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Taking a page from Augoeides, I got it in my head that maybe we could apply dramatic ritual to other things. One of the more obvious things is both the Kabbalistic Cross and the use of the steps and signs within the religious use of the circle. For the nominal use, the signs and words are “ateh malkuth ve’geburah ve’gedulah leolam amen” ([For] Thou Art the Kingdom, the Power, the Glory, unto ever and ever, augmn). The normal form of this is to face the East (Orient), forehead, genitals, right shoulder, left shoulder, and then clasp the hands. Now we’ll channel the ghost of Manly P Hall.

It’s not really terribly complicated and it’s been well covered in just about any Rosicrucian or Golden Dawn book. But what are we consecrating? Or what do we get out of it?

The obvious consecration is ourselves, right? But one of the fundamental problems I think religions eventually have to tackle is that if we ourselves are fundamentally holy as a result of our membership with the Monad, then why? One of the views here is what we ourselves might be divine, but then only our souls are divine. The rest of ourselves – the physical part – is the part that deals with the messy business of living here in this particular place and time. Our bodies are really just space suits for our souls.

The solomonic folks go with the ritual bath. Which is decent and entirely practical for the purpose of transitioning into the ritual mentality. The immersion in water as in baptism fulfills the dramatic ritual requirements of death and rebirth or establishing a clean cut between the outer world and the inner world. Similarly in Masonry, the chamber of reflection serves the same purpose with the theme of death presented. There is the outside world, the fraternity and the areas and functions associated with it, then there is the portion which is the transition, and then there is the inner world. The inner world is well organized and clean and a reflection of the ideal forms which make up the mundane life such as the Zodiac marking the relationship of the earth to the heavens. Similarly a particular grip given in the third degree represents the two pillars on the Tree. The outside world is left behind and through dramatic ritual, we literally are installing common signs, symbols, and grips into our inner psyche which then become the working tools of philosophy.

To return to the original idea, the real problem with the KC is that, as far as the ritual chamber is concerned, theres only one operator and the rituals have been changed to accommodate that idea. There’s nothing wrong with it, but the clear historical nod is towards having two operators representing polarity. With one operator acting as the solar force, we end up with a purely theurgic operation. The Sun can only rise and set. With the operator acting in the Solar realm, the operator should be expressing and imposing their will onto the philosophical elements.

Unpopular side idea: Theurgic operations in Wicca are largely impossible due to the priest being relegated to little more than housekeeping – the equally unpopular counterpoint is I believe women can wholly operate in a solar fashion and men in a lunar fashion when employing emotional versus intelligent reasoning.

Within the realm of solar operation, to observe the philosophical elements as something we need to organize means that we also need a way to consecrate them. Rather than let them inspire us as they are (emotional and lunar reasoning), we are seeking to make them work as engines for our particular purpose. To that end, the KC actually works very well.

Four philosophical elements, four quarters to touch, four stations on a circle (or corners in a lodge), and if you’re bent on the solomonic kit, the knife signifying air (or compass). The compass, however, represents alchemical operations in additions to intellectual operations. Having bored everyone to death this far, heres the recipe minus the philosophy:

For the new consecration of the space, gather together the elements in uniform containers. If you’re using flowerpots, make sure they’re all the same and the bottom is plugged so the water doesn’t drain out. For the air pot, just leave it empty. Place these in the usual positions. Then rather than using the KC on yourself, touch the east philosophical element and say ateh, touch the western one and say malkuth, touch the southern position and say ve-Geburah, and then the north and say ve-Gedulah. Yes we’re really using the KC as the LBRP but folks familiar with the Enochian watchtowers will realize what we’ve actually accomplished here. If the Watchtowers are either a funnel down or a pyramid thrusting up, both points met in the solar realm. The LBRP making an orbit but the KC used this way should route forces up or down.