Keys
KEYS TO St. GERMAIN: Magical Revolution
The winged dragon is a symbol that unites heaven with earth, a pictogram of "As Above; So Below." It is the Intelligence of Light and Life. In yoga the dragon energy is kundalini, the serpent power. Its wisdom is the secret of primal energy hidden in us all. The Adept is the reawakened Dragon who is the Universal Medicine, and living Stone. If you possess alchemical gold, nothing else is worth anything because it is psychic completion, peace of mind. Jung called it the self -- the light trapped in matter, the luminae de luminae, the light of light, the lux natura, the light drawn out of nature and condensed into a fixed form which then becomes the universal panacea.
"He [St. Germain] taught that man has in him infinite possibilities and that, from the practical point of view, he must strive unceasingly to free himself of matter in order to enter into communication with the world of higher intelligences." ~French writer Maurice Magre
"WHETHER BEINGS LOVE ME OR FEAR ME IS IRRELEVANT. IF BEINGS GIVE ME THEIR ATTENTION I WILL TAKE THEM TO ENLIGHTENMENT AND BLISS." ~St. Germain.
THE KEYS signify the power and act of opening the way to the soul's progress in both the higher and lower nature. The Treasure is found therein. There are many keys to St. Germain that unlock different aspects of his woldview and secrets. The keys take us beyond the readily available legends of St. Germain's public life, which can be found here: http://sacred-texts.com/sro/csg/index.htm They keys reveal the motivators of his secret life and soul goals. The keys reveal his secret lineage, arcane education, health regime, and source of his sustaining energy and beliefs linking his line back to the dawn of history. His philosophy prioritized light, life, love and liberty in an era when isolated adepts began to study and practice together in brotherhood. St. Germain was their pathfinder. There are no Greater or Lesser keys to St. Germain, but it takes all of them together to unlock his Mystery -- magical revolution.
HERMETICS The Egyptian Hermes Trimegistus was thought to be the repository of mankind's knowledge prior to the Flood. In the Book of Hermes, Pymander appears to Hermes in the shape of a fiery dragon of "Light, Fire and Flame." Pymander is divine thought, personified. Thrice-born Hermes slew Typhon with the Caduseus, the kundalini of secret primal energy that sustains creation, hidden in us all. The Adept is the reawakened Dragon who is the Universal Medicine and living Philosopher's Stone, whose influence spreads and reverberates down the ages. This mystery school was a major influence on the Renaissance. The Hermetic Corpus is the most poetic and well-expressed body of ancient knowledge in the west. The whole cosmos is reflected in the human mindbody interface. Alchemists extrapolated from this internal perception of nature and psychological processes to external processes in the world
ALCHEMY Alchemy, the search for the Philosopher's Stone, deals with the process of self-transformation, or transmutation. The popular view that it attempted to turn base metals into gold fails to do it justice. The transformation was primarily of the alchemist, and, if metal transmutation was achieved at all, it was no more than a symbol of what happened on a nonphysical level. There are no reports of transmutation ever being achieved for the purposes of greed. Significantly, kabbalah assigns lead to the lowest sephirah, Malkuth, and gold to the central sephirah, Tiphareth, which is usually assigned to the heart. Hence, the transmutation of lead into gold was, among other things, a metaphor for raising consciousness to the heart level.
QABALAH Blavatsky refers to a work no longer extant, the Chaldean Book of Numbers, as the basis for the Qabbalah. Tentative mention is also made of an alleged manuscript left by Count Saint-Germain giving keys for interpreting the Qabbalah. Blavatsky refers to ‘the Vatican MSS. of the Kabala – a single copy of which (in Europe) is said to have been in the possession of Count St. Germain’, and says that it contains more detailed teachings not to be found in any publicly available works (SD 2:239). Qabalah embodies the mysteries of the universe & the creation process. The Kabalah explained creation as a process of emanation, in which the divine force cascades down to the physical plane through 10 spheres, or sephiroth of The TREE OF LIFE: Kether, Chokmah, Binah, Chesed, Geburah, Tiphareth, Netzach, Hod, Yesod, and Malkuth. In the opposite direction, the sephiroth represent stages in the initiate’s search for the Divine, the Path of Return. Twenty-two paths among the sephiroth represent distinct experiences on the spiritual path, several of which involved balancing pairs of opposites. These paths correspond with the Major Arcana of the Tarot.
