PUBLISHER: DIETER RÜGGEBERG / WUPPERTAL
WESTERN GERMANY, 1991
DEDICATION
CONTENTS Remembering his high task, set to him by Divine Providence, the
author of "Initiation into Hermetics" here delivers to sincere
seekers after truth his second work, "The Practice of Magical
Evocation".
During the course of time, especially during recent centuries,
many books have been written and published about magic, but
usually in such a misleading and incomplete manner that only little
of what they contain can be used for practical work, and this
only in small fragments. From the prime origin only a few
societies were able to initiate the student into hermetic science, or
magic, and since then this science has remained something entirely
restricted to specially selected persons. And therefore necessarily
also a dark and mysterious matter to those anxiously looking
for truth.
THE HIGH PRIESTESS
The second tarot-card represents the temple of initiation, which is
identical to the microcosm, the small world. Often this card is
regarded as the temple of Salomon. The temple is supported by
four columns symbolising the four elements and denoting
knowledge, courage, will and silence, i. e. the quabbalistic Yod-He-Vau-He.
Magic is the highest science existing on our planet, for it teaches
the metaphysical as well as the metapsychic laws valid in all the
planes. This science has been called magic since human records
began, but it has so far been reserved to special circles, mainly
comprising high-priests and high potentates. They alone knew
the truth but kept it a secret. They not only were fully acquainted
with the synthesis of their own but of all other religions, too. The
people, on the other hand, were taught about religion in symbols
only. It took many centuries until scarce fragments of this science
were also made known to mankind in a veiled manner, as was
understandable. Because the majority of people had not undergone
any magic training by law, they could only understand these
fragments from their individual point of view and, in consequence,
pass on their knowledge incompletely and onesided. That
is the reason why magic science has, without any exaggeration, remained
a secret science up to this date. The true understanding of
magic laws depends on the spiritual maturity of the individual.
The Practice of Magical Evocation
Instructions for Invoking Spirit Beings from
the Spheres surrounding us
by
Franz Bardon
This book is dedicated to my faithful mate,
my dear wife Marie, in constant memory.
Franz Bardon
Prologue
Introduction
The High Priestess
PART I: MAGIC
The Magical Aids
The Magic Circle
The Magic Triangle
The Magic Censer
The Magic Mirror
The Magic Lamp
The Magic Wand
The Magic Sword, Dagger and Trident
The Magic Crown, Cap and Magus-Band
The Magical Garment
The Magical Belt
Further Magical Aids
The Pentacle, Lamen or Seal
The Book of Magic Formulae
In the Domain of the Spirit Beings
Advantages and Disadvantages of Evocational Magic
The Spiritus Familiaris or Serving Spirits
Magical Evocation
The Practice of Magical Evocation
PART II: HIERARCHY
1. The Beings of the Four Elements
2. Some Original Intelligences of the Zone Girdling the Earth
3. The 360 Heads of the Zone Girdling the Earth
4. The Intelligences of the Moon Sphere
5. The 72 Intelligences of the Mercury Zone
6. The Intelligences of the Venus Sphere
7. The Genii of the Sun Sphere
8. The Intelligences of the Mars Sphere
9. The Genii of the Jupiter Sphere
10. The Saturn Sphere
11. The Spheres of Uranus and Pluto
12. Intercourse with the Beings, Genii and Intelligences of
all Spheres by Mental Travelling
13. Magical Talismanology
Epilogue
PART III: ILLUSTRATIONS
In this second book he shows the next stages of the magical
path to all those students who were able to start their magical
development by means of the first volume. He points out clearly
that there should not be any rest nor repose on the way, since this
would undoubtedly mean a relapse to stagnation, to ignorance
and thus to spiritual darkness. There may only be progress, onward
to those "brilliant heights" which are in store for all those
who spare no effort, taking in hand courageously and unflinchingly
their spiritual ascent. This book is a means for this aim.
We are indepted to the author for pointing out very clearly to
his disciples the host of dangers which lie in wait, and which can
lead him astray for a long time or even for his whole lifetime.
No book of the past or the present about this knowledge gives a
picture as true and clear as this book does. The author is able to
express in simple words the deepest knowledge and furthermore
he describes a series of strange and wonderful occurrences and
events on our planet as well as in various worlds and zones
around us.
Thousandfold thanks may meet Divine Providence for her
great grace, and the author sent by her, from all readers and true
disciples of the highest knowledge.
All those can be happy who hold this book in their hands. May
they keep it well and follow true and conscientious these precious
teachings.
Otti Votavova
(1903-1973)
During the Middle Ages knowledge of magic was repeatedly
strongly attacked by various religious orders, the inquisitions of
history being the most striking example of this. Later, at the
beginning of the modern age, magic was regarded as pure superstition,
and any person showing a slight inclination to this kind of
science was ridiculed. Mystical sects and others were responsible
for the ill name the study of magic soon got, and people showing
interest in it were usually put into the pillory "for practising
black magic".
True magic was taught in the oldest prophetic schools and in
secluded circles to which only initiates had access. The small
number of books giving scant information on magic were compiled
in such a manner that their contents would offer little even to
the most attentive reader, making a full apprehension of the
science entirely impossible.
According to the old Egyptian mysteries, magic corresponds to
the second tarot-card, displaying a priestess. I am
willing to show the right way to the serious and diligent student
who is free of any fanatical religion or mistaken conception of the
world and who is prepared to penetrate deep into the mysteries of
hermetic science, or magic.
Like my first work this book has been written in a colloquial
and easy to read style. This is so that even the simplest man can
get thoroughly acquainted with this art, not only in theory, but
also in practice. The practical application of what I am going to
say about evocation in this, my second volume will only become
possible for the reader who has attained the goal of my first book:
a thorough command of the mysteries of the first tarot-card, or at
least of the facts laid down in my first volume up to and including
Step 8. Only then will the reader be able to achieve. satisfying
results.
If I succeed in paving the way for the reader who has worked
through my first book, so that he gets satisfying results in his
work, the aim of this book has been fulfilled. But even the reader
who intends to deal with this secret science only in theory will
find in this book an enlargement of his theoretical knowledge.
The author
The Symbolism of the Second Tarot-Card
Each column rests on a circular pedestal of hewn stone symbolising
the fact that the magician - after having been initiated in
this temple - has become absolute master of each element.
The black and white marble floor consists of proportionate
squares displaying the positive and the negative effects of the
elements in the physical world. In its higher sense this is the
lawfulness - the Jupiter sphere - on the physical plane, with
which the magician must be fully conversant before being initiated.
Before the altar the floor is covered with a carpet which -
divided into two equal halves - displays the positive and the
negative effects of all the powers of the planetary system on our
physical world. The magician must also be absolute ruler of these,
i. e. of the electric and the magnetic fluids.
On the carpet one can see the magic circle representing Infinity,
i. e. the Alpha and the Omega (d. the description of the magic circle in the
relevant chapter of this book). The pentagram to be
seen within the circle is the symbol of the microcosm, the small
world, which must be fully developed in the magician, i. e. he is
in perfect harmony with the macrocosm. The pentagram is the
symbol of the microcosm, while the macrocosm usually being
symbolized by a hexagram.
The magician, dressed in a violet magical garment, is holding in
his left hand the magic sword as the symbol of victory and of his
ties to the Almighty - of his intuition - attained by the Akashaprinciple;
his lifted right hand is conjuringly holding up the
magic wand, the symbol of his absolute will, his absolute power.
On a golden throne to the right of the magician sits a high
priestess as the representative of Isis, holding the Book of Wisdom
in her left hand and the two Keys of Initiation in her right hand
as the symbols of the positive and the negative mastery. The
magician who has prepared himself for an evocation is being initiated
by her into the deep secrets of sphere magic. In some tarotcards
this priestess is called a female pope or an empress.
However, since this is the card representing power and wisdom,
it need not indicate the female principle.
In front of the circle there are three steps leading to the altar.
They symbolize the mastery of the three planes - the physical,
the astral and the mental plane. The altar itself is the symbol of
devotion. The triangle placed in its centre demonstrates the threedimensional
effect of the Divine Emanation on everything, in the
Positive and the Negative principle.
The two censers symbolize the fact that the magician carrying
out an evocation has all the positive, the good, and all the
negative, the bad, beings under his power and that he is able to
materialize them. The spheric mirror on the altar with its seven
spheric colours indicates symbolically that the magician is not only
in contact with all the beings of the seven planets by mental
wandering and divination, but that he is also capable of calling
them into our physical world by evocation.
On the wall in the background, following the old-Egyptian
symbolism of the second tarot-card, are the pictures of the
Godesses Isis and Nephthys.
To reach this maturity a certain pre-training is absolutely
necessary. The reader will therefore find it natural that he must
be fully conversant with the first tarot-card, at least up to Step 8,
if he wants to have further positive success in his practice of
higher magic.
There are no miracles as such, furthermore there is also nothing
supernatural. The facts and effects remain obscure because people
are not able to perceive them first hand.
Magic is a science teaching the practical application of the
lowest laws of nature up to the highest laws of the spirit. The person
intending to learn about magic must first learn to understand
the functioning of the lowest laws of nature in order to conceive
the laws building up on them and finally the highest laws. Depending
on the stage the reader has reached or on the laws he is at the
moment dealing with, he may, to get a better survey, separate
magical science in three groups; that is, in lower magical science,
which comprehends the laws of nature and their working, functioning
and controlling and may, if you please, be called natural
magical science. Furthermore, in the intermediate stage of magic
comprehending the operating and functioning and controlling of
the universal laws within man, that is the microcosm, the small
world; and finally in the high magical science comprehending the
operating, functioning and controlling of the laws of the
macrocosm, i. e. of the whole universe. I already mentioned a few
times in my first book the analogy by which lower, intermediate
and high magical science are connected and I also gave a full
description of the operation and functioning of these powers.
Magical science may be compared with the school-system: low
magic is the subject of the elementary classes; intermediate magic,
that is the magic of man, is taught in secondary or grammarschool;
and high magic is lectured at the university. Since, according
to the Hermetic Tablet, the universal axiom valid for magic
is "as above - so below" and vice versa, it is strictly speaking, not
correct to talk about a low, intermediate and high magic. There
actually is only one unique magic, and the grade of maturity
which the magician in question has arrived at is the measurement
for his individual development. The universal laws, no matter
whether applied with good or bad intentions, always remain the
same. The application of a law depends on the character and the
intentions of the individual. If the magician uses his powers for
good purposes, he may choose, for himself, the expression "white
magic"; if he uses his faculties for bad purposes he may talk about
"black magic"; but no matter whether the actions of a magician
are morally good or bad, they are brought about by exactly the
same laws.
The sensible reader will undoubtedly be certain that there exists
neither a white nor black magic. This differentiation has been
brought into common use by mystical and religious sects, since
they call a person they don't like a black magician. To give you a
striking comparison, just think of the fact that it would be equally
insensible from the universal point of view to say, for instance,
that night is evil and day is good. One cannot exist without the
other and both poles had to come into existence when the
macrocosm and the microcosm were created, in order to make
the one differ from the other.
God, the creator of the universe, has not created anything
unclean or evil. This is not to say that man should do the good
and the evil. The difference between the two exist to enable man
to tell the truth from the opposite and to master it. The true
magician will therefore never underestimate the negative, but he
will also not avoid it. He will always allow the negative to take
the place due to it, and the negative must be as useful to him as
the positive. That is to say, the magician never considers negative
powers to be evil powers. He will look at good and evil not from
a religious, but from the universal point of view.
Magic is usually mistaken for sorcery or witchcraft; I therefore
want to explain briefly the difference between magic and sorcery.
The true magician always adheres to the universal laws, he knows
about their causes and effects and deliberately uses these powers,
whereas a sorcerer uses powers the origin of which he does not
know, although he is fully aware of the consequences caused by
his using these powers; but he has no idea about their actual connections,
because he has no knowledge of the universal laws. He
might know one or two laws or have a partial knowledge of
them, but he does not see the true connections between the
operating, developing and functioning of these universal laws, as
he has not reached the maturity necessary.
The true magician, on the other hand, unwilling to be graded as
a sorcerer, will never do anything without having full knowledge
about what he is doing. A sorcerer, too, may use this or that out
of his knowledge of magic with good or bad intentions, no matter
whether he uses positive or negative powers. But he has no right to
call himself a magician.
