The House of Adocentyn

"That the Holy Grail is associated in a manner with the Cauldron of Regeneration of Celtic lore, is a frequent statement among specialists in medieval legend. It is a statement whose profound truth goes far beyond any literary evidence, seeing into the very nature of Adepthood itself. The 'Quest of the Grail' is indeed a distinct and recondite image of the task which lies before the risen Adept, the Knight, the Professed. Here, 'that which he is to seek, he is to become': - the sacred vessel which is to receive the Wine of Inspiration. Nevertheless, this is but one level of the Grail's significance. It is also the specific and sacred symbol of the Goddess in her Binah Aspect, as a receptacle of the power of the Supernal Father. The Grail thus represents a high spiritual reality: one of its co-symbols is the Universe. To raise up a magical instrument, as has been said, is to bring it into manifestation and into operation. He who elevates the Grail in solemn ritual, therefore, is making offering so far as he is able, of the universe itself as a receptacle of Divine Power. Not only that: he is also whether explicitly or implicitly offering himself as an instrument of that Power. {Even thus does the Grand Master make offering of the Order, and of himself its representative before the Gods.}" - Mysteria Magica, Denning &Phillips

The Quest for the Grail

The symbol of the Grail has occupied a place in the imagination since awareness of it first dawned in the European Middle Ages, and it continues to exert a fascination upon all who come within its sphere of influence. As a sacred vessel, the grail has strong links with Celtic myth, with the hermetic vessel and the Philosophers’ Stone of alchemy. Cup stone or jewel, however it is depicted, the grail has remained a symbol of spiritual wholeness leading to union with the divine, which has been the aim of seekers after truth in every land and every century. It is a symbol ‘whose home is properly in the uncharted country of the soul’.

-The temple of mysteries-

The home of the Grail is properly in the uncharted country of the soul; but within the framework of the stories, an externalized form- the temple, or grail castle- came to be recognized as the place where if the quester should reach it, he might find the object of his search. And because such a place must have its guardians. There came into being an Order of Grail Knights, a king and a court, conforming to the mediaeval idea of such a place, but at the same time as remote and mysterious as the ritual object thus housed.

Image: Parsifal by Hermann Hendrich, made for the eponymous opera by Richard Wagner.

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The House of Adocentyn is pleased to announce that it will perform the opening ritual for Phoenix Pagan Pride Day on Saturday, November 5th, 2016 at 10 am. Additionally, the House will have a booth at the event where interested students may obtain information on the Ordo Astrum Sophiae or purchase select publications relevant to the Ogdoadic Tradition. The House of Adocentyn believes strongly in supporting the local Phoenix occult community, continuing a tradition extending back to the original Aurum Solis under Melita Denning and Obsorne Phillips who were active participants in the Llewellyn Gnosticon festivals held in the Twin Cities in the 1970's.

Though the OAS remains a private magical order, with initiation by invitation only, this event offers an opportunity for local interaction and outer manifestation within the greater occult community.

The Ordo Astrum Sophiae has just published Issue 5 of The Ogdoadic Journal! As with all of the Journals, it is freely available to all via PDF on the OAS website. This is the first of 2 issues to focus on Praxis - specifically the "Lesser Mysteries." Containing innovative new material and complete presentations of the foundational rites with photos, audio, and commentary, we hope this issue will inform and inspire all students of the Mysteries!

Ordo Astrum Sophiae

The stunning zodiacal visions of Johfra Bosschart. The painting of Gemini would also serve as the cover to the third printing of Denning & Phillip's Planetary Magick; unfortunately the book's copyright page misattributes it to Lissanne Lake (who drew the Magical/Briatic Images for that book).

The zodiacal paintings of Dutch artist Johfra Bosschart (1919-1998)

Today's blog presents a 1979 editorial by Denning & Phillips on the Guyana Massacre. It speaks candidly of the occultist's social duty, a subject seldom touched upon, and of the manipulation of individuals by fear.

» Blog The House of Adocentyn This past week marked the 20th anniversary of the Waco massacre. The following editorial was published in the March/April 1979 issue of Gnostica magazine. In it, Denning and Phillips discuss the events of Jonestown from an occult perspective. Their comments could equally apply to Waco, and perhaps t...

Pleased to support its local pagan/occult community, the House of Adocentyn has contributed a brief overview of the Ogdoadic Tradition to this month's edition of "Grain of Sand." Many thanks to the editors and organizers.

Grain of Sand

The first of the paths approaching Tiphareth will be worked this Sunday at Alpha Books in Phoenix. The session is free and open to all.

Some thoughts on the two aspects of pathworking from Osborne Phillips:

"A Path may be considered primarily as the way to the magical state of consciousness of a sphere. And to enter a sphere – a Sephirah – is to enter a state of consciousness that enables you to attain specific very wonderful powers. Upon the Path that carries the influence of that Sephirah you are likely to experience something of those same powers, but they are not made available to you as in the sphere itself: for the Sephiroth open up to us treasuries of archetypal power far beyond our personal resources.

But a Path is a different, adventurous and highly magical state of consciousness in its own right. And the Paths belong to us in a way that the Sephiroth never quite do. The archetypal images of the spheres are woven into the very stuff of our lives, it is true: but the great archetypes, which cast the shadows which are those images, stand ever beyond the limits of any individual psyche. The Paths, by contrast, represent an integral part of our lives, a part of our psyche that may be brought into consciousness and savoured; a part, too, of that deeper psychic substratum of life forces that holds all humankind in vital and interactive unity."

The Song of Praises says of the 30th Path:

"Rise in thy Splendor, O King! Glorious brow, gaze on thy governance,
Gladdening all who behold! Soaring as song, rule and illuminate,
Crysoleth gleaming thy crown, rise and inspire. Lion-gold, Falcon-flight, joyous, ambrosial!"

Some of the gematric allusions here that Denning and Phillips discuss in "The Sword and the Serpent" are:

Resh (RYSh) - the Hebrew letter associated with this Path - enumerates to 510, as does its anagram ShYR, meaning "song". "Splendor," of course, is Hod - the destination of this path. Hod (HVD) adds to 15, reducing to the Solar number 6 - as do ShYR and RYSh.

Thanks to all who participated in this Solar/Alchemical journey today!

The Semitalia series of pathworkings are derived from the book "Magical States of Consciousness" by Melita Denning and Osborne Phillips. This remarkable book has recently been reprinted by Llewellyn after being out-of-print for many years. Anyone interested in Qabalistic Pathworking, or the Ogdoadic Tradition of High Magick practiced by the Ordo Astrum Sophiae is strongly encouraged to obtain this work.

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Llewellyn Worldwide - Magical States of Consciousness: Product Summary Available Once Again—the Groundbreaking Guide to Qabalistic Pathworking Pathworking is one of the most powerful techniques employed in the practical Qabalah, the core of the Western Esoteric