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The Royal Ritual of The Sphinx
CONCERNING THE
ROYAL RITUAL OF THE SPHINX
Issued by the
Thelemic Order and Temple
of the Golden Dawn
February, 1991 e.v.
In Association with
New Falcon Publications and
the Israel Regardie Foundation, Inc.
By Sir David Cherubim
(Frater Superior Chief of the
Novus Ordo Aureae Aurora)
Copyright (C) 1991 e.v.
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.
The Royal Ritual of the Sphinx is a Magical Rite of Consecration.
Consecration is the active dedication of a thing to a single
purpose. The Royal Ritual of the Sphinx is specifically designed
to dedicate the Magician unto the Great Work of doing his True
Will, to unite him with his Holy Guardian Angel, which Holy Angel
is represented by the Sphinx. The Sphinx is a universal symbol of
the Holy Guardian Angel; it can be applied by all to represent
their True Self, to invoke in their consciousness the dynamic
realization of their essential nature, to go forth and do their
True Will and accomplish the Great Work.
This Royal Ritual is a Supreme Rite of Self-Initiation containing
fundamental magical formulae by which the Magician can consecrate
his elemental vehicles to the Supreme Operation of the Great
Work. These elemental vehicles are the five senses, that is,
sight, taste, smell, touch, and hearing; and these five senses
are called in Magical Philosophy the five Elements of Fire,
Water, Air, Earth, and Spirit. In this Magick Ritual the Magician
activates the four lesser Elements of Fire, Water, Air and Earth,
and then are these Elements concentrated and synthesized in the
greater Element of Spirit, also called Aethyr. The four lesser
Elements correspond with the Four Powers of the Sphinx and with
the Four Glories of the Law of Thelema. The Four Powers of the
Sphinx are "to Know, to Dare, to Will, and to Keep Silent." The
greater Element of Spirit corresponds with the Fifth Power of the
Sphinx called "to Go." To go is the true function of a god; it
is the act of doing one's True Will, like a star flaming forth on
its own self-determined orbit, free to fulfil its cosmic destiny
in the celestial scheme of the Infinite Universe.
The five Elements and Powers of the Sphinx are linked with the
five points of the Ancient Pentagram, which is the Sign of the
Magician who has transcended the elements by the proper
application of the Powers of the Sphinx and who is therefore able
to direct the elements according to the essential scheme of his
True Will, and who is thus united with his True Self. The
Pentagram and the Sphinx both symbolize the Supreme Attainment in
Magick, that is, the Great Work of attaining the Knowledge and
Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel, which lofty attainment
is made possible by way of doing one's True Will, for the True
Will is the True Self in action. By observing the course of the
True Will we can see into the core of our own natures, perceiving
the sublime essence of our own Inner Angel. Action is the
fundamental means by which to attain the knowledge of the True
Self, for action is experience and experience is knowledge.
To attain the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian
Angel can only be achieved by action which is, in its most
glorious sense, a true sacrament of love, a uniting of the self
with the Universe; it is a mighty ritual and invocation of the
Inner Self; it is a vehicle of expression for that True Self. To
act is to see; to see is to know; and to know is to be. Action is
the meaning of the word "Tantra". Tantra is divine knowledge in
action; it is the act of the divine in manifestation. "Tantra"
also means "ritual" and "method". Tantra is the method, ritual
and act of the Divine in manifestation. The Royal Ritual of the
Sphinx is indeed a Tantric Rite. Its magical formulae are Tantric
in various subtle ways, as well as being profoundly Thelemic. The
Law of Thelema is the Law of Action! The Royal Ritual of the
Sphinx is a Magick Rite by which the True Self is realized by way
of the True Will which is the True Self in Action.
In the Royal Ritual of the Sphinx fire is used for sight, wine is
used for taste, incense is used for smell, oil is used for touch,
and the bell is used for hearing. In this way all of the elements
are activated and balanced. By activating an element you initiate
a subtle current which vitalizes its corresponding power of the
Sphinx within you and thus you can experience its corresponding
Glory. If you activate Fire you will vitalize and nourish the
power to Dare and you will experience Light; if you activate
Water you will vitalize and nourish the power to Keep Silent and
you will experience Love; if you activate Air you will vitalize
and nourish the power to Know and you will experience Liberty; if
you activate Earth you will vitalize and nourish the power to
Will and you will experience Life. These are all then harmonized
in Spirit for the lofty attainment of the supreme power to Go.
