Holodemiurgia

III. Katagôgê — Descent of the Soul

0. Nous — Mind

Hear: You are the Firstborn Child of She Who Underlies the Earth and Him in Heaven, and from Them you have a threefold Soul. Within you is the Seed of the Eternal Gods, and you shall be the Maker, Framer of your world, residing in the center.

Visualize a flashing bolt of fiery lightning that descends from Heaven. But as the Beam moves downward, slowly lower both your hands into the sign of prayer before your face. When the Ray has reached your crown, it stops and swells into a glowing sphere enveloping your head with dazzling radiance like a nimbus or a halo. As it does, intone:

Νοῦς [Nous] = Mind

See your head draw in Celestial Light as would the roots of an inverted Tree of Knowledge. For this is the Light of Intuition, Gnostic Sight, by which you understand what is. Let the Lightning Bolt become a Golden Chain that links your soul to Heaven.

Other chants:

Φάνης [Phanês] = Phanês
Ἔρως [Erôs] = Erôs (Love)
ιωη ζανωφιε [iôê zanôphie] (v.m.): “the spirit who enters me”

Commentary

Child:
The Child, who returns, is born of the Father who abides and the Mother who proceeds. The Father is the Definite Monad, the Mother is the Indefinite Dyad, and the Child is the Mixed Triad. The Father is One, the Mother is Many, but the Child is All. The Father is Existence, the Mother is Power, and the Child is Mind (Nous). See Mead (58, 68-9) and Dillon (358). The Child corresponds to the Soul acting as mediator between the World of Being as the ground of Stability and source of Ideas (the Father), and the World of Becoming as the ground of Change and source of Power (the Mother) (Dillon 29-30). Heraclitus (fr. 52) says, “Aiôn is a Child playing pesseia, the Kingdom is the Child’s” (pesseia is a game like checkers).
Φάνης [Phanês]:
In the Orphic Theogonies, Phanês emerges from the Egg. “Phanês” (“He who Appears”) is a comparatively late name; He is also called Protogonos (First-Born) and Erôs (Love) (WOP 70, 203).
Maker:
In the Timaeus, the Demiurge (Dêmiourgos, Maker, Craftsman) constructs the Cosmic Soul and defines the pattern for mortal souls; therefore this exercise imitates His “Making” (Dêmiourgia). Cornford (34-9) notes that the tendency of some modern commentators to interpret the Demiurge as a monotheistic Creator God is an anachronism and inaccurate. The Maker or Craftsman God emerging from the Egg is a common mythological idea in the Middle East (WEGP 29, 34, 54).
Threefold Soul:
An important idea in the Timaeus, which provides much of the structure of the Descent. The three parts are Logistikon (Rational part), Thumoeides (Spirited part) and Epithumetikon (Appetites) (different technical terms are used in different sources; see also Dillon 174-5). In Fludd’s harmonic analysis, the soul comprises two octaves: the upper sixth is the Rational part, the middle interval of two fifths is the Spirited part, and the lowest sixth is the Appetitive part (Godwin/Fludd fig. 50).
Dazzling light:
Characteristic of Phanês; in later times He was equated with the Sun (WOP 206).
Νοῦς [Nous]:
The Higher Mind. See Peters (s.v.).
Celestial Light:
The exercise is based in part on a correspondence between the parts of the soul and the Five Elements. Nous, since it stands above the normal faculties of the soul, is associated with the Fifth Element or Quintessence, often identified with Aithêr. In the Chaldean Oracles, Nous is associated with the “spark of the soul” and the “monad in the soul” (Majercik 43); it is the Celestial Light. The remaining Elements are ordered by decreasing subtlety as follows: Fire = Reason, Air = Spirit, Water = Appetites, Earth = Body; the reasons for them will be given when they are discussed.
Inverted Tree:
The Divine Power suspends the head and Root (Rhizê) of us from that place “where the generation of Soul first began” (Tim. 90A-B), that is, from the Crown (Koruphê); the Soul is compared to a plant whose Roots are in Heaven rather than Earth (90A). In this way it can draw in Spiritual Sustenance by contemplation of Heaven (Cornford 353-4). From at least the third century BCE people of great spiritual power were shown with a nimbus around their crowns (Onians 155-67). This corresponds to the seventh chakra, Sahasrâra. (See Opsopaus, “The Forms of the Soul” for more on correspondences between the parts of the soul and chakras.) The Cosmic Tree born of Heaven and Earth, which is wrapped with the Robe of Gaia, is also an important element in Pherecydes’ Theogony.
What is:
In the Timaeus (35A), the Demiurge mixes the Cosmic Soul (and, later, mortal souls) from three ingredients: Existence, Identity and Difference, the three intelligible notions of Being (Cornford 60-6). Nous is associated with the first of these, Existence (what is).
Golden Chain:
The Golden Chain from Heaven to Earth is an important symbol from Homer down to our own time, especially in Orphism (WOP 237-8).
ιωη ζανωφιε [iôê zanôphie]:
PGM IV.1125 (Secret Stêlê).

