 |
The
Star Set Matrix
History of the Matrix
Since the writing of The Book of the Law in April 1904, many have worked on alternate Qabalahs meant to reflect the shift in Aeonic consciousness. This work has been necessary since a map must accurately reflect its territory; as that territory shifts, so must its representation. If this were not the case, then navigation would prove impossible. Could one imagine navigating the coast of Africa with a map that indicated the end of the world as our forefathers did? No, the concept is as preposterous as the notion that Qabalah is a static instrument. By its nature any map of the dynamic must itself be mutable or it will be quickly dated. This is especially true in cases where both the territory and our understanding of that territory change with the passage of time. Qabalah, like truth, is entirely dependent on the apparatus of knowledge (knowing) available to thinkers of the age. The Aeon of Isis, with its polytheistic temples and oracles, attempted to understand nature (the great without). The Aeon of Osiris and its monotheistic cathedrals attempted to control nature (the false projection of ego). And now, the Aeon of Horus brings in a web-like structure where the center is everywhere, a fluid and interconnected element of the natural (the World Wide Web and internet a symbiotic world brain).
In the 93 years since the writing of The
Book of the Law, several have worked on a Qabalah, or Qabalahs,
mapping the frontier of thelema. Crowley,
Achad, Grant, Carroll, &c. I
do not propose that I am in this company, nor do I attempt to inflate
myself to the level of wisdom capable of putting forth the
Qabalah of Thelema. In large
part, I do not think that possible, as we live in an age of outspoken
individualism. It has been suggested that each magician possesses
his own Qabalah and that the tree of one is not relevant to the experience
of another. I agree with this
only in part. I would, instead,
humbly suggest that a modern Qabalah be looked at in the way of a Voudic
veve, defining a family, or subset of interpretive wisdom. In such a system, a tree is a schematic which windows onto a particular
microcosmic universe. In November 1993EV, the Star of Set Matrix first appeared adorning the cover of the occultural journal Mektoub. This form (FIGURE 1, will be included shortly) is a glyph illustration (a lamen) of a complex geometric model. At the center is a unicursal hexagram, Hexagram of the Beast, or Star of Set. Its configuration in the temple is as the lamp, or light of gnosis. In this depiction it can be seen hovering over the desert of elemental existence, aflame with the light (L.V.X.) of enlightenment. Hadit and Nuit ascend the feathery fire riding the span from the wick of initiation to the ineffable light of the Divine. High, seemingly unassailable cliffs flank the barren waste, while in the background rise the dwarfed edifices of the great pyramids of the Giza Plateau reflecting its roots in the knowledge of Africa. The matrix is the temple of initiation—the light in the dark and the dark in the light. It is the Lamp of Set, the Black Flame of Shaitan, the method and mechanism of illumination.
Geometry
The foundation of the Star Set Matrix lies in the work of Llee Heflin included in “The Diamonds of ChAOS: An Interim Report”. In his work, Heflin discovered the geometry which defines the new tree. Not wanting to slight Heflin’s profound work, I will only include here those portions which are integral to the development of the Star Set matrix. The following description of his geometry should not be taken as encompassing the depth of his experiments and discoveries. The traditional Hebraic Qabalah (FIGURE 2), made familiar in the work of the Golden Dawn, consists of 10 spheres, or Sephiroth, and twenty-two paths. This is a hierarchical system where one progresses through initiatory grades, from Malkuth (Kingdom, earth) to Kether (Crown, enlightenment). Frater Achad, Crowley’s would-be magical son, wrote a book called Anatomy of the Body of God. In this work he outlined his theories for transforming the Qabalah into a model appropriate to the New Aeon. In Anatomy, Achad suggested that the universe was actually a multi-branched system, a set circlet of trees emanating from a common point, Malkuth. (FIGURE 3) Heflin was uncomfortable with this, since Malkuth seemed a more logical as a terminus than as a forming point. “To have set the source at the ‘edge; of the projection as [Achad] did seems to me inappropriate.” (Heflin, p. 5) He shifted the snowflake pattern moving Malkuth to the edge, thus centering the pattern on Kether. This created a snowflake shaped pattern, similar to Achad’s, of six arms projecting outwards from a single point.
