Azoth or The Star In The East- Commentary Part 1

"I knew on a very deep level that this was a Sacred Art"

Alchemy is known as the Royal Art. It is an art in the sense that it calls forth both the creative and destructive forces within. It stimulates both the inner and the outer, and gives a greater meaning to that which at first glance may seem worthless or trite. It opens the world like a book to the hungry reader and tells a magnificent tale of worlds outside, within, and surrounding our own. It is Royal or Noble in that it repels any superfulous influence. Its is a path of purity, of higher status for the soul trapped in a muddied world, one that places the crown of immortabilty on anyone who would undergo its trials and blessings. It is spoken of in Greek Myth and in Spiritual Allegory. In fact, I would say that it is the only Art. Truly every spiritual tradition, every system of High Magic, every mystical teaching is only an extension of the process of alchemy The transmutation of the soul from the state of unknowingness and plumbous nature of lead to that of the perfected, incorruptable, and auriferous nature of gold. To elevate oneself from the imperfect to the perfect, to be a vessel which holds the essence of the All, and can with a touch turn other things imperfect into their exhalted counter-parts...that is the nature of the mystical life, the spiritual life. To those who seek the Royal Path I offer a commentary on portions of Azoth or the Star of the East. It's purpose to offer a bridge for your own research and development in the Great Work for you will see that alchemical texts draw from many, many sources and it is the work of the alchemist to delve into each mystery slowly uncovering its source and its meaning, digesting it and making it apart of oneself. And as I am a student always and forever I welcome any commentary from fellow alchemists and mystics alike. May we all move forward together in the Great Work. I hope this short blog is helpful and interesting. I will be off on a spiritual journey for a few weeks time, so this one is short but when I return I shall continue with Part II.

Nosce te Ipsum

Soror FSO

Preface.

In the books of the old physical Mystics, who conducted the experiments of transmutation and investigated the possibility of Nature in the world of metals and minerals, we find frequent reference to an all-permeateing and sublimating principle, which of the many forces deal with or referred to in occult chemistry appears most potent and most universal.

metals and minerals- refers to a more advanced stage of alchemy usually partaken of only after mastery of the

vegetable/herbal realm in which one has completed the "vegetable stone" known as the Minor Opus. This is the process of balancing and purifying the elements within through seperation and recombination. This work corresponds to the work of the Outer Order in the Golden Dawn taking one from Malkuth to the threshold of Tiphareth as well as to the world of Yetzirah and its effects on the astral body. The mineral work corresponds to the permanent psychic changes that are made in Briah, the Inner Order work and the spheres of Tiphareth, Geburah, and Chesed.

all-permeating;all-evading- Azoth is effective in all planes and for all times

sublimating-the spiritualization of matter; purification, the raising of one's vibrational energy. In chemistry this corresponds to the process of transition from a solid to gas with no liquid phase in between. Sublimation begins with the removal of the superfulous so that the purest parts remain possessing only the quality of the spirit, the term sublimation can also refer to the creation of the astral body.

It is the 'essential and final principle of the Great Work; its analogies in the intelligible order are to be found in the Divine Will; it is, allegorically speaking, the hand of God in Nature, and therefore in its symbolical aspect, as the outward sign of a withdrawn and unattainable potency; it has not been inappropriately designated the God of the Sages.

intelligible- denoting the metaphysical ream which is accessible to the intellect as opposed to the world of phenomena accessible only to the five senses. According to Pythagoras there are two worlds the sensible and the intelligible, the latter has the Monad as an originating principle. Plato also expounded on the intelligble world using his "Divided Line" analogy, a quick summery which can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analogy_of_the_divided_line

This force is the alchemical Azoth, The Catholicon, Magnesia, The Sperm of the World, Mercury, and the "Universal Medicine of Things, endowed with the most intent and concentrated virtue.