It is suggested that Neophytes but principally Zelators of the
New Order of the Golden Dawn perform this Magick Rite. The New
Zelator Grade concerns itself with the initiation of the Neophyte
into the Mysteries of the four elements, unlike the Zelator Grade
of the Old Order which concerned itself solely with the
initiation of the Neophyte into the Mystery of the element of
earth. In the Royal Ritual of the Sphinx is contained the magick
formulae of the Great Work as represented in the Ceremony of the
Zelator of the New Order of the Golden Dawn. The Royal Ritual of
the Sphinx initiates the Magician into the subtle currents of the
Powers of the Sphinx, which is the essential formula of the New
Zelator Grade. Thus the Sphinx Ritual is most applicable to the
magical work of the Zelator of the New Order, but we should not
limit it to his use alone; all may partake of its holy magick; it
can be used by the Neophyte, Zelator, and Adepts as a daily Rite
of Consecration. For within this Royal Ritual is contained
certain magical formulae which are essential to the beginner as
well as to the more advanced. It is a Ritual that can be employed
in the magical scheme of the self-initiation of all, as a
practical method of dedicating the soul, mind and body to the
Great Work. Even the more advanced Adepts of Magick are in need
of always invoking the highest by way of magical consecration; it
is, in fact, an eternal operation of infinite importance, a
perpetual sacrament and a constant means of uniting the mind of
the Magician to the One Idea of his True Self and its True Will.
This Royal Ritual incorporates Thelemic principles in its
application to assist the Magician in his essential progress to
go forth and do his True Will and to unite with his True Self.
Its first proclamation is the Law of Thelema and it ends with a
further proclamation concerning the nature of that Law. It
contains magical formulae which can directly inspire the Magician
to do his True Will, to express the dynamic current of his own
True Self. This is the obligation of the Zelator of the New
Order. He is bound by Oath to do his True Will, and this very act
of limitation is his magical means to freedom, to be and to
express his True Self. The force of limitation is Saturn; but
this force is also the source of freedom when we are able to use
limitation instead of being used by it. To take an Oath is a
binding of the Will to a self-determined course of action; it is
a limiting of one's concentration so that one may attain the
object of one's Magick Oath. Just as a writer must concentrate
his mind on writing without intruding thoughts regarding other
matters, so must the Magician bind himself to a single course of
action, and the only sensible course of action for him to
obligate himself to is the course of his True Will, to realize
his True Self, since the Magician is a follower of the Path of
the Universe, conforming with her laws on all planes; and the
True Will of the Magician is the Universal Will, and the True
Self of the Magician is the Universe itself. In the Royal Ritual
of the Sphinx the Magician takes an Oath to exercise the Four
Powers of the Sphinx, that is, to Know, to Dare, to Will and to
Keep Silent so that he may attain the lofty power to Go, to do
his True Will and to realize his True Self. All else contributes
to this kinetic course of dynamic action, cultivating Light,
Life, Love and Liberty. The Oath is the Word and the Will; it is
our vehicle of creative power and our magick link to freedom.
As stated before, the Sphinx represents the Supreme Attainment in
Magick, that is, the accomplishment of the Great Work. Now the
Sphinx is a combination of Lion and Woman. The Lion is the
Masculine Principle or the Sun; the Woman is the Feminine
Principle or the Moon. To unite the Sun and Moon is the
accomplishment of the Great Work, thus the Sigil of the Sphinx
used in this Magick Ritual is the Sigil of the Sun and Moon
Conjoined and the Sign of the Sphinx used in this Magick Ritual
is the Sign of the Sun and Moon Conjoined. This sacramental union
of the Sun and Moon cannot take course without the essential
activation and synthesis of the magical elements. By activating
and synthesizing the magical elements of Nature, the Forces of
the Sun and Moon are harmonized and nourished with love,
cultivating their sublime union. Therefore in the Royal Ritual of
the Sphinx do we activate and synthesize the magical elements
before we make the Sigil and Sign of the Sun and Moon Conjoined.