A charlatan is a person trying to deceive other people. He is not
a sorcerer, nor is he a magician. He actually is, to use common
terms, a swindler. Charlatans like to boast about high magical
faculties, which, in truth, they do not possess, and try to surround
themselves with a veil of mystical secrecy in order to hide
their ignorance.
It is this category of people who are responsible for the bad
name true magical science has got. The characteristics of a true
magician are not secrecy, nor external pomp quite the contrary.
He is modest and always trying to help people and to explain to
the mature persons the secrets of magic. Naturally, he will not
give away his secrets to people not yet mature enough for them,
in order to avoid degradation of the holy science. Never will the
true magician demonstrate his knowledge of magic science by his
external behaviour. A true magician is hardly any different from
an average citizen, for he always tries to adapt himself to any
other person, any situation or occasion. His magical authority is
an internal one with no necessity for external splendour.
There is yet another inferior variation of magic to be mentioned,
for it is often mistaken for true magic, but has nothing to do
with the latter. I mean the so-called art of jugglery. The jugglers
manual skill and his faculty to cause illusionary impressions in
the people watching him enables him to copy some phenomena
which the genuine magician brings about by the application of
the universal laws. The fact that always jugglers use the word
magic for their tricks bears again evidence of the inferior meaning
to which it has sunk. It is not intended to give the reader any
details of jugglers tricks or stage tricks. It is, however, a fact that
the juggler is neither a sorcerer nor a magician, even though he
may give himself the most promising names because of his great
manual skill.
In this book a synthesis will be given of that field of magical
science which up to our modern age has never been revealed: the
magic of evocation, since it is this field of magic which is most difficult
to understand. From the oldest age of antiquity up to our
modern times hundreds of books have been puplished which contain
instructions for the invocation of beings, for concluding
pacts with the devil, and so on. But none of those books has been
able to communicate to its readers genuine knowledge, nor to
secure for them success in the practical application of the
teaching, although it has sometimes happened that certain individuals,
due to their inherited disposition and their maturity,
have had success. The genuine magician who wants to get behind
the problems of the magical evocation need not fear that he will
only have a partial success, or no success at all. He will soon be
convinced that with the synthesis of the magic of evocation given
here he is able to carry out a successful evocation.
The other categories of magic as, for example, the magic of
mummies, magic of sympathy, of spells by sympathetic means,
will not be dealt with in this book, for these fields will be easily
explored by the magician himself, should he be interested in
them. Instructions in this respect are to be found in the usual
books dealing with such matters.
The Magical Aids
Though a genuine magician is able to carry out everything by his
own powers, which he has gained as a result of his spiritual
maturity during his development in the ways of magic, it remains
up to him to avail himself also of ceremonial magic and to make
use of it and of all its aids as much as he likes.
The advantage ceremonial magic offers is that by repeated,
respectively constant use of one and the same instrument results
can be attained without the use of the magician's personal
strength. Ceremonial magic thus makes possible an easier working
with occult powers by the use of various aids. Actually all
auxiliary devices, all magical instruments, are aids to the
magician's consciousness and memory. By directing his attention
to a certain instrument, the faculties and powers it symbolizes are
brought to his consciousness. As soon as the magician - during
an act of evocation - takes into his hands one, or the other, of his
instruments, he will get the contact he wants and the results he is
aiming at without any special effort. If, for example, he takes his
magic wand in his hand, which represents his absolute will, the
contact with the desired spirit will be attained at once, due to
this wand, by means of the magician's will. The same will happen
in respect of all other magic aids, for they, too, symbolize
spiritual forces, laws and qualities.
The magician who wants to make use of ceremonial magic must
be very particular about his magical instruments, for these are to
be treated with almost religious awe. Their value rises with their
careful, exact and attentive use. Magical instruments are the same
as holy relics and help the magician to create the necessary
temple-like atmosphere required for ceremonial magic. At the
moment of their application the magician must be almost in a
state of complete ecstasy. Should an instrument be used for any
purpose other than the one for which it is intended, it loses its
magical effectiveness and can no longer serve its original purpose.
Since every magical instrument demands a special feeling of
respect in the magician's consciousness, it must be kept out of
those persons' sight who are not truly initiated, in order to avoid
its desecration. Before the magician reaches for his magical instrument
he must, therefore, undergo a mental cleansing process by
prayer or suitable meditation. He must never touch a magicial instrument,
unless he is in the necessary composure for the
ceremony. He must always be aware of the fact that every magical
aid or instrument symbolizes the most divine laws and that they
therefore must be handled like relics. Only in the hands of the
magician bearing all this in mind will the instruments bring about
the desired results.
Taking all the measures recommended regarding his adjustment
to all magical instruments, the magician will bring about, in
himself, an extremely strong manifestation of faith, of will, and
all properties of the law, and thus increase his magical authority
that he will be able to influence a being or a force, by his will, to
bring about the results he is expecting.
Even though the magician may not use his magical instruments
for a considerably long period of time, they still remain in constant
contact with the faculties they symbolize. As every instrument
is magically charged with (i. e. dedicated to) a special purpose,
it never loses its magical powers, provided it is handled correctly
- not even if centuries pass from the moment of its last application.
If the charging and consecration of the magical instruments is
such that they may only be used by a certain magician for whom
they have been manufactured, no other magician can make use of
them. They would not have any effectiveness even in the hands of
a magician who is fully initiated in the holy science of magic,
unless charged by the latter for his own purposes.
In the chapters that follow the most important magical instruments
will be described together with their symbolic functions
as well as their practical application during ceremonial
magic operations. Using this information as a starting point,
every magician will be able to make further instruments to serve
special magical purposes, if necessary or desirable. I shall only
strive to give a guiding principle of how the magician has to proceed.
The Magic Circle
All authors of books dealing with ceremonial magic and giving
reports about conjuration and invocation of beings of any kind
point out that the magic circle plays the most important role in
this. Hundreds of instructions can be found on how to make
magic circles to attain various goals, for instance with Albertus
Magnus, in the Clavicula Salomonis, in the Goethia, in Agrippa,
in Magia Naturalis, in the Faust-Magia-Naturalis and in the oldest
Grimoires. It is told everywhere that when invoking or calling a
being, one must stand within the magic circle. But an explanation
ofthe esoteric symbolism of the magic circle is hardly ever given.
Therefore I intend to give the studious and eager magician a completely
satisfactory description of the magic circle according the
Universal Laws and Analogies.
A true magic circle represents the symbolic lay-out of the
macrocosm and the microcosm, that is, of the perfect man. It
stands for the Beginning and the Ending for the Alpha and the
Omega, as well as for Eternity, which has no beginning and no
end. The magic circle, therefore, is a symbolic diagram of the Infinite,
of Divinity in all its aspects, as can be comprehended by
the microcosm, i. e. by the true adept, the perfect magician. To
draw a magic circle means to symbolize the Divine in His perfection,
to get into contact with Him. This happens, above all, at the
moment the magician is standing in the centre of the magic circle,
for it is by this act that the contact with the Divinity is
demonstrated graphically. It is the magician's contact with the
macrocosm in his highest step of consciousness. Therefore, from
the point of view of true magic, it is quite logical that standing in
the centre of the magic circle is equivalent to being, in one's consciousness,
a unity with the Universal Divinity. From this one
can see clearly that a magic circle is not only a diagram for protection
from unwanted negative influences, but security and inviolability
are brought about by this conscious and spiritual contact
with the Highest. The magician who stands in the centre of
the magic circle is protected from any influence, no matter,
whether good or evil, for himself is, in fact, symbolizing the
Divine in the universe. Furthermore, by standing in the centre of
the magic circle, the magician also represents the Divinity in the
microcosm and controls and rules the beings of the universe in a
totalitarian manner.
The esoteric essence of the magician's standing in the centre of
the magic circle is, therefore, quite different from that which the
books on evocations usually maintain. If a magician standing in
the centre of the magic circle were not conscious of the fact that
he is, at that moment, symbolizing God the Divine and Infinite,
he would not be able to practise any influence on any being whatsoever.
The magician is, at that instant, a perfect magic authority
whom all powers and beings must absolutely obey. His will and
the orders he gives to beings or powers are equivalent to the will
and orders of the Infinite, the Divine, and must therefore be unconditionally
respected by the beings and powers the magician
has conjured up. If the magician, during such an operation, has
not the right attitude towards his doings, he degrades himself to a
sorcerer, a charlatan, who simply mimics and has no true contact
with the Highest. The magician's authority would, in such a case,
be rather doubtful. Moreover, he would be in danger of losing his
control over such beings and powers, or, what would even be
worse, he could be mocked by them, not to speak of other unwanted
and unforeseen surprises and accompanying phenomena
that he would be exposed, especially if negative forces were involved.
The way in which a magic circle has to be formed depends on
the grade of maturity and the individual attitude of the magician.
The diagram, that is the drawing by which the Divinity is expressed
within the circle, is subject to the religious concepts of the
magician. The procedure followed by an oriental magician when
forming a magic circle is of no use to an occidental magician,
because his ideas of the Divine and the Infinite are quite different
from those of the magician from the East. If an occidental initiate
drew a magic circle according to oriental instructions, with all
divine names appertaining to it, it would be ineffective and completely
fall short of its purpose. A Christian magician must
therefore never draw a magic circle according to an Indian or any
other religion if he wants to save himself from an unnecessary effort.
The construction of the magic circle depends, from the
beginning, on one's individual ideas and beliefs and one's individual
conception of the qualities of the Divine, who is to be
symbolized graphically by this circle. This is the reason why a
genuine magician will never draw a circle, carry out rituals, or
follow instructions concerning ceremonial magic to which he
himself is not identified in his individual practice. For this would
be similar to wearing oriental clothes in the occident.
Bearing these facts in mind, it comes natural that the magic circle
has to be drawn in complete accordance with the views of life
and maturity of the magician. The initiate who is conscious about
the Harmony of the Universe and its exact hierarchy will, of
course, make use of his knowledge when drawing the magic circle.
Such a magician may, if he likes, and if the circumstances permit
it, draw into his magic circle diagrams representing the whole
hierarchy of the universe and thus come into contact with, and
awake his consciousness of, the universe much more rapidly. He
is free to draw, if necessary, several circles at a certain distance
from each other in order to use them for representing the hierarchy
of the universe in the form of divine names, genii, princes,
angels and other powers. One must, of course, meditate appropriately
and take the concept of the divine aspects in question
into consideration when drawing the circle. The true magician
must know that divine names are symbolic designations of divine
qualities and powers. It stands to reason that while drawing the
circle and entering the divine names the magician must also consider
the analogies corresponding to the power in question, such
as colour, number and direction, if he does not want to allow a
breach in his consciousness to come into existance because he has
not presented the universe in its complete analogy.
Each magic circle, no matter whether a simple drawing or a
complicated one, will always serve its purpose, depending, of
course, on the magician's faculty to bring his individual consciousness
into full accordance with the universal, the cosmic consciousness.
Even a large barrel-hoop will do the job, providing the
magician is capable of finding the relevant state of mind and is
completely convinced that the circle in the centre of which he is
standing represents the universe, to which is to react, as a
representation of God.
The magician will realize the more extensive his reading, the
greater his intellectual capacity and the larger his store of
knowledge happens to be, the more complicated his ritual and
magic circle will be in order to furnish sufficient support for his
spiritual consciousness, which then will make possible an easier
connection of the microcosm and the macrocosm in the centre of
the circle.
As for the circles themselves, they may be drawn in various
ways to suit the circumstances, the prevailing situation, the purpose,
the possibilities, no matter whether they are simple ones or
whether they follow a complicated hierarchial system.
When working in the open air, a magic weapon, dagger or
sword has to be used for drawing the circle on the ground. When
working in a room, the circle may be drawn on the floor with a
piece of chalk. A large sheet of paper can also be used for the circle.