MAGIC Magic can be defined as the control of natural phenomenon by nonphysical means. The contemporary buzzword for magic is INTENTIONALITY. Magic covers a broad field, from crude sorcery, all the way to sacramental ritual -- theurgy of the Magi or thaumaturgy. At the time of the Renaissance, magic was understood to cover an even broader field, including necromancy, the healing arts, mathematics, and even the design of mechanical devices. For example, building clocks was regarded as a branch of magic. Ancient knowledge of cycles, including the Precession of the Equinoxes was handed down from Mesopotamian and Persian sources. Crowley called magick the art and science of causing change to occur in conformity with the Will, which is not to say the egoic will, but that of the divine. Therefore, the safest and proper form of magick is for self-transformation, not selfish gain or desires.
REINCARNATION; LONGEVITY; YOUTHFULNESS St.Germain was most famous for his medicinal Elixers for life extension, but he also followed a largely vegetarian diet and didn't drink. However, the real secret to his longevity is likely the care and feeding of the Body of Light, which includes the astral and energy bodies, as well as the most developed vehicle of consciousness The Diamond Body, or Merkavah. Some contend the elixer is alchemical gold, monoatomic gold. "The Hermetic gold," said Robert Fludd, "is the outflow of the sunbeam, or of light suffused invisibly into the body of the world. Light is sublimated gold, and gold is thus the deposit of light, which of itself generates." Many Rosicrucians -- such as Paracelsus, Cagliostro and the Count de St. Germain -- claimed to possess the secret of prolonging life, a possibility which no Theosophist will deny. If nature is able continually to renew her wasted energies by absorption from the source of energy, why can't we do the same? Maybe the "fountain of youth" is no fable after all.DRAGON BLOODLINE The Winged Dragon is the emblem of St. Germain's TRIANGLE BOOK. St. Germain is likely related to the Dragon bloodline through his Transylvanian ancestors. This line of kings and queens is traced back to both Egypt and Sumeria, the mystery schools, and through the bloodline of Jesus to the European Fisher Kings.
THE GREAT FLOOD The Great Floods of ancient times are not mere myths, but the racial memories of mankind's struggle with melting glaciers, rising coastlines, and cosmic intruders, such as meteorites and comets that disturb the atmosphere, climate and contours of life on earth long after they impact. The flooding of the Black Sea is often mentioned as a candidate for Noah's flood, but the Sumerian records implicate a massive impactor 4800 years ago, who's remains lie in the recently discovered Burckle Crater off the coast of Madagascar. This is the infamous "South Storm" of the Enuma Elish and Epic of Gilgamesh, Sumerian/Babylonian creation myths.
LOST TREASURES The lost treasures of the prehistory of humanity have been found and restored. They include the pharaoh's wisdom of THE BOOK OF THE DEAD, Pyramid Texts, Emerald Tablet of Hermes Trimegistus, and Corpus Hermetica, and the creation story of the Sumerian Enuma Elish and Epic of Gilgamesh. Mankind had a primordial meditation practice for feeding the energy body and attaining an alchemical transformation to build an indestructible Diamond Body for immortality. The Triangle Book echoes this ancient wisdom way.
CIPHERS That the Comte de St. Germain was also a Rosicrucian there is no doubt. Constantly, in the Masonic and Mystic literature of the last century the evidences are found of his intimacy with the prominent Rosicrucians in Hungary and Austria. This mystic body originally sprang up in the central European States; it has, at various times and through different organisations, spread the Sacred Science and Knowledge with which some of its Heads were entrusted--the same message from the one Great Lodge which guides the spiritual evolution of the human race. Traces of this teaching, as given by our mystic, are clearly found, and are quoted by Madame Blavatsky, who mentions a "Cypher Rosicrucian Manuscript"as being in his possession. She emphasizes also the entirely Eastern tone of the views held by M. de St. Germain.