We must first consecrate our vehicles of sense before we can
attain the Union of the Sun and Moon. This same union is
symbolized by the Hexagram, which is a symbol of fire and water
united. But it is further a symbol of man and god united, or of
the microcosm and macrocosm. In this sense, the Moon is the
human self or man (microcosm) and the Sun is the Holy Guardian
Angel or True Self (macrocosm). To unite the Sun and Moon is the
attainment of the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian
Angel. In this Royal Ritual of the Sphinx the Magician
consecrates his vehicles of sense to that grand attainment of
spiritual illumination. This magical operation is the same that
we find used in Tantric Yoga, which also consecrates the five
senses to the Deity of one's worship. It is actually an operation
that is used in various ways in various systems of spiritual
illumination. It is an operation that is most essential to the
Great Work; we cannot realize our True Self if our senses are
bound to the material world; they must become the vehicles of the
True Self, applied to the realization of that Inner Self and used
in the act of doing one's True Will. The senses must be dedicated
to the Great Work if we are to attain its lofty splendours; and
this dedication must not be partial, but whole.
The senses are the instruments which we must use in the operation
of the Great Work; they are the creative vehicles of our personal
expression in the world which need to be consecrated to the True
Self by way of action which is ritual. The senses are not evil;
on the contrary, the senses are most holy when dedicated to the
grand performance of the Great Work. When man conforms his
elemental vehicles with the Divine Operation of Cosmic Evolution,
he then reunites all his elements and attains a new species of
consciousness which is above and beyond mere earthly existence.
The senses are divine; they are the creative vehicles of the True
Self, its means to experience and to know itself. All material
forces are divine products of a spiritual power, and these
material forces are all created for a spiritual necessity. We are
here in our bodies for an essential work of spiritual
significance; our bodies are fit vehicles for a task of supreme
importance. Without our bodies and their senses we could not
fulfil our True Will. Now, in this very moment, our body and our
senses are made manifest for us to accomplish a great task of
individual and collective significance. The body is the Chariot
of the Mind and it is the link between the soul and the Universe.
Therefore neglect not your body with its holy senses, for these
are your instruments by which to do your True Will, to accomplish
your Great Work.
There is much talk in Buddhism and Hinduism of the necessity to
eliminate desire for the realization of Truth, for the salvation
of the soul. Desire has been defined as the fruit of the senses
and as the cause of all suffering and ignorance. Freedom from
the desires has been a principal theme of many men and women
seeking the religious life. They would cut themselves off from
the world of the senses by desiring nothing in the hope of
spiritual perfection. But these things are, in proper measure of
understanding, purely null. We need not overcome the senses by
avoiding them, by becoming begging monks or floating yogis. If
we would simply take a little time to think, to use our little
brains, it will become very apparent how silly this whole scheme
is of becoming pure by avoiding the desires of the elemental
senses. The senses are a dynamic source of both positive and
negative currents of force; they can be used for either
constructive or destructive ends. If the senses are in control of
a man, then is he no better off than the simple animal of Nature
who knows not where he goes. Of course it is an insult to the
animal kingdom to include all animals in this analogy; the only
animal that should be applied -- and this by way of analogy
only -- is the sheep. But if the Soul of Man reclaims its
Lordship over the senses, then do they become perfect tools in
the hands of the Lord of the Body, and man becomes a veritable
master of his universe, a mighty goat or god if you will.
Let no man feel himself obligated to the unessential task of
giving up his material way of life, with its multitude of
desires, for the attainment of the Great Work. All that is needed
is for you to cultivate control over your senses, to acknowledge
that you are beyond them and that you have the power to regulate
them. The senses are your instruments, perfect tools that you
can use to accomplish the Great Work. Try not to be identified
with the desires of your senses, but stand outside of them as an
observer, a witness; then take control of them, refine them, and
balance them, and so shall you consecrate your elemental
vehicles, dedicating your physical self to your spiritual Self.