The most ideal circle, however, is the one sewn or embroidered
into a piece of cloth, flannel or silk, for such a circle can
be laid out in a room as well as outside of the house. The circles
drawn on paper have the disadvantage that the paper will soon
wear out and fall to pieces. In any case, the circle must be large
enough to enable the magician to move about in it freely. When
drawing the circle, the appropriate state of mind and full concentration
are most essential. If a circle were drawn without the
necessary concentration, a circle would undoubtedly be the
result, but it would not be a magic one. The magic circle that has
been worked into a piece of cloth or silk has to be re-drawn symbolically
with one's finger or magic wand, or with some other
magic weapon; not to forget the necessary concentration, meditation
and state of mind. The magician must, in such a case, be fully
aware of the fact that it is not the magical weapon in use that
draws the circle, but the divine faculties symbolized by that
magical instrument. Furthermore, he must realize that it is not he
that is drawing the magic circle at the moment of concentration,
but that the Divine Spirit is actually guiding his hand and instrument
to draw the circle. Therefore, before drawing the magic circle,
a conscious contact with the Almighty, with the Infinite, has
to be brought about by the help of meditation and identification.
The trained magician, having a thorough command of the practical
exercises of the first tarot-card, as explained in my first work
"Initiation into Hermetics", has learned during one of the steps of
that book how to become fully conscious of the spirit and how to
act consciously as a spirit. It is not difficult for him to imagine
that not he, but the Divine Spirit in all its high aspects is actually
drawing the magic circle he wishes to have. The magician has thus
learned also that in the world of the Invisible it is not the same
although two persons might physically be doing the same, for a
sorcerer, who does not possess the necessary maturity, will never
be able to draw a true magic circle.
The magician who is also acquainted with Quabbalah can draw
another snake-like circle within the inner circle and divide it into
72 fields, giving each of these fields the name of a genius. These
names of genii, together with their analogies, must be drawn
magically by pronouncing them correctly. If working with a circle
embroidered into a piece of cloth, the names inserted into the
various fields must either be in Latin or in Hebrew. I shall give
exact details about the genii and their analogies, use and effect in
my next work called "The Key to the True Quabbalah". An embroidered
circle has the advantage that it can easily be laid out and
folded together again without having to be drawn and charged
anew each time it is to be used. The snake presented in the centre
is not only the copy of an inner circle, but, above that, it is the
symbol of wisdom. Besides this, other meanings may be attributed
to this snake-symbol, for example the snake's strength,
the power of imagination, etc. It is not possible to give a full
description of all this, for this would go far beyond the aim of
this book.
A Buddhist magician drawing his Mandala, putting his five
deities in the form of figures or diagrams on top of the relevant
emanation, is, at that moment, meditating about each single deity
whose influence he is trying to evoke. This magical ceremony,
too, is, in our opinion, equivalent to the drawing of a magic circle,
although it actually is a genuine prayer to the Buddhist
deities. To say more about this matter in this book is quite unnecessary
for enough material has already been published in
Eastern literature about this kind of magical practice, either in
exoteric or in secret manuscripts.
A magic circle may serve many purposes. It may be used for
evocation of beings or as a protective means against invisible influences.
It need not in all cases be drawn or placed on the
ground. It can also be drawn in the air with a magical
weapon, like the magic sword or the magic wand, under the condition
that the magician is fully conscious of the universal quality
of protection, etc. If no magical weapon is at hand, the circle can
also be described with the finger or with the hand alone, providing
this is done in the right spirit, in agreement with God. It is
even possible to form a magic circle by one's mere imagination.
The effect of such a circle on the mental or astral plane, indirectly
also on this material world, depends, in this case, on the grade and
strenght of such an imagination. The binding force of the circle is
generally known in magnetic magic. Moreover, a magic circle
may be produced by the accumulation of elements or the condensation
of light. When practising evocations or invocation of beings,
it is desirable to draw within the centre of the circle in
which one is to stand another smaller circle or a pentagram with
one of its points upwards, the symbol representing man. This is
then the symbolization of the small world, of man as genuine
magician.
The books dealing with the construction of the magic circle
clearly state that during the act of invocation the magician must
not leave the circle, which, in its magic sense, means nothing else
but that the consciousness of, or contact with, the Absolute, (i. e.
the macrocosm), must not be interrupted. Needless to say that
the magician, during his magic operation with the help of a magic
circle and with the being standing in front of him, must not step
out of the circle with his physical body, unless he has finished his
experiment and dismissed the relevant being.
All this clearly shows that a true magic circle is really the best
means to practice ceremonial magic. The magician will always
find that the magic circle is, in every respect, the highest symbol
in his hand.
It is hardly necessary to mention the specimen of a magic circle,
since every magician will now know from what I have said above
how he has to proceed, and it is now up to him to make use of the
instructions given here. Yet he must never forget the main thing,
that is the orientation he needs when working with a magic circle,
for only if he has reached the necessary cosmic contact by
means of meditation and imagination, i. e. the personal connection
with his God, will he be qualified for entering the circle and
starting work inside it.
The Magic Triangle
A magic triangle is, contrary to the magic circle, which symbolizes
infinity, endlessness, the connection with God, the Alpha
and the Omega, the symbol of manifestation, of everything that
is made, of everything that has ever been created. Without the
knowledge of the symbolism of the magic triangle and of all other
magic aids, ritual and ceremonial work would not be possible.
All grimoires or rites of exorcism generally require that the
magician who is working with a magic triangle sees that the invoked
spirit, the being and power, is manifested. The manifestation of a
being - a spirit - in a triangle is but one aspect of ritual
magic, and no being will be fully manifested unless the magician
understands the whole symbolism of the magic triangle. To get
the right idea of this symbolism one must, to some extent, be acquainted
with the Quabbalah and must have a complete knowledge
of the secret of the number three. The more one knows about the
analogy of the mystical number three, the deeper one will be able
to penetrate into the symbolism of the triangle one draws and the
easier it will be for a being to manifest itself.
It would lead us too far if I were to deal fully, at this point, with
the mystical number three and its analogies. I can only give a few
hints which may serve the magician as guiding principles.
Above all, the triangle is a diagram of the three dimensional
world we know, i. e. the mental, the astral and the physical
world. Each power which is to be projected into the physical
world must run through the three planes mentioned above. The
diagram shows us that the triangle must be constructed with its
point upward and thus indicates that two powers project from a
point at the top to the right and the left and end in a line fixing
their limits. Taking the picture of these two diverging lines as a
whole, it shows the two universal powers, the Plus and the
Minus, electricity and magnetism, which are united by the line
below. By this the manifested causal world is symbolized, which,
from the astrological point of view, is equivalent to Saturn, i. e.
the mystical number three. In the mental world it symbolizes
will-power, intellect and feeling; in the astral world it symbolizes
power, legality und life; and in the physical world it symbolizes,
as already said above, the Plus and the Minus, and the Neutral.
The triangle with its conformity is thus reflected in everything
and on every plane, for it is the beginning of everything that has
been created, the cause of everything comprehensible. The
mystical number three, i. e. the symbolism of the triangle, plays,
as is well known, a very important role in every religion. In the
Christian religion, for example, there is the Trinity: God the
Father, God the Son and God the Holy Ghost; in Indian religion
there is Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, i. e. the creator, the preserver
and the destroyer, etc. Hundreds of symbolic analogies could be
given here, but it is left to the magician to go deeper into the
details of this symbolism and its analogies. The most important
thing for him to know is the equilateral triangle, which is, for the
magician, the universal symbol ranking immediately after the
magic circle.
A magician would never be able to get a certain power or a certain
being into a circle without the help of the magic triangle, for
the circle is, as we now know, the symbol of the infinite and not
the symbol of manifestation. No magician should ever forget this
fact. One could, of course, also call a being or a power into a
figure different from the triangle, and this is usually done with
lower spirits, but when dealing with high powers or high ranking
beings the magician will never be able to work without having
drawn the relevant diagram, i. e. a triangle, immediately after having
constructed the magic circle. The magician will now be aware
of the fact that the circle is the first diagram having no limits; the
triangle is the first diagram with limits or space-symbol in which
a being, a power, etc. may be projected.
In the case of magical evocation the triangle has to be large
enough to give sufficient space for the power or being evoked or
projected, for the being or power must never be bigger than the
triangle itself. The magician must make sure that the being
or power he has called into the triangle is under his full control,
and that he himself, while standing in the centre of the circle, is
thus representing a superior power, a universal, a divine idea.
Therefore, a being which has been called into a triangle is not able
to leave the triangle again without the magician's permission or,
to use a magical term, without "abdication". As for the shape of
the triangle, it may either be acute or right angled.
For the triangle the same material is used as for the circle.
When operating in the open air, the triangle can be drawn with a
magical weapon such as the magic sword or dagger. If the circle
has been inscribed on a piece of cloth, then the triangle has to be
drawn on it also. The construction, of the triangle must be done
magically; not the physical hand of the magician is employed, it
must be drawn whilst the magician is fully conscious of his mental
and astral hand, similar to the construction of the magic circle.
Otherwise the triangle will produce no effects and will have no
influence on the power or being to be invoked. The magician has
to meditate, so that with the help of the triangle as the highest
symbol, the manifestation of the desired being or power is effected.
The magician will soon realize that the more he knows
about the symbolism of the magical triangle, the greater will be
his influence on the being or power he has evoked. Furthermore,
it es a great advantage for the magician to know that already at
the point of drawing the triangle, he is, in his consciousness, connected
with God, which state he has brought about by having
meditated or used his imagination, so that actually not the magician
is drawing the triangle, but the deity incorporated in the
magician. It is quite useful to re-draw the line of an old triangle
with one of the magical weapons mentioned above each time
before using it again, in order to revive the analogies within the
triangle and also within the magician's mind. In case the triangle
is painted on a piece of cloth, the magician should gently follow
the lines with the weapon. In the case of magical operations for
which no magical weapons are needed the lines of the triangle
may be traced by a magic wand or with the forefinger alone.
The seal or the talisman of the being concerned is usually placed
into the centre of the triangle, in order to express its symbolic
meaning. I shall give a full description of how a seal or talisman
has to be made in one of the subsequent chapters. A well trained
magician can place a fluid condenser, relevantly charged, in the
centre of the triangle, instead of a seal, pouring it into a flat vessel,
into the so-called magic cup. But he can also use a piece of blotting
paper impregnated with the fluid condenser and relevantly
charged for the manifestation of the power or being to be called
up. It is, in principle, up to the magician's individual taste which
of the two described possibilities he makes use of. In some cases
these details may, however, depend on the choice of the powers
or beings which are to be evoked or manifested by the magician's
will.
I have already dealt with fluid condensers, with liquid and solid
ones as well as with the simple and the complicated types, in my
first book "Initiation into Hermetics"; the magician may use
either simple or complicated fluid condensers, whichever serves
his purpose best.
The magic triangle is, as can be seen from what has been said,
mainly a diagram for putting the magician into contact with the
power or being he wants to employ. It may serve a certain purpose,
or, if necessary, also more than one purpose. Its main object
is firstly to get into contact with the being or the power the magician
wants to employ, secondly to call a certain being from the
macrocosm into our physical world, and thirdly to condense this
being in a manner that it may even have certain effects on our
physical world. All this is directed by the magician's will. The being
or power evoked by the magician will either effect the mental,
or the astral, or the physical world, just as the magician wishes to
have it.
Following the principles which by now are already well known
to the magician, each power or being will only have effects within
the spheres into which it has been called and in which it has been
condensed. This means that, for instance, a being projected into
the mental sphere will naturally not be able to influence the
physical world, but will only become effective in the mental
world. The same is valid for the astral and the physical world.
The reader will find more details about the mystery of condensation
or materialization from one sphere into the other in a later
chapter.
The Magic Censer
Many people falsely think that the desired being or power must
appear when they are merely carrying out a censering or citation,
and they are very disappointed when they, in consequence, have
only partial success or no success at all. Sometimes they become
the victims of their own imagination or of various kinds of
hallucinations, which is even worse. I will reveal to the reader the
great mystery and the symbolic meaning of the magic censer.
Above all, the symbolism of the censer conceals the mystery of
the materialization and condensation of the desired being or
power. Since this fact is known only to a few initiates, many
evocations in which the exteriorisation of a being is planned go
astray. As a good example of what is meant, let me compare such
faulty procedure with a fish that is pulled out of its element, out
of the water, under the supposition that it will go on living in the
air. Later on one is not a little surprised that the fish has quickly
perished. It is the same in respect of calling up beings and powers.