1. Logistikon — Rational Soul

A. Harmonia

After several minutes more, the Ray descends down through your head in seven rainbow colors: violet, indigo, then blue and green, then yellow, orange and red. As it descends, intone the vowels in the pitches of the Lyre’s seven strings, singing a descending major scale (from mi to fa):

αεηιουω [aeêiouô] (v.m.; see the Appendix “Harmonic Considerations” for the best pitches to use): “first origin of my origin”

The ray illuminates your head until your face shines brightly like the sky, for it’s the Radiant Vehicle of your soul. Behold: your head is round, an image of the Heaven’s starry vault.

Thought must spread out from the star-like center of the Mind, and reach out through the Soul into the three dimensions of extended Space. This is a Harmony connecting that which is Above and that which is Below. Hear the Harmony of the Heavens.

Your Intellect resides between intelligible Forms above, which are eternal and unchanging, and perceptible objects below, which are both transient and changing. Each of these two kingdoms has its own Existence and Identity and Difference, but your Intellect can bring the two together, to be objects of your thought and speech.

When Eros comes into your brain, you seek for immortality, but through the Love of Wisdom (Philosophia); therefore let the Shining Ray illuminate your thoughts and lead you on to Wisdom, for it is the virtue that resides here.

Other chants:

ἁρμονία [harmonia] = fitting together, harmony
διάνοια, διανοία [dianoia] = discursive reason

Commentary

Sevenfold division:
The Demiurge divides the primordial cosmic soul-stuff (comprising Existence, Identity and Difference; see below) into seven parts, in proportions determined by Pythagorean number theory, which determines both musical harmony and the harmony of the planetary spheres (Cornford 66). The numerical progressions allow the Monad to emanate into the three dimensions of space by progressing to the third powers; this is accomplished through the Pythagorean Tetraktus by Multiplication (Cornford 68).
Seven colors:
Of course the spectrum is continuous, and different cultures have different numbers of “basic colors.” However, in ancient times Plato (Rep. 616B-617), Aristotle and others sought to find correspondences between the colors and the planets, etc. (John Gage, Color and Culture 12-13, 227-8). Similarly, the seven colors of the rainbow (or white light spectrum) are a result of Newton applying Pythagorean principles to align the colors with the tones (Gage, op. cit. 171, 232, fig. 134 p. 171).
Lyre:
The Cosmic Lyre is a very important symbol, especially in the Pythagorean and Orphic traditions, for its strings are taken to correspond to the Cosmic Spheres (e.g. WOP 29-30).
Descending major scale:
The cosmic scale constructed by the Demiurge is descending since the numbers are increasing and thus correspond to longer wavelengths (e.g. string lengths). The specific scale is (T = tone, S = semitone): TTS T TTS (descending), that is, F major. See Cornford (69, 72) and the Loeb Timaeus (70-1).
αεηιουω [aeêiouô]:
PGM IV.485-90. These are the seven vowels of the Greek alphabet in order. They occur in many magical contexts (see, for example, Joscelyn Godwin’s Mystery of the Seven Vowels in Theory and Practice, Phanes, 1991). They are associated with the planets as well as with the notes of the octave (see the Appendix for a hypothetical correspondence; see also Godwin). In this case the vowel sequence is the first of a number of incantations taken from the “Mithras Liturgy” in the Great Magical Papyrus of Paris (PGM IV.475-829).
Round head:
The human head is round like the heavens (Celestial Spheres) and contains the two Divine Rotations; the lower parts of the soul contain the six rectilinear motions (Cornford 150-1).
Radiant Vehicle:
The “vehicle” of the intellectual faculty of the soul (in the head) is the Radiant Body (Augoeides or Astral Body, Astroeides). Therefore, it is associated with the element Fire, which is Warm and Dry, because the intellect is discriminating and “informing” (form imposing). The notion of the Vehicles (Okhêmata) of the Soul is found in the Neoplatonists and Chaldean Oracles (Peters s.v. ochêma; Majercik 30-2)
Hear the Harmony:
Five of the stages of the Descent are associated with the Five Senses. Plato (Cornford 152) distinguishes two senses — hearing and seeing — because they allow perception of the Divine Harmony (by hearing musical harmony and by seeing celestial harmony). Therefore, the Harmonia is heard at this stage (with its musical imagery), and is seen in the next stages (Spheres of Same/Other), with their astronomical imagery. Plato says that the remaining three senses are inferior, because they are needed “merely” for survival (Cornford 152). Be that as it may, they are connected with the next three stages by means of their Elemental associations.
Discursive Reason:
As opposed to the Mind (Nous) and Intuitive Knowing (Noêsis) of the Crown, the brain represents Discursive Reason (Dianoia) and Rational Knowledge (Epistêmê). See Cornford (94-7) on Timaeus 37A-C and Peters (s.v. noêsis 9-10). The “rational soul” in the head, which controls and restrains the lower souls (Tim. 70A), corresponds to the Âjnâ chakra in the brow, for âjnâ means “authority or command.”
Existence, Identity and Difference:
These are the three kinds of Being (senses of “is”) represented by the immortal soul in the head and from which this soul is mixed (Cornford 60-6). This soul is an intermediary between the world of indivisible Forms and the world of divisible things (Cornford 58-60). The soul experiences both the things that are (exist eternally) and the things that become (change) (Cornford 63).
Eros in Brain:
The Brain and spinal column are taken to be the seat of the immortal part of the soul; the mortal parts are merely linked to them (Cornford 293). Therefore the Spine is called the Holy Tube (Hiera Surinx) and corresponds to Shushumna, the vehicle of the Kundalini force in yoga doctrine. The “spinal marrow” is the ultimate source of the reproductive seed (see the Commentary on Sôma below). However, according to Diotima in Plato’s Symposium (207ff), Eros brings a desire for immortality, which can manifest indifferent ways in different parts of the soul. The lowest manifestation is the desire to procreate; the highest manifestation, which takes place in the Brain, is the Love of Wisdom (Philosophia, a term coined by Pythagoras). See Cornford (292).
Wisdom:
The virtue associated with the Higher Soul is Wisdom (Sophia, Sapientia).
Harmonia:
In ancient Greek, harmonia means more than simply “harmony.” Its fundamental meaning is the joining together of different things into a unified whole. Mythologically, Harmonia is the daughter of Aphrodite and Ares, who represent Love and Strife, the fundamental opposed forces of the universe, according to Empedocles. Thus She represents the Conjunction of Opposites (Coniunctio Oppositorum).

