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MITHRA,MITHRAS

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or unnecessary elements after their usefulness has passed. geburah is reflected in the charioteer in the tarot. tiphareth: the sixth emanation on the tree of life. it is the sphere of beauty, harmonizing the forces of mercy (chesed) and judgement (geburah) higher on the tree. occultists identify tiphareth as the sphere of spiritual rebirth, and is ascribed to solar deities such as ra, apollo, and mithra as well as osiris and jesus christ. the tarot card temperence identifies the direct mystical ascent to tiphareth from malkuth, the physical. netzach: the seventh emanation on the tree of life. netzach is regarded as the sphere of creativity, subjectivity, and emotions, a very clear contrast to the sphere of hod, which represents intellect and rational thought. netzach is the sphere of love

ALEISTER CROWLEY AD MEIORUM CTHULHI GLORIAM

siders to represent the devil. indeed, crowley had nothing but admiration for the shaitan (satan) of the so-called "devil-worshipping" cult of the yezidis of mesopotamia, knowledge of which led him to declare the lines that open this introduction. for he saw that the yezidis possess a great secret and a great tradition that extends far back into time, beyond the origin of the sun cults of osiris, mithra and christ; even before the formation of the judaic religion, and the hebrew tongue. crowley harkened back to a time before the moon was worshipped, to the "shadow out of time; and in this, whether he realised it as such or not, he had heard the "call of cthulhu. sumeria that a reclusive author of short stories who lived in a quiet neighbourhood in new england, and the manic, infamous maste

ALEISTER CROWLEY MAGICK IN THEORY AND PRACTICE

roblems connected with the bloody sacrifice, for this question is indeed traditionally important in magick. nigh all ancient magick revolves around this matter. in particular all the osirian religions- the rites of the dying god- refer to this. the slaying of osiris and adonis; the mutilation of attis; the cults of mexico and peru; the story of hercules or melcarth; the legends of dionysus and of mithra, are all connected with this one idea. in the hebrew religion we find the same thing inculcated. the first ethical lesson in the bible is that the only sacrifice pleasing to the lord is the sacrifice of blood; abel, who made this, finding favour with the lord, while cain, who offered cabbages, was rather naturally considered a cheap sport. the idea recurs again and again. we have the sacrif

ALICE A BAILEY10 FROM BETHLEHEM TO CALVARY

this continuity "at the time of the life or recorded appearance of jesus of nazareth and for some centuries before, the mediterranean and neighbouring world had been the scene of a vast number of pagan- 109- from bethlehem to calvary copyright 1998 lucis trust creeds and rituals. there were temples without end dedicated to gods like apollo or dionysus among the greeks, hercules among the romans, mithra among the persians, adonis and arris in syria and phrygia, osiris and isis and horus in egypt, baal and astarte among the babylonians and carthaginians, and so forth. societies, large or small, united believers and the devout in the service or ceremonials connected with their respective deities, and in the creeds which they confessed concerning these deities. and an extraordinarily interest

ucis trust india, the god indra in nepal and tibet spilt their blood for the salvation of men; buddha said, according to max m ller `let all the sins that were in the world fall on me, that the world may be delivered' the chinese tien the holy one `one with god and existing with him from all eternity' died to save the world; the egyptian osiris was called saviour, so was horus; so was the persian mithra; so was the greek hercules who overcame death though his body was consumed in the burning garment of mortality, out of which he rose into heaven. so also was the phrygian attis called saviour, and the syrian tammuz or adonis likewise both of whom, as we have seen, were nailed or tied to a tree, and afterwards rose again from their biers or coffins. prometheus, the greatest and earliest bene

. edward carpenter points this out, throwing light upon this ceaseless and age-old focussing of the love of god and the desire of man in the person of a son of god. he says "if the historicity of jesus, in any degree, could be proved, it would give us reason for supposing what i have personally always been inclined to believe that there was also a historical nucleus for such personages as osiris, mithra, krishna, hercules, apollo and the rest. the question, in fact, narrows itself down to this, have there been in the course of human evolution certain, so to speak, nodal points or periods at which the psychologic currents ran together and condensed themselves for a new start, and has each such node or point of condensation been marked by the appearance of an actual and heroic man (or woman)

ack into a state of greater spirituality than ever before is the sincere belief of all who know. theology over-reached itself with its "miserable sinner" complex and its emphasis upon the necessity for the purification by blood. this teaching of purification through the blood of bulls and of rams (or lambs) was part of the ancient mysteries, and was inherited by us primarily from the mysteries of mithra. these mysteries, in their turn, inherited the teaching, and thus formulated their doctrine, which christianity absorbed. when the sun was in the zodiacal sign of taurus the bull, the sacrifice of the bull was offered as a forecast of that which christ came later to reveal. when the sun passed (in the precession of the equinoxes) into the next sign, that of aries the ram, we find the lamb w

in commemoration of his coming. tertullian, one of the early church fathers, speaks of jesus christ as the "great fish" and of us, his followers, as the "little fishes" these facts are well known, as the following extract will indicate "the ceremonies of purification by the sprinkling or drenching of the novice with the blood of bulls or rams were widespread, and were to be found in the rites of mithra. by this purification a man was `born again' and the christian expression `washed in the blood of the lamb' is undoubtedly a reflection of this idea, the reference thus being clear in the words of the epistle to the hebrews `it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins' in this passage the writer goes on to say `having boldness to enter into the holiest by t

the birth to the resurrection. the uniqueness of christ's work lay in the fact that he was the first to enact the whole of the initiation ceremonial rites and ritual publicly, before the world at large, thus giving to humanity a demonstration of divinity centred in one person, so that all could see, could know, believe and follow in his steps. the same stories are told of hercules, of baldur, of mithra, of bacchus, and of osiris, to mention only a few of a large number. one of the early church fathers, firmicus maternus, tells us that the mysteries of osiris bear a close resemblance to the christian teaching, and that after the resurrection of osiris his friends rejoice together, saying "we have found him" annie besant points out in an illuminating passage that "in the christian mysteries

ALICE A BAILEY14 THE REAPPEARANCE OF THE CHRIST

age, is coming into power. in gemini, its symbolical sign of the two pillars set its seal upon- 68- the reappearance of the christ copyright 1998 lucis trust the masonic fraternity of the time and the two pillars of jachin and boaz to give them their jewish names which are, of course, not their real names came into being approximately eight thousand years ago. then came taurus, the bull, wherein mithra came as the world teacher and instituted the mysteries of mithras with an (apparent) worship of the bull. next followed aries the ram, which saw the start of the jewish dispensation which is of importance to the jews and unfortunately of importance to the christian religion, but of no importance to the untold millions in the other parts of the world; during this cycle came the buddha, shri

ALICE A BAILEY18 A TREATISE ON THE SEVEN RAYS VOLUME III ESOTERIC ASTROLOGY

lder than the earth (i. 180) 3 "mercury is called the first of the celestial gods, the god hermes. to which god is attributed the invention of and the first initiation of men into magic. mercury is budh, wisdom, enlightenment or `reawakening' in the divine science (i. 513) 4 "mercury is the lord of wisdom (ii. 31) 5 "mercury is still more occult and mysterious than venus. it is: a. identical with mithra- 390- a treatise on the seven rays- volume iii: esoteric astrology copyright 1998 lucis trust b. the perpetual companion of the sun of wisdom. c. the leader and evocator of souls. d. one with the sun (ii. 31) 6 "mercury heals the blind and restores sight, mental and physical (ii. 571) 7 "mercury is sometimes represented: a. as three-headed, because one with the sun and venus. b. as a cube

BLAVATSKY H P ANTHROPOGENESIS

receives but twice that amount more than our insignificant globe" whether the fact was known in antiquity may be inferred from the prayer of the "earth spirit" to the sun as given in the text* the sun however, refuses to people the globe, as it is not ready to receive life as yet. mercury is, as an astrological planet, still more occult and mysterious than venus. it is identical with the mazdean mithra, the genius, or god "established between the sun and the moon, the perpetual companion of 'sun' of wisdom" pausanias shows him as having an altar in common with jupiter (book v. he had wings to express his attendance upon the sun in its course; and he was called the nuntis, or sun-wolf "solaris luminis particeps" he was the leader of and the evocator of souls, the "great magician" and the h

tors of every cosmogony. the greek zeus-zen (aether, and chthonia (the chaotic earth) and metis (water, his wives; osiris and isis- latona- the former god also representing aether, the first emanation of the supreme deity, amun, the primeval source of light; the goddess earth and water again; mithras, the rock-born god, the symbol of the male mundane fire, or the personified primordial light, and mithra, the fire goddess, at once his mother and his wife; the pure element of fire (the active, or male principle) regarded as light and heat, in conjunction with earth and water, or matter, the female or passive element of cosmical generation- all these are records of the primeval divine hermaphrodite[[vol. 2, page] 131 the swan and the egg. stanza vi. the evolution of the "sweat-born (22) the e

otus, inscribed[[abrasaxiao (abraxas iao- an address exactly parallel to the so frequent[[eis zets sarapi (eis zets sarapi) on the contemporary heathen gems; and therefore only to be translated by "abraxas is the one jehovah (king's gnostics, p. 327. but who was abraxas? as the same author shows "the numerical or kabalistic value of the name abraxas directly refer to the persian title of the god 'mithra' ruler of the year, worshipped from the earliest times under the appellation of iao" thus, the sun, in one aspect, the moon or the lunar genius, in another, that generative deity whom the gnostics saluted as "thou that presidest over the mysteries of the father and the son, who shinest in the night-time, holding the second rank, the first lord of death" it is only in his capacity of the gen

the jewish bible that brought number seven into prominence. hesiod used the words "the seventh is the sacred day" before the sabbath of "moses" was ever heard of. the use of number seven was never confined to any one nation. this is well testified by the seven vases in the temple of the sun, near the ruins of babion in upper egypt; the seven fires burning continually for ages before the altars of mithra; the seven holy fanes of the arabians; the seven peninsulas, the seven islands, seven seas, mountains, and rivers of india; and of the zohar (see ibn gebirol; the jewish sephiroth of the seven splendours; the seven gothic deities, the seven worlds of the chaldeans and their seven spirits; the seven constellations mentioned by hesiod and homer; and all the interminable sevens which the orien

BLAVATSKY H P COSMOGENESIS

the generation of the universe "zeus-zen (aether, and chthonia (the chaotic earth) and metis (the water, his wives; osiris and isis-latona- the former god also representing ether- the first emanation of the supreme deity, amun, the primeval source of light; the goddess earth and water again; mithras* the rock-born god, the symbol of the male mundane-fire, or the personified primordial light, and mithra, the firegoddess, at once his mother and his wife: the pure element of fire (the active or male principle) regarded as light and heat, in conjunction with earth and water, or matter (female, or passive, elements of cosmical generation[[footnote(s* plato "timaeus "suidas" v. tyrrhenia* the reader will understand that by "years" is meant "ages" not mere periods of thirteen lunar months each*

DAVID ICKE AND THE TRUTH SHALL SET YOU FREE

and twisted under the guidance of the prison warder consciousness, until the original meaning has been lost under an avalanche of myth and invention. so often when you investigate the origin of the foundation stories of the religions, you find the same basic themes with different names for the alleged heroes and villains. for the christian version of jesus, see also bel (sumer, dionysus (greece, mithra (persia and rome, osiris (egypt, quetzalcoatl (central and south america, krishna (india, and so on. in this way, the spiritual knowledge from which all religions originally derive, has, to a large extent, been destroyed in the public arena. this process has been essential to controlling the human race. you take information out of the public arena and pass it on secretly only to those who s

DAVID ICKE CHILDREN OF THE MATRIX

hor, son of odin, of gauls; cadmus of greece; hil and feta of mandaites; gentaut and quetzalcoatl of mexico; universal monarch of the sibyls; ischy of formosa; divine teacher of plato; holy one of xaca; fohi, ieo, lao-kium, chiang-ti, and tien of china; ixion and quirnus of rome; prometheus of the caucasus; mohammed or mahomet of arabia, dahzbog of the slavs; jupiter, jove, and quirinius of rome; mithra of persia, india, and rome.18 the cult of mithra originates thousands of years before "jesus" and yet again tells the later christian story in fine detail. it is even said that gold, frankincense, and myrrh, were offered to him. by the time that jesus was invented by the anunnaki priesthood, the mithra rites and religion were widespread throughout the roman empire. when they founded christi

sands of years before "jesus" and yet again tells the later christian story in fine detail. it is even said that gold, frankincense, and myrrh, were offered to him. by the time that jesus was invented by the anunnaki priesthood, the mithra rites and religion were widespread throughout the roman empire. when they founded christianity in rome, they used the symbols and myths of the mithric rituals. mithra's sacred day was sunday because he was, like jesus, symbolic of the sun. mithra worshippers called this the "lord's day" and they celebrated the main mithra festival during what is now easter. mithra initiations were held in caves adorned with the signs of capricorn and cancer, symbolic of the winter and summer solstices. he was portrayed as a winged lion (the sun) standing within a spirall

hey celebrated the main mithra festival during what is now easter. mithra initiations were held in caves adorned with the signs of capricorn and cancer, symbolic of the winter and summer solstices. he was portrayed as a winged lion (the sun) standing within a spiralling serpent. the lion and the serpent are, of course, major symbols of the serpent cult/illuminati. the roman church encompassed the mithra eucharist into its "christian" rituals. mithra was claimed to have said "he who shall not eat of my body nor drink of my blood, so that he may be one with me and i with him, shall not be saved" the very site on which the vatican was built was a sacred place of mithra worship. it still is. they just call him jesus. as i have written before, the cult of mithra simply became the cult of myth-r

into its "christian" rituals. mithra was claimed to have said "he who shall not eat of my body nor drink of my blood, so that he may be one with me and i with him, shall not be saved" the very site on which the vatican was built was a sacred place of mithra worship. it still is. they just call him jesus. as i have written before, the cult of mithra simply became the cult of myth-ra- christianity. mithra was a symbol for the sun and so was his christian version. jesus was the light of the world (the sun; he will come back on the clouds and everyone shall see him (the sun. jesus walks on water (the sun's reflection does that; jesus performed his father's work in the temple at the age of 12 and started his ministry at 30. the sun reaches it's daily peak at 12 noon when the ancients, like the

see from earth. the egyptians said that the rising of the three stars of orion's belt (the three "kings "wise men" or "magi) marked the arrival of sothis or sirius, the star of osiris and horus. further symbolism of the "three wise men" is that the magi were sun worshippers. gold, frankincense, and myrrh were the traditional gifts given by arabian magi to the sun and that's why they were given to mithra in that version of the myth.21 the birth of jesus in a stable or cave is repeated throughout the solar-myth stories because the cave represents the "dark place" where the sun is said to go between the winter solstice and midnight on december 24th. thus we have the three days in the tomb between the "crucifixion" of jesus (the sun) and his "resurrection" or rebirth on december 25th. the cave

quarius!"28 the reference to the "man carrying the water pitcher" in luke's gospel is more aquarius symbolism. john the baptist was an almost exact copy of bala-rama, the forerunner of krishna, the hindu son of god. 212 children of the matrix jesus and the 12 disciples is there a universal law that all deities must have 12 disciples or followers? jesus had them, so did horus, buddha, king arthur, mithra, dionysus, and so many other symbols of the sun. we also have the 12 sons of jacob, 12 tribes of israel, the 12 gods of the greeks, egyptians, and persians. this fixation with 12 derives once again from sun symbolism with their disciples and followers representing the months of the year and the signs of the zodiac. the romans openly symbolised the sun as a living man and the signs of the zo

in in precise detail in the new testament, claiming to be an account of what happened to "paul".34 the story of paul (and a story is all it is) also shares many detailed similarities with the myths of the greek hero orpheus, who, like "paul, had a missionary called timothy35. the writer h.g. wells said that many of the phrases used by paul for jesus were the same as those used by the followers of mithra. the liturgy of mithra is the liturgy of jesus. when paul is made to say "they drank from the spiritual rock and that rock was christ" he is using exactly the same words found in the scriptures of mithra. the author of an internet article called "the other jesus" picks up this theme "that the names of the close associates of paul seem to be an exact match with great figures associated with

ause i think it has a double meaning, but the connection between the two can always be found whichever way you interpret the symbol of the serpent. the worship of the sun goes hand in hand with the illuminati's serpent rituals. constantine threw his backing behind the christian religion because to him it was no different to the sun cult he followed. christianity began to pick up many followers of mithra for the same reason and many pagans attacked the christians for stealing their religion, so similar were they to each other. james h. baxter, former professor of ecclesiastical history at st andrews university in scotland, said "if paganism had been destroyed, it was less through annihilation than through absorption. almost all that was pagan was carried over to survive under a christian na