If a man can witness something, it means that he is beyond that
thing, for awareness is transcendence. We are always witnessing
our senses in the form of desires, usually becoming identified
with them. We take into account no measure of the Self that is
beyond the senses and desires, but instead we become what our
senses tell us. When this course of action takes place, then
ignorance prevails and sorrow is due. But if we go within and
acknowledge our True Self beyond our senses and desires, and
become a witness rather than an animal, then do we transcend our
senses and gain the power to control them, that is, direct them
in the proper manner to the proper spiritual object.
When we stand above the senses we obtain control over the
elements, so that they become forces in our command. This means
that we can, according to the direction of our True Will,
transmute them into veritable mediums of perfect expression on
earth for the manifestation of our True Self. The Magick
Pentagram represents the Lordship of the Self over the elemental
senses. The top point of the Pentagram represents the True Self
(Spirit), whereas the other four points represent its material
vehicles. The True Self must stand above its material vehicles to
direct them according to the kinetic current of its True Will.
The Pentagram and Sphinx both represent this magical operation.
This can all be summed up in the Hindu concept of stepping out of
an ever-turning wheel. The wheel is the senses with their
innumerable desires, and only by stepping out of the wheel can we
transcend and direct it. What is outside of the wheel is the
True Self, represented by the Sphinx on top of the Wheel of Atu
10 of Tarot. The True Self is the source of that which is the
producer of the elements, therefore is it necessary to be the
True Self to stand above them and to direct them. Yet to step
out of the wheel does not mean that we have to give up our senses
with all their delicious desires. It is all a matter of what we
are identifying with, our True Self or our desires. We are not
our desires, but they are a part of our personality which is the
divine expression of our soul.
To be identified with our True Self, beyond the personality and
its desires, is to transcend the wheel and realize who we really
are. We then become non-attached to the senses and we achieve the
sublime experience of the spiritual Self. When this is the case,
we can then freely indulge in all the desires that we so will,
according to our true natures. Our senses will then be perfect
mediums of expression for the creative liberty of the soul and
nothing can do us wrong. Think not evil of the senses, but rather
your misuse of them; for they are your divine instruments by
which you will accomplish the Great Work.
But know that in essence you are not your body and senses. This
is a simple truth based upon the fact that you are witnessing
their activities as an observer. Anything you are witnessing is
just an object of perception cast upon the screen of your mind.
All things which you perceive are thoughts of your mind, and you
are just as much beyond your thoughts as you are beyond your body
and senses. All thought is derived from sense-perceptions, and
indeed you stand above them all. They are your manifestations and
not your True Self which is, in essence, beyond all thought.
Think of your True Self as the head of your body which regulates
the movements of your arms and legs. You control your body; it is
your animal to train and transcend. Once you know this, and you
are certain of its truth, you then purify your mind of its dross
rubbish, and you are then able to consecrate your senses to the
performance of the Great Work. Your body, which is your greatest
gift, is the Laboratory wherein to perform your Great Work. It is
the Temple of your god; it is the home of your Universe.
Therefore worship it and make it a fit vehicle for you to go
forth and achieve the victory of your True Will!
In the Royal Ritual of the Sphinx we use the senses to transcend
the senses; we do not avoid them in our holy Magick. To do so is
like trying to obtain a high grade in an advanced examination of
science without an adequate brain and a sufficient education in
the fundamental principles of science; they are essential
elements of the matter unless, of course, your idea of a high
grade is to wear a dunce cap and have good humored people honor
your vast intelligence! Based on the fact that I do not think any
of my readers so fortunate to be in such a high position of
special recognition, I shall continue with this lesson knowing my
readers would much more prefer to wear a crown of wisdom on their
heads. Let us progress.
The Magician should commit to memory the Royal Ritual of the
Sphinx prior to its sacred performance. It is a simple process to
do so, for it is a very short Magick Ritual; and it can be
performed within a period of 10 minutes or less. Before
performing the Royal Ritual of the Sphinx, the Magician should
duly banish by way of the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram or by
way of the Star Ruby Ritual. The symbols of the senses, that is
fire, wine, incense, oil and the bell, should be positioned in
their appropriate places on the Altar, that is, fire in the
South, wine in the West, incense in the East, oil in the North,
and the bell in the Centre of it all. The Magician should be
robed as he deems fit for this Holy Rite of Magical Consecration,
and he should have at his command a Magick Wand to draw the Sigil
of the Sphinx at the appointed time. The Sigil of the Sphinx is
made by drawing a symbol of Sol surmounting a Lunar Crescent. The
Sign of the Sphinx is made by forming a Circle of Sol around the
head with the arms, with hands crossed above the head forming a
Crescent of Luna. We shall now progress with the Ritual itself.