B. Sphere of Same

The Ray divides in two Divine Rotations round the Axle of Necessity. One turns horizontal and winds clockwise, turning left to right around you. See it now expand into a sphere.

Whenever you exhale, it rotates to the right becoming dark; whenever you inhale, the sphere continues to turn right, becoming light. It turns continuously, smoothly, but growing light and dark with every breath. Quietly or silently repeat with every breath:

ιεπσερια [iepseria] (on exhalation): v.m. “dark”
αλαπιε [alapie] (on inhalation): v.m. “luminous”

Behold the Cyclic Breathing of the Kosmos, that transforms Eternity and makes it Measured Time. Unfathomable Eternity is thus enshrined and makes a moving Image for our adoration. Thus each pole transforms into its opposite within the turning wheel of Time. The Fixed Stars rotate round our Mother Earth each day, and alternating night and day instruct us in the laws of One and Two and hence of all the numbers.

See the Sphere of Same, the sphere in which we recognize, in which we know when this is that. By means of it we may achieve true knowledge, certainty and science. Thus we rightly think and speak of Being. Feel the Light of Heaven strengthen your ability to know what is.

Other chants:

Νύξ [Nux] = Night (on exhalation); Ἡμέρα [Hêmera] = Day (on inhalation)
Atropos {)/Atropos} = “Inevitable” (one of the Fates). This incantation should be done with full intonation while exhaling.