ESPIONAGE St. Germain was employed as a spy by various factions, and he did his own espionage for his own hidden agenda -- to forward certain historical interests of his homeland. His family historically fought the Hapsburgs and Papists.SECRET SOCIETIES The late Librarian of the Great Ambrosiana Library at Milan says:--"And when, in order to bring about a conciliation between the various sects of the Rosicrucians, the Necromantists, the Cabalists, the Illuminati, the Humanitarians, there was held a great Congress at Wilhelmsbad, then in the Lodge of the "Amici riuniti" there also was Cagliostro, with St. Martin, Mesmer and Saint-Germain."
M. de St. Germain was travelling in Leipzig and Dresden under that name of Comte Weldon. According to Cadet de Gassicourt, he was travelling member for the "Templars," going from Lodge to Lodge to establish communication between them. M. de St. Germain is said to have done this work for the Paris Chapter of the "Knights Templar." Investigation proves him to have been connected with the "Asiatische Brüder," or the "Knights of St. John the Evangelist from the East in Europe," also with the "Ritter des Lichts," or "Knights of Light," and with various other Rosicrucian bodies in Austria and Hungary; and also with the "Martinists" in Paris.
One of St. Germain's adherents in Vienna was Count J. F. von Kufstein, in whose Lodge (in the house of Prince Auersberg) magical meetings were held which generally lasted from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. St. Germain was present at one such meeting and expressed his satisfaction with the workings..He belongs to the picture of 'Old Vienna' with its social mysteriousness; where it was swarming with Rosicrucians, Asiatics, Illuminates, Alchemists, Magnetopaths, Thaumaturgs, Templars, mystagogues, who all of them had many and willing adherents. He visited the famous laboratory of the Rosicrucians in the Landstrasse behind the hospital where he instructed for some time his brethren in the sciences of Solomon.From the time of Robert the Bruce, the Knights Templars (exiled from Europe) became the appointed Guardians of the Kings of Scots. Various branches of the Order evolved, including the Elder Brethren of the Rosy Cross (1307) and the Chapitre Primordian de Rose Croix under the Comte de St. Germain (1747). The Order of the Templars of St. Anthony (which now incorporates these Rosicrucian branches) was constituted for the House of Stuart in 1561 during the reign of Mary, Queen of Scots. In 1590 and 1593 land was granted to the Order by James VI of Scots for the development of social welfare centres, one of which was the King James's Hospital at Leith. (Gardner)
SILENCE & SECRECY
You may communicate these things to no person because you would render unworthy my divine bounty and you would not have the success for which you have obtained hope.~ Triangle Book
THE CODE OF ST. GERMAIN
St. Germain wrote two books, the initiatory allegory, Trinosophia and the hidden treasure Triangle Book, concealed from the public to this day. Typical of the literature of its time, it was full of ciphers and secret levels of meaning. What is said of most texts of the time is moreso for The Triangle Book.
St. Germain admonished his fellow practitioners to maintain their silence and secrecy, part of th e prime directive To Know, To Will, To Dare, To Remain Silent. The fact is, the secret of self realization cannot be told, because it is experiential. But holding one's initiatory secrets keeps the whole operation "Hermetically-sealed."
People had good reasons for coding and keeping secrets in an era when such knowledge could get you marked or even killed. There is much more to them than meets the eye. The Third Eye is needed to discern their depth and meaning from our contemporary point of view.
Philalethes cautions, "I have spoken about Mercury, Sulpher, the vessel, their treatment, etc., etc.; and of course, all these things are to be understood with a grain of salt. You must understand that I have spoken metaphorically; if you take my words in a literal sense, you will reap no harvest except your outlay."
