the prospects offered by initiation
, he renounces all and becomes a pure Aspirant.



40




He learns that the Adept is not a perfection of what he feels to be the noblest
 part of him, but a Microcosm.



41




He completes the formation of himself as an image of the All.



42 -- 43




He then understands all Things, and at last becomes the All.



44




The profane cannot imagine what the Masters mean when they work with those near
est to them.



45 -- 49




This passage describes the Adept's reaction to Rapture. The main point is that
all articulate description is futile.



45




Extravagant phrases attempt to record the Event.



46




The Physical body, its nerves trying to react sympathetically to the experience
, and being charged beyond their capacity is striken.



47




The observer (others, or his own rational mind) misunderstands what is happenin
g.



48




All this is altogether beyond expression.



49




Even the innocence of a child could not endure the impact of the Angel. A man,
having fixed ideas of truth, finds it terrible when they are all shattered, as
they are in this experience.



50 -- 52




The park is the world of well-planted and carefully tended Ideas: such as the s
cholar and the Man of Letters enjoy. Here I found a place where I could exalt m
yself (the hillock). Thereby was a ring (my poetry) in which were fairies (my c
haracter, my phrases, my rhythm, etc.)



51




Playing thus, I reach a state of poetic ecstasy (Fairy Sleep). Here I was happy
.



52




But all this took place during the night: my highest poetic rapture is as darkn
ess to the light of the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel.



53




I am the feminine sense that accepts the embrace of the male H.G.A. I demand cl
oser contact: even the light and bliss of Rapture distract me from the Union wi
th him.



54




His presence must leave me no light of my own.



55




The End means ``The True Self.'' Terminus is the Phallic Stone which lies beyon
d the mind (city) and its thoughts (roads). By this Union with the Angel I hope
 to come to the True Self, the fixed eternal creative individual.



56




Having attained the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel (by a
 male effort so to speak) the Adept become receptive, feminine, patient, surren
dering his will wholly to that of his Angel.



57 -- 60




It is equally vain to summon what one wants, or to ge to seek it. To do so is t
o assert its absence, and the truth is that it is with one all the time, if one
 will but kill out one's restlessness.



61




Realizing this, effort is at an end: one has only to enjoy.



62




As things are, though, one is so constituted as to be unable to rest in simplic
ity. One must go through the mill in order to learn how to wait!



63




The consciousness of the scribe, hitherto required that he might record the say
ings of that part of his Being which we call ``the Adept'' and of his Angel, is
 now released to attend to its normal affairs.



64




The Adept and his Angel remain reposing in Rapture: they do not cease to exist
when the scribe no longer perceives them. On the contrary, he seems rather unre
al to them.



65




Union with his Angel is not the sole goal of the Adept. There is ``an end,'' a
Purpose proper to his individuality.

The Angel therefore bids him withdraw from the Trance of Union. He is to assume
 the form of Hermes (runner -- Word-bearer) and deliver the Word entrusted to h
im to the ``Mighty cities.'' This may mean ``to the greatest minds of the world
.''






CHAPTER III




This chapter is attributed to Water; it deals with the preliminary reflections
of Truth as apprehended by intuition, beyond any intellectual apprehension; and
 with the nature of the Understanding and the sexual instinct.



1 - 2




The sea is the Sensorium of the Soul, and the currents his tendencies -- those
activities in which he finds pleasure. Until one has passed through the totalit
y of possible experience (as divined by estimation of the actualities available
 in one's own case) one cannot reach the state in which all Desire is recognize
d as futile. Only when this is fixed can one perceive the Unicorn -- de Astris
-- the single pure Purpose (it is white) whose name is written in the way now t
o be explained.

The collar represents completeness -- the ``infinity'' or ``eternity'' symboliz
ed by a ring. It is round the neck, i.e., the seat of knowledge (Death -- the V
isuddhi cakkra) and made of silver -- the metal of the Virgin Isis-Urania, who
informs Pure Aspirations.

The name of this Unicorn (whose horn signifies the creative power) is ``The Gre
en Line winds about the Universe.'' Note the etymology of Viridis, connected wi
th vir and vis; also the idea of gyrat, reminding one of the aphorism ``God is
He with the Head of the Hawk, having a spiral force.''

The Green Line, here chosen to connote the Limit of the Universe, suggests the
Girdle of Venus. The boundary of Existence is thus not a fixed idea, but an eve
r-growing Vegetable Principle of Life, of the nature of Love. Summing up the do
ctrine, one may say that the intelligible expression of the pure creative Idea
is the omniform principle of Growth.



3




The Angel then speaks to the human consciousness of the Adept through the mediu
m of his Initiated Self -- otherwise he could not understand so exalted a messa
ge. He bids the man as a man (the heart, Tiphereth, the seat of the conscious E
go) acquire the point of view of the Initiate. The old serpent represents the n
atural Desire, which is the ``cause of Sorrow,'' binds man to grovel in the dus
t, and unites him with base animal life.



4




Than, Theli, and Lilith are three serpentine forms described in the Qabalah. Th
an is really Tanha -- no pun is suggested, but Th is the letter of Matter, and
N represents the reptilian or piscian idea of Life. It is connected with the ``
Gluten in the blood'' which von Eckharthausen calls ``the body of sin.''

Theli: li means secret satisfaction -- an idea connected with shame.

Lilith: li reduplicated and so become tedious ending in material darkness.



5 - 12




The Adept analyses this Demon-Queen of his Nephesch. He recalls her sensory app
eal, and notes that, the dissolution of all things being inevitable, the love o
f them leads to sorrow and destruction. In verses 11 - 12, furthermore, he show
s that apart from all considerations of time, the nature of this Desire, proper
ly apprehended, is corruption.



13 - 14




It is useless to ask the Angel to free the Adept from such coercion; his magica
l force, which is necessary for this Work, is prevented by Desire from so much
as beginning.



15




The Adept invokes Ganesha, who represents the power of breaking down obstructio
ns. The elephant, ``the half-reasoner with the hand,'' is the moral force in ma
n, partly intelligent and docile to the control of its Spiritual Master.



16




This moral force brought into action, the Angel also becomes an efficient assis
tant, and the constraint of Desire disappears altogether.



17




The Adept now realizes himself as bounded only by the Green Line of verse 2.



18




This Line is recognized as equivalent to the Negative -- to Nuith Herself.



19 - 20




This idea of Pure Love is free from all bonds; it gives the true utmost gratifi
cation; its perfume (spiritual significance) is not mingled with any imperfect
conception. (Ambergris is the perfume of Kether; musk refers to Love in a somew
hat animal sense.)



20




The Angel also is identified with this Green Line, and thereby the consciousnes
s of the Adept expands to include the Universe.



21 - 26




The idea of the Ego must not be used to unite the experience of the Adept. The
music of life ceases (in such a case) whenever doubt darkens, trouble disturbs,
 or time wearies the consciousness. The Adept must lose himself wholly in the c
onsciousness of his Angel, which is beyond all such limitations and immune to a
ll attachments -- for He is not to be expressed by any fixed Image, such as mig
ht be destroyed.



27 - 30




The Adept learns to control all varieties of image with present themselves, and
 to create any he may wish, but his Angel represents the Ideal which is his lim
it in this matter. All ideas of which he may be capable are comprised in the na
ture of his Angel.



28 - 29




These verses are especially obscure, and must to a certain extent so remain. Fo
r they contain an allusion to the most secret and critical issue of the Magical
 career of ;gkTO MEGA OHPION. ``The red three-angled heart'' is the peculiar sy
mbol of Ra-Hoor-Khuit; and the Prophet objected to accepting the Book of the La
w, which proclaims Him, as being incompatible with his Oath to attain the Knowl
edge and Conversation of his Holy Guardian Angel. Not until nineteen years late
r did he fully realize that the Holy Guardian Angel was concealed in this symbo
l R.H.K. but with ostensibly hostile glyphs. He is to be found in all phenomena
 soever.



31 - 32




In whatever direction the Adept chooses to move, he must come eventually to his
 Angel. All that he sees is but a veil upon His Face.



33 - 36




This passage, purely lyrical, requires no special comment. It asserts the ultim
ate identity of all Ideas with the Angel, including himself, whom he recognizes
 as united with Him in the triune relation of Father, Ruler, and Bride-groom, t
he source of his Being, the determinant of his Will, and the inspiration of his
 Joy and his Fertility.



37




The dog is the base animal nature -- ``red'' the symbol of its energy, sensibil
ity, and power to love. It is helpless (on the knees of) the surrounding Myster
y of Existence (the Unknown) but it remains still and trusts.



38




The Angel replaces this attitude by full satisfaction and nourishment. It is in
 Him that the Adept lives, and His life that intoxicates him.



39




The enemy Time has been devoured, and the limited Ego dissolved in Infinity.



40 - 48



40




The reference is to the Marquise de Brinvilliers; she represents the Nephesch o
r animal Soul. This Soul has tried to satisfy its passions in various strange w
ays.



41




Hatred for other souls -- pain of receiving truths.



42




This ends in her unity being destroyed by Change. She has been bound to the cyc
le of Samsara by the Minister of Justice.



43




Her solidity can no longer resist the action of Purity; her complexes are invad
ed by the Universal Solvent. Her resistance is extreme torment.



44




Finally it breaks up her coherence, and her sense of self crumbles and dissolve
s in the boundless Ocean of Love.



45 - 46




The text confirms this interpretation of Initiation as equivalent to extended p
sychoanalysis.



47




The life of the Ego is dispersed over all salient ideas. The ravens are the bir
ds of Netzach the sphere of Venus, i.e., the life of the Adept is carried away
aloft by Universal Love.



48




This process leads to the full crossing of the Abyss -- for which see Liber 418
 and Liber VII.



49 - 50




The above ideas are here repeated in another symbol. The ``fount'' is Salmacis.
 The positive Individuality becomes the Universal and perfect Virgin of the Wor
ld. See again Liber 418.



51 - 52




A lyrical outburst on this theme. Note Nuit, and the new True Self born of Her,
 not the old False Ego which is annihilated.



53

The reference is to Atu XVII. The butterfly is the Neschamah (pure ;gk[...]). I
ts nature is that of a being separated momentarily and painlessly from Nuit.



54




The stream of souls (stars) flows ever toward Nuit; i.e., each man and woman ha
s the same True Will -- to regain its original Mother.



55




The above is declared to be a Mystery of the Atu XII. The ``drowning'' of the A
dept transforms the Trance of Sorrow into that of Love. The Angel is seen as a
positive symbol of this ``Great Sea.''



56




By His Knowledge and Conversation this transmutation is accomplished.



57 - 59




The ``foolish man'' is the natural man, the uninitiate. ``Foolish'' is empty, v
ain full of wind (A = ;heA = the Fool). He is contrasted with ``The Great Fool'
' Atu 0, ;heA who is the first path from Kether. (Explain and give references).



57




This man cannot be brought to perfection, for he is composed of Qliphoth or exc
rement. His emancipation is from just such parts of his being; they are not of
his essence.



58




The Adept identifies himself with this Pure Fool. He is indifferent to the Illu
sion of Phenomenal existence caused by the Magician (Pekht, Extension, Atu I, ;
heB, 2, ;pl;ME Mayan).

