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14. {Kappa-Epsilon-Phi-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Iota-Delta} ONION-PEELINGS
The Universe is the Practical Joke of the General at the Expense of the
Particular, quoth FRATER PERDURABO, and laughed.
But those disciples nearest to him wept, seeing the Universal Sorrow.
Those next to them laughed, seeing the Universal Joke.
Below these certain disciples wept.
Then certain laughed.
Others next wept.
Others next laughed.
Next others wept.
Next others laughed.
Last came those that wept because they could not see the Joke, and those
that laughed lest they should be thought not to see the Joke, and
thought it safe to act like FRATER PERDURABO.
But though FRATER PERDURABO laughed openly, He also at the same time
wept secretly; and in Himself He neither laughed nor wept.
Nor did He mean what He said.
COMMENTARY ({Iota-Delta})
The title, "Onion-Peelings", refers to the well-known incident in "Peer
Gynt".
The chapter resembles strongly Dupin's account of how he was able to win
at the game of guessing odd or even. (See Poe's tale of "The Purloined
Letter".)
But this is a more serious piece of psychology. In one's advance towards
a comprehension of the universe, one changes radically one's point of
view; nearly always it amounts to a reversal.
this is the cause of most religious controversies.
Paragraph 1, however, is Frater Perdurabo's formulation of his
perception of the Universal Joke, also described in Chapter 34. All
individual existence is tragic. Perception of this fact is the essence
of comedy.
"Household Gods" is an attempt to write pure comedy.
"The Bacchae" of Euripides is another.
At the end of the chapter it is, however, seen that to the Master of the
Temple the opposite perception occurs simultaneously, and that he
himself is beyond both of these.
And in the last paragraph it is shown that he realises the truth as
beyond any statement of it.
15. {Kappa-Epsilon-Phi-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Iota-Epsilon} THE GUN-BARREL
Mighty and erect is this Will of mine, this Pyramid of fire whose summit
is lost in Heaven. Upon it have I burned the corpse of my desires.
Mighty and erect is this {Phi-alpha-lambda-lambda-omicron-sigma} of my
Will. The seed thereof is That which I have borne within me from
Eternity; and it is lost within the Body of Our Lady of the Stars.
I am not I; I am but an hollow tube to bring down Fire from Heaven.
Mighty and marvellous is this Weakness, this Heaven which draweth me
into Her Womb, this Dome which hideth, which absorbeth, Me.
This is The Night wherein I am lost, the Love through which I am no
longer I.
COMMENTARY ({Iota-Epsilon})
The card 15 in the Tarot is "The Devil", the mediaeval blind for Pan.
The title of the chapter refers to the Phallus, which is here identified
with the will. The Greek word {Pi-upsilon-rho-alpha-mu-iota-sigma} has
the same number as {Phi-alpha-lambda-lambda-omicron-sigma}.
This chapter is quite clear, but one my remark in the last paragraph a
reference to the nature of Samadhi.
As man loses his personality in physical love, so does the magician
annihilate his divine personality in that which is beyond.
The formula of Samadhi is the same, from the lowest to the highest.
The Rosy-Cross is the Universal Key. But, as one proceeds, the Cross
becomes greater, until it is the Ace, the Rose, until it is the Word.
16. {Kappa-Epsilon-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Iota-Sigma} THE STAG-BEETLE
Death implies change and individuality if thou be THAT which hath no
person, which is beyond the changing, even beyond changelessness, what
hast thou to do with death?
The bird of individuality is ecstasy; so also is its death.
In love the individuality is slain; who loves not love?
Love death therefore, and long eagerly for it.
Die Daily.
COMMENTARY ({Iota-Sigma})
This seems a comment on the previous chapter; the Stag-Beetle is a
reference to the Kheph-ra, the Egyptian God of Midnight, who bears
the Sun through the Underworld; but it is called the Stag-Beetle to
emphasise his horns. Horns are the universal hieroglyph of energy,
particularly of Phallic energy.
The 16th key of the Tarot is "The Blasted Tower".
In this chapter death is regarded as a form of marriage.
Modern Greek peasants, in many cases, cling to Pagan belief, and suppose
that in death they are united to the Deity which they have cultivated
during life. This is "a consummation devoutly to be wished"
(Shakespeare).
In the last paragraph the Master urges his pupils to practise Samadhi
every day.
17. {Kappa-Epsilon-Phi-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Iota-Zeta} THE SWAN (11)
There is a Swan whose name is Ecstasy: it wingeth from the Deserts of
the North; it wingeth through the blue; it wingeth over the fields of
rice; at its coming they push forth the green.