Fulcanelli writes in The Dwellings of The Philosophers:
"With their confused texts, sprinkled with cabalistic expressions, the books remain the efficient and genuine cause of the gross mistake that we indicate. For, in spite of the warnings... students persisted in reading them according to the meanings that they hold in ordinary language. They do not know that these texts are reserved for initiates, and that it is essential, in order to understand them, to be in possession of their secret key. One must first work at discovering this key.
"Most certainly these old treatises contain, if not the entire science, at least its philosophy, its principles, and the art of applying them in conformity with natural laws. But if we are unaware of the hidden meaning of the terms - for example, the meaning of Ares, which is different from Aries - strange qualifications purposely used in the composition of such works, we will understand nothing of them or we will be infallibly led into error.
"We must not forget that it is an esoteric science. Consequently, a keen intelligence, an excellent memory, work, and attention aided by a strong will are NOT sufficient qualities to hope to become learned in this subject. Nicolas Grosparmy writes,
'Such people truly delude themselves who think that we have only made our books for them, but we have made them to keep out all those who are not of our sect.'
"Batsdorff, in the beginning of his treatise, charitably warns the reader in these terms,
'Every prudent mind must first acquire the Science if he can; that is to say, the principles and the means to operate. Otherwise he should stop there, without foolishly using his time and his wealth. And so, I beg those who will read this little book to credit my words. I say to them once more, that THEY WILL NEVER LEARN THIS SUBLIME SCIENCE BY MEANS OF BOOKS, AND THAT IT CAN ONLY BE LEARNED THROUGH DIVINE REVELATION, HENCE IT IS CALLED DIVINE ART, or through the means of a good and faithful master; and since there are very few of them to whom God has granted this grace, there are also very few who teach it.'*
"One of the more unusual and exotic treasures of The University of Newcastle is a French magical manuscript entitled 'Talismans Cabalistiques Magiques, grands secretes des Planettes'. The manuscript from an unknown scribe bears the date 1704 in the reign of the Sun King Louis XIV, le Grand Monarque and le Roi Soleil (1638-1715).
The book is a compendium of information relating to the manufacture of celestial talismans [...][and] consists of an eclectic re-arrangement of chapters from Henry Cornelius Agrippa’s 'De Occulta Philosophia' (Three Books of Occult Philosophy) originally published in full in 1533."
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TRINOSOPHIA by St. Germain
http://bibliodyssey.blogspot.com/search?q=+st.germaine
beautiful plates better than illus. in the MPH book
THE MOST HOLY TRINOSOPHIA OF THE COMTE DE ST.-GERMAIN (Rare Reprint)
By the Comte de St.-Germain. Introductory Material & Commentary by Manly P. Hall
The great Rosicrucian who termed himself the Comte de St. Germain is one of the most baffling personalities in Western history. His activities are traceable for more than one hundred years between 1710 and 1822, leading Frederick the Great to refer to him as “the man who does not die.” An scholar, linguist, musician, and painter, an alchemist so profound legends repute he could turn “base metals into gold.” This unusual work was prepared for the instruction of St.-Germain’s disciples in the cabalistic, hermetic, and alchemical mysteries. The original manuscript is housed in the Bibliotheque de Troyes in France.
'Trinsophie' is an allegorical alchemistry work and ritual egyptian magical treatise containing an intentionally coded text with arabic, chaldean hebrew, cuneiform, ionic greek, syriac, esoteric idiograms and heiroglyphs amongst the french writing.
Saint-Germain and the Most Holy Three-Fold Wisdom
The idea of Secret Fire in initiatic psycho-alchemical texts such as The Most Holy Trinsophia (Three Fold Wisdom)[7] illustrate the point of hidden fire, associated with volcanic power, and under the influence of Venus. Works such as this bear a strong resemblance to alchemical-kabbalistic texts, and either use mystical symbolism of these esoteric schools, or such symbols are used to interpret the texts meaning.
In the text, Saint-Germian reportedly recounts the details of his initiation through the twelve degrees of Cosmic Consciousness. The use of earthly fire in the form of volcanic eruptions, lava, and seas of flame symbolize the presence of an underlying matrix of living energy that pervades material and non-material creation, uniting and constantly renewing it through what can be seen as violent activity.
