To Main Page 1201 13. Always rememberthat allmankind and allcreatures areequally childrenof theGoddess;therefore neverboastor threaten,or do anything that mightdisgrace Her oryour brothers and sisters in the Craft. Toblatherthoughtlesslyaboutthe Craft,especiallytopersons who have no business knowing about your coven's affairs, not only drains your own energy and that of your coven, but also is a form of boasting, of using the Craft for self-aggrandizement, that will get you into the bad headspace law #3 warns about. More obviously, threat- ening to "hex" someone, even though you THINK you have no intention of doing so, violates the intent of laws 1 through 4, because you are playing games with the Lady, who just might decide to act on the threat, and because you are using the Craft (especially if you are known to be a Witch) to influence another against his will and to get your own way; furthermore, making such a threat reinforces the false impression most people have of the Craft, and so disgraces the God- dess. Again, since anyone could learn to do anything you can do, being a Witch doesn't make you any better than anyone else; put on airs, and the Lady will deflate you. Perhaps a good rule of thumb about discus- sing the Craft with outsiders is this: once you are convinced that someone's interest is sincere, then answer questions, fully and freely; but don't just volunteer information that has in no way been asked for, else you risk burdening that person with more information than he or she is able to cope with. 1202 THE ABBREVIATED LAWS 'Tis the Old Law, and the most important of all Laws, that no one may do anything which will endanger the Craft, or bring us into contact with the law of the land or any of our persecutors. *Be it ardane that noneshall use the Art (magick)in any way to do ll to any. 8 words the Wiccan Rede fulfil: An it harm none, do what ye will. * Respect the privacy of other Coveners. You may reveal the involvement of no person save yourself. In case of trouble, the Coven will be disbanded. Should this happen, all Coveners are to avoid one another for the safety and well-being of all. Should this happen, refer to the Old Laws. *Never accept moneyfor the useof the Art, formoney ever smears the taker (and clouds ethical judgement). For all things magickal, pay the full price asked without haggling. If it is unaffordable, it is probably inappropriate in some hidden way. * In case of dispute, the High Priestess is the final arbiter. Within the Craft, no law save Craft Law may be invoked. Any who will not agree, or who will not work under this HPs, may and shall remove themselves from the Coven. Any of the third (L.T. Initiates OK) may form a new Coven. * The traditional way to hear complaints is this: Before the High Priestess and any other Elders shall come first one, then the other, then both together to be heard. The decision may be rendered immedia- tely, one lunar month later, or whenever the time of waiting is filled. * The year-and-a-day rules pertains to: The minimum time between Progressions; The final time of all Leavings; The closings of all cycles. THE TEMPLE LAWS * Inorder of precedence, you areaccountable to: The Gods, your Self, your High Priestess, your Teacher. Initiates are also account- able to the Craft as a whole. * "Pagan Standard Time" gives you 15 minutes leeway for an an- nounced class or ritual. If you'll be any later or won't make it, CALL! * Questions are expected, desired, and anticipated.. The only "dumb question" is the one the student doesn't ask. * Commoncourtesy in all things. Whenin doubt, it is preferable to err on the side of caution and silence. * Ultimately, you are responsible for your own development. Independent thought and research are strongly encouraged. 1203 Comments on The Abbreviated Laws by J. Random Folksinger The Wiccan Rede, while it has been taught widely, is not a part of the Laws, although it may be considered derivative of them. There is nothing in the Laws that says that "in case of trouble, the Coven will be disbanded". There are, in fact, quite a few possible solutions to specific instances, not just for "trouble". There is nothing in the Laws about unaffordability equalling inappropriateness in the purchase of a magickal tool. What the heck are "L.T. Initiates"? Long Term? Why is is OK for them to form a Coven when it is plain that you have to be of the Third Degree? The traditional way to hear complaints, at least in my set of the Old Laws, is for the High Priest or High Priestess to convene the Elders. It says nothing about whether the HP or HPs are included in this group, but it is assumed that BOTH, not just the HPs, are so included. There is also nothing in the Old Laws about a "time of waiting" for a decision. In the Old Laws, the only thing the year-and-a-day rule pertains to is the leaving of a High Priestess. Everything in the "Temple Laws" falls in the good-to-very-good category of advice; NONE of it is in the Old Laws. And I have known a good many pagans to take PST to mean anytime during the calendar DAY. There are a number of teachers in my experience to whom you NEVER ask a question, at penalty of being kicked out of the class; still, a teacher who can accept this rule is probably a good teacher. In general, this sheet appears to be a worksheet handed to new students and gone over with them for a quick rundown of the Craft in order to go on to other things; in my opinion, giving them this sheet and NOT reviewing the entire set of the Old Laws (in whatever form) is doing the students a disservice; having this sheet around for later reference, on the other hand, is probably a Good Thing. 1204 THE LAW The Law was made and ardane about a week from last Wednesday. The Law was made for the Wiccca, in order that they should develop a nice longhand style from copying it. TheWicccashouldgive dueworshiptotheGodz, presumingthey believe the Godz exist and aren't just metaphors; and obey Their Will, which the HPS of the Coven will make up as she goes along, for it was made for the purpose of ego-tripping and wild parties. The worship of the Wiccca is good for the owners of Occult Supply Stores, for the owners of Occult Supply Stores love the money of the Wiccca. Asa manlovetha womanusingthe missionaryposition, sothe Wiccca should shaft their fellows and other total strangers frequent- ly. And it is necessary that the Magick Circle which is the prin- cipal difference between a Wicccan rite and a frat party be cast and all Wiccca properly purified to enter it so they can drink five gallons of Ripple each and not throw up. TheHPSshallr/u/i/n/ rulehercovenasthe localrepresenta- tive of the Goddess, and choose whomever she is sleeping with this week to be her HP...or her Maiden. Andremember that the Wiccca would have it that The God Himself kissed her feet and gave up the position of Ringmaster to her because of her arbitrariness and autocracy, her spite and unreason, her mysteriousness and ignorance: so the HP is expected to go as far away as possible and not even show up for Sabbats. It is the greatest virtue of a HPS that she turn as many of her Covenors into closet Xtians as possible, for the true HPS realizes that anyone with the sense Goddess gave a goose is not going to stick around without having a death wish. * * * * * In the Olden Days when Wiccca extended far, we were free and had reservations in all the best restaurants. But these days, we eat at McDonald's. SO BE IT ARDANE, that nonebut the Wiccca shall ever be invited to dinner, for people who ignore us are many, and if they ever found out what we are really up to, they would giggle. SO BE ITARDANE, that no Coven shall knowwhere the next Coven bide, nor who its member be, save anybody who looks in Circle Newslet- ter and the hit team we send out to sanction them. SOBEITARDANE, thatnoone shalltellanyoneanything, least of all thy fellows in the Craft, for fear one of you will learn something; because as it is truly writ: Gerald wrote it, I believe it, that settles it. Andif anybreakthese Laws,theywill havetostart theirown Tradition and make up their own Grandmother. Leteach HPSgovernherCoven asshedamn'well please,riding rough-shod over the Covenors as long as they will stand for it. 1205 Butitmust berecognized thatsooner orlater theywill get mad and stop bringing the Ripple to Coven meetings. When this hap- pens, it hath ever been the Old Law that the HPS will Elevate them to the Third Degree and kick them out, and promise them the rest of the Book...someday. Anyone ofanydegree ornonemay founda Coven,providedthey think they can get away with it and can create a convincing Grand- mother. They mayraidother Covensformembers aslongas nooneknows where to find them. But splitting the Covenoft means new opportunities for evading the consequences of your actions, so the wise HPS will think of it first. * * * * * If you should keep a Black Book, let it be in your own hand of write, except for the parts you xerox out of Lady Sheba. Or better yet, tell everybody they're not of a high enough degree to see it. ProclaimyourWicccahoodloudly, andoften;youmaybe ableto do a brisk trade in spells, psychic fairs, and talk shows. If nobody believs you, try holding a public skyclad circle. If all else fails, hire a press agent and advertise in the National Inquirer. If they try to make you talk of the Brotherhood, lay it on with a trowel. Ancient Atlantis is always good for a five-minute spot on the six o' clock news. Not all interviewers are bad; some may even flash your business address on the screen for a few seconds. * * * * * To avoid discovery, let your working tools be ordinary stuff such as any may have around the house: AR-15's, Patton Tanks, Howitzers (let's see how far we can stretch that First Amendment, gang!). Have no names or signs on anuything, and remove the ones they came with, as otherwise this can lead to a charge of receiving stolen property. LetthePentacles bemadeof waxunlesssomethingelse ismore convenient. Haveno sword, unlessyou are inthe SCA ora collector of WWII memorabilia. Writethe namesand signson agummed labelsothat itcan be peeled off immediately afterwards; remember that not guilty by reason of insanity is not a valid defense in cases of this kind. Everrememberthatyou aretheHiddenChildrenof theGoddess; when you can take time out from Karma Dumping Runs, Psychic Vendettas, Banishing each other from the Coven and discussing how much fun it would be to persecute the Xtians, remember never to do anything to disgrace Her. Or Them, if that's possible. 1206 * * * * * In the Olden Days, when we had Power, we could use the Art against any who ill-treated us; but these days a whispering campaign works better. Remember always that there are a lot of flaky people out there, and for this reason it is best to give a fake name and a Post Office Box address. Someone is always going to blame you for something. SO BEIT ARDANE: HARMNONE, or atleast have agood alibi. Never break this law, or people who get burned along with you will come after you with baseball bats, and you will never be able to score any decent hash again. AnyHPSwho doessomethingyou don'tlikeyou canwalkout on, but be sure to clout the Coven Book on the way to the door and set up in business for yourself (Learn Witchcraft From The Experts!). Alwaysaccept moneyfor useofthe Art,butkeep aneye onthe Gypsy Laws. In some states, Barter works better. All may use the Art for their own advantage; remember, quick and dirty works best, and you can lay off Karma on the Coven. If that doesn't work, try dead cats in the mailbox. * * * * * 'Tis the Old Law and most important of all the Laws that no one may do anything that will endanger any of the Craft. Unless there's money in it, or it's to someone you think deserves it, and anyway, "endanger" is in the eye of the beholder. In anydispute betweenthe Wiccca,no onemayinvoke anyLaw but that of the Craft. However, you can break into your opponent's home and mess up his stuff.. after all, it says right here they can't go to the Police. Neverbargain orhaggle whenyou buybythe Art;most Occult Store owners will just throw you out and everyone else will think you're a nut. * * * * * It is ever the way with men and with women that they are ruled by their glands. At any moment your HPS may run off and become a Rosi- crucian. And the way of Resignation is this: if she doesn't answer her phone for two weeks and is never home when you drive by, you can declare her outcast from the Coven and take it over yourself, with as many as will have you. But if she comes back she will probably take of the Coven again, or start another one in the same building and declare you Invalid, and there's not much you can do about it. Learn to live with anxiety. Get everything in writing. * * * * * It hath been found that two people sitting around with a bottle of Chianti discussing Atlantean Grandmothers will become fond of each other, if only because of the Stockholm Syndrome. Therefore, let it be resolved that a human being shall be taught in the Craft only by another human being, and screw the middle-class morality of the nineteen-fifties. 