Commentary

The Ray divides:
Plato (Tim. 36B-C) describes how the Demiurge divides the harmonically structured band lengthwise into two bands to form the Circle of Same (ho Tautou Kuklos) and the Circle of Other (ho Thaterou Kuklos).
Axle of Necessity:
Plato’s Republic (617A) says the Celestial Spheres rotate around the Spindle of Necessity.
Clockwise:
The Sphere of the Same, which carries the Fixed Stars, rotates from east to west once every 24 hours. Cornford (72-93) explains in detail the motion of the Spheres of the Same and of the Other.
Expands into Sphere:
Plato talks about the Circles (Kukloi) or Revolutions (Periphorai) of Same and Other, but it is clear that they refer to the Heavenly Spheres (Cornford 74-6). Here, the term Sphere recalls a lost Orphic text called The Sphere (Sphaira).
Dark then light:
The rotation begins with the dark and exhalation (rather than with the light and inhalation) because in cosmogony the Night always precedes the Day; this is especially true in Orphism, where Night is one of the oldest Deities and sometimes the oldest of Them (KRS 22-3). She is called the Grandmother and Supreme Goddess (Kerényi, Gods of Greeks 116).
ιεπσερια [iepseria] & αλαπιε [alapie]:
PGM IV.1145 (Secret Stêlê). The intonations are done quietly or silently due to the difficulty of doing a full intonation while inhaling.
Cyclic Breathing:
The Pythagoreans take the Universe to be a living being; by inhaling the Unlimited (including Unlimited Time), it puts Limits into it, reduces it to Number and thereby creates the Determinate Time of our world (Peters s.v. chronos 4). According to Heraclitus, we become wise by breathing in the Divine Logos (Sextus Empiricus, Adv. Math. vii.129).
Measured Time:
See Cornford (103-5) and Peters (s.v. chronos 5) on how the Celestial Rotation transforms Indeterminate Time (Aion) into Determinate Time.
Moving Image:
This is the famous statement by Plato (Tim. 37D) that “Time is the moving image of Eternity,” but Cornford (99-102) points out that agalma, the word translated “image,” properly refers to an image (a statue) enshrined as an object of veneration in a temple. Thus we might more accurately translate “the moving icon of Eternity”; in the exercise Time is “enshrined in a moving image for our adoration.” Interestingly, the image of “moving statues” recalls both the robots of Hephaistos (Iliad 18.417-21) and Daedalus (Cornford 101) and the animated divine statues of Chaldean theurgy (Majercik 26-7). This is appropriate, because for Plato the Universe is a living and self-moving organism created by the Craftsman (Demiurge).
Cycle between Poles:
One of the fundamental Laws of the Universe is how the tension between Opposites leads to oscillation — a Cycle between the Poles — and thereby to Harmony. For example, Heraclitus said (with intentional ambiguity), “They don't comprehend how differing with itself agrees: back-turning harmonia as of bow and lyre” (my transl.; KRS fr. 209). (See also Opsopaus, “Book of Eight Changes.”)
Mother Earth:
Plato calls Gaia (Earth) the most venerable of Gods and Our Nurse; She is the Maker and Guardian of Night and Day because She stands still while the Celestial Spheres rotate round Her (Cornford 120-1).
Laws of One and Two:
Plato (Epinomis 978D-979A, Laws 818) explains how the alternation of Night and Day leads to the fundamental intuition of Number (Cornford 91n1, 115).
This is that:
The Sphere of Same corresponds to the second of the three primary senses of Being: Identity and judgments of Identity (Cornford 78).
True knowledge etc.:
The Sphere of the Same is associated with knowledge of Being (epistêmê), which is certain and eternal, because this Sphere has a single, circular motion, the motion of measured Celestial Time (Cornford 83, 95, 103).
Ἄτροπος [Atropos]:
According to the Rhapsodic Theogony, Gaia (perhaps in conjunction with Ouranos) gave birth to the Moirai (Fates): Atropos, Klôthô and Lakhêsis (WOP 71), but Plutarch makes Them daughters of Necessity (Dillon 215). According to Nicomachus (Dillon 356) They govern divine and mortal activity through three processes: emission (proesis), reception (hupodokhê) and recompense (antapodosis), which correspond to the Father, Mother and Child (see “Mother” above). The Fates are associated with the Spheres in various ways, from Plato on, but most commonly Atropos corresponds to the highest sphere, associated with the Fixed Stars; thus we find Her in Plato (Laws 960C), Xenocrates, Plutarch and Calcidius (Dillon 30, 214-5, 322). For example, Calcidius (cxliv) explains that Her name means “Inevitable” and that the Fixed Stars do not bend or turn aside from their paths (as do the Wanderers, i.e. the planets). The Fixed Stars are the Inerratic Sphere, that is, the non-wandering or unerring sphere; therefore they are associated with knowledge that is certain (epistêmê). Plutarch (Conviv. Quest. IX.14.745ff) associates Atropos with Hupatê, the highest string (lowest in pitch) on the lyre (Anderson 200).

C. Sphere of Other

When you inhale again, observe the second Ray and see it turn obliquely to the first, and wrap around from right to left, or counterclockwise, but within the Sphere of Same. Within this band appear the Zodiac’s stars. The circle grows into the Sphere of Other, carried rightward by the Sphere of Same, and yet still moving slowly to the left across it at a slant. Intone:

αδαμαλωρ [adamalôr] (v.m.): “shining with Heavenly Light”

It carries seven fiery Wanderers, who move within the Zodiac and have a spiral path created from the twofold motion of the Spheres. These lights are radiant shrines in honor of the Gods. Each turns within itself and thinks its proper thoughts.

Upon the Sphere of Same, which rotates to the right, observe the Seven Wanderers, creeping back toward the left along an undulating path; each goes at its own rate and so their pattern always changes.

Most prominent of all the Wanderers is the Sun, and in its yearly spiral rise and fall we see the cycle of all living things, which come to be but pass away again. For such is life beneath the Moon. See the turning of the Spheres, the spiral motion of the Wanderers, the cycles of all life.

For through the motion of the Sphere of Other, do we learn how to discriminate, to judge when this is not that. Thus we form opinion and belief about the things of sense. And thereby may we think and speak of all that changes, though such thoughts and words are never certain. Feel the Ray enliven your ability to understand the world and life.