DAVID ICKE THE BIGGEST SECRET

nis, son of virgin lo, ofgreece; ixion and quirinus of rome; prometheus of the caucasus; and mohammed ormahomet, of arabia.22all but a few of those sons of god or prophets, and the mind-prison religions foundedin their names, come from the very lands occupied or influenced by peoples emerging fromthe near east and the caucasus. the lands of the aryans and reptile-aryans. other sons ofgod included mithra or mithras, the pre-christian roman-persian god, and in greece andasia minor they had dionysus and bacchus. these were sons of god who died so our sinscould be forgiven, born of a virgin mother, and their birthdays were on. december 25th!mithra was crucified, but raised from the dead on march 25th- easter! mithran initiationstook place in caves adorned with the signs of capricorn and cancer

they had dionysus and bacchus. these were sons of god who died so our sinscould be forgiven, born of a virgin mother, and their birthdays were on. december 25th!mithra was crucified, but raised from the dead on march 25th- easter! mithran initiationstook place in caves adorned with the signs of capricorn and cancer, symbolic of the winter90and summer solstices, the high and low points of the sun. mithra was often portrayed asa winged lion, a symbol for the sun still used by the secret societies today. referencesto the lion and the grip of the lions paw in the master mason degree of freemasonryoriginate with this same stream of mystery school symbolism. initiates into the rites ofmithra were called lions and were marked on their foreheads with the egyptian cross.the first degree initiates h

ere marked on their foreheads with the egyptian cross.the first degree initiates had a golden crown placed on their heads, representing theirspiritual self, and this crown, symbolising the rays of the sun, can be found on thestatue of liberty in new york harbour. all these rituals went back thousands of yearsto babylon and the stories of nimrod, queen semiramis, and tammuz, their version ofjesus. mithra was said to be the son (sun) of god who died to save humanity and givethem eternal life. one classic symbol of mithra was as a lion with a snake curled aroundhis body, while he holds the keys to heaven. this is more nimrod symbolism and theorigin of the story of st peter, one of jesus 12 disciples, holding the keys to heaven.peter was the name of the high priest in the babylon mystery schoo

aroundhis body, while he holds the keys to heaven. this is more nimrod symbolism and theorigin of the story of st peter, one of jesus 12 disciples, holding the keys to heaven.peter was the name of the high priest in the babylon mystery school. after an initiateof the mithran cult had completed the ritual, the members had a meal of bread and winein which they believed they were eating the flesh of mithra and drinking his blood.mithra, like a long list of pre-christian gods, was said to have been visited by wise menat his birth who brought him gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. the same was saidby plato of his teacher, socrates, in ancient greece. christianity is a pagan sun religion,the worship of which is condemned by christianity! it is also an astrology religion, theevil of which is

the same was saidby plato of his teacher, socrates, in ancient greece. christianity is a pagan sun religion,the worship of which is condemned by christianity! it is also an astrology religion, theevil of which is condemned by christianity, not least by the pope! beam me up scotty,its mad down here. the church hierarchy, of course, know all this. they just dont wantyou to know. the mystery cult of mithra spread from persia to the roman empire andat one point this doctrine could be found in almost every part of europe. the presentsite of the v atican in rome was a sacred place for the followers of mithra, and hisimage and symbols have been found cut into rocks and stone tablets throughout thewestern provinces of the former roman domain, including germany, france andbritain. christianity and

his doctrine could be found in almost every part of europe. the presentsite of the v atican in rome was a sacred place for the followers of mithra, and hisimage and symbols have been found cut into rocks and stone tablets throughout thewestern provinces of the former roman domain, including germany, france andbritain. christianity and the roman church were based on the persian-roman sun godcalled mithra (nimrod, who has an earlier equivalent in india called mitra. tammuz oradonis (lord, who was revered in babylonia and syria, was said to have been born atmidnight on december 24th. these were also sons of god.horus was the the son of god in egypt. he was derived from the babyloniantammuz and, in turn, provided another blueprint for the later jesus. theconnections are devastating for the cre

ir death was told by the hindus ofkhrishna, the buddhists of buddha, the greeks of hercules, the mexicans ofquetzalcoatl, ad infinitum, long before jesus. when he died, jesus descended intohell, just like the earlier khrishna, zoroaster, osiris, horus, adonis/tammuz, bacchus,hercules, mercury and so on. he then rose from the dead like the earlier khrishna,buddha, zoroaster, adonis/tammuz, osiris, mithra, hercules and baldur. jesus wassymbolically crucified at easter because this is the spring equinox when the sun (jesus)enters the astrological sign of aries, the ram or. the lamb. the lamb in the book ofrevelation is the same symbol. in around 2,200 bc the group known as the priesthoodof melchizedek began making their aprons with lambs wool, a symbol continued todayby a modern expression of

s more lightthan darkness every day. the world is restored by the power of the sun in the time ofrebirth and the spring equinox was one of the most sacred egyptian events. queen isiswas often portrayed with rams heads to symbolise that the time of aries, the spring, wasa period of natures abundant creation. the festival of easter was as important to earlychristians as december 25th. the legend of mithra said he was crucified and wasresurrected on march 25th. the date of easter is no longer fixed to the first day ofaries, but the symbolism remains. the christian religious day is. sunday. christianchurches are build east-west with the altar to the east. this means that the congregationface east- the direction of the rising sun. even easter eggs, like hot cross buns, are nota christian tradit

he names of the powers who ruled theuniverse. this was in line with the laws of the mystery schools. the essenes-therapeutae practised rituals very similar to the later christian baptism and theymarked the foreheads of initiates with a cross. this being the symbol indicated in theold testament book of ezekiel for enlightened (or illuminated) ones and also used forinitiations into the mysteries of mithra and other such sun god figures. the essenesviewed natural bodily functions, including sex, with disgust and in that sense they were figure 17: the jewish priest with themushroom cap to symbolise the importanceof magic hallucinogenic mushrooms in theirrituals.97an excellent forerunner of the roman church which was to absorb many of their beliefs,terms and practises. two of the dead sea scrol

r theirmanipulation.16 she also appears as our sister phoebe and as claudia and claudinein the texts called romans, timothy and clement.17the pisos and pliny introduced into their stories all the symbols of the sun religionand babylonian brotherhood myths. they locate their saul/paul in tarsus in asiaminor (now turkey, the chief city of the cilicians. this just happens to be a majorcentre for the mithra sun religion and it was the cilicians who had taken this cult torome, from where it spread throughout the empire. asia minor was also a region whichfollowed the cult of dionysus. both were symbolic sun gods, born on december 25th,who died so our sins could be forgiven. everything christians believe about jesus, theromans and persians believed about mithra. sunday was the sacred day for mith

irgin mother, and he was known as: the vine, our lord, the saviour, the judge of thedead, the deliverer, the born again and the only begotten son of god. above the headof dionysus were the words: i am life, death, and resurrection, i hold the wingedcrown (the sun).18 the writer, h. g. wells, pointed out that many of the phrases usedby paul for jesus were the same as those used by the followers of mithra. the liturgyof mithra is the liturgy of jesus. when paul says: they drank from the spiritual rockand that rock was christ (i corinthians 10:4, he was using exactly the same wordsfound in the scriptures of mithra. only the names were changed. in the gospels, peterbecame the christian rock on whom the new church would be built. the v atican hillin rome was said to be sacred to peter, but this

when paul says: they drank from the spiritual rockand that rock was christ (i corinthians 10:4, he was using exactly the same wordsfound in the scriptures of mithra. only the names were changed. in the gospels, peterbecame the christian rock on whom the new church would be built. the v atican hillin rome was said to be sacred to peter, but this place was also claimed, much earlier, tobe sacred to mithra and many mithric remains have been found there! the piso clanturned mithra into myth-ra- christianity.all the popes have claimed to rule as the heirs to peter, the first pope. this claimderives from a sentence in the bible which has jesus saying: thou art peter, and uponthis rock i will build my church.19 only four verses after supposedly making peter therock on which he would build his chu

things that be of god, but those that be of men.20 the rock isclassic mystery school symbolism, as is the corner stone associated with jesus and stillused in freemasonic symbolism today. peter is supposed to be the custodian of the keysto heaven, but this is just a rerun of the mystery school symbol of the two-faced janus,custodian of the key to the temple of wisdom and the keys to heaven held by mithra.and janus was eannus, a title for nimrod in babylon. the gold and silver keys of stpeters alleged successor, the pope, are more symbols of the secret doctrine. the popesand those who control them know what all this stuff really means. gold and silver are theprecious metals used to symbolise the sun and the moon. peter and paul are both said to109have been killed in rome during the purge of

mbers, geometry and proportion, are some of the great mysteries that have beendenied the mass of the people.clearly constantine, and the brotherhood which controlled the emperors, saw politicaladvantage in supporting the christian movement. and the people would have had noproblem encompassing jesus into their belief system because the story matched that of theother sun gods of the time, including mithra. christianity picked up many followers ofmithra because to them it was no different to what they already believed except for thename. constantine ended the persecution of christians in the roman empire by issuing hisedict of milan, but this was not specific to christianity, though it stopped the persecution111against all one-god religions. anyway, as one persecution ended another was soon t

pressors of the female, and creators of bloody conflict, should all come119from the same part of the world? or that people having visions and visitations shouldplay such a crucial part in the formation and legend which created these monsters?mohammed said he had his vision near the cave where he used to go. caves and darkplaces constantly recur in stories of religious superstars and sun gods like mithra andjesus. mohammed said his visitor claimed to be the angel gabriel of biblical fameand during the encounter mohammed said he lost consciousness and entered a trancestate. while mohammed was in his trance or hypnotic state, gabriel gave him amessage to remember and recite. mohammed said that when he awoke the messagewas inscribed upon his heart. what followed the encounter with gabriel was

acobite movement which became known as grand orient freemasonry. there are alsogrand orient networks in others countries like brazil and portugal. grand orient meansgrand east and its rituals are inspired by the worship of zoroaster in persia, ishtar andtammuz (semiramis and nimrod) in babylon, demeter, persephone and dionysus ingreece, aphrodite and adonis in syria, isis and osiris in egypt, and mithra in persia.39the grand orient in france was to be the focus behind the manipulation andcoordination of the french revolution. from the brotherhoods point of view, thispeoples revolution had nothing to do with freedom and everything to do with itsagenda for global control. the famous cry of the french revolutionaries: liberty,equality, fraternity, is a freemasonic motto.the science of manipul

ionscene, full of occult symbolism and sacred geometry, by the french artist jean cocteau(1889-1963, a grand master of the priory of sion. his mural includes a black sun, aclassic brotherhood symbol, casting its rays into the sky, and a man with an eye drawnin the shape of a fish, which could well be symbolic of the babylonian nimrod. inrome there is the dome at the v atican, that ancient site of mithra (sun) worship, andalongside the dome you find obelisks in st. peters square. in london, as i write, themillennium dome is being built next to the greenwich zero longitude time-line whichruns through the nearby greenwich observatory, which was also, incidentally, designedby sir christopher wren. it is to this point in the world that all the watches, clocks, andtime zones (therefore the colle

us backto north africa because it comes from the arab term tarab dour, meaning house ofdelight, a remnant of the muslim occupation of southern france. they hid their ladybehind the biblical mary in order to stay alive, but the true meaning of their lady wasisis. later would come the stories of king arthur and his search for the holy grail,stories that would clearly echo the themes of the gospels, mithra, horus, etc, in theirsymbolism of the sun, isis and the astrological round table.there you have just some of the symbolism which non-initiates, or those who havenot taken the trouble to find out, simply cannot see. if you are new to this language ofsymbolism, i hope that now you will be able to read more easily the signs andsignatures of the brotherhood and therefore be more streetwise to t

DAVID ICKE RELATED THE HIDDEN GEARS OF FREEMASONRY

s well. statue of liberty- information compiled by a list member the statue of liberty is another brotherhood symbol highlighting the lighted torch, statue of liberty is actually the statue of liberties- the liberties perpetrated on the american people by the brotherhood. it was given by french freemasons, a mirror image stands on an island in the river seine in paris. initiates into the rites of mithra were called lions and were marked on their foreheads with the egyptian cross. the first degree initiates had a golden crown placed on their heads, representing their spiritual self, and this crown, symbolizing the rays of the sun, can be found on the statue of liberty in ny harbor. all these rituals went back thousands of years to babylon and the stories of nimrod, queen semiramis, and tamm

heads, representing their spiritual self, and this crown, symbolizing the rays of the sun, can be found on the statue of liberty in ny harbor. all these rituals went back thousands of years to babylon and the stories of nimrod, queen semiramis, and tammuz, their version of jesus mathra was said to be the son (sun) of god who died to save humanity and give them eternal life. one classic symbol of mithra was a lion with a snake curled around his body, while he holds the keys to heaven. better business bureau, notice the torch? the individuals who are in control of this world are not who they might seem. they are evil spirits set out to enslave other spiritual beings. us! christ was trying to teach us the truth about spirituality but they had him killed for trying. i do respect all those who

DEMONIC BIBLE

cided that their particular deity was the true god, that all other gods were devils, and that the followers of other gods had to be converted or destroyed. egypt was decimated by the osirians as they attempted to eliminate the earlier religion of set. in the middle east, the hebrews went to war with the surrounding nations to annihilate them. out of the cults of baal and osirus, tammuz and dmuzi, mithra and zoroaster, arose a sacrificial-god religion which would dominate europe for centuries to come. the age of paganism had ended and the age of theocracy had begun. long after the purpose of the gods they represented had passed, theocracies used their "divine" authority to wage religious wars against supposed "infidels" and persecutions of non-believers. many people today have rejected the

DION FORTUNE MYSTICAL QABALA

and tails and the virgin mary in lace-edged pantaloons. the inner form of the ancient faiths can compare very favourably with the best of our modern metaphysicians. after all, they produced plato and plotinus. the human mind does not change, and what is true of ourselves is probably true of the pagans. the lamb of god which taketh away the sins of the world is only another version of the bull of mithra which does the same thing, the only difference being that the ancient initiate was literally "washed in blood" and the modern one takes it metaphorically. autres temps autres mours. 9. if we approach those whom we elect to call pagans, both ancient and modern, in a reverent and sympathetic spirit, knowing that allah and brahma and amen ra are but other [page 88] names for that which we wors

ENCYCLOPEDIA OF OCCULTISM AND PARAPSYCHOLOGY VOL 1

-25th may they keep watch over her shrine, and on the 25th they leave. among the gypsy votive offerings presented in the crypt, some are believed to date back to about the year 1450. all this would appear to indicate that the gypsies were christians. another statement, however, tends to qualify such a conclusion. the assertion that the shrine of saint sara rests upon an ancient altar dedicated to mithra, that the gypsies of that neighborhood who are known as calagues, are descended from the iberians formerly inhabiting the camargue, and that their cult is really the mithraic worship of fire and water, upon which the veneration of saint sara is superimposed. many believe that confirmation of this view is the worship of fire still existing among the gypsies of southern hungary although this

ENCYCLOPEDIA OF OCCULTISM AND PARAPSYCHOLOGY VOL 2

mulet to protect the deceased from the dangers of the underworld. attis and cybele the phrygian mysteries of attis and cybele focused on the rebirth of the god attis, who was also of an agrarian character. communion with the deity was usually attained by bathing in blood in the taurobolium or by the letting of blood. mithraic mysteries the mithraic cult was of persian origin, having at its center mithra, a personification of light worshiped in that country some five hundred years before the christian era. carried into asia minor by small colonies of magi, it was largely influenced by the religions with which it was brought into contact. for instance, chaldean astrology inspired much of the occult traditions surrounding the creed of the sun-god; the art of greece influenced the representati

, a personification of light worshiped in that country some five hundred years before the christian era. carried into asia minor by small colonies of magi, it was largely influenced by the religions with which it was brought into contact. for instance, chaldean astrology inspired much of the occult traditions surrounding the creed of the sun-god; the art of greece influenced the representation of mithra tauroctonous that graced the temples of the cult; and the romans gave it a wide geographical area and immense influence. according to plutarch, the rites originally reached rome through the agency of cilician privates conquered and taken there by pompey. another source, doubtless, was the large number of asiatic slaves employed in roman households. again the roman soldiery must have carried

in the roman soldiery must have carried the mithraic cult as far north as the mountains of scotland, and south to the borders of the sahara desert. mithraism may be said to have been the only living religion christianity found a need to combat. it was strong enough to exert a formative influence on certain christian doctrines, such as those relative to the end of the world and the powers of hell. mithra was essentially the divinity of beneficence. he was the genius of celestial light, endowing the earth with all its benefits. as the sun he put darkness to flight, so by a natural transition he came to represent truth and integrity, the sun of goodness that conquers the night of evil. to him was ascribed the role of mediator between god and humanity. his creed promised a resurrection to a fu

the genius of celestial light, endowing the earth with all its benefits. as the sun he put darkness to flight, so by a natural transition he came to represent truth and integrity, the sun of goodness that conquers the night of evil. to him was ascribed the role of mediator between god and humanity. his creed promised a resurrection to a future life of happiness and felicity. briefly the story of mithra is as follows. mithra sprang to being in the gloom of a cavern from the heart of a rock, seen by none but humble shepherds. he grew in strength and courage, excelling all, and used his powers to rid the world of evil. of all his deeds of prowess, however, the one upon which the cult centered was the slaying of a bull, itself possessed of divine potentialities. from the spinal cord of the bu

d of evil. of all his deeds of prowess, however, the one upon which the cult centered was the slaying of a bull, itself possessed of divine potentialities. from the spinal cord of the bull sprang the wheat of the human race s daily bread, from its blood the vine, source of the sacred drink of the mysteries, and from its seed all the different species of useful animals. after this beneficent deed, mithra ruled in the heavens, yet still kept watch over human beings, granting the petitions asked in his name. those who followed him, who were initiated into his mysteries, passed under his divine protection, especially after death, when he would rescue their souls from the powers of darkness. in addition, when the earth failed in her life-sustaining powers, mithra would slay a divine bull and gi

atch over human beings, granting the petitions asked in his name. those who followed him, who were initiated into his mysteries, passed under his divine protection, especially after death, when he would rescue their souls from the powers of darkness. in addition, when the earth failed in her life-sustaining powers, mithra would slay a divine bull and give to all abundant life and happiness. among mithra s worshipers were slaves and soldiers, high officials and dignitaries, who worshipped in temples, mithraeums as they were called, built underground or in caves and grottoes in the depths of dark forests, symbolizing the birthplace of their god. the rites in which they participated were of magical significance and an oath of silence was taken by all. in order to bring their lives into closer

and soldiers, high officials and dignitaries, who worshipped in temples, mithraeums as they were called, built underground or in caves and grottoes in the depths of dark forests, symbolizing the birthplace of their god. the rites in which they participated were of magical significance and an oath of silence was taken by all. in order to bring their lives into closer communion with the divinity of mithra, the neophytes had to pass through seven degrees of initiation, successively assuming the names of raven, occult, soldier, lion, persian, runner of the sun, and father. each of these grades carried with it symbolic garments and masks, donned by the celebrants. the masks represented birds and animals and seem to indicate belief in the doctrine of metempsychosis, or perhaps they point to a re

e birth of the sun was solemnized on the 25th of december, and the equinoxes were days of rejoicing, while the initiations were held preferably in the spring, in march or april. it is believed that in the earliest days of the cult, some of the rites were of a savage and barbaric character, especially the sacrificial element, but these, as indicated, were changed and ennobled as the beneficence of mithra took precedence over his warlike prowess. the mithraic brotherhoods were involved with secular interests as well as spiritual ones and were in fact highly organized communities, composed of trustees, councils, senates, attorneys, patrons, and people of high status and wealth. belonging to such a body gave the initiate a sense of brotherhood and comradeship that was doubtless a powerful reas

or the popularity the mithraic cult gained in the roman army, whose members, dispersed to the ends of the earth, relied on such fraternal comfort and solace. sources: angus, samuel. the mystery religions and christianity. london: john murray, 1928. reprint, new york: dover, 1975. burkert, walter. ancient mystery cults. cambridge, mass: harvard university press, 1987. cumont, f. v. m. mysteries of mithra. london: kegan paul; chicago: open court, 1910. harrison, jane e. prolegmena to the study of greek religion. cambridge university press, 1922. masks of dionysus. ithaca, n.y: cornell university press, 1993. mylonas, george e. eleusis and the eleusian mysteries. princeton, n.j: princeton university press, 1961. nilsson, martin p. the dionysian mysteries of the hellenistic and roman age. lund

m advisable to admit the possibility of suggestion (or even telepathy, by means of which the expectation of the operator, reproducing itself in the mind of the patient, would give rise to the corresponding reactions. phrygian cap hargrave jennings, in his book the rosicrucians: their rites and mysteries (1870, argued for the common ancestry of the phrygian cap, which is the classic cap of the god mithra; the sacrificial cap; and the miter. the mithraic or phrygian cap is the origin of the priestly miter in all faiths. the phrygian cap was worn by the priest in sacrifice. when worn by a male, it had its crest, comb, or point set jutting forward; when worn by a female, the same prominent part of the cap is in reverse, or on the nape of the neck, as in the instance of the amazon s helmet, dis

god of sacrifice, wears such a cap made from the thigh-skin of a sacrificed virgin. this headdress is shaped like a cock s comb. the scotch glengarry cap also seems, upon examination, to be cocked. besides the bonnet rouge, the pope s miter and other miters or conical head-coverings derive their names from the terms mithradic, or mithraic, and the origin of the whole class of names is mittra, or mithra. sources: cumont, franz. the mysteries of mithra. lasalle, ill: open court publishing, 1903. reprint, new york: dover publications, 1956. jennings, hargrave. the rosicrucians: their rites and mysteries. 3rd ed. 2 vols. london: j. nimmo, 1887. vermaseren, m. j. mithras, the secret god. london: chatto& windus, 1963. wynne-tyson, esme. mithras, the fellow in the cap. london: rider, 1968. phyll

