Therion (Thelema)
Encyclopedia
Therion is a God found in the mystical system of Thelema
, which was established in 1904 with Aleister Crowley
's writing of The Book of the Law
. Therion's female counterpart is Babalon
, another Thelemic deity. He, as a Thelemic personage, evolved from that of the Beast of the Book of Revelation
(see The Beast (Bible)
), whom Crowley intuitively identified himself with since childhood. Indeed, throughout his life he occasionally referred to himself as “Master Therion” or sometimes “The Beast 666”. He wrote:
Therion can often be found mentioned in many Thelemic rituals; in The Star Ruby, for instance. In total, there are five mentions of the Beast in Liber AL, the first being in 1:15, and the remaining four are all in the third chapter—verses 14, 22, 34 and 47, respectively—although the word “beast” can be found elsewhere therein. Aleister Crowley believed that the references to the Beast and the Scarlet Woman (Babalon) in the Book “do not denote persons but are titles of office”. The first mention reads thus:
is 666. The number is of prominent significance in the Magick
al system of Thelema. It is the sum of the numbers inside the magic square
of the Sun
, which is still used today by some Kabbalists
, astrologists
and numerologists
. According to Crowley, it is a solar number. The Stele of Revealing bore the catalogue number 666 at the time when Crowley discovered it, which was one of the events that lead to the writing of the Book of the Law.
It can be said that the Hebrew letter Shin
(ש), which is written in the beginning and end of the Hebrew word for Sun (Shemesh
), conceals in itself the number of the Beast, for its shape is three Vaws conjoined together, whose gematrical value is 6. It has been noted by some that the abbreviation W.W.W.
may be interpreted as 666, for the Latin letter “W” formed out of the Phoenician
letter Wav, whose value is 6. This can be explained by saying that the rise of the Internet
is one of the things by which has been marked the beginning of the Age of Aquarius
, which is strongly tied with the concept of the Aeon of Horus
in Thelema.
The following words and phrases have 666 for their gematrical
value:
Thelema
Thelema is a religious philosophy that was established, defined and developed by the early 20th century British writer and ceremonial magician, Aleister Crowley. He believed himself to be the prophet of a new age, the Æon of Horus, based upon a religious experience that he had in Egypt in 1904...
, which was established in 1904 with Aleister Crowley
Aleister Crowley
Aleister 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...
's writing of The Book of the Law
The Book of the Law
Liber AL vel Legis is the central sacred text of Thelema, written by Aleister Crowley in Cairo, Egypt in the year 1904. Its full title is Liber AL vel Legis, sub figura CCXX, as delivered by XCIII=418 to DCLXVI, and it is commonly referred to as The Book of the Law.Liber AL vel Legis contains three...
. Therion's female counterpart is Babalon
Babalon
Babalon—also known as The Scarlet Woman, The Great Mother, or the Mother of Abominations—is a goddess found in the mystical system of Thelema, which was established in 1904 with English author and occultist Aleister Crowley's writing of The Book of the Law...
, another Thelemic deity. He, as a Thelemic personage, evolved from that of the Beast of the Book of Revelation
Book of Revelation
The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament. The title came into usage from the first word of the book in Koine Greek: apokalupsis, meaning "unveiling" or "revelation"...
(see The Beast (Bible)
The Beast (Bible)
The Beast of Revelation, may refer to two beasts in the apocalyptic visions by John of Patmos, as written in the Book of Revelation. The first beast comes from "out of the sea". The second beast comes from "out of the earth" and directs all peoples of the earth to worship the first. This first...
), whom Crowley intuitively identified himself with since childhood. Indeed, throughout his life he occasionally referred to himself as “Master Therion” or sometimes “The Beast 666”. He wrote:
Before I touched my teens, I was already aware that I was THE BEAST whose number is 666. I did not understand in the least what that implied; it was a passionately ecstatic sense of identity.
Therion can often be found mentioned in many Thelemic rituals; in The Star Ruby, for instance. In total, there are five mentions of the Beast in Liber AL, the first being in 1:15, and the remaining four are all in the third chapter—verses 14, 22, 34 and 47, respectively—although the word “beast” can be found elsewhere therein. Aleister Crowley believed that the references to the Beast and the Scarlet Woman (Babalon) in the Book “do not denote persons but are titles of office”. The first mention reads thus:
Now ye shall know that the chosen priest & apostle of infinite space is the prince-priest the Beast; and in his woman called the Scarlet Woman is all power given.
The Number of Therion and the numerology thereof
The Number of the BeastNumber of the Beast
The Number of the Beast is a term in the Book of Revelation, of the New Testament, that is associated with the first Beast of Revelation chapter 13, the Beast of the sea. In most manuscripts of the New Testament and in English translations of the Bible, the number of the Beast is...
is 666. The number is of prominent significance in the Magick
Magick
Magick is an Early Modern English spelling for magic, used in works such as the 1651 translation of De Occulta Philosophia, Three Books of Occult Philosophy, or Of Magick...
al system of Thelema. It is the sum of the numbers inside the magic square
Magic square
In recreational mathematics, a magic square of order n is an arrangement of n2 numbers, usually distinct integers, in a square, such that the n numbers in all rows, all columns, and both diagonals sum to the same constant. A normal magic square contains the integers from 1 to n2...
of the Sun
Sun (astrology)
The sun is considered a very important part of astrology. It, as well as the Moon, are the most important of the astrological planets, and the two of them are often referred to as the luminaries. In Greek mythology the sun was represented by Apollo, the god of light, and Helios, the god of the sun...