If a being is to be called from an invisible world into this world,
then an atmosphere must be created which the being will find
agreeable. It would likewise be impossible for a human being to
enter, with his physical body, a more subtle atmosphere without
having taken the necessary measures before doing so. An appropriate
disposition along with strong will and faith might,
however, enable one to produce an oscillation in the own microcosm
which is agreeable to the being, and one might thus be
able to get into contact with the being, in a similar procedure
been described in "Initiation into Hermetics", i. e. in the chapter
dealing with the magic of the mirror. Nevertheless, the being
would, in such a case, never be able to transfer itself into our
physical world to have any effects on it. Only high intelligences
(spirit beings) acquainted with the laws of the physical world and
knowing how to apply these as a high initiate, who knows and
controls the laws of the spheres outside our physical world, are
able to prepare the place for manifestation - in our case the
triangle - by themselves. In a case like this, however, the magician
has no possibility to use and command the being which had
to produce the conditions for the projection by itself, not even
then if he would create the form of the deity within himself. He
would have to be satisfied with the fact that a being like that
would never acknowledge him as a true magical authority, but
would, on the contrary, try to deceive him deliberately, or would
refuse to obey him. This kind of evocation, in which a being
creates the necessary atmosphere by itself, is unfortunately practised
by sorcerers who, because of ignorance or incomplete
magical development, are incapable of preparing the so-called
magic space for the cited being.
The being called up by a sorcerer in such a way will, in most
cases, refuse to obey, or will try to deceive the sorcerer, or even
force him to agree to a contract, a pact; not to mention the
menaces and the many other dangers that such a sorcerer would
have to face. The case of Dr. Faustus and Mephistopheles is a
striking example. I shall have a bit more to say about these two
later in this book. No doubt, there have been hundreds of cases
like that in the history of man; most of them, however, have remained
unknown. A genuine initiate taking all the measures and
considering all the applicable analogies for ritual magic will never
have to fear such a tragedy. It is therefore necessary for the magician
to know well the symbolism of all magical aids and to
understand them, in order to get complete control over beings
and powers.
The censer serves, as I have said above, as the symbolism of the
materialization of a being. The magician is obliged to create the
atmosphere necessary for the being he intends to evoke, he must
not rely on the being to do that, for it would only create the atmosphere
to suit its own desire; otherwise the magician would be
in danger of completely coming under the influence of that being.
According to the oldest available mysteries on the subject, the
creation of the atmosphere for a desired being of any rank was
understood as adjustment to the magical space. Various instructions
have been in use up to the present day. We are in possession
of old Egyptian papyrus rolls giving instructions on how to bring
about the necessary concentration on the magic space, but since
their symbols have been misinterpreted they have either dropped
out of use or been completely misunderstood.
When preparing the space for the materialization of a being,
belonging to the symbolism of the censer, it is necessary that the
space first be impregnated. I have already dealt with the impregnation
of the space in the physical plane and with its charging
for one's own or for somebody else's use in "Initiation into
Hermetics", and have pointed out there how important this impregnation,
this concentration on the magic space in which the
desired being or power is to manifest itself, is when preparing the
censer. The quality of the impregnation of the space is dependent
on the type of power or being that is to be evoked. Surely,
nobody will charge the space with the principle of earth when, in
fact, he wants to work with the element of fire, etc. This would
not only be nonsensical, but it would also be in contradiction to
the law. If, for instance, the magician works with beings of the
elements, he must charge the space where he wants to have the beings,
materialized with the beings own elements. Gnomes and
other spirits of the earth can only appear in places filled, (i. e.
charged), with the elements of the earth, spirits of the water only
in places charged with the elements of the water, and spirits of the
air and fairies will only be manifested where the mental-astral
elements of the air are prevailing; salamanders or fire-spirits in a
space charged with the fire element; higher beings and intelligences
must have the space filled with light. This light must
have the colour of its planetary analogy. Extra-planetary beings
can only appear in a place filled with clean white light.
The exact colouring of planetary light is effected by means of
imagination. Beings of the Saturn sphere will, for instance, only
appear to you, if you create a violet colour, the colour of Saturn.
Beings of the Jupiter planet will show themselves, if the colourvibration
is blue. The beings of the Sun appear in a golden colour,
those of the Mars planet in a red colour, those of the Venus in a
green, those of the Mercury sphere in an orange and those of the
Moon in a silvery colour. When working with positive beings the
colouring of the individual spheres in shiny light may only be a
very slight one. The darker the colour gets, the more difficult it
becomes for a good being to be manifested. When operating with
negative being the appropriate colour has to be deep and
saturated. If one tried to get a positive being to be manifested in
an impregnated space with a colour of dark vibration - even if it
were its appropriate colour - it could happen that a negative
being of the relevant planetary sphere would take on the shape of
the invoked positive being, trying to play the part of the desired
positive being. It is a rule that the being appears which has the
characteristics of the colour created. Lower beings need a darker
colour, i. e. a slower vibration, than higher beings, which, in fact,
have a cleaner colour und therefore a colour with a higher vibration.
When working in the open air, a certain space has to be
designated by help of one's imagination; when operating in a closed
room it is essential that the whole room be charged with the
appropriate element. Impregnation is either effected by breathing
through the lungs or through the pores and making use of one's
imaginative powers or by the force of imagination alone. To create
the appropriate coloured light or element, the magician has to use
his body, which he will first load with the element or coloured
light and later empty it into the space via his hands and his magic
wand or directly through the pores, thus filling it up and enlivening
it - i. e. preparing it - for the being or power to be invoked.
This practice of the imaginary transfer of coloured light from the
magician's body into the room is used for invoking beings and
powers which are to serve the magician's own purpose. However,
the same method is applied in case the magician intends to intensify
and project from his own body, soul and spirit - i. e. from his
microcosm - a quality or powers also belonging to a planetary
analogy.
When working with beings which are to serve people other
than the magician, impregnation is only be effected by his imagination
alone; the space impregnation has then to be effected
directly from the universe. The desired power or being will only
be able to operate and intensify itself in a space prepared in this
way. If the space is sufficiently impregnated, the magician may
choose to create a special condensation in the magic triangle and
to form, by the help of his imagination, the shape of the being invoked.
The power of condensation, or dynamics, of the appropriate
element is, in so doing, of paramount importance, for
the effective manifestation of the being depends wholly upon it.
In order to facilitate this condensation, the magician may also apply
a weak incense, the ingrediences of which must, however, be
appropriate to the planetary sphere from which the being is
to be called.
If the magician wants to have a specially strong influence for
physical effects, then the appropriate condensed electric or
magnetic fluid must be transfered into the shape created for the
appearance while burning incense. He may also banish one of
the two fluids, or, if he likes, both fluids - in this case called
electro-magnetic fluid - ("Initiation into Hermetics", chapter on
"volting") - into a fluid condenser, which, in consequence, will
be used by the being for becoming physically effective. If,
however, the magician intending to materialize a being does not
insist on its appearance in a special form and does not mind if the
being appears without any shape, or in a shape chosen by itsef,
then the surface of the liquid or solid fluid condenser placed
within the triangle has to be charged with the appropriate electromagnetic
volt whilst the magician is concentrating on the wish
that the being may use this power for effecting the desired results.
The reader will find the necessary instructions for creating this
voltcharge in the shape of a ball with an electric inside and a
magnetic outside in "Initiation into Hermetics" in the chapter
dealing with "volting". There, too, all laws, for instance, the one
on the duration of an effect, etc., have to be considered. Physical
incensing with the necessary ingredients will only facilitate the
creation of the electromagnetic fluid. Possibly, the magician will
have to use it in the beginning if in need of something to support
his concentration on the matter. But it is not essential at all, and a
good magician, having all the laws perfectly under his control,
can certainly do without it.
The use of narcotic ingredients, as suggested in many books on
exorcism will be avoided by a true magician, for such narcotics,
apart from their intoxicating effects, do not actually help to invoke
the desired being, but merely cause hallucinations or similar
projections in the sub-consciousness of the desired being. A genuine
magician will, therefore, never risk his health by such or
similar experiments.
If the magician intends to have dead people or any other beings
living in the Akasha-world or the astral world appear in front of
him, or if he wants to use them for certain other purposes, then
he has to impregnate the space with the Akasha in the way described
above and he has to use the electro-magnetic fluid as a voltcharge
or to create one. I shall, however, return to this subject
and give a broader description of it in one of the next chapters
dealing with necromancy.
The Magic Mirror
The use of magic mirrors for purposes of ritual magic has, up to
now, been scarcely recommended in books on magic, since only a
very limited number of initiates have been acquainted with the
correct application of fluid condensers with regard to mirrors, and
these initiates have kept it a great secret.
The magic mirror is a magical aid that is not absolutely
necessary, but the magician will always appreciate it as a good
support in his work, especially when operating with powers or
beings of minor intelligence. In some cases the magic mirror may
even replace the magic triangle. A magic mirror provided with a
fluid condenser is of great advantage, but if the magician has no
such condenser he will be able to do without; that is, an optical
magic mirror will suffice.
I have given a full description of the use of the magic mirror in a
separate chapter of my first book "Initiation into Hermetics",
therefore I shall only say something about the purpose which a
magic mirror is to serve in connection with evocations and in
what way it may facilitate that work. In ritual magic it may be used
for the following purposes.
1. To get into contact with powers and beings and to make
them visible. For this purpose, the magic mirror is either placed
into the triangle, or what is of even greater advantage, fixed to the
upper point of the triangle, on its outside. The charging or impregnation
of the mirror with the desired power comes next.
Employing your imagination you must concentrate your desire
for the thought purpose into the condensed power - volt -
before the actual evocation.
2. The magic mirror may, secondly, be used for space impregnation
in which case the necessary dynamics will automatically be
preserved during the whole period of evocation without the
magician needing to pay particular attention to it, thus being able
to concentrate fully on the other phases of his ritual, for instance,
on the materialization or the clairvoyance. In such a case the mirror
is to be placed into a corner of the room, so that its influence
will work on the whole space of the relevant magic operation.
3. The mirror may be employed as a magnetic force for attracting
the being that is to be evoked. To effect this, the surface of
the mirror must be charged with a fluid condenser facing the
direction in which it is to operate. The mirror has then to be placed
into the centre of the triangle or at the top of its upper point.
4. Furthermore, the magic mirror may be used as an accumulator
or condenser - so that much qualitative and quantitative
power can be accumulated as to enable the being evoked
to bring about the desired effects. It does not matter if, in this
case, the being is to be transformed by the help of the condensed
power into a visible shape or if some other result or effect is intended.
All this actually depends on what the magician wishes or
desires to achieve.
5. Moreover, the magic mirror may replace a telephone. For
this purpose the fluid condenser must be charged with the
Akasha and a timeless and spaceless state has to be created by
the force of concentration. The evocation then has to be spoken
into the mirror. The magic mirror thus becomes an astral channel
of communication. Not only is this the magician's method for
calling before him a certain being or power; the being itself is able
to talk to the magician out of the mirror. The magician may thus
sometimes hear the being's voice not only mentally or astrally,
but also physically, as if it were speaking through a loudspeaker.
In principle it will, however, be up to the magician to choose the
sphere in which the mirror is to operate. A mirror charged for
the physical world will make it possible for people not trained in
magic to hear the voice of a spirit. Of course, two magicians,
equally well-trained, may, if they choose, converse with each
other over the greatest distances, - not only astrally and mentally,
but also physically - by this mirrormethod, and they will hear,
if they like to do so, every word through their physical ears.
6. There is still another purpose the mirror may serve in ritual
magic: for protection against undesired influences. The condensation
of light usually brings this about. When charging the mirror
the magician has to concentrate on his desire to keep off all
undesirable influences. The power of radiation of a mirror charged
in such a way must be great enough to prevent any larva, phantom,
etc., from coming near the space in which the magician is
operating; they must not, under any circumstances whatsoever,
penetrate into this space. Also in this case the mirror has to be
thus placed that it radiates the whole room or space in which the
relevant magic operation is carried through.
In general, the magician will have his mirror serve only one
purpose. He will only apply it for that type of problem that
seems to him the most difficult one. In ceremonial magic, the
magician may, if he likes, use more than one magic mirror as a
magic aid, in order to attain his goals and facilitate his work.