1207 * * * * * And the Curses of the Mighty Ones be on all who try to take this seriously, or the Craft seriously, or the Wiccca seriously. Caveat Lector, and May The Force Be With You! 1208 Karma, The Three Fold Law, & Grace "As you sew, so shall ye reap". "What goes around, comes around". "Whatever you send out returns three times". These are all sayings very familiar to all of us, all of them examples of a supposedly Universal Law of cause and effect, action and reaction. Of course many of the religious systems try to furnish us with some sort of "escape clause" that will allow man to either alleviate suffering fo past misdeeds, or to escape responsibility totally. Let us take a little closer look at these three ideas and ther inter-reationship. It seems that, on one level, we do live ina mechanistic uni- verse, one pretty much ruled by cause-and-efect. This Newtonian universe seems to react in a very mechanical fashion, i.e. every action "produces an equal and opposite reaction". A good analogy for this is the example of one billiard ball striking another. The energy from the striking billiard ball is transfered to the one struck and is used to push against the first, imparting motion in the same direc- tion. This brings the second law into play, i.e. an object in motion tends to stay in motion untill acted upon by an outside force. The principle of Karma basically says the same thing; i.e. any negative or positive action or thought remains that way, until it expends its energy by acting upon the originator. Of course this also makes implicit the idea that thoughts or mental energy have a reality of their own, one that interacts with the physical universe. If this idea is accepted, it then implies the existence of at least one more "world" or order of the universe, one with a non physical "reality", and one where the basic fundamental rules of physics (as we know them) may not truly apply. The magician can bedescribed as one who "walksbetween" these two worlds. "Walking between two worlds" implies that an individal is connected with both and can move between them at will. The purpose of magic is to manipulate one world for the benefit of the other, i.e. to manipulate the unseen world for the express purpose of influencing events in the physical. Unfortunately there does not seem to be a "free ride" anywhere in the universe, and when an individual acquires the power to do this, they also aquire a great deal of responsibility! By accepting the power to exert "leverage" in the unseen world, an individual seems to also accept a multiplied succeptibility to influences initiated in that world. This is why negative workings are so dangerous! This may also be the reasoning behind the "law of three fold return". Now comesthe hard part! Ifall of this causeand effect stuff is absolute, how can any individual ever hope to "pay off" the debts for all of the "stupid" things they have done not only in this life- time, but in many others? Must we "pay off" all past transgressions on a one for one basis? Is there no ecape clause in this "contract" we seem to have for living in the universe? This "escape clause" is called Grace by the Christians and by other names in other systems, but it does exist in all. Basically, the idea is this: "Once a lesson is completely learned and one grows beyond a need for this lesson, it need not be repeated, even if the 'books' are not balanced". This is the "Enlightenment" sought by the Buddhist that allows the "breaking" of the wheel. EXEGESIS ON THE WICCAN REDE 1209 by Judy Harrow originally published in HARVEST - Volume 5, Number 3 (Oimelc, 1985) second publication: THE HIDDEN PATH - Volume X, Number 2 Beltane, 1987) All religions began with somebody's sudden flashing insight, enlightenment, a shining vision. Some mystic found the way and the words to share the vision, and, sharing it, attracted followers. The followers may repeat those precise and poetic words about the vision until they congeal into set phrases, fused language, repeated by rote and without understanding. Cliches begin as great wisdom - that's why they spread so fast - and end as ritual phrases, heard but not understood. Living spiritual- ity so easily hardens to boring religious routine, maintained through guilt and fear, or habit and social opportunism - any reason but joy. We cometo the Craftwith a firstgeneration's joy ofdiscovery, and a first generation's memory of bored hours of routine worship in our childhood. Because we have known the difference, it is our particular challenge to find or make ways to keep the Craft a living, real experience for our grandchildren and for the students of our students. Ithink the best of these safeguardsis already built into the Craft as we know it, put there by our own good teachers. On our Path, the mystic experience itself is shared, not just the fruits of mys- ticism. We give all our students the techniques, and the protective/- supportive environment that enable almost every one of them to Draw the Moon and/or Invoke the God. This is an incredibly radical change from older religions, even older Pagan religions, in which the only permissible source of inspiration has been to endlessly reinterpret and reapply the vision of the Founder (the Bible, the Book of the Law, the Koran, ... ). The practice of Drawing the Moon is the brilliant crown of the Craft. But notice how often, in the old myths, every treasure has its pitfalls? I think I'm beginning to see one of ours. Between the normal process of original visions clotting into cliche, and our perpetual flow of new inspiration, we are in danger of losing the special wisdom of those who founded the modern Craft. I do not think we should assiduously preserve every precious word. My love for my own Gardner- ian tradition does not blind me to our sexist and heterosexist roots. And yet, I want us to remain identifiably Witches and not meld into some homogeneous "New Age" sludge. For this, I think we need some sort of anchoring in tradition to give us a sense of identity. Some of the old sayings really do crystallize great wisdom as well, life-affirming Pagan wisdom that our culture needs to hear. 1210 So I think it's time for a little creative borrowing from our neighbors. Christians do something they call "exegesis;" Jews have a somewhat similar process called "midrash." What it is is something between interpretation and meditation, a very concentrated examination of a particular text. The assumption often is that every single word has meaning (cabalists even look at the individual letters). Out of this inspired combination of scholarship and daydream comes the vitality of those paths whose canon is closed. The contemporary example, of course, is Christian Liberation Theology, based on a re-visioning of Jesus that would utterly shock John Calvin. Although our canonis not closed- and theday it isis the dayI quit -I'm suggesting that we can use a similar process to renew the life of the older parts of our own still-young heritage. So, I'dlike totry doingsome exegesison an essentialstatement of the Craft way of life. Every religion has some sort of ethic, some guideline for what it means to live in accordance with this particular mythos, this worldview. Ours, called the Wiccan Rede, is one of the most elegant statements I've heard of the principle of situational ethics. Rather than placing the power and duty to decide about be- havior with teachers or rulebooks, the Rede places it exactly where it belongs, with the actor. eight words the Wiccan Rede fulfill: AN IT HARM NONE, DO WHAT YOU WILL. I'd like to start with the second phrase first, and to take it almost word by word. do what YOU will. This is the challenge to self-direction, to figure out what we want, and not what somebody else wants for us or from us. All of us are subject to tremendous role expectations and pressures, coming from our families, our employers, our friends, society in general. It's easy to just be molded, deceptively easy to become acompulsive rebel and reflexively do the opposite of whatever "they" seem to want. Living by the Rede means accepting the responsibility to assess the results of our actions and to choose when we will obey, confront or evade the rules. Do what you WILL. This is the challenge to introspection, to know what we really want beyond the whim of the moment. The classic example is that of the student who chooses to study for an exam rather than go to a party, because what she really wants is to be a doctor. Again, balance is needed. Always going to the library rather than the movies is the road to burnout, not the road to a Nobel. What's more, there are others values in life, such as sensuality, intimacy, spirituality, that get ignored in a compulsively long-term orientation. So, our responsibility is not to mechanically follow some rule like "always choose to defer gratification in your own long-term self interest," but to really listen within, and to really choose, each time. 1211 DO what you will. This is the challenge to action. Don't wait for Prince Charming or the revolution. Don't blame your mother or the system. Make a realistic plan that includes all your assets. Be sure to include magic, both the deeper insights and wisdoms of divination and the focusing of will and energy that comes from active workings. Then take the first steps right now. But, beware of thoughtless action, which is equally dangerous. For example, daydreaming is needed, to envision a goal, to project the results of actions, to check progress against goals, sometimes to revise goals. Thinking and planning are necessary parts of personal progress. Action and thought are complementary; neither can replace the other. When youreally look atit, wordby word, itsounds likea subtle and profound guide for life, does it not? Is it complete? Shall "do what you will" in fact be "the whole of the law" for us? I think not. The second phrase of the Rede discusses the individual out of context. Taken by itself, DO WHAT YOU WILL" would produce a nastily competitive society, a "war of each against all" more bitter than what we now endure. That is, it would if it were possible. Happily, it's just plain not. Pagan myth andmodern biology alike teach us thatour Earth is one interconnected living sphere, a whole system in which the actions of each affect all (and this is emphatically not limited to humankind) through intrinsic, organic feedback paths. As our technology amplifies the effects of our individual actions, it becomes increasingly crit- ical to understand that these actions have consequences beyond the individual; consequences that, by the very nature of things, come back to the individual as well. Cooperation, once "merely" an ethical ideal, has become a survival imperative. Life is relational, contex- tual. Exclusive focus on the individual Will is a lie and a deathtrap. The qualifying "AN IT HARM NONE," draws a Circle around the individual Will and places each of us firmly within the dual contexts of the human community and the complex life-form that is Mother Gaia. The first phrase of the Rede directs us to be aware of results of our actions projected not only in time, as long-term personal outcomes, but in space - to consider how actions may effect our families, co-workers, community, and the life of the Earth as a whole, and to take those projections into account in our decisions. But, like the rest of the Rede, "an it harm none" cannot be followed unthinkingly. It is simply impossible for creatures who eat to harm none. Any refusal to decide or act for fear of harming someone is also a decision and an action, and will create results of some kind. When you consider that "none" also includes ourselves, it becomes clear that what we have here is a goal and an ideal, not a rule. The Craft, assumingethical adulthood, offersus no roterules. We will always be working on incomplete knowledge. We will sometimes just plain make mistakes. Life itself, and life-affirming religion, still demands that we learn, decide, act, and accept the results. Judy Harrow 1212 JOAN on the Witch Laws 8/22/81 Note: These are the comments of one of the early members of Proteus Coven on what we gave her to