, which is still used today by some Kabbalists
Kabbalah
Kabbalah/Kabala is a discipline and school of thought concerned with the esoteric aspect of Rabbinic Judaism. It was systematized in 11th-13th century Hachmei Provence and Spain, and again after the Expulsion from Spain, in 16th century Ottoman Palestine...
, astrologists
Astrology
Astrology consists of a number of belief systems which hold that there is a relationship between astronomical phenomena and events in the human world...
and numerologists
Numerology
Numerology is any study of the purported mystical relationship between a count or measurement and life. It has many systems and traditions and beliefs...
. According to Crowley, it is a solar number. The Stele of Revealing bore the catalogue number 666 at the time when Crowley discovered it, which was one of the events that lead to the writing of the Book of the Law.
It can be said that the Hebrew letter Shin
Shin (letter)
Shin literally means "Sharp" ; It is the twenty-first letter in many Semitic abjads, including Phoenician , Aramaic/Hebrew , and Arabic ....
(ש), which is written in the beginning and end of the Hebrew word for Sun (Shemesh
Shamash
Shamash was a native Mesopotamian deity and the sun god in the Akkadian, Assyrian and Babylonian pantheons. Shamash was the god of justice in Babylonia and Assyria, corresponding to Sumerian Utu...
), conceals in itself the number of the Beast, for its shape is three Vaws conjoined together, whose gematrical value is 6. It has been noted by some that the abbreviation W.W.W.
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the Internet...
may be interpreted as 666, for the Latin letter “W” formed out of the Phoenician
Phoenician alphabet
The Phoenician alphabet, called by convention the Proto-Canaanite alphabet for inscriptions older than around 1050 BC, was a non-pictographic consonantal alphabet, or abjad. It was used for the writing of Phoenician, a Northern Semitic language, used by the civilization of Phoenicia...
letter Wav, whose value is 6. This can be explained by saying that the rise of the Internet
Information Age
The Information Age, also commonly known as the Computer Age or Digital Age, is an idea that the current age will be characterized by the ability of individuals to transfer information freely, and to have instant access to knowledge that would have been difficult or impossible to find previously...
is one of the things by which has been marked the beginning of the Age of Aquarius
Age of Aquarius
The Age of Aquarius is either the current or new age in the cycle of astrological ages. Each astrological age is approximately 2,150 years long, on average, but there are various methods of calculating this length that may yield longer or shorter time spans depending upon the technique used...
, which is strongly tied with the concept of the Aeon of Horus
Aeon (Thelema)
In the religion of Thelema, it is believed that the history of humanity can be divided into a series of Aeons, each of which was accompanied by its own forms of "magical and religious expression"...
in Thelema.
The following words and phrases have 666 for their gematrical
Gematria
Gematria or gimatria is a system of assigning numerical value to a word or phrase, in the belief that words or phrases with identical numerical values bear some relation to each other, or bear some relation to the number itself as it may apply to a person's age, the calendar year, or the like...
value:
- Το Μεγα Θηριον — Greek for “The Great Beast”. Koine Greek is the Greek dialect by which the books of the New TestamentNew TestamentThe New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
were written, including the Book of Revelation, where the most popular mention of the Beast's number is recorded (13:17-18). - תריון — a Hebrew spelling of “Θηριον”, Greek for “Beast”.
- שמש יהוה — Hebrew for “Sun of the LORD”. It is the value of the TetragrammatonTetragrammatonThe term Tetragrammaton refers to the name of the God of Israel YHWH used in the Hebrew Bible.-Hebrew Bible:...
(26) added to the value of the Hebrew word for Sun (640). - סורת — the negative spirit of the Sun.
- נכיאל multiplied by 6 (111x6) — the positive spirit of the Sun.
- נשימירון — the QliphothQliphothQliphoth/Qelippot, alternatively Klippot/Kellipot etc. refers to the representation of evil or impure spiritual forces in Jewish mysticism.In the Kabbalistic spiritual cosmology, the Kelipot are metaphorical "shells" surrounding holiness...
of PiscesPiscesPisces may refer to:*Pisces , a constellation*Pisces , an astrological sign*Fish , as an obsolete taxonomic term*OZ-09MMS Pisces, a fictional mecha in the Gundam Wing anime...
. - פרי שלום — Hebrew for “Fruit of Peace”.
- אליסטיר קרולי — a Hebrew spelling of the Name “Aleister Crowley”.
- השטן שב — Hebrew for “The Devil has returned”.
Further reading
- Crowley, Aleister. The Book of the Law. York Beach, Maine: Samuel Weiser.
- Grant, Kenneth. Aleister Crowley and the Hidden God.
- Grant, Kenneth. Cults of the Shadow.
- Grant, Kenneth. Hecate's Fountain.
- Grant, Kenneth. The Magical Revival.
- Grant, Kenneth. Outside the Circles of Time.