Other chants:

Κλωθώ [Klôthô] = “Spinner” (one of the Fates)
δόξα [doxa] = opinion
ρωγυευ αναμι πεληγεων αδαπα ειωφ [rôgueu anami pelêgeôn adapa eiôph] (v.m.): "revolution of untiring service by the Heavenly Bodies"

Commentary

Sphere of Other:
Cornford (72-93) explains in detail the motion of the Sphere of Other (Circle of Difference). The two intersecting Circles, representing the Eternal Celestial Realm and the Temporal Mundane Realm, are fundamental archetypes, as explained by Marie-Louise von Franz in her Number and Time (Northwestern Univ. Pr., 1974) and On Divination and Synchronization (Inner City Books, 1980); synchronicity occurs where these Circles intersect. Von Franz also discusses the archetypal rhythmic structure of Number, defined by the Harmony of the Spheres.
αδαμαλωρ [adamalôr]:
PGM IV.1145 (Secret Stêlê).
Zodiac and Wanderers:
The Demiurge first makes the Circle of the Other, which is the Zodiac arranged around the circle of the ecliptic. Later He divides it into seven parts to accommodate the Seven Wanderers — the Planets (Cornford 76). The Planets move to the east relative to the Zodiac, which is moving to the west with the Sphere of Sameness, so their overall motion is still westward (Cornford 84). The order of the Spheres is Moon, Sun, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn (Cornford 105).
Shrines of Gods:
In Greek thought the Planets are not Gods, although they may be associated with Gods or dear to Them; here the Planets are shrines in which the Gods may reside. The Timaeus (38D) mentions the Demiurge “enshrining” the Planets, and Proclus (ii, 5 27) explains that the Planets were established “as shrines of the Gods who together accomplish the perfect year”; a metaphor that is connected with Time enshrined as the “moving icon” of Eternity (Cornford 101, 105).
Turns within itself:
The only motion (activity) of a celestial (vs. mortal) soul is thinking, and circular motion is the only motion proper to the celestial realm; since the Planets rotate on their centers within themselves, they eternally think their own proper thoughts. However they also move outside themselves on the Circles of Same and Other. See Cornford (119).
Sun & the cycle of living things:
Although all the Planets move in the Circle of Other, they move at varying rates, but the Sun defines the basic rate, for it turns with the Sphere of Other. Therefore, this Sphere rotates once each year, which is the basic cycle of waxing and waning in the living world (obviously plants, but also animals). Although the Planets take their part in defining all Determinate Time, they are especially involved in Life, the natural motion of which is cyclic. See Cornford (103).
See the turning of the Spheres:
As explained previously (under Harmonia), the five senses are associated with stages in the descent. Here the Divine Harmony is perceived visually. The associated Element is Fire, since Light is necessary for vision. (There are many, mutually inconsistent ancient correspondences between the senses and the Elements, no doubt caused in part by the inconvenient fact that there are five senses but only four mundane Elements. Since hearing has been used (with Harmonia), the remaining senses have straight-forward correspondences: Fire = sight, Air = smell, Water = taste, Earth = touch.)
Spiral motion:
Since the Planets move eastward with the tilted Circle of the Other against the Zodiac, which rotates westward with the Circle of the Same, their overall motion is a spiral (Cornford 90). Spiral motion is a duality combining Rotation, the characteristic motion of the Celestial World, with Linear movement, the characteristic motion of the Mundane World. Thus it is a union of Above and Below, Heaven and Earth. It reflects application of the Rational Faculties to the World of Sense, a union of Being and Becoming. The spiral motion is associated with Life, as opposed to the linear motion of inanimate matter below and the circular motion of the celestial world above. Aristotle says that the Circle of Other causes all coming-to-be and passing-away by its twofold motion (Cornford 83).
This is not that:
Cornford (78) explains that the Sphere of Other (or Difference) corresponds to the third sense of Being, Difference, when this is not that, and to judgments of Difference.
Opinion and belief:
The Sphere of Difference is associated with opinion (doxa) and belief, that is uncertain knowledge, because it is the lowest sphere above the earth, and so it looks down to the World of Becoming. Its knowledge is uncertain because it combines two motions (the Spheres of Same and Difference), which lead to the wandering motion of the Planets. See Cornford (76, 83-4, 95), Dillon (194) and Johnston (Hekate Soteira 13-7). The “opinable” (doxaste) is thus a composite of the intelligible (Sphere of Same) and the sensible (Sublunary Sphere, associated with lower parts of the soul) (Dillon 30).
Κλωθώ [Klôthô]:
The second of the Fates, most commonly associated with the planetary sphere, known as the Erratic or Wandering Sphere (e.g. in Plato, Laws 960C, Calcidius, Plutarch; see Dillon 214-5, 322). Hence it corresponds to opinion (doxa) and belief rather than certain knowledge (epistêmê). Calcidius (cxliv) observes that the planets turn and spin and “Klôthô” means “Spinner” (as in “spinning the Thread of Fate”). Plutarch (Conv. Quest. IX.14.475ff) associates Klôthô with Mêsê, the middle string on the lyre (Anderson 200). So also Plutarch (Face in Moon, 945CD) associates Klôthô with the soul (psukhê) as an intermediate between Mind (Nous), associated with Atropos, and the Inanimate (Apsukhon), associated with Lakhêsis (see below).
ρωγυευ ... [rôgueu ...]:
PGM IV.1125-30 (Secret Stêlê).

