Lesser ritual of the pentagram
Encyclopedia
The Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram (or LRP) is a ceremonial magic ritual devised and used by the original order of the Golden Dawn that has become a mainstay in modern occultism. It is considered by many to be a basic preliminary to any other magical work, so much that it was the only ritual, beside initiation rituals, taught to members of the Golden Dawn before they advanced to the Inner Order.
The ritual is highly dynamic, using gesture, visualization and the pronunciation of certain words of power, combining prayer and invocation as well as clearing and preparing a space for further magical or meditative work . The ritual banishes the chaotic and impure form of the elements from the magician's circle by the tracing of Pentagrams in the air and by the power of certain Divine names followed by an invocation of the spiritual forces ruling the elements to fortify and guard the circle.
The principal components of the Qabalistic Cross and the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram are drawn from the works of Eliphas Levi
. The text originated as a Jewish prayer, as documented by R. Samson Raphael Hirsch in 'The Hirsch Siddur' [Feldheim Publishing, 1969], which reads as follows:
"In the Name of God, the God of Yisrale: may Michael be at my right hand, Gabriel at my left, Uriel before me, Raphael behind me, and above my head, the presence of God
."
did not use any.
However a modern approach might include the following:
Some traditions, in order to distance themselves from the Judeo-Christian
content of the ritual, replace the Qabalistic Cross, names of God and archangels with suitable substitutes - using, for example, the chakra system
instead of the Tree of Life
, mantras instead of God names, etc.
The ritual is highly dynamic, using gesture, visualization and the pronunciation of certain words of power, combining prayer and invocation as well as clearing and preparing a space for further magical or meditative work . The ritual banishes the chaotic and impure form of the elements from the magician's circle by the tracing of Pentagrams in the air and by the power of certain Divine names followed by an invocation of the spiritual forces ruling the elements to fortify and guard the circle.
The principal components of the Qabalistic Cross and the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram are drawn from the works of Eliphas Levi
Eliphas Levi
Eliphas Lévi, born Alphonse Louis Constant , was a French occult author and purported magician."Eliphas Lévi," the name under which he published his books, was his attempt to translate or transliterate his given names "Alphonse Louis" into Hebrew although he was not Jewish.His second wife was...
. The text originated as a Jewish prayer, as documented by R. Samson Raphael Hirsch in 'The Hirsch Siddur' [Feldheim Publishing, 1969], which reads as follows:
"In the Name of God, the God of Yisrale: may Michael be at my right hand, Gabriel at my left, Uriel before me, Raphael behind me, and above my head, the presence of God
Names of God in Judaism
In Judaism, the name of God is more than a distinguishing title; it represents the Jewish conception of the divine nature, and of the relationship of God to the Jewish people and to the world. To demonstrate the sacredness of the names of God, and as a means of showing respect and reverence for...
."
Equipment
Although some orders suggest that magical equipment is needed to perform the LRP, the original Hermetic Order of the Golden DawnHermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn was a magical order active in Great Britain during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which practiced theurgy and spiritual development...
did not use any.
However a modern approach might include the following:
- An altarAltarAn altar is any structure upon which offerings such as sacrifices are made for religious purposes. Altars are usually found at shrines, and they can be located in temples, churches and other places of worship...
in the center of the ritual space, upon which are placed instruments representing the four elementsClassical elementMany philosophies and worldviews have a set of classical elements believed to reflect the simplest essential parts and principles of which anything consists or upon which the constitution and fundamental powers of anything are based. Most frequently, classical elements refer to ancient beliefs...
. - A tau robeTau robeA Tau Robe is a very simple gown cut to resemble the Greek letter, "Tau," or "T". The arms are usually from fingertip to fingertip, and the bottom hem is usually floor length, as with a ceremonial tabard. Both the arms and body of the gown will have a flair so that the sleeves are wider at the...
or other suitable ritual garb worn by the magician. - A daggerDaggerA dagger is a fighting knife with a sharp point designed or capable of being used as a thrusting or stabbing weapon. The design dates to human prehistory, and daggers have been used throughout human experience to the modern day in close combat confrontations...
or swordSwordA sword is a bladed weapon used primarily for cutting or thrusting. The precise definition of the term varies with the historical epoch or the geographical region under consideration...
, which is used to gesture to the points of the Qabalistic CrossCrossA cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two lines or bars perpendicular to each other, dividing one or two of the lines in half. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally; if they run obliquely, the design is technically termed a saltire, although the arms of a saltire need not meet...