La Tres Sainte Trinsophie is comprised of twelve sections, each with its own illustration. The most obvious alignment that can be seen, is between the twelve sections, the zodiac, and the stages of alchemy. It can also be suggested, for our considerations, the seven major and five minor psychic centers.
The story begins with Saint-Germain on the lava beds of Vesuvius, later he passes an alter on which is a cup, with a winger serpent intertwined around it twelve times. Saint-Germain then enters into a vast realm of fire, in the midst of which is a greenish-gold serpent with ruby eyes which he must dominate with a sword, the symbol of an enlightened will. With this act, anger, hate, and pride are cast out of his consciousness, and the senses are brought under direction.
In one of the scenes depicted, Saint-Germain is in front of a triangular altar with an elaborate candlestick . It’s base if formed out of two intertwined serpents and terminates at a lotus, with the taper placed in the center. Two inscribed panels accompany the illustration. The first one reads: “To the strong is given the burden” and the second, “Kindle a fire upon the high place that the sacrifice may be borne upward to the Desired One.” The final illustration shows the heavens ablaze with light and a triangle surrounded by a square and circle. The initiate, here Saint-Germain, is accompanied by Isis Revealed, the goddess of life and Nature.
The pictures described illustrate that even at the end of the Illuminist era, classical alchemical and kabbalistic symbolism was in widespread use by esotericists. However, its direction was changed from classical, or laboratory alchemy, to ‘philosophic’ or ‘spiritual’ alchemy. Just as kabbalah had undergone a radical transformation at the hands of alchemists and Christian mystics, alchemy itself had also changed. While such manuscripts may be of dubious value for practical laboratory work, fortunately, they still are of value for interior spiritual initiation - an initiation that only the Secret Fire can bring.
Exercises
The Middle Pillar
The Middle Pillar is a well known exercise for building the body of light, including
- The establishment of Malkuth and cone of light.
- Circulation of the Light
- The Fountain of Light
- Malkuth as Kether; As Above; So Below
- Relationship of Tiphareth to Malkuth and Kether
Psychic Equilibration and the Middle Pillar Exercise
To my mind, the exercise described as the Middle Pillar is the groundwork of all actual developmental work. It is a process which is the basis of Magic. That this has been but seldom realized is obviously at the root of the futile attempts to do Ceremonial and perform Ritual, of which the general public hears every now and again. Even students of Magic of many years standing have been guilty of negligence in this respect, and also in failing to recommend it to their successors.
--Israel Regardie/The Middle Pillar
The circuit of the Tree of Life represents All possible experiences of human existence. The spheres represent modes of being, while paths are transitional phases between them. The Middle Pillar Exercise circulates the consciousness of the aspirant around all these aspects. The practice of its visualization begins activating only the spheres of the Middle Pillar, in line with the vertical axis of the body. Later, when some proficiency has been acquired, the spheres of the side pillars are added. We then have the entire diagram of the Tree interpenetrating, and ordering all planes from physical to spiritual. This is a fairly profound image produced with a minimum of graphic elements.
Intonation, or vibration, of the God-names makes it easier to drop into the theta and alpha state which Middle Pillar encourages. They are not sung, but rather droned or chanted so that a tingling resonance can be felt to emanate from the corresponding physical center. Experiment with the pitch of your voice to produce a rich, sonorous tone. Put feeling in it, and add your own dramatic interpretation. You set up a feedback system with yourself, and the more often the sequence from intonation to brain wave pattern is reinforced, the easier it will become for you to create this state. Eventually, the aspirant could perform the exercise in the most distracting of situations without loss of concentration.
The goal of Middle Pillar Exercise is the eventual formation of the Philosopher's Stone, or Diamond Body. Many phases of transformation are necessary to work toward this task. One of the operations necessary for the production of the stone is the alchemical circulatio, or circulation of consciousness around the aspects of being. This circulation of the light (consciousness) unites diverse centers. This circulation of one's true, creative, formative energies produces a sense of joy and intoxication, as if one had been freshly bathed. It opens up the reality of an inner world, which serves to break the soul's dependence on the phenomenal world.
