Technically Evoction:

 Technically Evocation:

56. DE MENSTRUO ARTIS. (On the Medium of the Art)

But concerning the Medium by whose sensitive Nature our Magick Force is transmitted to the Object of our Working, doubt not. For already in other Galaxies of Physics have we been compelled to postulate an Aethyr wholly hypothetical in order to explain the Phenomena of Light, Electricity, and the like; nor doeth any Man demand Demonstration of the Existence of that Aethyr other than its Conformity with general Law. Thou therefore, Creator and Transmitter of thine own Energy, needest not to ask whether by this or by some other Means thou performest thy Work. Yet I know not why this Aethyr of the Mathematicians and the Physicians should not be one with the Astral Light, or Plastic Medium or Aub, Aud, Aur (these three being a Trinity) of which our own Sages have spoken. And this Meditation may bring forth much Knowledge physical, which is good, for that which is above is like that which is beneath, and the Study of any Law leadeth to the Understanding of all Law. So mayst thou learn in the End that there is no Law beyond Do what thou wilt.

Liber Aleph: Aleister Crowley-

The L.V.X. permeates all reality so that we are all connected thereby. The idea of universal oneness is, I suppose a misunderstanding of this element called Aethyr in the above quote. Not only does this light unite all things it is also the medium through which prophesy is received. It has, in other words a connection to the collective mind which is capable of enlivening the intuition and creativity. The L.V.X. is a medium through which messages may be sent and received affecting either the magician’s creativity and intuition as subjective, or the magician’s will may be projected along this substrate to affect change in the external world.

The trinity, Aub, Aud, Aur is of interest, as it gives us the mechanics of magickal creation, meaning a creation that is meant to cause a predetermined change according to the magician’s will. It is the same trinity presented in the 9th degree O.T.O. initiation, which is the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. But this trinity is also present in the supernal triad and is symbolized in the relationship between the paths of the Fool, the Magus and the Empress, or Aleph, Beth, and Daleth. These paths connect to each other through Binah and Chokmah which via this connection connects to the Limitless Light emanating forth from Kether. It is when these paths are in perfect harmony, that the L.V.X. issues forth into the worlds below the Abyss.

We could say that the sun represents the will of a magician, as a consequence, a magician at the start of any magickal operation places himself at Tiphareth as the Word. This is very clearly expressed in rituals of goetia where the magician invokes the different names of God proclaiming himself to be a prophet. This is done to force the demon into obedience but there is another, hidden, more metaphysical reason for doing this, which ties into what Crowley is talking about in the above.

According to the symbols found in the 9th degree the magician is the Father and the Son is the Astral Light, and of course, Aethyr is symbolized as the Holy Spirit. As stated, these elements are attributed to the three paths above the Abyss, although they aren’t very clearly represented, but the Magus is the Astral Light, the Fool is the magician and Da-ath sees these uniting with the Light from Kether by way of the Empress. Although, below the Abyss, the magician is the Logos of the operation: the Father, whose Sun is his reflection, thus his will is the thing reflected and the Astral Light is the Son or the Plastic Medium that is shaped according to the Logos. The L.V.X. as I have stated is a conductor, both receptive and active and is the medium upon which the will is imprinted.

The above is usually thought of in the context of Sex Magick or ecstatic states, but in fact, this is the formula for practical magick and is true for all forms, whether it be ritual evocation or skrying, the magician must in the way here presented make contact with Aethyr. Skrying is perhaps the easiest as it deals with the magician’s own psyche, and L.V.X. in this regard merely speaks of individual consciousness, however, within the context of goetia, the L.V.X. refers to consciousness as that in which we share and has the force to affect change according to the field wherein the magician is working.

The magickal child is the Son of the Logos, of course, when considering the symbols this is obvious. However, this child, is an abstraction, it is a child of light and as such isn’t subject to the same forces as we are, it is rather bound to Aethyr. Aethyr as hinted at in the Magus Atu is Mercurial, hence there is a propensity for the will of any operation to be destroyed by the power of this force. If the will is not concentrated enough, or if the magician lacks in skill and doesn’t effectively control the forces of nature during the operation, this child of light, may as well be termed an abortion of light.

We are always, from the time we are born in contact with the L.V.X. as we are united therein, it is the very place from where thoughts arise. But we are not adept at working with the Astral Light from the moment we project our first impression onto the field of consciousness. Herein lies the trickster. Mercury is in every sense impersonal, it is merely a force of nature, from which success is determined through harmony between a magician and the God. This is the reason that an operation must adhere to so many regulations to ensure its success, as the nature of the God in question is unpredictable, and right timing is an imperative. We could think of it allegorically in the following way with Mercury as messenger of the Gods: our prayers or intentions, must be packaged and presented in such a way, in our articulation thereof that they are able to withstand the journey, and most importantly, that the meaning doesn’t get lost in translation.

Thus, we as magicians perform ritual magick instead of attempting to will our way through life utilizing only the sheer power of our minds, we employ tools to strengthen and direct the Will. The elemental tools are used to harmonize the relationship between a magician’s intention and the universe and are the weapons of the Outer Order of the A.’.A.’. representing the different parts of the magician’s being. They correspond with the pentagram and once the magician has completed his assimilation of these elements, he pierces the Veil of Paroketh and his Soul is congealed within the Light at Tiphareth. Here we can see, from all that has been presented in this essay, that ritual evocation is an enactment on a small scale of this journey, and since Tiphareth is where the Microcosm and the Macrocosm are united upon the Tree of Life, the L.V.X. is attributed to both Self and the Other, it is transcendent being both, but the Astral Light may be thought of as projected by the magician and forming part of the same substance with its structure modified by the his intention.

The will must be crystal clear when attempting to imprint it upon the substrate of consciousness. Hence, certain aids are utilized when performing a ritual. The circle, the symbols, the weapons and furniture, the names of God and barbarous words of invocation are all chosen to symbolize the will, (the Logos of the ceremony, which must be formulated into a Word symbolizing the magician’s intention). These elements also have the effect, due to their foreign—symbolic and dreamlike character, to bridge the gap between the magician’s conscious mind and sub-conscious linking the will directly to reflect into the Astral Light and it is the Word that will aid in stamping this imprint upon the Aethyr. Demons are nothing more than portions of the magician’s unconscious associated with the talents and instincts, as well as, hereditary factors will determine which of these a person is most sensitive to. They are concentrated through isolating certain parts of the Will. Their evocation, is a means of raising these potentials to the surface and thereby the Logos of the ritual is strengthened as sharing in the same character as the entity evoked. Therefore, with the help of magickal aids, all the magician needs to do is perform a type of play symbolizing the successful outcome of his intent and it should be done, at least in the invisible world.

The magickal child, truly is a child, it is the child of will that one may think of as incarnating as a body of light with it being imprinted upon the Aethyr. When the circumstances around its conception and gestation aren’t favorable, the outcome will be uncertain. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance when performing any ritual, to make sure that everything done is in perfect harmony with the magician’s Will and the universe as a whole to avoid a negative outcome, as any such outcome, due to the elements explored in this essay, will have an equal effect on the magician psychically, as it will on anything else.