The Magic Lamp
The magic lamp, known as the so-called laterna magica, is also
quite often referred to in many grimoires and in the oldest books
dealing with evocations. It represents, in the practice of ritual
magic, a very important aid, and the magician will surely want to
make use of it in his work. The magic lamp is the symbol of
enlightenment, cognition, experience, intuition and the inner
light; in short, all symbolic analogies of the light are represented
by the magic lamp. Lighting the magic lamp is, from the hermetic
point of view, equivalent to lighting the magician's inner light,
and having it burn like a flame. Colour, which comprises the
quality, vibration and oscillation of the light, is also one of the
mysteries of the magic lamp. The quality of a being or of a sphere
is expressed by the being's character. The purer and brighter the
coloured atmosphere of a being or sphere takes shape and the
more it shines and glistens the higher is its intelligence and the
purer is its quality. Low or negative beings appear in a dark and
cloudy, (that is, an unclean), colour.
To know all this is of greatest importance to the magician practising
ritual magic. His enlightenment is symbolically expressed
by the lamp. When working with beings, the lamp has to be
covered with coloured glass or celophane paper in such a way that
the colour created will find the beings' approval. Thus, when
working with beings of the elements for the fire spirits the lamp
will have to have ruby-red glass or accordingly coloured that the
lamp radiates a red light. For spirits of the air or the so-called
faries, a darkblue light is necessary. The lamp therefore has to be
covered with dark-blue celophane paper or with a piece of silk of
that colour, thus creating a blue light. Water-spirits or so-called
waternymphs must have a green light. For spirits of the earth a
yellow colour which may have a shade of brown will have to be
used. The Akasha-colour can be used as a universal light, in which
case the lamp must have a violet colour. High spirits or intelligences
from the world beyond the planets need a white light.
For beings coming from a certain planet the light has to be
created in such a way that it is appropriate to the colour of that
planet. Beings of Saturn, for example, thus need a light-violet or
ultramarine coloured light, beings from Jupiter a blue, from Mars
a red, from the Sun a yellow, from Venus a green, from Mercury
an opalescent and from the Moon a white light. Only in a very
restricted number of cases may operations of ritual magic be carried
out under normal artificial light, since physical electricity has
a disturbing effect on the astral oscillation which, at the time of
the operations, is vibrating in the room or place used for that purpose.
Generally, the laterna magica or magic lamp is equipped
with a candle or oil-flame. An ideal light is procured by a spiritlamp,
a spirit-flame. The spirit (methyl) has to be prepared in a
special way: one third camomile blossoms to two thirds of spirit
are to me mixed together and to be left drawing in a closed bottle
or pot for 8 or 9 days, then the mixture is to be poured through a
strainer or otherwise filtered. The spirit prepared in such a way is,
at the same time, a useful fluid condenser, which, above that, may
be charged with the magician's will in order to get better results.
The charged spirit, when set to flame, helps create a favourable atmosphere,
which will also contribute to bringing about good
results. The spirit-flame may also be charged for clairvoyance or
for different operations with the magic mirror, or for other astral
magic operations which need no artificiallight. If the magician is
operating in a closed room, the lamp may be placed in the magic
circle or into a corner of the room. It is most advantageous to fix
it in a position above the magician's head, so that the room is
evenly illuminated. When lighting the lamp, the magician has to
meditate and concentrate on the uniform kindling of the inner
light of soul and spirit.
The Magic Wand
The most important aid in ritual magic is, and always will be, the
magic wand. Since the days of yore magicians and sorcerers have
been pictured with a magic wand. Charlatans and stage illusionists
are still making use of it today, trying to throw dust into
the eyes of their audience by all sorts of tricks. The person who
thinks it suffices to hold a magic wand in his hand in order to
fulfil wonders is led astray. I will give here an explanation of the
symbolic meaning and the description of the syntheses of the
magic wand, seen from the magical point of view theoretically as
well as for practical application.
Above all, the magic wand is the symbol of the will, the power
and the strength by which the magician maintains his influence
on the sphere for which he has made and charged it. A magician
will not have just one wand for his practice, but he will make
several wands depending on what he intends to do or attain.
The actual purpose of a magic wand is to help the magician project
his will into any sphere or plane. He may have a wand
1. to
influence any being, no matter if human or animal,
2. to cure people
from diseases and to do away with bad, unfavourable influences,
3. to evoke high intelligences and to invoke demons and
spirits.
To say that the magic wand symbolizes the absolute
power of the magician is truly justified. The person having fully
comprehended the mystery of the magic wand in its magnitude
will never do his operations of ritual magic without this implement.
It would lead too far, if I tried to state here all the
possibilities of the magic wand. For the intelligent student these
hints will suffice and will serve as guiding principles. His
knowledge will be enlarged by ample meditation.
The magic wand is a condenser, no matter what material it is
made of or in which way it is manufactured. Charged with the
will of the magician, it expresses a certain power. It may be a simple
one (the usual type of wand) or a complicated one. All the
wands carved out of wood are regarded as simple wands. But only
a special kind of wood, suiting the purpose, may be used. Thus,
hazelnut or willow are to be used for a wishing-wand. The
wishing-wand is a modification of the magic wand. Though a
wand made of ash-wood may be used as a magic wand for all
magical operations the magician, when carrying out operations of
ritual magic, will only charge it for the purpose of curing people.
The wand made of elder-wood, proves, on account of its analogy
to Saturn, especially efficient when calling up or evoking elemental
spirits and demons. In making magic wands willow twigs may
also be used for any type, for the willow is a very good fluid condenser.
The attentive reader will remember that willows are often
struck by lightning because of their high content of water, and
their capability of absorbing. He may also remember the old saying
referring to thunderstorms: "From the willow flee, look for a
beech-tree". The wood of an oak or an acacia, too, is an excellent
material for making a magic wand.
It is, indeed, very easy to make a magic wand of any of the
kinds of wood mentioned. Cut a twig, approximately 3/8 to 3/4
ins. in diameter and about 12-20 ins. in length, remove its skin
and smooth it. Often the cutting of a magic wand has been
restricted to special astrological periods, and the magician acquainted
with astrology is free to make use of his knowledge
when making a wand. But such a procedure is by no means
necessary, since the magician knows very well that the stars may
have a certain influence, but that they cannot force the wise to do
anything, as he actually rules them. Thus anybody may, if he
likes, make by himself a magic wand out of one of the materials
mentioned above. If the magic wand is to serve ritual purposes,
you are recommended to use a new knife when cutting the twig.
The knife may later be used for other ritual purposes or other
magical operations. It should, in that case, never be employed for
any common purpose. If the magician does not expect to use the
knife again after having cut and smoothed the twig for the magic
wand, he should bury it in order to prevent it from ever coming
into the hands of anyone else.
Another kind of magic wand is the steel magnet which has to
be equipped with an insulated grip. Take a round steel rod (the
best steel to use is electro-steel, (i. e. magnet steel) approximately
12-20 ins. long with a diameter of 3/8 ins., polish it and have it
nickel-plated to prevent it from rusting. After having nickelplated
the rod, the magician may magnetize it by means of an
electric coil, similar to the magnetization of a horse-shoe or the
magnet of an electrical motor. The greater the power of attraction
of the magnet, the better it works. This is the way to get a very
strong steel magnet which will not only do its work as such, but
which will also serve as an excellent magic wand for many
magical and magnetic experiments. First of all one must locate the
north and the south pole on the magic electro magnetic rod and
mark both poles: the south-pole with a minus and the north-pole
with a plus. For the insulation of the rod the middle must be then
wound with a silk ribbon as wide as the palm, i. e. about 3-4 ins.
A rubber hose of the same length or a wooden handle that has
been pierced for this purpose may also be used. Such a wand will
enable the magician to cause many magnetic and magical
phenomena, of which only a few will be treated here.
If the magician is working with the electromagnetic fluid of the
universe, intending to intensify it strongly in the physical world,
then he must take hold of the wand in such a manner that his
right hand will touch the plus-pole and his left hand the minuspole,
with the ends of the rod touching the middle of his palms.
After this the electrical fluid from the universe has to be led via
the right side of the rod into the magician's body by means of the
imagination. The plus-radiation of the rod (odpole-radiation) will
thus be strongly intensified as it has the same oscillation and will
make it easier for the magician to store the electrical fluid in his
body. The same procedure has to be applied to the magnetic fluid
of the south-pole. Vice versa the magician now intensifies the
electrical fluid again, which he has previously stored up in his
body, this time concentrating it into the plus-end of the rod so
strongly that he can make his influence work directly on the
physical world. The same goes for the magnetic fluid which he
will be able to store up in his left, that is the negative pole radiation.
The middle of the rod, covered with the insulating material,
will remain neutral. If the magician, by force of imagination, now
concentrates his intention into the condensed electromagnetic
fluid of the steel magnet the wand indeed becomes a magic wand.
By means of the electromagnetic fluid, which radiates as a
brilliant light from the rod, any realization on the physical world
will be possible. Initiates usually apply this wand for influencing
sick people and for all magnetic phenomena. This magic electromagnetic
wand is, by the Law of the Universe, an excellent condenser
with the same kind of oscillation as the universe, but in a
most subtle way. The person meditating on this will be able to
find other methods easily due to the universal laws. The magician
will, for instance, be able to either pull the fluid out of the
universe like an antenna and store it in his body, or to transfer it
by force of imagination to other people, near him or far away.
The wand will soon be an indispensible implement for the magician,
for the positive and negative powers concentrated in it will
help him to create the necessary oscillation in his electromagnetic
fluid.
Besides this, there are magic wands charged either with solid liquid,
or combined condensers. Much could be said about how to
make such rods and which methods are to be used, but I will only
mention the most appropriate to serve the magician in his work.
Take the twig of an elder-bush, 12-20 ins. long and 3/8 to 3/4
ins. in diameter, peel off its skin and smooth it with sand-paper.
Then remove its pith so that you get an elder-pipe. Put a cork on
the one end of the pipe and seal it with sealing-wax, insert a condenser
(a liquid condenser, if you like) from the other side, then
also seal this end of the pipe airproof. The rod is now ready for
use. You may, if you wish, use a different kind of wood, for instance,
the twig of an ash, willow or oak tree, or of a hazelnut
bush. The twig, which has no pith must, however, be pierced
through carefully with a fine drill, making a pipe of it. Instead of
the liquid condenser a solid condenser may be used, the same
kind of condenser described in "Initiation into Hermetics". It is
also possible to use a piece of blotting paper soaked with a liquid
condenser instead of a solid condenser, which, after it has dried
well, is charged, and then, after having been rolled together, is inserted
into the hollow space of the rod. The disadvantage of wood
is that it will, as time goes by, moulder or be affected by the fluid
condenser, which will cause it to become perforated. It might
therefore as well be replaced by a metal-pipe. Those kinds of
metals which are good conductors of heat and electricity are best.
The best of all, of course, is a copper pipe with a diameter of 3/8
to 1/2 inch. In order to avoid any oxidization on the surface of
the metal, the pipe can be nickel, chrome, or tin-plated before it is
filled with the condenser. One opening must be soldered together
at once, the other immediately after having filled up the pipe;
thus you get a first class magic wand, applicable for all purposes.
Magicians working with the magnetic and the electric fluid in
turn will do well to procure for themselves a rod made out of a
thin iron or steel pipe, as recommended above, for operations
with the magnetic fluid, and a copper-pipe for operations with
the electric fluid. A universal wand is manufactured in the same
manner, with the exception that a nickel-plated brass pipe must
be used, instead of a pipe of copper or iron.
The magician wealthy enough for financial considerations not
to matter can use, instead of the fluid condenser, a condenser
made of semi-precious stones. He will use for his electric fluid, a
copper-rod the inside of which is filled with pulverized amber, an
unsurpassed condenser for this kind of fluid. For his operations
with the magnetic fluid he will, in this case, have to fill up the
steel-pipe with pulverized rock-crystal instead of using a solid
condenser. Rock-crystal, again, is a very good fluid condenser for
the magnetic fluid. But it is also possible to solder two separate
small pipes, thus making a single rod out of them; one half of the
tube is, in this case, filled up with pulverized amber, the other
with pulverized rock-crystal. Having done this, a single rod,
separated in the middle, will contain both kinds of fluid condensers.
