by Frater Achad Osher
This paper is adapted from series of lessons distributed in our branch of the A.’.A.’.
titled The Magickal Essence of Aleister Crowley, Understanding
the New Aeon through the teachings of the Great Beast.
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law. –AL I:40
We shall now address the third reason why an individual should do Liber Resh. Although I will be giving an overview on the subject, I highly recommend reviewing the previous two reasons before attempting to understand anything in this article. In all honesty, most of what I shall discuss will be unattainable for the average person. After all, Aleister Crowley plainly stated the third reason is “for advanced students” so they could “make actual magical contact with the spiritual energy of the sun and thus draw actual force” into themselves. What I shall be discussing are certain aspects about the ritual of Liber Resh which Grady Louis McMurtry taught to me years ago.
We have already discussed the astral tides and, although it is easy for us to state that our Sun is the source of these tides, it usually befuddles people when we mention that we have an internal door which allows these tides to manifest within ourselves. To understand this statement we must discuss human sexuality and psychic anatomy in relation to elementals. However, this opens up a can of worms on many levels. After making the above statement, I’m aware that I’ll probably be addressing extremely difficult topics for the average student. The subject of western sex magick is avoided in most books or watered down to the point of being repressive. However, sex itself is neither moral or immoral, it is totally amoral. The current views of any given society are what tips the scale in either direction. From an amoral point of view most true magicians, like Aleister Crowley, have studied this topic for years, and a solar-phallic perspective is the key to most of the Beast’s writings.
From teachings found in eastern mysticism, we know that our psychic anatomy is composed of two invisible nerve currents called the Ida and the Pingala which snake themselves around the Sushumna, or central spinal column, like fine wires of positive and negative currents. Attached to this column are seven power zones known as chakras which equate to one, or more, of the spheres on The Tree of Life. Some schools claim there are more than seven but I tend to agree with the thought that they are confusing chakras with lesser power zones known as marmas. These chakras are attached to the central spinal column by a thin stem which gently rises outward until it blooms like a flower into a beautiful spiral or circular vortex just above the surface of our body. Most books fail to point out that these chakras open and close daily by the continual movement of energy and that without such you’d be dead. Unfortunately in the average person the energy may never fully open any given chakra, nor does it follow a perfect order from the lowest to the highest. It may only briefly fulfill an individual’s requirements to exist on a daily basis as typified by our emotions and senses. Some eastern schools make it seem like these power zones remain tightly closed unless, through certain secret teachings, one learns how to activate them. This is total rubbish. Yes, certain yogic teachings do unravel the knots and activate the chakras in a certain order. This has its place in the scheme of things but we are not concerned with these practices.
The energy within our subtle anatomy which activates the chakras is known as the Kundalini. It is considered a ‘pure’ energy, one which has the potential to transform everything it embraces. It is often called the Serpent Power because it is said to be coiled like a snake at the base of our spine, just waiting to be awakened from its trance-like sleep. When it wakes this energy rises upward to embrace and activate the chakras. The whole process is like flipping a switch so that electricity flows through wires to light a bulb.
The lowest of these chakras is known as the Muladhara or root chakra. It is situated at the base of the spine between the sexual organs and the anus. It is misleading to say that this chakra is the home of the Fire Serpent or Kundalini when it sleeps. This is a misnomer although many books on yoga state this as if it were a fact. Magicians have long known that the force actually comes from beyond our psychic system and only flows through this chakra. Of these seven chakras, four are directly associated with the astral tides. The Muladhara chakra rules the astral tide of Prithivi or earth, but it is important to stress that it is also the source of all four unmanifested tides. In other words the Muladhara is merely the door through which all four solar tides enter into our body. As these tides rise upward into our system, the earth tide remains in the Muladhara chakra and this is why yogic masters claim it rules this element.
The Muladhara has four distinct divisions of energy or types of vibrations swirling around its top. These are often referred to as petals in Tantric writings, each represents one of the four tides. The other chakras also have a specific number of petals and this is why chakras are often referred to as lotuses or flowers which bloom when the energy is drawn near. In the center of the Muladhara, between the four petals, is said to dwell a ‘Hidden Sun’ which continually exudes a dangerous poison. This Hidden Sun is critical to western sex magick but is shunned by eastern religions. Tantric writings refer to this poison as the sun-fluid of mortality because he who eats of this nectar will surely die. It’s a bit dramatic and definitely not true. The facts are far simpler. We all die. No one has yet to escape this mundane inevitability, so avoidance of the nectar is ludicrous. Through Liber Resh a perfectly balanced four-fold door is opened, like the petals of the Muladhara chakra and an inner Sun in revealed. The true key, however, is that this Hidden Sun is not contained in the Muladhara chakra. The chakra is a doorway which opens to universal currents emanating from the Sun found in our own Solar System. Thus, the Sun is the true origin of the Kundalini, the serpent coiled around our Universe. This is the truth behind Hadit.
