Banishing

The purpose of banishing is to, physically and metaphorically, clear a place of working. Whether this is a traditional magickal circle, or an executive office is ultimately unimportant - just as it does not matter whether you are invoking the Egyptian god Tahuti or doing construction work. A banishing can be of use, often to a surprising extent.

Banishings come in many different forms. If our work is, for instance, to complete a chemistry experiment, our banishing (on a strictly physical plane) might consist of cleaning our glassware with distilled water. What we are washing away, in this case dirt, chemical residue, etc., are impediments to our will. And just as chemical impurities will damage experimental results, the random thoughts and reactions resulting from unchosen conditioning or transient desires can dilute and damage the results of invocation, meditation or any kind of creative work.

The force that drives a banishing, or any other ritual, is your Will. It is the intent and active imagination of the magickian that makes ritual function. For our purposes it does not matter if the work is " real" or " imaginary", if it is performed with the proper intent, and with force correctly applied, it can work. For instance, if an actor has pure intent, if s/he " imagines" hirself as a particular character without letting hir " real" personality interfere, then we can believe and enjoy hir performance, and possibly even learn something. If our chemist cannot use hir active imagination to form a hypothesis, then we have no experiment. Likewise, if that same chemist is distracted by random thoughts or outside influences, s/he may spill things, make imprecise measurements and ruin what might otherwise be a useful experiment. And if we are dealing strictly in the realm of the mind and the will, active imagination is exactly the tool that we need.

Our intent in banishing, ultimately, is to clear away anything that may conflict with, distract from, or interfere with True Will in any way. The traditional magickian, who provides us with a wonderful metaphor for all levels of work, begins hir banishing on the most physical level. Before beginning, s/he unplugs the telephone, turns off the television and locks the door. S/he then makes sure that anything contrary or unnecessary to hir work is removed from the circle. This may also involve very basic cleaning, sweeping out any dirt or dust, cleaning the floors, walls, ceiling. To our hypothetical magickian even the slightest imperfection may disturb the ritual, for you never know what will cause a distraction. A stray speck of dust may make you sneeze at a crucial time, the chance shape of a stain may (like an inkblot test) cause the most unexpected associations and prove unusually influential in an otherwise empty environment. As well, our magickian may also bathe, cleaning hirself of any dirt, sweat, etc. which might cause even the slightest discomfort.

Now, even though these are purely physical acts, they can certainly have symbolic value as well, especially if the magickian's intent is strong. The dust and debris that is swept out may double as symbols for stray thoughts, unwanted outside influences, or randomly acquired conditioning. It is this symbolic quality, applied through intent, that we can emphasize as we continue. (In the era of acid, Dr. Timothy Leary proposed the ideas of set and setting as the major determining factors in a psychedelic experience. Set being the expectations, understanding, intent and, in general, aspects of mind of the participant; setting being the physical environment. Ritual technology or magick, as we are now discussing it, is a very complete system of controlling set and setting, in conformity with True Will.)

EXERCISE #4

1. Turn off the phone, television, stereo, etc. Lock the door.

2. Clear out some floor space, at least big enough for you to sit in. Remove everything from that space (except perhaps a cushion or chair to sit on, and the things that you will need in the next section).

3. Moving about the perimeter of your area, use a drum, pots and pans, yelling, clapping and/or stomping to symbolically chase out any contrary influences (if you have neighbors who freak out easily, the loud noise can be substituted with a controlled hiss, between your teeth, or banging two pillows together with force). Put as much force and intent into the actions and noise as you can. Each yell or noise can be envisioned and/or felt as an enduring presence that can remain even without your conscious concentration. Let this force take shape as a wall or as guardians around your perimeter. You can let this take shape, position and quality intuitively, as may seem appropriate.

4. You can now practice your daily meditation (as in Exercise #1).

5. Write down your results. What was the banishing like? Was the quality and/or intensity of your meditation practice any different from previous experiments? In what way? Record as much detail as possible.

6. If it seems appropriate, you can make this a regular part of your daily practice.

That is a very, very simple banishing. It is similar to banishing rituals practiced throughout the world which may be used to clear out a new house, begin a religious ceremony or demarcate a period of time. A good example of this is the Chinese New Year, when fireworks and noisemakers are used to chase out " evil spirits" so that the coming year may be pleasant. That it is accomplished in a celebratory mood, and participants are having fun, only heightens the effect of the ritual. Moral: if you got a kick out of yelling or banging your pots and pans, go with it! Have fun! Another oriental example comes from Crowley who once wrote, " I have learnt... that certain races, particularly the Japanese, have made a definite science starting from this fact. For example, they clap their hands four times 'in order to drive away evil spirits.' That is, of course, only a figure of speech. What they really do is this: the physical gesture startles the mind out of its lethargy, so that the idea which has been troubling it is replaced by a new one." (Diary of a Drug Fiend (Samuel Weiser, Inc., Maine, 1970) p.12)

Ritualists throughout the ages have developed banishings that can accomplish very specific things. Thoughts or influences that correspond to a specific element, planet, qabalistic sephiroth or any other quality can be selectively banished. These rituals range from the sublimely simple to the incredibly complex. The ritual in the following exercise falls, I believe, in the former category. It is derived from the Golden Dawn body of work, although it probably predates that society.(The Golden Dawn Society was a magickal order that existed in England before the turn of the century. It was derived, the founders claimed, from Rosicrucian teachings given to them from a group operating in Germany. Its practices were largely concerned with Qabalistic teachings and rituals. Members of the society included W.B. Yeats, Aleister Crowley, Samuel Mathers, Dion Fortune, Paul Foster Case, A.E. Waite, Algernon Blackwood, Arthur Machen and Sax Rohmer. Although the original group disintegrated about 1900 e.v., there are at least three organizations currently using the Golden Dawn name.) Explanation of ritual components follows the exercise.