In all the Universe this Swan alone is motionless; it seems to move, as
the Sun seems to move; such is the weakness of our sight.
O fool! criest thou?
Amen. Motion is relative: there is Nothing that is still.
Against this Swan I shot an arrow; the white breast poured forth blood.
Men smote me; then, perceiving that I was but a Pure Fool, they let me
pass.
Thus and not otherwise I came to the Temple of the Graal.
COMMENTARY ({Iota-Zeta})
This Swan is Aum. The chapter is inspired by Frater P.'s memory of the
wild swans he shot in the Tali-Fu.
In paragraphs 3 and 4 it is, however, recognised that even Aum is
impermanent. There is no meaning in the word, stillness, so long as
motion exists.
In a boundless universe, one can always take any one point, however
mobile, and postulate it a a point at rest, calculating the motions of
all other points relatively to it.
The penultimate paragraph shows the relations of the Adept to
mankind. Their hate and contempt are necessary steps to his acquisition
of sovereignty over them.
The story of the Gospel, and that of Parsifal, will occur to the mind.
NOTE
(11) This chapter
must be read in connection with Wagner's "Parsifal".
18. {Kappa-Epsilon-Phi-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Iota-Eta} DEWDROPS
Verily, love is death, and death is life to come.
Man returneth not again; the stream floweth not uphill; the old life is
no more; there is a new life that is not his.
Yet that life is of his very essence; it is more He than all that he
calls He.
In the silence of a dewdrop is every tendency of his soul, and of his
mind, and of his body; it is the Quintessence and the Elixir of his
being. Therein are the forces that made him and his father and his
father's father before him.
This is the Dew of Immortality.
Let this go free, even as It will; thou art not its master, but the
vehicle of It.
COMMENTARY ({Iota-Eta})
The 18th key of the Tarot refers to the Moon, which was supposed to shed
dew. The appropriateness of the chapter title is obvious.
The chapter must be read in connection with Chapters 1 and 16.
I the penultimate paragraph, Vindu is identified with Amrita, and in the
last paragraph the disciple is charged to let it have its own way. It
has a will of its own, which is more in accordance with the Cosmic Will,
than that of the man who is its guardian and servant.
19. {Kappa-Epsilon-Phi-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Iota-Theta} THE LEOPARD
AND THE DEER
The spots of the leopard are the sunlight in the glade; pursue thou the
deer stealthily at thy pleasure.
The dappling of the deer is the sunlight in the glade; concealed from
the leopard do thou feed at thy pleasure.
Resemble all that surroundeth thee; yet be Thyself and take thy pleasure
among the living.
This is that which is written -- Lurk! -- in The Book of The Law.
COMMENTARY ({Iota-Theta})
19 is the last Trump, "The Sun', which is the representative of god
in the Macrocosm, as the Phallus is in the Microcosm.
There is a certain universality and adaptability among its secret power.
The chapter is taken from Rudyard Kipling's "Just So Stories".
The Master urges his disciples to a certain holy stealth, a
concealment of the real purpose of their lives; in this way making the
best of both worlds. This counsels a course of action hardly
distinguishable from hypocrisy; but the distinction is obvious to any
clear thinker, though not altogether to the Frater P.
20. {Kappa-Epsilon-Phi-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Kappa} SAMSON
The Universe is in equilibrium; therefore He that is without it, though
his force be but a feather, can overturn the Universe.
Be not caught within that web, O child of Freedom!
Be not entangled in the universal lie, O child of Truth!
COMMENTARY ({Kappa})
Samson, the Hebrew Hercules, is said in the legend to have pulled down
the walls of a music-hall where he was engaged, "to make sport for the
Philistines", destroying them and himself. Milton founds a poem on this
fable.
The first paragraph is a corollary of Newton's First Law of Motion.
The key to infinite power is to reach the Bornless Beyond.
21. {Kappa-Epsilon-Phi-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Kappa-Alpha} THE BLIND
WEBSTER
It is not necessary to understand; it is enough to adore.
The god may be of clay: adore him; he becomes GOD.
We ignore what created us; we adore what we create.
Let us create nothing but GOD!
That which causes us to create is our true father and mother; we create
in our own image, which is theirs.
Let us create therefore without fear; for we can create nothing that is
not GOD.
COMMENTARY ({Kappa-Alpha})
The 21st key of the Tarot is called "The Universe", and refers to the
letter Tau, the Phallus in manifestation; hence the title, "The Blind
Webster".