Azoth- The Alpha and Omega, The Beginning and the End, formed from the first and last letters of the hebrew alphabet Aleph-Tav

Catholicon- a remedy for ills

Magnesia-the "white" or "red" magnesia, the "magnet of Jah", the attractive principle of Divine Wisdom. This 'magnet' is also the power of attraction which establishes the orbits of the planets and the astronomical order of the heavens ( we hear this echoed in the Zelator initiation "He has bound Man with the Stars as with a chain. He allures him with Scattered Fragments of the Divine Body in bird and beast and flower, and He laments over him in the Wind and in the Sea and in the birds".\) It is the matter of the Stone. It "yields to nothing but love because generation is her aim and this is never accomplished through violence" The Sperm of the World from which all things are naturally generated, she (Magnesia) is of a middle nature (the Reconciler)

"It contains within itself" says the Book of the Wood of Life, "all other Medicines, as well as the first principle of all other substances, their accidents excluded. Unto this all things are alike; it uncovers every species, and imparts and immense streangth and catholic, central virtue.

catholic- universal

accidents-The nine accidents are quality, quantity, relation,action, passion, time, place, disposition, rainment. Accident was a term used by Pythagoras to describe a quality that was not apart of something's inherent nature (substance). For example a dog is a dog whether it is black or white. Therefore the dog is the substance, and the color is its accident. When the substance and accidents are reconciled together they form the one title, the perfect number, iota (10) (Matt 5:18: Verily I say unto you, till the heaven and earth pass away, one iota, or one title may not pass away from the law, till that all may come to pass). The iota is associated with the letter Yod-Hand in the hebrew alphabet. It is also associated with Virgo and The Hermit in the Tarot. (refer to the previous reference as Azoth being the hand of God in Nature)

I Can't Be Your Superman!

And now for a candid announcement....Sometimes I think the "B" in blog stands for bullshit. First of all having the ability to post whatever you want on the internet gives people the false impression that they are an "authority" which gives them permission to wag their dicks in anyone's faces about any subject what so ever....yes, I'm sure there is some comfort being a keyboard cowboy from the privacy of your own living room knowing you can say whatever you like and no one is going to come to your door and punch you in the face. Secondly, it's very funny how people begin to acquire a belief that just because you write a blog that means you wear some kind of "S" on you're chest and you can go around saving the world, physically swooping in to stop evil in it's tracks...and when you don't, well, hell hath no fury like an "Anonymous Poster" scorned...

And thus in light of these things above, from the comfort of my living room, key-board cowboy style, I'm going to break down this reality check for some of you real quick...(obviously this post is not meant for everyone)

1. Soror FSO posts things to her blog that she believes are relevant and worth her time. Whereas you may have a day job and get to sit at home surfing the internet with nothing else to do after work or during work my time is precious. Getting a MA degree in physics/biomedical engineering is no easy feat, and when I am not spending 40hrs a week on my homework I have a child, husband, house, students, and if I have the time, some magic to attend to. This means that responding to every moan, bitch, and complain that crosses the internet regrading "The Golden Dawn" is not on my agenda. If it's relevant and I believe makes an impact I will take the time to write about it...i.e. I did not feel that "Robert Zink" coming down to the Temple of Isis was anything to sneeze at. Yes, when rampaged around the internet and various blogs it sure seemed like the apocolypse had come and gone...the truth of the matter is that it was more like a fly landing on your back at the beach, annoying to say the least. Which brings me to my next point.

2. Robert does not have control of anything except the hearts and minds of five people....count 'em baby uno, dos, tres, quatro, cinco, sies!...Hot Damn! One whole hand! Maybe if Robert works really hard and doesn't screw anyone over by stealing anyone else's credit card information he might get that up to two hands pretty quickly...a far cry from the few hundred students which used to be apart of that Order...Did you know that when Sideshow Bob showed up to EQ, the Adepti and members vacated the premises?! Essentially Robert went down there and played "Big Fish in a Small Pond", Imperator of five people...go Robert!, after all those years you're back to where you started. And for those of you who are so "pissed" that we "let" Robert have the Temple did you also know that the lease of Isis is in the hands of those few people who love Robert so much? O! that gives me such great legal grounds to go down there and shut that whole "operation" down. Super Soror to the rescue!