The woman of the Mysteries (Isis, Atu II, ;heG, 3, ;plMO) does not spoil his pu
rity with her phantastic reflections of Truth.

He is no more at the mercy of the Empress Atu III, The Emperor Atu IV, ;heT, 90
, ;zoA and the Hierophant Atu V, ;heV, 6, ;zoT.

That is, neither the subtle distinctions (I, II) of Truth nor their gross image
s (III, IV, V) injure his perfection of Zero.



59




It follows that the symbols of Royalty and Spirituality are now equivalent to t
hose of plastic life (;zoA and ;zoS) and vibratory manifestation.

The gallows is found in Atu XII, ;heM, 40, ;atW (Cf verse 55) and on it is susp
ended, free from earth, the joyously moving (''dance'') form of the extended or
 manifested man (Atu VIII, ;pl;SU, 30, ;zoL the positive or expressed form of A
tu 0, ;heA Aleph and Lamed the Key of CCXX).



60 - 61




(These verses might be read as Strophe and Antistrophe; but before when the Ang
el speaks, we are told so.)

The ``black shining waters'' are those of the Akasa, the menstruum of manifesta
tion: the ``pearl'' is the rounded perfection of the Angel, who is thus a tangi
ble symbol of the Formlessness of Nuit. (For ``black,'' again, see I:18 - 20.)



62




Although thus ultimate, the Angel is also in close tough with the Man. This exp
lains the policy of 666, as outlined below. (Quote China Record, my G.W.)



63




The Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel represents the suprem
e need, and its attainment coincides with the final destruction of Desire (in t
he Buddhist sense).



64 - 65




The chapter ends with an outburst of lyrical exaltation. ``Every number is infi
nite; there is no difference.'' ``Now therefore I am known to ye by my name Nui
t, and to him by a secret name which I will give him when at last he knoweth me
. Since I am Infinite Space, and the Infinite Stars thereof, do ye also thus. B
ind nothing! Let there be no difference made among you between any one thing an
d any other thing; for thereby there cometh hurt.'' (Liber CCXX I:4 and 22.)

The Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel resolves all thought
into the identity of insignificance. He exists equally in the Unity of Ra-Hoor-
Khuit and in every detail of phenomenal manifestation.





CHAPTER IV




This Chapter is attributed to Fire. It deals with the salient rays of Positive
Idea, beyond any intuition to apprehend, and with the nature of the Will and th
e sexual energy, the dynamic shape of the Self.

Being thus actually beyond Understanding, being the Utterance of the Unconsciou
s, it becomes naturally impossible for even the Initiate to apprehend the chapt
er as it stands. It deals with the Original Unities; and it is for the Master o
f the Temple (the Adept in Tiphereth cannot understand the Chapter at all) to r
eceive, interpret, bring to birth and conscious expression Their sublime gestur
e.



1 - 10




This section is the address of the Angel. He explains His Knowledge and Convers
ation from His own standpoint. The aspiration towards Him is masculine. At the
moment of achievement it is replaced by passivity as explained in previous chap
ters. The aspiration has its parallel in the will of the Angel to communicate.
But this will is superficially of a different character. Its nature is now expl
ained.



1

He calls the Adept ``Crystal heart'' implying that he is a concentration of lig
ht, energy, love, lucidity, and purity. It is these qualities in the Adept with
 which he communicates. This is the object of the preparation. The Adept must p
resent this image perfectly before the Knowledge and Conversation can operate.
That is, purification and consecration must precede invocation. It is extremely
 difficult even for a Master of the Temple even after years of contemplation to
 get it firmly into his consciousness that his material part is not he at all a
ny more than any other collection of phenomena.

The Angel describes Himself as the serpent. The serpent is, of course the symbo
l of wisdom, immortality, royalty, and other similar qualities.

The Angel not only winds himself about the heart of the Adept but drives His he
ad into the centre. He addresses the Adept as ``God my beloved'' obviously any
member of so high an order of being has long assimilated the truth of Pantheism
.



2




The reference is to Sappho who was in love with the Sun, and threw herself into
 the sea to attain him. She is here the symbol of the Angel as represented by t
he Path of Gimel where is ``The High Priestess.'' This Path connects Macroproso
pus (Kether) and Microprospus (Tiphereth), the supreme divinity and its human m
anifestation. The Sun is attributed to Tiphereth and so symbolizes the Adept. T
he Angel thinks of Himself as ``plunging into the wet heart of the Creation,''
i.e., the reflection in matter of the True Self of the Adept whom He loves.



3




The Angel finds beauty in ``this heart of corruption'' by which he means the li
fe of mutability. ``The flowers are aflame.''
Phenomena blossom and enkindle, i.e., touch.



4




The intensity of the passion of the Angel is so great that He cannot express it
 even in music. The boat is here the symbol of consciousness, as in II:7 - 16.
The tongue is the Logos of the Angel, and the unknown rivers new spheres of tho
ught. The everlasting salt is the sorrow which tinctures the great sea of Binah
, and the hopes by the above method to transcend the Trance of Sorrow in refere
nce to all these possibilities.



6




He is reminded of the parallel but contrary custom of men to seek satisfaction
in the object of desire. Water is a symbol of pleasure, and desire is impregnat
ed with sorrow. To act in this way maddens the deluded race of men. He bids the
m ``Come up through the creeks,'' i.e., the narrow passages of thought, the con
centrated currents of thought which lead to pure pleasure -- ``the fresh water.
'' When men succeed in travelling by means of controlled will to true pure plea
sure they find him waiting to administer the Sacrament.



7 - 8




The bezoar-stone is a ball composed chiefly of hairs which represent closely-wo
ven [...]. He compares the Adept to this stone seeing him as a complex of diver
se energies. The limbs of the Adept are the instruments of his activity. The An
gel invites him to repose with Him in the orchard, i.e., in the place where nat
ural processes have culminated in fructifying. The cool grass seems to be a sym
bol of vegetative life, and the Angel proposes to use this evergreen freshness
of Nature as the field for rejoicing and nourishment. He calls to the slaves, t
hat is, to the instruments of action, controlled any put to use to bring wine,
i.e., to furnish the means of ecstasy, for He wishes the Adept to be enkindled
with rapture and manifest its glow in his face, i.e., his outer consciousness.



9




A garden usually symbolizes a place of cultivated beauty; Oriental poets use it
 to express a collection of poems or wise sayings. The immortal kisses are the
tokens of the operation of ``love under will'' which is perpetual. The Angel ca
lls upon the Adept to display his brilliance as if the Knowledge and Conversati
on were a transcendental sacrament beyond that implied in all acts.

The opium poppy is a symbol of peace, exaltation, and delight, the giver of sle
ep, by which is meant the silencing of all possible distractions. The mouth of
the Adept, the organ by which he is nourished, expresses his thoughts, and symb
olizes his passions; by the kiss of this mouth is meant its surrender to the An
gel, the act of marriage, and this is the key to the infinite sleep and lucid.
Sleep has been explained above. It is infinite, being freed from the limitation
s of condition, and lucid as being characterized by pure vision. Shi-loh-am: th
e word means peace.



10




The Angel explains that (in the reposeful ecstasy of love, I might even say in
the orgasm of love, the reference is to the particular Samadhi of the attainmen
t of the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel) in his ``sleep'
' he obtained the vision of the Universe as a continuous and immaculate phenome
non. This is contrasted implicitly with the effect of the same act on the Adept
, to whom it simply means union with Godhead. The Angel has found perfection in
 his own Adept: this completes Perfection.



11 - 14




The Adept now speaks, or rather, the Master of the Temple speaks.



11

The tavern is the temple of spiritual intoxication. Without it are the Black Br
others boasting of their own attainments.



12




They are purse-proud, i.e., mean and selfish, yet penniless, i.e., their attain
ments are worthless. They also revile those who have attained the Knowledge and
 Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel: the Black Brother for all his arrogan
ce is aware like Klingsor of his real condition, and he therefore blasphemes th
e White Lodge.



13




The conches symbolize repose. The mother-of-pearl the opalescence of phenomena,
 when observed by the Initiate. (Compare the symbolism of the Rainbow.) Note th
at they are in the garden, not the tavern. This may mean that they have passed
beyond the stage where the act is unique with one such as described in vv. 8-9.
 The foolish man: see II:37. Noise is a symbol of distraction and lack of harmo
ny. It is ``hidden from them'' -- a stronger phrase than ``unheard by them.''



14




The innkeeper is the Guardian of the Mysteries, and the king the Authority by w
hich men's lives are governed. It is his business to protect the guests from th
e arrogance of the Black Brothers, but also to prevent their malice from making
 the sacrament unlawful. (Levi has a passage on this point. He says that when t
he arcanum was divulged in the time of the French Revolution it became impossib
le to put it into practice. The adepts consequently quarreled among themselves
and chaos resulted. We must not suppose that this is a mere matter of the vow o
f secrecy. Nor does it imply that the publication of the means of attainment ma
y lead to disaster. It is the fourth power of the Sphinx which was somehow lost
.) It seems strange that the Magister in the midst of his rapture with the allo
cution of his Angel yet ringing in his ears should find nothing less incongruou
s in reply. The difficulty is easily explained. For one thing his ecstasy is in
effable. For another, it is perfect, so that he cannot possibly speak about it.
 Thirdly, he is aware that part of the price of his attainment is his responsib
ility as Guardian of the Mysteries. He therefore calls the attention of his Ang
el to what I may describe as the political situation.



15 - 21




The above peculiarity of the previous dialogue is the subject of part of this p
assage. Generally it discusses the question of the relations between certain po
wers of Nature.



15




The circumstances of the dialogue are carefully explained. He is the Master of
the Temple, V.V.V.V.V., not merely the Adept, who has simply attained union. Th
e Angel is moreover identified specifically with the symbol of Adonai. They are
 playing together, i.e., in conscious communion; in the starlight, i.e., in the
 presence of Nuit; and the place of their meeting is the ``deep black pool'' sy
mbolic of Binah, the sphere of the sorrow of Motherhood, the place of conceptio
n and the abode of Understanding. The holy place is the three first Sephiroth,
i.e., above the Abyss. The holy house is the Tree of Life. And the Altar of the
 holiest one is Kether.



16




The Adept replies to the passage verses 11 - 14 by simply changing the rhythm o
f his music to a more languid measure. In this way he implies that there is no
need for haste or anxiety.



17




The scribe who is the conscious human being charged to report these matters und
erstands by this that all is well. The Magician is Atu I, Mayan (see II:58) and
 the references in Liber 418. The Angel has no fear that the forces of illusion
 can ever interfere with the Great Work. He is himself Macroprosopus. This phra
se needs explanation. Just as a man aspires to the Knowledge and Conversation o
f the Holy Guardian Angel and attains it, so too does the Angel aspire to the `
`unity uttermost showed'' for his position is the Path of Gimel. In his attainm
ent he has therefore reached Kether, from which spring not only his own Path Gi
mel (leading to Tiphereth) but that of Beth (leading to Binah). To understand p
roperly the full nature of Binah we must remember this point. The sorrow connec
ted with the idea of this Sephira is due to the fact that she is the recipient
of the original illusion. There is no sorrow in the other current, the Path of
Daleth through which her lord communicates his essence.



18




The Magister whose abode is Binah now uses illusion itself as a means of enjoym
ent. He behaves naturally like a child without fear that there may be some sini
ster significance in the operations of Nature.