This tree is but one branch of a six-armed snowflake (FIGURE 5), itself generated out of 13 hexagrams. Add 13 more snowflakes and the system is replicated. Add 18 around the edge and one has an enclosed system of 31 units. It can easily be seen that the system is intrinsically tied to the numerology of thelema at all levels. Heflin soon discovered that this pattern replicates itself into an infinite modular system at all levels and in all directions. (FIGURE 6) This he termed “the Diamond Lattice of ChAOS.” I have color-coded the figure to show one snowflake (pink) and a single tree (blue).
As Achad initially theorized, Hefflin conceptualized this lattice as a three-dimensional structure, the snowflake having eight branches, not six, with two projecting along the Z axis. (FIGURE 7) Other trees also exist at varying sizes, each extending from the central, originating vectors. Thus, one has both the macrocosm and microcosm from Universe to the atom. This is the image of the multiverse as seen by Crowley in the famous “Star Sponge Vision.” Heflin likens his geometric system to that of DNA and its subparts. The DNA structure is the Tree pattern, the hexagrams are the genes and the vectors (“diamonds”) the nucleotides. (Heflin, p. 7). Or in other words: the tree is the paired ladder of the double-helix, the vectors are the gene loci that will have a single allele of a particle gene. This also leads one to ponder the co-relation o vectors paired across the central axis of the tree and the way in which they may interrelate--dominant, recessive or blended. The lattice see in figure 6 could be likened to the unravelling of DNA when chromosome are not in the stages of meiosis or mitosis.
In the process of examining the lattice, Heflin shifted his thinking of the Sephiroth from independent spheres to vectors defined wholly as the connection points of two lines. He renumbered these vectors 0 through 0: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 2, 1 and 0. Again, examining the lattice, he discovered that each vector performed several functions on different trees. For example, vector 1 is also 2, 3 and 9 in adjacent trees. It follows, then, that each resonates with similar energies, though refracted differently relative to the angle within the particular tree being examined. Taking each of these vector groups (e.g. 1-2-3-9) as a unit, there are actually four classes of vector. For simplicities’ sake, I have renamed these four types as follows: O vector AW, the beginning and the ending of each tree (snowflake arm); 1-2-3-9 vector B, the second emanating principle and its contiguous evolutions; 4-5-7-8 vector D, the mutable energies of identity; and 6-6 vector Q, the ego or logos vector (Therion) (FIGURE 8).
This article will concentrate on one tree, or a single arm of a single snowflake. Thus, it should be remembered throughout that we are examining only a fragment of a whole which extends infinitely in all directions, in all dimensions, and in all proportions. Choosing to focus on a single tree is a necessary expedient to explicating the entire system. It is my hope that the reader is not led astray by this into visualizing a system of hierarchically ascending/descending spheres. This is not a Sephirothic system.
The Tree
The tree can easily be separated into three parts, or complete but integrated subcircuits. The first, an ascending triangle, forms the matrix’s upper region. This can be called the Transcarnate Triangle, as the energies it represents exists outside of the specific instance of cyclic rebirth. The second region is a unicursal hexagram formed of the fourth through the tenth vectors (B1, D1-D4, Q, B3). This subcircuit is commonly known as the Theta Matrix, taking its name from its hub, which serves as its anchor. This area is similar in many respects to the traditional Ruach (intellect), containing as it does the personality (mental zones). In addition, it incorporates the intuitive faculties (Neschamah) and gnostic capacity (Daath/The Abyss). The Theta matrix then is more expansive than the concept of Ruach. The third region is formed of a descending triangle (B2, B1, AW) below the Theta Matrix. This is the manifest world with its primordial arena of lust and animal instinct. Each one of these three domains is an independent circuit, but more importantly, they form a single master computer that can be utilized by the Magician. Though there are unexplored secondary routes, this connection works primarily through the B3 points. This computer represents the magician in his totality. The Matrix is an occult hologram of Heideggar’s dasein, the Will-Being. Through its interpretation and study, one can reach a phenomenal understanding ontically and ontologically. Of course, the computer is only equal to the sum of its parts. Here, again, it must be stressed that the vectors are not discrete spheres, akin to containers or pomegranates, as with old-style Qabalah. They