Notes On The Ninth Degree Of Amorc With Additional Commentary

Notes on the Ninth Degree of AMORC with Additional Commentary By Mark Stavish, M.A. Copyright 2000 Written prior and finally transcribed on April 4, 2000 Preface The lessons referred to here are dated on their covers and extend over the period from September 17, 1930 to July 8, 1931. As such, they are the originals from the reign of Harvey Spencer Lewis. Currently at least four or five organizations are using these monographs either directly or as the basis for their work. These organizations include: The Rosicrucian Order, AMORC; the Ancient Rosae Crucis (ARC), the Con-Fraternity Rosae+Crucis (CR+C), and as a result, indirectly the Ordo Militia Crucifera Evangelica (OMCE) the superior body of the CR+C. To some degree the Antiquus Arcanus Ordo Rubae Aureae Crucis (AAORRAC) which was originally formed out of German speaking AMORC members, could also be included in this list. For additional information relevant to this Degree see: Messages from the Celestial Sanctum by Raymond Bernard, former Grand Master AMORC (French Grand Lodge), Wisdom of the Mystic Masters by Joseph Weed, and Invisibility by Steve Richards. Introduction The Ninth Degree contains three Preliminary Monographs and forty actual lectures. This degree is a condensed form, or manual of an Egyptian/Hermetic style of ‘Raja yoga’.1 According to the Rosicrucian Manual (Second Edition, 1927), the Ninth Degree consists of the following: Ninth Grade Another highly impressive Temple Ritual2 whereby the Members who have properly reached this Grade and duly qualified for it are given titles and honors of the highest standing in the Order so far as Temple Ceremonies are concerned. Serious obligations of Secrecy and devotion to Rosicrucianism are required of those who take this Initiation in the Temple and receive the highest Pass-words and methods of recognition in the Temple Grades. This is followed by a series of forty very complete lectures and lessons dealing with subjects, many of which cannot be described in a Manual of this kind, that include revelations regarding Man’s relation to God and the highest Forces of the Cosmic and the development of the highest metaphysical powers within his own body. He is enabled to use some of these Forces of Nature to blot out and make hidden material things as well as eliminate mental and psychic things which may be obstacles in his life, or direct or 1

It would be worth while for students to compare the exercises presented here with those given by Franz Bardon in Initiation into Hermetics – A Practice of Magic, a contemporary of Harvey Lewis. Many of the exercises and theories presented in Bardon’s work are similar to those in AMORC’s lectures. Both appear to have been created independent of each other. 2 At the time these lectures originated, ritual initiations were only given in lodges of the Order. AMORC later began sending modified versions of these initiations for Home Sanctum Members. However, the First and Ninth Degrees, or Grades as they were called at this time, were and still are the most important ritual initiations for the organization.

change the course of natural events in their relation to him so as to bring about certain results in his own affairs or the affairs of others. This is the last Grade in which the Student receives Initiation on the Material Plane in Material Temples, and from this point onward is in contact with his Psychic Master from whom he receives further instructions and Psychic Initiation as he is ready for them. In this Grade also the Student receives the last vowel of the Lost Word and learns how to use this word for instantly affecting Laws, Principles and Manifestations throughout Nature.” (p.74) “For what we do presage is not in grosse, For we be brethren of the Rosie Cross: We have the Mason’s word and the second sight, Things for to come we can fortell aright.: Henry Adamson’s Muses Threnodie Translated by Christopher McIntosh, and his work, The Rosicrucians – The History, Mythology, and Rituals of an Esoteric Order, p. 43. (Samuel Weiser, 1997) It is suggested in some later academic research that AMORC was strongly influenced in its early development, mostly in ritual style that is, by the masonic Memphis and Mizraim. These in turn are said to be connected to Cagliostro’s Egyptian Masonry. Several stylistic similarities do exist between AMORC and Cagliostro’s rite: 1) 2) 3) 4) 5)

Use of Egyptian symbols Masonic style lodge and temple Triangular altar known as a ‘shekinah’ or Hebrew for ‘Divine Presence’.3 Ritualistic use of a young girl known as a ‘colombe’ or ‘dove’. Androgynous membership.

M&M however, is a body that also uses sexual magic, ie. tantric techniques, while AMORC does not. The Symbol of the Grade The symbol of the degree is an Egyptian uat in a triangle pointing down. The uat is a papyrus stalk in bloom and the symbol of eternal youth. The papyrus symbolizes the universe as it sprang from the primordial chaos of Nun and is the heraldic plant of Lower Egypt. Often shown growing from the primordial mound, the wand (uat) is associated with Hathor and Bast. A bunch of papyrus represents joy, triumph, and victory. According to E.A. Budge, in Egyptian Magic (1899) under the heading, “The Amulet of the Papyrus Scepter – This amulet was intended to give the deceased vigour and renewal of youth; it was made of mother of emerald, or of light green or blue porcelain, and, when the words of the CLIXth Chapter of the Book of the Dead had been 3

The triangular altar can be found in The Fama Fraternitatis painted on the ceiling over the body of CRC; in The Chemical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz, The Most Holy Trinsophia, attributed to Saint Germain and found in the possession of Cagliostro; the explanatory degrees of Scottish Freemasonry, and the fourth degree of Martinism.

