Practical Kabalah - The Sword

Table of Correspondences

Alternative + English Names	Understanding, The Great Sea
Astrological Correspondence	The Sphere of Saturn
Number	3
Elemental Attribution	Root of Water
Tarot	3s and Queens
Intelligence (Sepher Yetzirah)	Sanctifying Intelligence / Sanctified Consciousness
Name of God	YHVH Elohim
Egpyptian Pantheon (primary attribution)	Nephthys
Egptian Pantheon (selection)	Maut, Isis
Greek Pantheon	Cybele, Demeter, Rhea, Here
Scandinavian Pantheon	Frigga
Hindu Pantheon	Bhavani, Shakti, Yoni
Roman pantheon	Juno, Cybele, Saturn, Hecate
Daoism	Kwan-se-on, The Yin, Khwan
Buddhist Object of Meditation	Compassion
Buddhist 10 Fetters	Ruparaga
Alchemy	Lead, Antimony
Chakkra	Visuddhi
Part of Soul (west)	Intuition
Part of Soul (Hindu)	Higher Manas
Part of Soul (Egypt)	Ba or Baie
Transcendental Morality	Silence
Magical Attainment (western)	The Vision of Sorrow
Magical Weapons and Symbols	Cup, Cloak, Yoni, The Outer Robe of Concealment
Magical Image	Any Female Diety shows some aspect
Physical Ailment	Dementia, Amnesia
10 Plagues of Egypt	Darkness
Heaven of Assiah	Shabbathai (ShBThAY) The Restful
Heaven of Yetzirah	(As Trinity) Araboth (ORBVTh) The Plains
Palace in Briah	(as Trinity) Hekel Qadosh Qadeshim (HKL QDVSh QDSHYM) Palace of the Holy of Holies
Archangel	Tzaphqiel (TzPQYAL) The Watchtower of God
Choras of Angels	Aralim (ARALYM) The Strong Ones / Thrones
Precious Stones	Star Sapphire, Pearl, Onyx
Botanical Attributions	Cypress, Lily, Alder Tree, Comfrey herb
Animals	Woman, Whale
Vegetable Drug	Belladonna
Perfume	Myrrh, Civet

The path of the Sword is the way of emanations; its hilt is in Kether and the highest heavens and its tip is in the earth of the Kingdom of Malkuth; it is like unto a bolt of lightening striking the earth; it is the way of wisdom, of power and magick, of the manifestation of morality, and of religion.

The path of the serpent is the way of return; its tail is in the earth from whence it came, and its head reaches up to wear the crown of Kether in the highest heavens; it sheds its skin continuously; it is the way of Gnosis, of transformation and transmutation, of understanding, and of the growth of the individual.

There are two paths upon the Tree of Life, each presenting one aspect of the practical Kabalistic work. Utilmately the distinction between these paths is false, however it is useful for practical reasons to make this distinction. The two paths are the way of the Sword and the way of the Serpent.

The sword represents the downward path of the Divine as it manifests upon the earth. This is the way of creation. Upon the path of the sword a student learns about ritual, morality, magick, and other such things. The path of the Sword has particular resonance with the Pillar of Severity.

The serpent represents the upward path of material existence reaching back up towards its divine origins. This is the way of return. Upon the path of the Serpent a student learns about meditation, personal growth, and the quest for knowledge and understanding. The path of the Serpent has particular resonance with the pillar of Mercy.

On the right hand side of this section, alongside this text, the fundamental practices of Kabalah will be introduced. They are given in the order that a student new to Kabalah should approach them, familiarising themselves with the practice of each one before moving on to the next.

The path of the sword is the Way of Manifestation; it is the path of magick, ritual and religion, which seeks to draw down the power of the divine and to manifest it upon the earth. The ultimate goal of the Way of the Sword is, perhaps, best expressed in the descent of the New Jerusalem at the end of the biblical book of revelations – the perfection of material existence. On the Path of the Sword the aspirant does not seek to escape from the suffering of the world and attain entrance to an immaterial heaven, but rather to create heaven on earth.

All morality and esoteric religion belong to the Way of the Sword, as their aim is to manifest and ideal, or to manifest the characteristics of some God-Form on earth through the obedience and devotion of worshipers. Magick, in this sense, does not describe a specifically supernatural event, but rather the art of ‘causing change to occur in conformity with the Will’; this Will being the higher nature of the operator, and not simply whims and egotistical desires. ‘Pure Will, un-assuaged in the lust for results, is in every way perfect’. The purpose of Magick is the material expression of the higher nature of humanity.

