Infinitum

The names of the Watchers

According to the Book of Enoch, exactly 200 Watchers fell to Earth to take human wives. It names 20 of these, explaining that each one was a leader in a group of 10. In his book From the Ashes of Angels, Andrew Collins names a few others, and other reference works corroborate some of the names given in these sources, sometimes with alternate spellings. Through these various sources, I have collected information on what some of these named Watchers taught to mankind. Where there was a variation in wording, I have included both wordings.

According to Collins, there is no complete record of the names of all 200 Watchers. Most of the names included in Enoch are not included in other books, apocryphal or otherwise; in fact, very few of the others appear inother mythological texts; these include Azazel and Kokabel (Shemyaza is a central character in Storm Constantine’s Grigori triology). Azazel is a curious example; although the Watchers, in the beginning of Enoch, swear to Shemyaza, the clear leader, that they will not change their minds about descending. But later, Azazel takes the brunt of the blame for what happens (to his credit, he taught more forbidden items to humankind than the others). He was thrown into the canyon of Duadel, and pinned with sharp rocks, with his face covered. In the Biblical book Leviticus, he is recreated as a desert creature to whom the ancient Israelites dedicated their scapegoats:

“Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats, one lot for the Lord and the other lot for Azazel. And Aaron shall present the goat on which the lot fell for the Lord, and offer it as a sin offering; but the goat on which the lot fell for Azazel shall be presented alive before the lord to make atonement for it, that it may be sent away into the wilderness to Azazel.”

In still later times, Azazel is considered a demon, and is occasionally identified as the devil — or as one of his chieftains.

Kokabel, or Kakabel, also appears in Jewish folklore as a powerful angel who is in charge of the stars and constellations. He is considered by some to be a holy angel; by others, a fallen one. It is said that he commands 365,000 lesser spirits and teaches astrology to his fellow angels.

Sariel is known under many names, but this one translates to “God’s command.” Some say he is the angel of death; he is named as the one who retrieved the soul of Moses from Mount Sinai. He is also called by some a “prince of the presence” and an angel of healing. His name appears in Gnostic amulets and it is said that when he’s invoked he manifests in the form of an ox; according to the Cabala, he is one of the seven angels that rule the earth. He is also associated with the skies and is in charge of the zodiac sign of Aries and instructs others on the course of the Moon. In occult circles he is one of the nine angels of the summer equinox and can protect against the evil eye.

What follows is as complete a list of the Watchers’ names as I can find; I will add names as I discover more of them.

1. Semyaza, Shemyaza, Semjaza, Semiaza, Samyaza, Shemhazai
“Taught enchantments and root-cuttings.”

2. Azazel, Azazyel, Azaziel
“Taught men to make swords, knives, shields, breastplates, the fabrication of mirrors and the workmanship of bracelets and ornaments, the use of paint, the beautifying of the eyebrows, the use of stones of every valuable and select kind, and of all sorts of dyes, so that the world became altered.”

“Taught men to make swords, and knives, and shields, and breastplates, and made known to them the metals of the earth and the art of working them, and bracelets, and ornaments, and the use of antimony, and the beautifying of the eyelids, and all kinds of costly stones, and all colouring tinctures.”

3. Amazarak
“Taught all the sorcerers, and dividers of roots.”

4. Armers, Armeros, Armaros
“Taught the solution of sorcery.”
“Taught the resolving of enchantments.”

5. Barkayal, Baraqijal, Baraqel
“Taught the observers of the stars.”
“Taught astrology.”

6. Kokabel, Kawkabel, Kakabel
“Taught the science of the constellations.”

7. Ezeqeel, Ezekeel
“Taught the knowledge of the clouds.”

8. Araqiel, Arakiel
“Taught the signs of the earth.”

9. Shamsiel, Shamshiel
“Taught the signs of the sun.”

10. Sariel,, Suriel, Zerachiel, Saraquel, Asardel
“Taught the motion of the moon.”
“Taught the course of the moon.”

11. Akibeel
“Taught signs.”

12. Tamiel
“Taught astronomy.”

13. Penemue
“Taught the bitter and the sweet, the use of ink and paper.”

14. Kasdeja, Kisdeja
“Taught the children of men all the wicked smitings of spirits and demons, and the smitings of the embryo in the womb, that it may pass away.”