recited over it, it was placed on his neck on the day of the funeral. In the XXVIth dynasty and later it seems as if the amulet represented the power of Isis, who derived it from her father, the husband of Renenet, the goddess of abundant harvests and food. At an earlier period, judging from the text of the CLXth Chapter, the amulet is put by the god Thoth into the hands of the deceased, who says, “It is in sound state, and I am in sound state; it is not injured, and I am not injured; it is not worn away, and I am not worn away.” One might easily read the words “initiate” for ‘deceased’ and ‘initiation’ for ‘funeral’. The gods would then be archetypal expressions of the Master Within (or ‘Holy Guardian Angel’) acting as initiator. Green, emerald, the symbol itself, vegetable life, and the goddess Bast and Hathor are related to the sphere of Netzach (Victory) on the qabalistic Tree of Life. This sphere is the final one prior to Adepthood and conveys to its initiates mastery of the emotions and the astral plane, or World of Yetzirah in qabalistic terms. It is also linked to the socalled “Secret Fire” of the alchemists. All flowering plants with stalks are considered symbols of the rising of this ‘Secret Fire’ or kundalini. The warmth of the (inner sun) warms the seed buried in the dark, wet matter (unconscious, as well as sexual and hormonal fluids), stirring it to life. This life then ‘blossoms’ as it reaches the full height. This is also organic, phallic, and creative in nature. The papyrus flower could be either the brain stem (highest center in laya yoga) as it connects to the throat, or possibly the crown. However, the crown is symbolized by the lotus flower in most instances. Here it represents the idea of inner unfoldment. The triangle symbolizes the forces of creation, and as used here, with one point downward, represents Divine or Spiritual creation. The triangle is used extensively in ceremonial magic and alchemical symbolism as the symbol for limitation, as well as the principle four-fold expressions of energy. The two pointing downward, ‘Water’ and ‘Earth’ are materializing in nature. Those pointing upward, ‘Fire’ and ‘Air’ are energizing in nature. “The triangle indicates that energy is now limited. It no longer proceeds from the infinite world, but is belongs to the finite. The triangle symbolizes the process of division of energy which insures the creation of the world. The two straight lines starting at the apex symbolize the growing distance between the two energies which issued from the same point and descend towards matter. The basis of the triangle is the line representing the opposition of the two energies in duality. Two straight lines which meet and form the apex of a polygon provide a point of manifestation which provokes a radiation in the same direction as the direction of the apex. The more acute the angle, the more potent the radiation, thus the apex of a triangle has a stronger radiation than the apex of a square.” 4 4

Fundamentals of Esoteric Knowledge, Lesson Four, page, 3. The Philosopher of Nature (PON), Copyright 1988).

Confidence - The key to success in all things mental (read: ‘emotional’ or feeling of) we are told is confidence. This is mentioned in the 2nd Degree and repeated in the 6th Degree. If fact, our confidence is more important than that of anyone we are trying to assist. If we lack confidence, doubt, fear, hesitate, or stop to analyze we will fail.

“Have confidence and you will have power!” “Dare to do and you will have the power to do.” Confidence builds on knowledge and experience. Yet without experience, it is tell one this simple truth. Thus, we must ATTAIN, or work for this power. This is the Magnum Opus, or Great Work. Our Greatest Work is the attainment of mastership over our consciousness, and inner forces through experiencing the resistance of matter during our incarnation. Only through resistance is true strength realized.

“By man’s domination of the finite, does he attain Infinite Mastership.” When the ‘Great Lost Word’ come to be a real living, breathing thing for us, we receive mastership of all the laws we been studying. We are to become avatars. The Law of Love – “An open mind, a broad and tolerant aspect of life and those who live, and permit no shackles or chains of creeds and dogmas, forms, and narrow conventional thoughts to tie you to earthly thoughts and bigoted living.” You must be as broad and tolerant as the Cosmic Mind of which you are a part. The Lost Word – in its brief form, “MATHRA” or full form of “MATHREM”. The Word is a symbol for a Law. RA (+) MA(-). The Word represents the order of the vibrations of Creation since sound was first uttered. Lost in creation, it can be duplicated, but the original was only uttered once - Ma, Tha, Ra. This means: Mother-Father-SoulSpirit-Man all in one word. We must start with an idea. When god created man in his image, he diffused his essence and placed it in each living creature. The mind of God is in each of us. We are God personified. “Man is God and Son of God, and there is no other God but Man.” The Secret Principle – Think of what you want to accomplish and say to your Inner Self, “If it pleases the Cosmic, it is done!” Imprint it on the Cosmic Mind/Akashic Records. First you must have a clear idea, and then project it into the Cosmic. Our power is unlimited if we are tolerant, kind, sympathetic, and attuned with the cosmic mind of the universe – the mind of God. Before anything can be physically manifested it must be