19




To test him the Angel suggests that his enjoyment of illusion is identical with
 that of the profane.



20




The Magister replies that although apparently enjoying the good things of life
(so to speak) he has never for one instant forgotten that he is enjoying the lo
ve of his Angel. Neither by action of the fingers which grasp the curls or spir
al energies of the Angel, nor by loss of concentration upon the eye (symbol of
sight, creative energy, unity, etc. See also ``Eye of Horus'') of his lover did
 he fall from the summit of his Samadhi.

The Magister is therefore shown as perfectly initiated: he deliberately embrace
d the terrible illusion which is the source of all sorrow, and made it part int
egrally of the Great Work. There being no other direction from which misfortune
 might touch him, since he is protected by the Guardians of the Abyss from the
interference of the Paths of Zayin and Cheth, he is henceforth immune.



22




The Bennu bird refers to the currents and sub-currents set in motion by the AA,
 every 600 years approximately, that is, twice in the course of each Aeon.

;tab3rll
   1900  Aiwass ;GREEK.
   15-1600  Dee and Kelly, Christian Rosencreutz, Luther, Paracelsus 1490 - 154
1.
   1300  Jacobus Burgundus Molensis.
   9-1000
   6-700  Mohammed.
   3-400
   0  Apollonius of Tyana.
   BX 300  Gautama Buddha.
;endtab

NOTE. Scale of Time -- resolved images dilated presentation. Racehorse legs. In
 a series of m events, none of which suggest n. Cf. glyphs of A. spelling of wo
rds, etc.

Therefore no gauge of reality. (LXV I:32 seq.)

Philae is an island in the Nile, now submerged by industrialism famous for its
Temple of Ahathoor.

In Liber VII VII:27, the Bennu Bird is identified definitely with the Phoenix -
- or Set the Wild Ass -- through the symbolism of the Wand of the Second Adept
in the Ritual of Adeptus Minor of R.R. et A.C.

The reminder of this chapter concerns in great part the relation of this scribe
 with the Adept and the Angel who complete and crown his personality. The follo
wing verses describe the Equinox of the Gods, and the Attainment of the Knowled
ge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel. They indicate the effect thereo
f upon the individual; for this chapter refers to Fire, the God of Tetragrammat
on, that is, to the essence of the personality of the man concerned as a man. T
he Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel represents the descent
 of the element Spirit into the midst of his being, according to the regular fo
rmula of the formation of the Pentagram ;heIHShVH from ;heIHVH. The chief diffi
culty of interpretation lies in the complication introduced by the Equinox of t
he Gods.

;tab2ll

   22-27 describes this Event.
   28-29 describes the state of the scribe.
   30-32 describes the preparation of the scribe for his Attainment.
   33-37 describes the Threshold of his Initiation.
   38-41 describes the Initiation itself.
   42-44 describes the Understanding thereby given of the necessary relations o
f Spirit and Matter.
   45-53 describes the results of Initiation.
   54-56 brings together the Attainment and the Equinox of the Gods.
   57-60 answers the question thus propounded.
   61-65 a prophecy concerning the future of the individual scribe, the circums
tances in which he shall come to the Perfection of his Attainment.

;endtab



23




The scribe recalls his incarnation as a priestess of Ahathoor, goddess of Love
and Beauty.

He calls upon the forces of the Nile and of Sebek the crocodile that is dweller
 thereof. They are to put an end to the regimen of the Mother (Aeon of Isis).



24




Apophis replaces Isis.



25




AIWASS (identified with the Holy Guardian Angel of Aleister Crowley) is to dest
roy the formulae of Isis and Osiris (Aeon of the Dying God). There is here a re
ference to the Legend of Shiva who drank up the poison caused by the churning o
f the ``Milk of the Stars'' or manifestation of Phenomenal Existence. His throa
t became black (or indigo blue) as a result. AIWAZ has thus turned Apophis agai
nst himself, to make way for the Aeon of Horus, the Crowned and Conquering Chil
d. Apophis loved; i.e., vanishes in ecstasy at the caress of AIWAZ the ``mighty
 serpent'' of verse 26 (the throat is the seat of the element of Spirit -- Akas
ha dwells in the Visuddhi Cakkram). The meaning is that the formula given by AI
WAZ destroys the idea of Destruction as such. What was until now called ``Death
.'' the means of resurrection in the Formula of Osiris IAO, is to be understood
 henceforth as ``love under will.''



26




This Day of Vengeance is the Aeon of Horus -- beginning with the Spring Equinox
 of 1904 E.V. (Note CCXX III:3 and the Avenger.) The ``little secret bone'' is
found in the Phallus of the Bear. (Heb 6). This is an anatomical fact. The Bear
 is symbolic of part of ;GREEK 666 according to the description given of Him in
 the Apocalypse:

I saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upo
n his horns ten crowns, and upon his hands the name of blasphemy.

And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the fee
t of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his
power, and his seat, and great authority.

And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound wa
s healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.

And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast; and they worshi
pped the beast, saying Who is like unto the beast? Who is able to make war with
 him?

And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies, and
 power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.

And he opened his mouth and blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and h
is tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.

And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: an
d power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues and nations.

And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not writte
n in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

If any man have an ear, let him hear.

He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with th
e sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of th
e saints.

And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth: and he had two horns lik
e a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.

And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the
earth and all which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly woun
d was healed.

And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the
 earth in the sight of men.

And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which
 he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the
 earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a s
word, and did live.

And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of th
e beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the imag
e of the beast should be killed.

And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to rece
ive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of th
e beast, or the number of his name.

Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast:
for it is the number of a man: and his number is Six hundred threescore and six
. (Rev: Cap: XIII.)

This bone is consequently the Quintessential Individuality of the Unconscious o
f Aleister Crowley; he having retained his human personality in order to serve
as the Instrument of the Logos of this Aeon. He now demands that the ``fang'' (
tooth Spirit) of his Angel shall penetrate to his inmost self.

Khephra, the Scarabaeus Beetle, is the Sun at midnight. He appears in Atu XVIII
 (The Moon, referred to Pisces in the Zodiac) at the bottom of the hieroglyph,
in a pool (the firmament of the Nadir). Above this is a path leading between tw
o mountains crowned by towers. Beneath the Moon symbolic of glamour and illusio
n as opposed to the Moon of the Path of Gimel symbolic of Purity, Aspiration, e
tc., where goes the Holy Guardian Angel. This Path is guarded by two dogs or ja
ckals symbolic of Anubis, guarder of the Threshold (see verse 34).

The meaning of the verse is thus that AIWAZ (revealed ``as a mighty serpent'' -
- see above) has destroyed the principle of illusion. In particular, the belief
 of man that he is mortal (Osiris) must yield to the consciousness that he is t
he Crowned Child (Horus). My ``heart'' -- i.e. the human will and consciousness
 of Aleister Crowley is identified with the essence of the life of AIWAZ (the b
lood of His body is used by Him as the physical basis of His manifestation in C
CXX).



27




Aleister Crowley has abandoned all his personal ambitions to ``die'' at the car
ess of AIWAZ in His function as his Holy Guardian Angel. (The little Microcosmi
c ``little asp'' as opposed to the ``mighty serpent'' who is responsible for th
e Macrocosmic Event the Equinox of the Gods). The images of the love-sick court
esan and of Cleopatra show the implication of the Nephesch or ``animal soul'' o
f Aleister Crowley in this matter.



28




The scribe confesses the utter weariness of his human consciousness so far as i
t is divorced from communion with the rapture of the Adept (''my master'') who
controls him.



29




The ``soul'' means Nephesch. The scribe is supported, even in his conscious wea
riness, by the certainty of his ``Unconscious'' that he has come to his Attainm
ent, despite his human conscious forgetfulness of the fact.

He appeals to the Angel to flood the human consciousness with the ``Bliss of th
e Beloved,'' as heretofore expressed in this Book.



30




This is granted: the human consciousness enters into the pleasure-house of Adep
tship. The wine of spiritual rapture which intoxicates him is likened to ``fire
 that flieth'' with green wings (love) ``through the world of waters.'' Previou
s passages should enable the aspirant to understand this symbolism quite thorou
ghly. [...] is in the Qabalah ``The Name'' and ``Heaven'' means ``Almighty Powe
r,'' and means ``Blood.'' These symbols thus explain the text in detail.



31




Nature and perfection are Isis and Nephthys, who prepare Osiris (see Papyrus of
 Ani and The Book of the Dead generally) for Initiation. The Candidate is here
represented as their brother (Aleister Crowley is Vau of ;heIHVH, ``the stone,'
' the human consciousness in Tiphereth -- male) but decked out as a bride (for
he is symbolically feminine towards his Holy Guardian Angel, the Heart about to
 meet the Embrace of the Serpent. See, too, III:49 - 50).



32




The Ego is deprived of its attributes before it can receive the impact of the H
oly Guardian Angel. It must be the pure Human Self as an Individual independent
 of its manifestations as such, the phenomena of its relation with its environm
ent.



33




The Ego realizes that the Holy Guardian Angel will annihilate it. It trembles,
and this shaking of its identity is the token of its surrender (Compare the ecs
tasy of fear of Amfortas at the onset of his Healing; and see II:60 and 62 with
 several similar passages elsewhere. The doctrine is everywhere implicit; but c
ompare also Liber 418, 14th Aethyr, etc.)

Also, the first appearance of the Angel is necessarily misunderstood; for while
 the human Ego exists, it is bound by the conditions of its being; and this imp
lies a certain falsity of apprehension, the root of which is in the very illusi
on of Separateness which makes the Idea of an Ego possible.



34




The ``threshold'' is before the ``door'' or ``pylon'' of Daleth. (Daleth means
a door; its attribution is Venus, pure Love, and its Path is from Chokmah to Bi
nah, the base of the Triangle of the Supernals. This ``door'' is thus in all wa
ys a fit symbol of the entrance to Initiation). The ``threshold'' is then below
 the Path of Daleth on the Tree of Life; i.e., it is in the Abyss.

The above symbolism refers strictly to the Attainment of Master of the Temple;
but its Truth is reflected into the technically correct account of the Initiati
on of the Dominus Liminis to Adeptus Minor. Here the ``door'' is the third Reci
procal or Transverse Path (Daleth is the first) Pe which means a mount --  the
door of the vital organs. Pe is the letter of Atu XVI the ``House of God'' or `
`Blasted Tower.'' The Hieroglyph represents a Tower -- symbolic of the Ego in i
ts Phallic Aspect, yet shut up, i.e., separate. This Tower is smitten by the Li
ghtning Flash of Illumination, the impact of the Holy Guardian Angel and the Fl
aming Sword of the Energy that proceeds from Kether to Malkuth. Thence are cast
 forth two figures forming by their [...] attitude the letter [...]: [...] thes
e are the twins (Horus and Harpocrates) born at the breaking-open of the Womb o
f the Mother (the second aspect of the Tower as a ``spring shut up, a fountain
sealed''). The represent in respect of the male aspect of the [...] Tower the s
permatozoa ([...] is [...] the sign in which is the Sun at the Winter Solstice,
 when the New Year begins) emitted when the Phallus is smitten by the ecstasy o
f the Orgasm (Lightning Flash) and ``blasted'' by losing its erection.

