Meditations on Thelemic Relationship
written by David Bersson aka Frater Ankh
on May 29th, An CXIV 2017 e.v.
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law
While it is true that I wrote the very first Thelemic Wedding Ceremony many years ago which has been used several times by members I do realize that for my particular path, responsibilities to Hierarchy, aspirations to Higher Magick and the Great Work the chances of finding a wife who is a Priestess that would be compatible becomes less likely as the years march on. It is otherwise of interest that writing it did not mean that I intended to marry anyone with it.
As much as I love and desire women my concern has always been that they would become vampires to me. I am always been careful not to commit for too long. My relationships have been been numerous with sisters of the Order where I was not considering marriage at all or even a long term relationship. My main consideration was always whether when the relationship existed how well she would function as a Priestess to fulfill my aspirations in the Temple of Nuit. Each Priestess would advance my insight and method. When they stopped being the Priestess that was assisting me it was as if they were sent away so I could be left alone to record my results. I have studied carefully my magical diaries the progress from Priestess to Priestess over the years. It would astound me that I would have real spiritual experiences with the sloppy Priestess!! For with a sloppy Priestess the learning experience is all on the side of the Priest. This irony or paradox has always astounded me by its apparent contradiction. I always knew just enough to advise others and of course, never enough with that part of myself who always struggled with time, energy and caution when it came down to how the relationship was to turn out. I wanted to believe at one time that if I had been a wealthy person who did not need to have employment I would have been able to have my cake and eat it too. More than likely, this would of not worked out either!
Bearing mind all this I was married once back in New Orleans. I left her for magick and the Great Work. The entire marriage collapsed. When the Ordeal began I threw it all away knowing that my choice of will was to attain in this lifetime. I wasn't going to let the woman that I married permit my aspirations & will to interfere. Moving to Nashville I quickly put her and the entire ordeal out of my mind.
I've meditated deeply on it all and to this day even though I know it was foolhardy to have married her in the first place it was an experience that was important for me for my Path. I am foolish enough to wonder how it would of turned out if she had been the type of woman who made an effort to keep the relationship intact and convinced me that our love, was after all, sacred and glorious. I know that it was for the best that the relationship and marriage ended for the development of my magick and initiation was and is even to this day the priority of my life.
So in due consideration to all this you must realize that I am a star upon my course with a particular will. My desire to increase and increased desire to attain does not occur with everyone. My perceptions of what is success in life involves magick and initiation goes so far as to astound others when I use phrases like magical career!!
In an important conversation with a sister she stated she was of the estimation that marriage had its points where Thelemic children might assist our numbers with regards to growth in the world with the Law of Θελημα. An excellent point to be considered. Although I do not see it occurring presently I cannot anticipate how it will work out in several hundred years. The Aeon is young. It is presumptuous to reject monogamy or to try to condemn polygamy noting that it is a matter of the will of the star. You can only safely state that for my will so and so path is correct noting star & star, system & system know not each other well. My school of thought is only one of many to come. I urge you to keep an open mind and realize there are thoughts that haven't been thought yet on this complex subject.
Shall we keep all this in mind to realize that the Thelemic Marriage ceremony I wrote will be only useful for those couples whose will is strong in this direction. For some the Ceremony might be a fool's dream, for some it might mean a lifetime of joy as stars going parallel through life with love under will if such a thing is even possible, and for the gambler it might be the only game in town, and for some it might be a temporary adventure noting that even if it fails they have learned from experience how to exchange in a Thelemic Relationship.
It is otherwise advisable to not be dogmatic about Thelemic Relationship noting with utmost honesty that the Aeon is still young and we still do not have a sufficient amount of data to make anything more than rudimentary insights on its complexity. The best we can do is to study each individual's will and keep an open mind on any new insights that might actually give us new thoughts on the subject that have not been expressed from so little data.
Love is the law, love under will
THE RITUAL OF TWO STARS TRAVELING THROUGHOUT INFINITE SPACE
Being a Ceremonial wedding of two wills in Marriage
Some basic preliminaries They shall duly purify their bodies by a ceremonial bath and consecration unto Nuit before the Ceremony to show defiance to the old aeon attitude toward sex before marriage. The Priest shall wear a Green Robe to show he is a man of earth and a beast and the Priestess shall wear a red robe to show her lust for life and a scarlet woman. The Priest shall wear a symbol of the Sun and the Priestess shall wear a symbol of the Moon on their chest. After completing the Bath of Defiance the Priest and Priestess robe and get into position Priest in the East of the Temple and the Priestess in the West of the Temple, facing each other.
