A Solar Spark of Light & Fire Part 2

It has been a while since my last Blog entry, this has been due to many reasons but, I am back now, and I am pleased to announce that I now have a piece of my writing published by Nephilim Press. This came about from a little over a year ago when I was approached by Michael Cecchetelli, a well-known occult author whose published works include, Crossed Keys and The Book of Abrasax. He asked me if I wanted to contribute a chapter for a book he was putting together about the HGA (Holy Guardian Angel). I felt extremely privileged to of been asked by such a prominent figure in the occult world, so I gladly and very willingly accepted his kind offer. This resulted in me becoming one of the ten authors that have contributed to the book, which is called “The Holy Guardian Angel.” The book is available from Nephilim Press. Link to it is below, which includes the blurb, the names of the authors and the title of their chapters. http://nephilimpress.com/store/product.php?productid=17701&cat=0&featured=Y

 

My chapter is the first one in the book and is called “A Solar Spark of Light and Fire.”

 

To follow on from my contribution to the book is this blog entry, which will deal with a more practical application of what I have written in the book about the nature and symbolism of the HGA. To do this, I have decided to quote an extract of instructions from a chapter in one of my most favorite books. This book is, Introduction to Magic Rituals and Practical Techniques for the Magus, by Julius Evola and the UR Group. I decided to use the following piece of writing that is written by an anonymous magician called Luce because of the thorough, and easily understood explanations of the symbolism used.

Luce

Opus Magicum

Fire

The ritual mentioned here is connected with the practice of breathing, which is executed according to the formula 2n (inspiration), n (retention), 2n (expiration), n (retention) in an early phase; and 2n, 4n, 2n, n in a later phase. The ritual can be performed in the first phase, too. This will be discussed later on. For now it is enough to know the meaning of the spirit, assumed in concentration and in silence, which, as an animating and sustaining essence of man, is symbolized by breath. Breath is necessary to bodily life, just as fire is indispensable to any form of physical life, hence "the breath of fire" in various symbolisms. This is mentioned here as a guide in experiences that sometimes have various simultaneous aspects. Lying down, after achieving the perfect rhythm of breathing in the above- mentioned phases, so that this organic function may continue with absolute spontaneity and without requiring any particular attention, one descends to the roots of being through "concentration" and "silence." When one reaches the supreme phase and frees the spirit, this is realized as a small flame burning in one's heart. The body must be experienced as pervaded by a wave of subtle warmth, flowing through the veins and the nerves. The flame burns, stating: "I AM!" The heart will feel as if it is burning and will be dissolved in the element of the magical Fire. In this process, the greatest difficulty (if "difficulty" is the most ad- equate term in relation to such an act of the spirit) consists in the consciousness's, the spirit's, or the Self's descent into the heart. In fact, we are very accustomed to feel and to experience ourselves in the brain. Some- one may even feel himself in a sense organ, when the perception is of such an intensity and violence that it attracts every attention toward a given point of the body. Thus, one momentarily feels like sinking, wherever the sensation of pain or pleasure has arisen. The process of descent into the heart is analogous to this, although none of those sensations is felt. (16) Let us recall the spirit's "sense of infinity and unconditional freedom," which is the last state of ritual silence. There should be no difficulty there in operating perfectly, causing the spirit to concentrate and to coagulate any- where it wills. However, the habit of the consciousness tied to an organ like the brain is such that the spirit is almost automatically attracted wherever it finds its habitual dwelling place. It is therefore necessary, in this case, to realize and to feel oneself as a mass of light consistency that descends from the brain, through the centers of the larynx and pharynx, down to the heart, slowly, following an ideal rather than a physical line, gently and effortlessly. The spontaneity itself is actualized in the magical action and in its most perfect and complete form. As warm and vaguely bright silence (the body, as the spirit determines itself, acquires a bituminous consistency, the limits of which cannot be determined in space), the spirit becomes denser, bright, warmer. Despite the absence of the perception of bodily space, the spirit is aware of finding its place in it (a wave of warm, fluctuating light). The body becomes denser as the spirit turns toward the heart (a conscious act: "I am in the heart, I feel it, I live it"). One becomes aware of it as a new wonderful immensity, of which few people are aware: it is no longer restricted to the usual physical limitation, extending its igneous mass to the utmost darkness. And now a clarification that needs to be deeply understood: man's life is ordinarily such that his action does not assign to itself its own objects, but rather receives them through the physical senses, as being imposed on it by them. So, in reality, man comes to depend on everything that is external and extraneous to him, on everything that is not himself. Not even the complex functioning of nervous reflexes is sufficient to affirm his own true freedom. From this state of affairs derives the fundamental notion of impurity, which, according to the classical rituals of various initiatory systems, must be resolved into the original purity of the burning of the secret flame, before the neophyte can acquire the knowledge and use of magical power. The fire of the spirit is thus initially directed to the catharsis of those dark elements that until now have ruled uncontested; to burn in the supreme act of a perfect "knowledge" everything that is "ignorance"; to penetrate into the bowels of the "Earth" and to purify "metals" from various drosses; "Gold," which through the help of "Sulfur" raises the inferior elements up to its dignity; Sperm, which mingled with the menstruum of the Whore, generates the Divine Child. (17) Ritually speaking, once the spirit has been established in the heart (which appears as an igneous mass), waves and bright flashes surface in the consciousness, beyond the boundaries of darkness, as symbols and mediums of the formless passive life. In the heart the spirit creates a small flame, turning its essence into the latter's essence. Let the flame burn, by itself, without any other support than its own wonderful power—a light shining in the red cavity of the heart. This is a timeless moment. Then, let the flame-spirit-consciousness grow by itself, slowly and gradually growing bigger and more intense, more tenacious, alive, and vivid, harder than a diamond . . . More and more. Let it burn and consume beyond the limits of the heart, expanding until it pervades the entire bodily nature, dissolving it into itself. 