FELDMAN DANIEL QABALAH THE MYSTICAL HERITAGE OF THE CHILDREN OF ABRAHAM

n, rabbi schneur. ma'amorim ketzarim inyonim, p.133, published in 1986. e "h 0 16 christianity assimilated december 25 as the birthday of master yeshuvah. before that, the indigenous peoples of western europe, whom the christians called pagans, had celebrated it as yule, and a number of other traditions as the birthday of solar saviors. the mithraists, for instance, regarded it as the birthday of mithra. the romans celebrated the date as dies natalis solis invictus, day of birth of the undefeated sun. the christian observance of the pentecost replaced the tradition of whitsunday, the holy day of the goddess frigg, the norse queen of heaven and consort of odin. easter absorbed the pesach of the jews, and was named after eostre or ostara, the pagan goddess of spring. 17 dimont, max. jews, go

GAMBLE ELIZA BURT THE GOD IDEA OF THE ANCIENTS OR SEX IN RELIGION

the elements, the primary progeny of time, the most exalted of the deities, the first of the heavenly gods and goddesses, whose single deity the whole world venerates in many forms, with various rites and various names. the egyptians worship me with proper ceremonies and call me by my true name, queen isis" isis, we are told, is called myrionymus, or goddess with 10,000 names. she is the persian mithra, which is the same as buddha, minerva, venus, and all the rest. faber admits that the female principle was formerly regarded as the soul of the world. he says "isis was the same as neith or minerva; hence the inscription at sais was likewise applied to that goddess. athenagoras informs us that neith or the athene of the greeks was supposed to be wisdom passing and diffusing itself through a

cified savior found in ireland and scotland in connection with the figure of a lamb, a bull, or an elephant, the latter of which is not a native of those countries, shows that they do not represent christ, but a crucified sun-god worshipped by the inhabitants of the british islands ages before the birth of the great judean philosopher and teacher. it is plain that crishna of india and the persian mithra furnished the copy for the jesus of the romish church, all of whom mean one and the same thing--the second person in the solar trinity. by the jews, who attempted to ignore the female principle, this god is called the "lord of hosts" and "god of sabaoth" which astronomically means god of the stars and constellations, and astrologically the creator or producer of the multitudes. of this god

sermon, rebukes the "pestiferous persuasion, that this solemn day is to be honored not for the birth of christ, but for the rising of the new sun" on the authority of this same prelate it is found that in the fifth century, the faithful, before entering the basilica of st. peter, were wont to turn and salute the shining orb of day. the roman winter solstice which was connected with the worship of mithra, and which was named the "birthday of the unconquered om" was adopted by the western churches some time during the fourth century. from the west it passed to the eastern churches, where it finally became "the solemn anniversary of the birth of christ" in ireland the ceremonies attending the mid-winter festival were formerly regarded as exceedingly important. a short time before the approach

that the original signification of this symbol was understood by early christians is apparent from the fact that the emperor theodosius, between the years 378 and 395, issued a decree prohibiting the sign of the cross being sculptured or painted on the pavements of churches. tertullian also, after declaring that the devil made the sign of the cross on the foreheads of the followers of the persian mithra, accused the christians of adoring the same emblem. in 280, a. c. porphyry, referring to crosses, asked why theologists give passions to the gods, erect phalli and use shameful language; to which the christian iamblichus in the year 336 replied "because phalli and crosses are signs of productive energy, and provocative to a continuance of the world" it was not until the second century, or u

GILBERT THE MAGICAL MASON

blical views of the constitution of man 139 16. the vestiges of tetragrammaton 154 17. the number four in relation with the world and man 1576themagicalmasonpartthree:divination18.thehistory of astrology169 19.dreams18120.divination and its history19221.the star lore of the bible216partfour: masonic22.freemasonry and its relation to the essenes233 23.the resemblances of freemasonry to the cult of mithra244 24.the religious and masonic symbolism of stones256partfive: miscellaneous papers25.an essay on the ancient mysteries269 26.a recent spiritual development287 27.an essay upon the constitution of man: spirit, soul, body296 28.man's blood and generation310introductionof all the actors in the bizarre pageant of the occult revival, william wynn westcott was the most unlikely: cautious, fearf

ruids of britain and nor255 mandy has.been inferred. i have upon a former occasion expressed my dissent from the assertion that modern freemasonry has relation to the essene fraternity, which practised a form of ultra-strict judaism, and whose members were celibates who lived in almost monkish seclusion about the time of the establishment of the christian religion. in these notes upon the cult of mithra (persian, mithras (greek) or mitra (sanscrit, the genius of the heavenly light, i shall show that this ancient persian religion spread in the course of time to europe, and has left its traces in ruined temples and sculptures, which have been found in italy, germany, france, and even in england.ingreece its remains are few, because the greeks hated the persians, with whom they had many wars

, which have been found in italy, germany, france, and even in england.ingreece its remains are few, because the greeks hated the persians, with whom they had many wars, and so they did not tend to adopt a persian cult. it was not only a form of faith and rule of conduct openly professed, but it also gave secret initiation to its priests and more learned worshippers.resemblances of freemasonry to mithra 245this institution made use of secret temples and mysterious ceremonial of a religious and moral nature, was of pre-christian origin, and had as part of its system a mode of progress by grade or stages, each with its mystical and symbolic name, available for its devotees,butthere does not appear to me to be any basis for the suggestion that the originoffreemasonryhadany relation toit,for a

oes not appear to me to be any basis for the suggestion that the originoffreemasonryhadany relation toit,for almost all that is known of mithraism is of quite recent discovery, due to archaological and architectural research among the ruins of many countries. antecedent to modern investigations there wasbutlittle available information upon the origin and doctrines of mith255 raism, the worship of mithra as the sun god; reliance was placed upon short notices to be found in thede i sideetosirideandlifeofpompeyby plutarch, who dieda.d.120.itis referred to by porphyry, who dieda.d.305, in hiscave of the nymphsand in hisde abstinentia;and by nonnus in hisdionysiacaabout 410.thechristian fathers st jerome, who dieda.d.420, tertullian, in hisdecoronaanddeprdjscriptionehereticorum,about 200, and j

welve volumes ofl'antiquite expliquee, 1719,furnishes numerous plates of ancient mithraic sculptures. thomas hyde, ontheremains ofthereligion of ancient persia (1700, may be consulted, and g. r. s. mead hasprintedamithraic ritual,1907.themost complete account of mithraic remains is to be found in the works offrankcumont,textesetmonumentsfiguresrelatifsauxmysteresdemithra,1896-99, andlesmysteresde mithra1913. cumont was a professor at the university of ghent. a summary of recent discoveries and opinions has been written by f. legge, and also a valuable essay by h. stuart jones.itwas generally stated that the worship of mithra originated246themagical masonfrom zend, iranian or persian mazdeism, a religion founded by zoroaster, also called zarathrustra, who was an inspired sage about whom not

.c.theavesta or zendavesta is the sacred volume associated with this religion. modern researches have led to the opinion that the cult of mithras as a sun god must have preceded the foundation of the zoroastrian religion by many hundred years, even before the aryan race separated into western and indian branches; at any rate, his name is found both in the zend avesta and the vedas of the hindoos. mithra worship may have sprung from the cult of the magi of media, a nationality which was dominant before that of persia.themedes and persians were famous nations of western asia for many centuries, and the boundaries of their empire varied greatly from agetoage: media became subject to persia about 560a.c.,while persia remaind a notable empire until it was conquered by the mohammedan arabs about

and persians were famous nations of western asia for many centuries, and the boundaries of their empire varied greatly from agetoage: media became subject to persia about 560a.c.,while persia remaind a notable empire until it was conquered by the mohammedan arabs about 640a.d.thepresent-day parseesofindiaare now the only representatives of the zoroastrian faith. they hold a festival in honour of mithra on the 16th day of the 7th month,butthere are now no worshippers of mithra alone. mithraism spread from its home in asia through greece and its colonies into italy, and became in rome itself as famous as that of its egyptian competitor the cult of serapis, it extended over a great part of south and western europe and even reached britain, being spread by the roman soldiers who adopted the w

the 16th day of the 7th month,butthere are now no worshippers of mithra alone. mithraism spread from its home in asia through greece and its colonies into italy, and became in rome itself as famous as that of its egyptian competitor the cult of serapis, it extended over a great part of south and western europe and even reached britain, being spread by the roman soldiers who adopted the worship of mithra in great numbers; they were introduced to this cult at the period of pompey in his wars with cilicia. both of these cults were, however, abolished by the domination of christianity under the emperor constantine abouta.d.330.thegod of this world, according to zoroaster, was ahura mazda, king of light and spirit of the sun, often called ormuzd by english authors- a great being having many res

utlater became dualistic, prominence being given to the existence and powers of an evil deity named angra mainyus, the evil mind, also called ahriman, who is always in conflict with the god of good. we find references also made to a veiled deific principle, shrouded in mystery, superior eventoormuzd, the creator and world ruler. he was named in the 'vendidad- zervanaresemblances of freemasonry to mithra 247akarana, or zervan akerene 'eternal light' or possibly 'boundless time, of whom nothing can be conceived, known or declared- a supreme being without attributes or qualities comprehensible to man. he is the absolute, the sat of the vedantists and the ain suph of the kabalists of medieval judaism. he may have been considered as the source from whom first the good god ormuzd, and later ahri

roastrian faith postulated the subsequent appearance by emanation of six ameshaspentas or amshaspands springing from ormuzd and making with him a septenary of powers; these great beings may be compared with the christian ideas of archangels. then followed a second series of angelic eman255 ations named the izeds or yazatas (adored ones, who were twenty-eight in number, of whom the earlier sun god mithra was called the first and chief; he was the invincible hero fighting the evil powers.athird series then followed, and were named the ferouers, who were unlimited in number. c. w. king, in his work upon the gnostics, looks upon these as the active thoughts of god. the evil being ahriman also prod255 uced a numerous progeny of wicked spirits, but he was cast down by ormuzd from his high estate

ian symbol of this world. ahriman destroyed the first world-being,butfrom its elements ormuzd formed the first human pair; these were tempted by ahriman (or arimanes) and fell, and so their descendants were ever after exposed to the malice of ahriman, the evil being, as the great tempter. this scheme of thought obviously led to the idea that a saving grace must be put into action, and the sun god mithra, who was at first by the zoroastrians considered only as one of the izeds, became worshipped as a god and as the saviour of mankind from the effects of its fall from grace. it has been suggested that the later mithraism was mazda worship, greatly influenced by chaldean astrological notions. the name mitra is the ancient sanskrit indian word for the sun, and it is said by c. w. king to be al

and as the saviour of mankind from the effects of its fall from grace. it has been suggested that the later mithraism was mazda worship, greatly influenced by chaldean astrological notions. the name mitra is the ancient sanskrit indian word for the sun, and it is said by c. w. king to be also the zend (iranian) word meaning the sun; the wordmitramalso meant 'friend. many students have associated mithra with apollo, the sun248themagical masongod, phcebus, hyperion, phanes and dionysos of the greeks, as well as with fire and light as sources of benevolent force and energy; he is distinctly related to the indian vedic varuna, god of the heavens- the greek ouranos and the chaldee shamas. as the cult of mithra arising anew from the persian faith spread into europe, the great first powers appea

onic ideal. m.ithraic religious worship was commonly conducted in caves or grottoes to secure its secrecy, or in temples(spelaea)built to resemble the natural caves used in earlier times, and from the period of its introduction to greek and roman countries statuary formed a constant feature; in these caves have been discovered numerous sculptured bas-reliefs illustr255 ating scenes in the life of mithra. while christians demolished these buildings very thoroughly, yet sufficient remains have been found to illustrate the legend of mithra pretty completely.inbritain even some fragments have been found; in london, while digging a sewer near walbrook, several portions of white marble sculpture, now preserved at the london museum; others at caerleon upon usk; chester; york, the old eboracum; ho

which represents mithras slaying a bull by stabbing, and he is wearing a pointed, so-called phrygian cap.thecentral act of worship was probably the annual slaying of a bull in commemoration of the great and symbolic slaying of the world-bull by this world saviour.themithraic temples were always small, and where devotees were numerous many were constructed; classicalresemblances of freemasonry to mithra 249authors call these places by the wordsantrum,crypta,andspelaeum.in some places there was apronaos,or fore-court, then stone steps leading down into a vault: these were often under private dwellings. in rome were found 75 pieces of sculpture and 100 .inscriptions, and there are remains of mithraic places of worship under the church of ara caeli and san clements. at ostia at the mouth of t

all copies of them. s. mithras and the bull. this is no earthly bull,butis the goshurun or heavenly bull of the avesta (many scenes.)thebull in a boat upon the water, for ahriman has sent a deluge upon the world.thebull coming out of the gable end of a house on fire; in one example two figures are setting this house on fire (saarburg) the taking of the bull; the bull at large, grazing in a field; mithra seizes it by its horns, leaps upon its back, drags it by the hind legs, or carries it into the cave of mithraic worship. lastly the slaying of the bull, the tauroctonia, the most notable scene with many variations, used as a sort of altar-piece.themost complete tauroctonic designs show mithras kneeling upon the bull, which is crouched down; mithras, wearing the pointed phrygian cap (ofliber

ernheim, near frankfort-on-main, germany, there is a scene on the reverse of the great slab; mithras stands beside the slain bull, receiving in his right hand a bunch of grapes from the sun, in his left hand a horn for drinking or a cornucopia; initiates stand around, a radiated cup hangs upon a pole, and several animals are also drawn in the upper part of the scene.resemblances of freemasonry to mithra 251thetauroctonic sculpture at osterburken is considered the best example extant. in some sculptures these scenes are supplemented by zodiacal figures, by kronos or time, by atlas, oceanus, the fates and zeus with his thunderbolt. at one period the goddess anaitis (astarte, aphrodite) was associated with mithras in sculptures.theancient persian work namedbundahish,which gives a theory of co

s providing food, leads again to life. porphyry tells us that the cave in which the slaying is performed was deemed to represent the universe. other suggestions have been made in explanation of the sculptures, remembering that mithras was a solar diety. in the birth scene, the torch-bearers, with one torch up and the other down, may refer to the rise and setting of the sun. in the later period of mithra worship in italy, these was a blending with the more usual solar worship of apollo as the sun god, as we read of mithra assol invictus, deus invictus mithras, deus sol invictus mithras;before its abolition we also find mithras associated with the paganmagna mater,the great mother goddess. as mithra worship was fading out, the emperor julian made an attempt to restore its dominance, but his

we also find mithras associated with the paganmagna mater,the great mother goddess. as mithra worship was fading out, the emperor julian made an attempt to restore its dominance, but his failed, and persecution by christian authorities caused its extinction: the christian priests were especially bitter against the mithraists because of the similarities which christianity offered to the methods of mithra worship, for both used a ceremony of baptism, a sacred meal, the act of anointing, and252themagical masonboth offered salvation by a divine messenger. as a religion which gave rise to a secret form ofinitiation, we are met by the difficulties associated with an investigation of all other secret sodalities, and in this case again we may be surprised at the success of preserving secrecy which

designs. these grades were given in succession to themustes,sacratusor devotee after a long course of preparation.in greek and latin1.raven, korax, corax.2.hiddenone kruphios (secret, cryphius, or some say gryphius, or griffin.3.soldier, stratiotes, miles. 4. lion, leon, leo.5.persian, perses, persis.6.sun follower or courier of the helio-choreutes, heliodromus. sun,resemblances of freemasonry to mithra 2537. father, pater, pater sacrorum.and the seniors of these last were named patres patrorum. the sculptures show that members of these grades wore special dresses and masks or headgear to represent these animal forms, etc, at least,thecelebrant certainly wore a special costume at the ceremonies. jerome describes the destruction by christians of a set of figures representing these grades (e

and of prolonged abstinence from meat food, and that they suffered many other privations. after severe tests a form of baptismperlavacrumwas carried out and solemn oaths administered, and tertullian states that in the grade of 'miles' a mark wasputupon the forehad. in the grade of, leo' there was a ceremonial meal of bread and wine(somain india,haomain persia) in memory of the meal partaken of by mithra and helios, and in all grades there must have been the254themagical masonrecitation of ritual, prayers andmantras.minutius felix stated that the mithraists kept a birthday of the sun on december 25th eachyear-diesnatalisinvicti.some old authorities describe a curious lion-headed figure represent255 ing zervana akarana or eternal time as being placed in a secret recess of the mithraic caves

y presume accidentally.theseven grades of mystic initiation were intended to represent a form of metempsychosis, or a succession of births and lives, one stage to be passed in each of the planets before perfect purity and wisdom could be obtained by any individual ego (see origencontracelsum,vi, 22.)theold christian fathers are answerable for the assertion that the admission to the first grade of mithra was marked by terrible trials by fire, air and water; but these are doubtful authenticity, for so many mithraic caves were of too small a size to make it possibletocarry out elaborate tests.1. the1stgrade ofraven;its name was due to this bird being sacred to the sun.2. the 2ndgradeofgryphiushas been called the man of the secret or the occult man.3. in the 3rd grade of milesor soldier we kno

GNOSTIC HANDBOOK

s. when jesus came of age within the essenes he purified the structure of the mystery traditions and re-instated the original gnostic faith. hence, the gnosticism of jesus is not superior to other gnostic traditions, but is a refinement or adaptation of an age-long tradition. indeed, the gnosticism of jesus brought together egyptian, greek and mystery cult traditions (such as those of eleusis and mithra) into one coherent system. the iconography of judaism played a small part but was insignificant in comparison to, for example, the greek mystery cult tradition. to understand this nexus of the gnosis we really need to jettison the old model which sees gnosticism as a jewish or christian heresy. as has been documented in such texts as the jesus mystery and jesus christ, sun of god+ it is mor

GNOSTIC STUDIES THE GNOSTIC HANDBOOK II GNOSTIC THEURGY

structive currents of the demiurge, these must be resisted and controlled if liberation is to be achieved. fig 32: veils on the tree of life gnostic theurgy page 117 this destructive current is known as the y factor, and also has twin poles, the x and y factors create a solar cross of four energy forces (fig 33) the solar sphere is, hence, the focus of the mystery tradition, whether it be apollo, mithra, christ, horus or ra, we can see the secret teachings in application. the solar sphere itself became a symbol of the hidden mysteries. at rising it is the logos, at the height it is the christ, at setting it is sophia. this represents the doorway through which fallen mankind can awaken. i am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. j

. there is always positive and negative, passive and active. while there is a balance logos and sophia, for example, there is the duality between good and evil, ascension and degradation, x and y factors. the importance of the sun/son can be found in most esoteric traditions, whether it be baal in the early el tradition of canaan, the messiah of the israelite mysteries, ganesha in hinduism or the mithra of the zoroastrians. it is the intermediary between the treasury of light and mankind. anti sophic forces sophia anti-logic forces logos fig 33 treasury of light world of the archons gnostic theurgy page 119 mithra is a fascinating case as there is a certain mythos which explains the nature of the solar sphere extremely well. while mithra is seen as a solar god, at times he is also seen as

s a fascinating case as there is a certain mythos which explains the nature of the solar sphere extremely well. while mithra is seen as a solar god, at times he is also seen as a saturnian lord ruling over the sun and moon. this is because saturn was related to zurvan, the supreme god of time (equivalent to the lord of wisdom, with the logos being related to the sun and sophia to the moon. whilst mithra was a sun being, the saturnian imagery indicated to the faithful that the solar sphere was simply zurvan's presence in the lower world- this is an important truth. this mystery is even more complicated when we realise that saturn is the guardian of the abyss, and consists two aspects. the lower aspect of saturn is seen as the demiurge, while the higher is seen as the guardian or watcher. so

s a sun being, the saturnian imagery indicated to the faithful that the solar sphere was simply zurvan's presence in the lower world- this is an important truth. this mystery is even more complicated when we realise that saturn is the guardian of the abyss, and consists two aspects. the lower aspect of saturn is seen as the demiurge, while the higher is seen as the guardian or watcher. so we have mithra as a mixed deity, representing both the light sun ruled by the guardian, reflecting zurvan and a hint that the sun also contains the darker force which is symbolised by the demiurge or negative saturn. the treasury of light cannot exist in the lower worlds, due to the fallen nature of the dialectic kingdoms. accordingly, the solar sphere becomes the intermediary, the manifestation and the g

or example, horus and set of ancient egypt, the twins of the sun, where horus is the power and glory of the solar sphere, and yet hidden within his breast is set, the fallen and dark one. in nature this can also be readily discerned, the sun can create deserts, as well as sustain the beauty of the forest- the sun burns just as quick as its causes growth. fig 34 setting sun (sophia) sun at midday: mithra/christ rising sun (logos) gnostic theurgy page 121 the nature of the solar currents the energies which are emanated from the solar sphere have certain distinct characteristics. these characteristics help us to appreciate the nature of both x and y forces. the major traits of these energies is that they are all pervasive, and interpenetrate all levels of the intermediate and lower worlds (br

