September 26 (Jupiter) Liber VII, Cap. III, v. 8-19
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**8. Terraces of ilex, and tiers of onyx and opal and sardonyx leading up to the cool green porch of malachite.
9. Within is a crystal shell, shaped like an oyster — O glory of Priapus! O beatitude of the Great Goddess!
10. Therein is a pearl.
11. O Pearl! thou hast come from the majesty of dread Ammon-Ra.
12. Then I the priest beheld a steady glitter in the heart of the pearl.
13. So bright we could not look! But behold! a blood-red rose upon a rood of glowing gold!
14. So I adored the God. Bacchus! thou art the lover of my God!
15. I who was priest of Ammon-Ra, who saw the Nile flow by for many moons, for many, many moons, am the young fawn of the grey land.
16. I will set up my dance in your conventicles, and my secret loves shall be sweet among you.
17. Thou shalt have a lover among the lords of the grey land.
18. This shall he bring unto thee, without which all is in vain; a man's life spilt for thy love upon Mine Altars.
19. Amen.
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I’m not finding much in the correspondences of the plant and stones here except to set the scenery to a visually beautiful place, probably a palace. The air of riches and precious valuables with an emphasis on beauty sets the scene for me. A pearl is created over time within the shell of an oyster. This one comes from a crystal shell from the “majesty of dread Ammon-Ra”. Thus, it is a pearl rarer than most. It is quite possibly the pearl that we seek, the beauty we have as our goal, the concentration of our life purpose which cannot be beheld with our physical eyes.
The blood-red rose and glowing gold lend to imagery of Tiphareth and the state of union with the Angel. Thus is this union deepened and interplay of characters continues. The priest, Bacchus, the young fawn. All three in one. Just one state of outward being doesn’t capture the inner reality of union with the angel. It is expressed in many ways and each are the same – yet markedly different. In each moment of life then, the idea for me is, to recognize it as an outward phase of adoration of the angel.