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The Gnostic Mass
Aleister Crowley wrote The Gnostic Mass — technically called Liber XV or "Book 15" — in 1913 while travelling in Moscow, Russia. He described it as representing "the original and true pre-Christian Christianity." The structure is similar to the Mass of the Eastern Orthodox Church and Roman Catholic Church, communicating the principles of Crowley's Thelema. It is the central rite of Ordo Templi Orientis and its ecclesiastical arm, Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica. The ceremony calls for five officers: a Priest, a Priestess, a Deacon, and two adult acolytes, called "the Children". The end of the ritual culminates in the consummation of the eucharist, consisting of a goblet of wine and a Cake of Light, after which the congregant proclaims "There is no part of me that is not of the gods!" Publication Crowley published the text of the Gnostic Mass three times: in 1918 in a publication called ''The International,'' in 1919 in ''The Equinox (III:1)'', and in 1929 in '' Magick ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aleister Crowley
Aleister Crowley ( ; born Edward Alexander Crowley; 12 October 1875 – 1 December 1947) was an English occultist, ceremonial magician, poet, novelist, mountaineer, and painter. He founded the religion of Thelema, identifying himself as the prophet entrusted with guiding humanity into the Aeon of Horus, Æon of Horus in the early 20th century. A prolific writer, he published widely over the course of his life. Born to a wealthy family in Royal Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, Crowley rejected his parents' fundamentalist Christian Plymouth Brethren faith to pursue an interest in Western esotericism. He was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge, Trinity College at the University of Cambridge, where he focused his attention upon mountaineering and poetry, resulting in several publications. Some biographers allege that here he was recruited into a British intelligence agency, further suggesting that he remained a spy throughout his life. In 1898, he joined the esoteric Hermetic Order ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Loch Ness
Loch Ness (; ) is a large freshwater loch in the Scottish Highlands. It takes its name from the River Ness, which flows from the northern end. Loch Ness is best known for claimed sightings of the cryptozoology, cryptozoological Loch Ness Monster, also known affectionately as "Nessie" (). Loch Ness lies along the Great Glen Fault, which forms a line of weakness in the rocks which has been excavated by glacial erosion, forming the Great Glen and the basins of Loch Lochy, Loch Oich and Loch Ness. These lochs form part of the Caledonian Canal, linking the Moray Firth and the North Sea to Loch Linnhe on the west coast. The northern end of Loch Ness is around south-west of Inverness, with Fort Augustus located at the other end. The main A82 road between Inverness and Fort William, Scotland, Fort William, roughly follows the western shore, passing through the villages of Drumnadrochit and Invermoriston. Loch Ness is one of the largest in Scotland, and the whole of Great Britain. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Divine Embodiment
A divine embodiment or godform refers to the visualized appearance of the deity assumed in theurgical, Tantra, tantric, and other mystical practices. This process of ritual embodiment is aimed at transforming the practitioner, aligning them with divine powers for spiritual ascent or transformation. The concept is found across diverse traditions, including Western esotericism, Eastern spirituality, and mysticism, where it serves as a method for achieving personal Enlightenment in Buddhism, enlightenment, henosis, union with the divine, or other spiritual goals. In Western esotericism, divine embodiment is most commonly associated with theurgy, particularly in the works of Neoplatonism, Neoplatonists like Iamblichus, where the practitioner assumes a divine form through ritual or meditation to transcend the material world and reach higher spiritual realms. This concept was influenced by ancient Greek practices of invoking gods and embodying divine forces, seen in both the astral ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nuit
Nuit (alternatively Nu, Nut, or Nuith) is a goddess in Thelema, the speaker in the first chapter of ''The Book of the Law'', the sacred text written or received in 1904 by Aleister Crowley. Nuit is based on the Ancient Egyptian deities, Ancient Egyptian sky goddess Nut (goddess), Nut, who in Egyptian mythology arches over her Incest in folklore and mythology#Egyptian, brother/husband, Geb (Earth god). She is usually depicted as a naked woman who is covered with stars. In ''The Book of the Law'' In Aleister Crowley’s The Book of the Law, the central sacred text of Thelema, Nuit is one part of a triad of deities, along with Hadit (her masculine counterpart), and Ra-Hoor-Khuit, or “the Crowned and Conquering Child”, who Thelemites believe are depicted on the Stele of Revealing. She has several titles, including "Worship of heavenly bodies, Our Lady of the Stars", and "Lady of the Starry Heaven". In ''The Book of the Law'' she says of herself: "I am Infinite Space, and the Inf ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kundalini Energy
In Hinduism, kundalini (, ) is a form of divine feminine energy (or ''Shakti'') believed to be located at the base of the spine, in the ''muladhara''. It is an important concept in Śhaiva Tantra, where it is believed to be a force or power associated with the divine feminine or the formless aspect of the Goddess. This energy in the body, when cultivated and awakened through tantric practice, is believed to lead to spiritual liberation. Kuṇḍalinī is associated with the goddess Parvati or Adi Parashakti, the supreme being in Shaktism, and with the goddesses Bhairavi and Kubjika. The term, along with practices associated with it, was adopted into Hatha Yoga in the 9th century. Mallinson, James. "Śāktism and Haṭhayoga." In: Goddess Traditions in Tantric Hinduism: History, Practice and Doctrine, edited by Bjarne Wernicke-Olesen London: Routledge, 2016. pp. 109–140. It has since then been adopted into other forms of Hinduism as well as modern spirituality and New Age ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eucharist