Circulation fixes the light. In fact, it builds a body of light, which makes the enlightenment a permanent condition. The light must be visualized as permeating the body, not only inside or outside. While the light means clarity, perception and enlightenment of understanding, as you circulate it around your body, there should be a perceptible physical sensation, as well. Once you begin your meditation, there should be no interruptions; end and beginning are one. To be effective at all, the confirmation in the light should last for a minimum of 15 minutes. Circulatio, or circulation of the light, combines the alchemical operations of sublimatio and coagulatio. Sublimation means generally to have an ennobling effect, and coagulation means to solidify.
During circulatio, one sublimates body and coagulates spirit. Circulation around the aspects of being leads to an equilibrium where one is contained within the opposites. Spirit penetrates soul, and soul envelops spirit. When spirit and soul unite, thoughts are immobilized. The soul "crystallizes" and spirit becomes an effective influence in the personality. This is real-I-zation of the Diamond Body, or Self. The phenomena which used to be experienced as (external or internal light) is now perceived as psychic revelation.
This balancing is a delicate process. It must be performed by the right person at the right time. Sublimatio consists of spirit and soul ascending and descending from lower to higher, and higher to lower, in the imaginal realm. Through it, the spirit hidden in matter becomes visible. Sublimatio is the alchemical form of resurrection.
Sublimatio, psychologically, is the process of raising concrete, personal experience to a higher level, a level of abstract or universal truth. Coagulatio, in contrast, is the concretization or personal realization of an archetypal image. (23)
Sublimatio is a vertical, solar activity. Coagulatio is feminine, or lunar in quality. Excess quantities of either of these potencies may have destructive effects. This is the value of a balancing ritual. The solar-libido, which is creative and life-promoting, may be experienced as scorching dryness or fiery anger. The lunar-libido also has negative forms, which are literal "bring downs." These modes of psychic energy have a wide range of powerful effects on human experience.
Through disciplined use of a balancing ritual, the solar-principle provides an increase in understanding and an expanded field of awareness. The Stone's lunar portion materializes elusive intuitions and spiritual potential. One submits willingly to the transpersonal totality of psyche. This marriage produces the Philosopher's Stone through circulation.
Sublimatio is the vertical, Middle path and corresponds with the element Air. In QBL, Shekinah is the Middle Pillar. She meditates the ascents and descents of the soul and spirit. Through her, the ten spheres of the Tree of Life slowly sublimate into Kether, the Crown (Primordial Air). The "ascents and descents" of the soul are characterized in ancient lore as Angels. An example of this imagery is the story of Jacob's Ladder.
The Supernal Triad (top 3 spheres of the Tree of Life) represents the three aspects of knowledge: the Crown, Wisdom (the Knower), and Understanding (that which is known). In Kether, the Crown, all opposites reside in total union. It reconciles oppositions which are distributed throughout the other spheres.
One may be redeemed through this self-knowledge. But there is great danger in direct revelation of the archetypal psyche. The danger lies in calling up the pure archetype, which ego-consciousness is never able to assimilate or integrate. Therefore, never invoke Spheres, but always use Pathworking. If one succumbs to the disintegrative effect, the personality is annihilated in the Abyss of the transcendent imagination. This is the psychological equivalent of drowning. The alternative is release from the personal ego attitude toward active participation within the archetypal dimension. Behavior does not become archetypal. It already is, if only you care to notice.
Dreams, Active Imagination, and the practice of Ceremonial Magick may be seen as forms of coagulatio. In the process of circulatio, there is a resurrection of the Soul of Body. Images are an expedient mode of access to the knowledge of the soul, as it circulates rhythmically throughout every cell of the body.