visualized for the ‘lost word’ to carry it forth into space for creation. There MUST BE A CLEAR mental picture. Have an idea clearly in mind, as either an image or a phrase. Then say, “If it pleases the Cosmic it is done!”. Note: This is different in the older material given in the Neophyte grades where the phrase, “If it be the Will of …….. It is done!” This MUST be said as a command in the PAST tense. All we need to do is ask, pray, visualize, and communicate the desire to our inner self and it is answered if we are loving, broad, and tolerant. If we are certain of something to be, we can use the above method to direct an event to occur at a specific day and hour. This is different than in other systems where one makes an affirmation according to their “True Will” (ie. evolutionary desire or impulse), such as, “It is my True Will that….” Or “In the Name of….” Invoking the ‘Name’ is the same as the ‘Lost Word’ only that one can draw their power from differing areas of the cosmos (ie. spheres on the Tree of Life, or cosmic planes’ and not necessarily from the ‘Unmanifest’ (ie..Divine Mind, or Kether). ALWAYS draw from Kether first! Otherwise imbalances can be created that must be restored. Qabalistic version: “In the Name of Ehieh and the Power of AGLA, it is my True Will that…” This mean, that through the creative power (Name) of my highest Becoming (Eheih), and the power (energy) of AGLA (‘For thou are great unto the ages oh Lord’) or, Omniscient and Omnipotent God that is present at all times and places, it is my True Will (creative desire in accordance with my evolutionary needs) that ….. manifest. It is clearly stated that ones desires must be united with the desires of the cosmos in order to manifest. If one seeks to harm another, it will only occur in accordance with the evolutionary needs of both parties concerned. This involves the Law of Suggestion as given in the 1st Degree: “Suggestion is a subtle command. A suggestion is a request, a wish, an order, or a law of one’s objective mind to the subconscious.” Also in that degree: 1) The basic governing law of the subconscious is constructive – if left alone!

2) Repeated activities for a law, or governing ideal, in the subconscious until removed or replaced by another law. 3) Willpower makes the subconscious mind act as we desire, through repetition, the subconscious acts on its own. “Habit is and unconscious law of the subconscious mind.” 4) Best time of the day for transmitting message, ideas, images from the objective to subconscious minds is as we fall asleep. Best time to receive messages from the subconscious is as we wake-up. Although both can be used for communicating in either direction. The Word in Christianity is associated with the Cosmic Mind, taking on the human form (John 1:1) through the agency of the Holy Spirit or Ruach Elohim. Ruach Elohim or ‘Soul of God’ is somewhat feminine in connotation (elohim is feminine) and is found after the Babylonian Captivity in the Old Testament. Zoroastrianism – Magi of pre-Zoroastrian Persia were the principle religious class and reconstituted themselves in Zoroastrian society in Persia (Iran) and Chaldea (Southern Iraq), the birthplace of Abraham and the Jews. For the Zoroastrians, the Spenta Mainuy, or “Holy (Creative) Spirit” of the Gathas was the creative force of the universe. “Voracious word” (Yasna, viii, I) Wisdom Incarnate was Mazda Ahura, or Absolute Light, Wisdom. “It is at once a mantra with tone effects, a colorful ideograph, and occult cipher to be deciphered according to the true science of numbers. Metaphysically speaking it unveils the Nature of Deity and Cosmos, and from the psychological viewpoint is the soul-power which all true men and good use to destroy the magic of Ahrim (the Deciever), following the example of Zoroaster himself (Vendidad, xix). It is called the “Axe of Victory” by which man hews down the Tree of Evil.”5 “Abunem Vaiream Tanum Payatae.” (The Word Sustains the Body) Mathra – Sacred invocation, word which expresses Divine Power. Gatha Ustavaiti, Yasna XLIV. “This I ask thee, O Ahura, tell me a right: How, O Mazda, shall I proceed to that great conference with you, to that consummation of your own, when my spoken wish shall be effected unto me, to be in the chieftainship and supported by Wealth and Immortality, and by that Mathra, thy word of thought, which fully guides our way through righteousness.”

5

The Gathas of Zarathustra – From The Zend-Avsta, Raghavan Iyer, General Editor. Sacred Text Series, Concord Grove Press, New York, NY. 1983. P 13-14. All quotes from the Gathas are from this text.

The ‘great conference with you’ can be read as ‘Knowledge and Conversation with one’s Holy Guardian Angel, or ‘Illumination’ via the ‘Master Within’. ‘Consummation’ can be read as ‘mystical marriage’, and ‘chieftainship’ as ‘adepthood’. The following is a hymn of spiritual power: Gatha Spenta Maiuyu, Yasna XLIX “And now, will I beseech you, O Mazda, and Righteousness within thy Mathra speaks to tell me about what lies within your will’s intention, that having discern aright how we can herald forth those truths, and that pure deana which is the Faith of Him who is Thy self, O Lord?” Deana – Inner spiritual self; spiritual insight “Ahura Mazda will send his ‘Holy Word’ (Mathra Spenta) or ‘Soul of Ahura’ to incarnate in saoshyant (savior, redeemer, redemptive power), and the latter will conquer angra mainyu (evil powers).” Comparing him to the Hindu deity Vishnu, “both are expected to appear as the savior of the world, seated in a white horse and followed by a host of spirits or genii, mounted likewise, and then men will rise from the dead.6 Compare this to Revelations xix 11-14, and the AMORC idea of ‘the Rider’. According to Rudolph Steiner and other esotericists, Rembrandt’s ‘The Polish Rider’ is said to be a portrait of CRC in his 17th century incarnation.7 Here is a comparison of MATHRA using the system put forth by Fabre d’Olivet in The Hebrew Tongue Restored, first published in English in 1921.8 Mem (M) – Protective aspect of creative power. Maturing, nurturing. Aleph (A) - Power, stability, unity Tau (Th) – Represents higher power. Resh (R) – Signifies movement which proceeds life and ultimate form; Fire unfolding in a circle. Aleph (A) – possibly ‘Ayen’ Mem (M) – silence, rest, peace Since no ‘th’ sounds existed in many ancient languages, this might be more of a ‘ts’ or ‘tz’ as in ‘tzaddi’. Vibrating, or rippling the sound like a modern ‘ttttzzzz’ or 6