On the ``threshold'' the Dominus Liminis is menanced by the Paths [...] of [...
] and [...] the Atus XIII, XIV, XV. (Temperance or Restriction, Death, and the
Devil, which issue from Tiphereth the abode of His Angel to ward off the profan
e of the Outer Order of GD.

The main difference (in essence) between the formulae of the two Initiations, i
nto the R.R. et A.C. and the AA, respectively, are that the Adeptus Exemptus is
 below Daleth altogether, though he has crossed the Second Reciprocal Path Teth
 on his way to become an Adeptus Exemptus, and has no Path by which he may trav
el (save Gimel, which leads from Tiphereth to Kether, not from Chesed, to Binah
, whither he is bound. This is to ward off the profane of the Inner Order of R.
R. et A.C.) while the Dominus Liminis has already traversed the Path of Pe to a
ttain the Grade of Philosophus, and the threshold is within, instead of without
, the Pylon.






In crossing the Abyss the aim is to annihilate the Ego and its appurtenances al
together. In Qabalistic symbolism to attain to Zero. The peril is therefore tha
t of identification with any of the products of disingegration. Choronzon, ther
efore, by which same we signify the idea of Dispersion, has no place within the
 Supernal Triad. The threshold of initiation, the Abyss, lies wholly without th
e door Daleth. The completeness of the disintegration, the impotence ([...]) an
d idleness ([...]) is guaranteed by the absence of the love (Daleth) which migh
t otherwise bind together the dissipated events to form a unity (in the 7th Aet
hyr, Liber 418, we learn that if the Black Brothers were only able to look up t
o the Goddess of Love (Daleth) above them they might yet attain to Understandin
g.)

In the Initiation to Adeptus Minor, the conditions are altogether other. The ai
m is the attainment of unity not negativity, and there is no such perfection in
 the Sephiroth of the Ruach, Chesed, Geburah, Tiphereth, which compose the Grad
es of the Inner Order (R.R. et A.C.) as necessarily excluding Choronzon from th
e three Grades of the AA. The student is now referred to the Elemental Watch-To
wers of Sir Edward Kelly (See The Equinox I:7 - 8). The four Elemental Tablets
(12 ;tm 13) are bound together by the little Tablet of Spirit ( 4 ;tm 5), or, w
hen the Tablets are arranged to show them each as a sub-section of the unity of
 Tetragrammaton by a black cross containing the letters of this little Tablet o
f Spirit. The names of evil demons are found notably by taking some imperfect a
nd unbalanced symbol for the Watch-Towers such as a bilateral name from beneath
 the bar of the Calvary Cross in any of the Lesser Angles -- and prefixing the
appropriate letter from the Black Cross.

The doctrine implied is that the nature of Spirit is not only represented by Sh
in, the Holy Spirit, whose descent into the midst of Tetragrammaton sanctifies
and illuminates the blind forces of the Elements, but is also soulless matter,
dark, formless and void, the mere basis or background for the manifestation of
all phenomena indifferently; and this truth is also symbolized by the blackness
 and undeveloped potentiality of Akasa as explained by the legend of Shiva ment
ioned in a previous paragraph.

Spirit may therefore be manifested either as the Holy Guardian Angel or as the
Evil Persona, the Dweller on the Threshold, portrayed sensationally for trade b
y Sir Edward Bulwer-Lytton in his romance Zanoni. The doctrine is also frequent
ly found in folk-lore, where man is represented as attended by both a good and
an evil genius. The horror of the latter is intensified by his function as the
alternative to the Holy Guardian Angel. Now, in the case of Exempt Adept, shoul
d he be beaten back from the City of the Pyramids by failure to comply perfectl
y with the formula of ``love under will'' he remains lost in the Abyss with no
future possibility than to identify himself in turn with each incoherent and un
intelligible phenomenon that appears in the sensorium of the man, who has been
disintegrated as the first to each and every imperfection which claims to be. E
ntirely different is the case of the Dominus Liminis whose operation, if unsuce
ssful, may be a simple failure perhaps due to no serious error of his own. Apar
t from slight discouragement he should be able to try again without disadvantag
e. Indeed he should have used his failure as a means of instruction. But he may
 also fail from not having thoroughly assimilated the injunction of the Hieraeu
s in the ceremony of his initiation into the Grade of Neophyte: ``Fear is failu
re and the forerunner of failure. Be thou therefore without fear! for in the he
art of the coward Virtue abideth not!''

Similarly, he may have been unable to fulfil the formula of the Hierophant in t
hat ceremony: ``Remember that Unbalanced Force is evil. Unbalanced Mercy is but
 weakness: Unbalanced Severity is but oppression.'' Once more the fascination o
f evil may be no less perilous than the fear. In any case he may expect to be c
onfronted first of all by his Evil Genius (cf., further, the ceremony of Zelato
r in GD -- the appearance of the Angels Samael, Metatron, and Sandalphon). He m
ay fail to abide the onslaught. He may be thrust back from the threshold, and h
is defeat may be more or less damaging according to circumstances. But his fear
 may be so great as to induce him to transform it into fascination, or his exha
ustion so complete that he is prepared to purchase rest at any price. In either
 case the result may be that he accepts his Evil Persona as his Guardian Angel.
 I should be loth to assert that even so fearful a form of failure is necessari
ly fatal and final although evidently it must always create a disastrous Karma
as involving the assertion fortified by the most solemn oaths and sealed by the
 most intense ecstasy of the absolute existence of evil, in a sense of the word
, actually and ad hoc defined by himself, i.e., he has acquiesced in duality, e
stablished an interior conflict in himself, and ceremonially blasphemed and den
ied the unity of his own True Will. Appalling as is such a catastrophe, it lack
s the element of finality since the principles involved do not extend above Tip
hereth. He has become a Black Magician no doubt, but this is far indeed from be
ing a Black Brother. It cannot even be said that such an one thereby manifests
any tendency to become a Black Brother when the time is ripe; for his union eve
n with the personification of Evil is also an act of love under will, though th
at will be false and vitiated by every conceivable defect and error. His chief
danger is presumably that the intensity of the suffering which results from thi
s may, as in the case of Glyndon in Zanoni, lead him to seek to escape altogeth
er from Magick, to refrain from any act of love for fear lest he stray still fa
rther from his true path. Let him remember the words of my brother: ``If the fo
ol would persist in his folly he would become wise.'' Let him resolutely contin
ue in iniquity, invoking the vengeance of the Gods, so that at the end the exce
ss of his love and its transcendence of anguish may bring him back into the way
 of truth.

From the above it should have become clear how it is that the Evil Genius is wi
thin the Sanctuary of the Temple of the Rosy Cross whose formula is ``love unde
r will,'' while Choronzon is excluded alike from that shrine and from the City
of the Pyramids whose law, although still ``love under will,'' understands both
 those terms as without limit.



34




The Evil is now described. The language is of course symbolic. At the same time
 the appearance here given might correspond very closely with the actual expres
sions of experience.

We are twice told that he ``stood'' which is to be contrasted with the activity
 of ``going'' of the Holy Guardian Angel (see verses 37 - 41). It is the peculi
ar token of any God that he should go. For this reason he bears the Ankh or san
dal-strap in the Egyptian monuments. This antithesis is connected with the conc
eption of the Black Brothers as shutting themselves up, or resenting change. Th
e thelemic conception of the Universe is dynamic, so that stasis is inevitably
the symbol of conflict with Nature. It is the equivalent of Death; for Death be
ing a change, it is an event, i.e., a phenomenon of activity of life. This doct
rine should be studied very thoroughly in CCXX.

Let the student attend, moreover, to the contrast between the symbols of the Ho
ly Guardian Angel and those of the Evil Genius. The former, (See verses 38 - 41
) are positive, active, solid, dynamic; of chariots, horseman, spearmen, the we
apons of Jupiter and Pan are tremendously vital in his hands. Per contra the Ev
il Genius is vague, unreal and inactive. His characteristics are horror and emp
tiness. His eyes are ghastly, which I take in its strict sense as connected wit
h geist. And this epithet is peculiarly abhorrent since the sense of sight is a
ttributed to Fire, and should be clear-cut and luminous. Such activities as he
commands are slow, cozy and vermicular. They resemble wells of poisoned water,
i.e. they lurk and receive as little light as possible, whereas the ideal eye s
hould dart forth flame. He causes even the air about him to stagnate and stink.
 Anatomically he resembles a fish, a cold-blooded inhabitant of the passive ele
ment. (Note the fish as the accepted symbol of Jesus). Even so, he is old, slow
-moving, while the chief virtue of fish is to be quickly gliding. And he is gna
rled, offering unnecessary resistance to his own movement, and increasing its f
riction. Hideous!

Shells or Qliphoth are lifeless excrement; and Abaddon is the destroyer or disp
erser -- the destroyer by dispersion.



35




His method of combat as distinct from that of the Angel which is to pierce with
 a spear or smite with a thunderbolt is to envelope with his demoniacal and the
refore illusory tentacles. This method is to restrict the Aspirant well knowing
 that ``the word of Sin is restriction.'' He succeeds in communicating the ``ei
ght fears,'' which are connected with the eight heads of the stooping dragon. (
See, for this symbolism, ``The Temple of Solomon the King,'' The Equinox I:1 -
3) They are the restrictions to the Supernal Triad attempted by the seven lower
 Sephiroth and Daath. Hence the Stooping Dragon is shown on the Tree of Life be
low the Abyss after the Fall, and on the floor of the Vault of Christian Rosenc
reutz. In the older symbolism they are the eight Keys of Edom.



36




The Aspirant is ``anointed with the right sweet oil of the Magister.'' The Magi
ster pertaining to Binah, this oil may be taken to symbolize his Neschamah or a
spiration. See the account of the Holy Oil given in Book 4, Part II. (The Holy
Oil is the Aspiration of the Magician; it is that which consecrates him to the
performance of the Great Work; and such is its efficacy that it also consecrate
s all the furniture of the Temple and the instruments thereof. It is also the g
race or chrism; for this aspiration is not ambition; it is a quality bestowed f
rom above...It is the pure light translated into terms of desire. It is not the
 Will of the Magician, the desire of the lower to reach the higher; but it is t
hat spark of the higher in the Magician which wishes to unite the lower with it
self.) Also the essential property of oil is to diminish friction and increase
ease of movement. It is therefore the precisely right reply to this type of att
ack.

Furthermore, the Aspirant compares himself to a stone, which refers to the cubi
c stone symbolic of perfect adeptship, being the squared and equilibrated perfe
ction of the spiritual Masonry; it is bounded by six squares which signify prot
ection by Macroprosopus. See also the symbolism of the Stone in the Zohar, a su
bject far too extensive to make more than this single indication practicable. T
here is, furthermore, an identification of the Stone with the Sacred Phallus an
d of the Sun as worshipped in the Temple of Diana at Ephesus and in the word AB
RASAX. In our own holy books, see V:6 and 58 of this Book and Liber VII V:2. (W
e made as a temple of stones in the shape of the Universe, even as thou didst w
ear openly and I concealed). In this last connection note the proper juxtaposit
ion of stones as symbolic of the Great Work. This is to be found also in The Vo
ice of Silence, where those who have attained build themselves into a wall to p
rotect mankind. See also Liber VII VII:6. (We know why all is hidden in the sto
ne, within the coffin, within the mighty sepulchre, and we too answer Olalam! I
mal! Tutulu! as it is written in the ancient book).