3. Soror FSO is not apart of the EOGD anymore, and doesn't care what they do. Yes, I could get all upset and say "O, well Robert still has the ability to hurt people", but first of all, I did not sign up to be the Robert Zink police. I have been doing that since I was a Theoricus, and was even proudly kicked out of the Order twice because I got on Robert's bad side for not 'cowtowing' to his whims. Short of going up to La Crosse, WI and doing something illegal that will put me in jail there is really nothing else that can be done. The ownership of Isis is in the hands of those few who stayed with him. The rest of us few hundred people who were in that Order no longer have anything to do with him, them, or however they decided to live their life...it's democracy at its finest. So for all you little "Judgemental Judys" out there who want to act like we are the bad guys, I would like to make it clear that you have just as much power to do something about him as I do which includes...

1.Not recognizing him as a member of the Golden Dawn community

2. Boycotting his forums and blogs which include the World-Wide Forum

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Golden-Dawn-Forum-World-Wide/messages?o=1

http://golden-dawn.blogspot.com/

http://esotericgoldendawn.wordpress.com/

3.Suggesting to people whom he screws over that they press charges on him..which is the right thing to do. ( I would do this, but I never gave him a red cent)

4. Offering something better than what he has to offer

5. Informing those who may show interest to do a small amount of research

6. Help me to write an "Initiates Bill of Rights" which I will be making my next blog post about.

So now, Soror FSO is going to do what she has been wanting to do since she was a Theoricus and finally has the ability to do... be apart of an Order full of people I respect, enjoy doing magic, enjoy not dealing with drama, and that includes the internet bullshit. Most likely, (unless I feel its really relevant to discuss) this will be my last blog post which even gives credence to the Golden Dawn drama. There is so much more to this beautiful tradition and its time for me, and all of us to start living it. If you feel the same way, I say let's fill the internet, it's blogs, and forums with information that will light the way for people seeking the Light, let's turn our focus back to the Divine. Lets stop "defending the tradition" and start showing people our knowledge, our growth, and how to live the life of a mage...let's show them the tradition. Yes, I know there will always be those drama queens who can't quit gossiping, but I've learned its up to you whether you want to involve yourself in it or not. One can just as easily read a blog relevant to magic where they will learn something as they can read a blog that is essentially the "National Enquirer" of the Golden Dawn. Be an informed magician, be a smart magician. Ask questions, do research, study magic...leave all the distraction behind.

What Is It That Binds You?

I was talking to a Zen Buddhist over Facebook this morning and we were discussing the topic of how different traditions approach the topic of enlightenment. He said that when a person asks how to attain enlightenment in Zen he is then asked "What is it that binds you?"

After hearing this statement even now, hours later, my consciousness is reverberating like a brass bowl that has been expertly played. What is it that is holding you back, holding you to this world, keeping you from experiencing the Divine in your life every day, keeping your consciousness locked in the material, the ego, your desires? What is it that you are holding onto? What is it that binds you?!

At each level of our development we are seeking a deeper and subtler degree of purification. I have always asked myself "What is it that I need to purify?" or, having noticed myself reacting inappropriately or being attached to something said " I need to purify myself of this". But there is something about the word "bind" that strikes me on a whole new level. I might be just looking at the the same thing from a different perspective, but using the word "bind" instead of "purify" invokes a sense of urgency within. When I think of the word "purification" I associate that with time. Yes, purification takes time so even though I am working on purifying these lower qualities I now see that part of my consciousness doesn't mind if it takes longer to accomplish.

The word "bind" however makes me feel suffocated, controlled, and held back. It is as if someone is telling me "No, you can't live in your full potential because you are being shackled to this existence by illusions, desires, appetites, addictions, and attachments." Re-framing it this way makes me want to go into the Temple right now and stay there doing magic until I emerge like the Buddha from underneath the Bodhi tree. In fact, here I am equally kicking myself and equally rejoicing as I realize I have awaken from another layer of slumber. How easily we fool ourselves into thinking we are progressing when really we are half-sleeping on the floor of enlightenment.

