ESFUERZOS DE CORTE EN EL HORMIGÓN FISURADO (ESTADO II)

To me, these words of the modern Indian sage about Christ are of unsurpassed beauty and spiritual light, and perhaps you

144 THEURGY

will now understand, why I was able to remain a Christian (if this label must still be used) while being an admirer and fol­ lower of the Maharshi, at whose feet I spent the most signifi­ cant period of my whole life.

And what of the sage's ideas about worship? Are they different from those of Christian saints or of Theurgy? Judge for yourself, as this will be best. The Maharshi says:

'How can you best worship God? Why, by not trying to worship him (but) by giving up your WHOLE SELF to Him and showing that every thought, every action, is

only

less perfect

is

co

n

ci

us

unconscious.'

All saints had their own techniques for praying, and they used the basic power to enable them to raise their prayers far beyond the level of the average man. This power is the ability to coNCENTRATE, without which there can be no saint, theur­ gist or true yogi. That is why I dedicated one of my books to

Concentration. On the other hand, theurgy is one of the corner-stones of hermetic philosophy, as expounded in my

Tarot. So even in this case there is no contradiction, but rather one work supporting and enlarging the reach of another.

There is no occultist, truly religious man, or theurgist who would not accede to the idea of the ONE Supreme Power or God. But ways to attainment (in hermetism- 'reintegration', in Hinduism-'liberation', or 'mukta', in Christianity-'sal­ vation', and so on) are different, which is the cause of the differing attitudes of seekers of the final truth-God. It is only a normal law of manifestation, acting through variety towards the union.

I feel obliged to mention, that in our present epoch of rampant materialism, which is the result of putting mortal mind on the throne rightfully belonging to the Immortal Spirit-God, even this evident truth has been tentatively undermined by some 'amateur', pseudo-spiritual writers, who have expressed the idea of the possibility of the existence of as many gods as there may be galaxies in the universe.

For people with such aberrations theurgic methods of com­ munication with the source of all life, as is taught in theurgy, cannot be utterly incomprehensible and inaccessible (see Chapter XII 'Invocation to the Holy Spirit', para. 9).

INTRODUCTION 145

The simple ritual and other paraphernalia as recommended here are, of course, only a means of assistance in order to create the desired solemn attitude and concentration, necessary for operations. But there is also another factor which speaks on behalf of the use of our ritual. Everything that happens in the physical world has its unavoidable repercussion on the invisible part of the universe, in this case, the astral counter­ part of the earth, which has its own population and forces act­ ing in it. Both are closely connected at every moment and in every place. Our activities attract or repel the desirable or undesirable beings from the 'other side'. Now you will under­ stand the aim and purpose of the ritual. If you are so strong that you can omit it, it is your own business.

The wise person takes every opportunity to get the necessary assistance in order to reach the aim with more certainty.

In certain prayers and exorcisms you will find the sign +

(cross) inserted between some words and sentences. This means that, if these crosses belong to an action not involving another person, or external objects, and refers to the operator himself, he has to put the usual sign of the cross on himself, just as is done in church.

For theurgic purposes there is no essential difference as to whether you put your hand first on the right or left shoulder (eastern Orthodox and western Roman Catholic traditions respectively). But it is accepted that you bow slightly every time you cross yourself.

Now, when another person or some object is to be blessed in your operation, the cross must be made twice, every time you see it in the text for prayers or invocations. This means, that first you proceed as explained in the previous paragraph, that is, making the sign of the cross on your chest, and likewise over the person to be blessed or the object(s) to be sanctified, or in the air in their direction at the height of your face.

It is clear, that such a procedure relates to all subsequent chapters dealing with the exorcising of water, oil, salt, ill

people, plants, dwellings, and so on.

In all cases the sign must be made rather slowly, with the dignity inherent in this powerful theurgic means, using a broad movement of the right hand, as if in a square with

eighteen-inch sides.

146 THEURGY

largely used in this kind of theurgic action, should be done in the likeness of the cross with an energetic, fast movement of the hand, so that the water from the saturated brush will reach its aim.

The reserve of blessed water and oil can be stored in bottles and poured into the special containers on the table during the operation. The relative positions of the objects on the table used during operations can be seen from the picture preceding this introduction to Part II _{of this book.}

It is useful to have a small cupboard (about 2 _{feet x}

_It

x 1 _{foot on a table in the room where you intend to operate,}

which can be used for storing these few ritual accessories. Many theurgists paint such cupboards white or cream.

The ritual items are (full list completing items a. to i. at the beginning of this chapter):

1. _{Standing crucifix (about} 9 _inches x 6 _inches).

2. _{Two glass containers with lids, one for water and the}

other for salt, each about 6 _{inches high.} 3. _{Two candlesticks with candles.}

4. A _{small burner for incense.} 5. A _{box of incense.}

6. A _{brush (bristle or artificial fibre) for sprinkling blessed}

water.

7. A _{small brush for blessed oil.}

8. _{Two small bottles for oil and water (for transport pur­}

poses).

9. A _{white table-cloth (new).}

10. _{Your white garment, socks and cord (if you decide to use}

them).

11. A _{magic sword (if desired).}

12. _{Your book (the present one) contammg the texts for}

operations. The Book of Psalms for use in Part II

should also be provided.

All _{of these items must be exorcized and blessed before}

starting the first operation. The ritual for each object is given in the following chapters. In _{the initial ceremony you begin}

with the blessing of salt, then comes water, as it is necessary

for _{many operations concerning worship and exorcizing. The}

blessing of the remaining items can proceed in the order that you require them. But usually a theurgist performs the bless·

INTRODUCTION 147 ing of ALL objects in the prescribed ritual, one after another.

This will take longer and you should be prepared for it. Items such as vessels, burner, candlesticks, and so on, are blessed according to the same ritual, only their names are men­ tioned separately (see 'The Basic Blessings and Invocations', 'Blessing of Clothes', and so on).

If you feel a desire to add more solemnity and power to your action, perform the 'Great Invocation to God' (Chapter XI) once, just before starting the particular operations of blessing. Besides starting every personal operation with this important prayer, it is also recommended that due use be made of genu­ flection and incense.

Persons who are not initiated and who do not belong to your theurgic group should not be admitted to any intimate opera­ tion, that is, one that does not affect them directly, such as the blessing of ritual items, and personal worship, but they can be present at the blessing of the sick and prayers for the benefit of others, providing they are not cynically disposed or of a derogatory attitude, which may adversely affect you and the others present ('Do not cast your pearls before swine' as Christ told us).

CHAPTER XXII

BASIC BLESSINGS AND