read about ethics and laws. All the material she had is still here, although a good deal has been added since then, so I thought her comments would also be interesting. Judy Harrow -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- Reaction to "Traditional" - i.e. essentially Gardnerian - format In many respects, as constricting as Catholocism without the administrative experience, intellectual prowess, or verbal expertise of Catholicism. If current researchers are correct, what we have is one man's fantasy (with jumbled and skewed sources) made everyone's obligation. Maybedealtwith mosteffectively-especiallyas regardsthe reality of current practice and expectation - by juxtaposition with Lady Ikandkhop's masterful irony. -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- Reaction to Aporrheton 5 - [generally very good thinking, but still more traditional than my preference] ParagraphTwo: Good thinkingon nature ofGoddess -or any divini- ty. My agreement is reserved, uncertain, withheld. Paragraph Three: Claims to have arrived at FIRMLY ("no bending") UNDISPROVEN hypotheses. This arouses natural suspicion in me. I disagree with some of his perceptions of FACTS. Idisagree violently withLaws 5 +6. Heterosexuality isa streng- th, but not an essential. POLARITY OPERATES OUTSIDE [or INSIDE] BOUNDARIES OF ANATOMICAL EQUIPMENT AND HORMONES. AND THE CHARACTER - THE SACRED CHARACTER - OF THE WITCH IS WITHIN THE AT ONCE TRANSCENDANT AND DISCIPLINED SELF. Law #7 is unnecessary. A silly bow to a misunderstood "Trad" law. Law #8 islargely true, but makes no allowancefor valid, honest (fair to all), and necessary transitional states many must pass through. Also sticks on "authority" peg, which has some necessity/- validity but can easily get out of hand. I find HONESTY + COURTESY better yardsticks. Law #9. True.But much of interpersonaltension (inevitable) can be worked out of God/dess' love and coven support-with-discipline prevail. 1213 Law #10. TheGreat Mysteries mustbe livedout. And, withoutusing Craft parlance, if another needs to hear them, they MUST BE VERB- ALIZED. TO DO LESS IS HARM. i.e., it is to allow another to drown when you're on shore and have a rope. But no missionary zeal! No proseletyzing!!! That for which others are unready is foolishness for them and foolishness for the Witch. (It may also be subconscious power tripping. See agreement in Law #13.) Law #11 - I agree with paragraphs one and two. Paragraph3:saying thatonlythe HPsincarnatesthe Goddess is inappropriate and - in my firm opinion - NOT FACTUAL. (note from Judy - as I interpret what he says there, it's that only WOMEN incar- nate the Goddess. I also disagree with that, but it's less bad than Joan's reading that he limits it to the HPs only.) The Goddess is not bound by ceremonial elevations. She incarnates where and when She Damn Well Pleases! Re:"all initiations..."- etc.-Ritual iscrystallization of preexistent, potential, incipient reality and this actualization is not trivial. Law #12 - Goodcaution on limits (ill defined whereemotion runs high) or self-defense. But assumption rules out solo magic (his previous premise is that it isn't Wiccan) by corollary of group responsibility / group danger to all action. "Return to sender" is generally agreed as rule-of-thumb for defense. Practice has not disproven. This is a difficult area to define. Probably group consen- sus on this would help. Does"impossibility factor" negatedanger? How about the verbal escape clause sometimes used? Obviously,I'mless sureofboundarieson thisonethan onany other. Law #13 - Good idea. Rather an ideal than a norm. OMISSION: APORRHETON does not mention Balance or Polarity concept except in male/female context. But these are valuable and central concepts. I got the feeling this person is still ruled by fragments of left-over fear. -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- Starhawk is GREAT. But many people will need more codification than she offers. 1214 From: L.A. HUSSEY To: J_RANDOM FOLKSINGER Subj: THE LAWS I am disturbed and disappointed. "The Christians are our enemies." "They will torture you to make you talk about the Craft." "Lie about the Craft." "Covens splitting up makes for bad feelings." What depressing garbage. This is the 20th century, and this is America, this is not Inquisition days. The more we keep secret, the more the ignorant will assume that we have horrible secrets to keep. The true secrets of the Gods cannot be given away, because they cannot be spoken -- they are beyond all language. And as for bad feelings when covens break up, maybe that is how it is where you are, but around here, there is rejoicing when one coven becomes two. Seems to me like my best possible response to your "Laws" is the following song: BURNING TIMES The songs are sung to rouse our anger of martyred Witches gone to the fires, But what is served by righteous singing, if all we do is stew in our ire? Nine million dead in four hundred years; More in that time simply died of disease. Why do we dwell on long past dead When we are alive in times like these? (cho) Rise up, Witches, throw off your masks And cease crying guilt for ancient crimes. Earth and all Her children need us For ALL face now the Burning Times. In the face of that hostile power, how did the old knowledge stay alive? How have we still a Craft to practise? Our ancestors knew how to fight and survive! How do we honour our blessed dead? Slavery threatens us all but few. We must teach their cunning ways -- EVERYONE needs the skills they knew! (cho2) Rise up, Witches, gather your strength, And let your power spread and climb; Earth and all Her children need us For ALL face now the Burning Times. I will not cast off Science's works -- Witches all forces to Will can bend; I'll not accuse for war and waste some patriarchy of faceless men. Men do not cast the only votes; Women alone do not demonstrate. Rather than shut out half the race, Who if not we will change that state? (cho2) 1215 I will not blame a Father's Church -- blame and guilt are their tools, not mine, And even in the shuls and churches, allies there will I seek, and find! I will not answer hate with fear, Nor with a smug, cheek-turning love. I will not answer hate with rage; By strength alone will I not be moved! (cho2) I will not hide in my sacred grove -- the fact'ries and cities yet ring me about; I will not climb my ivory tower -- the real world exists tho' I shut it out. I will not work for Church nor State Who serve themselves while they serve us lies, Nor only for my Witchen kin, But for the family of all alive! (cho2) So if rebellion means to fight a State lost sight of why it was built, If heresy's to reject a Church that rules with force or fear or guilt, Then let us all be rebels proud, And shameless heretics by creed -- A tyrant's hand subjects the Earth, More heretic rebels are what She needs! (cho2) Did it ever occur to the writers of your antique laws that the Craft might actually be WELCOMED by a great number of people? That there might actually be more of us than of those who wish us ill? That the only reason those who fear us are so active nowadays is because they see us becoming more and more welcomed by more people? As I say in another song, "When folk in sorrow turn away/ From paths that lead to misery/ And seek new ways for wholeness' sake/ Then waiting, ready shall we be." All I can say is, I'm Goddess-glad I'm not in your tradition. B*B Leigh Ann To this I would add only one more admonishment, based on my own experience: It is as important not to take oneself, one's power, and one's Craft too seriously as it is not to take them too lightly. Moderation in all things, including moderation. And remember that all acts of love and pleasure are the rites of the Goddess, and this includes HAVING FUN. B*B Leigh Ann 1216 A RESPONSE TO "CRAFT ETHICS OF THE COVENANT OF THE DOVES" It has always been my view that the Earth Traditions, both in the Wiccan (European Shamanic) and Neo-Native Shamanic senses, are seeing their rebirth out of a true need to heal this wounded Mother of ours, and to stay Her hand, for Her anger is growing. It is quite possible that without this renewed spirit of reverence and worship of Earth and Sky and the True Source of All that Is, humanity as a species would be made as extinct as the Passenger Pigeon and the Dodo Bird. Therefore,as a Pagan and asa follower of theWays of the Chiri- cahua Teneh Nation, I cringe whenever I see restrictions and require- ments that are, for all intents and purposes, useless today, and only hamper the mission we have of encouraging others to walk in a more sacred way on the Body of Our Mother. I see the power trips, the "I'm the High Priest(ess), that's why" crap and the games driving more and more Pagans solitary, when we should be uniting. And I was extremely angered when I read the published "ethics" of one organization, the Covenant of the Doves, now known as the United Wiccan Church. I have listed the salient points that disturb me the most, and will respond to them one by one. > No woman shall be a Maiden who has not been in her courses. MK-H: I guess that's fair enough. But whether or not a woman is currently menstruating is none of the Coven's business. > No woman shall be ordained unless she has passed her 17th year, > nor shall she have her ordination recognized until that time. MK-H: No coven has any business ordaining a person, woman or man, before the legal Age of Consent, unless the minor is legally eman- cipated, and can produce their emancipation papers. To do otherwise is a wonderful excuse for prosecution if the persecution that File 18 and other Fundie hate articles I have been compiling in my XIANHATE series of files seem to augur comes to pass. > No womanshall have herordination recognized unless sheis in > her courses, has ten fingers, ten toes, two eyes, two ears, a > nose. Her generative organs andbreasts must becomplete. The > honorable loss of limbs or the effects of torture following > ordination shall not invalidate the ordination. MK-H: So you would deny ordination to a woman who is handicapped, or blind, or deaf, or has suffered the effects of cancer and may have had a hysterectomy, a mastectomy or even the less-invasive "lumpectomy" done on her to save her life? That is bigoted and totally without reason in this day and age. And what if she is past Menopause? Would you deny ordination to a woman who may be past her fertile years? That's wholly disrespectful to the Elders who hold so much wisdom that could be an asset to a Circle. > No woman shall be a Nymph who has not coupled. MK-H: Again, this is none of the Coven's business whether or not a woman has had sex. 1217 > No woman shall be a Crone who has not given birth. MK-H: Some have chosen NOT to bear children, out of either financial necessity, or conviction that this society is not the place to raise kids in. And some have recognized that they simply do not have the temperment for child-rearing (myself included in that category.) Some are infertile, through no fault of their own. And some, through either psychological or physical drives, prefer other women. There are a great deal of Lesbians in the Wiccan movement. Would you write them off as nonexistant? > No man shall be a Magician who has not healed. MK-H: Healing is not necessarily the only talent the God and Goddess give to people. Therefore, if a person does not have that talent, that does not mean that they aren't useful to the Circle in other capacities. And why is this criterion only applied to MALE postul- ants? Some of the best healers I know are female. > Noman shall beordained unless he haspassed his 33rdyear, nor > shall he have his ordination recognized until that time. MK-H: Why a double standard on when a man should be ordained? 