are, instead, the culmination of a force direction. They are the terminus of a path forming a dimensionless point, representing the pure nature, influence or energy. They are merely vectors connecting the paths, along which energy flows from one absolute to another. These vectors are more than anchor points pulsing, refracting with a particular frequency the energy flows within the circuit that is the Theta Matrix. Antecedent to these three structures, the veils of Nothingness swirl in the formless void of protomaterial and emptiness. Hadit is a black point of infinite contraction beyond the first vector. The circumference encircling this point is Nuit, infinite expansion. It is the edge of Nuit that touches Ra-Hoor-Khuit, just at the first vector AW. In his commentary to Liber AL II:4, Crowley writes, “The circumference of Nuit touches Ra-Hoor-Khuit, Kether; but her center Hadit is forever concealed above Kether.” (Crowley, The Law Is For All, p.158) Reflecting the “as above, so below” credo, this relation of Hadit, Nuit and Ra-Hoor-Khuit is mirrored at the center of the tree. Hadit is the seed of Nuit within the Logos (the temporal embodiment of Ra-Hoor-Khuit) who is the Q vector. Nuit, the circumference, is then the circle which defines the domain of the tree—Heflin’s “unit of measure.” (Heflin, p. 13) Hadit is the originating force (zero) while Nuit is the limit of all relative potentialities. In Crowley’s terms, Hadit is the “impersonal identity within the individuality,” while Nuit is the possibilities. (Crowley, Law is…, pp. 156-157) Crowley describes this as the "Ante primal triad" or "negative trinity" which represents:
Also See The Book of Lies chapter 7.
The Alpha and the Omega
An individual tree begins and ends with AW, or originating vectors. These represent the Godhead, Divine, first spark of spiritual light. This is the point, where the nimbus of Nuit’s circumference touches this Universe. It is the throne of the Aeon—the helm of the Arc that is the tree. The personality of the Godhead represented in this vector is the presiding force of the age. It’s particular mask is thus transitory, it’s presented face changing with the flow of progressing Aeons. In this way the entirety of the form of the tree and its magick shifts with the Equinox of the Gods. During the current Aeon, beginning April 1904, this vector is the seat of Ra-Hoor-Khuit (Ra-Herakty, a form of Horus). In addition, the AW vectors represent a dual nature, existing at both the originating and terminating points of a given tree. The coexist in a yin-yang, bi-polar system of night and day, dark and light, NOX and LVX, where each contains the potential seed of the other. The second AW vector, then, is the equilibrating force, that which keeps the powers of the Divine in check, balancing spiritual with the earthly. It is the plane of cthonic influence, the throne of Seth, the covenant of the Aeon. In verse 7 Liber A’Ash Vel Capricorni Pneumatici Sub Figure CCCLXX, it is written: “Set is his holy covenant…” This vector is the promise of the flesh which keeps man from the pit of righteous fanaticism. Seth is the eruption of nature which reminds us of our corporeal nature. It is the earth quake that destroys a city and the erection that won’t be denied. It is important to remember that this vector is dynamic, not static. For Seth is the “force and fire” referred to in Liber AL II:20. Crowley comments, “But Sh (SHIN) and T (TAU) are alike formulae of force in action as opposed to entities; they are not states of existence, but modes of motion. They are verbs, not nouns.” (Crowley, Liber ABA, p. 567) I must note that the nomenclature, in its very simplifying, may prove misleading. The Q vector is the actual origin point of the tree, when viewed as the computer of a particular magus. From this vantage the two AW vectors are actually dual terminating points, with the magician as their balancing fulcrum. This reflects the heliocentric orientation of thelemic magick, and the solar focus of Ra-Hoor-Khuit (etymologically a combination of the sun god Ra with the godform Horus) as Q is related to Sol (the Sun). “The Khabs is in the Khu not the Khu in the Khabs.” (Liber AL I:8) The divine light is within the individual, not vice-versa. This also suggests a new view of the relation between Nuit and Hadit vis-à-vis the tree. With this alternate view, Hadit would be located within the Q vector, as the infinitesimal originating point and Nuit would be the circumference delineating the individual tree. Hadit the Microcosm and Nuit the Macrocosm. This secondary configuration, indeed, fits snugly with Heflin’s interpretation of the circle which defines a given tree as Nuit. I will caution that I do not see Hadit existent as a part of Q; rather, the vector is like an onion, where Hadit, the center, can be sought but not found. Michel Foucault’s theories on “essential” identity are closely related to this point.