The body becomes subtle and spirit gains body. One is able to maintain daily functions in the ordinary world without losing intimate contact with the archetypal dimension. In fact, this connectedness to daily life is essential to balance soul-travel in the archetypal realms. Maintain ordinary pursuits except during the allotted meditation period.
This indirect penetration to the core-of-being produces fulfillment. One may use conscious, purposeful action to intentionally produce experience of unconscious non-action which is purposeless. This is a natural preparation for death, the experience of awareness without the constraints of time/space.
The dynamic activity associated with ego-conscious (the desire to know, to penetrate and illumine) culminates in a cessation of effort. The rational process of controlling imagination defers to another power. This experience of silence and tranquility is known as Shekinah, or Sophia, Divine Wisdom. This means there is an emptying of the personal attachments of the ego. Man then experiences a timeless incarnation of the universal aspect of being.
The alchemical process described through this circular thinking is imaginatio. This indicates an abstraction from concentration and active fantasy. Its negentropic effects are a product of the Self. "Free-energy" enters the field of time when it leaves the archetypal world. In sublimatio-coagulatio, something new is created, and negentropic potential becomes available. This is commonly described to have a cleansing, or healing effect.
Through sublimation, the spirit hidden in matter becomes visible. "Primitive thinking" or anima consciousness (a diffuse awareness of potentials), is more suited to maintaining opposites in harmony while this ordering process continues along mythical patterns. It might be thought of as an archetypal ordering process, a "Way." When disorder is not ordered by archetypal processes, it falls to the ego.
A middle path between "primitive thinking" and directed, goal-oriented (ego) thought points to the type of sublimation which Jung speaks of in Aion. The ego system has a linear form of segmented, irreversible time implanted as a result of the directed thinking and historical development of the self. A relationship between the ego and the self is possible through the transcendent function. This is not built up with directed thinking, but with circular thinking, the negentropic source: imagination.
Middle Pillar Exercise provides a fail-safe, balanced form of participation in the realm of imagination, which is central to psychology, alchemy, magick, and physics. If, for some reason, you dislike using Hebrew God-names, correspond the qualities of these spheres with god-names from another Pantheon. It is best, however, to pick a pantheon and stick with it, for consistency.
BALANCING RITUAL: The Middle Pillar Exercise (for alignment with the higher Self)
Visualize a brilliant ball of white light above your head. The ball is to be about 1 1/2 to 2 ft. in diameter, just above the head. As you visualize, chant "EH-HE-YEH" three times, quite slowly. If you do it correctly, you resonate within your own body, causing physiological and psychological changes.
Next, imagine a rod of light descending through your head to your throat. It changes colors there and becomes pale lavender. The ball of light is visualized as the same size, only the color changes. Chant "YE-HOH-VOH E-LOH-HEEM three times.
The ball then travels down to the center of the chest. The color changes to gold. Chant "YE-HOH-VOH E-LOAH-VA-DA-ATH", three times, slowly.
Once a concurrent visualization of the centers is obtained, and the sequence of chants finished, the ball travels back up through the body to the head. From the head a stream of energy goes down the left arm, left leg, the entire left side of the body, coming back to the head via the right side of the body. This energy then travels down the from of your body, coming back to the head via the right side of the body. This energy then travels down the front of your body, through the feet, and comes back up to the head via the spine. At that point, it becomes a fountain, spewing forth multicolored light, after spiraling up from the feet a third time.
When the energy is moving downward, you should exhale; when it is moving back towards the head, moving upward, you should inhale. When the ball is at your feet, in the beginning of the exercise, it may be expanded to include the entire sphere of the earth, as the god-form is literally The Lord of the Earth.
The visualized colors, and vibratory nature of the chanted god-names, turn on the endocrine system. The harmonization of right brain and left brain functions is symbolized in the harmonious blending of the circulation.
Frequent (once daily, minimum) practice of the middle pillar, doing the visualizations and doing the chants, will create an energy reservoir which balances the personality, promotes growth, initiates repair or healing, and builds a reserve for times of stress. It forms the basis of a firm foundation for further experiments in self-transformation.