The ‘horsemen’ represent Jupiter, or the mastery of the lower, animal nature as symbolized by the four elements. Qabalistists will find this of value in working the 25th Path. 7 A Christian Rosenkreutz Anthology, Ed. Paul Allen. Steinerbooks , Blauvelt, New York. 1968. P.404. 8 Taken from a reprint of an essay in The Kabbalah of the Golden Dawn by Pat Zalewski. Llewellyn Publications, St. Paul, MN. 1993. P. 8-13.The essay is an abridged version of one written for the Hermetic Order of the Stella Matutina, and dates to about 1923, or two years after d’Olivet’s work first appeared in English.

‘ttssss’ creates a stronger vibration at the root of the nose and psychic centers in the brain. The French pronounce it ‘Mazra’. In Egyptian, the word hekau denotes ‘words of power’, mantras, or invocations. It is also important to note that there is no word for ‘religion’ as we know it, only ‘magic’. It is easy to see the relationship between ‘speech’ and magic, or mystical experiences, when we consider that for the ancients, and the Gnostics in particular whose roots were in Egypt, that the Lost Word symbolizes the invisible. “It (the Lost Word or Speech) expresses and makes the invisible present, but remains a myth, almost a fiction, free of the constraints of any syntax. The initiate in quest of it can ‘neither read nor write’; he can only ‘spell’. Lost speech is the source of hermetic philosophy, which develops as it loses itself in the world and then bursts forth from its own darkness. The techniques of esotericism try to rediscover, in the various ways, the original state described in the myth: magic through provocation and initiation through symbolism. Lost speech may even have been a form of telepathy, an archaic means of communication such as Freud described in his writings on parapsychology.” And: “Lost speech is a form of Gnosticism, which reveals itself in snatches, in a sort of sacred trance, when the universe bursts into out being. It is only original in that it slumbers within us from our own beginning, and is only lost because our own inner darkness obscures it.”9 “Veiled Prophets”10 (opening) +RC+ “Beloved God of my heart, I now prepare to commune with my fellow Veiled Prophets, under the protection of the Veil of Obscurity. Let my thoughts and actions bear testimony to our sacred obligations and time honored traditions.” (closing) “As a Veiled Prophet, I close this sacred convocation, by invoking the blessing of the Sign of the Cross and the protection of the Veil of Obscurity.” +RC+ Before we can lead society, we must understand ourselves, where we have come from, and why we are here. Our outer and inner ‘selves’ must be unified and equal in comprehension. 9

Dictionary of the Occult by Andre Nataf. Wordsworth Editions, Ltd. Ware, Hertfordshire. 1991. P. 49. “Veiled Prophets” is the name given to members of this degree, and suggests a certain amount of clairvoyance on the part of its members. In one of its early publications known as CROMAAT, AMORC published what it called “A Complete System of Geomancy” Vol. E by Profundis XII. Page Five under the heading of “Cosmic Geomancy” states: “The system offered here is based upon a system or practice long used by the ‘The Veiled Prophets’ of our Order. These were men and women who had attained unusual degrees of understanding and development in our Order…The ‘Veiled Prophets’ were those whose education in the arts and sciences developed their understanding to where they could discern the laws underlying all coincidences…, and could use the laws of the subjective mind and its Cosmic attunement for the practical solution of mental and Cosmic problems.” This lecture is no longer sent to members and is very scarce. 10

Egyptian Initation In accordance with the belief common during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a series of lectures are presented, in what would now be referred to as a ‘pathworkings’, that describe a series of tests that each initiate must overcome. These trials are done in accordance with the theory that the pyramids were temples of initiation as well as testing by the ‘Elements’ of Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. According to one modern authority on esoteric practices, “Pathworkings are an ancient and valid form of occult training, but it is only in recent times that they have been made available to those outside the magical fraternities. Even within the schools and Orders of the Western Tradition they have been neglected and their full value in the mental and spiritual training of students has been and still is very underrated. Nor is this entirely the fault of their teachers, for many who apprentice themselves to the Path of High Magic prefer to press on to the more glamorous ritual work until they gain a little wisdom and begin to see the value of such training. Then it can mean months of backtracking and the acquiring of the acute sensory perception that accurate pathworking needs if it is to be used correctly and to its full potential. Did they but know it, it is the training gained in the art and practice of this kind of work that opens the doors of the mind and gives full access to the inner universe that lies within. Moreover, it lays down the important basics of the higher levels of symbology without which it is almost impossible to penetrate the Greater Mysteries.(italics mine)”11 While these words are equally applicable to the methods presented in these and other AMORC, or AMORC based lectures, it is in this area that AMORC is weakest in its use of mythology, symbolism, and their practical use by the aspiring adept. The purpose and expectations of the lectures dealing with ‘Egyptian Initiation’ and similar ‘stories’ that could be classed as pathworkings are not well explained. These “Egyptian Initiation” scenes are taken from Paul Christian’s two-volume work The History of Magic. A similar set of scenes can be found in the Illuminist era manuscript, Egyptian Mysteries, said to be a 14th century manuscript and translated into French by Christian (pseudonym of Jean-Baptiste Pitois).12 The principle symbols received over three days of purification are: the number ‘777’, a letter ‘R’, the Book ‘M’, a green jasper scarabs jewel, and the hour nine. The Papyrus of Nu comments on The Book of the Dead: “And behold, thou shalt make a scarab of green stone, with a rim of gold, and this shall be placed on the heart of the man, and it shall perform for him the ‘Opening of the Mouth’. And thou shalt anoint him with anti unguent, and thou shalt recite over it the following words of power.” The words are found in Chapter XXX-B of The Book of the Dead. 11