The Way of the Sword is in many ways a masculine path (in reference to the divine masculine present in both men and women), concerning itself largely with works of dominion.

Introduction to Ritual

A guide to the use of ritual in magick and mysticism, including the purpose of ritual, the nature of ritual and how it it utilised, and the basic components of ritual in the western tradition.

Some kind of ritual is present in just about any religous or spiritual tradition, but it is especially important for any kind of magickal tradition, such as the Kabalistic Path of the Sword. Even in religious traditions, such as most christian chruches, which ostensibly claim to have no magickal element, or that magickal practices are satanic, the use of ritual is still used to invoke a spiritual force / power and direct it to a certain set of circumstances with a particular aim in mind - such as cementing the bond between people in a wedding ceremony, to eleviate grief and aid the passage of a disincarnated soul in a funeral ceremony, or whatever the case may be. This is esesntially what magick is - to invoke spiritual power and direct it to acheive a particular goal. The only difference between these uses of ritual and those in an explicitly magickal tradition is that;

1) The power of ritual is not the exclusive preserve of an officially sanctioned priest, but is available to anyone and

2) The elements of ritual are more varied and specialised alowing for their use towards a greater number of objectives.

The most important thing to recognise before one begins to apply this art is that the physical gestures and props that form the basis of ritual are, in themselves, devoid of power. They are merely empty shells, or rather cups, that may be filled with the magickal force, but may also be empty and unable to quench a thirst. It is not the case that by speaking certain words and making certain gestures one is able to direct the undercurrents which shape physical manifestation, but rather that through these things one may be able to excite and direct the power of consciousness itself, that it is able to perform this task.

It is also important to make the distinction betweent the mental state approapriate to the performance of magickal ritual and that which is used in meditation. These two arts move in opposite directions away from ordinary consciousness. Whereas in meditation one seeks to calm the mind, and to silence those aspects of the mind which obscure, in the art of the sword on seeks to excite the mind, to draw it upwards into ever more intense experience, seeking through the art of ritual to make the human mind resonate with the higher and faster frequencies of the divine. The purpose of all elements of ritual is only to excite and empower the mind in this manner, and to increase and aid the concentration so that the practitioner is able to control and direct this force.

In the western tradition the main elements of ritual are:

Banishing
The Kabalistic Cross
Invocation of the Highest
statement of intent
Invocation of specific godform, elemental force, angel, or whatever
The main working designed to fulfill specific purpose (such as concecration of a talisman
Statement of end of ritual and release of powers invoked
Banishing

The Classification of Magick

The Classification of Magickal action otherwise known as spellcraft.

Within what is commonly referred to as magick there are a wide range of methods and practices, which often work according to different principles and processes, and which are utilised towards different ends. To attain success in any endeavour you must have a clear conception of what you are working towards, choose and appropriate methodology, and subsequently have a good understanding of what you are doing and why you are doing it.

In order to identify the different categories that magickal practices may fall into we must first answer the broader question|: What is magick? Aleister Crowley defined magick as "the science and art of causing change to occur in conformity with the will", but as he goes on to say "in common parlance the word magic has been used to mean the kind of science which ordinary people do not understand", meaning, of course, the science of things which ordinary thinking says do not belong to the natural order i.e. the 'supernatural'.

In the majority of cases when someone talks about magick thier meaning conforms to the common definition which regards it as the science of the supernatural, but this is not always the case. That which is now science was once ragarded as magick. There are many examples of 'magickal' practices from ancient cultures which can now be explained in the terms of such disciplines as psychology, hypnosis, NLP, and even the science of manipulation exemplified by modern illusionsim. Many of these practices can stil be found in modern magickal / occult teachings; and in addition to this it is also true that many magickal techniques which we would still recognise as involving spiritual or 'supernatural' forces use the subconcious mind as a medium of connection between human experience and spiritual reality and therefore contain a psychological element. Therefore the first category of magickal action / spellcraft which we must recognise is that of psychological magick.

At this stage it is necessary to state that in undertaking the endeavor of classification I have used 3 different methods, yeilding 3 distinct sets of categories. The first method is to distinguish types of magick according to the principles by which they work. The second set classifies types of magick according to the proceses and methods by which they are employed. The third set is distinguished according to the nature of the end purpose of the action.

In the first set of categories, distinguished according to theory and principle, I have already identified the category of psycholgical magick. Also within this set are three further categories: Theurgical Magick, Sympathetic Magick, and Reflective magick.