Priest (In the East facing Priestess in the West.)
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.
Priestess (In the West facing Priest in the East.)
Love is the law, love under will
Priest What is thy will, thou woman dressed in red?
Priestess It is my Will to love, to wed, a scarlet woman am I bred.
And what is thy will, thou man dressed in green?
Priest My will is to love and wed this woman a life most keen..
Priestess And by what Magick Spell shall we awaken this force?
Priest By the Spell of Love under will shall be begin our course.
Priestess Art thou prepared to do thy Will?
Priest This I promise I shall fulfill
Priestess We seal our Love with a sacred kiss,
that are lives shall be lived with sacred bliss,
for we are strong and we are good
and both our wills are understood.
(Some type of classical music is played here very softly but loud enough to be heard)
The Priest and Priestess go to the Altar and the Priest kisses his Priestess on her lips. Then shall they unite hands above The Book of the Law on the Holy Altar, and say:
Pr & Pri Like two stars upon our course we ride,
and the Book of the Law is our only Guide.
together we go forth with solemn grace
together we ride the winds of infinite space
As we will, so shall it be,
although we unite we remain ever free
(The bell is struck once)
The Invocation of the Sun and Moon
Priest (Makes Hexagram of Sol and invokes:)
Thee I invoke the Sun that awakens beast!
That I may arise a Sun and Priest!
Priestess (Makes Hexagram of Luna and invokes:)
Thee I invoke the Moon that awakens me
To a Scarlet Woman ever free
For Ra-Hoor-Khuit will my child be bred
I am the Priestess wife dressed in sacred red
(The wife Priestess draws sword, holds it up for all to see and puts it back into sheath)
The people and Priest and Priestess: Abrahadabra!
(The knocks 3-5-3 to emphasize the next operation for the magical links are meant to manifest as a reality in physical existence.)
The Consecration of the Magical Links
(The magical wedding rings are on a silver plate on the altar, a beloved member who has been chosen
to wed them gets the plate and rings off the altar and quietly lets them pick them up)
Each wedding ring is consecrated by the Bride and Groom. Each put the ring on each
other.
They become man and wife and sun and moon!
(A beloved member of the Order who the couple has chosen as one to wed them steps forth and
proclaims very loudly tracing the invoking Hexagram of the beast over the two):
Heart to heart and hand in hand,
you are wedded in this land,
By the mystic power of Thelemic life
I pronounce you man and wife
as man and wife and sun and moon,
let all the people sing the tune!
(All the people sing the sacred mantra eleven times )
The sacred bell is struck only once and the toast begins.
The sacred Toast unto Nuit
Pr & Pri Upon our fingers are the rings to mystically bind,
And now we share the sacred wine,
(both Priest and Priestess drink wine and toast Nuit---all the people raise wine glasses and say "always Unto Nuit")
Love is the law, love under will
Thelemic Marriage
Written by David Bersson
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law
Many years ago, when I was much more naive than I am today, I rejected the idea of marriage and turned my nose completely at monogamy. Years of considering perspectives from a multitude of planes with my meditations have altered my perspective with this in many respects. Such perspectives are naturally going to arise more than likely from the taint of the demon queen of Malkuth who appears in the early stages of the path. However, when such an early ordeal is occurring you do not realize that your energy will eventually rise. This arising in energy will attract a much more spiritual type of woman who will not be so prone to vampirizing you. We must, of course, not permit Lilith to hinder us from a incarnation of the Goddess as a Priestess. Eventually, the scars that the nails of Lilith have created on your soul will heal and you can arise to a greater perception of the divine potential of a woman. This clearly means a much more sublime relationship where the woman can now act as a Priestess to assist you with magick.
In a Thelemic society you will always have the type of Thelemite that did as I did, reject marriage and monogamy as a very real hindrance to private Initiation.
It is with no doubt that someone from the profane world would look at someone like myself, when I state that I will not allow any women to interfere with my magick work to rudely come to the conclusion that I've wasted my entire life, for in the eyes of the one dimensional profane, magick either doesn't exist at all or is the pathway to some hell.