Middle Pillar Exercise provides a fail-safe, balanced form of participation in the realm of imagination, or the psyche. A practice of this type, whether a psychological exercise or a magical rite is central to psychology, alchemy, magick, and physics. It forges a conscious link with our Source, and a road or means of communication for consciousness to travel along--it is a Way. Through it we come to know and understand our inner guiding principle and work toward realizing our Divinity. Tiphareth represents our inner guiding principle, but Kether is our sainthood, or Mastership. The Middle Pillar links up the various up the various aspects of our Being from Body-consciousness, to Ego-consciousness, to Self-Realization, mystical experience, and Perfection. The gulf between our animalistic nature and our incarnation of Divinity in the Master-soul is symbolically expressed by the vertical column of Middle Pillar.
THE MIDDLE PILLAR EXERCISE may be corresponded with Tiphareth, since it seeks to align us with the higher Self. The establishment of a conscious dialogue between the ego and the Self is the goal of both Jungian Psychology and High Magick. We can consciously work toward this goal. Its psychological aspect deals with establishing an "ego-Self axis" or line of communication. Likewise, in Magick the same vertical connection between the mundane and transcendent is sought. This seeking is active and a procedure has been established to realize the goal. The procedure is a visualization exercise wherein we build the Tree of Life within our physical, astral, causal, and divine Selves.
Middle Pillar Exercise concerns spheres known as #1 Kether; Daath; #6 Tiphareth; #9 Yesod; and #10 Malkuth.(see diagram, next page.) The ancient philosophers who developed this system created a symbolic means of depicting how to gain control over your emotions enough to remain poised in detachment from the dual pull of the opposites. This develops within you a new faculty for discrimination and spiritual discernment. The mind moves from the superficial to the depths wherein lie creativity and meaning. "The Secret of Wisdom can be discerned only from the place of balanced power, "--that is between the two outer pillars, along the Middle Pillar where all transformations of consciousness occur! This is freedom from emotional compulsion, and yields equanimity.
This central point between the two symbolic pillars of the opposites, the place of balanced power from which the working is correctly viewed, is the implication of DAATH, the shadowy Sphere. Doing Middle Pillar, you magically create the sphere DAATH as an imaginal gateway to mystical experience--another dimension of experience. It is a new factor of adaptation or equilibrium, not a given within the basic scheme. It is the result of actively seeking, then experiencing, the transpersonal Divine through grace. It is this new factor of adjustment which is known variously as the Golden Flower, Rosy Cross, Philosopher's Stone, Diamond Body, etc. and is linked with Tiphareth as the seat of conscious awareness of the higher Self.
To the central spheres and shadowy Daath are attributed five Divine Names of God. They are the Names of God on each of the five planes expressing the vibratory rates of various grades or degrees of consciousness. No religious or metaphysical theory attaches to the employment of these names--they come from the Judeo-Christian system. You can be any religion and employ them without conflict. They are keys which open doors to different parts of our being, the existence of which hitherto we have been kept in ignorance. The words should be committed to memory:
1. KETHER (brilliant ball of white Light above head): AHIH (pronounced Eh-hay-yeh)
DAATH (ball of lavender-blue light at the throat) YHVH ALHIM (pronounced Ye-hoh-voh E-Loh-heem)
6. TIPHARETH (ball of brilliant golden light at heart) YHVH ALOAH ve-DAAS (Ye-hoh-voh El-oah ve-Da-as)
9. YESOD (violet sphere at genitals) SHADDAI AL CHAI (Shah-dai El Chai)
10. MALKUTH (olive green or black sphere under the feet) ADNI HARTZ (Ah-doh-nai ha-Ah-retz)
Kether refers to our latent God-Realization of sainthood; Daath is a symbolic link, self-induced and self-devised, between the Divine Genius and the ego. Tiphareth is Self-Realization; Yesod is ordinary emotional consciousness; Malkuth, body awareness. they symbolize your heights and depths. Middle Pillar brings in a charge of spiritual force, which is realized in consciousness. It brings Godhead into incarnation.