2. Thumoeides — Spirited Soul

Now draw the Light Beam down your spine and through your neck. Know your neck to be the Guardian of the Boundary between the mortal soul below and the immortal parts above. The part above we share with Gods in Heaven; the part below we share with everything that lives, a gift of Earthly Gods. For we cannot survive upon this Earth without the lower part.

The Ray descends down to your Heart, the point of balance, joining what’s above and what’s below. But as you inhale, feel your breath flow like a glowing gas into the branches of your lungs. As you exhale it expands into a warmly glowing golden sphere. Lower both your hands in prayer position to your heart and then intone:

ιωιε ηω αυα [iôie êô aua] (v.m.): “wind-like”

Here is housed the center of all Feelings and Sensations. The Heart rules in the world of life, for it’s your Inner Sun, which rules the Fiery Planets of your Soul. Feel this glow expanding to take in all creatures living in the Water, Earth and Air. Smell the living incense, fragrant Breath of Life.

When Eros comes into your Heart, you seek for immortality through Fame and Reputation. The virtue that He brings is Fortitude or Courage, and this Energy gives strength to all our deeds.

Other chants:

Λάχησις [Lakhêsis] = "Apportioner" (one of the Fates)
θυμός [thumos] = heart, spirit, courage
αἴσθησις [aisthêsis] = sensation

Commentary

Neck as Guardian:
Plato describes the neck as the “isthmus and boundary” between the divine soul above and the mortal soul below (Tim. 69DE). It corresponds to Visuddha, the throat chakra, whose name means “purgation or purity” (Campbell 165).
Point of balance:
In Fludd’s harmonic analysis of the soul, the Heart is the point of balance corresponding to the Sun in the center of the sequence of planets (Godwin/Fludd fig. 49; see Inner Sun below). It divides the upper octave of the soul from the lower and has the musical interval of a fifth below the neck and a fifth above the diaphragm; it stand an octave below Nous (Mens, Mind) and an octave above Sôma (Corpus, Body) (fig. 50).
Air in lungs:
The thumos or spirited soul resides in the phrenes, which may be loosely translated “breast,” but refers to the heart and lungs (Onians Pt. I chs. 2, 3, Pt. II ch. 3). The thumos exists in the phrenes as pneuma, which means breath but also spirit (like Latin spiritus). Its vehicle is the Spirit Body (pneumatikon) or Aerial Body. (The term “Etheric Body” is ambiguous, having been used for both the Radiant Body and the Spirit Body.) Naturally it is associated with the element Air, which is Warm (discriminating) and Moist (conforming), qualities associated with feeling and sensation (see below). The Radiant Body, Spirit Body and Physical Body correspond to alchemical Sulfur, Quicksilver and Salt. The Phrenes correspond with the chakra called Anahata, which is connected with prâna, the vital spirit.
ιωιε ηω αυα [iôie êô aua]:
PGM IV.1140-5 (Secret Stêlê).
Feelings and Sensations:
Plato places the Passionate Soul and Sensitive Faculty, the upper part of the mortal soul, in the heart (Cornford 282-6; see also Peters s.v. psychê 15-17).
Inner Sun:
Fludd associates the heart with the Inner Sun since it stands in the middle of the traditional sequence of planets (Moon, Mercury, Venus, Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn), which correspond to the components of the psyche, and it corresponds to the Central Fire in Pythagorean doctrine. Fludd also makes it the middle between the spiritual and material octaves of the soul. See Godwin/Fludd figs. 45, 48-50, 91.
Creatures living in Water, Earth, Air:
The three kingdoms of creatures were created by the Planetary Gods (whom we may associate with Fire), who were already created by the Demiurge (associated with the Quintessence) (Cornford 117-8). Animals lack the higher soul (logistikon), but have the lower (thumoeides, epithumetikon) (Cornford 358).
Smell:
The Phrenes (heart and lungs) are associated with Air and therefore with the sense of smell, which is conveyed predominantly by the air. Also, smell is the most primitive sensation and therefore represents the basic faculty of sensation.
Eros in Heart:
According to Diotima (Symp. 207ff), when Eros enters the Heart, the love of immortality manifests itself in desire for Fame.
Fortitude:
The virtue associated with the Spirited Soul is “fortitude” (Andreia, Fortitudo), which means “strength, vigor and courage” (Tim. 70A).
Λάχησις [Lakhêsis]:
The third of the Fates, most commonly associated with the Sublunary Sphere or Earth (e.g. in Plato, Laws 960C; Calcidius, Plutarch; see Dillon 214-5, 322). Hence She corresponds to sensation, whereas the other Fates correspond to knowledge and opinion. More properly, She corresponds to the whole lower portion of the soul (the mortal portion), comprising the spirited and appetitive parts. Calcidius (cxliv) observes that “Lakhêsis” means “Apportioner,” and She is therefore the one who determines a mortal’s lot in earthly life. It is said that each of Fates conveys and transforms the Heavenly Power (Energeia), but it is Lakhêsis’ role to synthesize the energies from Her sisters and transmit them to Earth (Dillon 321-2). According to Plutarch (Face in Moon 945CD), She is associated with the Inanimate (Apsukhon), whereas Atropos is associated with Mind (Nous) and Klôthô with Soul (Psukhê). Further, Plutarch (Conv. Quest. IX.14.475ff) associates Lakhêsis with Neäte (or Nêtê), the lowest string (highest in pitch) on the lyre (Anderson 200).