Highways of the Mind –The Art and History of Pathworking by Dolores Ashcroft-Nowicki, Aquarian Press. Wellingborough. 1987. P. 17. 12 The book mistakenly is identified with Iamblichus. Most likely it originated in the late 18 th century. See, Egyptian Mysteries – An Account of an Initiation, Samuel Weiser, Inc. York Beach , Maine. 1988.

The heart, or ab, is the seat of the emotions. The ‘Opening of the Mouth’ ritual used an iron (Mars) bar, so that the mouth of the deceased (initiate) could be opened. Athanasius Kirchner, one of the Renaissance’s greatest minds, and pansophists, was fascinated by Egypt, and saw in it the source of all things magical, as had the ancient Greeks before him. In his work, Oedipus Aegyptiacus (Germany, 1652-54) he illustrates the ‘journey’ of the scarab (initate) on its spiral path of return: “The spiral progress of the mundane spirit’ passes from his source through all the planetary spheres to arrive perfected at the center; from where he expands, see the center from the ‘outside’, and spirals into the upper world, back to his divine source.” This is the key to alchemy according to the Egyptians, from Athanasius Kircher’s Oedipus Aegyptiacus. Nighttime Meditation/Affirmation: “May the Cosmic transport me beyond the mystic veil of the past, so that what self once learned shall again be experienced.” This affirmation, or one like it, is important in creating a condition for the awakening of past lives and experiences and bringing their wisdom forward into this life. Knowledge of past lives is not enough. We must learn what they have to offer us here and now, and how to apply that knowledge – this is true wisdom. This knowledge exists as a permanent record in the lunar world of ‘Yesod’, and is known as the akashic records, or in Western esoteric terms, the “Archives of Nature”. Mirror exercises, crystal balls, bowels of water, and dreams (especially on Mondays or in the Sign of Cancer) are sympathetic to accessing it. 777 is the qabalistic number of perfection, representing the number of lives it takes to attain cosmic consciousness. Book M is also found in the ‘Tomb of CRC’ and may mean the alchemical ‘Mutus Liber’. The green scarabus is the symbol of resurrection and Adepthood. An Adept was also known as a ‘scarab’ in ancient Egypt. The Cloud – This techniques consists of chanting the alternating mantras ‘Ra’ and ‘Ma’ twelve or so times to combine the opposite forces of the psychic realm to create an etheric ‘cloud’. This cloud is a tangible and real concentration of energy that may effect the physical world and even bring into physical manifestation, via the creation of matter, objects. Once this ‘cloud’ is formed, one may project their consciousness into it by chanting OM. A positive environment is essential for good results. This relates to Egyptian esotericism: “The Egyptians has absolute faith in the divine origin of sound and in its creative power…the world of beings and objects comes into existence through utterance of primordial sound…For the Egyptians, the world is sound made substantial. This was no abstract dogma – it was a truth lived out in the practice of magic.”13 13

Temple of the Cosmos – The Egyptian Experience of the Sacred by Jeremy Naydler, Inner Traditions, Rochester, VT. 1996 P.140