HOWE THE ALCHEMIST OF THE GOLDEN DAWN

e yoga, reprinted from the arya magazine nos. i& ii. 3s. the two. there are also "occult science, the science of breath" and sabhapty swami on vendatic raj yoga. these 2 together come to 3s. including postage. the incense of dhoop is reserved class, per lb. 2.os.od. first class i 2s. od. second class 8s.od. third class ss.od; these books and this dhoop are all to be had of r. c. bary, esqre, said mithra bazaar, lahore, india. send p.o. to him. there is a special form for indian p.o.'s, by which they require you to give the name of father of native, tribe &c &c &c, which no one ever can do. i just put "not a native" and it has always acted. i forget whether i got the i2s. or the 8s. dhoop. it takes many years to arrive at unmistakeable lucidity by means of yoga. there may be many hallucinat

ISIS UNVEILED

battles until its recognition, that of the trinity, what do we find? we meet it, as we have shown, northeast of the indus; and tracing it to asia minor and europe, recog- nise it among evety people who had anything like an established religion. 82. t sttm. vi, 20-22. digitizecoy google 46 isis unveiled it was tau^t in tbe oldest chaldaean, egyptian, and mithraltic schools. the chaldaeaa sun-god, mithra, was called 'triple' and the trinitarian idea of the chaldaeans was a doctrine of the akkadians, who themselves belonged to a race which was the first to conceive a metaphysical trinity. according to rawlinson, the chaldaeans are a tribe^ the akkadians, who lived in babylonia from the earliest times. they were turanians, according to others, and instructed the babylonians in the first notio

niathon* are light, fire, and flame, three manifestations of the sun who is one. bel-saturn, jupiter-bel, and bel or baal-chom are the chaldaean trini- ty" the babylonian bel was regarded in the triune aspect of belitan, zeus-belua [the mediator] and baal-chom who is apollo cbomaeus "this was the triune aspect of the 'highest god' who is, according to berosus, either el [the hebrew, bel, belitan, mithra, or zeroana, and has the name t^p 'the father* the brahmft, vishnu, and siva" corresponding to power, wisdom, and justice, which answer in their turn to spirit, matter, time, and the past, present, and future, can be found 89. w. d. whitney: orienlal and liofuimtie studitt, p. 98. 90. jacoliiot aoeaa to h ve very logic&lly demonitnud the kbsurd contrttdictiodi cf ?ome philologuts, uithr^log

the temple of ghoripuri; thousands of dogmatic br&hmanas worship these attributes of the vedic deity, while the severe monks and nuns of buddhistic tibet recognise but the sacred trinity of the three cardinal virtues: poverty, chastiiy, and obedience, professed by the christians, practised by the buddhists and some hind&s alone. the persian triplicate deity also consists of three persons, onnazd, mithra, and ahriman" it is that principle, of which the author of the chatdaie summary saith "they concewe there u one principle of all thinge, and dedare it to be one and good" the chinese idol sanpao consists of three equal in all respects' and the peruvians "sui^kmed their tanga-tanga to be one in three, and three in one" says faber* the egyptians have their emepht, eikton, and ptah* and the tr

the perfect emanation, and both arc 549. he u the imitersal and spiritiul germ of au things &s0. adumbraho kabb. ckt, pp. e> 7. digitizecoy google compabison with hindtl myths 227 children or emanations of sophia, the purely spiritual and intellectual daughter of bythos, the'depui. for the elder sopliia is shekhinah, the face of god "god's shekhinah, which is his image "the son zeus-belus, or sol-mithra, b an image of the father, an emanation from the supreme light" says movers "he passed for creator "i^ilosophers say the first air is anima mundi. but the garment (shekhinah) is higher than the first air, since it is joined more closely to the ain-soph, the boundless" thus sophia is shekhinah, and sophia- achamoth the anima mundi, the astral light of the kabalists, which con- tains the spir

eres, each sphere being encircled by a aea. these are the celestial mansions of the deoatds, or gods, each losing somewhat in holiness and purity aa it approaches the earth. then comes mem itself, formed of numberless circles within three large ones^^iffing the trinity of man; and for one acqu^ted with the numerical value of the letters in biblical names, like that of the' great beast' or that of mithra, luibpat appoint, and others, it is an easy matter to establish the identity of the meru-gods with the emana- ticms or sephiroth of the kabalists. also the genii of the nazarenes, with their special missions, are all found in this most ancient mythoi, a most perfect representation of the symbolism of the 'secret doctrine' as taught in archaic ages. king gives a tew hints though doubtless in

JENNINGS HARGRAVE ROSICRUCIANS RITES MYSTERIES

ke god; he is only possible in his own development, or in his seizing of us, and in possession. thus paracelsus and his disciples declare that human reason become our master, that is, in its perfection, but not used as our servant, transforms, as it were, into the devil, and exercises his office in leading us away from the throne of spiritual light other, and, in the world, seeming better; in his mithra and ahrimanes. 81 false and deluding world-light, or matter-light, really showing himself god. this view of the human reason, intellectually trusted, transforming into the angel of darkness, and effacing god out of the world, is borne out by a thousand texts of scripture. it is equally in the beliefs and in the traditions of all nations and of all time, as we shall by and by show. real ligh

e british museum, has a phrygian cap on his head, whilst in the act of striking the bull with the poniard meaning the office of the immolating priest. the bonnet conique is the mitre of the doge of venice. besides the bonnet rouge, the pope s mitre nay, all mitres or conical head-coverings have their name from the terms mithradic, or mithraic. the origin of this whole class of names is mittra, or mithra. the cap of the grenadier, the shape of which is alike all over europe, is related to the tartar lambskin caps, which are dyed black; and it is black also from its association with vulcan and the fire-worshippers (smiths. the scotch glengarry cap will prove on examination to be only a cocked phrygian. all the black conical caps, and the meaning of this strange symbol, came from the east. th

m imago ea est qu exhibetur, ore videlicet excellentissimo, ut sunt arnobii verba, et specie inter virginem et puerum eximia. catullus hoc idem voluit. carm. 64. quod enim genus figurae est, ego quod non habuerim? ego mulier, ego adolescens, ego ephebus, ego puer, ego gymnasii fui flos, ego eram decus olei. marcianus capella lib. i. atys pulcher item curvi et puer almus aratri. caput autem tectum mithra phrygem indicat. laurentii pignorii patavini magn deum matris id et attidis initia. amstelodami andre frisii. mdclxix. profound mysticism of plato. 327 hear or read of each other; whether even the continual natural inclination which impels man to woman, and woman to man, be not the spirit-reflex and the atoning penance (there is a great amount of sadness which mingles in the delight of thes

LEADBEATER C W THE HIDDEN LIFE IN FREEMASONRY 2E

glican churches that western people ever see it. those who have travelled in the east, or are interested in the study of other faiths, know that practically all the religions of the world use incense in one form or another. it appears in the temples of the hindus, the zoroastrians, the jains, and in the shinto of china and japan. it was used in greece, in rome, in persia, and in the ceremonies of mithra. all these people, including the roman catholics, avail themselves of it because they know it to be a useful thing; why then should not we? 333. for a time in england there was a very strong puritan wave, shortly after the reformation, which led to the murder of king charles, to the commonwealth and to cromwell fs rule. true, there was a reaction at the time of the restoration, but the puri

es of freemasonry. 392. the unfoldment of this centre is closely asso-ciated with the power of paying attention, as well as with the opening of higher forms of hearing. in all occult systems of training great importance was attached to this in the case of the neophyte. in the school of pythagoras the pupils were kept for several years in the order called akoustikoi or hearers; in the mysteries of mithra the lowest order was that of the ravens- a name which signifies that they were allowed only to repeat that which they had heard, precisely as a raven or a parrot does; for in all these ancient systems students were strictly forbidden to launch out upon the perilous waters of originality until they were thoroughly grounded in the established principles of philosophy. the s c also evokes or c

LEADBEATER CW GLIMPSES OF MASONIC HISTORY

el, i, 9, 10, 13, 15-18) 80. this symbolism is strange; but it has its meaning, and any investigator who has ever had the privilege of seeing the mighty four will at once recognize that s. john and the prophet ezekiel had seen them too, however inadequate are their descriptions. the beast with the face of a man stands for the physical body (earth; the ox or the bull (as in the case of the bull of mithra and the apis bull) typifies the emotional or astral body (water; the lion symbolizes the will or the mental aspect (air; and the soaring eagle is taken to indicate the spiritual side of man s nature (fire. the egyptian forms were a little different; but the same four elements and their rulers are depicted in that ancient symbolism, which indeed we find in all religions. there is a four-face

of voice it was delivered over to the monster amemit, the devourer, and was swallowed up again in the cycle of generation, to be reborn on earth in another body. although these symbols and legends were known in the outer world, their true inner meaning was explained only to initiates of the third degree. 151. the meaning of the story 152. it is often thought that the story of osiris, like that of mithra and the other sun-gods (among whom some writers include even christ himself, is simply an apotheosis of the processes of nature familiar to an agricultural people. thus plutarch says that osiris was also regarded as nilus, the river nile, and isis as the land of egypt, periodically fertilized by his overflow(*plutarch. moralia; de iside et osiride) astronomically, osiris was the sun, isis t

the deities involved. but even these are myths of death and resurrec-tion, the god being in this case called kasmillos. 412. it seems probable that when virgil, in the sixth book of the aeneid, depicted the descent of aeneas into hell, he intended to give a repre-sentation of what happened in some of these mysteries. 413. the mithraic mysteries 414. zarathustra and mithraism 415. the mysteries of mithra were in many ways similar to those of greece, but they always had certain characteristics which were especially their own, and the line of succession which they transmitted was distinct from that of the three degrees of blue masonry; some of the more important features of its ritual seem to have passed over into the 18. there was a strong military flavour about them, and they demanded from

over into the 18. there was a strong military flavour about them, and they demanded from their devotees a purity of life which was almost ascetic. 416. just as the mysteries of egypt and greece arose respectively from the incarnations of the world teacher as thoth and orpheus, so did the mithraic scheme arise from his incarnation as the first zarathustra about 29,700 b.c. in persia. it taught of mithra, captain of the hosts of the god of light and saviour of mankind. 417. mithraism among the romans 418. it is said that mithraism was first transmitted to the roman world during the first century b.c. by the cilician pirates captured by pompey; but, as we have already seen, it was before that time in the possession of the essene communities in palestine. for nearly two centuries it attained

anctuary by a veil, the removal of which was a solemn ceremonial; miles, the soldier, signifying the holy warfare against evil in the service of the god; leo, the lion, symbolic of the element of fire, which played so great a part in the persian faith; perses, the persian, clad in asiatic costume, a reminiscence of the ancient origin of the religion; heliodromus, the courier of the sun, with whom mithra was identified; and pater, the father, a degree bringing the mystic among those who had the general direction of the cult for the rest of their lives. 420. it is not easy to trace exact correspondences between these seven stages and our own degrees, because of the difference between the systems. the corax is fairly parallel with the e.a, and the cryphius and miles with the f.c, the latter b

e members were called participants and admitted to the mithraic sacrament. we may consider the three stages of leo, perses and heliodromus as divisions of the m.m. degree; the first gave access to the full fellowship of the mithraic brotherhood, the second passed him who received it through a most impressive ceremony in the course of which he was symbolically slain and raised to life in honour of mithra, and the third put him in possession of additional knowledge equivalent to that which is supposed to be given to us in the holy royal arch; for only when he had that knowledge of the name and qualities of the deity was he fitted to go forth as a messenger of the sun to bear his strength and life through the world. the pater cor-responded to our i.m, who alone can confer the various degrees

a veritable brotherhood of arms. women were never admitted to their rites of initiation, although it seems probable that in earlier times there were separate degrees for them. the power flowing through the rites gave especially courage and purity, and the demands upon the candidates in both these respects were exceedingly high. there was an intensity of brotherly feeling between the initiates of mithra which is rarely realized in our lodges to-day; they were pledged to fight for the right, and they stood shoulder to shoulder against all foes. 423. the mithraic sacrament consisted of bread and wine and salt, and was consecrated at a solemn ceremony in the mysteries, being linked to that aspect of the deity which was represented by mithra, and intensely charged with force along the characte

on to the system was that it absolutely excluded women. mithraism was allowed therefore to sink into the background and finally to pass out of sight of the outer world. nevertheless the ancient succession is still guarded and the rites are preserved in the custody of the h.o.a.t.f; so mithraism may yet have its part to play in the religious life of the future. 427. in addition to the mysteries of mithra, there was an atlantean tradition of the mysteries- that to which we have already referred as the chaldaean line of succession. in the days of its splendour the chaldaean rituals put the initiate into relation with the great star-angels who were adored in that mighty faith; and a relic of this tradition is still found in the hidden side of certain of the degrees of the rites of memphis and

building for it fortifications in time of war and in time of peace temples and houses. it was thus that the roman mysteries were brought to northern europe. wherever the romans settled, the collegia worked their rites, and in process of time native soldiers were initiated into their ranks, until the system became deeply-rooted in each roman colony. closely connected with these rites were those of mithra which, as we have seen, were also spread by the roman armies, although the two systems were always kept separate and distinct. 441. the organization of the colleges, as extant records show, corresponded in many ways with that of our modern lodges. tres faciunt collegium three make a college was one of their principles; and the rule was so indispensable that it became a maxim of civil law. t

ther centre was at verulam, afterwards known as s. albans. 443. the introduction of the jewish form 444. the introduction of the jewish form of the masonic ceremonies was intentionally arranged by the powers who stand behind freemasonry about the time when christianity was gaining ascendancy in the roman empire. it would have been almost impossible to continue the mysteries of bacchus or those of mithra in their original form, while there was so much opposition between the christian faith and the old pagan religion. no such opposition was in roman days felt towards the jews, among whom the christian faith arose and had its early nurture; and the jewish form of the mysteries was therefore adopted by the white lodge as the best means of transmitting the ancient rites through the dark ages, w

LINDOW JOHN NORSE MYTHOLOGY A GUIDE TO THE GODS HEROES RITUALS AND BELIEFS

ndo-european peoples. the first function was that of sovereignty, which, according to dumezil, is ordinarily represented by two deities, each of whom is associated with one or the other side of sovereignty: either with the awe inspired by a leader or with the legal, contractual nature that a sovereign was obligated to uphold. the classic split was found in the vedic god varuna and the persian god mithra; in norse mythology, dumezil argued, odin represented the awesome side and ty lr the legal or contractual side of sovereignty. the second function was might or force, and in norse mythology thor fulfilled that function. the third function was fertility, and here the deities are often doubled, as are frey and freyja. at one time dumezil thought these functions represented actual social class

MANLY P HALL THE SECRET TEACHINGS OF ALL AGES

and the noted one at bath" alexander wilder, in his philosophy and ethics of the zoroasters, states that mithras is the zend title for the sun, and he is supposed to dwell within that shining orb. mithras has a male and a female aspect, though not himself androgynous. as mithras, he is the ford of the sun, powerful and radiant, and most magnificent of the yazatas (izads, or genii, of the sun. as mithra, this deity represents the feminine principle; the mundane universe is recognized as her symbol. she represents nature as receptive and terrestrial, and as fruitful only when bathed in the glory of the solar orb. the mithraic cult is a simplification of the more elaborate teachings of zarathustra (zoroaster, the persian fire magician. click to enlarge the ground plan of stonehenge. from mau

ecret societies whose legends are largely symbolic representations of the sun and his journey through the houses of the heavens. mithras, rising from a stone, is merely the sun rising over the horizon, or, as the ancients supposed, out of the horizon, at the vernal equinox. john o'neill disputes the theory that mithras was intended as a solar deity. in the night of the gods he writes "the avestan mithra, the yazata of light, has '10,000 eyes, high, with full knowledge (perethuvaedayana, strong, sleepless and ever awake (jaghaurvaunghem.'the supreme god ahura mazda also has one eye, or else it is said that 'with his eyes, the sun, moon and stars, he sees everything' the theory that mithra was originally a title of the supreme heavens-god--putting the sun out of court--is the only one that a

lso has one eye, or else it is said that 'with his eyes, the sun, moon and stars, he sees everything' the theory that mithra was originally a title of the supreme heavens-god--putting the sun out of court--is the only one that answers all requirements. it will be evident that here we have origins in abundance for the freemason's eye and 'its nunquam dormio" the reader must nor confuse the persian mithra with the vedic mitra. according to alexander wilder "the mithraic rites superseded the mysteries of bacchus, and became the foundation of the gnostic system, which for many centuries prevailed in asia, egypt, and even the remote west" click to enlarge mithras slaying the bull. from lundy's monumental christianity. the most famous sculpturings and reliefs of this prototokos show mithras knee

he return, and, as they expressed it, the new birth of the sun' it was on the same day that the birth of the invincible sun (natalis solis invicti, was celebrated at rome, as can be seen in the roman calendars, published in the reign of constantine and of julian (hymn to the sun, p. 155. this epithet 'invictus' is the same as the persians gave to this same god, whom they worshipped by the name of mithra, and whom they caused to be born in a grotto (justin. dial. cum trips. p. 305, just as he is represented as being born in a stable, under the name of christ, by the christians" concerning the catholic feast of the assumption and its parallel in astronomy, the same author adds "at the end of eight months, when the sun-god, having increased, traverses the eighth sign, he absorbs the celestial

casus, and a vulture was placed over his liver to torment him throughout eternity by clawing and rending his flesh with its talons. prometheus disobeyed the edict of zeus by bringing fire and immortality to man, so for man he suffered until the coming of hercules released him from his ages of torment. concerning the crucifixion of the persian mithras, j. p. lundy has written "dupuis tells us that mithra was put to death by crucifixion, and rose again on the 25th of march. in the persian mysteries the body of a young man, apparently dead, was exhibited, which was feigned to be restored to life. by his sufferings he was believed to have worked their salvation, and on this account he was called their savior. his priests watched his tomb to the midnight of the vigil of the 25th of march, with

a sacrifice before the worlds were? can it be plato's second god who impressed himself on the universe in the form of the cross? or is it his divine man who would be scourged, tormented, fettered, have his eyes burnt out; and lastly, having suffered all manner of evils, would be crucified? plato learned his theology in egypt and the east, and must have known of the crucifixion of krishna, buddha, mithra [et al. at any rate, the religion of india had its mythical crucified victim long anterior to christianity, click to enlarge the tau cross. the tau cross was the sign which the lord told the people of jerusalem to mark on their foreheads, as related by the prophet ezekiel. it was also placed as a symbol of liberation upon those charged with crimes but acquitted. click to enlarge the crux an