3. Epithumetikon — Appetitive Soul

Draw the Ray down yet again, descending down your spine and through your Diaphragm, the Fence between your Feeling Soul above and that below, which seeks to love and grow.

And when the Ray has reached your solar plexus, housed between your diaphragm and navel, it expands into a glowing silver sphere. Whenever you inhale it fills your belly, but as you exhale the glow spreads out in undulating waves of light. Now lower both your hands in prayer position to your navel and intone:

ωωω ααα εεε [ôôô aaa eee] (v.m.): “water of water, the first of water in me”

This Soul we share with plants, who, like us, seek for sustenance to live and grow. And your first nourishment came from your Mother through your navel. Taste the Nectar, the Ambrosia, the Elixir of all Life.

The Virtue of this Soul is Temperance, which means the proper mix, as of the wine and water. For too little is as faulty as too much; moderation in all things is Lord Apollo’s rule. This Beam enlivens every healthy appetite.

When Eros enters here, your love for immortality creates desire for having children. Truly, all life comes from the Oceanic Womb. The Heavenly Lightning gathers in this Womb before enkindling the Vessel that’s within the Earth.

Other chants:

Ἑκάτη [Hekatê] = Hekatê
ἐπιθυμία [epithumia] = desire, yearning, longing
φύω [phuô] = I bring forth, make grow, beget

Commentary

Diaphragm:
Plato (Tim. 69E-70A) compares the diaphragm to a partition between two rooms, which separates the two parts of the mortal soul (Cornford 286-90). It corresponds to the “Little Foyer” below the heart chakra.
Love and grow:
The Appetitive Soul is the origin of desire and nourishment (Peter s.v. psychê 15-17, epithymia).
Solar Plexus:
The belly is the seat of the Appetitive Soul (Cornford 286-90); it corresponds to the Manipûra chakra (cf. Campbell 159-60).
ωωω ααα εεε [ôôô aaa eee]:
PGM IV.490-5 (“Mithras Liturgy”).
Plants:
Plato says that plants have the third form of soul (appetitive/nutritive) and that they have a kind of consciousness, because they are sensitive (Cornford 302-3).
Nourishment from Mother:
In Pherecydes’ and other cosmogonies, the Mother Goddess, especially Khthoniê, who becomes Gaia (see above on Khthoniê), is associated with the World Tree, the source of the Nektar of Immortality (WEGP 55-68).
Taste the Nectar:
The Element corresponding to the Appetitive Soul is Water (see below), which is naturally connected with the sense of taste, which is mediated by water. Nektar is found in the spring around the roots of the Cosmic Tree (WEGP 56-60).
Temperance:
Mêden Agan (“Nothing too much”) is the famous inscription on Apollo’s temple at Delphi. This is the meaning of “Temperance” (Sôphrosunê, Temperantia) in the Pagan tradition.
Wine and Water:
The mixture of the cool Water with the fiery Wine is a traditional Greek symbol of the Golden Mean and the Unification of Opposites.
Water:
Nourishment is associated with the element Water, which is Moist and Cool, which are the Powers that loosen form and unite. Therefore Water permits the dissolution and reorganization of structure, which is essential to nourishment and growth. (See Water in Opsopaus, "The Ancient Greek Esoteric Doctrine of the Elements.")
Eros in Belly:
According to Diotima (Symp. 207ff), when Eros enters the Belly, the love of immortality manifests itself in desire for procreation.
Womb:
One of the important roles of Hekatê as Cosmic Soul in Chaldean Theurgy is to serve as the “Lightning-receiving Womb,” who absorbs the Heavenly Lightning conveying the Ideas from the Monad, and infuses them into the material world (Johnston, Hekate Soteira 16-7, 49-58).