This stone is a missile in the ``sling of a boy of the woodlands'' who may be t
aken to represent the most youthful and active form of Pan, i.e. the aspirant c
onsiders himself as flung forth from the infinite and released from his swathin
gs. (Cf. Liber XVII, VII:3 - 5) that he may perform the Great Work.



37




The aspirant is smooth; his qualities have been perfectly harmonised. He is har
d, having perfected his resistance to extreme pressure. The analogy is with ivo
ry. Ivory is the substance of the tooth, the letter Shin of the Holy Spirit and
 also of the substance of the skeleton on which his being is being built. The s
ound Sh moreover represents the power of silence as well as the activity and al
ertness which accompany the will to manifest oneself through one's True Will. I
 here quote from my original notes on the intrinsic meaning of the letter: ``S
is the serpent-hiss, the sharp breath, teeth bared yet clenched, which is the n
atural token of alarm, hate, defiance, natural to a man who meets his fellow-ab
erration from legitimate monkeyhood. By it he recognizes his brother, and names
 him accordingly, when need was. (Later, when alarm had died, we have still ``s
h!'' -- Hush! -- not a call for Silence, which it breaks, but a claim on the At
tention of other men.) In S is this idea of fear and anger, combines these idea
s; so the first S-gods were storm-gods.

Later, this breath, air moving in men, might be known for a proof that he lived
; then this breath-letter, S, might come to mean ``life.'' For instance, God br
eathes on Adam to make him a ``living soul,'' and Elisha raises a boy to life b
y breathing on him. The Ruach Elohim again is a Breath that broods Chaos. At la
st we find a Holy Ghost begetting by dint of a breath. And was not Maut the Mot
her-Vulture impregnated by the wind? Perhaps too the hiss of the rain which fer
tilizes earth, as even a savage must observe in tropical lands where the result
 is so swift, may have helped him to the convention that S should mean life. Th
is rain comes from the air which he breathes, though from beyond him; it seems
then to him natural to make Zeus or Shu rain-gods and life-gods as well as air-
gods, storm-gods, names for the fierce, the fearful anger which at first only m
eant ``an enemy'' -- his fellow-man!'' (Diary, June 1920).

The Evil Genius is accordingly unable to dominate the aspirant. He having prove
d his virtue is now ready to receive the Holy Guardian Angel. Firstly is the no
ise of His coming. ``For the Lord shall descend from Heaven, with a shout, with
 the voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God.'' ``The Lord'' is Adona
i -- which is the Hebrew for `my Lord'; and He descends from Heaven, the supern
al Eden, the Sahasrara Cakkra in man, with a `shout,' a `voice' and a `trump,'
again airy symbols, for it is air that carries sound. These sounds refer to tho
se heard by the Adept at the moment of rapture.'' (Book 4, Part II). This by it
self is sufficient to destroy the illusion of the Evil Genius. The ``abyss of t
he great void'' is unfolded before the aspirant, i.e., all positive phenomena d
isappear. What remains is the ``infinite space'' of Nuit. The continuous body o
f infinite possibilities.



38




''The waveless sea of Eternity'' repeats this idea. It is the timeless menstruu
m of action, unstirred by any vibration, while ready to receive and transmit th
at which is imposed thereupon by the will. The Holy Guardian Angel approaches r
apidly ('rides') accompanied by his hosts (Note ;heTzBA, an host = 93).



39




The arrival of the Angel is too rapid for the perception of the Adept. Cf. II:6
0 etc. The symbolism of the spear should be studied in the legends of the Cruci
fixion, of Parzifal, and others. The matter is further elucidated in Bagh-i-Mua
ttar.



40




The Thunderer is Jupiter, here considered as the creative paternal, and warrior
 Lord of the Air. The bolt is the Swastika, or Disc of Zeus. Its symbolism is u
ltimately identical with that of the sphere. The bird is the natural symbol of
the aspiring soul. Cf. II:39 - 41. The Swastika has the shape of the letter Ale
ph whose Temurah is ;hePLA, (see Sepher Sephiroth) by which we mean the instant
aneous destruction of the Ego in Samadhi. The second phrase echoes the two form
er. The Lord of the Garden is Pan or Priapus whom my brother Catullus constantl
y represents as punishing thieves in his peculiar manner. There is a special sy
mbolism of the thief in which perhaps we find trances of the Legend of the Cruc
ifixion and the ritual of the priest of Nemi but its detailed signification has
 been to a great extent lost or abandoned.



41




Cf. II:15, similar passage. I:33 - 41 especially verses 33 and 39.

Immediately the Adept has attained to the Knowledge and Conversation of his Hol
y Guardian Angel he loses no time, but goes on the way of his True Will, borne
upon the flood of the physical life which he has spilt in order to enjoy the im
personal and effortless life in communion with his Angel.



42 - 44




Present a lyrical picture of the Mystery of Evil.



42




The bliss of the union of the Adept and his Angel appears to contain a flaw, in
 that being an operation of change ``the taint of generation'' it shares the im
permanence of all complex phenomena and therefore the liability to sorrow. See
verse 21.



43




Admits that the most admirable manifestations spring from deep-seated mysteries
. Corruption lies at the heart of all things.



44




No attempt is made to contradict the above or to explain it away. The solution
comes from looking at the other side of the matter. Corruption itself and all t
he mysteries of sorrow are to be held matters for rejoicing, since they are the
 engines whose work results in truth and beauty. Cf. CCXX I:29 - 30.



45 - 53




This passage is the most difficult in the Chapter. It is difficult to consider
its verses separately. Yet there seems to be no proper coherence in them, no si
ngle orderly idea is their diversity.

The solution seems to be in the direction of a realisation that the passage is
in the nature of progressive discovery. It resembles the account of a mental jo
urney. One of the keys to it is the sudden shifting of the point of view noted
above, vv. 43 - 44. The contemplation of Beauty leads to the reflection upon th
e elements of Beauty which we do not recognise as beautiful because our sensori
um is not adjusted to that stage of existence. Cf. my poem on ``Ovariotomy'', w
here the plastic beauty of woman seems to be destroyed by cutting her up. Yet t
he beauty reappears in a different form when the cells of which she is composed
 are examined under the microscope. Let us apply this key to the passage here u
nder consideration.



45




In the first sentence attention is called to the brilliance of the appearance o
f the Angel. The second sentence recognises that beneath this appearance is a s
ymbol of terror, viz., Saturn, who is here understood by his astrological and l
egendary attributions. We must be at pains to note that Saturn is the god of ge
neration. This establishes a reference to verse 42. Saturn is called the devour
er of his children because he is Time who conceals in oblivion the phenomena he
 has brought forth from the inane. But there is a further meaning which is that
 he is not bound by the results of his action. Whatever he does results only in
 a transitory phenomenon which vanishes automatically as time goes on. Shallow
minded people are accustomed to regret impermanence. They fail to realize that
if everything that happened remained in existence the burden of facts would soo
n become intolerable. Nature requires an excretory system or she would soon bec
ome clogged with the multiplicity of her own illusions. The progress of the hum
an mind depends upon its power to assimilate the details of any work. They cons
titute the finished product and appear therein only in a changed form. The roug
h working must be destroyed. The process is continuous. The art of progress is
to compose constantly more complex and more comprehensive synthesis; just as th
e words of a poem surrender their intrinsic meaning in order to compose the uni
ty of the impression made by the poem as a whole, so again the poems of the poe
t. This formula is universally applicable. It is particularly the subject of bi
ology.



46




The work of Saturn seems no longer mysterious and terrible because its nature c
hanges and is lost in the admirable result of its operation.



47

Cf. CCXX, I:22 - 23 and similar passages. It is natural to us to make a distinc
tion between things, to prefer one thing to another. But the Angel is above suc
h duality. All things equally contribute to his perfection. He is said to be ``
absolved from the Division of the Shadows'', i.e. from the illusion of dividual
ity. It is only an illusion that difference is apparent between diverse phenome
na. The most fatal mistake that the Adept can make is to emphasise the desirabi
lity of one set of things and the undersirability of another. If he persist in
so doing his sectarianism will thwart his ideal so that his Angel, instead of b
eing complete, comprehensive, and perfect, will represent his personal prejudic
es. In such a case the Adept will suffer whenever his attention is called to an
y idea in Nature which is not successfully transmuted and included in the scope
 of his aspiration.



48




This doctrine is restated. The coral is the Karma produced by the accumulation
of our acts. This construction has taken place in time and its need is to be co
vered by the rhythm of Eternal Delight. The Knowledge and Conversation of the H
oly Guardian Angel set as a point of contact between two continua. Neither is c
omprehensive without the other.



49




The symbolism of the previous verse is carried on. The ring indicated the perfe
ction of our own being on the synthesis of our actions. We have constituted our
selves as a positive phenomenon situated in a realm of infinite possibilities,
with which we can make contact, as we choose. To understand this passage proper
ly we must keep in mind the teaching of CCXX about the nature of existence. The
 appearance of the Khu, a series of marriages of Hadit and Nuit, lead to the co
ngregation of what may be called a positive individuality of the Second Order w
hich is ready to act as a unit, and to invoke Nuit.



50 - 51




Show the two forms in which this plan can be executed.



50




Acts of love under will may be directed to the creation of masterpieces. There
are the ``palms'' whose flower delights, whose fruit nourishes our personality.
 Such acts may also be directed inwardly -- the mystical process as opposed to
the magical, the dissolution of the personality regarded as imperfection. The t
ext indicates a preference for the latter process. This is natural, the work at
 issue being the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel, and thi
s is primarily a work of dissolution rather than of further construction.



52

text

The symbolism is here particularly obscure. The son is presumably Ruach and the
 daughter Nephesch. The former seems to be described in respect of its capricio
usness and the latter of its poor undevelopment in the matter of aspiration. Th
ey are to be furnished with the means of rhythmical motion. The defect of the g
oat of the Nephesch is its idleness, its lack of wings. They are then to be ren
dered capable of ordered movement within the element of the nature of the Angel
.



54




The symbols of the heart and the serpent are retained to represent the Adept an
d the Angel, but the Angel is now shown as identical with the great Snake, Anat
a, which surrounds the Universe and by constantly devouring its own coils gradu
ally restricts the manifested Cosmos.



55




The Adept enquires with regard to the process. (The answer is apparently given
in verse 65.) Despite the perfection of his rapture, the Adept appears to recog
nise that it is only so to speak an oasis in the desert. He extends his aspirat
ion from the personal problem of his own sorrow to the contemplation of the Uni
versal Sorrow.



56




The Adept appears to be overwhelmed by this consideration. It seems to him theo
retically impossible to ``undo the wrong of the Beginning.'' This means that he
 has now understood the doctrine that the beginning (Berashith) is necessarily
of the nature of error. Any separateness, any sense of finitude represents impe
rfection. It is a matter of plain logic that it should be so. He has of course
succeeded in making his personal imperfection the means of attaining self-consc
iousness and thereby a spiritual state beyond anything of which he seemed capab
le. But his attainment having made him aware of the whole Universe and identifi
ed it with the conditions of his own sublime being he experiences the Trance of
 Sorrow.