In a case like this, however, the two halves must be connected
by a thin piece of copper - or iron - wire going through
the centre of both pipes. The outside of such a rod may be nickel-
plated. This ideal wand then has a unique fluid capacity and will
serve any magical operation.
There is still another possibility: a wooden rod may by ornamented
with seven rings made of the planetary metals. The
rings should be fixed to the rod in quabbalistic order. That is, a
golden ring (for the Sun) is placed in the middle of the rod and
three metal rings on each side. The following metals may be used
for the rings in question:
Lead corresponding to Saturn
Tin corresponding to Jupiter
Iron corresponding to Mars
Gold corresponding to the Sun
Copper corresponding to Venus
Brass corresponding to Mercury
Silver corresponding to the Moon
Apart from this, the rings may have engravings portraying the
intelligences of the above-mentioned planets. The use of a wand
like this will, in general, be restricted to the conjuration of intelligences
of the seven planets. When used for other purposes, it
will not prove superior to the other types of wands.
This is all the magician needs to know: from the examples
above he will, by himself, be able to proceed to other variations.
The shape and the size of the wand plays a minor part. The most
important thing about a magic wand is its charging for practical
use, a description of which is given below.
The charge of a magic wand is done in much the same way as
the charge of a magic mirror provided with a fluid condenser
for special purposes. There are many ways of charge for a wand.
They all depend on what the magician intends or wants to use it
for.
Above all, the magician must always be aware of the fact that
the magic wand is a symbol of his will, his strength and his
power, and that it is representing a container like a fluid condenser
of that power, quality etc. in which he is not only able to
transfer, but also to store up that power, according to his wish, to
an exeedingly high density. It matters little if such a rod is
nothing but a simple twig, cut and adapted accordingly, or if it is
a complicated wand, saturated or filled up with a fluid condenser.
A magic wand may be charged with:
1. the magician's will-power
2. special qualities, faculties, etc.
3. magnetism, biomagnetism, etc.
4. the elements
5. Akasha
6. the help of a light-fluid
Here are some examples for practical use:
With regards to Point 1, charge with will-power:
Take into your hand the wand which you have prepared and
concentrate your will on, or rather into, the wand; that is,
transfer your whole consciousness into the wand so that you feel
you are the wand itself. Your concentration must then be filled
with the idea that all your will-power, your strength, is embodied
in the wand. This kind of concentration must last for at least five
minutes without any interruption. Already at the moment of embodying
your will into the wand you have to think that whenever
you take the wand into your hand your will-power will be put into
action and that everything you want to have happening will
happen. When you have transferred your whole will by utmost
tension and strongest imagination into the wand, you end the
charge of it by wrapping it into a piece of pure silk and putting
it in the same place as your other magic implements.
After some time load the wand again in the same manner, and
every time you repeat the cerem.ony you must increase the intensity
of your imagination. Never forget that your whole spiritual
will is embodied in the wand. It is important that you limit the
time and if possible, also the space of the power concentrated in
the wand; that is, concentrate your willpower into the wand with
the idea that as long as it will exist it will represent all your will,
all your power, and remain effective. A wand charged in this way
will remain effective till you die, or should it be your special
wish, even beyond your physical death, that is, it will remain a
magic wand. It may even last for centuries, and its influence may
even increase with time, providing you have charged it with the
wish that its power should grow from one day to the next. The effectiveness
of the wand will first work on the mental sphere,
then, after some time and repeated charging, on the astral sphere,
and finally even on the physical world. The time required until a
wand, first effective on the mental world, becomes effective in the
physical world depends on the magician's maturity, training and
power of imagination, and also on what he is striving for. The
magician who is well acquainted with quabbalah will know that
to bring about a realization from the mental sphere into the
physical world, usually about 462 repetitions are necessary; by
then the influence from the mental sphere takes shape, that is
becomes condensed in the physical world. This, however, does
not mean that the magician may not be able to bring about the
same kind of success earlier than this. As already pointed out, the
magic wand's power of realisation depends on the intention and
purpose for which it has been made and charged. One could
query whether the rod needs to be charged at all, since the magician's
will should suffice. The magician, however, will not always
be in a position to expand his mental exertion in the manner
necessary for the transfer of one's will. There will be situations
which will exhaust even the best magician, who then would be incapable
of concentrating to his fullest power of expansion.
However, a skillfully charged magic wand will also have its effect
at moments when the magician is not using his will-power, but is
just concentrating his thoughts on the realization of his wish, using
his magic wand for this purpose. There is, of course, in this
case a slight danger that a blasphemous person may get hold of
the magic wand in order to realize his own desires, which, if it
happened, would go on the cost of the magician and his rodvoltage.
Therefore a magician will always do well not to tell any
person, not even his best friend, for which purpose, in which
respect, and in which manner he has charged his magic wand.
This way of charging a magic wand with one's will-power will
generally serve to influence beings, spirits, human beings and
animals which are to act according to the magician's absolute will
and which are to obey the magician's magical power, no matter
whether in this physical world or on the mental or astral planes.
The influence of the magician is not at all restricted to living entities;
it will also work on dead matter if this has been taken into
consideration at the time of its being charged.
Regarding Point 2: charge with qualities, faculties and the like:
Under charging the wand with certain universal qualities is
understood qualities such as omnipotence or other specific ones
which the magician needs for his realizations in the mental, astral
or physical planes and which are concentrated into the rod in the
same manner as described above. It is possible (similar to the
charge with the magician's will) when charging the wand with
a certain quality, to impel the quality into the wand not only by
embodying one's consciousness into it and by condensing the
power, but also by pulling the quality down from the universe by
means of one's imagination and concentration of will-power,
thereby condensing the quality in the wand, thus charging it.
Constant condensing of a certain quality will make the relevant
spiritual power if concentrated in the wand a direct physical
power. This means that with the wand the magician is in possession
of an accumulator equivalent to a battery powerfully charged
with electricity. That then one and the same power may be used
for good as well as for bad purposes is true, but a magician, having
proceeded as far as this in his individual training, will never think
of any evil motives or try to put them into action, since he, at all
times, is anxious to be regarded as a true and faithful servant by
Divine Providence.
Regarding Point 3: charge of the wand with Magnetism,
Biomagnetism or Prana:
The same procedure is to be followed as described in the
preceding chapter. It is recommended, however, to achieve the
storing of power in the wand without transferring one's consciousness
into it. This can be effected by mere imagination, by
means of the magician's body or directly from the universe. In
this case, too, the magician must not forget to set limits to the
power transformed into the wand. He must also, by force of imagination,
concentrate on the purpose he wishes the wand to
serve. Repeated charge of the wand will make it not only effective
in the mental and astral planes, but also in the physical world.
The experienced magician need not be told again that the power
then dwelling in the wand will radiate to the furthest distances. If
he introduces the Akasha-principle between himself and his object,
he will be able to bridge time and space, and the power in
question will immediately, by using the wand, work on the person
concerned with the same kind of influence, intensity and success
as it would be if the person were standing right in front of
him. Charged with life-force or magnetism, with the right idea of
setting limits or conditions (that is, in this case, with the idea that
the life-force or magnetism in the wand will be automatically intensified
from one day to the other) the wand will easily enable
the magician to call into existence any phenomena that can be effected
by life-force. With a rod charged in this way, even an unexperienced
person could work miracles, providing he knew how
to use it. Therefore it is in the magician's own interest to keep
well the secret of his magic wand. He may also charge his wand in
a manner that it will automatically, without any effort on part of
the will-power of the magician, bring to him a piece of life-force
from the universe, which will then radiate from the wand. This
kind of charging the wand with magnetism - biomagnetism - is
preferred for curative operations. A magician working in the
medical field may like to make use of this method and heal people
far away from him by force of his wand charged in the above
mentioned manner. In the hands of a magician, a wand charged in
this manner, which can heal people miraculously over the widest
distances, is, no doubt, a blessing for the suffering man.
The charge of a magic wand with an electric, magnetic, or electromagnetic
fluid is always the same, with the only exception that
the transfer of the magician's consciousness may be omitted. If
only one wand is to be charged, the procedure is a little more
complicated. For the wand to be charged with one fluid only, be
it electric or magnetic, that fluid has to be drawn from the
universe with the help of the imagination und must be impelled
into the rod, to which end the magician has to concentrate on the
wish that whenever he desires something, the fluid inside the rod
will realize at once what he wishes, even though it be directed to
the furthest possible sphere or the Akasha-principle. If you terminate
the accumulation so that the fluid accumulated in the rod
will intensify itself automatically from the universe, that it will,
in other words, work by itself bioelectrically and biomagnetically,
the rod will grow into an enormously strong battery. The
magician is recommended to accumulate in his own body, prior to
every use, the revelant fluid in order to be strong enough for the
work with the accumulated fluid of the wand. If he is not willing
to do this, he should at least insulate himself before he starts work
by putting on a pair of pure silk-gloves, preferably manufactured
by himself. Not before he has thus insulated himself should he
take the wand into his hands. Since the magician usually works
with both fluids, he should take the wand charged with the electrical
fluid into his right hand, and the wand charged with the
magnetic fluid into his left. It is always better to charge two rods;
one with the electric the other with the magnetic fluid, especially
if simple twigs or wooden wands, which are not impregnated
with a fluid condenser, are used. This is not absolutely necessary,
but it will make work easier. The magician who has a wand filled
with a fluid condenser, without the wand being parted in the middle,
will find it more advantagious to have the wand filled with
only one fluid, as this also will make the work easier for him. If
the rod is to be charged electromagnetically, that is if both fluids
should be prevalent in the wand, the magician must use a rod
which has no hole in its middle. Either end of the rod has to be
pierced instead, and each half of it has to be provided with a fluid
condenser. The magician must, however, put a mark on either
end to remind him where the electrical and where the magnetic
fluid is. To give the magician a better view, the half provided for
the electrical fluid is usually painted red, the half provided for the
magnetic fluid is usually painted blue. The rod must then be
charged in such a manner that the largest intensity of the fluids
rest at the ends of the rod and that the middle, insulated with silk,
remains neutral. Charging of either half has to be carried out
separately, that means that you may draw from the universe first
the electric fluid, accumulating it in the one end of the rod until
that end is sufficiently loaded, and immediately after that the
magnetic fluid, or vice versa. The magician should never try to accumulate
the electric fluid several times and then the magnetic
fluid several times; for the equilibrium of the fluids inside the
wand must be maintained. The magician must therefore accumulate
the electrical fluid on one day and the magnetic fluid
the next day. When charging the wand again, he has to go about
in the other way.
The magician will charge a rod with the electrical or the
magnetic, or both fluids, if he wants to make his influence work
by the help of these fluids on objects nearby or far away,
regardless of their being subject to the Akasha or existent in
either the mental, astral or physical world. Special variations of
operations, for instance such as volting or treating sick people, or
bearing of certain imaginations, will not be dealt with here, for
the person having carefully studied up to this point will now be
able to work out for himself his individual working methods.
Regarding Point 4: the charge with elements:
This kind of charge can be effected in two different ways:
1. The magician, by help of imagination charges his rod - no
matter, whether it be simple or provided with a fluid condenser
- with desire that when using it, the elements will have to obey
him, regardless of which sphere they may belong to. If the wand
has been sufficiently charged with the magician's power over the
elements, then the results wanted will be brought about by the
beings of the elements. The magician will do well to expand his
power to all elements, fire, air, water and earth, so that he will
not be forced to restrict his operations to a single element. When
evoking, the magician should call to his magic circle the heads of
the elements, one after the other, and have them swear to the
magic wand that they will give him their absolute obedience at all
times. After that the magician may, if he likes, engrave on his
wand the relevant symbols or seals of each individual head of the
elements. This, however, is by no means absolutely necessary, for
the wand in the hands of the magician represents the magician's
absolute will and his power over each being of the elements. The
shape of the seals of each head of the elements will become visible
to the magician in his magic mirror or by direct transfer with the
mental body in the realm of the elements. On top of that, the
magician might well, on account of his personal experience and
development, construct a symbol of the relevant element and
have the head of any element swear to it that he will always be the
obedient servant not only of the symbol which the magician has
engraved in the wand, but of the whole wand.