The irony is that they only thing that is binding us to this lesser state of consciousness is ourselves. If we look at The Devil card in the Book T based tarot decks we see that the man and woman standing beneath the Devil, bound to him, are in fact holding the chains. They can choose to release them at anytime, yet their own ignorance causes them to believe they are trapped, tortured, and forced to live in an imperfect existence. We hold the chains to our bonds. Equally, we hold the key to our happiness. Now when I think of "purification" I think of "cleaning out", but when I think of "binding" I think of letting go. What is there to clean out? Nothing. We are created in the image and likeness of the Divine. What is there to let go of? Everything, because there is only one true state of consciousness and that is Unity. Enlightenment is a state of consciousness, it is not dangerous. There is nothing dangerous about immediately achieving it. What is dangerous are the paths sometimes used to get to enlightenment ;techniques used wrongly, purification done too strenuously, but if done correctly, they can be a jewel worth more than any physical trinket.

What I am trying to say is this, it is important to follow our chosen path, and it is important to practice our techniques (properly) so that we can ripen our consciousness. It is the ripened consciousness that is free to realize the bonds which he is so fervently holding onto. But it is important not to hold ourselves back by the false belief that we cannot live in the Truth until some far off time. The Truth is here now. It exists now. It is all around us and within us now. By remembering this at all times it is as if we keep a suitor waiting on the other side of the door so when we are ready to open the door we can embrace him that much more passionately. Let's not forget that our True Nature is there at all times...we only need to turn to it.

Nosce Te Ipsum

Soror FSO

"Before enlightenment chop wood and carry water. After enlightenment chop wood and carry water" - Ancient Chinese proverb

Lust

A friend of mine from high school recently started getting suspended (suspension.org if your not sure what I am talking about ) Over the years I have known others who have been suspended and have engaged in different forms of body modification myself, but at this particular time in life the subject affected me very deeply. In the past these acts were a way for me to express to the world who I was, and to see who would accept me. Now, it sang to me of a place that yearned for intensity of experience, the abilty to overcome the material with the spiritual.

I won't say that I have gotten into a "rut" with my magical practice, but I have been craving a deeper experience. Now, I have to mention that throughout the almost twenty years I have been studying mystical traditions and thier practices (yes I started when I was ten) it wasn't until I started practicing magic that I actually began to have the mystical experiences that I had been learning about. In fact, since I started my training, I have had mind-blowing, bring me to my knees weeping, light-showing, unexplainable things happen while being in the Temple. It seems almost crazy for me to say that I think I started taking this for granted. ( I'll need to meditate on Moses hitting the rock twice later)

When I saw the pictures of my friend's suspension I started to crave an even more intense experience. For those of you who dont' know much about this, it is often reported that one has out of body experiences, and attains higher states of awareness while undergoing suspension. I began to want to have my whole being shocked into another dimension. I began to obsess about it for days, staying up late at night and cruising the internet looking at pics of suspension, kadvali, and other ritual body modifications. After the initial high of "something new" wore off, I began to feel uneasy. I started to doubt my experiences, and reality in general. Hmmm...what goes up, must come down.

After talking to my husband I realized that I had been trapped in a state of mind that lusted for result, something I had learned about years earlier from the Yoga Sutras. In the realm of the spirit, this is a hefty trap that can be difficult to overcome. The illusion being that having a certain experience, or attaining a certain power, equals enlightenment. The Yoga Sutras talk about this is the section on "siddhis", extraordinary powers that yogis develop as a result of thier spiritual progression. It warns that one should not strive to have these powers (invisibility, walking through walls, flight etc...), but should seek the true power beyond them. Many a spiritual seeker get lured into becoming attached to these "pretties", and fall off the path. This, I think is also an important lessson for magicians who are studying High Magic (magic for self-development, and union with thier True Self).

It is easy to get caught up in attaining the powers of angels, or conrolling planetary and elementary forces. But we must remember that our goal is to use these forces to help us attain union with the Divine, and to reap spiritual gifts that will benefit all of mankind, not just ourselves. As one teacher of mine so aptly put, "You will become enlightened much faster if you seek to use it to help others become enlightened rather than just wanting it for yourself." As we discover, when we begin to ascend in our state of consciousness, The Lord our God, the Lord is One...we are one with the Divine, and we are one with each other. Thus, my brethern in the Light, let us not seek to do the work for ourselves, but for The Lord of the Universe. Let us pray that our spiritual gifts be given to others, so that we may all rise speedily to union with our True Selves.