It must be borne in mind that Qabalastically the Adept has no special cognisanc
e of any Sephira above Tiphereth until he has attained thereto. This postulate
is promulgated simply for convenience of calculation. In actual practice it is
of course usual for the aspirant to be imbued by wiser motives than those deter
mined by his recognition of his personal imperfections.

The point of the passage is to show how the attainment, instead of being as the
 postulate was apt to image the completion of the Great Work, may extend his co
nception of that work from a personal to an impersonal sphere. The first lesson
 that he learn in fact is that he must apply himself immediately to fitting him
self to enter the Third Order, now that at least he is admitted to the Second.
I quote Liber 418, the 14th Aethyr. It states the doctrine with singular insigh
t and eloquence.



57




This verse throws light on the three previous. The Angel is now clearly underst
ood as only concerned with the Adept as such in total fraction of his whole fun
ction. He is no longer the goal and crown of the Adept. That work being accompl
ished it is seen in proper perspective. The Adept begins to apprehend the natur
e of the Angel as he is in himself, i.e., as he is a relation of the Macrocosm.
 Now in the particular case of 666, the Angel being Aiwass, the pertinence of v
erses 54 - 56, which were at first sight rather puzzling, as indicating a new a
nd unfamiliar aspect of the Angel, is seen to be absolute. Aiwass is the Logos
of the Aeon, his number being 93, like that of Thelma the word of the Law. 666
is the instrument of which he and the Secret Chiefs of the AA prepared and empl
oyed as an instrument by which the Law might be proclaimed. 666 is the 4th numb
er of Sol whose House is Leo, the Lion, which again is the Sign of the man 666
(rising at his birth). This man therefore apprehending his Angel as the perfect
ion of his own symbol likened him to a white (Kether) cat (lion) and, since he
is the Logos, says to Him ``Thou criest.'' This is the link with verses 54 - 56
, for 666 looks to Aiwass to undo the Wrong of the Beginning by the utterance o
f a Word. It seems, however, to the nature of the Word is altogether sublime. T
he roof of the Universe is a symbol of Kether, or of Kether with the Paths Alep
h and Beth which issue from it forming symbolically a roof to the Tree of Life.
 ``There is none to answer Thee''. Above Kether is None or the Negative, the th
ree kinds of Ain or Nothing. The complaint of 666 is therefore that this Word w
ill find no echo save in the heart of Nuit.



58




Repeats the idea of verse 57. The ``lonely pillar'' represents Chokmah, the Cre
ative Word, the Phallic Mercury, the Wisdom by which the world were created. Th
e sea is Binah, the natural abode of Chokmah. The nature of Binah though indeed
 to understand is to be the great darkness. This is the conventional symbolism.
 Many examples of it are given in this and other sacred books. But see in parti
cular Liber 418:

This is the Mystery of Babylon, the Mother of Abominations, and this is the mys
tery of her adulteries, for she hath yielded up herself to everything that live
th, and hath become a partaker in its mystery. And because she hath made hersel
f the servant of each, therefore is she become the mistress of all. Not as yet
canst thou comprehended her glory.

Beautiful art thou, O Babylon, and desirable, for thou hast given thyself to ev
erything that liveth, and thy weakness hath subdued their strength. For in that
 union thou didst understand. Therefore art thou called Understanding, O Babylo
n Lady of the Night!

This is that which is written, ``O my God, in One last rapture let me attain to
 the Union with many.'' For she is Love, and her love is one, and she hath divi
ded the one love into infinite loves, and each love is one, and equal with The
One, and therefore is she passed ``from the assembly and the law and the enligh
tmmen# unto the anarchy of solitude and darkness. For ever thus must she veil b
rilliance of Her Self.''

O Babylon, Babylon, th# might Mother, that ridest upon the crowned beast, let m
e be drunken upon wine of thy fornications; let thy kisses wanton me unto death
, that even I, thy cup-bearer, may understand.;tx

Now, through the ruddy glow of the cup, I may perceive far above, and infinitel
y great, the vision of Babylon. And the Beast whereon she rideth is the Lord of
 the City of the Pyramids, that I beheld in the fourteenth Aethyr. (Twelfth Aet
hyr)

O thou that art master of the fifty gates of Understanding, is not my mother a
black woman? O thou that art master of the Pentagram, is not the egg of spirit
a black egg? Here abideth terror, and the blind ache of the Soul and lo! even I
, who am the sole light, a spark shut up, stand in the sign of Apophis and Typh
on. (Fourteenth Aethyr).

I am the One beyond these all; and I bear the symbols of the mighty darkness.

There shall be a sigil as of a vast black brooding ocean of death and the centr
al blaze of darkness, radiating its night upon all.

It shall swallow up that lesser darkness. But in that profound who shall answer
: What is? Not I.

Not Thou, O God! (Liber VII VII:28 - 33.)

A principal symbol of Chokmah as the Phallic Mercury is the eye I quote from th
e vision of Him as observed in The Paris Working:

``He (Mercury) is essentially phallic, but he has a book in his hand, the Book
which has one hundred and six pages. On the last page, as a colophon, is a four
-pointed star, very luminous, and this is to be identified with the eye of Shiv
a, and the book pertains to the Grade of 7ø = 4;bx. The Sub-title of the Book i
s BIA, which is said to mean `force';th''.

In this aspect although Chokmah is the Word he sees and does not speak. The Wor
d is in fact Act itself, rather than any intelligible utterance. The complaint
of 666 seems then to be that neither by word nor deed can Aiwass undo the Wrong
 of the Beginning. Thelma which is itself an absolute symbol of Chokmah is beyo
nd the comprehension of the Universe whose imperfection its function is to reme
dy.



59




The epithet `desolate' attracts the attention immediately. The word is derived
from de-solare, de having an intensive force, so that desolate means ``utterly
alone.'' The Hierophants have however been accustomed to communicate arcana in
the presence of the profane by taking advantage of the similarity of sound betw
een Sol and solus, especially in such parts of the declension as soli which is
genitive singular of solus and dative singular of Sol, and solis, genitive sing
ular of Sol and ablative plural of solus. The word desolate may therefore be in
tended to indicate the attribution of the Angel both to Kether (Solus) and to T
iphereth (Sol). The de may imply a reference to his relation with the adept thr
ough the Path of Daleth, Love, especially in view of the fact that His word The
lema, 93, contains the idea of Agape, 93.

The verse is a direct reply of Aiwass to 666 who was actually very disheartened
 at realising that the Great Work which he had accomplished, for all its raptur
es of his personal sorrow, was but the gateway of the Path of the stupendous ta
sk of rediscovering the Universe as he had done for himself. Aiwass explains th
at he has actually made the magical link necessary between Himself and the Worl
d through the man 666. My fainting under the sense of my responsibility, my fee
ling that my work for the world was foredoomed to failure, were due to my ignor
ance of what Aiwass had done.

He claims that he has filled me with ``a wine whose savour thou knowest not''.
Wine is the universal symbol for spiritual ecstasy and the means of producing i
t. 666 does not know precisely how this ecstasy which throbs his life will affe
ct others.



60




``The old gray sphere that rolls in the infinite Far-off'' is the earth; for th
e place into which the Adept is caught up to hold communion with his Angel is r
emote from the material Universe. Nevertheless this wine which may symbolise CC
XX itself or even the poetry or the biography of the man 666 is guaranteed to p
osses the virtue of intoxicating the inhabitants of this planet.

The final symbol is strangely and even formidably vivid. The reference to the d
ogs, the blood, and the swift rider suggest the story of Jehu and Jezebel, but
the allusion is not accurate or altogether intelligible. The general symbolism
is nevertheless sufficiently clear. Cf., in the first place, III:40, V:8, Liber
 VII VII:15 - 16. Cf. also the uniform representation of the Adept as a maiden
or harlot. For the swift rider Cf. IV:38 - 39 and the general symbolism of the
Angel as bearer of the sacred lance or phallus and as mounted on a horse to ind
icate his swiftness and his power over the animal nature.

Blood is constantly used as a symbol of the flowing life the vehicle of animal
energy.

The meaning of the verse is then that this spilth of the orgia of the Knowledge
 and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel becomes the nourishment and the me
ans of intoxication of the dogs, i.e. of animals of a lower stage of evolution.
 It is however, hinted that they contain in themselves the hidden godhead. See
CCXX II:19. They have only to reverse their magical formula to attain the divin
ity. Note also the use of the word `lap' which suggests their thirst, eagerness
 and enjoyment, but also is connected with the symbolism of the number 111. Thi
s implies the `thick darkness' and the `sudden death' involved in the process o
f Initiation. There is also the whole doctrine of ``The Fool.'' Besides all thi
s, the word `lap' is in the Angelic Language. (See The Equinox I:8, The 48 Call
s or Keys.'') Because thus indicating that the limitation and sorrow of these d
ogs is due to their subservience to the faculty of reason. ``There is great dan
ger in me; for who doth not understand these runes shall make a great miss. He
shall fall down into the pit called Because, and there he shall perish with the
 dogs of Reason. Now a curse upon Because and his kin! May Because be accursed
for ever! If Will stops and cries Why, invoking Because, then Will stops and do
es nought. If Power asks why, then is Power weakness. Also reason is a lie; for
 there is a factor infinite and unknown; and all their words are skew-wise. Eno
ugh of Because! Be he damned for a dog! (Liber CCXX II:27 - 33.)

The student should mediate upon these considerations until he has thoroughly as
similated them, severally and in combination. He should then construct a visual
 projection of the scene described in this verse. In this way he should eventua
lly arrive at a direct intuitive apprehension of the way in which the life work
 of 666 may avail him to become partaker of the sacrament of initiation. Cf. al
so Liber VII III:16, 20 - 25 (241), 49 - 50, 56 - 60, IV:17 - 24, VII:47 - 49.
I have emphasised the importance of this passage on the following consideration
:

My own magical career began by my taking an oath to attain Knowledge and Conver
sation of the Holy Guardian Angel on entirely selfish and personal grounds. I h
ad, it is true, experienced the Trance of Sorrow, but the motive power in this
Trance to formulate the oath was strictly confined  to my individual dissatisfa
ction with the [...] in which I found myself -- as far as I know without any in
tention of my own. In the course of preparing to carry out the Operation of the
 Sacred Magic of Abremelin the Mage, I discovered that my interests were insepa
rable from those of humanity at large. I however formulated my True Will in thi
s way. My mission on earth was to teach men ``the next step,'' i.e. to induce t
hem to devote themselves to attain the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy G
uardian Angel as opposed to more philosophically universal tasks such as the Hi
ndu and Buddhist sages proposed. It was my own attainment that compelled me to
extend the scope of my Work to the function of the Logos of the Aeon much as ha
s been explained in the passages of this Chapter just discussed. The two most i
mportant works of strictly inspired origin which I have produced are LXV and VI
I and it now becomes clear that it is natural and necessary that this should be
 so. For Liber LXV covers every possible point that may arise in connection wit
h the Grade of Adeptus Minor, and Liber VII of Magister Templi.