2. The other way to charge the wand with elements is as
follows: The magician draws the element which he wants to use
for his work directly from the universe, that is, its particular
Iphere, by force of the imagination, and dynamically accumulates
it in the wand. When working with this kind of loaded wand, the
results wanted are not caused by the beings of the elements, but
directly by the magician himself. The advantage of this way of
charging a wand is that it will give the magician a strong feeling of
latisfaction, because he is the immediate cause of the magical effect.
It is necessary, however, that a separate rod be manufactured
for each of the elements and the wands must be stored apart from
each other. To prevent the magician from mixing them up, he
must be sure that he can easily differentiate between them by
their outside appearance. Each wand may, for this purpose, have
the colour of the relevant element. At the beginning the results
will only occur on the mental plane, but prolonged use and
repeated charging will make it work also on the astral plane, and
eventually also on the physical world. This kind of wand will
enable its owner to influence all manners of spirits, men, animals,
even inanimate nature, by the element, similar to the influence of
the electromagnetic fluid. Good magicians are able to cause, by
the force of such a wand, marvelous natural phenomena, for instance,
change of weather, acceleration of the growth of plants,
and many other things of that nature.
Regarding Point 5: Charge with the Akasha-principle:
When applying this principle, the charge of the magic wand is
possible, but not any kind of accumulation, since the Akashaprinciple
cannot be intensified. But repeated meditation on the
qualities of the Akasha-principle with all its aspects in the magic
wand will finally enable the magician to create causes in the
Akasha-principle, which will itself realize in the mental and astral
planes, and also in the physical plane. Using a rod charged in the
manner described, the magician will be able to impel, by force of
imagination, a power or quality via the wand into the Akasha,
which then, like a volt created by an electromagnetic fluid, will
have direct influence on the three-dimensional world from above.
Such a wand will be regarded with awe by positive intelligences
and will have a frightening effect on negative beings. A wand
charged in this fashion is usually preferred by magicians working
with negative beings, so-called demons, in order to make them
pliant. For further details on this subject see the chapter dealing
with necromancy.
Regarding Point 6: Charge with Light-Fluid:
The universal light, from which everything has been created, is
to be accumulated in the wand by help of imagination and consideration
of the qualities of the light, so that it will shine like a
sun (concentrated universal light). A wand charged in this way is
usually employed for theurgical purposes, that is for the evocation
of higher beings of the light and intelligences, for it is an excellent
magnet which will make the relevant light beings pay attention
to the magician's will and desire. Besides this, all other
measures must be taken, like, for instance, the insulation of the
rod with white silk, its secure keeping and so on.
Not only will the magician be able to work, with the help of
the wand, in the physical world; he will also be in position to
transfer, with his mental or astral hand, or with both, the mental
and astral sphape of the wand into the relevant plane and will
have his influence work in these planes without having to hold
the wand in his physical hand. In case of the exteriorisation of his
whole mental body, he can take with him not only the mental
shape of his magic wand with all its qualities into the mental
plane but also the mental shape of all magic implements and
aids, and there he is able to operate as if he were present with his
whole physical body to carry out the operations. Never should
the magician forget that the wand represents his true will in its
completeness, absoluteness and power, which may well be compared
with a magical oath, and therefore many magicians have
their magic wand symbolize not only their will-power, but also
the magical oath, which, from the hermetic point of view, may
never and can never be broken. Many magicians carve into their
wand the symbols appropriate to their will-power and the charge
of the wand. Universal symbols, signs, seals of intelligences,
divine names, and the like, may serve this purpose as far as they
represent the true will-power of the magician. The details of this
particular matter are left entirely to the magician's individuality.
The magician will know from these instructions how he has to go
about reaching his aim, and it is up to him to provide, if he likes,
his wand with a secret name standing for his will-power. It will
also be clear to the practising magician that such a name must be
kept a secret and must never, under any circumstance, be
spoken.
The Magic Sword, Dagger and Trident
There are evocations of negative beings and such not liking being
transferred into our physical world. For these beings the magician
will use, should the magic wand not suffice, the magic sword, providing
he insists on their manifestation. The magic sword has
several symbolic meanings, but generally it serves as the symbol
of absolute obedience of a being or a power to the magician. It is
also the symbol of victory and superiority over any power or being.
The sword is analogous to the light, it is an aspect of the fire
and of the word. Already the bible says: "In the beginning was
the word - light - and the word was with God". He who is
somewhat acquainted with symbolism will remember that, as an
example, Archangel Michael, the killer of the dragon, is symbolized
with a burning sword; the dragon, in this case, is the symbol
of the hostile, the negative principle. Adam and Eve, too,
were driven out of paradise by an angel with a burning sword.
The symbolic meaning is also in this case quite clear and unequivocal.
The magic sword usually serves as an implement in those cases
where the magician wishes to exert a certain compulsory or
forceable influence on a power or being, usually quite against its
will. It is an indispensable implement for magicians dealing exclusively
with demonology and who therefore would never get
any positive results unless they were using a magic sword. The
true magician will usually get satisfactory results with his magic
wand, but in spite of this he will not fail to manufacture for
himself an implement such as the magic sword, in order to have
it handy in case of emergencies. Such a magic sword means more
safety for the magician and will strengthen his authority. But
when working, he will only use the sword for operations,
especially for evocations, if a being were to oppose him strongly
or to refuse to obey him.
Some grimoires call such an instrument as the sword a dagger,
yet the magic dagger is nothing else but a diminished sword with
the same kind of symbolism. A magic dagger is manufactured the
same way as a magic sword.
When evoking demons and lower spirits, the sword or dagger
may be replaced by a trident which has to be mounted on a long
wooden shaft, similar to a wooden fork. The trident, like the
sword or dagger, is a means of coercion. Grimoires, on top of
that, recommend ornamenting the trident with engravings of
divine names. This is left to the magician's individual taste and
depends on the purpose of the evocation and the magician's attitude.
The trident is also an enlarged symbol of the magic sword:
the three points symbolize our three-dimensional world, and the
magician can force the beings to fulfill his desire not only in the
mental or astral world, but also in this physical world, or, if the
magician likes, in all three planes. Regarding this, the fact that
demons usually turn up with a trident and are pictured with a trident,
should be mentioned. This does not mean that they run this
trident through the souls in hell, as is sometimes wrongly assumed
by foolish people, but that their influence works on all three
worlds: the mental, astral and physical.
The points of magic swords, daggers or tridents may also be
employed for breaking or killing unevoked and unwanted beings
like phantoms, larvae, elementals, elementaries, and the like,
which may try to hinder the magician in his work. And yet
another way of using these implements must be mentioned here
since it is hardly known to anybody: a magic sword or dagger,
not so much a trident, may do good service as a magical lightningconductor.
After having ended his evocations, especially after evocations of
higher negative beings, principals of demons and the like, the
magician who intends to go to rest but who is uncertain whether
these spirits will let him sleep unmolested, may furnish his bed
with a magic lightning-conductor. Such a lightning-conductor can
be manufactured by winding a copper or iron wire round the legs
of the bed, both ends of which have to be connected with the
sword or dagger. Then the sword or dagger must be stuck into
the floor. The wires form a closed circle around the bed even if it
has a square shape. The function of the sword or dagger is to conduct
the influence directed towards the magician into the earth.
Of course, the wire has to be drawn with the wish in the magician's
mind, that it will form a circle and that no being or any unfavourable
influence will be able to get inside the bed and that
every influence, no matter from which being it may come, will be
conducted into the earth. In such a magically sheltered bed provided
with a magic lightning-conductor the magician will sleep
undisturbed, and he may rest assured that no influence, no matter
from which sphere it may come, will never have any effect upon
him, or will ever be able to surprise and overwhelm him. If the
magician has no sword or dagger handy at the moment, or if he
has to use it for other purposes, a new knife which, in this case,
must not be used for any other purposes, will fulfill the same
function. This magic lightning conductor will also protect the
magician against influences of black magic, especially during the
hours of sleep. A well-trained, fully developed magician may be
able to do without this implement, for he may draw a magic circle
around his bed by force of imagination, mentally or astrally,
thereby using his wand, sword or dagger. This will also give him
full protection against any unwanted influences.
The way in which a magic sword is manufactured depends on
the magician's individuality. Several books instruct the magician
to use a sword which has formerly been used for cutting off a
man's head. This is obviously suggested to raise, in the heart of
the magician, a certain feeling of awe, or a certain stress as soon as
he takes hold of the sword. Usually those magicians who make
use of such a sword are those who need such superficialities to get
into the right state of mind. From the hermetic point of view
such or similar pre-conditions are not necessary, providing that
all other faculties necessarily exist. A sword made of the best kind
of steel (refined steel) will fully serve its purpose. If the magician
cannot produce such a sword himself he may have it made by a
smith or another metal expert. The length of the sword may vary
between two or three feet depending on the magician's height.
The handle of the sword may be made of copper, since copper is a
very good conductor of fluids.
The shape of the sword does not play an essential role. It need
only be sharpened on one side, but, of course, in can also be
sharpened on both sides. Its point, however, must be well
sharpened. It depends on the individual taste of the magician, if
he has the handle ornamented or provided with suitable symbols.
So much about the manufacturing of a magic sword.
The charge of the sword is done by transferring upon it, by
the help of the imagination, the qualities belonging to it, such as
the power over all beings, the absolute victory and the respect due
to it as the symbol of combat, life etc. These qualities have to be
dynamically intensified in the sword by repeated charging. The
magician may also accumulate the light-fluid in the sword in such
a way that it will look like the shining sun or like a flaming
sword, similar to that one which Archangel Michael holds in his
hand in his symbolic pictures.
The main point is the attitude of the magician towards the
magic sword accompanied by an unbreakable belief in his absolute
victory in all planes, which will give the sword the necessary
force so that every power, every being will fear and respect it
under any circumstance. After each use the sword has to be wrapped
up in a piece of white or black silk and put away safely like
the other magic implements.
The magician may, by practising mental wandering, transfer
the spiritual form of the sword into the mental plane and visit the
planetary spheres taking his magic sword as well as his magic
wand with him. There, according to his wish, he can make use of
his magic power with the help of his magic implements. That
every being will have to obey him in these spheres is clearly evident
by what has been said before. The magician is able, during
his magical operations and evocations, to transfer his mental
sword with his mental hand into the relevant sphere by force of
imagination, and there he can make the being carry out his
wishes. Such a force, however, can only be exerted without
danger by a magician who has a clean heart and a noble soul. If
a sorcerer tried to do the like he would only make the being hate
him and would soon become a victim of them and their influence.
The history of occult science has given many examples of the
tragic fate and even more tragic end of such sorcerers. It would
exeed the extension of this book to talk about certain events in
detail.
The Magic Crown, Cap and Magus-Band
Always when carrying out operations of ritual magic, no matter
whether evocations, invocations or other operations, the magician
should wear something on his head. He may take, for this
purpose, a golden crown with magic symbols engraved on it, or
he may take a cap or some other headgear with the symbols of the
macrocosm and microcosm of the deity with whom the magician
is connected or whose shape he is taking on. The symbols must
either be drawn with a good colour or embroidered or fastened
with silk. Such a symbol of the macrocosm and microcosm, for
instance, is a hexagon in the middle of two circles inside of which
is the microcosmic symbol of man, the pentagram. If the magician
embroiders his cap himself, or if he has it embroidered by
somebody else, he may choose a golden colour for the circles as a
symbol of infinity; for the hexagon he may take a silvery colour
as the symbol of the created universe, and for the pentagram in
the centre a white or violet colour. Instead of using a cap or a turban
as a headgear, a silk-band, a so-called magus-band, may suffice.
This band may be in white, violet or black and is to be
wound round the magician's head. The part running over his
forehead should be ornamented with the macro-microcosmic
symbol, described previously. The symbol may either be embroidered
or drawn on a piece of parchment, thereby using the
colour mentioned above. Instead of the symbol of the macrocosm
some other symbol representing the magician's connection with
the deity may be used. For instance, a cross, which at the same
time, symbolizes the Positive and the Negative, and the ends of
which symbolize the four elements. A rosecross symbol may also
be employed, that is a cross with seven roses in the centre, also
symbolizing the four elements, the Positive and the Negative, and
on top of that, the seven planets. The magician's choice is not, as
can be seen, restricted to a particular symbol. He may express his
spiritual development, his destination, his maturity, his cosmic
relationship by several symbols, whichever he prefers, and he
may wear them on his cap or magus-band.