Flashing balls of bluish-light moving in a spiral or half-circle, and which will often spontaneously hit us is associated with this experiment and this experience has been reported by several students. They seem to enter the body by the eyes, heart, head, and chest areas. There is no explanation of it in the monographs, and may be related to the Elus Cohen phenomena of ‘La Chose’ or , ‘The Thing’. Other possibilities include, we are attracting energy too us as we become more magnetic in nature; it is what the magicians call, ‘Elemental’ energy, condensing and forming matter. The saints in western paintings, Orthodox icons, and Bodhisatvas in Budhism, are often depicted as seated on a cloud. It was a cloud, or pillar of smoke that lead Moses. This technique is also very good for charging talismans, healing, and creating a psychic conduit for magical evocations (with the use of a triangle of art). See: Steve Richards, The Art of Invisibility for a comparison of this method to those of the Golden Dawn, Pantanjali, and others. Pituitary Gland – The development of the pituitary gland is essential for success in the Cloud and other exercises of attunement. This gland consists of two lobes, one positive and one negative that connect the higher brain systems with the autonomic nervous system. Here is where energy is exchanged from the voluntary to involuntary systems. It is slightly to the right center of the brain, and is effected by breathing. Though the pituitary and the sympathetic nervous system, energy is transformed into matter – and vice versa. Visualize it as red as you fall asleep, and strengthen it through breathing exercises. Imagine that it is the center and source of your will power, and is large and strong. It is important to emphasis that ‘will’ is fundamentally emotional in nature, and its proper direction (not repression, denial, or ‘control’) is essentially self-mastery. The color red is associated with Mars and the qabalistic sphere of Geburah. It relates to mastery of the material and astral realms, and focused energy. As Mars, this means magnetism, a condition which we seek to create in which we create within and around ourselves an unmistakable and dynamic magnetic (ie.. ‘magical’) presence. The danger here is always that of pride and arrogance, yet it must be risked, for in Mars is the key to creating the Philosophic, or “Red Stone”. This ‘stone’ or materialization of energy, while solar in nature, is often described as a bright red, running fluid, or powder, when dry. For this reason, we can see a direct association of this ‘Stone’ or state, with the hormones secreted by the pituitary gland. If we imagine this gland as a brilliant fiery red, actually hot and radiating heat like a piece of iron fresh from the furnace, and secreting a reddish-gold fluid that nourishes and regenerates our physical and psychic bodies we will notice a considerable increase in the power of this exercise. In fact, we can visualize a small golden ring, or aura around the gland as it emits this vibrant red energy. See the final plate in the alchemical text, Speldor Solis for an example of the image suggested. This can be found in color on Adam McLean’s Alchemy site, or in Alchemy and Mysticism by Alexander Roob (p. 235)

‘The inner sun as an image of the lapis (Philosophic Stone), the red winged lion, “He tears man from this vale of tears and releases him, that is: from the despondency of poverty, of illness, and lifts him with its wings with praise and honor from the stinking Egyptian waters, which are the daily thoughts of mortal man…” From, Nicholas Flamel, Chymische Wercke Notice the symbolism of the winged sun, the symbol of Horus the conquering King and Child. This gland also has a slight resemblance to the letter ‘Yod’ assigned to the head in the Adam Kadmon. In Egyptian terms, this is the power of Horus, who both assists in ‘resurrecting’ Osiris, and is the symbolic god which the Pharaoh incarnates as master of the Earth, or ‘Egypt’. The winged solar disk on all AMORC literature is the symbol of Horus as ‘Bedhey’. In this role, he is in the form of a great falcon flying protectively above the Pharaoh, while holding the ring of eternity. The two eyes of Horus are the two heavenly bodies of the sun and moon, or here, the two lobes of the brain and the pituitary gland. He has four sons which guard the body, and can be associated with the four ‘elements’ or material projections of divine power, as is often symbolized by the pentagram. While there is some confusion as to whether the pituitary relates to the ‘sixth’ or ‘seventh’ chakra, or psychic center, it is clear that it is has a complex relationship with the different parts of the brain and body. Dr. Richard Gerber, in Vibration Medicine (1996) states: “The sixth chakra is the brow chakra, sometimes referred to as the ”third eye”. The past mystical associations of this center with the pineal gland are well known. From an evolutionary standpoint, it is interesting to note that in lower animals such as reptiles the pineal gland is still associated with a rudimentary third eye, complete with lens and retina-like photo-receptor. When the seventh chakra is activated, the sixth or brow chakra is represented by an energy polarity between the pituitary and pineal glands. When the seventh center remains unopened, the brow chakra is represented by the pituitary and the medulla oblongata (part of the brainstem). (Gerber is referencing Gurudas, Flower Essences and Vibrational Healing, p.83) The third-eye chakra is the seat of intuition and the subtle organ involved in clairvoyance. The degree of activity of the brow chakra is an indication of the individual’s intuitive prowess as well as their conscious level of awareness. The brow chakra is one of the psychic centers that is gradually developed by various types of meditative practices….Physically, the brow chakra is associated with the pineal gland, the pituitary gland, and the spinal cord, as well as the eyes, ears, nose, and sinuses.” (p.3734) See the above note on the symbolism of the papyrus stalk and lotus flowers. The ‘th’ or ‘ts/tsszz’ sound will positively effect the pituitary in its development.