61 - 63




Beginning with verse 54 the subject of this Chapter and indeed of the whole boo
k has undergone a process of modification. Perviously it had been concerned alm
ost exclusively with the relation between the Angel and the man, the only varie
ty being due to the division of the man for convenience into Nephesch, Ruach, a
nd so on. Indeed if we identify the Angel with Yechidah it might be fair to say
 that Liber LXV is nothing but an extended comment upon Column LXVII of Liber 7
77. But now we reach firstly the consciousness of the Universe in its totality
and then the peculiar relation of 666 with his fellow men. We have seen that hi
s function in the life of the Planet has been defined, and it is consequently n
ot unnatural that the Angel should indicate the actual physical condition of Hi
s future relations with 666.



61




The Angel declares Himself to be the Soul of the Desert. This remark may be tak
en generally as a reference to His attribution to the Path of Gimel which joins
 Kether and Tiphereth crossing the Abyss or Desert whose essential characterist
ic is the absence of a soul. See Liber 418, 10th Aethyr. Choronzon is defined a
s soullessness. Protean as are the forms of his appearance this quality is comm
on to them all that there is no essence behind them. They are the Qliphoth (she
lls or husks), devoid of meaning or substance because mere categories uninforme
d by any individuality. Gimel incidentally means a camel `the ship of the deser
t'. Cf. Liber VII VII:22 - 23, and Liber 333 Chapter 73:

THE DEVIL, THE OSTRICH, AND THE ORPHAN CHILD.

Death rides the Camel of Initiation.;tx

Thou humped and stiff-necked one that groanest in Thine Asana, death will relie
ve thee!

Bite not, Zelator dear, but bide! Ten days didst thou go with water in they bel
ly? Thou shalt go twenty more with a fire brand at they rump!

Ay! All thine aspiration is to death: death is the crown of all thine aspiratio
n. Triple is the cord of silver moonlight; it shall hang thee, O Holy One, O ha
nged Man, O Camel-Termination-of-the-third-person-plural for thy multiplicity,
thou Ghost of a Non-Ego!

Could but Thy mother behold thee, O thou Unt!

The Infinite Snake Anata that surroundeth the Universe is but the Coffin-Worm!

V.V.V.V.V. is the Motto of 666 in his Grade of Magister Templi. See Liber LXI 2
9 - 30. The function of the Magister Templi is to cause the desert to blossom b
y transmitting the Logos of the Aeon to those that are below the Abyss.

Apart from this general signification there is a personal allusion to 666 who i
s Alastor, the Spirit of Solitude. Foolish Rabbins have included this symbol in
 their list of demons. To the well-fed Pharisee as to the modern bourgeois noth
ing seems more frightful than solitude in which the mind is compelled to face r
eality. Such people fear nothing so much as the wilderness. The very legend of
their tribe deals with the ``land of milk and honey'', the Promised Land, the w
ish phantasm of the sensual.

Observe that this is merely a matter of point of view. V:59 - 62. What is to th
e smug Jew with his Oedipus complex the extreme abomination is to us a ``land b
eyond honey and spice and all perfection,'' though we call it `Naught.' We cons
ider them `weary ones' and their ideal of comfort and civilisation as `old grey
 land'. De gustibus non est disputandum. But there is a criterion in this case
by which we can determine whether we or they have chosen the better part. For i
t is evident that no condition of existence can be really satisfactory if its j
oy is liable to be disturbed. The question is whether its nature is harmonious
with that of the Universe. For stability depends thereon. We should find conseq
uently that the ideal of the bourgeois is repose and his conception of the Cosm
os static. Now we find that this is not the case. The Universe is a constant fl
ux. To desire repose is thus contrary to Nature herself. We accept this fact an
d define the Black Brothers directly as those who seek to check the course of e
vents. The bourgeois is for us therefore a clumsy ignorant amateur Black Magici
an. Our idea of joy is unchecked free motion, and the stability of our joy is a
ssured by our very conception of Yesod. We find the change the more fixed we ar
e in our joy. (Refer to the ?th and 3rd Aethyrs, and several similar passages i
n the Holy Books.) We are guaranteed by the nature of things in themselves wher
eas the bourgeois is constantly upset by such trivial matters as the efflux of
time and the rate of exchange.

The hardships of desert life and in particular its psychological horror indicat
e the correspondence emphatically.

Apart from this reference to Alastor the word again recalls the historic events
 of the 3rd of December, 1909 E.V. at Bou Saada when 666 ceremonial underwent t
he Initiation into the Grade of Magister Templi. This points the allusion. From
 this it is evident that the import of these verses is entirely practical. They
 are not to be taken in a mystical sense, but as definitely predicting a Great
Magical Retirement, to be undertaken by 666 at some period in the future. There
 do not seem to be any clear indications as to the date of this journey, but it
s conditions are laid down with considerable precision and the actual place the
 `consummation' is described in terms which should leave no room for doubt.

The student should refer to the accounts of such events as the finding of the V
illa Caldarezzo if he would learn to interpret the instructions communicated by
 means of visions and oracles.

I have always taken this passage in this sense. I have expected to find sooner
or later that my circumstances were such that afterwards it would be found to h
ave been a precise and exact fulfilment of this prediction. At the moment of wr
iting this Comment some such journey is actually in contemplation and it may be
 part of the preparation for that journey that I should have been moved to devo
te my energies to the analysis of this Book. It is therefore immediately pertin
ent to my own work and should be exceedingly useful in the most practical way t
o the student to trace out as minutely as possible the probable bearings of the
 symbolism of the text.

In view however of the extreme importance of this Great Magical Retirement it w
ould be in the last degree improper to discuss it coram populo while yet inchoa
te. Moreover it is a well-known characteristic of all true prediction that whil
e some of the allusions should be intelligible at the time of utterance so that
 its general bearing should be unmistakeable there should be other passages alt
ogether beyond the possibility of interpretation until the occurence of the eve
nt foretold. In Macbeth and Part II of Henry VI, Act I, Scene 4 and Act IV, Sce
ne 1, lines 30 - 35, and Act V, Scene II, lines 67 - 69 illustrate this conditi
on. The student is also referred to the interpretation and fulfilment of CCXX I
II:47. (Put in a short account.) No amount of investigation would have enabled
me to say in what sense the words of the prediction would justify themselves.

In the case of the Great Magical Retirement indicated in these verses the data
are singularly precise. Even in the matter of the effect of the Work, verse 63,
 there are a number of unusual expressions -- `bedecked', `anointed', `Consumma
tion' -- which are at present and must be, until the event, perfectly obscure.
The verse is superficially the maximum of vagueness. These expressions might ap
ply to almost any form of intercourse between Aiwass and the Beast. When the Re
tirement is a matter of history it will appear that these express with the almo
st mathematical precision the nature of the orgia, and that no other words exis
t which could replace them adequately. This circumstance should be irrefutable
proof to those who understand anything of the laws of Nature expecially in rega
rd to the doctrine of probability that Aiwass possesses the power of foretellin
g future events and bringing them to pass in conformity with His plans. The vag
ueness of the expression at present is evidently an essential part of this proo
f. For if I were able to interpret them with certainty in the striking and conv
incing way which time will permit me to do, I should be able by the exercise of
 prudence to arrange for the fulfilment of the prediction and thereby destroy i
ts evidential character.

This paragraph was dictated by me to Frater O.P.V. on the evening of 17th July,
 1923, E.V. (In fact 10-10.20 p.m. Tuesday, 17th July, 1923, at the Hotel Au So
uffle du Zephir, Marsa Plage, Tunisia). (An XIX, Sol in 24ø Cancer, Luna in 14ø
 Virgo). The passage will be shown for confirmation to Eddie.



64




The language of this verse is curiously extravagant yet curiously exact. The im
pression is that the Angel is doing violence to the language by compelling ambi
guous glyphs to assume definite form.

Refer to III:12 and my Comment upon them. Verses 64 - 65 apparently fix the con
notation of the word `consummation' in verse 63.

It is difficult to assign any exact reason for my impression, but that impressi
on is that the love will extend no more as hitherto merely to Tiphereth (Liber
LXV) or to Binah (Liber VII) but to Kether and the Ain Soph (Limitless). The en
dless One seemed to be Kether. At least, I cannot think of any alternative. It
may legitimately be described as endless on account of its unity. But in that c
ase what meaning can we assign to `permitted end'? The suggestion is that there
 are really two ends, one permitted, i.e., arbitrarily assigned, the other inhe
rent in its nature. The reference might then be either to Malkuth or to the Ain
.

Alternative `end' may not represent `finis' but
The permitted end may be paraphrased the lawful goal.

Again `endless' might be taken as equivalent to objectless. The canon of perfec
tion of will is given in CCXX, I, 44: -- For pure will, unassuaged of purpose,
delivered from the lust of result, is in every way perfect.''

Kether as unity may be described as endless because it is itself a result, a pr
oduct of `love under will,' the resolution of the Dyad.

The Universe is compared to a `girdle for the midst of the ray of our love,' as
 if that ray were a limitless line of light. The totality of manifested existen
ce would then be the boundary of the simple) central)
section of this love.

This state of things will arise when each of the two lovers has become identifi
ed with the infinite idea of which he is naturally a (centralized or constricte
d) particular case. In other words, the Angel and the Adept will each have atta
ined to self-annihilation or dissolution in the being of Nuit and Hadit respect
ively, and thus the point of junction, the bridal chamber, will be in the midst
 of the Universe of the finite phenomena precipitated by the union of the infin
ite complementaries. The Universe will in fact be determined by the ray which r
epresents the will to love of these two. The phenomenon is therefore parallel w
ith that of the fundamental act of creation. This formula is so profound and im
portant that it must be apprehended and assimilated by study of the theories co
ncerning it in CCXX before the student can expect to attach any truly definite
meaning to the ideas which I have endeavoured to translate into the language of
 intellectual concepts.

Besides all this there is undoubtedly a Neschamic or Samadhic meaning to verse
64 which is not in any way susceptible of intellectual interpretation unless by
 a Magister Templi who has made a special effort to construct a language capabl
e of being the Abyss between Neschamah and Ruach, between the Samadhic and the
normal conditions of consciousness.



65




The conclusion -- and be it remembered that this whole chapter concerns itself
with the expression of the Unconscious Will -- is that the 'Consummation' of th
e K. and C. of the H.G.A. whose connotation is fixed by verse 64 is the complet
e and irrevocable absorption of the human consciousness of the Adept in that of
 his H.G.A. The symbol of the heart i.e. of the passive passionate life of the
Adept is consumed (consummation) in the divine and eternal life represented by
the serpent. The serpent is a vibration of energy whose complementary curves ap
pear as death and life. It is the change of direction at the solstitial points
of the curves which produce the illusion of stasis and therefore invite nomencl
ature on the part of those who fail to understand the continuity of the line, s
eeing as they do only a minute arc of it. The idea is cognate when the serpent
is taken as in verse 54. Whatever glyph be chosen the thought is the same. The
consummation implies the transformation of the reverberatory vibration of human
 life into the continuous serpentine spiral vibration of that pure energy which
 is not assuaged by its results, which neither lusts for its results nor is ass
uaged by them.




CHAPTER V




This Chapter is attributed to the element of Spirit; it deals consequently with
 the harmonization, in terms of humanity, of the Four Blind Forms of Energy. In
 previous chapters the man 666, being so gross and complex an idea, had no natu
ral right to any place in the relations of his Angel, and the Adept which he ha
s selected and perfected in himself. 666, `the scribe' (etc., as he is called i
n various passages) must formulate a link between himself and those others. (Se
e I:41 - 49, etc.)