MEANING OF MASONRY

egendary or mythical; the point being not to teach a merely historical fact, but to enforce a spiritual principle. in egypt the prototype was osiris, who was slain by his malignant brother typhon, but whose mangled limbs were collected in a coffer from which he emerged reintegrated and divinized. in greece the prototype was bacchus, wh o was torn to pieces by the titans. baldur in scandinavia and mithra in greco-roman europe were similar prototypes. in masonry the prototype is hiram abiff, who met his death as the result of a conspiracy by a crowd of workmen of whom there were three principal ruffians. in the christian and chief of all systems, since it comprehends and re-expresses all the others, the greatest of the exemplars died at the hands of the mob, headed also by three chief ruffia

MORALS AND DOGMA

ced to return northward, and to increase the length of the days. this was the great feast of the magian religion. the roman calendar, published in the time of constantine, at which period his worship began to gain ground in the occident, fixed his feast-day on the 25th of december. his statues and images were inscribed _deo-soli invicto mithr--to the invincible sun-god mithras _nomen invictum sol mithra. soli omnipotenti mithr. to him, gold, incense, and myrrh were consecrated "thee" says martianus capella, in his hymn to the sun "the dwellers on the nile adore as serapis, and memphis worships as osiris; in the sacred rites of persia thou art mithras, in phrygia, atys, and libya bows down to thee as ammon, and ph nician byblos as adonis; and thus the whole world adores thee under different

PHILIP NEIL MYTHS LEGENDS EXPLAINED

ences. the bridge is wide for the faithful, but narrow as a needle for the sinner. the birth of ahura mazda and ahriman this silver plaque from luristan, from the eighth century bce, shows the twins, ahura mazda and ahriman, emerging from the body of zurvan, the supreme god and personification of time. on either side stand figures representing the three stages of man youth, maturity, and old age. mithra mithra was a persian god who became widely venerated in the west, especially in the roman empire, as mithras. he was said to be the son of ahura mazda one of the seven divinities created by ahura mazda to oppose the demons created by ahriman. he was a god of order; but in the need to maintain order, became a god of war and warriors. he was seen as a more approachable god one who in a sense

REGARDIE ISRAEL THE COMPLETE GOLDEN DAWN

t has ever attained to a more clarified and definite espression than in this ceremony of the adeptus minor grade. for we are clearly taught by precept and by example that we are, in essence, gods of great power and spirituality who died to the land of our birth in the garden of hesperides, and mystically dying descended into hell. and moreover the ritual demonstrates that like osiris, christ, and mithra, and many another type of god-man, we too may rise from the tomb and become aware of our true divine introduction 3 7 natures. the principal clause of the lengthy obligation assumed while bound to the cross, indicating the trend of its teaching, and the import of its objective, is "i further solemnly promise and swear that, with the divine permission, i will from this day forward apply myse

SCHLAGER NEIL WORLD RELIGIONS REFERENCE LIBRARY

ve order to chaos. for greeks, balance was an important principle. they felt that the gods helped humans to establish a balance between the forces of nature and the forces of law and reason. the romans, however, were more interested in raw power than in balance. rome incorporated other foreign gods into its pantheon. among these were the goddess cybele from the city of pessinus in asia minor, and mithra, the ancient persian god of light and wisdom. mithra offered the promise of individual salvation through the belief in the immortality of the soul. a mystery cult, mithraism, grew up around this imported god. basic beliefs: greco-roman religion greek religion was dominated by the olympian gods, who made their home on mount olympus in northern greece. even though most sources say there were

, various gods and goddesses have symbols attaching to them. athena, the patroness of athens, carried a shield, or aegis, representing her role as a divine protector of the city. the arrow was the symbol for the greek gods apollo and artemis, as well as for eros, god of love; for the romans the arrow was the symbol of cupid, god of love. the arrow was also used on roman coins to represent the god mithra. the lightning bolt was a symbol for zeus and his roman equivalent, jupiter. it would be thrown by these sky gods to punish, water, or fertilize the earth or its creatures. the greeks also adapted the egyptian sphinx, the lion with a person s head. the sign or symbol of the sun was also worshipped by the greeks and romans as a life-giving source. this could be simply a circle or a stylized

t-september by the parsis and in spring by iranians. jamshed-e navroz: new year s day (norouz, celebrated in august- september by parsis and in spring by iranians. 458 world religions: almanac zoroastrianism jashan-e sadeh: the festival of fire, celebrated on the one-hundredth day before navroz (new year s. jashan-e mehragan: festival of mihr, a day of thanksgiving dedicated to the highest angel, mithra. jashan-e tirigan: festival of tir, a day dedicated to tishtrya, the angel of the star sirius and of rain. farvardigan: festival of the guardian angels. khordad sal: the birthday of zarathushtra. zartosht no-diso: the traditional anniversary of the death of zarathushtra. pilgrimages zoroastrianism originated in ancient persia, a country roughly corresponding to modern-day iran, so most of t

TEXE MARRS CODEX MAGICA SECRET SIGNS MYSTERIOUS SYMBOLS AND HIDDEN CODES OF THE ILLUMINATI

the primitive world, the serpent is universally the symbol of the sun..the serpent was universally represented by the sun symbol, the circle or disk. bishop alexander hislop the two babylons t h e sun has ever been at the center of false religion. the ancient mystery religions venerated the sun, the solar disk, as deity. the greeks honored apollo as the child of the sun. the romans paid homage to mithra the sun god. these pagan philosophies form the basis for the worship of the 460 codex magica illuminati and indicate the importance of the sun as symbol of satanic deity. englishman john yarker, a well-known nineteenth century masonic magician and occultist, in his notes on the scientific and religious mysteries of antiquity, makes mention of the fact that the high priests of the ancient je

THE NECRONOMICON SIMON VERSION

WICCA EIGHT SABBATS OF WITCHCRAFT

martin luther and john calvin abhorred it, why the puritans refused to acknowledge it, much less celebrate it (to them, no day of the year could be more holy than the sabbath, and why it was even made illegal in boston! the holiday was already too closely associated with the birth of older pagan gods and heroes. and many of them (like oedipus, theseus, hercules, perseus, jason, dionysus, apollo, mithra, horus and even arthur) possessed a narrative of birth, death, and resurrection that was uncomfortably close to that of jesus. and to make matters worse, many of them pre-dated the christian savior. ultimately, of course, the holiday is rooted deeply in the cycle of the year. it is the winter solstice that is being celebrated, seed-time of the year, the longest night and shortest day. it is

WICCA WITCHCRAFT TODAY

i think it may be far-fetched to suggest any connection between the templars' alleged practice of crossing their legs and the skull and bones, because many tombs of the period show knights with their legs crossed, including some who were not templars and who were never in the holy land. it could, of course, simply mean the cross, but would it not be more reverent to do this with the arms? the god mithra is very often shown with two attendants with torches, who usually have their legs crossed. this was very much a soldiers' cult, and so might appeal to the templars and others; but i have not found any other connections. 7- the witches and the mysteries i had always believed that witches belonged to an independent stone age cult whose rites were a mixture of superstition and reality and had

18276066 GRIMM JACOB TEUTONIC MYTHOLOGY VOL 1

and munr (mens; they are not only brave, but cunning and wise, they sit on the shoidders of osinn, and whisper in his ear whatever they see and hear, sa^m. 42' 88^ sn. 42. 56. 322. to the greek apollo too the wolf and raven were sacred^ his messenger the raven informed him when koronis was unfaithful, and aristeas accompanied him as a raven, herod. 4, 15; a raven is perched aloft on the mantle of mithras the sun-god. the gospels represent the holy ghost as a^ in marc. cap. 1, 11, the words 'augiirales vero alitcs ante curriini delio coiistiterunt, are transl. by notker 37: to warcn garo ze apollinis reito sine wizegfogela, ralena unde albisze. to ot5inn hawks are sometimes given instead of ravens: otjins haukar saem. 167. 148 wodan. dove descending upon christ at his baptism, lu. 3, 22, an

poseidon of the dingy locks (8, 208. 15, 184. zeus again is distinguished by beaming eyes rpeirev oaae aphrodite has ofijxata fiapfiaipovra, 3, 397, twinkling, shimmering eyes (see suppl. figures of greek divinities show a circle of rays and a nimbus round the head^ on indo-grecian coins mithras has commonly a circular nimbus with pointed rays^ in other representations the rays are wanting. mao (deus lunus) has a halfmoon behind his shoulders; aesculapius too had rays about his head. in what century was the halo, the aureole, first put round the heads of christian saints? and we have also to take into account the crowns and diadems of kings. ammian. marc. 16, 12 mentions chnodomar

ALEISTER CROWLEY MAGICK WITHOUT TEARS

th! if you're working with me, you'll have no time to waste on other people. i fear your "christianity" is like that of most other folk. you pick out one or two of the figures from which the alexandrines concocted "jesus (too many cooks, again, with a vengeance) and neglect the others. the zionist christ of matthew can have no value for you; nor can the asiatic "dying-god- compiled from melcarth, mithras, adonis, bacchus, osiris, attis, krishna, and others- who supplied the miraculous and ritualistic elements of the fable. rightly you ask "what can i contribute" answer: one book. that is the idea of the weekly letter: 52 of yours and 52 of mine, competently edited, would make a most useful volume. this would be your property: so that you get full material value, perhaps much more, for your

very least, we must be able to distinguish it from "that-whichis- not-pork" but- one moment, please! l. there is in advaitism a most fascinating danger; that is that, up to a certain point "religious experience" tends to support this theory. magic without tears get any book for free on: www.abika.com 70 a word on this. vulgar minds, such as are happy with a personal god, vishnu, jesus, melcarth, mithras, or another, often excite themselves- call it "energized enthusiasm" if you want to be sarcastic- to the point of experiencing actual visions of the objects of their devotion. but these people have not so much as asked themselves the original question of "how come" which is our present subject. sweep them into the discard! m. beyond vishvarupadarshana, the vision of the form of vishnu, bey

icography (for really they are little more, is our text-book. we are bound to note at once that the gods sympathise, run into one another, coalesce much more closely than any other of the orders of being. there is not really much in common between a jackal and a beetle, or between a wolf and an owl, although they are grouped under pisces or aries respectively. but adonis, attis, osiris, melcarth, mithras, marsyas- a whole string of them comes tripping off the tongue. they all have histories; their birth, their life, their death, their subsequent career; all goes naturally with them exactly as if they were (say) a set of warriors, painters, anything superbly human. we feel instinctively that we know them, or at least know of them in the same sense that we know of our fellow men and women; a

ALEISTER CROWLEY EQ I 1

ld light of the moon, and when the broad lands below the fiery girdle of many-breasted tellus blushed red in the arms of the summer sun, did miriam seek the cave below the cavern, in which no light had ever shone, to bring forth the light of the world. and on the third day she departed from the cave, and, entering the stable of the sun, she placed her child in the manger of the moon. likewise was mithras born under the tail of the sea-goat, and horus, and krishna- all mystic names of the mystic child of light. i am the ancient child, the great disturber, the great tranquilliser. i am yesterday, to-day, and to-morrow. my name is alpha and omega- the beginning and the end. my dwelling-house is built betwixt the water and the earth; the pillars thereof are of fire, and the walls are of air, a

ALEISTER CROWLEY EQUINOX EQ I 4 2

has abundantly proved his main point, the true antiquity of some masonic system. it is a parallel to frazer's tracing of the history of the slain god. but why is there no life in any of our slain god rituals! it is for us to restore them by the word and the grip. for us, who have the inner knowledge, inherited or won, it remains to restore the true rites of attis, adonis, osiris, of set, serapis, mithras, and abel. aleister crowley. 240 the herb dangerous part iv a few extracts from h. g. ludlow, the hasheesh eater which bear upon the peculiar characteristics of the drug's action the hasheesh eater for a place, new york for instance, a stranger accounts, not by saying that any one of the many who testify to its existence copied from another, but by acknowledging "there is such a place" so

ALICE A BAILEY10 FROM BETHLEHEM TO CALVARY

ich christ entered upon his public ministry, took place in a river, in the plains around jordan symbolic perhaps of christ's mission to live and work down amongst men. the masonic phrase to "meet on the level" takes on here an added significance. after each mountain experience, the christ came down again on to the level of daily life and there manifested the effects or results of that high event. mithras was born in a cave, and so were many others. christ was born in a cave and entered, as did all the others, upon a life of service and of sacrifice, thus qualifying for the task of world saviour. they brought light and revelation to mankind and were sacrificed, in the majority of cases, to the hatred of those who did not understand their message, or who objected to their- 39- from bethlehem

e type of all future madonnas with their divine babes, showing the origin of the symbol. devaki is likewise figured with the divine krishna in her arms, as is mylitta, or istar, of babylon, also with the recurrent crown of stars, and with her child tammuz- 40- from bethlehem to calvary copyright 1998 lucis trust on her knee. mercury and aesculapius, bacchus and hercules, perseus and the dioscuri, mithras and zarathustra were all of divine and human birth."41 it is apposite to recall that the cathedral of notre dame in paris is built upon the ancient site of a temple of isis, and that the early church very frequently availed itself of a so-called heathen opportunity to determine a christian rite or a day of sacred remembrance. even the establishing of christmas day on december 25th was so d

present the animal nature, but they represent also far more than that. the ox stood for that form of worship which should have been passing off the earth at the time christ came. there were still many to be found who worshipped the bull, which was the worship prevalent in the age when our sun was passing through the age of taurus, the bull, and which was preserved at that time in the mysteries of mithras and of egypt. the sign immediately preceding the christian era was that of aries, the ram or lamb, and this is symbolised for us in the sheepfolds which surrounded bethlehem- 45- from bethlehem to calvary copyright 1998 lucis trust it is interesting also to bear in mind that asses are definitely associated with the story of mary and her child. two asses are found mentioned in the gospel st

ALICE BAILEY THE LABOURS OF HERCULES

e "a figment of our imagination. testimony as to the effectiveness of zodiacal energies on earth life in the larger picture certain interesting facts emerge. we can say, for instance, that between four and five thousand years ago the sun was somewhere in the sign taurus, the bull. then we had the worship of the bull in egypt and in india, and the sacrifice of the sacred ox, as in the mysteries of mithras. approximately two thousand years before the birth of christ, astronomers tell us, the sun passed into the sign aries, the ram or lamb, and the jewish dispensation came into being. at that time, therefore, we have the inauguration of the jewish passover and the lamb sacrifice. it is interesting to note in this connection the true significance of the sin of the children of israel in the wil

BLAVATSKY H P ANTHROPOGENESIS

et and sacred allegorical drama of initiation. at all events, it is not the "father of the greek tragedy" who invented the prophecy of prometheus; for he only repeated in dramatic form that which was revealed by the priests during the mysteria of the sabasia* the latter, however, is one of the oldest sacred festivals, whose origin is to this day unknown to history. mythologists connect it through mithras (the sun, called sabasius on some old monuments) with jupiter and bacchus. but it was never the property of the greeks, but dates from days immemorial. the translators of the drama wonder how aeschylus could become guilty of such "discrepancy between the character of zeus as portrayed in the 'prometheus bound' and that depicted in the remaining dramas (mrs. a. swanwick) this is just becaus

BLAVATSKY H P COSMOGENESIS

element of fire (the active or male principle) regarded as light and heat, in conjunction with earth and water, or matter (female, or passive, elements of cosmical generation[[footnote(s* plato "timaeus "suidas" v. tyrrhenia* the reader will understand that by "years" is meant "ages" not mere periods of thirteen lunar months each* see the greek translation by philo byblus* cory "ancient fragment* mithras was regarded among the persians as the theos ekpetros- god of the rock[[vol. 1, page] 341 one tree of knowledge. mithras is the son of bordj, the persian mundane mountain* from which he flashed out as a radiant ray of light. brahma, the fire-god, and his prolific consort; and the hindu agni, the refulgent deity from whose body issue a thousand streams of glory and seven tongues of flame, a

third life, the progeny of the binary. this, again, is often symbolised by a pentagon, the latter being a sacred sign, a divine monogram. maitreya is the secret name of the fifth buddha, and the kalki avatar of the brahmins- the last messiah who will come at the culmination of the great cycle. it is also the initial letter of the greek metis or divine wisdom; of mimra, the "word" or logos; and of mithras (the mihr, the monad, mystery. all these are born in, and from, the great deep, and are the sons of maya- the mother; in egypt, mouth, in greece minerva (divine wisdom, mary, or miriam, myrrha, etc; of the mother of the christian logos, and of maya, the mother of buddha. madhava and madhavi are the titles of the most important gods and goddesses of the hindu pantheon. finally, mandala is i

is system at the same time. this was evidently septenary. but his theogony, the genesis of the stars or planets, that of sound and colour, all found as an answer satire, and no better. celsus, you see "desiring to exhibit his learning" speaks of a ladder of creation with seven gates, and on the top[[vol. 1, page] 446 the secret doctrine. of it the eighth- ever closed. the mysteries of the persian mithras are explained and "musical reasons, moreover, are added. and to these again he strives "to add a second explanation connected also with musical considerations- i.e, with the seven notes of the scale, the seven spirits of the stars &c &c. valentinus expatiates upon the power of the great seven, who were called to bring forth this universe after ar(r)hetos, or the ineffable, whose name is co

CHRONOLOGIA RORISPERGIUS

greek astronomer hipparchus is credited for the discovering the precession of the equinoxes which was already known in babylonia centuries earlier. 86-82 bc rhetorica ad herennium latin rhetorical treatise on the classical art of memory attributed to marcus tullius cicero. 70-19 virgil 67 pirates based in cilicia (a province on the southeastern coast of asia minor) were practicing secret rites of mithras. 46-120 plutarch 20 bc- 45 philo of alexandria, jewish platonic philosopher 10 bce apollonius of tyana 4? bce-33 ce jesus founds christianity. diamond sutra. heart sutra. 1st century ce apollonius of tyana flourished. nagarjuna- first order 4 magic square, in india. 1st to 3rd ce) testament of solomon composed 17 egyptian zodiac at denderah is erected. 30-96 new testament. 50-63 (n.t) colo

ENCYCLOPEDIA OF OCCULTISM AND PARAPSYCHOLOGY VOL 1

initiates who had qualified for higher spiritual development. such mysteries were kept apart from popular worship, and initiates had to take a binding oath of secrecy, so that even today our knowledge of the mysteries is partly conjectural. typical mystery cults were those of eleusis in greece from about 1500 b.c.e, in turn deriving from the mystery religions of ancient egypt and the mysteries of mithras, a persian deity. traces of mithraism existed in britain. many secret societies in modern times have claimed that their rituals are a descent of an ancient tradition. sources: ulansey, david. the origins of the mithraic mysteries: cosmology and salvation in the ancient world. new york: oxford university press, 1989. ancitif a little-known demon, who, during the possession of the nuns of lo

otamia, the serpent was associated with healing deities. thus did it find its most common use as the symbol of physicians. while probably originating in mesopotamia, the caduceus found its way eastward to india and westward into the mediterranean. it is associated with the use of paired serpents in general such as those on the egyptian pharaoh s headpiece or the serpents coiled around the body of mithras. in greek lore, hermes (the roman mercury) came upon two serpents fighting. he thrust his rod between them. they coiled around the rod and remained attached to it. thus, the caduceus emerged as the symbol of messenger of the god. in greek thought, the caduceus acquired wings. in india, the caduceus became associated with the kundalini or serpent power, the latent power believed to lie as a

