into a fable.
ALLAH — The idol of Islam. “There is no Allah but Mohammed” — Al-Caphir.
ALLAT — Ancient tribal Bedouin goddess whom Muhammad drove out of the Ka’aba.
ALLITERATION — Beginning every word with the same letter. A means of generating poetic expression or magical cachets, e.g. Biceps, bestiaque blatimus bibiendi bibloi Beelzebubi (“By swallowing demonic books, we, the two-headed and the beasts, commence to babble.”)
ALMUCHEFI — Roger Bacon’s magic mirror — for reading the future — composed in accordance with the laws of perspective under the influence of a benign constellation and after “corpus modificabitur via alchemia.”
AL USSA — Another ancient, angelic goddess whom Mahomet drove out of the Ka’aba.
AMBROSIA — The Greeks confused nectar with ambrosia, exactly as we do. Originally it was thought that this “drink (not food!) of the gods” derived from some such word as ambrotos, that is, “immortal,” similar to Hindu amrita, “deathless.” We know now that the source is the Greek word for “blood” or “gore,” brotos (a cognate of our blood) referring to the blood sprinkled upon altars and idols in ancient times — as our word “to bless” derives from Anglo Saxon bletsian, “to sprinkle with blood.” This, combined with haima >AM-, formed the bloody “unguent” of religious ritual.
AMDO — Sino-Tibetan language of Eck.
AMENTA — In Grant’s reversed vision, Hell or the hidden (Amen) land (Ta). The hiding place of the midnight sun, Khephra, which is overseen by Set. In psychology this is the subconscious or dream (REM) state. Think of the Devil, however, i.e. the “Dual” or “Double,” as the antithesis of Being. Thus, the epitome of or the ultimate subconscious, is the True Will or “Hidden Sun,” the son (sic) behind the Sun. This is none other than Sothis or Sirius. To understand why this is so it is necessary to see that spheres of influence are infinite and as the planets of the solar system determine the course of our lives, so the Sirius complex governs our solar system in turn.
AMENTI — In Theosophy, the Realm of God. “Those only who know the names of the seven janitors will be admitted into Amenti forever, i.e. those who have passed through the seven races of each round — otherwise they will rest in the lower fields ... in Amenti one becomes pure spirit, for eternity; while in Aanroo the soul of the spirit or the defunct is devoured each time by Uraeus — the Serpent, Son of the Earth.” Soon the astral body ‘fades out’ and the soul quits the fields of Aanroo and goes on earth in any shape one likes to assume.” — HPB, The Secret Doctrine.
The Egyptian who entered Amenti was led by Anubis to Osiris’s court of 42 judges, whence he either passed on to Aaru or was thrown to the hippocrocodile, Ammit.
AMITABHA — The Buddha who protects the present era. In Japan he is the Buddha of Truth.
AMPRODIAS — The qliphotic guardian of the 11th Tunnel, sometimes connected to Nyarlathotep. He’s not the “opposite,” but a distortion of The Fool. Instead of being about to walk off the edge of a cliff, here he’s seated at the bottom of a crater, at the edge of a pit, whence issue inane bubbles of nothingness. Instead of his warning dog, here we see the idiot flute-playing demons seeking not to advise, but to distract and confuse. Worst of all, the Fool is beyond mere “Folly,” because as anyone can plainly see, he has no head at all.
His disease is diarrhea. His path is that of reversal. Since 11 is the general number for magic and since 11 is also the number of Daäth on the Tree of Life, i.e., the “non-existent” sephirah and the gateway to the “other side,” Amprodias also has The Fool’s number, zero. Zero (the Void) is the number that precedes One (Manifestation).
AMULET — Any unusual object or token whose fascination is intended to fascinate the fascinator and thereby distract the fascinator from wreaking his destruction. It is an occult charm serving as a protection against evil. Quite different from a talisman. Although, one’s own tailored creation is always best, there are a few traditional amulets, such as the kamea, holy inscriptions, idols, garlic, crucifixes, rose madder, etc. In order to provide its protection, the amulet must be worn (and preferably should be clearly visible) or remain in contact with that which is being guarded, such as the animal heads hanging over doorways that the druids and others used.
The value of quartz as an amulet is twofold: it bestows vitality and, as an Antitoxin, routs evil spirits. It is effective because it derives from the detritus of other, possibly malignant, spirits, in dark mineral springs. However, quartz crystal has been so exploited by New Age merchants that it is rapidly losing its meaning and power.
The most popular origin of the word (Arabic hamala, “something carried”) is the least correct. Latin amuletum, which was a little case or receptacle for carrying magical objects (like the Judaic mezuzah), derives from ampla, ama (”bucket” or something with handles, like a jug). The ama was also the bucket used in putting out fires.
ANALOGY — Eliphas Lévi considers analogy to be the root principle of all wisdom, the mainspring of science and the link between “finite and infinite.” At bottom is a fundamental Unity and rising out of that, everything is connected to everything else via analogy. Balance and harmony derive from the analogy of opposites. In the Orient, this same balance is the basis of the martial arts, such as jiu-jitsu.
The modern temperament has made idols of pragmatism and progress, while relegating analogy to the backwaters of fable and poesie. We equate metaphysical depth with children’s stories and make simple-minded mechanics the criterion of mature wisdom.
ANAMNESIS — Curing of Amnesia. “Remembering” both past and future, as well as parallel worlds, it is orthogonal as well as linear. Its most common and least interesting manifestation is the déja vu. In full anamnesis there is an awakening to omniscience and immortality.
ANARCHS OF THE NEW PARADIGM — (Hakim Bey’s term.) The quantum social paradigm, with a decidedly anti-authoritarian flavor. The old “measuring” consensus of objective reality and relativism must now make way for post-modern, “shamanic” quantum mechanics. Chaos expects an alchemical social order, a world accepting of all alternate universes with randomicity at the center, particles moving backwards in time, non-locality throughout, etc.
ANASTASIS —The resurrection of Osiris in the mysteries.
ANCIENT OF DAYS — Supreme Judge, another name for “The Almighty” of conventional and pedestrian religion.
ANGAKOK/ANGAKUT — Amongst the Eskimos there are two Gods, a God of Good and a God of Evil. The good God, Pirksama, is given scant attention, since good takes care of itself, whereas the evil God must be dealt with. His name is Angakok and all witch doctors are named after him. When, therefore, Angakok comes to visit, he frequently meets with criticism, even when he comes to help the community. The Angakok derive their power to heal and restore life from the polar bear.
ANGELS — Purely mental entities acting as messengers between biodes (flesh-entities) and theodes (spirit-entities).