There are many, many other mysteries regarding this chakra. Tantric writings show there are sacred symbols which typify each power zone. All symbols are depicted as being round, with the respective number of petals situated around the perimeter. In the case of the Muladhara, there are obviously four petals. The next symbol found within the Muladhara circle is that of a square which represents the earth as well as the four-fold door in respect to the tides. There are other symbols, but I do not wish to go into them as they do not relate to where I’m going. However, every chakra has letters inscribed on the petals as well as letters of a given mantra, or the name of a sound, in the very center of the design. If this sound is vibrated over and over, at least twelve times, these mantras transform the consciousness as the Kundalini moves through the chakra which the sound represents. It is important to realize that these letters are not just words representing the alphabet, they are vibrational rates of a chakra which reflects the ability of a universal life-force to manifest. The Muladhara mantra is a three letter word, LAM.
In Crowley’s The ‘Blue’ Equinox Vol.III No.1 there is a drawing of a large headed Master which is entitled The Way. He further writes that this is LAM, and “is the Tibetan word for the Way or Path, and Lama is He who Goeth, the specific title of the Gods of Egypt, the Treader of the Path, in Buddhistic phraseology.” (1) When a friend who visited Crowley’s apartment in London during World war II commented on this drawing, wondering if it was the product of his imagination, the Beast replied, “That? He’s my guru!” (2) To this day LAM has remained extremely perplexing amongst Crowleyites. We know this entity appeared to Crowley while he was in New York around 1918. Some claim this occurred during the infamous Amalantrah Working but, unfortunately, the full record of this magickal working has not survived. We have copies of only the first six months and there is no mention of LAM. Regardless, scholars of all types have expressed with deepest sincerity their beliefs as to who or what LAM is, myself included. Some of the theories border on the bizarre, as when an author claims the drawing looks like a ‘gray’ or a certain type of alien seen by abductees of UFOs. Other theories simply refer to LAM as a hidden gateway. I personally feel this is closer to the truth. LAM represents the frequency whereby the hidden door is opened and the energy rises. He is truly The Way. Crowley’s magick, being so phallic and tied closely to the solar currents found in the Muladhara chakra, is naturally drawn to this path and this explains why he refers to LAM as his Guru.
Crowley attributed LAM’s Qabalistic numerical value as 71 to reflect the Hebrew word for Silence. However, during one our own workings in 1982, we learned that in addition to 71, LAM is portrayed by many numbers, one such being 631. This is because in Hebrew Qabalah the letter ‘L’ has the numerical value of thirty, while the ‘A’ is one, and the ‘M’ being Mem-final in the word is numerically six hundred rather than just forty. When I previously mentioned the verse in Liber AL vel Legis which claimed that there was a ‘secret door’, I failed to point out that numerically, using English Qabalah, the words ‘secret door’ adds to 631. Therefore LAM not only represents The Way but is also the secret door made into the four quarters which will enable the student “to make actual magical contact with the spiritual energy of the sun” as Crowley has stated. Thus each individual will be able to draw the actual force into themselves. At this point I suggest that the student use this mantra in conjunction with Liber Resh vel Helios, preferably right after the evocations.
The next chakra to be activated when the Kundalini moves up the spine is the Svadhisthana. This is located in and around the sexual organs themselves and rules the tides of Apas or water. The third chakra is known as the Manipura and is located on the right side of the body. It rules Tejas or the fire tides. The fourth is the Solar Chakra or Anahata. It is located just under the rib cage and rules the tides known as Vayu, or air. The other three higher chakras need not concern you at present. For now concentrate on the lowest chakras only. If one wishes to work with a given elemental quality internally then you must allow the tide to rise into the chakra which dictates the inherent quality of that force. Meditation and visualization upon the location of the chakra while using the appropriate mantra draws the energy into that area. However, working off a given chakra is primarily done for internal spiritual purposes rather than summoning elemental or astral beings. Some argue that drawing the Kundalini into the chakra ruling the elemental quality prepares an individual as a vehicle for performing solar phallic magick in relationship to that force. This subject is very contradictory depending upon whom you’re reading. Although, in all honesty, working off the Muladhara from a magickal point of view automatically taps into all four qualities.