15. Gadreel
“Introduced weapons of war.”

16. Ramuell
17. Danel
18. Azkeel
19. Saraknyal
20. Asael
21. Batraal
22. Anane
23. Zavebe
24. Samsaveel
25. Ertael
26. Turel
27. Yomvael
28. Urakabarameel

The many names of the Nephilim

“The Nefilim (‘Fallen Ones’) bore many other tribal names, such as Emim (‘Terrors’), Repha’im (‘Weakeners’), Gibborim (‘Giant Heroes’), Zamzummim (‘Achievers’), Anakim (‘Long-necked’ or ‘Wearers of Necklaces’), Awwim (‘Devastators’ or ‘Serpents’). One of the Nefilim named Arba is said to have built the city of Hebron, called ‘Kiriath-Arba’ after him, and become the father of Anak whose three sons, Sheshai, Ahiman and Talmai, were later expelled by Joshua’s comrade Caleb. Since, however, arba means ‘four’ in Hebrew, Kiriath-Arba may have originally have meant ‘City of Four,’ a reference to its four quarters mythically connected with the Anakite clans: Anak himself and his ’sons’ Sheshai, Ahiman and Talmai.”
- Robert Graves and Raphael Patai, Hebrew Myths: The Book of Genesis

Tags: watchers

Alchemy

Alchemy became known as the spagyric art after Greek words meaning to separate and to join together in the 16th century, the word probably being coined by Paracelsus. Compare this with one of the dictums of Alchemy in Latin: SOLVE ET COAGULA — Separate, and Join Together (or dissolve and coagulate).

The best-known goals of the alchemists were the transmutation of common metals into gold (called chrysopoeia) or silver (less well known is plant alchemy, or “spagyric”); the creation of a “panacea”, or the elixir of life, a remedy that, it was supposed, would cure all diseases and prolong life indefinitely; and the discovery of a universal solvent. Although these were not the only uses for the discipline, they were the ones most documented and well-known. Certain Hermetic schools argue that the transmutation of lead into gold is analogical for the transmutation of the physical body (Saturn or lead) into Solar energy (gold) with the goal of attaining immortality. This is described as Internal Alchemy. Starting with the Middle Ages, Arabic and European alchemists invested much effort in the search for the “philosopher’s stone”, a legendary substance that was believed to be an essential ingredient for either or both of those goals. Alchemists were alternately persecuted or supported through the centuries. For example in 1317 Pope John XXII issued a Bull against alchemical counterfeiting, and the Cistercians banned the practice amongst their members. In 1403, Henry IV of England banned the practice of Alchemy. In the late 14th century, Piers the Ploughman and Chaucer both painted unflattering pictures of Alchemists as thieves and liars. By contrast, Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor, in the late 16th century, sponsored various alchemists in their work at his court in Prague.

It is a popular belief that Alchemists made mundane contributions to the “chemical” industries of the day—ore testing and refining, metalworking, production of gunpowder, ink, dyes, paints, cosmetics, leather tanning, ceramics, glass manufacture, preparation of extracts, liquors, and so on (it seems that the preparation of aqua vitae, the “water of life”, was a fairly popular “experiment” among European alchemists). In reality, although Alchemists contributed distillation to Western Europe, they did little for any known industry. Long before Alchemists appeared, goldsmiths knew how to tell what was good gold or fake, and industrial technology grew by the work of the artisans themselves, rather than any Alchemical helpers.

The double origin of Alchemy in Greek philosophy as well as in Egyptian and Mesopotamian technology set, from the start, a double approach: the technological, operative one, which Marie-Louise von Franz call extravert, and the mystic, contemplative, psychological one, which von Franz names as introvert. These are not mutually exclusive, but complementary instead, as meditation requires practice in the real world, and conversely.