The sounds of tss, or tzz, are associated with the hissing of the serpent, the symbol of directed force and creative energy. To make this sound, one must place their tongue behind their teeth, similar to the shape of the uraeus, or hooded cobra on the pharaoh’s crown. Legend days that the this cobra, placed over the ‘third eye’ of the pharaoh, can spit fire in his/her defense. Another reference to the secret fire, and its relationship with the pituitary gland, and spiritual awakening. In Chinese, or Taoist yoga, the initiate places their tongue to the roof of their mouth to assist in the ‘grounding’ of this energy for a quicker awakening of the center. Gerber’s reference to the sinuses points to the sensitivity of this center to breathing and vocalization. If done properly, the ‘TH’ sound will create a strong vibration at the root of the nose. Eyebright in tincture or tea form will assist in opening this gland. As will Rosemary and St. John’s Wort. Caution must be taken however in all of these herbs as they maybe contraindicated if one is taking other medications or if they are consumed in large doses. Watercress can also assist, but is more lunar in nature, and thus will effect the receptiveness of the gland more than its projective nature. Power of Directing – We are to visualize a desired goal for one-half hour, then to direct when and where it will manifest, and to put it out of our minds forever. If need be, we can use it to effect our karma by drawing on ‘positive’ credits, or to cancel out ‘negative’ ones. In the 1st Degree it is stated that all psychic ideas tend towards manifestation, for that reason, by the end of time (our evolution), we must account for all of our thoughts. ‘Higher thoughts’ or altruistic ones, travel through space without difficulty. When we achieve a certain degree of power in this area, we realize that we are more responsible for our thoughts than ever before. Acts done out of ignorance have one set of karmic consequences, acts done out of knowledge another. This being said, we must cooperate with karma in order to learn its lessons, and not simply seek to divert it. We receive as we give, and must seek to imitate the cosmos in our altruism, impersonal action, and generosity. Intellect and emotions interact with each other. Altruistic emotions are the most powerful force there is for intellectual development and cosmic attunement. The emotions do not lie! Emotions synthesize the whole. “Imagination is everything. In its own order it is supreme…facts, principles, and theories…are barren until they are vivified by the power of intelligence. Magical arts have esoteric powers and are spiritually illuminating only on the purified plane of intense and supreme imagination. The true plane of magic is the psychic and translucid…” Eliphas Levi

Chamber of Isolation – In an earlier lecture, dated from 1927, the following statements are made about the various uses of the circle in esoteric practices: “In our higher teachings you will find that the circle, with its dot, becomes not only a symbol but a very real and practical thing, because through development, and through exercises which you may receive if you are found worthy through study and practice, you are enabled in times of trouble and when in serious situations, mental, physical, and spiritual, to draw a mystic circle around yourself while you become the dot in the circle, and no vibrations of an unpleasant nature, no harm or trouble can break through that mystic circle and reach you. This mystic circle can even become luminous and quite visible in a dark room. It is one means of great protection and as the mystic stands in the center of his circle he is in the center of a temporarily created universe of his own in which he has omnipotent power for the time being, and see and knows all things independent of all other means of cognition.”14 Face the East and visualize a circle 6-7 feet in diameter around you. Imagine that you are in a miniature universe. Say the Lost Word once. This image of the macro and microcosm is the basis for all esoteric practices and is in accordance with the Hermetic axion, “As above, so below; as Below, so Above.” by imagining that we are the center of the cosmos and contain all powers, potentials, energies, and being within us, we attune ourselves through the 1) power of suggestion, 2) the use of imagination, and 3) law of correspondences with these energies. The counterpart of these energies are stimulated within us and brought from seed form into fruition, until they ‘match’ their archetypal counterpart in the ‘cosmic mind’. By saying the Word, we are in effect, repeating, or recreating, with ourselves as Creator, the moment of divine creation before the Word was ‘lost’. The second and third circles can be found in old magical texts in which the adept transcends the planes of matter through the various spiritual planes. See: The Greater Key of Solomon for an example, as well as The Grimoire of Armadel. Despite its relationship to these systems, in some form, Ralph M. Lewis removed any traces of theurgy and magic from the AMORC system to make it purely mystical in content. This exercise is a de facto version of what is called, “Rising on the Planes” in qabalistic work, and theurgy. In fact, this entire degree is one of ascension based upon the doctrine of the ‘Middle Pillar’ wherein one goes from Malkooth (material) to Yesod (unconscious) to Tiphareth (spiritual/cosmic) planes – culminating in meeting of ones ‘Great Unseen Master’ or “Holy Guardian Angel” as it is otherwise referred to. On a practical level, through using the various circles we can create a condition of ‘spaces’ or ‘planes’ whereby we can act upon a ‘lower plane’ from a ‘higher’ one, thus

14

Third Grade Lecture, Number Three, Page Four. These lectures were later modified and became the ‘Neophyte Degrees’. These constituted the first year of study.

speeding up the process of psychic illumination, materialization of ideals, and cosmic illumination. For example, after forming the second circle, project into it from the center point of where you are, an idea that you wish to manifest, as if that idea were coming from a higher plane to a lower one as a suggestion, command, or decree – a fiat of its existence. We are obliged not to abuse these forces which we have been developing. The planes of consciousness described are: the material plane (objective), the psychic plane (subjective), and the Cosmic plane. The psychic plane must be thought of as a sort of intermediary whereby we receive influences from the Cosmic realm, and project them to the material world. It is essentially passive in relation to the Cosmic plane, and active in relationship to the material. This use, however, of the word Cosmic is somewhat confusing and misleading. The Cosmic is everything. It would be better to call it the Plane of Unity, wherein all things exist and are known (Atzilooth and Briah), compared to the psychic plane (Briah and Yetzirah), which is where all things are nurtured and conceived, and the material plane, which is a place of manifestation and duality (Assiah). The system of three worlds as described by Agrippa fits better than the qabalistic model for this lecture. Spinning Dialnte – This technique is designed to strengthen our will. In the 1st Degree, the will is defined as, “Willpower is the objective decision to do or have done, coming as a result of objective reasoning. It is the final judgement of the objective mind transmitted to the subconscious mind as a law.” (italics added) Unseen Master – This technique is designed to bring us into touch with the Inner Self so that we might converse with it on a personal and intimate level. The single greatest error in AMORC teachings might be around its use of such terms as the ‘Great Unseen Master’. This all to often implies something ‘other’ than oneself, in the same way terms such as ‘objective self’ and ‘inner self’ imply a kind of psychic schizophrenia. There is only self-consciousness. We experience it in many ways and on many levels. Just as we are God, so to, is this ‘Unseen Master’ an aspect of our own consciousness communicating to another part of our consciousness. We experience it in our psyche, a world of dualities, as a communication between two or more parties when it is really only ‘Self unto self’ is speaking. This technique uses the visualization of triangles in which the so-called ‘water’ triangle is symbolizes the spiritual plane forces, and the ‘fire’ triangle represents the material plane forces. This is the exact opposite of traditional hermeticism. However, Crowley in his writings also reverses the positions of the ‘fire’ and ‘water’ triangles at some point suggesting that this is their ‘true’ perspective from the initiated view of the qabalistic sphere of Tiphareth.

