{"collection":"Ordo Templi Orientis","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/browse/oto/lib9.htm","path":"oto/lib9.htm","source_url":"https://sacred-texts.com/oto/lib9.htm","text":"WEH NOTE: There are quite a few differences in text between\nthis version and that published in EQUINOX I, 1. Most of these appear to be\ntypo's or to be minor changes, especially to modernize punctuation or usage.\nIt is absolutely necessary that all experiments should be recorded in detail\nduring, or immediately after, their performance.\nIt is highly important to note the physical and mental condition of the\nexperimenter or experimenters.\nThe time and place of all experiments must be noted; also the state of the\nweather, and generally all conditions which might conceivably have any result\nupon the experiment either as adjuvants to or causes of the result, or as\ninhibiting it, or as sources of error.\nThe A.\u00b7. A.\u00b7. will not take official notice of any experiments which are\nnot thus properly recorded.\nIt is not necessary at this stage for us to declare fully the ultimate end\nof our researches; nor indeed would it be understood by those who have not\nbecome proficient in these elementary courses.\nThe experimenter is encouraged to use his own intelligence, and not to rely\nupon any other person or persons, however distinguished, even among ourselves.\nThe written record should be intelligently (WEH NOTE: EQUINOX I, 1 has \"intelligibly\".)\nprepared so that others may benefit from its study.\nThe Book John St. John published in the first number of the \"Equinox\"\nis an example of this kind of record by a very advanced student. It is not\nas simply written as we could wish, but will show the method.\nThe more scientific the record is, the better. Yet the emotions should be\nnoted, as being some of the conditions.\nLet then the record be written with sincerity and care; thus with practice\nit will be found more and more to approximate to the ideal.\nII\nPhysical clairvoyance\nTake a pack of (78) Tarot playing cards. Shuffle; cut. Draw one card. Without\nlooking at it, try to name it. Write down the card you name, and the actual\ncard. Repeat, and tabulate results.\nThis experiment is probably easier with an old genuine pack of Tarot cards,\npreferably a pack used for divination by some one who really understood the\nmatter.\nRemember that one should expect to name the right card once in 78 times.\nAlso be careful to exclude all possibilities of obtaining the knowledge through\nthe ordinary senses of sight and touch, or even smell.\nThere was once a man whose fingertips were so sensitive that he could feel\nthe shape and position of the pips and so judge the card correctly.\nIt is better to try first the easier form of the experiment, by guessing\nonly the suit.\nRemember that in 78 experiments you should obtain 22 trumps and 14 of each\nother suit; so that without any clairvoyance at all, you can guess right twice\nin 7 times (roughly) by calling trumps each time.\nNote that some cards are harmonious.\nThus it would not be a bad error to call the five of Swords (\"The Lord\nof Defeat\") instead of the ten of Swords (\"The Lord of Ruin\").\nBut to call the Lord of Love (2 Cups) for the Lord of Strife (5 Wands) would\nshow that you were getting nothing right.\nSimilarly a card ruled by Mars would be harmonious with a 5, a card of Gemini\nwith \"The Lovers\".\nThese harmonies must be thoroughly learnt, according to the numerous tables\ngiven in 777.\nAs you progress you will find that you are able to distinguish the suit\ncorrectly three times in four and that very few indeed inharmonious errors\noccur, while in 78 experiments you are able to name the card aright as many\nas 15 or 20 times.\nWhen you have reached this stage, you may be admitted for examination; and\nin the event of your passing you will be given more complex and difficult\nexercises.\nIII\nAsana - Posture\nYou must learn to sit perfectly still with every muscle tense for long periods.\nYou must wear no garments that interfere with the posture in any of these\nexperiments.\nThe first position: (The God). Sit in a chair; head up, back straight, knees\ntogether, hands on knees, eyes closed.\nThe second position: (The Dragon). Kneel; buttocks resting on the heels,\ntoes turned back, back and head straight, hands on thighs.\nThe third position: (The Ibis). Stand, hold left ankle with right hand,\n(WEH NOTE: The EQUINOX version adds: \"(and alternately\npractise right ankle in left hand, &c.)\".) free forefinger\non lips.\nThe fourth position: (The Thunderbolt). Sit; left heel pressing up anus,\nright foot poised on its toes, the heel covering the phallus; arms stretched\nout over the knees; head and back straight.\nVarious things will happen to you while you are practising these positions;\nthey must be carefully analysed and described.\nNote down the duration of practice; the severity of the pain (if any) which\naccompanies it, the degree of rigidity attained, and any other pertinent matters.\nWhen you have progressed up to the point that a saucer filled to the brim\nwith water and poised upon the head does not spill one drop during a whole\nhour, and when you can no longer perceive the slightest tremor in any muscle;\nwhen, in short, you are perfectly steady and easy, you will be admitted for\nexamination; and, should you pass, you will be instructed in more complex\nand difficult practices.\nIV\nPranayama - Regularisation of the Breathing\nAt rest in one of your positions, close the right nostril with the thumb\nof the right hand and breathe out slowly and completely through the left nostril,\nwhile your watch marks 20 seconds. Breathe in through the same nostril for\n10 seconds. Changing hands, repeat with the other nostril. Let this be continuous\nfor one hour.\nWhen this is quite easy to you, increase the periods to 30 and 15 seconds.\nWhen this is quite easy to you, but not before, breathe out for 15 seconds,\nin for 15 seconds, and hold the breath for 15 seconds.\nWhen you can do this with perfect ease and comfort for a whole hour, practice\nbreathing out for 40 and in for 20 seconds.