THE INTER OCEAN

Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A.

15 May 1910

(page 15)

MEMBER PUBLISHES ROSICRUCIAN RITUAL

Aleister Crowley Discloses Secrets of

Strange Order Which Believes in Ancient

Magic and Makes Gods and Mythical Spirits.

TEMPLES ARE CONSTRUCTED

IN MANY EUROPEAN CITIES

Egyptian, Christian and Cabalistic Symbolism

Used—Comte Liddell Macgregor Is Supreme

Head and Mrs. Sheffield Is High Priestess.

After an unsuccessful attempt to prevent its appearance, the Equinox, the official organ of the A.A., containing some 400 pages, and costing $1.25, has been published.

It contains a disclosure of the ancient mysteries and magical rites of the “Rosicrucian Order of A. O.,” by the editor, Aleister Crowley, a member of this extraordinary sect, who lately won his appeal against an injunction forbidding the publication of this particular number of his magazine.

Such of the ritual of the mystic order as appears in the Equinox is meaningless to the uninitiated.

Several pages are devoted to the details of “The Ritual for the Evocation Unto Visible Appearance of the Great Spirit Taphthartharath.” This mighty spirit must appear to the initiated, and he is conjured in many ways.

Those who take part in this ritual are: The Mighty Magnus of Art, Assistant Magnus of Art, Magnus of the Fires, Magnus of the Waters.

Four Take Part in Act.

When all is ready the ceremony begins with the rising of the chief magnus, “holding the Ibis wand by its black end,” and proclaiming.

“Hekas Este Behelol.”

An elaborate ceremony is then gone through in which the Magnus of the Fires frequently exclaims: “Bitom,” and makes “banishing” and “invoking pentegrams in the air.”

The conjuration of the spirit is continued at length. It is conjured, among other ways, as follows:

“By all the names, powers and rites already rehearsed I conjure thee thus unto visible apparition: Khabs Am Pekht. Konx Om Pax. Light in Extension.”

More Potent Conjuration.

Another “stronger and more potent conjuration: contains the following:

“And by the great magic word StiBeTTChePhMeFShiSS, which calleth thee from thy place as thou fleest before the presence of the Spirit of Light and the Crown. And by the name ZBaTh, which symbolizes thy passage from Mercury in Gemini unto us in Malkath come forth, come forth, come forth Taphthartharath!”

Should even this conjuration fail, there is “an extremely powerful conjuration,” which contain the awe-inspiring phrase threatening the spirits for their unaccommodating behavior: “Let Iahdonhi Elahim, Tzebaoth, Michael, Raphael, Beni, Elohim, Tiriel, Asboga, Din, Doni Hod, Kokab, and every name and spell scourge of God, the vast one bend thee to obey my words and will.”

“The Ritual of the Order of Rosae Rubae et Aureae Crucis” requires three officers to commence. They are the chief, second and third adept. With these is an adeptus minor.

The ritual begins: “Mighty Adeptus Major, by what sign hast thou entered the portal?”

Recite Hebrew Letters.

The reply is: “By the sign of the rending asunder of the veil.” The adepts then recite in order various Hebrew letters of the alphabet.

Later the chief says: “Let us analyze the keynote L:

Second: N. Third: Resh.

Third: R All: Yod.

All: I. Chief: Virgo Isis, Almighty Mother

Chief: Yod.

Second: Nun.

This dialogue goes on for a long while.

The “Charge to Aspirants” includes the following mystic phrase: “The aspirant is now the purified man in touch with his Jechidah, but is Kether only as yet.”

These extracts are typical of the ritual, much of which is utterly unintelligible, and contains much reference to things and names referred to only in initial letters.

Explains Object of Order.

A member of the Rosicrucian Order of A. O. explained the object of the order as follows:

“Admittal to this ancient order,” he said, reading from an official printed document, “on a more extended basis than formerly, was permitted by its secret chief during the last year of the nineteenth century and temples were and have been formed under due warrant from the head of the order.

“The object of the establishment of such temples is similar to that of the foundation in ancient times of centers for the celebration of the mysteries—that is to say, the acquirement of that occult wisdom, chiefly derived from ancient Egypt and Chaldea, which treats of the gods, of the Spiritual Being, of the secret forces existing in nature, of life and death.

“Meetings are therefore held for the purpose of such, and also for the initiation and advancement of persons of either sex who may have been accepted as candidates by authority of the head of the order.

Must Believe in Gods.

“Candidates must believe in the gods, or at least in the Supreme Being, and be prepared to take interest in Egyptian, Christian and Cabalistic symbolism.”

“Persons accustomed habitually to encourage absolute abandonment of will, such as sometimes obtains in mesmeric and spiritualistic experiments, and drug taking to excess, are seldom admitted.”

Comte Liddell Macgregor [MacGregor Mathers], who resides in Paris, is the head of the order, and Mrs. Sheffield, who, it will be remembered, brought a recent celebrated action for breach of promise, is the high priestess.