Several early alchemists, such as Zosimos of Panopolis, are recorded as viewing alchemy as a spiritual discipline, and, in the Middle Ages, metaphysical aspects increasingly came to be viewed as the true foundation of the art. Organic and inorganic chemical substances, physical states, and molecular material processes as mere metaphors for spiritual entities, spiritual states, and, ultimately, transformations. In this sense, the literal meanings of ‘Alchemical Formulas’ were a blind, hiding their true spiritual philosophy, which being at odds with the Medieval Christian Church was a necessity that could have otherwise led them to the “stake and rack” of the Inquisition under charges of heresy.^[8] Thus, both the transmutation of common metals into gold and the universal panacea symbolized evolution from an imperfect, diseased, corruptible, and ephemeral state towards a perfect, healthy, incorruptible, and everlasting state; and the philosopher’s stone then represented a mystic key that would make this evolution possible. Applied to the alchemist himself, the twin goal symbolized his evolution from ignorance to enlightenment, and the stone represented a hidden spiritual truth or power that would lead to that goal. In texts that are written according to this view, the cryptic alchemical symbols, diagrams, and textual imagery of late alchemical works typically contain multiple layers of meanings, allegories, and references to other equally cryptic works; and must be laboriously “decoded” in order to discover their true meaning.

In his Alchemical Catechism, Paracelsus clearly denotes that his usage of the metals was a symbol:

Q. When the Philosophers speak of gold and silver, from which they extract their matter, are we to suppose that they refer to the vulgar gold and silver? A. By no means; vulgar silver and gold are dead, while those of the Philosophers are full of life.

Psychology

Alchemical symbolism has been occasionally used by psychologists and philosophers. Carl Jung reexamined alchemical symbolism and theory and began to show the inner meaning of alchemical work as a spiritual path. Alchemical philosophy, symbols and methods have enjoyed something of a renaissance in post-modern contexts.

Jung saw alchemy as a Western proto-psychology dedicated to the achievement of individuation. In his interpretation, alchemy was the vessel by which Gnosticism survived its various purges into the Renaissance, a concept also followed by others such as Stephan A. Hoeller. In this sense, Jung viewed alchemy as comparable to a Yoga of the East, and more adequate to the Western mind than Eastern religions and philosophies. The practice of Alchemy seemed to change the mind and spirit of the Alchemist. Conversely, spontaneous changes on the mind of Western people undergoing any important stage in individuation seems to produce, on occasion, imagery known to Alchemy and relevant to the person’s situation^.

His interpretation of Chinese alchemical texts in terms of his analytical psychology also served the function of comparing Eastern and Western alchemical imagery and core concepts and hence its possible inner sources (archetypes).

Marie-Louise von Franz, a disciple of Jung, continued Jung’s studies on Alchemy and its psychological meaning.

Alchemy, http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alchemy&oldid=324283779 (last visited Nov. 9, 2009).

Tags: alchemy

The sacred word YOD-HE-VAU-HE

The Kabbalah and the Sacred Word–The Yod–The He–The Vau–The second He–Synthesis of the Sacred Word.

ACCORDING to the ancient oral tradition of the Hebrews, or Kabbalah, 1 a sacred word exists, which gives to the mortal who can discover the correct way of pronouncing it, the key to all the sciences, divine and human. This word, which the Israelites never uttered, and which the High Priest pronounced once a year, amidst the shouts of the laity, is found at the head of every initiative ritual, it radiates from the centre of the flaming triangle at the 33rd degree of the Freemasonry of Scotland, it is displayed above the gateways of our old cathedrals, is formed of four Hebrew letters, and reads thus, Yod-he-vau-he, יהוה.

It is used in the Sepher Bereschit, or Genesis of Moses, to designate the divinity, and its grammatical construction recalls even by its formation 1 the attributes which men have always delighted to ascribe to God. Now we shall see that the powers attributed to this word are real up to a certain point, for with its aid the symbolical gate of the arch, which contains the explanation of the whole doctrine of ancient science, is easily opened. It is therefore necessary to enter into some detail respecting it.

The word is formed of four letters, Yod (י), he (ה), vau (ו), he (ה). This last letter he is repeated twice.