18 is just fine for an eligability date. > No man shall have his ordination recognized unless he is the > father ofa living child, has ten fingers andten toes, two > eyes, two ears and a nose and generative organs complete. The > honorable loss of limbs or the effects of torture following > ordination shall not invalidate the ordination. MK-H: Again I voice my objections about the anti-Physically Chall- enged bias that this requirement implies. And I suspect that the re- quirement of being "the father of a living child" is there for only one reason--that it is a legally permissable way of stating "No Poo- ftahs". Just as the childbearing requirement is discriminatory to Lesbians, the fatherhood requirement is discriminatory to Gays. So what would I myself ask of postulants wishing initiation? In my theoretical Circle, I would ask them to attest, under pain of dis- fellowship, that they are not law enforcement officers joining the Circle for espionage purposes, nor are they there for sabotage or in- filtration purposes under religious grounds. Furthermore, they should affirm their allegience to The Earth Mother, The Sky Father, and Their Ultimate Source, forswearing allegiance to other deities. (primarily to weed out Christian or "satanist" infiltrators) They should have completed their Vision Quest, and have contacted their Lower Self in the form of their Power Animal(s), and their Higher Self in the form of the Shaman or Teacher Within. They also should not show outward or inward signs of being mentally unbalanced (something that would require a lot of trusting one's gut, although a psychologically-based questionnaire might be a good way of confirming it) or overly con- cerned with "finding power". They must also, for legal reasons, be either over 18 or legally Emancipated. Furthermore, there will be only ONE degree in my Circle--that of Kin. Anyone who is initiated is theoretically ready to act as cerem- onial facilitator, and that duty will be rotated to them as the rotation goes around the Circle. Decisions should be made by consen- sus, with one person having only one vote. 1218 I ask you, James...does notthe Mother and the Father decreethat we should all be free and equal to one another? Is that not why you opt to have your Coven be naked in their rite? (Due to the fact that the Chiricahua Teneh never performed ceremonials in the nude, I would myself opt for robed work, even to the point of people working in comfortable street clothes.) So why all this bloody RESTRICTION? Why all these trivial, and sometimes even discriminatory rules and regul- ations? Your ancestor Aleister once said "The word for Sin is Rest- riction." It's a good rule of thumb. Respectfully, Michelle Chihacou White Puma Klein-Hass 1219 SPELL TO EASE A BROKEN HEART* John Shaman You will need the following ingredients (be sure to charge them all before you begin): strawberry tea (one bag) Small wand or stick from a willow tree sea salt 2 pink candles a mirror one pink drawstring bag one quartz crystal a copper penny a bowl made of china or crystal that is special to you 1 teaspoon dried jasmine 1 teaspoon orris-root powder 1 tsp. strawberry leaves 1 teaspoon yarrow 10 plus drops apple-blossom oil or peach oil 10 plus drops strawberry oil On a Friday morning or evening (the day sacred to Venus) take a bath in sea salt in the light of a pink candle. As you dry off and dress, sip the strawberry tea. Use a dab of strawberry oil as perfume or cologne. Apply makeup or groom yourself to look your best. Cast a circle with the willow wand around a table the the other ingredients. Light the second pink candle. Mix all oils and herbs in the bowl. While you stir look at yourself in the mirror and say aloud: "Oh, Great Mother Goddess, enclose me in your loving arms and nurture and bring forth the Goddess within me." Gaze deeply into the mirror after you have finished mixing the ingredients and say aloud, "I represent the Great Goddess, Mother of all things. I shine in the light of the Golden Wings of Isis. All that is great and loving only belongs to me." Then put half the mixture in the pink bag and add the penny and crystal. Carry it with you always [or until you find another love]. Leave the other half of the potion in the bowl, out in a room where you will smell the fragrance. Repeat this ritual every Friday if necessary. *From Laurie Cabot's "Power of the Witch" Brackets mine. Needless to say, you should replace the goddess name with one that you attune to. 1220 STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES AND ETHICS--LIFEWAY SHAMANIC FELLOWSHIP By Usen's grace, Ho-dah.... 1.) PURPOSES: This is an era of decision. Do we allow ourselves to cut the throat of the Mother Who has nourished us as a species since we "came down from the trees"? Or do we work to walk in Beauty and Harmony with Her, and cherish Her, and work to see Her healed? The resurgence of Shamanism, the primal Earth Religion of practically all of the Earth's pre-Agrarian cultures, is an important thing, foretold by the Paiute prophet Wovoka and in the Hopi Prophecies. It was said that both the Red Man would return to the Ways of the Old Ones and that the non-Native would also embrace the Lifeway. There are non-Natives who respectfully have chosen these Ways, and are carrying them on in a reverent way. If the Lifeway was only given for the Native peoples, it would die out within our lifetime. There are simply not enough traditional Elders left. It has been shown to some of us that Our Mother The Earth is not willing to die quietly. She has demonstrated this by the increase in natural disasters of the past decade, which continue day by day. The Hopi prophecies state that, when the "bowl full of ashes" (most interpret this as the Thermonuclear Bomb) is overturned, that Our Mother shall rise up in Her righteous anger and destroy humanity. This prophecy is coming true, although it may yet be reversable. Perhaps it is we who reverence the Ways and walk in harmony with Our Mother that may stay Her hand. The Lifeway Fellowship is here for those who wish to honor Our Mother and Our Father, Earth and Sky, and to honor The Giver Of Life, from whence all things flow in the Universe. Our world-view is primarily allied with that of the Navajo/Dineh, Apache/Teneh, and Hopi peoples. However we do not represent ourselves as the keepers of those ways. The secrets of those Nations are for them alone, unless Usen' wishes to reveal them to us. Our mission is to help heal Our Mother, The Earth, and to help each other walk in closer harmony with Her. We also exist to provide a way for urban and sub-urban people to learn and practice the root Shamanic techniques that aid us in finding our True Vision and True Way of Power, and following that Vision and that Way. We identify ourselves as Pagan (Webster's New World Dictionary "1. b)...a person who is not a Christian, Moslem, or Jew (by faith); heathen. Pagan specifically refers to one of the ancient polytheistic (or pantheistic) peoples.") and as unashamed Pantheists and Polytheists. The Lifeway is truly a religious commitment. No-one can make a commitment to the Lifeway and to the worship of Life Giver, The Earth Mother and The Sky Father and remain a worshiper of other Paradigms of the Deity, much as one cannot be a Christian and worship the Greco-Roman pantheon. However this does not imply the condemnation of other Paradigms, nor impel a duty to "convert" others. 1221 We stand by other Pagans who do not share our paradigms, IE. Wiccans, Asatruans, Hellenists, and other Shamanic traditions, (African and neo-African(Santeria & Voudoun), Australian, Siberian, Traditional Native American, and Polynesian, to name a few) and even though we may disagree with some or all of their practices and beliefs, they are Brothers, Sisters and Cousins, and in times of persecution as well as times of goodwill we must defend them. We may even share in their open rituals and allow them to share in our open ceremonials. But that which is ours must remain ours, just as that which is theirs must remain theirs. 2.) THE(A)OLOGY: As our Fellowship is inherently religious, we must declare a The(a)ology. (The strange spelling refers to the fact that we acknowledge a Goddess as well as a God) This is summed up very easily. There are three main powers we worship, Usen' the Life Giver, The Earth Mother, and The Sky Father. The latter Two are emanations of the First, as all, including the God and the Goddess, are emanations from Usen', which is the primaeval First Cause. Usen': One cannot look upon The Life Giver as either Male or Female, for The Life Giver is beyond those distinctions. Usen', and The Life Giver, are names for this First Cause, this Force that pervades all and caused all to come into being. From Usen', the God, Sky Father, and the Goddess, Earth Mother, emanate, as the lesser Deities emanate from Them. The Earth Mother: We live and walk and are sustained from The Earth Mother, which is our Earth. She is alive, and we all exist within Her as part of Her structure. Science, through the Gaea Hypothesis, has finally acknowledged Her existence, and some even have learnt the lesson that our duty in this life is to care for and honor Her. This is a lesson that all must learn, for as long as we despoil Her, we risk Her wrath. She is expressed through the faces of White Painted Woman, Who is The Woman Warrior, through Corn Mother, Who is The Nourishing Mother, and through Spider Woman, Who is The Wise Woman, The Ancient One, The Custodian of Wisdom. Women are acknowledged as being human represent- atives of The Earth Mother. The Sky Father: Just as among we Humans, there is both Man and Woman, so there is no Earth Mother without Sky Father. Sky Father is the air we breathe, the flame that gives us warmth and cooks our food, and brings forth the rain that fertilizes Our Mother and allows Her to provide us with the crops and animals that sustain us. Sky Father is also expressed as The Hunter, The Warrior, and First Shaman, and is also expressed in Killer Of Enemies and The Child Of Water. He is also present and acknowledged as being present in every Man. 1222 There are other spirits that exist in the Universe, some beneficient, some maleficient. But most important is Usen', Earth Mother, and Sky Father. By walking in harmony with the God(esse)s, one can tell the Good from the Evil, welcoming in Good, and protecting each other from Evil. 3.) ETHICS: We have our code of Ethics. It is neither lengthy nor overly restrictive. We do not include ancient taboos in this list, such as Mother-In-Law avoidance or the taboo against Fish, because they may not apply nowadays. If you wish to not eat fish or to avoid your Mother-In-Law for religious reasons, it is your perogative. But it is not a requirement. 1.) If the action does not harm yourself, other people or intelligent beings, or Our Mother The Earth, you are free to do as you wish. 2.) To charge for healings, sweats or ceremonials is totally wrong and extremely offensive. Also, to charge excessively for teaching is equally offensive, but a modest fee over expenses is allowable. Your conscience is the best guide, that and the Will of the Deities. 3.) Magick should be limited only to protection of Self and Loved Ones, and to healing and helping those in need, provided that permission is given by the patient and that help other than healing does not interfere with the Will of others. Magick that is used in a coercive (IE. Love spells) or destructive (harming or killing magick) way is patently wrong and is considered Black Magick. 4.) Contact of spirits by any means other than Shamanic journeying or the Vision Quest is very risky, and Possession is a real possibility. The practice of mediumship, or "channeling" has no place in the Lifeway, and exposes not only Self but others to danger. 5.) Permission must always be asked of the spirits of plants and/or animals before taking them for either sustenance or for medicine. 6.) One's visions and one's personal ceremonies are one's own. Personal visions should not be spoken of, but shared visions are for all of the group. 7.) It is wrong to criticise another within the group or outside the group. Racism, sexism, xenophobia or general disrespect of others has no place in the Fellowship. Individual decisions about lifestyle and other ethical issues not covered here are an individual's own affair. 1223 4.):GROUP STRUCTURE AND INITIATION PRACTICES There is only one Initiation, which is the Initiation that makes one Kin within the group and in the sight of The Deities. It is given after one has taken their first Vision Quest, has found their Power Animal(s) and has met the Shaman Within. It can only be denied to those who have met these requirements, is younger than the legal Age Of Consent (in most places, 18 years) is not of sound mind, and/or is under suspicion of being a Law Enforcement Officer or other person antipathetic to Pagan and/or Shamanic belief who requests initiation for fraudulent purposes (usually to infilitrate to either sabotage or publically discredit the Fellowship) Initiation must not be denied on account of physical disabilities, blindness, deafness, or sterility, nor on account of sex, race, nationality, political belief, or sexual preference. There are no set offices within the Fellowship. Ideally, leadership should be by consensus, with true leaders being temporary and purpose-oriented. Facilitation of rituals may be done by any Initiate of the Fellowship. ANYONE WHO REPRESENTS THEMSELVES AS A HIGH PRIEST/ESS OF THE LIFEWAY SHAMANIC FELLOWSHIP IS A FRAUD, AND IS DOING SO CONTRARY TO THIS STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES AND ETHICS. Support of the Fellowship is done on a purely voluntary and mutual basis. No tithe or dues should be assessed unless they have been agreed upon by all members, initiates and non-initiates alike. Membership is extended to all. But initiation is reserved for those who meet the criteria mentioned above. Non-initiates can participate in open ceremonials and in basic workshops, but may be denied participation in certain ceremonials and advanced workshops. 