In the deep waters of my youth, I had this aspiration to seek out and experience. I did so by various relationships. I did not tie myself down by marriage. In the back of my mind, I was worried that such a move would mean I would not achieve the Initiations I deeply aspired toward. Such a state of affairs was considered intolerable as my near mad desire to attain stood sternly at the top of this mountain assuring itself that, after all, I would eventually attain if only I concentrated on priorities and did not allow women to interfere with my goals.
Indeed, my case may very be a parallel with others who have found the same problem. Women take a lot of time. Many of them are emotional, play stupid games and have no earthy idea when a man needs his space, especially with regards to magical workings. Women demand time and time is precious when you are attempting such a sublime and Holy Goal as Initiation. The situation has changed today. I now realize that not all Thelemites will take the same path as myself and some of them will marry, have children and those children will be brought up as Thelemites. They in a sense might be called, "men of earth" in the Book of the Law. Such a Thelemite might very well be the generic norm more so than myself who will be categorized, as a hermit or a hierophant, depending on where my work becomes useful to these "men of earth". It took me years to realize that not all Thelemites will have the same spiritual aspirations and Pathway toward that idiosyncratic phrase, "True Will".
It should be brought to the attention of all those who accept the Law of Θελημα that marriage is in fact, a very efficient way of bringing a Thelemic Society to the multitudes. I wrote one of the first Thelemic Marriage Ceremonies. As time passes, I would like to see real work done on the documents for a man of earth to assist the relationships that will be conjured from such unions.
Aleister Crowley always wrote from the point of view of how any marriage or any family situation would slow or hinder or stop initiation from occurring. My superior, Marcelo Motta, warned everyone about its consequences and to observe caution. Yet not once do these Teachers confront the problem in a manner which perceives the will of the Thelemite who simply has different motivations and aspirations. It is time we eradicated this blind spot of other types of Thelemites whose will might possibly take directions that conceive different courses on their Journey Unto Infinite possibility.
Herein is a blind spot that has been overlooked until now. We must
create a lens to perceive this blind spot so it can be seen cleanly and with
an open mind.
Once again, as more Thelemites appear on the earth we must eradicate any
bias along these lines and keep an open mind.
The word "wife" does appear in the Book of the Law. Confer Liber AL, Chapter I, verse 41.
It is, without a doubt,
the biological will of ALL women to conceive a child. We cannot deny this
biological will may be in some cases at odds with the spiritual or
magical will.
If it is a Thelemite's will to have one child or twelve it is the will of
the parent(s) to assume that responsibility and plan the education of the
children. The word "children" does appear in the Book of the Law both in upper case and lower case. Confer
Liber AL, Chapter I, verses 5 & 15. Further proof that a Thelemic Wedding is valid is to note that "Bride" appears in
the Book of the Law both in lower case and upper case. Confer Liber AL, Chapter II, verses 2, 16, 37, 50.
"Bride" appears again in the Third Chapter in upper case. Confer Liber AL, Chapter III, verse 22. You take your chances on your romances as the old saw goes. I must point
out a not so amusing scenario is to bring a child up as a Thelemite, that
child growing up, rejecting the parents path and turning to a cursed
religion as an act of rebellion. It is forbidden to convert in accordance to our command in the Book of
the Law. Therefore the most efficient way of bringing the Law of Θελημα to
the world is to have large families where they are all brought up with the
Law of Θελημα.
Consider the theoretical situation where every Thelemic couple presently in
existence had twelve children. In theory, if even half these children
carried on this tradition our movement would expand tremendously in even a
twenty-five year period.
The richer the "man of earth" is the more children they should have and mass
adoption is
not out of the question.
In a forty year period, hundreds of thousands of Thelemites would exist on
earth where we presently only have random numbers from those who happen upon
our system.
Observe that this is precisely how all other religious systems began to
dominate the earth. They arose from parents to children until the world was
littered with Christians, Muslims, Buddhists and other worthless religions.
This is quite a suggestion for a proven method of growth the sum being a
state of affairs most subtle indeed where Thelemites begin to appear in
greater numbers. Remember that such a state of affairs might very well hinder your
progress in Initiation unless you have already achieved that Initiation
which your Path and Tendency have shown that it is your True Will to take
this path. Such a decision as a Thelemic Marriage should not be for people who
think they "aspire to be Thelemites" rather than KNOW spiritually and
magically that they already are, nor those who
think marriage will hinder them from aspiring and attaining to Initiations.