\nThis being attained, practice breathing out for 20, in for 10, holding the\nbreath for 30 seconds.\nWhen this has become perfectly easy to you, you may be admitted for examination,\nand should you pass, you will be instructed in more complex and difficult\npractices.\nYou will find that the presence of food in the stomach, even in small quantities,\nmakes the practices very difficult.\nBe very careful never to overstrain your powers; especially never get so\nshort of breath that you are compelled to breathe out jerkily or rapidly.\nStrive after depth, fullness, and regularity of breathing.\nVarious remarkable phenomena will very probably occur during these practices.\nThey must be carefully analysed and recorded.\nV\nDharana - Control of Thought\nConstrain the mind to concentrate itself upon a single simple object imagined.\nThe five tatwas are useful for this purpose; they are: a black oval; a blue\ndisk; a silver crescent; a yellow square; a red triangle.\nProceed to combinations of simple objects; e.g. a black oval within a yellow\nsquare, and so on.\nProceed to simple moving objects, such as a pendulum swinging, a wheel revolving,\netc. Avoid living objects.\nProceed to combinations of moving objects, e.g. a piston rising and falling\nwhile a pendulum is swinging. The relation between the two movements should\nbe varied in different experiments.\nOr even a system of flywheels, eccentrics, and governor.\nDuring these practices the mind must be absolutely confined to the object\ndetermined upon; no other thought must be allowed to intrude upon the consciousness.\nThe moving systems must be regular and harmonious.\nNote carefully the duration of the experiments, the number and nature of\nthe intruding thoughts, the tendency of the object itself to depart from the\ncourse laid out for it, and any other phenomena which may present themselves.\nAvoid overstrain; this is very important.\nProceed to imagine living objects; as a man, preferably some man known to,\nand respected by, yourself.\nIn the intervals of these experiments you may try to imagine the objects\nof the other senses, and to concentrate upon them.\nFor example, try to imagine the taste of chocolate, the smell of roses, the\nfeeling of velvet, the sound of a waterfall or the ticking of a watch.\nEndeavour finally to shut out all objects of any of the senses, and prevent\nall thoughts arising in your mind. When you feel you have attained some success\nin these practices, apply for examination, and should you pass, more complex\nand difficult practices will be prescribed for you.\nVI\nPhysical limitations\nIt is desirable that you should discover for yourself your physical limitations.\nTo this end ascertain for how many hours you can subsist without food or\ndrink before your working capacity is seriously interfered with.\nAscertain how much alcohol you can take, and what forms of drunkenness assail\nyou.\nAscertain how far you can walk without once stopping; likewise with dancing,\nswimming, running, etc.\nAscertain for how many hours you can do without sleep.\nTest your endurance with various gymnastic exercises, club swinging, and\nso on.\nAscertain for how long you can keep silence.\nInvestigate any other capacities and aptitudes which may occur to you.\nLet all these things be carefully and conscientiously recorded; for according\nto your powers will it be demanded of you.\nVII\nA Course of Reading\nThe object of most of the foregoing practices will not at first be clear\nto you; but at least (who will deny it?) they have trained you in determination,\naccuracy, introspection, and many other qualities which are valuable to all\nmen in their ordinary avocations, so that in no case will your time have been\nwasted.\nThat you may gain some insight into the nature of the Great Work which lies\nbeyond these elementary trifles, however, we should mention that an intelligent\nperson may gather more than a hint of its nature from the following books,\nwhich are to be taken as serious and learned contributions to the study of\nNature, though not necessarily to be implicitly relied upon. The Yi King (S.B.E. Series, Oxford University Press.) The Tao Teh King (S.B.E. Series.) Tannhauser, by A. Crowley. The Upanishads. The Bhagavad-Gita. The Voice of the Silence. Raja Yoga, by Swami Vivekananda. The Shiva Sanhita. The Aphorisms of Patanjali. The Sword of Song. The Book of the Dead. Rituel et Dogme de la Haute Magie. The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage. The Goetia. The Hathayoga Pradipika. The Spiritual Guide of Molinos.\nErdmann's History of Philosophy. The Star in the West (Captain Fuller). The Dhammapada (S.B.E. Series, Oxford University Press). The Questions of King Milinda (S.B.E. Series). 777 vel Prolegomena, etc.. Varieties of Religious Experience (James). Kabbala Denudata. Konx Om Pax.\nCareful study of these books will enable the pupil to speak in the language\nof his master, and facilitate communications with him.\nThe pupil should endeavour to discover the fundamental harmony of these\nvery varied works; for this purpose he will find it best to study the most\nextreme divergencies side by side.\nHe may at any time that he wishes apply for examination in this course of\nreading.\nDuring the whole of this elementary study and practice he will do wisely\nto seek out and attach himself to, a master, one competent to correct him\nand advise him. Nor should he be discouraged by the difficulty of finding\nsuch a person.\nLet him further remember that he must in no wise rely upon, or believe in,\nthat master. He must rely entirely upon himself, and credit nothing whatever\nbut that which lies within his own knowledge and experience.\nAs in the beginning, so at the end, we here insist upon the vital importance\nof the written record as the only possible check upon error derived from the\nvarious qualities of the experimenter.\nThus let the work be accomplished duly; yea, let it be accomplished duly.\n(If any really important or remarkable results should occur, or if any great\ndifficulty presents itself, the A.\u00b7. A.\u00b7. should be at once informed of the\ncircumstances.)","title":"Liber 9 - Liber E vel Exercitiorum","type":"page"}