1224 5.) THE QUESTION OF RECOGNIZING SHAMANS In traditional societies, the title Shaman was not just an honorific, or recognition of talents. Nor was it the highest initiatory level in a Shamanic society. The Shaman was, in most cases, above the Chief in decision-making power and was judge, doctor, father-confessor, and intercessor with the Deities for the tribe. Some Shamanic societies are now providing their membership with "Shaman training seminars" and "Shaman apprenticeships" that can be had for an exorbitant price. This implies that the cost of being a Shaman can be paid in money and in a set amount of time. This is not the case. Many tribes believe that the office of Shaman is not one that is earned, but one that one is born into. Certainly, the skills are never something one is born with, and this is not merely hereditary. Rather, when a child is born, the current Shaman would recognize that the child had the POTENTIAL of being the next one, and the child's training would begin when they were considered ready by the Shaman. At adulthood, they would be tested. If they passed the test, they would become the next Shaman. If they failed, usually the test was such that they would either die outright, or they would go insane. Many "heroic quest" tales, and most notably the Arthurian legends have echoes of this practice within the ancient Shamanic traditions of Europe. But the point that is being made here is that we should not go back to that sort of way of doing things, because in this society it is nigh on impossible. The stand I am offering here is that recognition as a Shaman can be conferred only through shared vision, and signs from the Deities. It is not my place to say what the signs are...it will be obvious to the Fellowship. I am not Shaman myself, and will not brook anyone calling me that. This is something I place in the lap of the Deities to decide. I cannot do anything more. It is a mockery of those people that can truly be called Shamans, who are respected, powerful people of traditional tribes, to do anything less. In any event, to claim such a title is definately not enough, and is punishable by withdrawing Fellowship from the one who claims to be Shaman falsely. 6.) FESTIVALS AND WORSHIP DAYS The festivals are reckoned as they have been for centuries by most Southwestern tribes, by both the Sun and the Moon. The seasons begin on the first full moon after a Solstice or an Equinox. The Solstices and Equinoxes themselves are times of celebration as well, and perhaps the period between the two (which usually works out to be no more than a week or so) could be considered a time of Holiday. Lesser ceremonials are held on New Moons and Full Moons between the first Full Moons of the seasons. Optionally certain Pagan festivals could be celebrated in conjunction with other groups, but they are not to be adopted as official Lifeway Fellowship ceremonial days. 1225 There are other ceremonials that are personal in nature, and can be held at any time, although synchronizing them with the Festivals and the New and Full Moons is advisable. They are Naming, where a newborn child is named in the presence of the group and their Life-beads given; Coming Of Age, where the child's physical maturity is acknowledged, and where, for a short time, they become Child of the Water (if a boy) or White Painted Woman (if a girl); Initiation, where a person becomes a full-fledged member of the group, given after a person becomes a legal adult; Joining, where a man and a woman consent to be married; Unjoining, where a man and woman who are married consent to have the bond dissolved, which is to be done only after four reconcili- ation attempts fail or after evidence of marital infidelity or abuse is given before the group; the Moonlodge, which is a special sweat for women in their Moon-time; and Release, where a ceremony for a dead member of the Fellowship is done to guide their soul Back Home. Other ceremonials that are dreamed or envisioned by a person or group are also encouraged. 7.) SUMMING UP A few quick ones: One can be either clothed or unclothed at ceremonies, but it should be known that none of the Southwestern tribes did ceremonies in the nude. However, one should disrobe for the sweat lodge, as clothes are not only uncomfortable within the sweat lodge, but interfere with the cleansing process of the lodge. This Statement can be accepted or rejected by individual groups that federate themselves with Lifeway Fellowship. But federation can be denied to those groups who stray too far from some of the basic guidelines, or do anything that would sully the reputation of the Fellowship in general. Hi-dicho...this is finished. May these proceeds please Life Giver Usen', and the Mother and the Father. ENJU! Chihacou White-Puma, 1988. 1226 THE LAST DRAGON by Gerald del Campo In the land of Oz lived a great Wizard named Albert Creemshaw. He was loved by everyone, and became quite popular when he destroyed the Last Dragon in a great battle between the forces of oppression and the powers of Freedom. When the villagers heard that the monster had been killed they rushed the mountain side where the Dragon had its nest and proceeded to break the eggs; thereby insuring the destruction of the creatures forever. What they did not know, was that Albert had snuck one of the eggs out before the villagers got there. He cared for it in his Castle and through his great magical ability he was able to genetically alter the dragon fetus so that it would soon be the watcher of the people; a symbol of freedom and great strength. But he kept this a secret from the people because they were not ready yet for the trial which awaited them; they would just have ganged up and tried to kill the Little Dragon. He became a Hermit and loved the little creature. One day the Wizard received a message from his God that he would have to move on, and release his body the way that a butterfly sheds its cocoon. So Albert called for the Council of The Sword and Shield, a ruling body of his most trusted students, and told them about the little dragon. At first they were repulsed by the idea of bringing up the offspring of the object of their misery; but the Magician persuaded them by telling them that the little dragon would soon be the symbol of freedom and strength: they swore by the Warrior Gods they would care for it. The following evening, while the Full Moon shined on the peaceful waters of Oz, Albert and his God left forever. Upon finding their Master dead, the Council released the information about the Little Dragon to the people of Oz. The people of Oz loved Albert as much as he loved them, and after they saw how fragile this poor orphaned creature was they decided amongst themselves that they would honor those raising the little dragon, for the dragon would represent all of the things Albert himself stood for. 1227 Things went well, for a while. The favoritism displayed by the people of Oz towards the Priests and Priestesses that cared for the Dragon created turmoil: all of the sudden there were power struggles within the Council, its members were fighting over who would supervise the education of the Little Dragon, who would feed it, who would educate it. They set up rules specifically designed to make it impossible for others to reach the grades appropiate to caring for the Dragon so that only a few on top could reap the benefits associated with caring for the Little Dragon. One would say: "I have risked my life and given all so that the little dragon could have food", and his ego was pleased. The other would say: "While you first despised the dragon I stood fast in my duty to care for it, for I have kept my word", and her ego was satisfied. The people were so impressed by the "devotion and selflessness" of The Council that certain members were given gifts of silver, gold, spices, and women. Treated as Gods for their sense of duty. Everyone at The Council became so preoccupied with the power struggle, and with keeping their peers in lower positions that they forgot about the little, fragile Dragon. When they finally gained their senses, and returned to the Castle where it was guarded they found it dead, starved from attention and sustenance. They then realized that empty, lost feeling Albert himself would have felt, if HE had killed the Last Dragon. 1228 Circle casting Dragon style Cameron Mandrake I just thought I'd drop a note on the traditional Dragon Tradition Circle casting. The circle is cast with the Blade, the Cup and the Censor. The Priest starts with the Blade in the north and draws the boundry of the circle. As he does he recites "I tread this Path for the Elements, that which comprises all that we see." The HPS takes to sprinkling the boundries with the Cup filled with salted water. She recites "I tread this Path for Self, a reflection of the Divine." The HP then takes the censor and carries the smoketo the boundries of the circle in a deosil direction. He recites "I tread this Path for Spirit, that which unites all things." The HP or HPS then state the charge of our Circle. It is as follows. "Our Circle is a place where hearts and minds can meet and share in the wonder and empowerment of a living and loving Goddess. We are a coven of friends, but above all things we are Family. Our Love and our Magick binds us together and our Circle keeps us and nurtures us. We are blessed. Blessed Be!" The Dragon Guardians are then invoked. EAST Mighty Dragon, Guardian of the realms of the East. Your tongue is a sharp sword, cutting with the knowledge of the arcane. Your spirit flows as graceful as a swift in flight. Purify us with truth. Blessed Be. SOUTH Mighty Dragon, Guardian of the realms of the South, your breath is aflame with the fires of inspiration and passion. Your spirit is searing and fervent. Purify us with Love. Blessed Be. WEST Mighty Dragon, Guardian of the realms of the West, your coils are the cleansing healing waves that nurture the soul. Your spirit lunges, leaps and splashes like a Talbot at play. Purify us with pulsing tides. Blessed Be. NORTH Mighty Dragon, Guardian of the realms of the North, your talons run like roots into the earth, giving you infinite strength. Your spirit is substantial, hard and pure like a clear crystal. Purify us with persistant wisdom. Blessed Be. Each of these Dragons has a secret name that they are also invoked with. A suggestion is that anyone using these invocations meditate to find an appropriate name for each Guardian and use it along with or instead of the words "Mighty Dragon". 1229 I find that the Circle charge sets the mood for the Circle and I change it to suit the situation. If anyone has ideas for a Circle charge, I'd like to hear them. I have a number of Circle charges that I use but fresh ones always are nice. Blessed Be. Cameron Mandrake ... Copyright 1992 - DragonHart Coven - All Rights Reserved 1230 ON THE NUMBER 451 (The true nature of the A.`. A.'.) Publication in Class B ORDO ARGENTUM ASTRUM Anthra Andromda The number is a very interesting one indeed. Originally suggested by David Cherubim, in connection with the "true" meaning of the initials A.`. A.'.. At first glance there doesn't seem to be much there...BUT! 451 = 4 + 5 + 1 = 10 = 1. A glyph of the cycle. The monad starting its trek through experience in the infinite body of Nuith and returning to this supreme Unity. 451 = ATh HADM. The essence of Man. Also Ath ADMH (a Temurah), The essence of the attained Man. ADMH also means "Red Earth" in the traditional sense. However, there is a rather 'new' qabalistic operation at work here, that of fusing or synthesis.That of two words joining to make a new one (or an old one) with a new meaning. Here we have 'ADM' and 'MH'. Both words add to 45, which may be a key to the way things are working here. ADM, Man and MH, Yetzirah. In this case we have man identified with Yetzirah to which he aspires. Crowley says of this number, "Thus 45 baffles the accuser, but only by affirmation of progress. It cannot help that progress." Quite true, it baffles! ADMH is 50, and is "red earth". This would seem to have little to do with the foregoing. However, consider this; in the word ADMH we have the 'H' appended. This would place the number five behind the Man, and would have the effect of giving him motion in a forward direction (indicating progressive motion). When the number 451 is divided by the number 51 (451/51) the result is 8.02. Perhaps not much here, but! The number 802 is twice that of 401 (essences) and is defined in 'Sepher Sephiroth' as; "401 X 2 = The Reflection of 401, which is the (Th a), alpha and omega". It also refers to the three grades of A.