Note the magick formulae of its various stages and how these all
combine to determine the magical course of its application to the
Grand Operation of the Great Work.
THE ROYAL
RITUAL OF THE SPHINX
In the Centre of his Temple, facing East, let the Magician give
the Sign of Horus, and say:
In the Sign of the Supreme and Terrible Lord,
Crowned and Conquering and Most Adored,
I proclaim His Mighty Word for All:
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law!
Let the Magician return in the Sign of Silence, then advance to
his Altar, ignite the fire, and seeing its radiant glory, let
him say:
I stand before this Altar of Flame
With courageous soul, body and brain!
To do my Will and to extol
The One Great Work of Living Sol!
Let the Magician now drink the Wine, and tasting its vital
essence, let him say:
I drink this Holy Wine of Love
In aspiration to the Lord Above!
To fill my soul with ecstasy sublime
And to partake of the secret Joy of the Divine!
Let the Magician now ignite the incense, smelling its inspiring
scent, and let him say:
I breathe in my body a sweet scent of bliss
More subtle and informing than Hell's own Kiss!
To inspire my mind with the Knowledge of The One
And to nourish my Spirit with the Liberty of the Sun!
Let the Magician now touch himself with Abramelin Oil, and
feeling its fiery sensation thrill through his body, let
him say:
I touch my body with the Holy Oil
To awaken the Serpent to Uncoil!
To embrace my aspiring and reverent Heart
With the subtle Force of this Ritual of Art!
Let the Magician now strike the Bell 3-5-3, and hearing its sound
thrill in the depths of his spirit, let him say:
I hear the sound of the Sacred Bell
Casting upon me its Mystick Spell!
To arouse and awaken me To Go,
As I will, above and below!
Let the Magician now take hold of his Wand (or use index
finger), and trace in the East, above the Altar, the Sigil of
the Sphinx, and let him say:
In search of True Liberty, Love and Light,
And the sacred splendour of the One True Life,
I swear and I promise to Will and to Know,
To Dare and to Keep Silent the Life Ineffable!
Let the Magician now give the Sign of the Sphinx, and let
him say:
As a Magician these things I shall never forsake
To the glory and worship of the Great and Holy Snake!
Who embraces me in the mighty grip of His power
So that I may accomplish my Will in this hour!
Let the Magician now give the Sign of Horus, and let him say:
In the Sign of the Supreme and Terrible Lord,
Crowned and Conquering and Most Adored,
I swear to perform the Four Powers of Skill:
Knowledge, Courage, Silence, and Will!
That I may accomplish the Great Work of Sol
And partake of the Four Glories of the Law!
To attain to the Knowledge and Conversation
Of the Holy Angel of this Great Invocation!
To Go upon my Way with holy zeal,
For Love is the law, love under will!
Let the Magician return in the Sign of Silence, advance to the
Altar, strike the battery 3-5-3, and say:
Abrahadabra!
*****************************************************************
Here ends our New Golden Correspondence Lesson concerning the
Royal Ritual of the Sphinx. May this Magick Ritual of Self-
Initiation benefit all those who are devoted to the Great Work,
by way of the magical method of consecration, dedicating them
unto the grand task of doing their True Will, unto the ultimate
attainment of the supreme realization of their True Self, and for
the sublime illumination and inspiration of their souls with
Light, Life, Love and Liberty! The Sphinx is arisen like the
Morning Sun; the New Golden Dawn of Thelema is come! Let us
perform this August Rite with joy and beauty, and with subtlety
and force, nourishing our higher aspirations with the celestial
glory of the stars, emerging in the Dawning Light of the Starry
Sphinx of the Great Sun of Wisdom; yea, of the Great Sun of
Wisdom! In nomine Novus Ordo Aureae Aurora, Sic sit vobis!
Love is the law, love under will.
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