Theurgical Magick is based entirely on the ability of spiritual beings to influence the material world. In this kind of magick the magus seeks to cooperate with and / or empoweer certain angels, godforms, demons, or other spirtual beings, and to aid, direct and control the manifestation of thier will in the material world.

In his famous book 'The Golden Bough' Sir James Frazer considers sympathetic magick in some detail, and in agreement with his work I would suggest that this branch of Magick can be further divided into two sub-categories whic he calls Homoeopathic magick, working according to the law of similarity, and contagious magick, working according to the law of contact.

The law of similarity indentified by Fazer states that a connection exists between similar things which can be used for magickal purposes. actually this conception is rather crude, and can be refined according to modern understanding to give a more accurate formulation. Therefore within my system of classification the law of similarity shall be renamed the law of resonance. This law states that there is a resonance between the morphological processes of similar forms which can be used to amplify a given tendency or characteristic at a distance. similarity of substance, purpose etc. are relevant only in so far as they impact upon form and morphogenesis. The natural principles involved in this form of magick are explained admirably in the work of biologist Rupert Sheldrake, and in particular in his work entiled ' Morphic Resonance: A New Science of Life'.
The classic example of the law of resonance, and indeed of sympatheitc magick in general, is the use of the 'voodoo doll' (which in its popular form actually originates from northern european witchcraft and not the african religion of voodoun).

Contagious magick works according to the principles that when two things are brought into contact with one another a certain degree of osmosis occurs, in which each one is infused to some degre with the essence of the other, and that this creates a bond which is maintained after contact is broken. The degree of this bond is determined by length of contact and the degre of emotional as well as physical connection which occurs betwen the two (presuming that one of them is capable of emotion and they are not both just innanimate objects). A good example of Contagious Magick would be the use of a treasured possession by a psychic in order to trace a missing person or diagnose ilness.

Reflective Magick works according to a principle which is elucidated most eloquently in the following quote from the physicist Fritjof Capra, who is here considerring the philosophical ramifications of quantum physics:

'The fact that all the properties of particles are determined by prinicples closely related to the methods of observation would mean that the basic structures of the material world are determined, ultimately, by the way we look at the world; that the observed patterns of mater are reflections of paterns of mind.'

This gives rise to the idea of 'direct' or 'instant' magick, in which the paraphenalia of ritual magick are considered to be props, and are secondary to the powoer of mind to directly influence material events through this principle of reflection.

The second set classifes according to method. These categories need less explanation so I shall simply list them:

Invocation, evocation, talismanic magick, magickal pacts, incantation, direct magick, goetic magick, astral magick, natural magick.

There is a degree of crossover between these categories (talismanic magick, for example, may include invocation or evocation), and there may be others that I have missed. Generally the method is clear within any practice, so there is less need for me to provide information here.

The third set is the classification according to purpose or end result. Within this set are:

Black Magick: Which is inspired by hatred and is malignant for the sake of it.

Ego Magick: Which may be either helpful, harmful, or indifferent towards others, but which proceeds according to the personal desires of the operator and is never either altruistic nor needlessly malicious.

High Magick: Which is an extension of the concept of morality itself, seeking to manifest a particular ideal, simply for the love of that ideal rather than personal satisfaction.

Trans-formative Magick: Which concerns itself solely with the growth and transformation of the operator, and extends no direct influence beyond the participants themselves.

The classification system given here is fluid, and many magickal practices will contain elements belonging to more than one category, even within each set.

Friday 26 July 2013

Before we begin to explain the format of the night, we want to stress
that this is your paranormal investigation, not ours - so the
itinerary for the night is not set in stone.
We want you to experience as much activity as possible. Our team
leaders are merely there to guide you through the evening and make
sure you stay safe and get the best from the night. Every
investigation we have conducted in this location has had paranormal
activity witnessed by many guests and we have found that if you come
to the night open minded instead of harboring negative feelings then
you more than likely will be another witness. Negative feelings can
sometimes drive the spirits away.
Any ghost hunter will tell you 'the main ingredient to a successful
investigation is an open mind. Your mindset before you enter an
investigation is of utmost importance'.