`. A.'. above the abyss. As to the number 8.02; the number 8 is that of Ch = Chith = 418. And the 2 represents the 'extended' monad proceeding from the infinitely small and un-extended point. Thus it is representative of the 'human' Star, the true essences of Man that aspires to the higher, or in Enochian terms; That Star (monad) that aspires, and is driven, to a higher place in the hierarchy of the Universe. This is accomplished by the motion imparted to it by the 'H' which gives the Star motion so that it may gain in experience. Now, 401 = 5 = Motion. And, 50 = 5 = Motion, and is also the 14th letter of the Hebrew alphabet; Nun. The mystic number of 'Nun' is 300, which is the number of the 21st letter of the Hebrew alphabet 'Sh' Shin. Shin refers Yetziratically to fire, and is symbolic of the 'Holy Spirit' and therefore is the letter and number of 'Spirit'. Spirit is unmanifested energy, and matter is manifested energy (another pos- sibility for the 2 of 8.02) which is, in a sense, the whole nature of Man. This duality of man is shown in dual nature of his motion. The 401 which is the essences of his motion (the higher) and the 50 which is the manifestation of this motion. 1231 CROWLEY'S ESSAY on MAN. "The Mind of the Father riding on the subtle guiders which glitter with the inflexible tracings of relentless fire." ZOROASTER. MAN. "What is man, that thou art mindful of him?" Man being the subject of these Essays, it is first proper to explain what will be meant therein by the word. Man is a microcosm: that is, an image (concentrated around the point of consciousness) of the macrocosm, or Universe. This Theorem is guaranteed by the hylo-idealistic demonstration that the perceptible Universe is an extension, or phantasm, of the nervous system. It follows that all phenomena, internal and external, may be classified for the purpose of discussing their observed relations, in any manner which experience may show to be the most convenient. (Examples: the elaborate classifications of science, chemical, phys- ical, etc., etc. There is no essential truth in any of these aids to thinking: convenience is the sole measure.) Now for the purposes of analysing the spiritual nature of man, of recording and measuring his experiences in this kind, of planning his progress to loftier heights of attainment, several systems have been devised. That of the Abhid- hamma is on the surface alike the most practical, the most scientific, and the most real; but for European students it is cer- tainly far too unwieldly, to say nothing of other lines of criticism. Therefore, despite the danger of vagueness involved in the use of a system whose terms are largely symbolic, I have, for many reasons, preferred to present to the world as an international basis for classification, the classico-mathematical system which is vulgarly and erroneously (though conveniently) called the Qabalah. The Qabalah, that is, the Jewish Tradition concerning the initiated interpretation of their Scriptures, is mostly either unintelligible or nonsense. But it contains as it ground-plan the most precious jewel of human thought, that geometrical arrangement of names and numbers which is called the Tree of Life. I call it the most precious, because I have found it the most convenient method hitherto discovered of classifying the phenomena of the Universe, and recording their relat- ions. Whereof the proof is the amazing fertility of thought which has followed my adoption of this scheme. Since all phenomena soever may be referred to the Tree of Life (which may be multiplied or subdivided at will for convenience' sake) it is evidently useless to attempt any complete account of it. The cor- respondences of each unit -- the Ten Sephiroth and the Two-and-Twenty Paths -- are infinite. The art of using it consists principally in referring all our ideas to it, discovering thus the common nature of certain things and the essential differences between others, so that ultimately one obtains a simple view of the incalculably vast com- plexity of the Universe. 1232 The whole subject must be studied in the Book 777, and the main attributions committed to memory: then when by constant use the system is at last understood -- as opposed to being merely memorized -- the student will find fresh light break in on him at every turn as he continues to measure every item of new knowledge that he attains by this Standard. For to him the Universe will then begin to appear as a coherent and a necessary Whole. For the purpose of studying these Little Essays, it will be sufficient if a bare outline of the Cosmic Theory which they imply be given: but it may be added that, the fuller the comprehension of the Tree of Life which the reader brings to them, the clearer will their thought appear, and the more cogent their conclusions. (1) Jechidah This is the quintessential principle of the Soul, that which makes man at the same time identical with every other spark of Godhead, and different (as regards his point-of-view, and the Universe of which it is the centre) from all others. It is a Point, possessing only posit- ion; and that position is only definable by reference to co-ordinate axes, to secondary principles, which only pertain to it per accidents, and must be postulated as our conception grows. (2) Chiah. This is the Creative Impulse or Will of Jechidah, the energy which demands the formulation of the co-ordinate axes aforesaid, so that Jechidah may obtain self-realization, a formal understanding of what is implicit in its nature, of its possible qualities. (3) Neschamah. This is the faculty of understanding the Word of Chiah. It is the intelligence or intuition of what Jechidah wishes to discover about itself. These three principles constitute a Trinity; they are one, because they represent the being, and apparatus which will make the manifest- ation possible, of a God, in manhood. But they are only, so to speak, the mathematical structure of man's nature. One might compare them with the laws of physics as they are before they are discovered. There are as yet no data by whose examination they may be discerned. A conscious man, according, cannot possibly know anything of these three principles, although they constitute his essence. It is the work of Initiation to journey inwards to them. See, in the Oath of a Probationer of A.`. A.'. "I pledge myself to discover the nature and powers of my own Being." This triune principle being wholly spiritual, all that can be said about it is really negative. And it is complete in itself. Beyond it stretches what is called The Abyss. This doctrine is extremely dif- ficult to explain; but it corresponds more or less to the gap in thought between the Real, which is ideal, and the Unreal, which is actual. In the Abyss all things exist, indeed, at least in posse, but are without any possible meaning; for they lack the substratum of spiritual Reality. They are appearances without Law. They are thus Insane Delusions. 1233 Now the Abyss being thus the great storehouse of Phenomena, it is the source of all impressions. And the Triune Principle has intended a machine for investigating the Universe; and this machine is the fourth Principle of Man. (4) Ruach This may be translated Mind, Spirit, or Intellect: none of these is satisfactory, the connotation varying with every writer. The Ruach is a closely-knitted group of Five Moral and Intellectual principles, concentrated on their core, Tiphareth, the Principle of Harmony, the Human Consciousness and Will of which the four other Sephiroth are (so to speak) the feelers. And these five principles culminate in a sixth, Da(acu)ath, Knowledge. But this is not really a principle; it contains in itself the germ of self-contradiction and so of self-destruction. It is a false principle: for. as soon as Knowledge is analysed, it breaks up into the irrational dust of the Abyss. Man's aspiration to Knowledge is thus simply a false road: it is to spin ropes of sand. We cannot here enter into the doctrine of the "Fall of Adam," invented to explain in parable how it is that the Universe is so unfortunately constituted. We are concerned only with the observed facts. All these mental and moral faculties of the Ruach, while not purely spiritual like the Supernal Triad, are still, as it were, "in the air." To be of use, they need a basis through which to receive impres- sions, much as a machine requires fuel and fodder before it can manufacture the article which it is designed to produce. (5) Nephesch. This is usually translated the "Animal Soul." It is the vehicle of the Ruach, the instrument by which the Mind is brought into contact with the dust of Matter in the Abyss, that it may feel it, judge it, and react to it. This is itself a principle still spiritual, in a sense; the actual body of man as composed of the dust of Matter, temporarily held together by the Principles which inform it, for their own pur- poses, and ultimately for the supreme purposes of self-realization of Jechidah. But Nephesch, devised as it is with no other object that the direct traffic with Matter, tends to partake of its incoherence. Its facul- ties of perceiving pain and pleasure lure it into paying undue atten- tion to one set of phenomena, into shunning another. Hence, for the Nephesch to do its work as it should, it requires to be dominated by the severest discipline. Nor is the Ruach itself to be trusted in this matter. It has its own tendencies to weakness and injustice. It tries every trick -- and it is diabolically clever -- to arrange its busi- ness with Matter in the sense most convenient to its inertia, without the smallest consideration of its duty to the Supernal Triad, cut off as that is from its comprehension; indeed, unsuspecting as it normally is of its existence. 1234 What then determines Tiphareth, the Human Will, to aspire to comprehend Neschamah, to submit itself to the divine Will of Chiah? Nothing but the realization, born sooner or later of agonizing ex- perience, that its whole relation through Ruach and Nephesch with Matter, i.e.,with the Universe, is, and must be, only painful. The senselessness of the whole procedure sickens it. It begins to seek for some menstruum in which the Universe may become intelligible, useful and enjoyable. In Qabalistic language, it aspires to Neschamah. This is what we mean in saying that the Trance of Sorrow is the motive of the Great Work. This "Trance of Sorrow" (which must be well-distinguished from any petty personal despair, and "conviction of sin," or other black magical imitations) being cosmic in scope, comprehending all phenomena actual or potential, is then already an Opening of the Sphere of Neschamah. The awareness of one's misfortune is itself an indication of the remedy. It sets the seeker on the right road, and as he devel- ops his Neschamah he soon attains other Experiences of this high order. Her learns the meaning of his own true Will, to pronounce his own Word, to identify himself with Chiah. Finally, realizing Chiah as the dynamic aspect of Jechidah, he becomes that pure Being, at once universal and individual, equally nothing, One, and All. It is of the essence of the Ideas of the Supernal Triad that the Laws of Reason which apply to intellectual functions are no longer oper- ative. Hence it is impossible to convey the nature of these Experien- ces in rational language. Further, their scope is infinite in every direction, so that it would be futile to attempt to enumerate or to describe them in detail. All that one can do is to note the common types in very general language, and to indicate what experience has shown to be the most useful main lines of research. The Quest of the Holy Grail, the Search for the Stone of the Philosophers -- by whatever name we choose to call the Great Work -- is therefore endless. Success only opens up new avenues of brilliant possibility. Yea, verily, and Amen! the task is tireless and its joys without bounds; for the whole Universe, and all that in it is, what is it but the infinite playground of the Crowned and Conquering Child, of the insatiable, the innocent, the ever-rejoicing Heir of Space and Eternity, whose name is MAN? In Enochian Physics Man is known as 'the monad', we shall discuss the nature of the monad or 'Star' from the Enochian view. MONAD MODEL. In conjunctionwith theCosmic Planes andElements Model, Enochian Physics proposes the Enochian Monad Model. These two models are not meant to be independent, rather they are inclusive and are only separated for convience. 