, and to draw the pentagramPentagramA pentagram is the shape of a five-pointed star drawn with five straight strokes...
s and the circleCircleA circle is a simple shape of Euclidean geometry consisting of those points in a plane that are a given distance from a given point, the centre. The distance between any of the points and the centre is called the radius....
connecting them.
Procedure
The Golden Dawn LRP consists of three main parts, in this order:- The Qabalistic Cross, sometimes repeated at the end of the LRP. This is meant to construct an astral cross in the body of the magician, with points corresponding to Sephiroth on the Tree of LifeTree of LifeThe tree of life in the Book of Genesis is a tree planted by God in midst of the Garden of Eden , whose fruit gives everlasting life, i.e. immortality. Together with the tree of life, God planted the tree of the knowledge of good and evil . According to some scholars, however, these are in fact...
. While constructing this cross, the magician vibrates Hebrew words from the last few lines of the Lord's PrayerLord's PrayerThe Lord's Prayer is a central prayer in Christianity. In the New Testament of the Christian Bible, it appears in two forms: in the Gospel of Matthew as part of the discourse on ostentation in the Sermon on the Mount, and in the Gospel of Luke, which records Jesus being approached by "one of his...
(Thine is the kingdom, etc.). - The Formulation of the Pentagrams, in which a banishing earth pentagram (for the Banishing Ritual) or an invoking pentagram (for the Invoking Ritual) is drawn in the air at each of the four cardinal pointsCardinal PointsCardinal Points is a student newspaper published in Plattsburgh, New York which serves the SUNY Plattsburgh community. The newspaper publishes 3,000 copies every Friday morning throughout the semester, from February until May 12...
and an associated name of God is vibrated (YHVH, ADNI, AHIH and AGLAAGLAAGLA is a notariqon for Atah Gibor Le-olam Adonai,"You, O Lord, are mighty forever." Also seen as Athah gabor leolah, adonai, Samuel Liddell MacGregor Mathers has suggested an arbitrary interpretation of AGLA as "A the one first, A the one last, G, the trinity in unity, L, the completion of...
for East, South, West and North respectively). This segment of the ritual is meant to banish or invoke the four elementsClassical elementMany philosophies and worldviews have a set of classical elements believed to reflect the simplest essential parts and principles of which anything consists or upon which the constitution and fundamental powers of anything are based. Most frequently, classical elements refer to ancient beliefs...
(Air, Fire, Water and Earth respectively). The four pentagrams are connected by a circle, also drawn in the air. - The Invocation of the Archangels, during which the magician declares the Archangels RaphaelRaphael (archangel)Raphael is an archangel of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, who in the Judeo-Christian tradition performs all manners of healing....
, GabrielGabrielIn Abrahamic religions, Gabriel is an Archangel who typically serves as a messenger to humans from God.He first appears in the Book of Daniel, delivering explanations of Daniel's visions. In the Gospel of Luke Gabriel foretells the births of both John the Baptist and of Jesus...
, MichaelMichael (archangel)Michael , Micha'el or Mîkhā'ēl; , Mikhaḗl; or Míchaël; , Mīkhā'īl) is an archangel in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic teachings. Roman Catholics, Anglicans, and Lutherans refer to him as Saint Michael the Archangel and also simply as Saint Michael...
and UrielUrielUriel is one of the archangels of post-Exilic Rabbinic tradition, and also of certain Christian traditions...
(or Auriel) to be present, while visualizing them at the four cardinal pointsCardinal PointsCardinal Points is a student newspaper published in Plattsburgh, New York which serves the SUNY Plattsburgh community. The newspaper publishes 3,000 copies every Friday morning throughout the semester, from February until May 12...
.
Some traditions, in order to distance themselves from the Judeo-Christian
Judeo-Christian
Judeo-Christian is a term used in the United States since the 1940s to refer to standards of ethics said to be held in common by Judaism and Christianity, for example the Ten Commandments...
content of the ritual, replace the Qabalistic Cross, names of God and archangels with suitable substitutes - using, for example, the chakra system
Chakra
Chakra is a concept originating in Hindu texts, featured in tantric and yogic traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism. Its name derives from the Sanskrit word for "wheel" or "turning" .Chakra is a concept referring to wheel-like vortices...
instead of the Tree of Life
Tree of life (Kabbalah)
The Tree of Life, or Etz haChayim in Hebrew, is a mystical symbol used in the Kabbalah of esoteric Judaism to describe the path to God and the manner in which he created the world ex nihilo...
, mantras instead of God names, etc.