The use of these symbols, or something similar, to both stimulate and signal the actual contact, is very helpful. Once again, simplicity is the better choice. Once we are able to enter into communication quickly and easily with our Unseen Master, we will hear it speak to us. This voice will always be constructive, or at least neutral, in nature. If we hear many voices it is because we are also in attunement with the psyche of many other people. The voice of the Self is always clear and decisive. Assumption – In this technique the student is taught the single most fundamental power of hermeticism. Through the power of the imagination, we literally become and can influence whatever or whomever we visualize. This allows us to take control over our life, and to some degree, the lives of others around us. This method is laid out extensively in progressive stages in Pantanjali’s Yoga Sutras. The method is also used extensively in ritual magic with regards to Divine beings, godforms, and other forces. However, only here, in this lecture, is it most clearly, practically, and directly described. This method is unlimited in its uses and makes the user unlimited in their potential power and influence. In modern psychotherapy the technique known as ‘Acting as If’ is directly related to the fundamental practices of ‘Assumption’, or the idea that we can ‘imagine’ ourselves into a new psychological, and henceforth physical, state of thought, action, or consciousness.15 Cosmic Assumption – Here we take the ultimate step of assuming not just a single person, idea, or ideal, but instead seek to exchange places with the entire cosmos of creation – visible and invisible. Here we recreate the ‘Original Being’ or Admon Kadmon, or in Egyptian terms, ‘Resurrect Osiris’. At the close of this Degree, or Grade as it was originally called, the student is considered a member of AMORC’s ‘Illuminati’ Section. It is specifically stated that members who complete the degree are also told that they will be notified when they are ready for the ‘Higher Degrees and Teachings’. It is at the completion of this Grade that members are allowed to use the initials, “F.R.C.”16 after their name. According to the Rosicrucian Manual this means, “Frater Rosea Crucis” or “Brother of the Rosy Cross”.

AT THE CLOSE OF THE NINTH GRADE17

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The writings of Italian psychoanalyst Roberto Assagioli, Psychosynthesis – A Collection of Basic Writings and Act of Will, along with those of his assistant Piero Ferrucci, What We May Be and Inevitable Grace, will be of immense help to students in discovering the infinite variety of applications the techniques in this degree have in the perfection of the personality and achieving inner wholeness. 16 The initials “K.R.C.” are occasionally seen in the older AMORC material and denote “Knight of the Rosy Cross” or one who has served in an official capacity of the Order. 17 Rosicrucian Manual, p. 74.

“Members who attain and complete the psychic instructions of the Ninth Grade or those above it may enter the ILLUMINATI, which is a higher organization of the Order wherein the worthy Members continue to carry on specialized work and studies under the direction of the Imperator of their Jurisdiction and the personal Cosmic Masters. Members cannot ask for admission to the Illuminati but must wait until they have been found ready and invited to share in this additional work.” Also of interest is the following paragraph found on the next page:

OTHER BRANCHES OF OUR STUDIES18 “Members who have attained the Fourth Grade of the Temple work and have carefully studied the lectures of the first three Temple Grades may be admitted into the University of Order to take up special study and lessons along definite lines leading to proficiency in the special mission they have in life. The University is duly Incorporated and Chartered as are other Universities, and confers Academic and Honorary Degrees upon those who have specialized in certain courses of study. Members are admitted to the University only by invitation on the part of the Masters who conduct the work after being found specially qualified in some manner. The University exacts no fees and is operated upon a voluntary donation basis exclusively.” While the ideal of an esoteric College was based upon that of the European Rosicrucian movements, who actually gave honorary ‘Doctorate’ degrees in esotericism, it is not known if any actual such degrees were ever issued by AMORC. An attempt to revive and make the Rose+Croix University International, or RCUI, an accredited school under California law was floated around during the late 1980’s but was never realized. Also, the notation of ‘invitation only’ for both the higher grades and the university appears to have been an ideal that was never realized. Attendance at the university since its opening in the mid-1930’s has been on a ‘first come-first serve’ registration basis. Membership in the ‘Higher Grades’ has also been pretty much automatic if one’s dues were kept up to date. The author is unaware of any members from the Lewis era or the present who have ever received ‘specialized’ instruction in the personalized form suggested by the previous paragraphs. ###

18

Ibid, p. 75.