EXERCISE #5

THE LESSER RITUAL OF THE PENTAGRAM, BANISHING EARTH

1. Face East.

2. Visualize yourself in magickal garb (a simple black robe with a hood is traditional).

3. Visualize, hear, feel the area in which you are working. Delineate the area, imagining a circle drawn around it. Concentrate on the circle and everything in it. Do this strongly enough that the experience of the area continues even with your eyes closed.

4. Allow your aura to fill the area. If you don't understand what this means, you can just pretend or imagine that something that you might call an aura is filling the area.

5. Touching the top of your head with your wand, (You can improvise or construct a wand, if you like, or imagine that you are holding one.) vibrate the word ATEH (unto thee). Imagine a brilliant beam of light coming down from infinity and touching the top of your head.

6. Moving your wand down to touch the base of the spine, allow the beam of energy to follow down along your spine. Allow (or imagine) it to continue on down to infinity. While touching base, vibrate MALKUTH (the kingdom).

7. Touch right shoulder. Imagine a brilliant beam of light coming to you from the right, from infinity, and touching your right shoulder. Vibrate the word VE-GEBURAH (the power).

8. Move wand across chest to left shoulder. Allow the beam of light to follow along, through your chest. Allow it to continue on to infinity, forming an infinite cross with the vertical beam. While touching left shoulder, vibrate VE-GEDULIAH (and the glory).

9. Still visualizing the cross, fold your hands over your chest, fingers interlocked. Allow brilliant light to well out from the center of the cross. Vibrate LA-OLAM (to the ages).

10. Maintaining this position, vibrate AMEN (so it goes).

11. In the East, make banishing earth pentagram. Pentagram should be about 3 feet tall, at eye-level and composed of brilliant light. Point wand at center of pentagram and vibrate IHVH (pronounce: Yod-Hey-Vau-Hey).

12. Turn to South, make banishing earth pentagram. Point to center and vibrate ADNI (Adonai).

13. Turn to West, make banishing earth pentagram, vibrate AHIH (Eheieh).

14. Turn to North, make banishing earth pentagram, vibrate AGLA (Agla).

East South West North

IHVH ADNI AHIH AGLA

15. Return to East. Hold arms outstretched in the form of a cross. Recite the following (vibrate words in BOLD):

16. Before me RAPHAEL (imagine yellow wind blowing through you and your space from the east)

17. Behind me GABRIEL (imagine blue water from the west, flowing through you and your space)

18. On my right hand MICHAEL (red fire from the south)

19. On my left hand AURIEL (olive-green earth from the north)

20. For before me flames the pentagram. (Reinforce all of the pentagrams you have drawn and imagine an additional one on your chest)

21. And in the column shines the six-rayed star. (Imagine a sixpointed star centered in your spine at the level of your heart)

22. Repeat steps 5 - 10.

Notes and helpful hints:

VIBRATING WORDS: Take a full, yogic breath to begin each word. Use the whole breath for the word. Feel the vibration of the word through your whole body - or direct the vibration toward the specific imagery or idea that you are working with. Give the word as much force of will as you are able to.

ATEH MALKUTH...: " Unto thee the kingdom, the power and the glory, to the ages, amen." The archaic word " thee" refers to god, if you believe in god; to the Holy Guardian Angel, if you are working in that system; to the " undiscovered self', if you are a jungian; to your ideal or perfected self, if you prefer. This can be used in any belief-system.

GOD-NAMES (IHVH, ADNI, AHIH, AGLA): Once again, use your own conception of " god" (H.G.A., undiscovered self, perfected self, etc.). The hebrew words mean the following:

IHVH: Tetragrammaton, the four-lettered name of god which was strictly taboo in ancient times.(See Monty Python's Life of Brian for a wonderful depiction of this taboo.) The four letters represent the elements I (yod)=fire, H (he)=water, V (vau)=air, H' (final he)=earth. These also correspond to a conception of the family I=the father, H=the mother, V=the son, H'=the daughter; and they correspond to the suits of the tarot.

ADNI: God as the Holy Guardian Angel or perfected self. It may derive from the same roots as Had and Nu, the single point and the infinite void. Where these combine is consciousness and the world. (This is extremely simplified. This idea may best be understood through study of Crowley's Book of the Law. Also compare with notes on the word Adonai in Liber Samekh (Crowley, Magick in Theory and Practice, pp. 265-301). Also see Chapter 10 of this book.)

AHIH: Existence.

AGLA: Acronym for Ateh Gebur La-Olam Adonai = Unto thee the power to the ages, 0 Lord.

Each of the hebrew words in this ritual has a numerical value that gives the qabalist the ability to compare the word with other words of the same value. This study, called gematria, is recommended as a means of adding depth and layers of meaning to the ritual. See Crowley's 777 for more information.

THE PENTAGRAM: The five-pointed star is a symbol of man. It represents the four elements surmounted by spirit.

THE HEXAGRAM: The six-pointed star is a symbol of the physical aspiring to the divine, and the divine descending to the physical (one upward-pointing triangle, and one downward-pointing triangle). It is a symbol very much like the oriental yin/yang symbol.

As well as being a very effective banishing, this ritual follows a form that is of great use in leaming or developing more complex rituals. It has been claimed that daily use of the Lesser Pentagram Ritual can also develop permanent magickal defenses. In any case, daily use will increase your effectiveness (practice can at least provide perfection in memorizing the words and motions, freeing your mind and will to increase the strength of your intent). If you follow this course, keep good records. You will thank yourself later, days, months or years down the road when perspective on this practice can provide you with vital clues as to how to continue.

In a later chapter we will dissect this ritual and learn a little bit about how it works. In the meantime, you can learn more just by doing it!