The purification of the elements is thus fulfilled, and the spirit gradually acquires the immediate control, the conscious perception of each organ, of each smallest part of the physical body. Having reached and fixed the last state, one needs to proceed backward and return to normal consciousness, following the spontaneous succession of phases, analogous to the previous ones, until one gets to the form of a small flame in the heart. Then suddenly end the ritual, remaining in this state. After some time it will be easy to move rapidly to the heart and to arouse a flame in it. This flame will eventually remain burning as an inner act throughout the day; it will also be easy, starting from the heart, to penetrate any part of the body and to live in its complex functions. Thus, consciousness, once definitely reinstated in its natural seat, will be able to experience states that are very different from the past habitual ones, and to operate in consequence, realizing what has been expressed in the symbols of the inextinguishable flame. The ritual should be performed in the middle of the day, when the sun is at its zenith.

16. In this regard, we find useful the following instructions found in an ancient codex of a monastery of Mt. Athos, attributed to the abbot Xerocarca: "Sit by yourself in a corner. Pay attention to what I say. Close the door and raise your spirit above every vain and temporal thing. Then lower your chin on your chest and with all the strength of your soul open the perceiving eye which is in the middle of your heart. Restrict your exhala- tions, so as not to breath too easily. Try hard to find the precise site of the heart, in which all the energies of the soul are destined to dwell. At first you will find darkness and experience resistance of impenetrable masses; but if you persevere day and night, you will eventually experience an inexpressible joy. As soon as you find the heart's location, the spirit sees what at first it was never able to see. It sees the air, between itself and the heart, shining clear and being permeated by a miraculous light." (Note by UR)

17. The "Whore" in several alchemical and Gnostic texts symbolizes the humid principle, above all in its expression of yearning, passivity, and openness to receive indifferently any form. Once this is assumed and acted upon by the initiatic fiery principle, it becomes transformed and fixed, giving rise to the nature of the regenerated ones. Then it corresponds to the symbol of the "Virgin," who has under her feet the lunar and serpentine symbol (representing her original nature), and who holds in her arms the Divine Child. (Note by UR) 

This practice is an excellent example of the inner work that is needed to be carried out, not just for contact and communion with one’s HGA, but also for all ritual workings. One has to ignite this inner fire, and once it is kindled it will serve as the fuel to energize all magical acts, whether they be for mundane or spiritual purposes.

Bibliography

Evola, Julius & The UR Group. Introduction to Magic Rituals and Practical Techniques for the Magus. United States. Inner Traditions. 2001.