But as Spirit, descending into the midst of Fire, Water, Air and Earth, constit
utes them an Unity, Microprosopus, so this Chapter resumes the previous four; i
t applies them to 666. It explains how the Chymical Marriage of his Magical Sel
f with his Angel affects the totality of his being. The language is consequentl
y less technical; indeed, some passages are intelligible as they stand to quite
 uninitiated minds.



1




666 has begun to understand his relation with the Marriage in Chapter IV:54 seg
. For the root of Yod (in Tetragrammaton) is in the `Unconscious' which connect
s the human consciousness with the Magical. Cf. Chapter I:41, `the echo of your
 kisses'; because the reality of such relations is beyond articulate apprehensi
on; one can be conscious only of the reflection (in terms of the Ruach) of Nesc
hamic intuition.

The fact accounts for the impotent babble of the Mystics of old time: they are
compelled to rely on rhetorical devices like the use of such words as `ineffabl
e' and of magnificently mysterious metaphors. But now at last S.H. Frater V.V.V
.V.V., 8ø = 3;bx, has collaborated with G.H. Frater O.M., 7ø = 4;bx, to constru
ct a true language with accurately defined symbols in which the [...] of the AA
 (above the Abyss) may be translated into those of the R.R. et A.C. (below the
Abyss). See Liber DCCXIII vel Ararita: several passages, but especially V:1 - 8
. The bulk of my writings upon the Orgia of the Holy Spirit of Man, from the Sw
ord of Song, Konx Om Pax, and 777, to the Bagh-i-Muattar and my Magical Records
 are perhaps principally valuable to mankind as the first systematic essays in
the interpretation of the Intuition of Neschamah to the Intellect of Ruach.

``The Treasure-House of Pearls'' -- See 777, Column 127, where Pearls are attri
buted to the First Palace (The Three Supernals) and to the Seventh (Yesod and M
alkuth). But the symbolism of the Pearl -- or of Dew -- is peculiarly appropria
te to descriptions of the Chymical Marriage. The Pearl is zro (see the Bagh-i-M
uattar; The Lost Continent, etc. a cloudy Nebula containing the Rashith-ha-Gilg
alim of the new Universe created of the Quintessence of the Substance of the Un
ity of the Angel and the Adept, expressed therefrom by virtue of ``love under w
ill'' at the moment of Rapture.

In Chapter I, the Chapter of Earth, the scribe or prophet 666 is wroth, importu
nate, laborious, and ashamed. He had not succeeded in establishing the proper r
elations. He has now succeeded: ``let me listen'' is not a demand or request. I
t implies the power as in a true subjunctive. Cf. ``Let there be light.'' He do
es not wait for an answer.



2




He continues with absolute confidence to indicate the source of his powers. He
notes that the starry heaven (Nuit) is `shaken' i.e., its continuum is disrupte
d by the Chymical Marriage. At the other extreme his own static condition is de
stroyed. He understands himself not as a fixed being of wrath but as the ``the
flying spark of light'' -- a pure dynamic vibration. This conception, first for
mulated in Liber CCXX, and explained already in this Comment, is in fact the fi
rst condition of what the Buddhists call Samma Dithi -- right views. So long as
 a man thinks of himself as a being rather than as an energy he attributes to h
imself not, as the profane suppose stability, but stagnation, which is death. M
oreover this spark is practically identified with the rapture of the Chymical M
arriage.



3




It has been explained that the absolute surrender of the false self is the firs
t condition of the existence of the True Self. While 666 seemed to himself a se
parate existence he remained impotent. Immediately he understands himself as ``
whirled away by the great wind of your perfection.'' The Angel tells him of his
 success on just that plane of illusion which he has abandoned. The sorrow and
failure of 666 arise from his contemplation of his fellow men, of the imperfect
ion and wretchedness, the weariness of existence of this planet. He had found t
hat his personal efforts, so far from remedying the mischief, tended rather to
increase it. Now however, that his personality has been destroyed, it becomes e
fficient. It is impossible to change any fixed state by working upon it from th
e same level. At most one can rearrange its character by the formula of ;heALIM
 (see Book 4, Part III, Chapter IV), the formula of witchcraft. However one may
 manipulate the digits of a number divisible by 9, it remains a multiple of tha
t number. (Consider attentively the whole doctrine connected with the number 9.
 The references have already been indicated in this Comment.).

The world of Assiah is a crystallization of the Atziluthic idea Briah and Yetzi
rah. It can be effectively modified by the import of some other Atziluthic quin
tessence. It is therefore useless for 666 as being of Assiah to attempt to redr
ess it. He can only do so by exalting himself to Atziluth by the Attainment of
the Knowledge and Conversation of the H.G.A., and approaching Assiah through Br
iah from Yetzirah.

The Angel spontaneously promises 666 that his True Will shall be made operative
. The minute spark of his individuality shall be enkindled to a great light and
 this light shall consume the impurity of the `grey city in the old and desolat
e land'.

This Book was written down in London, and the apparent reference in the first i
nstance is to that city. The text may mean that in some way or other 666 will b
ecome `a great light', a portentious phenomenon pregnant with destruction in th
e eyes of its inhabitants.

On this interpretation it is not clear what is meant by ``its great impurity''
or how the manifestation of 666 should ``cleanse it therefrom.'' The proper met
hod of exegesis which immediately suggests itself is to collate the passages in
 the Holy Books which refer to that city, and to study them in the light of the
 historical events in which 666 has taken part. Even so, despite certain possib
ly significent incidents it would appear that some such event is still in the f
uture.

There is of course no sure token that this interpretation is valid. An alternat
ive might be sought in the numerical value of the Greek equivalent of ``grey ci
ty'' or it may transpire that some city has a peculiar right to be designated a
s grey.

Further, the allusion may be strictly poetic metaphor; ``grey city'' may mean n
o more than a place where men assemble, a gloomy, foggy place where men assembl
e. (Vide Chapter IV:59 - 60).



4




Cf. verse 21, Liber CCXX III:16, also Chapter I:44. It seems to be implied thro
ughout that the work of 666 should be in a peculiar sense secret. See Liber CCX
X I:10. I am to operate important changes in human society apart from the cardi
nal change affecting the onset of the Aeon of Horus and the proclamation of the
 Law of Thelma. I shall further see the results of my work at least in a certai
n measure, and it is important that I shall not permit myself to be disheartene
d by contemplation of them or satisfaction with them.



5




This verse confirms the interpretation of verse 3. There is a quite different r
eference to the Equinox of the Gods, ABRAHADABRA, the magical Formula of the Ae
on (not to be confused with the Word of the Law of the Aeon) represents the est
ablishment of the pillar or phallus of the 5 Alephs. Aleph is a void or kteis,
being the Atu marked 0.

The general symbol is repeated in particular terms. Isis and Osiris govern resp
ectively the two Aeons (of the Kether and the Dying God) through which we have
passed. The fulfilment of Asi by Asar indicates that their operation is complet
e, their conjunction having resulted in the appearance of Horus (Heru-ra-Ha in
his twin aspects (a) Force and Fire, and (b) Silence).

The verse tells us that that has come to pass which it was the Great Work of 66
6, in his official relation to the AA as opposed to his personal career as a ma
gician, to proclaim.

The ``Animal Soul of things'', i.e., the Nephesch of the World. The Lord of the
 Aeon represents more than a new stage in the progressive infiltration of the d
arkness of matter by light. He acts directly on the World of Assiah.

Note in particular the form which he assumes -- that of a ``fiery star that fal
leth upon the darkness of the earth.'' It is as a meteor or thunderbolt that he
 invades the planet. (Note that he is ``let down'' from the earth he appears as
 of terrific import, but from the point of view of the Gods he is imbued with a
ll possible gentleness.



6




The symbolism of midnight and of the ``black gnarled glittering stone'' suggest
s a reference to Atu XVIII where Khephra the Beetle, the Sun of Midnight, appea
rs travelling in his bark under the Heaven. (The stone is everywhere convention
ally accepted as a symbol of Sol.) Despite the promise of the symbol  -- ``ther
e is a budding morrow in midnight'' -- this first appearance of Horus is obscur
e and frightful. Yet He is found in this form and worshipped.

The nature of the symbol is rendered unmistakable by the additional epithets; a
 ``child'' indicates the irresponsible and innocent mischievousness. ``My conqu
eror'' further defines Him as overcoming the opposition of the inertia or natur
al prejudice of the `old guard' of the profane. (Cf. Liber CCXX III as a whole,
 and in particular verses 3 - 9, II:17 - 18, 28, 32, 42, 46, 49 - 55, 59, 70 -
72.)

``My sword-girt'' captain. This emphasises the warrior aspect in which Horus is
 to make his first appearance.

Taking these verses as having direct reference to the first publication of The
Book of the Law in London, observe that nine months after The Equinox I(10), th
e War broke out so that Horus was actually worshipped in exactly this aspect in
 the quite unreasonable way predicted.



7




``My prophet'', as in verse 4, refers to 666. Cf. Liber CCXX I:26, etc. This ti
tle is given to him more frequently than any other. The term `prophet' or `fort
h-speaker' is contrasted with `The Beast' which is connected with my function i
n Tiphereth, implying my manhood, kingship, my mastery of ecstacy, and as fulfi
lling the function referred to in the Apocalypse so far as the confusion caused
 by the corruption of the text of that Book permits us to calculate.

The title ``priest'' refers to the function of serving the Gods proclaimed in L
iber CCXX, and administering the Sacrament (the new Magick, formula A...A, etc)
. The title ``prince'' may be connected with the attribution to Tiphereth, sinc
e Microprosopus is the Vau of Tetragrammaton, Vau having the value of 6, and co
rresponding to the four princes (sometimes called Emperors) of the Tarot.

The ``prophecy'' here mentioned is first of all CCXX Chapter III, this book its
elf, and various other poems, essays and rituals. Liber 418, Aethyr I.

The second paragraph indicates Horus in his active and adult aspects. The stude
nt is referred to the complete exposition of the meaning of the letter Aleph, i
n particular to that part of it in which it is explained that `the babe in the
egg of blue, Harpocrates in whom all power is latent, he being Harpocrates, Bac
chus Diphues, Zeus, Baphomet, Parzifal as the `pure fool', the Great Fool of th
e Celtic legends, the child Hermes, etc., in the first stage of pantomorphous i
nnocence, develops at puberty into Parzifal the Knight-errant, who obtains the
Crown by winning the King's daughter (a mystery on which the actual customs of
many primitive races are founded). (See J.G. Frazer in The Golden Bough.) The p
hallic Hermes, the Baphomet of Atu XV, Zeus who assumes the form of a beast in
order to impregnate various women (the Scarlet Woman) as in Atu XI. See also th
e legends of Beauty and the Beast, the Devil of the Sabbath, the Minotaur, Herc
ules (at first disguised as weaponless and ambisexual), many Asiatic legends.

The Lord of the present Aeon, two in one (Vau, He, Atu VI, born of union of Yod
 and He) has thus been subject of prophecy throughout history. His nature, func
tion, and relation with the other Gods, is thus a matter of common knowledge am
ong initiates or even the scholars. At the same time his present appearance is
in a sense an original pheno