The universe is conceived as Buddhists, on the one hand, and
Rationalists, on the other, would have us do; fatal, and without
intelligence. Even so, it may be delightful to the creator.
The moral of this chapter is, therefore, and exposition of the last
paragraph of Chapter 18.
It is the critical spirit which is the Devil, and gives rise to the
appearance of evil.
22. {Kappa-Epsilon-Phi-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Kappa-Beta} THE DESPOT
The waiters of the best eating-houses mock the whole world; they
estimate every client at his proper value.
This I know certainly, because they always treat me with profound
respect. Thus they have flattered me into praising them thus publicly.
Yet it is true; and they have this insight because they serve, and
because they can have no personal interest in the affairs of those whom
they serve.
An absolute monarch would be absolutely wise and good.
But no man is strong enough to have no interest.
Therefore the best king would be Pure Chance.
It is Pure Chance that rules the Universe; therefore, and only
therefore, life is good.
COMMENTARY ({Kappa-Beta})
Comment would only mar the supreme simplicity of this chapter.
23. {Kappa-Epsilon-Phi-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Kappa-Gamma} SKIDOO
What man is at
ease in his Inn?
Get out.
Wide is the world and cold.
Get out.
Thou hast become an initiate.
Get out.
But thou canst not get out by the way thou camest in. The Way out is
THE WAY.
Get out.
For OUT is Love and Wisdom and Power. (12)
Get OUT.
If thou hast T already, first get UT. (13)
Then get O.
And so at last get OUT.
COMMENTARY ({Kappa-Gamma})
Both "23" and "Skidoo" are American words meaning "Get out". This
chapter describes the Great Work under the figure of a man ridding
himself of all his accidents.
He first leaves the life of comfort; then the world at large; and,
lastly, even the initiates.
In the fourth section is shown that there is no return for one that has
started on this path.
The word OUT is then analysed, and treated as a noun.
Besides the explanation in the note, O is the Yoni; T, the Lingam;
and U, the Hierophant; the 5th card
of the Tarot, the Pentagram. It is thus practically identical with IAO.
The rest of the chapter is clear, for the note.
NOTES
(12) O =
{character?}, "The Devil of the Sabbath". U = 8, the Hierophant or
Redeemer. T = Strength, the Lion.
(13) T, manhood, the sign of the cross or phallus.
UT, the Holy Guardian Angel; UT, the first syllable of Udgita, see
the Upanishads. O, Nothing or Nuit.
24. {Kappa-Epsilon-Phi-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Kappa-Delta} THE HAWK AND THE
BLINDWORM
This book would translate Beyond-Reason into the words of Reason.
Explain thou snow to them of Andaman.
The slaves of reason call this book Abuse-of-Language: they are right.
Language was made for men to eat and drink, make love, do barter, die.
The wealth of a language consists in its Abstracts; the poorest
tongues have wealth of Concretes.
Therefore have Adepts praised silence; at least it does not mislead
as speech does.
Also, Speech is a symptom of Thought.
Yet, silence is but the negative side of Truth; the positive side is
beyond even silence.
Nevertheless, One True God crieth hriliu!
And the laughter of the Death-rattle is akin.
COMMENTARY ({Kappa-Delta})
The Hawk is the symbol of sight; the Blindworm, of blindness. Those
who are under the dominion of reason are called blind.
In the last paragraph is reasserted the doctrine of Chapters 1, 8, 16
and 18.
For the meaning of the word hriliu consult Liber 418.
25. {Kappa-Epsilon-Phi-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Kappa-Epsilon} THE STAR
RUBY
Facing East, in the centre, draw deep deep deep thy breath, closing thy
mouth with thy right forefinger prest against thy lower lip. Then
dashing down the hand with a great sweep back and out, expelling
forcibly thy breath, cry: {Alpha-Pi-Omicron Pi-Alpha-Nu-Tau-Omicron-C?
Kappa-Alpha-Kappa-Omicron-Delta-Alpha-Iota-Mu-Omicron-Nu-Omicron-C?}.
With the same forefinger touch thy forehead, and say {C?-Omicron-Iota},
thy member, and say {Omega-Phi-Alpha-Lambda-Lambda-Epsilon} ,(14) thy
right shoulder, and say {Iota-C?-Chi-Upsilon-Rho-Omicron-C?}, thy left
shoulder, and say {Epsilon-Upsilon-Chi-Alpha-Rho-Iota-C?-Tau-Omicron-C?};
then clasp thine hands, locking the fingers, and cry {Iota-Alpha-Omega}.