1235 A monad isdefined asan indivisible unit(Hadit), but,is used in the sense that a monad is the infinitely small conscious point of every entity. The only difference between monads is experience. Giordano Bruno taught that the monad was the ultimate spiritual particle and that all entities had a monad at their center, the core of their being. Every monad is monastic above the first Aethyr (LIL), and is dualistic below. This duality takes many forms as the monad manifests itself downward. Basically, it consists of a subjective self in the center of an objective world. Figure 2 shows a pictorial representation of this model. 000000000 0 0 INDIVISIBLE MONAD 0 monadic 0 0 essence 0 000000000 | +-----------------------+ | ring-pass-not | +-----------------------+ | LIL - first Aethyr 000000000 0 0 DUALIST Watchtowers 0 I 0 MONAD (Life-atom) | 0 0 | 000000000 <-- NOT-I (world) TIME SPACE FORM FIG. 2 ENOCHIAN AXIOMS. 1. Man, and every entity (thing) in existence, is in his (its) essence a monad. This monadic essence expresses itself as a subjective 'I' and an objective 'NOT-I'. 2. A monad's geometric equivalent is the sphere. The center is the 'I'. The surface of the sphere is the 'NOT-I'. 3. The 'I' is conscious individuality. 4. The 'NOT-I' is the world in which the 'I' finds itself at any given point in time and space. 5. Everygeometric pointinspace isan 'I-NOT-I'monad in some stage of self-expression. 6. Any'I'can communicatewith anyother 'I'onlyin sofar as their 'NOT-I's' intersect. 7. A world is defined as a set of intersections of a host of 'NOT-I's' at any given point in time and space. 8. Subsets of 'I's' are mutually exclusive. 9. Subsets of 'NOT-I's' may be either exclusive or inclusive. 1236 10. The monadic essence of each monad allows multitudinous expression, but no 'I' can ever separate itself from or exist independently of its 'NOT-I'. THEOREMS OF ENOCHIAN PHYSICS. 1. Every person is an 'I-NOT-I' monad. 2. Every point in space is a consciousness center. 3. Energy flows from one cosmic plane or sub-plane to an adjacent cosmic plane or sub-plane through Laya centers, dimensionless points of space which serve as channels for the flow of energies and forces. 4.Spirit isunmanifested energy.Matter ismanifested energy. 5. Every manifestation within space and time is dualistic. 6. Space, time, and consciousness come into existance simultaneously. 7. Every energy field and every force in our universe is directed by the True Will. THE FORCES OF MAGICK. There aresix Magickal forcesthat aremanifested inexis- tance. These six forces, by necessity, manifest in dual triads, the upper, and the lower. THE UPPER TRIAD; 1.Divine Force. This is said to be the "Supreme Force" relative to our universe. This so-called 'Supreme Force' is known as 'The TRUE WILL'. It is the 'Divine' driving force of Hadit. 2.CreativeForce.TheKundaliniofEasternthought,manifest- ing, below the Abyss, as electromagnetic energy. 3.Thought Force.This isthe occultforce thatoften takes the form of projection, and continually projects fundamental subjec- tive ideas of the 'I' outward into the 'NOT-I'. 1237 THE LOWER TRIAD; 1.MindForce.Thisforceshouldproperlybecalled 'Intellec- tual', and would be attributed to Mercury. This is the reasoning and logical powers of the intelligent entity. This force also includes all of the senses. 2.Will Force.Thisis thelowermanifestation ofthe'Divine Force'. This force is what drives us in a physical sense, it is our outer needs and desires. It is what most 'men' perceive as their 'will', however it is frequently the opposite side of the 'Will Duality'. 3.Word Force.Wordsand Letters,speechand physicalaction make up this aspect of the magickal forces. It is the power of sound, which has long been known in the west. God is said to create by uttering His Word. Consider this; some politicians are virtual masters of this magickal force. As can beseen thereis little realdifference betweenthe Enochian view of man and that of the Thelemic Magician, with the main differences being that of nomenclature. It can also be seen that the six 'magical forces' generally correspond to the five divisions of man as set forth by Crowley, with the exception of the sixth 'force'. This extra point is comprised of the actions performed by the first five. If we think of man as a hexagram, instead of a pentagram, we have the four elements, spirit, and motion. The elementsand spiritmakeup theessential man,but heis still static. With the addition of the sixth, he becomes dynamic, capable of experience. It is then this 'man' that has the 'essences of man', for until he becomes dynamic by virtue of his motion, and gains in experience, he is incapable of attainment. As wasstatedabove, Man'saspirationis toahigher placein the hierarchy of the universe. Here then are the Laws of Hierarchies, they will show, though perhaps not directly, how this ascension (attainment) is made possible. HIERARCHIES LawofHierarchies. Fromthe highestrealmsof spiritto the lowest levels of matter, everything in between is composed of a host of gods, monads or life atoms arranged in a myriad of hierarchies. The following rules apply: 1.All aggregatesare composedof hierarchies.All things, save Hadit, are aggregates. We see in our world complete structures, which are composed of molecules, atoms, and sub-atomic particles in one direction. And planets, solar systems, and galaxies in another. Thus science has enabled us to see, on a mundane level, that our physical universe is composed of some basic hierarchies. Though from rules 3 and 4 we see that these hierarchies continue unto infinity. 1238 2.Foreveryhierarchy thereisagoverningruler orhierarch. On our personal level we have that which is referred to as our Holy Guardian Angel. Aswe descend to the atomic level, we have the >nuc- leus< of the atom. Each component of that atom has, in turn, its own hierarch. In our worldly governments we see examples of these hier- archs; mayors, governors, presidents, etc. And we can begin to see our place in the physical manifestation of these hierarchies. We are also members of hierarchies on less physical, or spiritual levels, though little is known of these. 3.Hierarchiesdescendinfinitelyintomatter.Again,fromour 'middle world, we see the manifestation of yet smaller structures or hierarchies, which descend to the smallest particles which science is able to see or theorize. 4.Hierarchiesascendinfinitelyinto spirit.Ontheselevels little is known, science has or can not enter into the realm of spirit. We do know, however, that our own personal hierarch is our H.G.A., and that logically we are but a component part of some yet higher structure or hierarchy. 5.The universehas ahierarchicalstructure, interlinking groups of entities living and working together. If we look sky-ward we can begin to see something of this structure on a physical level. Out stellar universe is made up of planets, solar systems, stellar clust- ers, galaxies, and on and on. While earth is not yet working with other groups of entities on a stellar level (as far as we are allowed to know), it is clear that we must share the same stellar environment with others. We can, however, observe this 'working together' here on planet earth. We can see the governments of cities, counties, states, and countries working toward what is per- ceived as the common good (at least in most cases). 6.Hierarchies areborn,evolve, anddie.The bestexampleof this, I think, is ourselves. We are born into this world, grow and experience (evolve) over some period of time then die, this is all a part of what we call 'life'. Other examples of this rule may be seen in various extinct forms of animal life, which came into existance, evolved over time, then died out. We can also see examples on the stellar level, stars which are born from collections of gases, grow and evolve into fiery furnaces, then die out. 7.Worlds arecreatedby hierarchiesof cosmicbuilders and architects acting together. 8. Everyworld containshierarchies of recorderswho con- stitute the forces of karmic history. 9. Thecosmic elementsand planesarecomposed ofcountless hosts of evolving hierarchies. Theselast tworules are forthe mostpart redundant(see 3 and 4 above); they serve to stress the fact that hierarchies do, in fact, extend infinitely in all directions. 10. Every hierarchyis composedof a hostof smallerhier- archies. 11. Every hierarchy is a component part of a larger hierarchy. 1239 Thuswehave theEnochianview onthe nature,place,and path of Man. To better understand this mystery of the true meaning of A.`. A.'. and this nature of man we may now look at some of the Temurahs of the number 451. These are;451, 415,541, 514,145, and154. Weshall start with the least of these. The number 145; InSepher Sephiroth it is definedas the numerical value of the 13 paths of the Beard of Microprosopus. Thenumber 154;Againfrom SepherSephiroth;it is'Elohimof Loves', and we are referred to the number 149. The reference in 149 is to 'The living GODS'. Inthese two numbers we have references to Man and this 'Starry' nature. Though in the number 149 it is perhaps more direct. 'The living GODS', indeed, the most tangible link between man and GOD is this 'Starry' essence. Both Man and ANY GOD that one cares to think of are at the core one and the same, that is to say, that we are all made of the same stuff, we are all MONADS at some level of evolution. But, on we go. Thenumber415;Still againfromSepherSephiroth. Thenumber is that of the Voice of the Chief Seer and also 'The Holy One'. Stillagainsubtle referencestothis 'Star'naturewhich we have already examined. The number 514and 541. Hereare references thatare abit more obscure. 514 gives reference to 'KABBALA DENUDATA', a reference that unfortunately I will have to pass on due to a mis-fortune beyond my control. The number 541 refers to 'Israel', which at first may seem strange, but, historically Israel is/are 'Gods' chosen people. We may take this to mean 'Free Man' in the Thelemic sense. The number is thus indicating Man, or rather those Men that have risen above the slavery of the old aeon and have begun to ascend/aspire to Yetzirah. Those Men who have realized some small part of their true essence. So then! Just what he hell is the true meaning of the initials A.`. A.'. and the number 451? It is no more and surely no less than the MONAD! Though others may use different words and different systems to explain this, their meaning will of necessity be the same. 1240 CHAOS vs THELEMA ? Alistair Livingstone Inspired, no doubt foolishly, by a new moon and the Cramps`"Psychedelic Jungle", I have decided to enter the Thelema vs Chaos debate. This is of course an impossible task, which is no doubt why it appeals to me. Firstly, what is it that distinguishes Thelma from Chaos? In Starfire, Mick Staley attempts to distinguish Thelema from Crowleyanity. Thelema he suggested pre-existed Crowley`s formulation of it. This immediately causes problems, since for the majority of magicians, Crowley = Thelema. But if it can be accepted that there is a something which exists independently of Crowley`s writings, then it must be this something (Thelema) which is to be contrasted with Chaos Magick. The core of this something, I suggest, is the Will. Is this idea of the Will in any way opposed to Chaos? What is Chaos then? For the purposes of this argument I will interpret Chaos as follows: that the familiar world of everyday experience has its roots in Chaos. So that any attempt to understand the world via reason reaches a boundary, on the other side of which lies Chaos, a state of existence/non-existence which cannot be understood by the rational ego. However, through the techniques of ritual, that state can be manifest in the everyday world, suspending the accepted "laws" of common sense and allowing magick to occur. Furthermore, perhaps as a result of the practice Chaos magick, the idea of Chaos is slowly entering the popular imagination via science. This refutes classical science, which is based on the belief that if the structure of the physical world could be sufficiently precisely modelled in a mathematical form, it would be possible to predict the future state of various systems (wheather, for example) which make up the physical world. However, it is now grudgingly admitted that this would require a precision of measurement which it is impossible to achieve. Engineers have long since had to accept this uncertainty - that all measurement is limited by the accuracy of the measuring device. Absolute precision is an impossible goal. There is always a degree of uncertainty, an instability, and by focusing the Will upon this either/or region, the magician can exert an influence upon the world at this level, which when it occurs, can produce the Willed outcome. To the extent that Chaos is a form of magick, ie. it seeks to exert an influence upon the world of erveryday consciousness, it must involve the Will. Otherwise it would be closer to a form of mysticism, that is the attempt to "go with the flow" of the experienced world without seeking to influence the direction of that flow. In this form, Chaos is closer to a "higher form of order", that is that the apparent random or chance events of one`s experience of existence are in fact the result of some greater existence than that of the individual. And that by disengaging the desires of the ego-self, one can experience this greater existence, interpreting the obstacles and blows of everyday existence as a stimulus to the development of a "Stoic" consciousness, which will enable the self to eventually swimm freely as a fish in the river of the Tao, or Chaos. 