FRANCIS A YATES GIORDANO BRUNO AND THE HERMETIC TRADITION

e religious experience is good and full of the divinity; and a pessimist or dualist type in which salvation must consist in escaping from the weight of matter permeated by influences which are in themselves evil. it is possible, as i suggested earlier,1 that these distinctions were blurred for a renaissance reader. how little ficino understood dualism is indicated by the fact that he took ormuzd, mithras, and ahriman to be the expression among the magi of persia of the truth pervading all rehgions that god is a trinity,2 whereas ahriman is the evil principle in the uncompromisingly dualist zoroastrian system. with this determination to find adumbrations of christian truths everywhere, he would be likely to ignore, or to misunderstand as an "egyptian" version of christian asceticism, the du

GAMBLE ELIZA BURT THE GOD IDEA OF THE ANCIENTS OR SEX IN RELIGION

ose over the relative importance of the sexes in reproduction, and at a time when a mother and her child represented the deity, the sun was worshiped as the female jove. everything in the universe was a part of this great god. at that time there had been no division in the god-idea. the creator constituted a dual but indivisible unity. dionysos formerly represented this god, as did also om, jove, mithras, and others. jove was the "great virgin" whence everything proceeds "jove first exists, whose thunders roll above, jove last, jove midmost, all proceeds from jove; female is jove, immortal jove is male; jove the broad earth, the heavens irradiate pale. jove is the boundless spirit, jove the fire, that warms the world with feeling and desire" in a former work the fact has been mentioned tha

we are informed by inman that whenever a goddess is observed with horns--emblems which by the way always indicate masculine power--it is to denote the fact that she is androgynous, or that within her is embodied the complete deity--the dual reproductive energy throughout nature. the "figure becomes the emblem of divinity and power"[28 [28] ancient faiths embodied in ancient names, vol. i, p. 311. mithras--the savior, the great persian deity which was worshipped as the "preserver" was both female and male. among the representations of this divinity which appear in the townley collection in the british museum, is one in which it is figured in its female character, in the act of killing the bull. the divinity baal was both female and male. the god of the jews in an early stage of their career

essence, the peruvians supposed their tanga-tanga to be one in three, and three in one: and in consequence of the union of hero worship with the astronomical and material systems of idolatry they venerated the sun and the air, each under three images and three names. the same opinions equally prevailed throughout the nations which lie to the west of hindostan. thus the persians had their ormuzd, mithras, and ahriman: or, as the matter was sometimes represented, their self-triplicating mithras. the syrians had their monimus, aziz, and ares. the egyptians had their emeph, eicton, and phtha. the greeks and romans had their jupiter, neptune, and pluto; three in number, though one in essence, and all springing from cronus, a fourth, yet older god. the canaanites had their baal-spalisha or self

s herself was fabled to have been produced from the egg. there is a remarkable legend of this sort which ascribes venus and her egg to the age of typhon and osiris, in other words, to the age in which noah was compelled by the deluge to enter into the ark"[46 [46] origin of pagan idolatry, book i, ch. iv. the preserver of the persians, who is seated on a rainbow in front of their rock temples, is mithras, who is identical with noah. sometimes this ancient mariner is represented as riding on the back of a fish, and again as floating in a boat. the god of hindostan, like the classical dionysos, was enclosed in an ark and driven into the sea. according to the gothic traditions as recorded in the eddas, there once existed a beautiful world, which was destroyed by fire. another was created, whi

she bore a sheaf of grain. as serapis, or pan, finally became christ, so isis, or the queen of heaven, became his mother, and to the latter were transferred all the titles, ceremonies, festivals, and seasons which from the earliest time had belonged to the great goddess of nature. subsequently, probably about the close of the second century, christianity began slowly to emerge from the worship of mithras and serapis "changing the names but not the substance" upon the coinage of constantine appears soli invicto comita-"to the invincible sun my companion or guardian" and when the greek and roman christians finally separated themselves from the great body of pagan worshippers they apologized for celebrating the birthday of their savior on the 25th of december, saying that "they could better p

ncible sun my companion or guardian" and when the greek and roman christians finally separated themselves from the great body of pagan worshippers they apologized for celebrating the birthday of their savior on the 25th of december, saying that "they could better perform their rites when the heathen were busy with theirs" we are assured that the early christians no less than the maji acknowledged mithras as the first emanation from ormuzd, or the god of light. he was the savior which in an earlier age had represented returning life--that which follows the cold of winter. it was doubtless while they worshipped the persian mithras that many of the so-called christians gathered their first ideas concerning the immortality of the soul and of future rewards and punishments. the analogy existing

and death of their risen lord, are equally sacred to the pagans as commemorating the life and death of their savior--the new sun. even gethsemane is marked by characteristics which prove that it is no less interesting to pagans, or, more properly speaking, to the pagan followers of christ, than it is to those of the greek and romish churches. here is a holy tree, and not far distant is a cave of mithras. there is also to be seen a trinity of stones "those of janus (chemosh, petros and ion, all solar terms and connected with the sitting or sinking down to rest of the kuros" messrs. maundrell and sandys, who in 1697 visited all the holy places in and around jerusalem, state that the entire city, but especially the sites of moriah, zion, and suburbs were hotbeds of fire and phallic worship a

GILBERT THE MAGICAL MASON

he new year, or the return of the lengthening of the days, about what we now call christmas.itwas suggested by a learned mystic physician, thirty years ago in an hermetic lecture, that our own present-day christmas pantomime reproduces (in dumb show) the sacred, mystical performances of olden times, when the annual or periodic rejuvenation of some god was celebrated; whether he was called osiris, mithras, bacchus, or the later christ of our own faith. you must all have observed from days of childhoodthatour pantomime exhibits four characters always and alone, and these four are closely repre255 sentative of humanity and the principles of man when man is viewed as a quaternary being.thecharacters, masks or personae are harlequin, colum255 bine, clown and pantaloon, and if we consider man as

us, hyperion, phanes and dionysos of the greeks, as well as with fire and light as sources of benevolent force and energy; he is distinctly related to the indian vedic varuna, god of the heavens- the greek ouranos and the chaldee shamas. as the cult of mithra arising anew from the persian faith spread into europe, the great first powers appeartohave been gradually lost sight of, while the saviour mithras became exalted into the position of godhead; in this manner mithraism rose to be a separate religion, gave rise to a form of mystery worship, developed a priesthood and formulated a system of secret initiation of which only a few titles and sketchy outlines have come down to us from greek and latin authors. an attentive study of architectural remains has, as i have already mentioned, added

crypts are known by their ruins, and the one found there by cavaliere lanciana is the most perfect known (see the atheneum, 1886).fromthe details left by the greek and latin authors, supplemented by astudyof the still-existing sculptures, it has been found possible to describe at least five sculptured scenes which. taken together, illustrate the myth or legend of the mithraic cult. 1.thebirth of mithras.heis represented as springing from a rock, wearing a pointed cap and holding a dagger and a torch, sometimes a solitary figure, in other cases two men like shepherds are the witnesses of the miraculous birth: hence m. was called in ancient stone inscriptions -petragenetrix,theosexpetros(firmicus maternus) andpetrogenesmithras.in some designs the two men are torch-bearers, one holding up hi

a torch, sometimes a solitary figure, in other cases two men like shepherds are the witnesses of the miraculous birth: hence m. was called in ancient stone inscriptions -petragenetrix,theosexpetros(firmicus maternus) andpetrogenesmithras.in some designs the two men are torch-bearers, one holding up his torch, the other holding his down. a serpent with an egg in some cases lies around the rock. 2. mithras and the tree. he stands beside a leafy tree, and appears to be tearing off some leaves for clothing and eating the fruit; in some cases he is again seen leaving the tree fully clothed (query- emblematic of the fall of man of genesis of the old testament) 3. mithras and the- rock. he appears again with the phrygian cap, but kneeling and shooting an arrow at a rock or hillside, whence a stre

ng the fruit; in some cases he is again seen leaving the tree fully clothed (query- emblematic of the fall of man of genesis of the old testament) 3. mithras and the- rock. he appears again with the phrygian cap, but kneeling and shooting an arrow at a rock or hillside, whence a stream of water issues; a man kneels beside this stream, catches the water in his palms and drinks: this act represents mithras as saving the world from a drought sent by ahriman, the evil one. 4. mithras and the sun (several scenes) he appears to crown the sun, who kneels before him, using the left hand, while in the right he holds a cornucopia; recognition of the value of the sun's light and heat (b) mithras and the sun stand together, clasping each250themagical masonother's right hands (c) mithras mounting the s

iman, the evil one. 4. mithras and the sun (several scenes) he appears to crown the sun, who kneels before him, using the left hand, while in the right he holds a cornucopia; recognition of the value of the sun's light and heat (b) mithras and the sun stand together, clasping each250themagical masonother's right hands (c) mithras mounting the solar chariot with four white horses and ascending (d) mithras and the sun together at a banquet with men standing around.thechristian fathers especially condemned these scenes and destroyed all copies of them. s. mithras and the bull. this is no earthly bull,butis the goshurun or heavenly bull of the avesta (many scenes.)thebull in a boat upon the water, for ahriman has sent a deluge upon the world.thebull coming out of the gable end of a house on fi

eals throws some light upon these mythical scenes. it narrates that the first creation of ormuzd was of goshurun, the heavenly bull, that this bull was killed by the evil ahriman, and that from its side came gayomort, the first man; from its tail all vegetable life was produced, from its blood wine was created, and from its seed all varieties of animals were evolved. in mithraic sculpture we find mithras slaying the bull at the order of ormuzd, whose word is brought by his messenger the crow or raven. ahriman is represented only by the serpent who is to poison all human life at its source. we may all of us invent some allegorical explanation of these scenes, and no one can be sure of offering the truth, but one point is certain, and that is that the bull has been at all times the symbol of

GLOBAL FREEMASONRY

a world-view such a religion will unite human beings in the universe. this is masonry. this religion will be passed from heart to heart. the temples of this religion will be temples of humanity. among the hymns sung in this temple may be beethoven's 9th symphony, the most noble musical composition that ever sprang from the human spirit. instead of the meat and blood of a bull in the ceremonies of mithras, we celebrate this birth by eating bread and drinking red wine. here we unite in a common faith that has the character of a communion. in a new year, i want to baptize this holy struggle of ours and bring it to an end: eat one more piece of bread, brothers, you are the missionaries of this religion, let those saints who share this bread be friends. brothers, to be blood brothers, take anot

ISIS UNVEILED

boundless time, but like his own antitype, or pre-existing spiritual idea, has lived within primitive ijnrtmimm from all eternity. his logos created the pure intellectual world. after the lapse of three grand cycles* he created ihe material world in six periods. the six amshaspends, or primitke spiritual men, whom ormazd created in his own image, are the mediators between this world and himself. mithras is an emanation of the logos and the chief of the twenty-eight yettdi, who are the tutelary angels over the spiritual portion of mankind the souls of men "hie pertihett are infinite in number. they are the ideas or rather the ideal conceptions of things which formed themselves in the mind of ormazd or ahuramazda before he willed them to assume a concrete form. they are what aristotle terms

fancy of the ophites to repre- sent him as a spirit of wat r, when, astrologically considered, be is a "a cold, dry, earthy and metancholy star" 749. the name vhich norberg translates, in his onomosftimn to the codtx naxarana, m fa-ho, stands in the original par'ha rabba. in the lift cf motut, given by epiphantus, in his paaana, lib. ii. torn. ii, uaer. lxvi, iii, is mentioned a certain priest m mithras, a friend of the great hetesiarcfa manes, uuned parcfaus. digitizecoy google two cosmogonies comfabed 295 as doves" in the scheme ophis is represented as the egyptian cnu- l^is or kneph, caued dracontia. he appears as a serpent standing erect on its tail, with a lion's head, crowned and radiate, and bearing on the point of each ray one of the seven greek vowels symbol of the seven celestia

JENNINGS HARGRAVE ROSICRUCIANS RITES MYSTERIES

tion) denied. the death and descent of balder into the hell of the scandinavians may be supposed to be the purgatory of the human unit (or the god-illuminate, from the light (through the god-dark phases of being, back into its native light. balder was the scandinavian sun-god, and the same as the egyptian osiris, the greek hercules, bacchus, and phoebus, or apollo, the indian crishna, the persian mithras, the aten of the empires of insular asia; or, even of the sidonians, the athyr or ashtaroth. the presences of all these divinities indeed, of all gods were of the semblance of fire; and we recognise, as it were, the mark of the foot of them, or of the impersonated fire, in the countless uprights, left, as memorials, in the great ebb of the ages (as waves) to nations in the latter divisions

the crux-ansata of the egyptians. this emblem is also found in india. according to ruffinus and sozomen, it imports the time that is to come. it is a magical symbol. fig. 27 is the imperial mound, and cross-sigma surmounting it. figs. 28, 29, are symbols of venus (aphrodite, the deity of the syrians and phoenicians. they are phallic emblems. fig. 30 is the phallus proper. it is the sigma of zeus, mithras, baalim, bacchus. figures numbered 31, osiris: these various figures signify also jupiter-ammon. the rectangular marks denote the scandinavian tuisco, thoth (mercurius, or hermes. fig. 35 is the indian form of the same idea. the figure marked 36 is to be found on the breast of one of the mummies in the museum of the london university. fig. 36. phallus and lotus. fig. 37. fig. 38. fig. 39

LEADBEATER CW GLIMPSES OF MASONIC HISTORY

tion of the logos emanating from the divine, the atoning sacrifice, the constant warfare between good and evil and the final triumph of the former, the immortality of the soul, the last judgment, the resurrection of the flesh and the fiery destruction of the universe- these are some of the resemblances at their root lay a common eastern origin rather than any borrowing(*ency. brit (11th edn, art. mithras) 426. the great powers behind evolution appear at one time to have thought seriously of making mithraism the religion of the fifth sub-race instead of the maimed christianity which had rejected its own gnosis and put aside its mysteries. but the ideal of mithraic purity was so high that it would probably have been impossible for men to follow it during the dark ages; and another very serio

LIBER ALEPH

easts of power. f the book of wisdom or folly 153 ef de tauro (of the bull) oncerning the bull, this is thy will, constant and unwearied, whose letter is vau, which is six, the number of he sun. he is therefore the force and the substance of thy being; but besides this, he is the hierophant in the taro, as if this were said .that thy will leadeth thee unto the shrine of light. and in the rites of mithras the bull is slain, and his blood poured upon the initiate, to endow him with that will and that power of work. also in the land of hind is the bull sacred to shiva, that is god among that folk, and is unto hem the destroyer of all things that be opposed to him. and his god is also the phallus, for this will operateth through love even as it is written in our own law. yet again, apis he bul

LIBER CCCXXXV ADONIS

to rival me. esarhaddon. she comes to lamp our love [a chime of bells without. astarte. i.ll tire my hair. the banquet waits. girls, follow me [they go out, leaving esarhaddon. esarhaddon. how fair and full she sweeps, the buoyant barge upon the gilded curves of tigris. she fs the swan that drew the gods to gaze, the fawn that called their passion to his glades of emerald, the maid that maddened mithras, the quick quiver of reeds that drew oannes from the river. she is gone. the garden is a wilderness. oh for the banquet of the lioness, the rich astounding wines, the kindling meats, the music and the dancers! fiery seats of empire of the archangels, let your wings ramp through the empyrean! lords and kings of the gods, descend and serve us, as we spurn and trample life, fill death fs sard

MANLY P HALL THE SECRET TEACHINGS OF ALL AGES

california may 28,1928 next: table of contents p. 7 table of contents dedication 3 preface 5 color plates 9 illustrations in the text 11 introduction 12 the ancient mysteries and secret societies which have influenced modern masonic symbolism ancient systems of education--celsus concerning the christians--knowledge necessary to right living--the druidic mysteries of britain and gaul--the rites of mithras--the mithraic and christian mysteries contrasted. 21 the ancient mysteries and secret societies, part ii the gnostic mysteries--simon magus and basilides--abraxas, the gnostic concept of deity--the mysteries of serapis--labyrinth symbolism--the odinic, or gothic, mysteries. 25 the ancient mysteries and secret societies, part iii the eleusinian mysteries--the lesser rites--the greater rites

nominate, who should call robbers together" it was not the true faith of the early christian mystics that celsus attacked, but the false forms that were creeping in even during his day. the ideals of early christianity were based upon the high moral standards of the pagan mysteries, and the first christians who met under the city of rome used as their places of worship the subterranean temples of mithras, from whose cult has been borrowed much of the sacerdotalism of the modem church. the ancient philosophers believed that no man could live intelligently who did not have a fundamental knowledge of nature and her laws. before man can obey, he must understand, and the mysteries were devoted to instructing man concerning the operation of divine law in the terrestrial sphere. few of the early

passed this third degree were said to have been "born again" and were instructed in the secret and hidden truths which the druid priests had preserved from antiquity. from these initiates were chosen many of the dignitaries of the british religious and political world (for further details, see faber's pagan idolatry, albert pike's morals and dogma, and godfrey higgins' celtic druids) the rites of mithras when the persian mysteries immigrated into southern europe, they were quickly assimilated by the latin mind. the cult grew rapidly, especially among the roman soldiery, and during the roman wars of conquest the teachings were carried by the legionaries to nearly all parts of europe. so powerful did the cult of mithras become that at least one roman emperor was initiated into the order, whi

e for the soul of man continues through the next period of 3,000 years. during the fourth period of 3,000 years, the power of ahriman will be destroyed. good will return to the world again, evil and death will be vanquished, and at last the spirit of evil will bow humbly before the throne of ormuzd. while ormuzd and ahriman are struggling for control of the human soul and for supremacy in nature, mithras, god of intelligence, stands as mediator between the two. many authors have noted the similarity between mercury and mithras. as the chemical mercury acts as a solvent (according to alchemists, so mithras seeks to harmonize the two celestial opposites. there are many points of resemblance between christianity and the cult of mithras. one of the reasons for this probably is that the persian

emanating from the divine, the atoning sacrifice, the constant warfare between good and evil and the final triumph of the former, the immortality of the soul, the last judgment, the resurrection of the flesh and the fiery destruction of the universe-[these] are some of the resemblances which, whether real or only apparent, enabled mithraism to prolong its resistance to christianity" the rites of mithras were performed in caves. porphyry, in his cave of the nymphs, states that zarathustra (zoroaster) was the first to consecrate a cave to the worship of god, because a cavern was symbolic of the earth, or the lower world of darkness. john p. lundy, in his monumental christianity, describes the cave of mithras as follows "but this cave was adorned with the signs of the zodiac, cancer and capr

picuous, as the gates of souls descending into this life, or passing out of it in their ascent to the gods; cancer being the gate of descent, and capricorn of ascent. these are the two avenues of the immortals passing up and down from earth to heaven, and from heaven to earth" the so-called chair of st. peter, in rome, was believed to have been used in one of the pagan mysteries, possibly that of mithras, in whose subterranean grottoes the votaries of the christian mysteries met in the early days of their faith. in anacalypsis, godfrey higgins writes that in 1662, while cleaning this sacred chair of bar-jonas, the twelve labors of hercules were discovered upon it, and that later the french discovered upon the same chair the mohammedan confession of faith, written in arabic. initiation into

ose subterranean grottoes the votaries of the christian mysteries met in the early days of their faith. in anacalypsis, godfrey higgins writes that in 1662, while cleaning this sacred chair of bar-jonas, the twelve labors of hercules were discovered upon it, and that later the french discovered upon the same chair the mohammedan confession of faith, written in arabic. initiation into the rites of mithras, like initiation into many other ancient schools of philosophy, apparently consisted of three important degrees. preparation for these degrees consisted of selfpurification, the building up of the intellectual powers, and the control of the animal nature. in the first degree the candidate was given a crown upon the point of a sword and instructed in the mysteries of mithras' hidden power