You should arrive no earlier than 15 minutes prior to the start of the
investigation. You will then be greeted at the door to pay the £10
admission charge by team leaders and then directed to the cafe area to
get a free cup of tea or coffee (cans of pop are 75p each). After a
brief introduction you will be split into two groups, one group will
head downstairs to the underground rooms and the other half will stay
where they are, upstairs displays interesting paranormal activity just
like downstairs. Once everyone is ready for the investigation to
commence, we will light a few candles and turn off the lights. If you
have brought a torch along, we would prefer it if you only used it if
you really, really need to please dont point it in somebodys face to
see who they are as it is blinding. No torches at all are allowed in
the seance room and if people want to watch a seance then please we
ask you to please stay the duration instead of coming in and out of
the room as it is distracting and can distort any activity we are
getting through. Seances are going to run the continuously during the
night with groups of around 8-10 people in each apart from the last
one of the night where everyone can get involved.

A number of divination techniques will be used during the
investigation, such as glass divination, ouija board sessions, dowsing
rods, table tipping sessions, ghost box, motion detector, laser grid,
seances and automatic writing etc. However, should you feel
uncomfortable using any of these techniques, you are not obliged to
participate so please don't feel pressured to do anything you don't
want too.

Please be respectful of the location and also be respectful of the
dead, remember they were humans once.

During the evening we will have short breaks and a hot buffet style
meal will be served around 11:30pm .

At the end of the evening, we will take small groups to one side to do
a protection prayer. Now you can either spend 10 seconds and say out
loud -
'Spirits among us, you must remain here and stay here in the name of
Jesus Christ '
or the full blown archangel prayer which lasts about 5 minutes. Again
this is simple but very effective, some do not want any protection but
i wouldn't recommend that you leave with none as it will save you some
problems down the road if you are followed home by a mischievous
spirit.

Alcohol must not be consumed prior to, or during any investigation.
Anybody suspected of being under the influence of alcohol or drugs
will be asked to leave immediately. No refund will be issued as our
terms and conditions have been breached.

The team leaders always meet up after an investigation to discuss any
findings. Guests will then be able to to read about the evening on our
website.
Please feel free to post videos, pictures, ask questions or just want
to discuss your experiences on our website or facebook group.

There are three main types of haunting:

1)A free spirit

2)A residual haunting

3)An intelligent haunting

Though most ghost hunters are aware of at least two of these types of haunting, it is good to understand some of the details.

The following is a bit more detailed explanation of ghosts and hauntings:

A residual haunting is imprinted upon the environment, much like a movie of past events
that somehow replays over and over. This energy is often seen or heard as people,
animals or things from the past that are stuck in time, being unintelligent and non-
interactive with those who witness them. Some examples of residual haunting may be
men on horseback riding through an area, the appearance of buildings, or something like
cannons that no longer exist being heard in the distance. When the movie plays, it always
remains the same and is like “a tear in the curtain of time” (as Larry put it). This type of
ghost is also known as an "echo ghost."

An intelligent haunting is when a disembodied spirit (a ghost) is held captive to this
physical plane due to trauma, having not yet crossed over to the light. They are somehow
attached to the past, maybe due to fear of punishment, perhaps through addictions,
unfinished business, trauma of some sort or just may be confused – unaware that their
body has died. These are true ghosts and simply people whom are trying to get our
attention for assistance. At anytime they may head to the light, but somehow often need a
friend to point them in the right direction (Learn more about Spirit Rescue). For them to
leave this plane behind is to forge ahead to the light, forgetting about their past and the
fears associated with it.

The last haunting is known as a “free spirit,” which really isn't a ghostly haunting at all, but a
visitation from spirits who have already crossed over to the light. Many may confuse such
a visitation as being from a ghost, but often times it is simply a loved one who has come to
pay a visit for one reason or another. Larry suggests that free spirits visit us for these
reasons:

1) To help us with our grief after they have passed. By letting us know they are alright, the
spirit and the grieving can move on in their life journey.

2) During times of crisis. Loved ones watch over us and at times assist us during trials in
our lives. They are often called “crisis ghosts.”

3) During times of celebration. Spirits enjoy weddings, birthdays and holidays just as
much as we do. They are times for family to come together.

4) When a loved one is getting ready to pass. Free spirits will often come to comfort the
person who is about to die in order to help them transition from the Earth plane unto the
light.

Hauntings

Residual Hauntings
What are these hauntings,
and what causes them?

Intelligent Hauntings
Learn what these
hauntings are and how to
tell them from others.

Portal Hauntings
What are these types of
hauntings and do they
have a basis?

Poltergeist Hauntings
Learn about the term that
means noisy ghost.

Places For Hauntings
Do hauntings have to
occur in a place. If so,
where is the best place?

Your body has all the intelligence to guide you, protect you, and tell you the difference between what’s right and what’s wrong. Your gut is the most accurate psychic on this planet. The challenge is to connect with this accuracy within.

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