1241 The idea which this is based on tends to be that of the hermit, the forest sage of Hinduism, the solitary adept of High Magick. No doubt if it was possible in this present age, one could experience such an existence if one could remove the self from the rest of human existence. But such a model is no longer valid, since the growth of human consciousness is such that there is no virgin wilderness left in which to undertake such a quest. We are forced to contend with the results of the human desire for knowledge, power, control and security. This is perhaps the crucial difference between Chaos magick and Thelema. Thelema, as developed by Crowley into a form suitable for the 20th century, contains a whole heritage of experience and practice which reaches back through the Golden Dawn through hermeticism to Egypt and Sumeria, which in turn drew on the beliefs of our nameless ancestors who struggled to create models of the world, cosmologies and creation myths within which to make sense of their being in the world. Crowley`s task, as had been of Mathers and Eliphas Levi before him, was to synthesize this vast body of conscious/unconscious knowledge and represent it in a way understandable by at least a few of his contemporaries. Partly it is a question of language. Unfortunately the language of magick was limited by the dominance of Judeao-Christianity on the one hand and Reason on the other. Our everyday language derives from our perception of a world made up of distinguishable objects, and on the faculty of sight primarily. But as soon as we move into the more subjective sphere of magick, problems arise. To what extent do we share the same magickal reality and use words such as "the Will" in the same way? The problem is not confined to magick. For a time I worked in quality control at London Rubber. Periodically I had to compare my work with others to make sure we were all applying the same so that I was not rejecting condoms that another person was passing. In science the theory is that one person`s work is critically examined by their peer group. The difficulty is that as soon as creativity enters the picture, it will tend to disrupt this process. The test of any form of magick should be "does it work?". But how can that be judged, since the results of a ritual may not become apparent for some time. In the early eighties, much work was done to halt the expansion of nuclear weaponry. But it is only now, as profound changes occur in Eastern Europe, that this can be judged a success. And the changes may yet be lost by a failure of imagination and the difficulty of challenging the parasitic military-industrial complexes of both East and West. Thelema may be saddled with the archaic terminology inherited via Crowley from the Golden Dawn, but at its heart lies a crucial bullshit detector. I have found that the question "what is your Will?" directed at any group or individual who claims to be desiring change is a very effective challenge. What is unsettling, however, is the discovery that in most cases it evokes only silence, or at best a string of evasions. 1242 This I feel is the most damaging criticism of Thelema, that it has failed to cross over from magick into the diverse pool of "alternative" beliefs which seek to reshape society. This is hardly a question of mere academic interest, as Green issues emerge and look set to dominate the next decade, the "spiritual", that is neo-pagan, belief structures which infest Green consciousness are also going to exert a growing influence. We may yet discover that the future, as the Dead Kennedy predicted, will be "California šber Alles". Can Chaos magick then succeed where Thelema has not (yet)? I doubt it, since the reaction to both by the average alternative type (let alone Joe Normal) is that it is "too dark". The very word "Chaos" tends to get tagged with "anarchy" and evoke nightmare visions of mad-axemen running wild in the street. Of course, for some this may be its very appeal, anything so bad must be good... No, somehow we have to achieve the Sysphean task of applying the notion of Will like Occam`s razor to the fast mulitiplying dualistic entities of New Age (un)awareness. In practical terms I understand this to mean directing our Wills at and with the growing Green movement, so that rather than disappearing into a fog of "good intentions", it becomes a real and willed critique of consumer culture. Just as Marxism failed to achieve its desires, since the working class had already been "mobilizised" by the capitalists, so magick fails since the energies of the mass unconscious have already been tapped by advertising, via the mass media. The energy tending towards change of consciousness (evolution) has been subverted by consumer culture into the desire to possess an unending stream of glass beads and cheap cottons, or in our case, microwave ovens and mink belly-button brushes. The whole thrust of advertising is to bypass our logic circuits and touch directly our desire for status and security. We don`t just buy the product, we buy the dream, maya the illusion of success. It is, however much we may protest, a form of magick. I may be an impoverished squatter in a third world shanty town, but if I can buy a bottle of Coke, I believe I possess the whole dream of the richest American millionaire. I may be a Trabant owning East German, but by crossing the (former) abyss of the Wall I become a potential Porsche possessor. But if you look at those already possess such dreams, what do you find? That it is, as in California, these same people who turn to the most ridiculous New Age bullshit in order to satisfy their craving for something more, for something to fill up the endless aching void they feel scratching and gnawing like some Charles Manson nightmare outside the walls of their Beverly Hills mansions. But of course, the last thing they want to hear is "the truth". Better to create a multi-billion dollar New Age industry than accept that within the richest mansions lies the reality of Chaos, of that Void which spins around itself the veils of maya, the dance of illusion, in which one is equally a starving beggar and a voluptuous moviestar. "What is your Will?". 1243 Of course I am somewhat prejudiced for all I used to sing along with Bowie on Ziggy Stardust (I could make it all worthwhile as a rock n roll star) I chose magick as a path. Through experiences both beautiful and terrifying I have come to understand the human condition as but one aspect of a continuum of consciousness. For me, the whole universe is a living entity which I interact with in the fleeting streams of energies which inspire my awareness. Both rationally and poetically I perceive my brain, my body as part of the very substance of the universe and not distinguishable from it (ie NUIT). For me, the human condition is part tragedy, part farce. We are semi-intelligent apes who have been driven by fleeting glimpses of what might be, to create this world, our reality. But in our ignorance, we mistake the glimpse for the whole, the ego for the self. We strive for "order" and create a chaos, and then recognize in chaos a "higher form of order". "Knowledge is power, power is control, control is security". Oh yeah? But knowledge is also pleasure, a pleasure more intense than any created by security. Security is sterility, sterility is death. We pay lip service to evolution, but cannot accept that evolution implies change, and change denise security. What do we will? If our will is security, stability, then that we shall have, as so many fossils. To embrace Chaos (Thelema) is to renounce such false gods and accept that our actions as magicians will change not only ourselves, but our world. Insofar as both Chaos and Thelema are valid paths, thus far will they change us. To cling to an identity, however pleasing or fulfilling, is a denial of magick. Magick is about change, the only constant factor in the unfolding of the implicate order/chaos of the universe. Along with Thelema and Chaos, I also practise the magick of Maat. To the Egyptians Maat was the "right order of the universe". The contrast is between the familiar Hindu concept of "karma", which deals with our human existence and the less familiar concept of "rta" which deals with our aspects as forms of (universal) consciousness. Magick diverged from science some 300 years ago. Science sought to discover "the hand of god" in the natural world; magick sought to become the equal of the gods. Now we witness the overlapping of these paths. We are no longer the creations of some distant god, but the natural products of the universe. We have "evolved" out of a handful of organic chemicals. Now we have the ability, through the replication of DNA to evolve ourselves. We have, literally, the powers of a god. What we lack, and what magick must seek to provide, is the intelligence to use (or refuse) such power. The way to achieve this is to ask the question: "what is our will?" Are our genes our motivating force, or is there something else which I call "consciousness"? This consciousness I hold to be implicit in the structure of the universe, and has been revealed as such by quantum physics, however difficult such a realisation may be for us. It may be unprovable/undeniable, and therefore unscientific, but I suggest that our so-called consciousness is a quantum phenomena. 1244 This is what Crowley experienced as the interplay of Nuit and Hadit in the Book of the Law. It is also the root of Chaos. So that Thelema and Chaos are but different aspects of a single (multiple) experience, expressed in languages appropriate to their different times and ambiences. Alone I cannot fully express the complexity of these possibilities, and yet we must each try to do so. Only by placing them at the heart of our experience of being in the world, can we hope to create a society which will survive rather than perish under its unconscious contradictions. As yet we are but "naked apes", but we are apes with sufficiently complex brains to at least glimpse the possibility of being more than we are and become "homo veritas", that is truly human at last. As we are, we cannot fully know this to be true, only with our imagination can we glimpse the potential implied. It is my Will to bring this about, this is why I write these words, that they have touch and stimulate whoever may read them. So mote it be. On rereading the above, I feel the need to expand the argument somewhat. Having bashed my way through an anthropological essay on nationality and the state, it struck me that recent events in Eastern Eurpe have many consequences. The whole point of the "iron curtain", was to allow East to develop its alternative economic system, as spelt out by Marx. What is happening now is the incorporation of that economic system into a global economy, which implies the failure of Marxism. This failure leaves a power vacuum. The majority of critiques of the Western power structure have come from Marxism. But if it is now seen to have failed, the possibility exists for a more powerful critique to arise. Where will we find this critique - in magick. Of course this requires magicians to adopt a more rigorous intellectual approach to their