4. Sôma — Body

The Ray emerges from the bottom of your spine — the fruit of an inverted Tree of Life — and it continues down your legs. Your legs are the foundation of your being, as the Elements are the foundation of all Earthly life. Feel the solid substance of your body planted on our Mother Earth. Lower both your arms down to your sides, and hold your palms toward the Earth. The Ray descends down to your knees and grows into a glowing sphere. Intone:

υη υωη [uê uôê] (v.m.): "earth of earth, the first of the earth in me"

Behold, the Elements are moving chaotically in the Receptacle below, and so Celestial Light must yet continue down to balance them and bring them into order, altering proportions, ordering the motions in the six directions (forward, backward, leftward, rightward, up and down). Just so the Sphere of Same drags round the Sphere of Other and its Wanderers, and Heaven’s Ray illuminates the churning Crater down below.

Thus Life exists by Reason and Necessity: for Reason brings some purpose into energetic motion. But do not forget that neither is supreme, nor can destroy the other, for some Chance and Chaos always will remain. And this is good, because without it Reason would be out of touch with life upon the Earth, for Reason may persuade Necessity, but never rule Her. Thus Necessity provides the Force of Life, and Reason gives it Purpose.

Other chants:

Γαῖα, Γῆ [Gaia, Gê] = Earth
σώμα [sôma] = body

Commentary

Fruit of Tree of Life:
We saw above ("Inverted Tree") that the spinal column is viewed as an Inverted Tree with its roots in Heaven where they can absorb Spiritual Sustenance. The fruit of this Inverted Tree is the Procreative Seed, which is derived from the spinal marrow at the base of the spine (Cornford 357; Onians 108-10, 119-22). The gonads correspond to the Svâdhisthâna chakra (cf. Campbell 144). The base of the spine itself, known in Greek and Latin as the Holy Bone (Hieron Osteon, Os Sacrum), corresponds to the Mûlâdhâra chakra, the base chakra, which forms the foundation for all the rest (Campbell 144); it establishes the connection to the physical existence of the body.
Feel solidity of body:
The body is associated with the element Earth (see below), which corresponds to the sense of touch, which depends on solid contact.
Earth:
Inanimate matter is associated with the element Earth, because it is Cool and Dry, that is to say, joining and rigid. (See Earth in Opsopaus, “The Ancient Greek Esoteric Doctrine of the Elements.”)
Palms to Earth:
As before, a gesture of Chthonic invocation.
Knees:
The knee (Grk. gonu, Lat. genu) is an important locus of divine power (genios) in the body; it is therefore associated with generation (cf. “genital,” “genetic,” “gonad,” etc.) (Onians Pt. II ch. 4).
υη υωη [uê uôê]:
PGM IV.495 (“Mithras Liturgy”).
Balancing chaotic motion:
Mind orders the chaotically moving Qualities and Elements in the Receptacle (Cornford 37, 199).
Altering proportions:
The Demiurge orders the Elements by geometry, number and proportion (Cornford 198, 223). Nevertheless, like any Craftsman, He must conform to the constraints of His material, which is Necessity (Cornford 223).
Six Directions:
These are the natural motions of inanimate matter (Cornford 151, 210).
Spheres of Same and Other:
Proclus makes the analogy between the two Spheres and Reason and Necessity (Cornford 208).
Chance and Chaos remain:
There can be no Kosmos without both Reason and Necessity; therefore the Kosmos is neither entirely intelligible nor entirely chaotic (Cornford 159-60, 223).
Reason persuades Necessity:
Necessity is a sovereign Goddess and cannot be coerced, so Reason and Necessity cooperate to create the visible world, which reflects both their contributions (Cornford 159-61, 209, 223).

5. Holon — The Whole

Cross your arms upon your chest and stand awhile, maintaining in your mind the shining column and the glowing globes on it; continue to observe the motion of the Spheres of Same and Other. Then intone:

υηι αυι ευωιε [uêi aui euôie] (v.m.): “my complete body ... which was formed by a noble arm and an incorruptible right hand in a world without light and yet radiant, without soul and yet alive with soul”

When you are done, inhale a final, long deep breath, and then allow the light to fade, or continue on with the Ascent.

Other chants:

ὅλον [holon] = whole, universe

Commentary

υηι αυι ευωιε [uêi aui euôie]:
PGM IV.495-500 ("Mithras Liturgy").
ὅλον [holon]:
Its meanings include Whole, Universe and Organism, all appropriate for this exercise.

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Last updated: Fri. 27 Dec. 2024