The Spiritual & Cthonic Triads
For the sake of discussion, I have numerically subscripted the B vectors in a descending series. Again, I will emphasize that any directional signifiers are employed simply as a shorthand method of orienting the reader on one single tree and should not be interpreted as an indication of a preferred hierarchical structuring of the vectors. Indeed, it is the non-hierarchical, nongraded configuration of the matrix that most dramatically, and foundationally, sets it apart from the traditional Qabalah. The numbering of any vector is simply an expedient to facilitate the discussion of a vector’s relation within a particular tree pattern. The first of the three B vectors resides to the right of the AW when looking at a vertically oriented lattice segment, or singularly defined tree (FIGURE 8). B1 is the realm of True Will (a terrestrial reflection of Hadit). It is related to both Neptune and, in a more traditional sense, the entirety of the arcane Zodiac. It is the trajectory of the soul determined at the point it was let loose from the infinite. It is the orbit of a particular star. The point becomes the line when it shoots forth to express it’s individuality through extension. The next vector, B2, is the Holy Guardian Angel. It is the dark night of Saturn and, thereby, is Nuit’s “troubled reflection.” (Crowley, ABA, p. 79) It is the wavelengths of this zone which convert the more anterior ramblings of B1 to something which can be received through the mechanism of gnosis energized by B3. The line becomes the plain. At first glance, the next vector B3, seemingly similar to Daath, is the germinator of Gnosis. It is the initiatory moment, Heidegger’s “call of conscience.” It is the spark of enlightenment in which the Holy Guardian Angel communicates one’s True Will, either in whole or in fragment depending on the developed faculties of the hearer. The energy released through the Angel’s revelations is symbolized by Uranus, the occult planet. The dual natures of life and death are the mysteries of this point. B3 is the gateway between the upper triad of “spiritual” vectors and the middle “mental” vectors, the Theta Matrix. It is through the osmosis of this point that the metaphysical is brought down into the physical. Like the AW vectors, the B vectors also exist twice on each particular tree. After flowing the course through the Theta Matrix, made up of the D vectors orbiting the central Q vector, one reaches B3 again. This reflected vector is the earthly embodiment of Gnosis, generally referred to as intuition and known in traditional parlance as Neschamah. It is the zone of Lunar influences that gently speak Will to the earthly moving soul. It is the gateway to the Theta Matrix from the cthonic in the same was that its counterpart is the entrance to the outer planes. At a deeper level, it also represents a direct gateway to its Uranian other half, intrinsically linked through the mauve sea upon which the Star floats. The B2 and B1 vectors are also reflected in this area beneath the Star. They form the upper two corners of an inverted triangle that is the cthonic, as the upper facing triangle is spirit, and the unicursal hexagram (Star) is the psychological. Here B2 is the throbbing request of lust, the elbow in the abdomen, the itch in the groin. It is the overpowering instinctual scent that drives one toward another’s sex. It draws one onwards, forming the navigational device through the earth plane, communicating, diluting and tempering (for our survival) the primordial urges thrusting forth from its twin, B1. It is thus that B1 is the animal self—the not-yet-vestigial legacy of man’s evolutionary foundations.