onsisted of selfpurification, the building up of the intellectual powers, and the control of the animal nature. in the first degree the candidate was given a crown upon the point of a sword and instructed in the mysteries of mithras' hidden power. probably he was taught that the golden crown represented his own spiritual nature, which must be objectified and unfolded before he could truly glorify mithras; for mithras was his own soul, standing as mediator between ormuzd, his spirit, and ahriman, his animal nature. in the second degree he was given the armor of intelligence and purity and sent into the darkness of subterranean pits to fight the beasts of lust, passion, and degeneracy. in the third degree he was given a cape, upon which were drawn or woven the signs of the zodiac and other a

n or woven the signs of the zodiac and other astronomical symbols. after his initiations were over, he was hailed as one who had risen from the dead, was instructed in the secret teachings of the persian mystics, and became a full-fledged member of the order. candidates who successfully passed the mithraic initiations were called lions and were marked upon their foreheads with the egyptian cross. mithras himself is often pictured with the head of a lion and two pairs of wings. throughout the entire ritual were repeated references to the birth of mithras as the sun god, his sacrifice for man, his death that men might have eternal life, and lastly, his resurrection and the saving of all humanity by his intercession before the throne of ormuzd (see heckethorn) while the cult of mithras did no

how mithras kneeling upon the recumbent form of a great bull, into whose throat he is driving a sword. the slaying of the bull signifies that the rays of the sun, symbolized by the sword, release at the vernal equinox the vital essences of the earth--the blood of the bull- which, pouring from the wound made by the sun god, fertilize the seeds of living things. dogs were held sacred to the cult of mithras, being symbolic of sincerity and trustworthiness. the mithraics used the serpent a an emblem of ahriman, the spirit of evil, and water rats were held sacred to him. the bull is esoterically the constellation of taurus; the serpent, its opposite in the zodiac, scorpio; the sun, mithras, entering into the side of the bull, slays the celestial creature and nourishes the universe with its bloo

ity and trustworthiness. the mithraics used the serpent a an emblem of ahriman, the spirit of evil, and water rats were held sacred to him. the bull is esoterically the constellation of taurus; the serpent, its opposite in the zodiac, scorpio; the sun, mithras, entering into the side of the bull, slays the celestial creature and nourishes the universe with its blood. click to enlarge the birth of mithras. from montfaucon's antiquities mithras was born out of a rock, which, breaking open, permitted him to emerge. this occurred in the darkness of a subterranean chamber. the church of the nativity at bethlehem confirms the theory that jesus was born in a grotto, or cave. according to dupuis, mithras was put to death by crucifixion and rose again on the third day. next: the ancient mysteries a

he ancient pagan mysteries. to him is attributed the formulation of that peculiar concept of the deity which carries the name of abraxas. in discussing the original meaning of this word, godfrey higgins, in his celtic druids, has demonstrated that the numerological powers of the letters forming the word abraxas when added together result in the sum of 365. the same author also notes that the name mithras when treated in a similar manner has the same numerical value. basilides caught that the click to enlarge the death of simon the magician. from the nuremberg chronicle. simon magus, having called upon the spirits of the air, is here shown being picked up by the demons. st. peter demands that the evil genii release their hold upon the magician. the demons are forced to comply and simon magu

odosius, struck the alexandrian serapis with his ax, that instrument was shattered into fragments and sparks flew from it. it is also quite probable that serapis was worshiped in the form of a serpent, in common with many of the higher deities of the egyptian and greek pantheons. serapis was called theon heptagrammaton, or the god with the name of seven letters. the name serapis (like abraxas and mithras) contains seven letters. in their hymns to serapis the priests chanted the seven vowels. occasionally serapis is depicted with horns or a coronet of seven rays. these evidently represented the seven divine intelligences manifesting through the solar light. the encyclop dia britannica notes that the earliest authentic mention of serapis is in connection with the death of alexander. such was

s of the samothracian mysteries; and the same as the serapis and isis of the later gyptians: the taautos and astarte of the phoenicians, and the saturn and ops of the latins" the second quotation is from albert pike's morals and dogma"'thee' says martianus capella, in his hymn to the sun 'dwellers on the nile adore as serapis, and memphis worships as osiris: in the sacred rites of persia thou art mithras, in phrygia, atys, and libya bows down to thee as ammon, and phoenician byblos as adonis; thus the whole world adores thee under different names" the odinic mysteries the date of the founding of the odinic mysteries is uncertain, some writers declaring that they were established in the first century before christ; others, the first century after christ. robert macoy, 33, gives the followin

generation, for without him there was no movement, no existence, no form. he was to them immense, indivisible, imperishable, and everywhere present. it was their need of light, and of his creative energy, that was felt by all men; and nothing was more fearful to them than his absence. his beneficent influences caused his identification with the principle of good; and the brahma of the hindus, and mithras of the persians, and athom, amun, phtha, and osiris, of the egyptians, the bel of the chaldeans, the adonai of the phoenicians, the adonis and apollo of the greeks, became but personifications of the sun, the regenerating principle, image of that fecundity which perpetuates and rejuvenates the world's existence" among all the nations of antiquity, altars, mounds, and temples were dedicated

vements, phases, or functions of the heavenly bodies. among other allegories borrowed by christianity from pagan antiquity is the story of the beautiful, blueeyed sun god, with his golden hair falling upon his shoulders, robed from head to foot in spotless white and carrying in his arms the lamb of god, symbolic of the vernal equinox. this handsome youth is a composite of apollo, osiris, orpheus, mithras, and bacchus, for he has certain characteristics in common with each of these pagan deities. the philosophers of greece and egypt divided the life of the sun during the year into four parts; therefore they symbolized the solar man by four different figures. when he was born in the winter solstice, the sun god was symbolized as a dependent infant who in some mysterious manner had managed to

--the king of birds--represents the highest and most spiritual type of scorpio, in which it transcends the venomous insect of the earth. as scorpio and taurus are opposite each other in the zodiac, their symbolism is often closely intermingled. the hon. e. m. plunket, in ancient calendars and constellations, says "the scorpion (the constellation scorpio of the zodiac opposed to taurus) joins with mithras in his attack upon the bull, and always the genii of the spring and autumn equinoxes are present in joyous and mournful attitudes" the egyptians, the assyrians, and the babylonians, who knew the sun as a bull, called the zodiac a series of furrows, through which the great celestial ox dragged the plow of the sun. hence the populace offered up sacrifice and led through the streets magnifice

re based upon the ancient mystic folklore. click to enlarge the ur us. from kircher's oedipus gyptiacus. the spinal cord was symbolized by a snake, and the serpent coiled upon the foreheads of the egyptian initiates represented the divine fire which had crawled serpentlike up the tree of life. click to enlarge good and evil contending for the universal egg. from maurice's indian antiquities. both mithras, the persian redeemer, and serapis, the egyptian god of the earth, are symbolized by serpents coiled about their bodies. this remarkable drawing shows the good and evil principles of persia--ahura-mazda and ahriman--contending for the egg of the earth, which each trying to wrench from the teeth of the other. next: fishes, insects, animals, reptiles and birds (part two) sacred texts esoteri

erned, the order of the rose cross possessed a secret ritual which was lived by the candidate for a prescribed number of years before he was eligible to the inner degrees of the society. the various floors of the tower of olympus represent the orbits of the planets. the ascent of the philosophers from one floor to another also parallels certain rituals of the eleusinian mysteries and the rites of mithras wherein the candidate ascended the seven rungs of a ladder or climbed the seven steps of a pyramid in order to signify release from the influences of the planetary governors. man becomes master of the seven spheres only when he transmutes the impulses received from them. he who masters the seven worlds and is reunited with the divine source of his own nature consummates the hermetic marria

vertical base it is not unlike a mallet or gavel. in one of the qabbalistic masonic legends, chiram abiff is given a hammer in the form of a tau by his ancestor, tubal-cain. the tau cross is preserved to modern masonry under the symbol of the t square. this appears to be the oldest form of the cross extant. the tau cross was inscribed on the forehead of every person admitted into the mysteries of mithras. when a king was initiated into the egyptian mysteries, the tau was placed against his lips. it was tattooed upon the bodies of the candidates in some of the american indian mysteries. to the qabbalist, the tau stood for heaven and the pythagorean tetractys. the caduceus of hermes was an outgrowth of the tau cross (see albert pike) the crux ansata the second type was that of a t, or tau, c

returned from the land of the dead. this concept was, in substance, the teaching of the mysteries. the crucified saviors the list of the deathless mortals who suffered for man that he might receive the boon of eternal life is an imposing one. among those connected historically or allegorically with a crucifixion are prometheus, adonis, apollo, arys, bacchus, buddha, christna, horus, indra, ixion, mithras, osiris, pythagoras, quetzalcoatl, semiramis, and jupiter. according to the fragmentary accounts extant, all these heroes gave their lives to the service of humanity and, with one or two exceptions, died as martyrs for the cause of human progress. in many mysterious ways the manner of their death has been designedly concealed, but it is possible that most of them were crucified upon a cros

MICHAEL FORD WITCHMOON

sleep and to dream. shed your skin as the serpent of the forest and fly upon broom or animal. take to the skies and feast of the funereal dead! they are your beginnings and the infinite possibility. yule december 22nd the winter solstice is the time that marks the death and rebirth of the sun god. it is a time of contemplation, of self-examination and natural rebirth. yule also is the birthday of mithras (13, the sun god of persia. the birth data of the christian savior was not accurately known from their historic texts per se, however around ad 273 that the church and its officials aligned the birth of christ to absorb the pagan gods of old (mithras, etc. the moon of december is known as the wolf moon, oak moon which refers to the birthing of new life, to which the balance of nature grows

wn as venus, the roman name which equals lucifer. all rites undertaken in venus are of light, therefore of lucifer. 10. the art of rosaleen norton published by wally glover in 1982 and pan s daughter by nevill drury- mandrake of oxford 1993. 146 146 11. 777 by aleister crowley. 12. black eagle, an indian spirit which presented itself to first yelg paterson and later to austin osman spare. 13. see mithras by d.jason cooper.(weiser) 14. the witches bible compleat by stewart and janet farrar, magickal childe publishing. 15. an excellent image of lilith is featured in the art of rosaleen norton. 16. images and oracles of austin osman spare 17. a ceremonial rite which proclaims and affirms the will on a conscious level. 18. see images and oracles of austin osman spare chapter four 1. the goetia

MICHAEL TSARION ATLANTIS ALIEN VISITATION AND GENETIC MANIPULATION

island. 1954 defense intelligence agency (dia) memo deems lsd a new agent for unconventional war-fare. cia orders100 million doses from i. g. farben through sandoz for mind control experimentswell into the 1960's. 1954 new york times announces stephen bechtel, chairman of bechtel corp, has become a partner ofj. p. morgan company. 1954 oppenheimer dismissed from government service. 1954 temple of mithras excavated in london. 1954 locust plague in morocco. 1954 physicists enrico fermi and fritz london die. 1954 eurovision network formed. 1954 army germ warfare project in point magu and fort hueneme, california. 1954 russian kgb created to replace secret police. 1954 a study is published which links fluorides and the development of cancer in animals. ref: a tay-lor, sodium fluoride in the dr

MORALS AND DOGMA

on the earth, and the top of it reaching to heaven, with the angels of god ascending and descending on it. the addition of the three principal rounds to the symbolism, is wholly modern and incongruous. the ancients counted seven planets, thus arranged: the moon, mercury, venus, the sun, mars, jupiter, and saturn. there were seven heavens and seven spheres of these planets; on all the monuments of mithras are seven altars or pyres, consecrated to the seven planets, as were the seven lamps of the golden candelabrum in the temple. that these represented the planets, we are assured by clemens of alexandria, in his stromata, and by philo judaeus. to return to its source in the infinite, the human soul, the ancients held, had to ascend, as it had descended, through the seven spheres. the ladder

ted the planets, we are assured by clemens of alexandria, in his stromata, and by philo judaeus. to return to its source in the infinite, the human soul, the ancients held, had to ascend, as it had descended, through the seven spheres. the ladder by which it reascends, has, according to marsilius ficinus, in his commentary on the ennead of plotinus, seven degrees or steps; and in the mysteries of mithras, carried to rome under the emperors, the ladder, with its seven rounds, was a symbol referring to this ascent through the spheres of the seven planets. jacob saw the spirits of god ascending and descending on it; and above it the deity himself. the mithraic mysteries were celebrated in caves, where gates were marked at the four equinoctial and solstitial points of the zodiac; and the seven

symbol of the passive capacity of nature to produce, the female, of which the life-giving power and energy was the male. it was the symbol of isis, astarte, and artemis, or diana. the"_master of life" was the supreme deity, above both, and manifested through both; zeus, the son of saturn, become king of the gods; horus, son of osiris and isis, become the master of life; dionusos or bacchus, like mithras, become the author of light and life and truth* the master of light and life, the sun and the moon, are symbolized in every lodge by the master and wardens: and this makes it the duty of the master to dispense light to the brethren, by himself, and through the wardens, who are his ministers "thy sun" says isaiah to jerusalem "shall no more go down, neither shall thy moon withdraw itself; f

his light, and fancied they saw in its originality the changelessness of deity. he had seen thrones crumble, earthquakes shake the world and hurl down mountains. beyond olympus, beyond the pillars of hercules, he had gone daily to his abode, and had come daily again in the morning to behold the temples they built to his worship. they personified him as brahma, amun, osiris, bel, adonis, malkarth, mithras, and apollo; and the nations that did so grew old and died. moss grew on the capitals of the great columns of his temples, and he shone on the moss. grain by grain the dust of his temples crumbled and fell, and was borne off on the wind, and still he shone on crumbling column and architrave. the roof fell crashing on the pavement, and he shone in on the holy of holies with unchanging rays

rehend. did the deity leave the whole world without light for two score centuries, to illuminate only a little corner of palestine and a brutal, ignorant, and ungrateful people? why always calumniate god and the sanctuary? were there never any others than rogues among the priests? could no honest and sincere men be found among the hierophants of ceres or diana, of dionusos or apollo, of hermes or mithras? were these, then, all deceived, like the rest? who, then, constantly deceived them, without betraying themselves, during a series of centuries--for the cheats are not immortal! arago said, that outside of the pure mathematics, he who utters the word "impossible" is wanting in prudence and good sense. the true name of satan, the kabalists say, is that of yahveh reversed; for satan is not a

d upon the cross. the ancients thought that universal humanity acted under the influence of two opposing principles, the good and the evil: of which the good urged men toward truth, independence, and devotedness; and the evil toward falsehood, servility, and selfishness. masonry represents the good principle and constantly wars against the evil one. it is the hercules, the osiris, the apollo, the mithras, and the ormuzd, at everlasting and deadly feud with the demons of ignorance, brutality, baseness, falsehood, slavishness of soul, intolerance, superstition, tyranny, meanness, the insolence of wealth, and bigotry. when despotism and superstition, twin-powers of evil and darkness, reigned everywhere and seemed invincible and immortal, it invented, to avoid persecution, the mysteries, that

his favors, and serve them as models of purity and perfection. thus we have the _demiourgos_ of gnosticism, and the six _genii_ that assist him. these are the hebrew archangels of the planets. the names of these _amshaspands_ are bahman, ardibehest, schariver, sapandomad, khordad, and amerdad. the fourth, the holy sapandomad, created the first man and woman. then ormuzd created 28 _izeds, of whom mithras is the chief. they watch, with _ormuzd_ and the _amshaspands, over the happiness, purity, and preservation of the world, which is under their government; and they are also models for mankind and interpreters of men's prayers. with _mithras_ and _ormuzd, they make a _pleroma [or complete number] of 30, corresponding to the thirty aions of the gnostics, and to the _ogdoade, dodecade, and _de

-_iammim, the seas or water _hour, fire _rouach, the air, and _iebeschah, the dry earth. how we read it, i need not repeat to you. the cross [illustration: glyph] was the sign of the creative wisdom or logos, the son of god. plato says "he expressed him upon the universe in the figure of the letter x. the next power to the supreme god was decussated or figured in the shape of a cross on universe" mithras signed his soldiers on the forehead with a cross [glyph] is the mark of 600, the mysterious cycle of the incarnations. we constantly see the tau and the resh united thus [glyph. these two letters, in the old samaritan, as found in arius, stand, the first for 400, the second for 200-600. this is the staff of osiris, also, and his monogram, and was adopted by the christians as a sign. on a m

in most countries, are born to be mere beasts of burden, co-laborers with the horse and the ox. profoundly ignorant, even in "civilized" lands, they think and reason like the animals by the side of which they toil. for them, god, soul, spirit, immortality, are mere words, without any real meaning. the god of nineteen-twentieths of the christian world is only bel, moloch, zeus, or at best osiris, mithras, or adona, under another name, worshipped with the old pagan ceremonies and ritualistic formulas. it is the statue of olympian jove, worshipped as the father, in the christian church that was a pagan temple; it is the statue of venus, become the virgin mary. for the most part, men do not in their hearts believe that god is either just or merciful. they fear and shrink from his lightnings a

f masons, and acceptable to our father in heaven. xxiii. chief of the tabernacle. among most of the ancient nations there was, in addition to their public worship, a private one styled the mysteries; to which those only were admitted who had been prepared by certain ceremonies called initiations. the most widely disseminated of the ancient worships were those of isis, orpheus, dionusos, ceres and mithras. many barbarous nations received the knowledge of the mysteries in honor of these divinities from the egyptians, before they arrived in greece; and even in the british isles the druids celebrated those of dionusos, learned by them from the egyptians. the mysteries of eleusis, celebrated at athens in honor of ceres, swallowed up, as it were, all the others. all the neighboring nations negle

by isis, the _euresis, finding. the candidate went through a ceremony representing this, in all the mysteries everywhere. the main facts in the fable were the same in all countries; and the prominent deities were everywhere a male and a female. in egypt they were osiris and isis: in india, mahadeva and bhavani: in ph nicia, thammuz (or adonis) and astarte: in phrygia, atys and cybele: in persia, mithras and asis: in samothrace and greece, dionusos or sabazeus and rhea: in britain, hu and ceridwen: and in scandinavia, woden and frea: and in every instance these divinities represented the sun and the moon. the mysteries of osiris, isis, and horus, seem to have been the model of all other ceremonies of initiation subsequently established among the different peoples of the world. those of aty

s of the initiates, were represented by figures, by symbols, and by allegorical analogies; no idea being so abstract that men do not seek to give it expression by, and translate it into, sensible images. the attraction of secrecy was enhanced by the difficulty of obtaining admission. obstacles and suspense redoubled curiosity. those who aspired to the initiation of the sun and in the mysteries of mithras in persia, underwent many trials. they commenced by easy tests and arrived by degrees at those that were most cruel, in which the life of the candidate was often endangered. gregory nazianzen terms them _tortures_ and mystic _punishments. no one can be initiated, says suidas, until after he has proven, by the most terrible trials, that he possesses a virtuous soul, exempt from the sway of

is heart and hands should be free from any stain. porphyry says that man's soul, at death, should be enfranchised from all the passions, from hate, envy, and the others; and, in a word _be as pure as it is required to be in the mysteries. of course it is not surprising that parricides and perjurers, and others who had committed crimes against god or man, could not be admitted. in the mysteries of mithras, a lecture was repeated to the initiate on the subject of justice. and the great moral lesson of the mysteries, to which all their mystic ceremonial tended, expressed in a single line by virgil, was _to practise justice and revere the deity--thus recalling men to justice, by connecting it with the justice of the gods, who require it and punish its infraction. the initiate could aspire to t