A number is attributed to each letter of the Hebrew alphabet. We must look at those which relate to the letters we are now considering.

י Yod = 10

ה he = 5

ו vau = 6

The total numerical value of the word יהוה is therefore

10 + 5 + 6 + 5 = 26.

Let us now study each letter separately.

THE YOD.

The Yod, shaped like a comma or a dot, represents the principle or origin of all things.

The other letters of the Hebrew alphabet are all produced by different combinations of the letter Yod. 1 The synthetic study of nature had led the ancients to conclude that one law only existed, and ruled all natural productions. This law, the basis of analogy, placed the Unity-principle at the origin of all things, and regarded them as the reflections at various degrees of this Unity-principle. Thus the Yod, which alone forms all the other letters, and therefore all the words and all the phrases of the alphabet, was justly used as the image and representation of this Unity-principle, of which the profane had no knowledge.

Thus the law which presided over the creation of the Hebrew language is the same law that presided over the creation of the Universe, and to know the one is to know the other, unreservedly. The Sepher Yetzirah, 2 one of the most ancient books of the Kabbalah, proves this fact.

Before proceeding any further, let us illustrate the definition which we have just given of the Yod by an example. The first letter of the Hebrew alphabet, the aleph (א), is composed of four yods placed opposite to each other; the other letters are all formed on the same basis. 3

The numerical value of the yod leads to other considerations. The Unity-principle, according to the doctrine of the Kabbalists, is also the Unity-end of beings and of things, so that eternity, from this point of view, is only an eternal present. The ancients used a dot in the centre of a circle as the symbol of this idea, the representation of the Unity-principle (the dot) in the centre of eternity (the circle, a line without beginning or end). 1

According to these demonstrations, the Unity is regarded as the whole, of which all created beings are only the constituent parts; just as the Unity-man is formed of an agglomeration of molecules, which compose his being.

The Kabbalah, therefore, places at the origin of all things the absolute assertion of the being by itself of the Ego-Unity, which is represented by the yod symbolically, and by the number 10. This number 10, representing the All-principle 1, with the Zero-nothing 0, well supplies the requisite conditions. 2

THE HE. 1

But the Ego cannot be realized except through its opposition to the Non-Ego. The assertion of the Ego is scarcely established, when we must instantly realize a reaction of the Ego, Absolute, upon itself, from which the conception of its existence will be drawn, by a kind of division of the Unity. This is the origin of duality, of opposition, of the Binary, the image of femininity, even as the Unity is the image of the masculine. Ten, divided by itself, in opposition to itself, then equals 10/2 = 5, five, the exact number of the letter He, the second letter of the great sacred name.

The He therefore represents the passive in relation to the Yod, which symbolizes the active; the Non-Ego in relation to the Ego, the woman relatively to the man; the substance relatively to the essence; life in its relation to the soul, &c., &c.

THE VAU. 2

But the opposition of the Ego and the Non-Ego immediately gives rise to another factor; this is the Affinity existing between this Ego and this Non-Ego.

Now the Vau, the sixth letter of the Hebrew alphabet, produced by 10 (yod) + 5 (he) = 15 = 6 (or 1 + 5), signifies link or analogy. It is the link which, uniting

antagonisms in the whole of nature, constitutes the third word of this mysterious Trinity.

Ego–Non-Ego.

Affinity of the Ego with the Non-Ego.

THE 2nd HE.

Nothing can exist beyond this Trinity, considered as a law.

The Trinity is the synthetic and absolute formula to which all the sciences converge; and this formula, forgotten with regard to its scientific value, has been transmitted to us integrally, by all the religious of the world, the unconscious depositaries of the SCIENCE WISDOM of primitive civilizations. 1

Thus the great sacred name is formed of three letters only. The fourth term of the name is formed by the repetition of the second letter, the He.

This repetition indicates the passage of the Trinitarian law into a new application; that is, to speak correctly, a transition from the metaphysical to the physical world, or generally, of any world whatever to the world that immediately follows it. 2

The knowledge of the property of the second He is the

key to the whole divine name, in every application of which it is susceptible. We shall presently see the proof of this statement.