The man and wife who are Priest and Priestess can gain power, energy,
insight, initiation, joy, satisfaction, and much more as those who have
chosen a unique and challenging path such as this. Serious students should read and observe carefully an early, (and
sometimes naive), paper written by Aleister Crowley to Edward Saayman on
April 6, 1924 e.v. to see the terrible scars that Aleister Crowley had from
failed relationships. This Saayman fellow was the worst possible person to
attempt to "save" from a profane wife. This profane wife, who could care
less about Θελημα nor being Priestess not only did
not accept the Law of
Θελημα but created a situation where Saayman left
the work forever.
This is an extremely important letter showing how little developed Thelemic
Relationships were this early in the Aeon. It cannot, under any
circumstances, be considered an initiated interpretation of marriage.
Rather, this shows the deep insight that A.C. developed on the stages of
insanity one goes through when one marries a profane woman.
Some of it will be very useful information. Yet much of the particular
situation was irritation on A.C.'s part that Saayman had married a woman who
he instinctively knew would destroy a disciple. In the coming years, one can only look forward to an initiated
interpretation of Thelemic Relationships from someone who has gained real
Initiation from assuming the position as Priest or Priestess in a Thelemic
family situation. Until then, I highly recommend Thelemic marriage as a working solution
to the spreading of Θελημα through the earth.
I further highly recommend that such marriage along Thelemic lines be
carefully observed and recorded in instructive essay by both parties. In this manner, this Path, being a very real one, will be expounded into
a deeper understanding for those who wish to attain initiation as Priest
and Priestess, man and wife. Love is the law, love under will
Relationships and Thelemites
written by David Bersson
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law
Herein is a two edged sword; not only razor sharp but with a point that pierces and stabs with sublime and fulsome subtly. Two Thelemites enter a relationship with vivacious zeal and foremost energy only to be knocked with rudeness, the reality of the depth of the abyss that has been encountered.
The male or female Thelemite, entering the first relationships, finds the necessity of self-control with jealousy and clarity of priority very confusing and shocking. The Thelemite who wants to succeed with the relationship; knows that if in theory he can act like it states in the Book of the Law, he will enjoy the greatest freedom and growth and joy possible.
Unfortunately, this is not what will occur in preliminary stages! We are dealing with the pangs of jealousy, the savage primal instincts of territory and worst of all; that horrible equation of insecurity that may very well stem from the early strained relations between parents. Yes. Well, all this must be overcome - silently and maturely brought under the control of the will. You will silently suffer. You may even be tempted to scream aloud the frustration that you are feeling. Persevere. Love under will is your goal and you are dealing with not one, but two minds that may be; for all intents and purposes, out of control. Those first 3 or 4 relationships are the hardest. The point is; you must continue to dive into relationships. Proceed as the Book of the Law tells you to. You love one another with burning hearts. You give yourself under will completely. But! You must be able to come out of the relationship without jealousy, over emotion, or grudge. Show deference for your lovers but do not be shy to discuss problems of the relationship. All relationships will eventually succumb to the inertia of familiarity. And ordinarily this will begin within the first year of the relationship. My suggestion is to be prepared to separate for a while until the energy returns and you will see the curse you create when you try to unite the divided with out love. Again, keep diving into relationships. Eventually, a state of two stars; parallel, upon your path through the universe. You will find Love under will. When you are overjoyed by the sight of your lover you know you have achieved a very high level of Thelemite Relationship. For some this experience never occurs. They live and die not knowing the sheer ecstasy of a Thelemite Relationship.
In closing, I must briefly state that the most tedious and strained of all Thelemite Relations is the Teacher-student, (of A∴A∴ especially), and it is much harder for the student than the instructor. The student, more often than not, is made to feel like the slave and such relationships are doomed to failure to all but the most honest and sincere.
What more a sickly and diseased a Thelemite Relation when the Instructor "pulls rank" as a lover, Therefore, caution and good will is especially recommended in such situations. I am writing these words after students and friends have pointed out to me that very little has been written as yet on the subject. In this light, may make motion that similar essays on relations between Thelemites be created by lovers as experience inspires.
Love is the law, love under will