providence, and of that of the two principles of light and darkness, which he regarded as the basis of the ancient theology, of the orgies and the mysteries, as well among the greeks as the barbarians--a doctrine whose origin, according to him, is lost in the night of time--cites, in support of his opinion, the famous mystic egg of the disciples of zoroaster and the initiates in the mysteries of mithras. to the initiates in the mysteries of eleusis was exhibited the spectacle of these two principles, in the successive scenes of darkness and light which passed before their eyes. to the profoundest darkness, accompanied with illusions and horrid phantoms, succeeded the most brilliant light, whose splendor blazed round the statue of the goddess. the candidate, says dion chrysostomus, passed

r of thammuz or adoni, also the sun, the spectacle of his death and resurrection was exhibited to the initiates. as we learn from meursius and plutarch, a figure was exhibited representing the corpse of a young man. flowers were strewed upon his body, the women mourned for him; a tomb was erected to him. and these feasts, as we learn from plutarch and ovid, passed into greece. in the mysteries of mithras, the sun-god, in asia minor, armenia and persia, the death of that god was lamented, and his resurrection was celebrated with the most enthusiastic expressions of joy. a corpse, we learn from julian firmicus, was shown the initiates, representing mithras dead; and afterward his resurrection was announced; and they were then invited to rejoice that the dead god was restored to life, and had

he suffers: they rejoice when he triumphs over the power of darkness which opposes his sway and hinders the happiness of souls, to whom nothing is so terrible as darkness. the fruit of the sufferings of the god, father of light and souls, slain by the chief of the powers of darkness, and again restored to life, was received in the mysteries "his death works your salvation" said the high priest of mithras. that was the great secret of this religious tragedy, and its expected fruit--the resurrection of a god, who, repossessing himself of his dominion over darkness, should associate with him in his triumph those virtuous souls that by their purity were worthy to share his glory; and that strove not against the divine force that drew them to him, when he had thus conquered. to the initiate wer

n the monuments--a serpent in folds, with his head raised erect above the folds. the basilisk was the phoenix of the serpent-tribe; and the vase or urn was probably the vessel, shaped like a cucumber, with a projecting spout, out of which, on the monuments of egypt, the priests are represented pouring streams of the _cruz ansata_ or tau cross, and of _sceptres, over the kings. in the mysteries of mithras, a sacred cave, representing the whole arrangement of the world, was used for the reception of the initiates. zoroaster, says eubulus, first introduced this custom of consecrating caves. they were also consecrated, in crete, to jupiter; in arcadia, to the moon and pan; and in the island of naxos, to bacchus. the persians, in the cave where the mysteries of mithras were celebrated, fixed th

secrating caves. they were also consecrated, in crete, to jupiter; in arcadia, to the moon and pan; and in the island of naxos, to bacchus. the persians, in the cave where the mysteries of mithras were celebrated, fixed the seat of that god, father of generation, or demiourgos, near the equinoctial point of spring, with the northern portion of the world on his right, and the southern on his left. mithras, says porphyry, presided over the equinoxes, seated on a bull, the symbolical animal of the demiourgos, and bearing a sword. the equinoxes were the gates through which souls passed to and fro, between the hemisphere of light and that or darkness. the milky way was also represented, passing near each of these gates: and it was, in the old theology, termed the pathway of souls. it is, accord

of that religious spectacle of different beings exhibited in the sanctuary. it resulted from that belief in the providence and superintendence of the gods, which was one of the primary bases of initiation. the administration of the universe by subaltern genii, to whom it is confided, and by whom good and evil are dispensed in the world, was a consequence of this dogma, taught in the mysteries of mithras, where was shown that famous egg, shared between ormuzd and ahriman, each of whom commissioned twenty-four genii to dispense the good and evil found therein; they being under twelve superior gods, six on the side of light and good and six on that of darkness and evil. this doctrine of the genii, depositaries of the universal providence, was intimately connected with the ancient mysteries

gend, given by pausanias, atys dies, wounded like adonis by a wild boar in the organs of generation; a mutilation with which all the legends ended. the pine-tree under which he was said to have died, was sacred to him; and was found upon many monuments, with a bull and a ram near it; one the sign of exaltation of the sun, and the other of that of the moon. the worship of the sun under the name of mithras belonged to persia, whence that name came, as did the erudite symbols of that worship. the persians, adorers of fire, regarded the sun as the most brilliant abode of the fecundating energy of that element, which gives life to the earth, and circulates in every part of the universe, of which it is, as it were, the soul. this worship passed from persia into armenia, cappadocia, and cilicia

as did the erudite symbols of that worship. the persians, adorers of fire, regarded the sun as the most brilliant abode of the fecundating energy of that element, which gives life to the earth, and circulates in every part of the universe, of which it is, as it were, the soul. this worship passed from persia into armenia, cappadocia, and cilicia, long before it was known at rome. the mysteries of mithras flourished more than any others in the imperial city. the worship of mithras commenced to prevail there under trajan. hadrian prohibited these mysteries, on account of the cruel scenes represented in their ceremonial: for human victims were immolated therein, and the events of futurity looked for in their palpitating entrails. they reappeared in greater splendor than ever under commodus, w

PHILIP NEIL MYTHS LEGENDS EXPLAINED

god of order; but in the need to maintain order, became a god of war and warriors. he was seen as a more approachable god one who in a sense mediated between the pure goodness of ahura mazda and the pure evil of ahriman. his shrines depict him slaying a bull, a ritual act thought to ensure new life in the renewed creation; worshippers bathed in the blood from sacrificed bulls. the mystery cult of mithras as practiced in the roman empire was solely for men; it was an ascetic cult that emphasized truth and right living, holding out in return the promise of life after death. this roman statue shows the god mithras slaying the bull. the end of all things as the end of time draws near, the savior, saoshyant, will arise. he will prepare the world to be made new, and help ahura mazda to destroy a

RITUEL ET DOGME DE LA HAUTE MAGIE BY ELIPHAS LEVI PART I

are analogous to those of the book of hermes or the genesis of enoch, to make use of a tentative title which expresses merely the personal opinion of the erudite william postel. the cherub, or symbolic bull, which moses placed at the gate of the edenic world, bearing a fiery sword, is a sphinx, having a bull's body and a human head; it is the antique assyrian sphinx, and the combat and victory of mithras were its hieroglyphic analysis. now, this armed sphinx represents the law of mystery which watches at the door of initiation to warn away the profane. voltaire, who knew nothing of all this, was highly diverted at the notion of a bull brandishing a sword. what would he have said had he visited the ruins of memphis and thebes, and what would the echo of past ages which slumbers in the tombs

RITUEL ET DOGME DE LA HAUTE MAGIE BY ELIPHAS LEVI PART II

e sphinx. man, eagle, lion and bull. corresponded with the four elements of the old world, water being signified by the cup held by the man or aquarius; air by the circle or nimbus surrounding the head of the celestial eagle; fire by the wood which nourishes it, by the tree fructifying in the heat of earth and sun, finally, by the sceptre of royalty, which the lion typifies; earth by the sword of mithras, who each year immolates the sacred bull, and, together with its blood, pours forth that sap which gives increase to all fruits of earth. now, these four signs, with all their analogies, explain the one word hidden in all sanctuaries, that word which the bacchantes seemed to divine in their intoxication when they worked themselves into frenzy for io evohe. what then was the meaning of this

RUBY TABLET OF SET

dynasty considered itself greek, spoke and wrote greek, and made no effort to learn egyptian. but by the 2nd century bce the greek culture had been absorbed into the egyptian. by the time of julius caesar's arrival in 30 bce, the dynasty was so decadent and weak that it fell almost without a blow. the hellenistic era saw the proliferation of various mystery cults, such as those of isis, orpheus, mithras, and gnosticism. the hellenistic philosophies discussed below were primarily influential in the intellectual centers of the west, and would persist into the roman era. skepticism, introduced by pyrrho of elis (360-270 bce) and timon of the platonic academy in athens (320-230 bce, may be defined as the doctrine that any true knowledge is impossible, or that all knowledge is uncertain. a pos

the old animistic paganism. marcus tullius cicero (106-43 bce) is generally regarded as one of the more prominent advocates of this roman stoicism [together with the emperor marcus aurelius (161-180 ce, although he considered himself an academic skeptic [after the platonic academy in athens. in the 1st century bce rome saw the significant influence of imported initiatory systems, such as those of mithras (persia, the magna mater (phrygia/asia minor, and osiris/serapis (egypt. roman philosophy was heavily influenced by the customs, needs, and functions of the secular state. at the time of its original monarchy, rome also had an assembly (all male citizens of military age) and a senate. the assembly was essentially a ratifying body with veto power; it could not initiate legislation. the sena

a philosophical hermetism 1. philo, the man and his thought 2. the evidence from hippolytus 3. the old gnostics iii. some basic gnostic methods 1. cosmology 2. anthropology 3. soteriology iv. results of research in gnostic science 1. the myth of pistis sophia 2. the mystery of the first mystery 3. the gnosis of jesus the mystery of the ineffable 4. the degrees of the mysteries 5. the mysteries of mithras 6. the mystic diagrams 7 'inaoca xpiatoa 8. the truth 9. god v. the gnosis as a hermetic science can lead to new-thinking vi. conclusion i. introduction gnosis sounds very much more formidable and technical in english or german than it does in greek. avwaic is "knowledge. gnosis is the original greek term which means knowledge, and it is employed to designate intellectual knowledge as dist

light-realm, and so on up to the twelfth. and mary asks "master, how is it that the first mystery hath twelve mysteries, whereas the ineffable hath but one mystery" the answer is that they are really one mystery; this mystery is ordered into twelve, and also into five, and again into three, while still remaining one; they are all different aspects or types of the same mystery. 5. the mysteries of mithras the chief point of contact among the many religions of the roman empire was in the common worship of the sun, and the inner core of this most popular cult was, from about bc 70 onwards, to be found in the mysteries of mithras "the worship of mithras, or of the sungod, was the most popular of heathen cults, and the principle antagonist of the truth during the first four centuries of our per

es of mithras "the worship of mithras, or of the sungod, was the most popular of heathen cults, and the principle antagonist of the truth during the first four centuries of our period" such is the statement of one who looks at it from the point of view of a christian ecclesiastic, and indeed the church fathers from the time of justin martyr onward have declared that the devil, in the mysteries of mithras, had plagiarized their most sacred rites by anticipation. the mithriac mysteries represented the esoteric side of a great international religious movement, which the uniting together of many peoples into the graeco-roman world had made possible, and which resulted from the contact of greece and rome with the thought of the east. 6. the mystic diagrams it is very probable, therefore, that i

e upon the adoption of christianity are still being felt. and one of the chief motivators for political rebellion is religious differences. thus we see in god the father both the yhwh of the hebrews and the various attempts at describing apollo as the god above gods among the greek philosophers. in god the son and the events of his earthly life we find plagiarisms of various cults such as that of mithras. in god the holy ghost is every concept the mystic could desire, sufficiently ambiguous to allow unlimited explanation and devotion. surely the philosophers and gnostics could be kept busy. the pantheon of deities would not be complete without the legendary saints. these were not supposed to be worshipped, as they were not divine. it was claimed that they had all lived exemplary lives, and

THE GALE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF THE UNUSUAL UNEXPLAINED VOL 1

e g a l e e n c y c l o p e d i a o f t h e u n u s u a l a n d u n e x p l a i n e d mystery religions and cults 271 although mithraism, the most popular religion among the soldiers in the roman legions, became christianity s greatest rival in the early centuries of the church, it was not, as is often incorrectly cited, a christian heresy. while it is true that the worshippers of the persian god mithras spoke of the adoration of their deity by a group of shepherds at his miraculous birth, observed a baptismal ritual that must be observed by those who wished to follow him, participated in a communal meal of bread and water which resembled the eucharist, and celebrated his birthday on december 25, mithraism had been established throughout the persian empire at least 500 years before the bir

ho wished to follow him, participated in a communal meal of bread and water which resembled the eucharist, and celebrated his birthday on december 25, mithraism had been established throughout the persian empire at least 500 years before the birth of jesus christ in 6 b.c.e. mithraism had been spread throughout the then-known world by a group of magi, who preached an apocalyptic scenario in which mithras, greatly associated with solar symbolism, would return at the end of a 7,000-year cycle to renew the world and to reestablish his earthly reign. in rome, mithras had appeal to both the foot soldier and his ranking officers. mithraism was a macho religion for men only no women allowed. after baptismal rites had been conducted, the rugged legionnaires passed through graded ranks, such as cro

d his ranking officers. mithraism was a macho religion for men only no women allowed. after baptismal rites had been conducted, the rugged legionnaires passed through graded ranks, such as crow, soldier, lion, courtier of the sun, and, ultimately, father. boys as young as seven could begin their initiation as crow, and neither military rank nor class distinctions differentiated those who followed mithras. those who declared themselves to be practicing mithraists were valued as disciplined and temperate soldiers who had formed an unbreakable bond with their fellow worshippers. and those men who faced death in battle were assured that the rites of mithras would guide them securely into a peaceful afterlife. the powerful effects of emperor constantine s (d. 337) conversion to christianity in

bscurity by the end of the fourth century, retaining only small pockets of followers scattered throughout what had once been the persian empire. sources: clifton, chas s. encyclopedia of heresies and heretics. new york: barnes& noble, 1998. fox, robin lane. pagans and christians. new york: alfred a. knopf, 1989. spence, lewis. encyclopedia of occultism. new hyde park: n.y: university books, 1960. mithras in the roman legions of the orgnization s members become dissatisfied with the religious routine and yearn for a more passionate expression of faith, they break off into a splinter group of the church and become a sect. as the sect becomes more organized and is regarded more seriously by the mainstream culture, it becomes known as a denomination. the various christian mystery schools, cult

THE KEY TO THE MYSTERIES

about him for a magical weapon; and, being probably endowed with that human frailty called laziness, he hopes to find a weapon ready made. thus we find the christian magus who imposed his power upon the world taking the existing worships and making a single system combining all their merits. there is no single feature in christianity which has not been taken bodily from the worship of isis, or of mithras, or of bacchus, or of adonis, or of osiris. in modern times again we find frater iehi aour trying to handle buddhism. others again have attempted to use freemasonry. there have been even exceptionally foolish magicians who have tried to use a sword long since rusted. wagner illustrates this point very clearly in "siegfried" the great sword nothung has been broken, and it is the viii only w

THE SECRET RITUALS OF THE OTO

raft, while the christs of the latin, lutheran and anglican churches alike are but the machine-gods of all fraud and oppression, being stolen and prostituted from that christ in whom our fathers in the gnosis strove to synthesize the warring gods of syria, greece, chaldea, rome and egypt at the time when the growth of the roman empire first made travel and the intercommunication of the priests of mithras, adonis, attis, osiris, dionysius, isis, astarte, venus and many scores of others possible. traces of this recension are still visible in the mass and in the calendar of the saints, all gods and goddesses of universal import receiving the same honour by the same rites as before, while the local gods were replaced by saints, virgins, martyrs, or angels, often of the same name, always of the

our end in god; wherefore this is the great work, to attain unto the godhead. pitiful and of tender love, hath he revealed unto the wise men of old time, the way of this attainment. the gnostics and manichees preserved it in their most secret assemblies as they had received it from the greatest of the magi of egypt; nor were the ophites ignorant of this mystery, nor the men that did worship unto mithras, and the secret is hidden in the fable of samson; our lord jesus christ established it through the mouth of the beloved disciple. this was the inmost secret of the knights of the temple, and the brethren of the rose crosse concealed it in their college of the holy ghost. from them and from their successors the hermetic brothers of light have we received it directly, and here declare it ope

TWO ESSAYS ON THE WORSHIP OF PRIAPUS

fully, by combining several forms together, and showing, not only the divine attribute, but the mode and purpose of its operation. for instance; the celebrated bronze in the vatican has the male organs of generation placed upon the head of a cock, the emblem of the sun, supported by the neck and shoulders of a man. in this composition they represented the generative power of the erwj, the osiris, mithras, or bacchus, whose centre is the sun, incarnate with man. by the inscription on the pedestal, the attribute this personified, is styled the saviour of the world (swthr kosmou; a title always venerable, under whatever image it be represented.3 the egyptians showed this incarnation of the deity by a less permanent, though equally expressive symbol. at mendes a living goat was kept as the ima

WICCA WITCHCRAFT TODAY

t descendant of the circles used in the prehistoric cave magic, though of course it may have come from the east. the romans suppressed the druids in the areas they effectively occupied, but i think it possible that a women's section may have carried on even there, perhaps in secret; or maybe they were tolerated and some romans and greeks who belonged to the various mysteries, particularly that of mithras, finding similar organisations, became members, so the goddesses became identified with their classical goddess; hence the wording of the charge. 4- witch practices the people who were attracted to the witch cult were chiefly of the intelligent classes comprising craftsmen, soldiers, merchants, doctors, sailors, farmers and clerks. they were all people who wanted adventure, the 'bright you

WILLIAM WESCOTT NUMBERS THEIR OCCULT POWER AND MYSTIC VIRTUES

word seven, also sh b o h, is derived from, or is similar to sh b, o, to swear. 75. clean beasts were admitted into the ark by sevens, whilst the unclean only in pairs. the goths had 7 deities from whom come our names of weekdays; sun, moon, tuisco, wotan, thor, friga, seatur, corresponding, of course, to the seven planets. apollo, the sun god, had a greek title ebdomaios, sevenfold. the persian mithras, a sun god, had the number 7 sacred to him. note the mysterious kadosh ladder of 7 steps ascent and 7 steps descent, the one side oheb eloah, love of god; the other oheb kerobo, love of the neighbor. numbers--th eir occu lt power an d mys tic vir tu es by w. wyn n wes tcott plato, in his timaeus, teaches that from the number seven, was generated the soul of the world, anima mundana (adam k

e greek long o, omega. in the zoroastrian theology, we read of the highest beings the 7 amshaspands. ormuzd, source of life; bahman, the king of this world; ardibehest, fire producer; shahrivar, the former of metals; spandarmat, queen of the earth (the gnostic sophia; khordad, the ruler of times and seasons; and amerdad, ruling over the vegetable world. below there are the 27 izeds, ruled over by mithras. in opposition to these were powers of darkness, the 7 arch devs and the 27 devs, or devils as we call them. 84. the historic city of rome, pagan before it was christian, was built upon seven hills. the palatine, coelian, aventine, viminal, quirinal, esquiline, and the capitol. in latin times it was called urbs septicollis. some old authors speak of valentia as a secret name for rome. the

t the extra ones were. 270. worlds of the idra rabba, or greater holy assembly. 271. the talmud, in niddah, says that the hebrew woman pregnancy lasted 271, 272 or 273 days. 280. 280 days, the term of natural pregnancy, human- ten times the lunar 28-day period. 284. the number of theos, god, in greek letters. 294. ekklesia, the church and rodon, the rose, and also melchisedek, king of salem. 300. mithras. the riches of korah were so vast that it took 300 mules to carry them. there were 300 sorts of devils in sichin. the veil of the temple required 300 priests to draw it aside, and 300 to cleanse it. 314. the number of shaddai, shdi and of metatron, mttrun. 318. helios, the sun. numbers--th eir occu lt power an d mys tic vir tu es by w. wyn n wes tcott 345. this is the number of el shaddai

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