Partial bibliography
All of the following books contain some variation of the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram, its history, instructions on performance and/or commentary on the ritual. There are many more.- Cicero, ChicChic CiceroCharles “Chic” Cicero is well-known author in the esoteric community. He was born in Buffalo, New York. He has been a practicing ceremonial magician for the past forty years....
(2003). The Essential Golden Dawn: An Introduction to High Magic. Llewellyn Worldwide. ISBN 0738703109 - Crowley, AleisterAleister CrowleyAleister Crowley , born Edward Alexander Crowley, and also known as both Frater Perdurabo and The Great Beast, was an influential English occultist, astrologer, mystic and ceremonial magician, responsible for founding the religious philosophy of Thelema. He was also successful in various other...
. The Equinox (I:1-10)The EquinoxThe Equinox is a series of publications in book form that serves as the official organ of the A.'.A.'., a magical order founded by Aleister Crowley...
. (2006). York Beach, ME : Weiser Books. ISBN 1-57863-351-6 - Crowley, Aleister. Magick : Liber ABA, Book Four, Parts I-IVMagick (Book 4)Magick, Liber ABA, Book 4 is widely considered to be the magnum opus of 20th century occultist Aleister Crowley, the founder of Thelema...
. (1997). York Beach, ME : S. Weiser. ISBN 0-87728-919-0 - Crowley, Aleister. The Book of LiesThe Book of Lies (Crowley)The Book of Lies was written by English occultist and teacher Aleister Crowley and first published in 1912 or 1913...
. Weiser Books, reprint edition, June 1986. ISBN 0-87728-516-0 - Drury, NevillNevill DruryNevill Drury is an editor, publisher, and professional in many aspects of the publishing business, as well as the author of over forty books on subjects ranging from shamanism and western magical traditions to art, music, and anthropology. His books have been published in fifteen languages...
(2002). The Dictionary of the Esoteric: 3000 Entries on the Mystical and Occult. Sterling Publishing Company. ISBN 1842931083 - DuQuette, Lon MiloLon Milo DuquetteLon Milo DuQuette, AKA Rabbi Lamed Ben Clifford, is an American writer, lecturer, and occultist, best known as an author who applies humor in the field of Western Hermeticism.-Early life:...
. The Magick of Aleister Crowley: A Handbook of the Rituals of Thelema, Weiser Books, 2003. - DuQuette, Lon Milo (1995). Tarot of Ceremonial Magick: A Pictorial Synthesis of Three Great Pillars of Magick. Weiser. ISBN 978-0877287643
- Forrest, Isidora (2001). "Isis Magic". Llewellyn. ISBN 978-1567182866
- Griffin, David (1999). The Ritual Magic Manual: A Complete Course in Practical Magic. Golden Dawn Publishing. ISBN 0-9658408-9-1
- Harper, George Mills (1980). W.B. Yeats and W.T. Horton: The Record of an Occult Friendship. Macmillan. ISBN 0333271653
- Hougham, Paul (2006). The Atlas of Mind, Body and Spirit. Sterling Publishing Company. ISBN 185675247X
- Howe, Ellic (1972). The Magicians of the Golden Dawn: A Documentary History of a Magical Order. Routledge and Kegan Paul.
- King, FrancisFrancis X. KingFrancis X. King was a British occult writer and editor who wrote about tarot, divination, witchcraft, magic, sex magic, tantra, and holistic medicine.-Partial bibliography:* Techniques of High Magic with Stephen Skinner...
(1990). Tantra, the Way of Action: A Practical Guide to Its Teachings and Techniques. Inner Traditions. ISBN 0892812745 - Kraig, Donald Michael (1988). Modern Magick: Eleven Lessons in the High Magickal Arts. Llewellyn Worldwide. ISBN 0875423248
- Regardie, IsraelIsrael RegardieIsrael Regardie, born Francis Israel Regudy was an occultist and writer, author of books on the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn.-Early life:...
, et al., eds., The Golden Dawn: A Complete Course in Practical Ceremonial Magic (Llewellyn, 1989) ISBN 0-87542-663-8 - Regardie, Israel. The Middle Pillar: The Balance Between Mind and Magic. Llewellyn Worldwide, 1998. ISBN 1567181406
- Scarborough, Samuel. The Vibratory Formula and its Use in Daily Ritual Work in Journal of the Western Mystery Tradition, No. 5, Vol. 1, Autumnal Equinox 2003
- Wasserman, James (2006). Aleister Crowley and the Practice of the Magical Diary. Weiser. ISBN 1578633729