As already mentioned, the crown, cap or magus-band is a symbol
of the dignity of the magician's authority. It is a symbol of the
perfection of his spirit, a symbol of his relationship to the
microcosm and macrocosm, the tiny and the great world, the
highest expression of his magical power, serving him to crown his
head. All articles, no matter whether cap, crown or magus-band,
must be made of the finest material and must serve no other
purposes but operations of ritual magic. As soon as the cap,
crown or magus-band is ready and has been tried out, it should be
sanctified by meditation and a holy oath, so that the magician will
only put it on his head when he is fully absorbed with the idea of
his unity with the deity, and he will only make use of the cap for
operations which demand this kind of symbolism. When speaking
his oath the magician should put his right hand on the cap and
should concentrate, by force of imagination, on the idea that at
the moment he puts the cap on his head he is united with his deity,
or with the symbol ornamenting his cap. Then he should put
his headgear away safely together with his other magical implements.
Whenever the magician is prepared for evocations, after having
meditated for this purpose, and puts on his headgear, he will at
once be united with the Deity and will have, not only in himself,
but in the whole space or at the place where he puts it on, that
feeling of a holy temple atmosphere. Therefore the magician will
agree that his headgear is also an intrinsic part of his magical implements,
and that he must draw his full attention towards it.
Sorcerers also use caps which are ornamented with symbols of
demons, but only few of them know about their genuine meaning
and correct application, not to mention their actual symbolism.
A magician, however, who does everything consciously
can never decline to be a mere sorcerer and will never do
anything he does not understand. Everything he does is done for
a special purpose.
The Magical Garment
This is to be treated in the same manner as the cap or magusband.
The magical gament is a long robe made of silk, buttoned
from the neck to the toes. The sleeves of the robe end at the
wrists. The robe looks like the vestment of a clergyman and symbolizes
the absolute purity of all ideas, and the purity of the magician's
soul. It is also the symbol of protection. Just as a common
garment protects a man's physical body from outside influences,
rain, cold etc. so the magical garment of the magician shelters him
from outside influences which may attact his body through its
astral or mental matrix. As already mentioned several times, silk
is the best insulating material against any astral or mental influences.
A robe made of silk is therefore an excellent means of insulation
and may also be successfully used for other operations
not directly connected with ritual magic; for instance, protection
of the astral or physical body when projecting the mental or
astral body so that no being can take possession of the magician's
astral or physical body without his approval. A magic robe may
also be successfully used for similar operations for which the insulation
of the mental, astral and physical body is necessary. It is,
however, up to the magician which possible variations he wants
to make use of. Under no circumstances may the magician use a
garment for ritual magic or evocations which has been used for
common purposes such as, for example, training, or current
magical operations. A special robe must be taken for this special
kind of magic, and its colour must suit the purpose. Here I should
point out that for common mental and astral operations or experiments,
the insulating garment may be put on top of any other
clothes; for evocations and ritual magic; however, the magical
garment is to be worn over the naked body. The magician may,
however, in cold weather, put on a shirt or pants made of pure
silk und put the robe over them, but the pants or shirt must be of
the same colour as the robe. The magician may use house-shoes of
the same colour as the robe. The soles of the shoes can be made of
leather or rubber.
The colour of the robe corresponds to the work, idea and purpose
the magician wishes to carry out. He may choose one of the
three universal colours: white, violet or black. Violet is equivalent
to the Akasha-colour and may be used for nearly all magical
operations. White is chosen for the robe only, when dealing with
high and good beings. Black is the appropriate colour for negative
powers and beings. The magician is able to carry out almost all
ritual operations with these colours. If he can afford the expense, he
can have three robes made, one of each colour. A wealthy magician
may choose, for his robes, colours analogous to the individual
spheres of the planets he works with. Thus he will take for:
beings of Saturn - dark-violet
beings of Jupiter - blue
beings of Mars - purple
beings of the Sun - yellow, gold or white
beings of Venus - green
beings of Mercury - opalescent, orange
beings of the Moon - silver or white
Of course, only the prosperous magician will be able to afford
such expenditure. A magician not so prosperous will get satisfactory
results with just one robe in a light-violet colour. His cap or
magus-band should be of the same colour.
When the robe is ready, the magician must wash it in running
water in order to de-od it, so that no alien influence will remain
on the silk. Then he must iron the robe by himself, for no other
hands but his should ever come in contact with it. The magician
will find these measures quite justified, for, being very particular
in this respect, he will already find it disturbing if another person,
even if it is someone of his family, of his relations or friends,
merely touches one of his magical implements. The robe prepared
in the manner described must then be put in front of the magician,
who, by help of imagination, must unite himself with his
deity and bless the robe, not as his own person, but as the deity
evoking itself. He must take an oath, that is swear to the garment
that he will only use it for ritual purposes. A dress influenced and
impregnated in such a way then has genuine magical power and
will offer the magician absolute security. Before the magician
prepares his robe for magical purposes he may embroider it, if he
likes, with universal symbols similar to his cap. All this, of
course, entirely depends on his own will and he may rest assured
that he cannot make any mistakes in this respect.
The Magical Belt
The magical belt is part of the magical garment. Put round the
waist it keeps the whole robe together. The belt is made of the
same material as the robe and cap, but leather may also be used; it
must, however, be of the same colour as the garment. Magicians
of days gone by preferred belts made of lion skin, which they first
made into leather and then into a belt. The skin of a lion was the
symbol eof power, superiority and dominance. The symbolic
meaning of the belt could really be best compared with the
domination over the elements, the magical equilibrium. And the
upper and lower part of a man's body, kept together in the middle
by the belt, symbolizes the scales. The symbol chosen may
either be drawn or carved into the leather or it may be embroidered
on a silk belt. The symbolic drawing of the equilibrium
of the elements and their domination can be made according to
the magician's own ideas. He may, for instance, draw a circle and
inside it a pentagram with one point upward, and in the middle of
the pentagram again a triangle as the symbol of the domination
over the elements of the three planes. In the middle of the triangle
a cross with two arms of the same length should be drawn as the
symbol of the Plus and Minus-principles and their equilibrium.
Also in this case the magician should go about as he has done with
the cap and garment, that is he must sanctify and bless the belt
and swear that he will use the belt together with the robe and only
for ritual purposes. The belt will be stored away safely,
together with the robe, in the same place as the other magical implements.
Further Magical Aids
The magician must deal the same way with any further aids
which he may want to use for his ritual purposes as he has with
the magical implements already described. There is still quite a
number of them, and it would lead us too far if I were to deal
with each of them in this book, as magical aids depend on the purpose
and aim for which they are made. Thus, for instance, the
magician needs a special pen, ink, engraving pencil for writing
and engraving, needles for embroidering, embroidery-wool and
embroidery-silk, parchment paper, colours, sacrificial blood for
certain operations, the so-called holy oil, with which he anoints
his implements and himself on certain parts of his body. Salt, incense
or other means for incensing; a whip which he uses in much
the same way as his magic sword, attributing to it the same symbolism.
Apart from that he needs a chain as the symbol of the
relationship of the macrocosm with the microcosm with all its
spheres. At the same time the chain is the symbol of the
magician's admittance to the great brotherhood of magicians and
to the hierarchy of all beings of the macrocosm and microcosm.
The chain may be worn round the neck like a piece of jewellery
and indicates that the magician is a member of the association of
all true and genuine magicians.
For certain magical operations a cup is also used as the symbol
of wisdom and life. During certain magical operations the magician
gets his holy meal, his eucharist, the holy communion out of
this cup. A cup filled with wine is used to charge the wine with
the divine power similar to the holy communion of Christians.
The charging of the cup is to be carried out in such a way that the
magician transforms himself into a deity, then blesses the wine,
thus transforming it into the divine blood - wisdom, power, life.
During work-breaks the magician drinks this transformed wine
and so takes part in the holy sacrament. I have already dealt with
this subject in "Initiation into Hermetics" in the chapter on the
eucharist.
A bell may also serve as a magical aid for evocations. Such a bell
should be made of electro-magicum, that is a prescribed mixture
of all the metals of the planets. The magician uses this when he
wants to draw the attention of the invisible world to himself.
This is done by rhythmic ringing. The rhythm and the number
of chimes depends on the number-rhythms of the sphere with
which the magician wants to have communication. This oriental
method is scarcely used by true magicians. In the east, especially
in Tibet, this kind of evocation by bell-ringing, cymbal-beating
etc., is often practised.
I have already mentioned that all these implements must be
new and never used for any other purpose except the one to
which they are dedicated. Each implement must be put away safely
after use. If it is no longer needed or if the magician does not intend
to use it any more, the implement has to be destroyed or
rendered innocuous. If one would use a magical implement for
any other purposes, it would become desecrated and magically ineffectual.
All magic implements have to be handled as if they were relics.
The more carefully the magician handles his magical implements,
the greater will be their magical power and effect.
The Pentacle, Lamen or Seal
The difference between a pentacle and a seal is that the pentacle is
a universal symbol of power and must be charged with the
qualities of the relevant power by help of the magic wand or imagination;
its purpose is to induce awe and obedience in a being,
so that it fulfills the magician's will. The shape of the universal
symbol depends on the religious attitude of the magician. The
same universal symbol of power which the magician has embroidered
or engraved in his headgear (crown, cap, magus-band)
may be used for instance, a hexagram constructed within two
circles in the middle of which rests a pentagram. In the centre of
the pentagram is a cross which has arms of the same length. A
cross alone may also serve as a universal symbol.
Many magicians make use of the Pentacle Salomonis as a symbol
of coercion for all beings. The magician surely will not choose
a symbol the construction of which he would not find analogous
to the universal laws, for with such a symbol he could not make
obvious the authority he needs for his purposes. Only by completely
understanding the meaning of his symbol and by being
able to take the right attitude towards it will the magician get true
magical results. A magician should always think of this. He
should only use symbols which are clear to him in meaning and
which represent the idea of his power.
A seal, contrary to the pentacle, is the graphic representation of
a being, power or sphere which is expressed by its symbolism.
The existing types of seals are:
1. The traditional seals which have either been found by clairvoyance
or have been reproduced by spirit beings during astral
visits to the various spheres. Beings will only react to this kind of
seal if the magician knows how to transfer himself into their
sphere of power. Due to a constant increase of the magician's
reservoir of power, caused by frequent use of one and the same
seal, he will also increase his influence and be able to make it
work on the being in question.
The copying and reproduction of seals, however, has been the
source of many errors, and the seals have often been corrupted.
Sometimes this has been done deliberately in order to make the
magician's work more difficult and his success with this material
less probable or even totally impossible. A magician with an open
mind for astral operations may, if he likes, check the genuineness
of the seal by use of the Akasha-principle, or trance, and by placing
his total concentration on the seal. By doing this, he will also
be able to correct the seal.
2. There also exist universal seals which not only symbolize the
qualities and range of action of beings but also their other
characteristics. By applying the laws of analogy one may produce
graphic constructions of such seals and charge them with the
qualities of the relevant spirits by force of imagination. The
being will have to react to such seals without resistance.
3. The magician may also produce seals entirely according to his
own ideas, without following any analogous relations. He must,
however, have such seals approved by the being concerned. The
being's approval of such a seal or sign can be established as
follows: the magician wanders with his spirit into the being's own
sphere and has the being swear mentally to his seal, its shape, or
representation, that it will always react to it.
A lamen is very similar to a universal symbol, but is not a symbol
of the microcosm and macrocosm: it represents symbolically
the intellectual and psychic authority, the attitude and the
maturity of the magician. The lamen is usually sewn to the magician's
garment, somewhere on his chest, or it is specially engraved
into a suitable piece of metal, or drawn on a piece of parchment
Ind worn like an amulet. It expresses, by its symbolic presentation,
the absolute authority of the magician.
The magician will avail himself of a talisman if, during magical
operations, he needs protection from unwanted influences, or if
he wants to have an outstanding success with his magical operations.
The talisma