The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christianity, Christian Rite (Christianity), rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an Ordinance (Christianity), ordinance in others. Christians believe that the rite was instituted by Jesus at the Last Supper, the night before Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion, giving his Disciple (Christianity), disciples bread and wine. Passages in the New Testament state that he commanded them to "do this in memory of me" while referring to the bread as "my body" and the cup of wine as "the blood of my covenant, which is poured out for many". According to the synoptic Gospels, this was at a Passover meal. The elements of the Eucharist, sacramental bread, either Leavening agent, leavened or Unleavened bread, unleavened, and sacramental wine (non-alcoholic grape juice in some Protestantism, Protestant traditions, such as Methodism), are consecrated on an altar or a communio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Baphomet
Baphomet is a figure incorporated across various occult and Western esotericism, Western esoteric traditions. During Trials of the Knights Templar, trials starting in 1307, the Knights Templar were accused of heresy for worshipping Baphomet as a Demon, demonic Cult image, idol. Baphomet subsequently resurfaced during 19th century speculation and debate regarding the suppression of the Templars, with various occult and mystical traditions claiming Baphomet as a symbol of balance and synthesis, originating in teachings of the Gnostics, while others maintained Baphomet as a profane deity. Since 1856 the figure of Baphomet has been associated with the Sabbatic Goat illustration by Éliphas Lévi, composed of binary elements representing the "symbolization of the equilibrium of opposites": both Human–animal hybrid, human and animal, both Androgyny, masculine and feminine, combined in Unity of opposites, metaphysical unity. Lévi's intention was to symbolize his concept of balance, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Babalon
Babalon (also known as the Scarlet Woman, Great Mother or Mother of Abominations) is a goddess found in the occult system of Thelema, which was established in 1904 with the writing of ''The Book of the Law'' by English author and occultist Aleister Crowley. The spelling of the name as "Babalon" was revealed to Crowley in '' The Vision and the Voice''. Her name and imagery feature prominently in Crowley's "Liber Cheth vel Vallum Abiegni". In her most abstract form, Babalon represents the female sexual impulse and the liberated woman. In the creed of the Gnostic Mass she is also identified with Mother Earth, in her most fertile sense. Along with her status as an archetype or goddess, Crowley believed that Babalon had an earthly aspect or avatar; a living woman who occupied the spiritual office of the "Scarlet Woman". This office, first identified in ''The Book of the Law'', is usually described as a counterpart to his own identification as " To Mega Therion" (The Great Beast) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chaos (cosmogony)
Chaos () is the cosmological void state preceding the creation of the universe (the cosmos) in early Greek cosmology. It can also refer to an early state of the cosmos constituted of nothing but undifferentiated and indistinguishable matter. Etymology Greek ''kháos'' () means ' emptiness, vast void, chasm, abyss', related to the verbs ''kháskō'' () and ''khaínō'' () 'gape, be wide open', from Proto-Indo-European ', cognate to Old English ''geanian'', 'to gape', whence English '' yawn''. It may also mean space, the expanse of air, the nether abyss, or infinite darkness. Pherecydes of Syros (fl. 6th century BC) interprets ''chaos'' as water, like something formless that can be differentiated. Greco-Roman tradition Hesiod and the pre-Socratics use the Greek term in the context of cosmogony. Hesiod's Chaos has been interpreted as either "the gaping void above the Earth created when Earth and Sky are separated from their primordial unity" or "the gaping space below the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tree Of Life
The tree of life is a fundamental archetype in many of the world's mythology, mythological, religion, religious, and philosophy, philosophical traditions. It is closely related to the concept of the sacred tree.Giovino, Mariana (2007). ''The Assyrian Sacred Tree: A History of Interpretations'', Saint-Paul. p 129. . The tree of the knowledge of good and evil and the tree of life which appear in The Book Of Genesis, Genesis' Garden of Eden as part of the Jewish cosmology of creation, and the tree of knowledge connecting to heaven and the underworld such as Yggdrasil, are forms of the world tree or Cosmos, cosmic tree, and are portrayed in various Religion, religions and Philosophy, philosophies as the same tree. Religion and mythology Various trees of life are recounted in folklore, culture and fiction, often relating to immortality or fertility. They had their origin in religious symbolism. According to professor Elvyra Usačiovaitė, a "typical" imagery preserved in ancien ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tiphareth
Tiferet ( ''Tip̄ʾereṯ,'' in pausa: תִּפְאָרֶת ''Tip̄ʾāreṯ'', lit. 'beauty, glory, adornment') alternatively Tifaret, Tiphareth, Tifereth or Tiphereth, is the sixth sefira in the kabbalistic Tree of Life. It has the common association of "Spirituality", "Balance", "Integration", "Beauty", "Miracles", and "Compassion". Description In the Bahir it states: "Sixth is the adorned, glorious, delightful throne of glory, the house of the world to come. Its place is engraved in wisdom as it says 'God said: Let there be light, and there was light.'" Arthur Green. ''A guide to the Zohar'' Tiferet is the force that integrates the sefira of Chesed ("Kindness") and Gevurah ("Strength", also called Din, "Judgement"). These two forces are, respectively, expansive (giving) and restrictive (receiving). Either of them without the other could not manifest the flow of Divine energy; they must be balanced in perfect proportion by balancing compassion with discipline. This balance ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paten
A paten or diskos is a small plate used for the celebration of the Eucharist (as in a mass). It is generally used during the liturgy itself, while the reserved sacrament are stored in the tabernacle in a ciborium. Western usage In many Western liturgical denominations, the paten is typically either a simple saucer-like plate or a low bowl. A smaller style paten will often have a depression that allows it to securely sit on top of the chalice, as shown in the illustration on the left here. Roman rite The General Instruction of the Roman Missal lays down rules for patens: Sacred vessels should be made from precious metal. If they are made from metal that rusts or from a metal less precious than gold, they should generally be gilded on the inside. However, provisions for vessels made from non-precious metals are made as well, provided they are "made from other solid materials which in the common estimation in each region are considered precious or noble." Some call the comm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