SUMMARY UPON THE WORD YOD-HE-VAU-HE.

Now that we have separately studied each of the letters that compose the sacred name, we will apply the law of synthesis to them, and sum up the results obtained.

The word Yod-he-vau-he is formed of four letters, signifying:

The Yod	The active principle pre-eminent. The Ego = 10.
The He	The passive principle pre-eminent. The Non-Ego = 5.
The Vau	The Median letter, the link, which unites the active to the passive. The Affinity between the Ego and the Non-Ego = 6.

These three letters express the Trinitarian law of the Absolute.

The 2nd He

The second He marks the passage from one world to another. The Transition.

This second He represents the complete Being, comprising in one Absolute Unity the three letters which compose it: Ego, Non-Ego, Affinity.

It indicates the passage from the noumenal to the phenomenal or reciprocal; it serves as means of ascension from one scale to another.

REPRESENTATION OF THE SACRED WORD.

The word Yod-he-vau-he can be represented in various ways, which are all useful.

The circle can be drawn in this way–

	yod י
1st he ה		1st he ה
	vau ו

But since the second He, the sign of transition, becomes the active entity in the following scale, i. e. since this He only represents a yod in germ, 1 the sacred word can be represented, with the second he under the first yod, thus–

yod	1st he	vau
2nd he

Lastly, a third method of representing the word consists in enveloping the Trinity, Yod-he-vau, with the tonalisating letter, or second He, thus–

Now we will leave these data, to which we must return later on, and speak of the occult or Pythagorean conception of numbers.

Excerpt from The Tarot of the Bohemians

By Papus

Tags: Kabbalah

Theosophy

Formation

The Theosophical Society was founded in New York City, USA, in 1875 by Helena Blavatsky, Henry Steel Olcott, William Quan Judge and others. Its initial objective was the investigation, study and explanation of mediumistic phenomena. After a few years Olcott and Blavatsky moved to India and established the International Headquarters at Adyar, Madras (Chennai). There, they also became interested in studying Eastern religions, and these were included in the Society’s agenda. After several iterations the Society’s objectives have evolved to be:

1. to form a nucleus of the universal brotherhood of humanity without distinction of race, creed, sex, caste, or colour.
2. to encourage the study of comparative religion, philosophy, and science.
3. to investigate the unexplained laws of nature and the powers latent in man.

In addition to the stated objectives, as early as 1889 Blavatsky purportedly had told a group of Theosophical students that the real purpose of establishing the Society was to prepare humanity for the reception of the World Teacher when he appeared again on earth. This was repeated again more publicly by Annie Besant in 1896, five years after Blavatsky’s death. In Blavatsky’s own writings, the only reference to a similar idea indicated that it would not be for at least a century .

Schisms

After Helena Blavatsky’s death in 1891, the Society’s leaders seemed at first to work together peacefully. This did not last long. Judge was accused by Olcott and Annie Besant of forging letters from the Mahatmas; he ended his association with Olcott and Besant in 1895 and took most of the Society’s American Section with him. The original organisation led by Olcott and Besant remains today based in India and is known as the Theosophical Society – Adyar. The group led by Judge further splintered into a faction led by Katherine Tingley, and another associated the Judge’s secretary Ernest Temple Hargrove. While Hargrove’s faction no longer survives, the faction led by Tingley is today known simply as the Theosophical Society, but often with the clarifying statement, “international headquarters, Pasadena, California”. A third organization, the United Lodge of Theosophists or ULT, in 1909 split off from the latter organization, and various small splinter groups began to take shape including the Palmers Green Theosophical Lodge under the leadership of Thomas Neumark-Jones — which was influential among British New Liberal intellectuals.^{[citation needed]}
In 1902, Rudolf Steiner became General Secretary of the German/Austrian division of the Theosophical Society. He maintained a Western-oriented course, relatively independent from the Adyar headquarter led by Besant and Olcott. After serious philosophical conflicts, primarily on the spiritual significance of Christ and on the status of the young boy Krishnamurti (see below), most of the German and Austrian members split off in 1913 and formed the Anthroposophical Society. The latter remains very active and influential today and has branches in almost all western communities, including the US and Canada.