Advance to the East. Imagine strongly a Pentagram aright, in thy
forehead. Drawing the hands to the eyes, fling it forth, making the sign
of Horus, and roar {Chi-Alpha-Omicron-C? }. Retire thine hand in the
sign of Hoor pa kraat.
Go round to the North and repeat; but scream
{Beta-Alpha-Beta-Alpha-Lambda-Omicron-Nu}.
Go round to the West and repeat; but say {Epsilon-Rho-Omega-C?}.
Go round to the South and repeat; but bellow {Psi-Upsilon-Chi-Eta}.
Completing the circle widdershins, retire to the centre, and raise thy
voice in the Paian, with these words {Iota-Omicron Pi- Alpha-Nu} with
the signs of N.O.X.
Extend the arms in the form of a Tau, and say low but clear: {Pi-Rho-Omicron
Mu-Omicron-Upsilon Iota-Upsilon-Gamma-Gamma-Epsilon-C?
Omicron-Pi-Iota-C?-Omega Mu-Omicron-Upsilon
Tau-Epsilon-Lambda-Epsilon-Tau-Alpha-Rho-Chi-Alpha-Iota Epsilon-Pi-Iota
Delta-Epsilon-Xi-Iota-Alpha C?-Upsilon-Nu-Omicron-Chi-Epsilon-C?
Epsilon-Pi-Alpha-Rho-Iota-C?-Tau-Epsilon-Rho-Alpha Delta-Alpha-Iota-Mu-Omicron-Nu-Epsilon-C?
Phi-Lambda-Epsilon-Gamma-Epsilon-Iota Gamma-Alpha-Rho Pi-Epsilon-Rho-Iota
Mu-Omicron-Upsilon Omicron Alpha-C?-Tau-Eta-Rho Tau-Omega-Nu Pi-Epsilon-Nu-Tau-Epsilon
Kappa-Alpha-Iota Epsilon-Nu Tau-Eta-Iota C?-Tau-Eta-Lambda-Eta-Iota
Omicron Alpha-C?-Tau-Eta-Rho Tau-Omega-Nu Epsilon-Xi Epsilon-C?-Tau-Eta-Kappa-Epsilon.
Repeat the Cross Qabalistic, as above, and end as thou didst begin.
COMMENTARY ({Kappa-Epsilon})
25 is the square of 5, and the Pentagram has the red colour of Geburah.
The chapter is a new and more elaborate version of the Banishing Ritual
of the Pentagram.
It would be improper to comment further upon an official ritual of
the A.'.A.'.
NOTE
(14) The secret
sense of these words is to be sought in the numberation thereof.
26. {Kappa-Epsilon-Phi-Alpha-Lambda-Eta Kappa-Digamma} THE ELEPHANT AND
THE TORTOISE
The Absolute and
the Conditioned together make The One Absolute.
The Second, who is the Fourth, the Demiurge, whom all nations of Men
call The First, is a lie grafted upon a lie, a lie multiplied by a lie.
Fourfold is He, the Elephant upon whom the Universe is poised: but the
carapace of the Tortoise supports and covers all.
This Tortoise is sixfold, the Holy Hexagram. (15)
These six and four are ten, 10, the One manifested that returns into the
Naught unmanifest.
The All-Mighty, the All-Ruler, the All-Knower, the All-Father, adored by
all men and by me abhorred, be thou accursed, be thou abolished, be thou
annihilated, Amen!
COMMENTARY ({Kappa-Digamma})
The title of the chapter refers to the Hindu legend.
The first paragraph should be read in connection with our previous
remarks upon the number 91.
The number of the chapter, 26, is that of Tetragrammaton, the manifest
creator, Jehovah.
He is called the Second in relation to that which is above the Abyss,
comprehended under the title of the First.
But the vulgarians conceive of nothing beyond the creator, and therefore
call him The First.
He is really the Fourth, being in Chesed, and of course his nature is
fourfold. This Four is conceived of as the Dyad multiplied by the
Dyad; falsehood confirming falsehood.
Paragraph 3 introduces a new conception; that of the square within the
hexagram, the universe enclosed in the law of Lingam- Yoni.
The penultimate paragraph shows the redemption of the universe by this
law.
The figure 10, like the work IO, again suggest Lingam-Yoni, besides
the exclamation given in the text.
The last paragraph curses the universe thus unredeemed.
The eleven initial A's in the last sentence are Magick Pentagrams,
emphasising this curse.
NOTE
(15) In nature the
Tortoise has 6 members at angles of 60 Degrees.
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