The Theta Matrix
As with the B vectors, above, I have labeled the “descending” D vectors of a singular tree to more easily distinguish one from another. First, we have D1 at the upper right point of the Star emblem. This vector consists of the energies most generally associated with Jupiterian currents—acquisition and retention. It is simultaneously the seat of memory and desire (for gain). At first, it may seem that these two have no apparent connection, but, with meditation on this particular point shard, they prove to be intrinsically linked. Indeed, memory is the root cause of desire—the desire to resurrect the past, to re-invoke the potent, to re-acquire the permanent. Travel across the upper lateral bar and one comes to D2, the vector associated with the energy of Mars. This is the zone of free will, the ability to move and formulate independent decisions. This is aligned with, though not necessarily in agreement with, the B2 vector (True Will) above. This is free will as opposed to True Will—the latter being the course of the demarcated star, while the former is the ability of the individuated entity to align with or deviate from said trajectory. Next, one moves horizontally down through the Q vector to D3. This is the zone of Venus and this it the domain of emotions. Again, traveling laterally, we come to its counterpoint in the D4 vector, the zone of Mercury and, thus, reason, logic and intellect. Now we come to the heart of the Theta Matrix, the hexagram’s central point, the axle of the wheel, the Q vector. This point is the domain of Sol, the star, the Being (Dasein), the light of self. This is the personality of the magician, that unifies the four mental/psychological points and two gnostic gateways into a coherent individual. The Q vector is the sum of its constituent parts, but rises to be more than their mere combination. It is the coagulation of forces flowing inwards from the unicursal hexagram’s points. This vector represents the axis mundi around which all else revolves. As in Hopi belief, everyone is the center of the Universe. The Q vector is the unifying point of the six adjacent vectors. It is centered and stable only through their equilibration. If any single vector is out of alignment, emphasized or stunted, then the entire system is askew. These seven vectors, the six and the seventh which arises from their combination, form the Theta Matrix. This is an expansion of the traditional Ruach, incorporating both Neschamah and Daath. In its balanced entirety, the Theta Matrix is the mental sphere, the personality—reason, emotions, will, memory. It is also the ability to transcend them through gnosis, as it contains the dual potentialities of entering into the divine and partaking of the cthonic. The magician stands here, upon the Solar disc, and conducts his rituals outwards from this point—thus, the use of averse pentagrams within Crowley’s reformulated pentagram rituals. (see Lon DuQuette's Magick of Thelema for elucidation of this point.) The magickal natures of the individual vectors of the Theta Matrix can be interpreted through application of chaos magick's eight-fold color theory. (Peter J. Carroll, Liber Kaos, Weiser, 1992, pp. 108-151). Vector B1b is black or death magick; D1 is blue, or wealth magick; D2 is red, or war magick; Q is yellow or ego magick; D3 is green, or emotion/love magick; D4 is orange or reason magick; and B1a is silver (purple) or sex magick. the eighth magickal color, octarine, is an aura surrounding the star. It is the combined power resulting from the collaboration of the vectors. It is the personal color of the magickian. It has been my experience that this auric shade is a particular purple, or mauve. "Purple beyond purple. It is the light higher than eyesight." (AL II:51) As with traditional Qabalah, the vectors can be related to the influences of particular deities. The Santerian grouping known as the Seven African Powers (potencias = "potentials") is most appropriate to this endeavor. So in the same order as the magicks above: B1b Oya, D1 Obtala, D2 Ogun, Q Eleggua, D3 Oshun, D4 Chango and B1a Yamaya.
Pathworking the Vectors
It is through an understanding of the potentials represented by the pure energies of each vector that the magical system of the matrix develops. The pathways can be utilized to transfer energy from one do “essential” to another. Through accessing their forces, one can transmute the working of the Theta Matrix and thereby the Q vector. If one needs more creativity, feeling that they are dealing with life in too rational a manner, they can bring energy from D3 to D4 along the lateral bar from right to left. It should be noted that, unlike traditional Qabalistic pathworking, the mechanics here are entirely organic. The matrix exists as a whole circuit—formed of three interconnected subcircuits. Affect a change in one area and it will reverberate throughout the whole system of the Matrix. Resuscitate a flagging path and it will affect the entire tree. The methodology of the pathworking is also more assertive than the traditional Qabalah. Each path is connected to a guardian or spirit, while each vector contains a grouping, or famile, of spirit energies (e.g. Orisha, Loa). It is via contact with these energy shards, through evocation (paths) and invocation (vectors), that one works the puzzle pieces of the Theta Matrix. “Path” and “pathways” are also misnomers, as the “paths” do not actually exist, at least not as such. They are, instead, nothing more than a concatenation of points from a successive series of lesser trees. They are more like atomic doors and the spirit a gatekeeper, or switch. In his report, Heflin writes, “If there is movement from one vector to another, it must be something in the form of something like a ‘quantum jump’ for there is no real path between them.”
The
Seven African Powers (Orishas)
The
Eight Colors of Magick and the Theta Matrix
Also: FUTHARK, Placement of the runes on the Tree.
Coming soon… a reading of Liber B vel Magi (sub figura I) In connection with The Star Set Matrix
©1996-2003 Sven Davisson / Prem Arun |