Controversy / Racial Beliefs

Blavatsky posited that humanity had descended from a series of non-human “Root Races” (Cosmologically on par with the Christian sacraments, Cabalistic Tree of life, the eastern phylosophy of the chakras) naming the fifth root race (out of seven) the Aryan race. The Root Races were evolutionary stages, each new Root Race being more evolved than the previous one. She thought that the Aryans originally came from Atlantis, who were part of the fourth Root Race. The Aryan Root Race was only one more step in the evolutionary progress and it would eventually be superseded by a more spiritual Root Races , the sixth. She believed that “The Semites, especially the Arabs, are later Aryans — degenerate in spirituality and perfected in materiality. To these belong all the Jews and the Arabs. The former are a tribe descended from the Tchandalas of India, the outcasts, many of them ex-Brahmins, who sought refuge in Chaldea, in Scinde, and Aria (Iran), and were truly born from their father A-bram (No Brahmin) some 8,000 years B.C.

The latter, the Arabs, are the descendants of those Aryans who would not go into India at the time of the dispersion of nations, some of whom remained on the borderlands thereof, in Afghanistan and Kabul,* and along the Oxus, while others penetrated into and invaded Arabia. But this was when Africa had already been raised as a continent. We have meanwhile to follow, as closely as limited space will permit, the gradual evolution of the now truly human species. It is in the suddenly arrested evolution of certain sub-races, and their forced and violent diversion into the purely animal line by artificial cross-breeding, truly analogous to the hybridization, which we have now learned to utilize in the vegetable and animal kingdoms, that we have to look for the origin of the anthropoids.”

She did not encourage any feeling of superiority by any person or race, spreading the idea of the common origin and destiny of all humanity, and establishing the principle of universal brotherhood as the First Object of the Theosophical Society: “To form the nucleus of a Universal Brotherhood of Humanity without distinction of race, colour, or creed.”  Thus, she declares “Theosophists, collectively, respect the Bible as much as they do the sacred scriptures of other people, finding in it the same eternal truths as in the Vedas, the Zend-Avesta, the Tripitakas, etc.”

Guido von List (and his followers such as Lanz von Liebenfels) later took up some of Blavatsky’s ideas, mixing her ideology with nationalistic and fascist ideas; this system of thought became known as Ariosophy.

Some researchers, when tracing the links between Ariosophy and Theosophy, tried to portray the latter as relying mostly on “intellectual expositions of racial evolution”.However, in The Key to Theosophy Elena Blavatsky had clearly pointed out that “The Society is a philanthropic and scientific body for the propagation of the idea of brotherhood on practical instead of theoretical lines.”

“ENQUIRER. Can you attain the “Secret Wisdom” simply by study? Encyclopaedias define Theosophy pretty much as Webster’s Dictionary does, i. e., as “supposed intercourse with God and superior spirits, and consequent attainment of superhuman knowledge by physical means and chemical processes.” Is this so?
THEOSOPHIST. I think not. Nor is there any lexicographer capable of explaining, whether to himself or others, how superhuman knowledge can be attained by physical or chemical processes. Had Webster said “by metaphysical and alchemical processes,” the definition would be approximately correct: as it is, it is absurd. Ancient Theosophists claimed, and so do the modern, that the infinite cannot be known by the finite — i.e., sensed by the finite Self — but that the divine essence could be communicated to the higher Spiritual Self in a state of ecstasy. This condition can hardly be attained, like hypnotism, by “physical and chemical means.“.

Unlike Theosophists (whose first objective was “to form the nucleus of a Universal Brotherhood of Humanity without distinction of race, colour, or creed”), “The Thule Society preached Aryan supremacy and acted to achieve it. It provides the final link between occult racial theories and the racial ideology of Hitler, who skewed the fundamental principles of and understandings for sociological and economic control by the emerging Nazi party.”

Theosophical Society, http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Theosophical_Society&oldid=323513122

Tags: Root races, Theosophy, Thule