It is important to reflect upon the Tantric writings which claim that this inner Sun exudes the poison of mortality. This is purely an old-Aeonic concept, based on dying gods, and has no place in our system of magick. We must look beyond the belief that states everything which is born upon this plane must follow the course of the Sun through its birth, life and death. Nothing truly dies, it merely transforms into something else. Energy cannot dissipate. Everything has a purpose, even these solar fluids. Magicians look upon this inner Sun of the Muladhara as the source of not only our death but also the Illusions which binds us to these very concepts. Like Adam and Eve who were tempted by the Serpent and became mortals, we too attain a similar reward when the Kundalini rises and remains in the lowest chakra. We bathe ourselves in this sun-fluid of mortality and reap its sexual rewards upon our psychic system, being mortal. In eastern teachings there are certain yogic practices which attempt to stem the flow of this solar fluid, hoping to taste instead the fluid of immortality flowing from the Sahasrara, or crown, chakra. This is justifiable, but we are more concerned with the solar tides and their relationship with phallic power and the actual emission of semen. Some believe this is the main reason why many schools of eastern Tantras and yoga condemn western schools as dealing primarily with Black Magick, because we use the solar currents rather than lunar. However, I wish to point out that even in India there are Tantric groups known as Uttara-Kaulas who “arouse Kundalini in the Muladhara to satisfy their desire for world-enjoyment and do not lead Her upwards to the Highest Centre which is the object of Yoga seeking super-worldly bliss.” (3)
At this point I stress that although I fully support further study, the student will quickly realize that eastern Tantric goals are far different than our own. There is the old adage that one man’s meat is another man’s poison. I state this with no pun intended when discussing bathing ourselves in Solar phallic nectar. To us their dogma is like all religions, it may spew forth negativity against our techniques, as we occasionally do toward theirs. Take everything with a grain of salt and do further research for yourself as a true scientist would. What you will get out of studying eastern views is the realization that we share an almost identical belief structure in regards to terms and phrases. It is our methods and goals which differ. It was explained to me that the main difference between us is one of direction. Eastern Tantras deal with escapism from this plane by the purification of body and soul, thus seeking immortality. Western forms of Tantra immerse themselves into reality, realizing that the illusions are our playground and that everything we create will fade away with time. The only sin is the restriction we place upon ourselves. After all, the Spirit in both cases is perfect. We believe that experience is the key. In basic terms, one method has its practitioners trying to get off this plane by no longer incarnating while the other method realizes that we are bound here for all eternity, living one life after another, so enjoy it. Most books approach Tantric yoga purely from an eastern point of view and express the belief that we should stem the flow of solar fluids in hope of tasting the nectar of immortality descending from the Sahasrara or crown chakra. This nectar signifies a feminine aspect of the Goddess, through use of her lunar currents, and is hardly reflective of solar phallic magick. However, in most true western magickal schools both aspects are pursued. In other words, I’m not saying that you shouldn’t strive to obtain lunar currents but don’t be as narrow-minded as some eastern schools which claim their method is the only true path to follow. As a scientist remember that everything has a purpose.
Let’s review some important facts so that you can have these concepts in the forefront of your mind before we go further. It is important for a magician to understand these finer points. First, as just previously stated, the Sun which is revealed when the Muladhara opens its four petals is the same Sun found in our solar system. Second, the four-fold petals also have a strong connection to the ‘secret four-fold door’ which opens during Liber Resh. Third, this Sun is also the source of the Kundalini, or energy, which is often falsely stated as originating within the chakra itself. What this implies is that there is one tide which animates both our external and internal realities. There is only one major difference; like images in a mirror, our internal tides manifest in reverse order to the tides emanating from the Sun which bathes our planet. Instead of air, fire, water, and then earth, the internal tides manifest in reverse order in our psychic anatomy when the Kundalini begins to rise. The first chakra rules the earth, the second water and so on. If all this is confusing it might be easier to simply accept that we have a secret door to the Sun’s tides (energy) in our psychic anatomy. If magicians utilize this doorway, as Crowley explains, we can “make actual magical contact with the spiritual energy of the sun and thus draw actual force.” (4)
Concluding this article, it is obvious that humanity has a powerful tool at its disposal which must be handled very carefully. These solar tides represent the sum total of all life’s energy and are the very building blocks of the universe itself. We know that sexuality plays an important key in opening the secret four-fold door and allowing this energy to manifest within us but it is also the quickest route to a descent into meaningless torment if misused. As for beginners, I’d recommend to simply do Liber Resh without the lust of result. After all, the third reason for doing this simplistic ritual is for advanced students. Although I touched upon it in this article, it was only an overview, lacking much reflection of the direction in which your studies could take you if this is your goal.
Love is the law, love under will. –AL I:57.
NOTES:
1. Aleister Crowley, “The Supplement”, The ‘Blue’ Equinox Vol.III No.1 (New York: Samuel Weiser Inc., 1973), p. 1.
2. Friends & Acquaintances of Aleister Crowley, Red Flame , A Thelemic Research
Journal, No.3, ed. J.Edward & Marlene Cornelius (California: Corneliuses, 1996), p. 139.
3. Arthur Avalon (Sir John Woodroffe), The Serpent Power (New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1974), p. 12.
4. Aleister Crowley, The Confessions of Aleister Crowley (New York: Hill & Wang Inc. 1969) p. 674.
Copyright (C) Cornelius 2006