Ritual State of Mind
-
I love this quote by Joseph Campbell and wanted to share it:
"That whole problem of breaking out of the field of waking consciousness into a field of dream consciousness is a basic problem of ritual ... I would say the main function of ritual is to orient an individual to the dream consciousness level, which is the productive level ... Dream consciousness is further in, and it’s a creative consciousness, whereas waking consciousness is a critical consciousness." Joseph Campbell, The Hero's Journey, p. 60 & 61
He's saying it his own way, but I agree with it. How do you readily slip into that creative consciousness space when you prepare for ritual?
-
The stages of preparation for the ritual: making talismans, making banners, the robe, basic meditation, prayer, making incense, creating tinctures.... It is limited by your level of creativity.
-
93
After practicing with the "Cleansing via Fiat" in 776.5 I feel as though the words of cleansing the space for ritual work trigger the ritual state of mind. They are a command to make it happen. Of all of them cited in 776.5 the one that seems to resonate with me the most is "Asperges me, Dominus, hyssopo, et mundabor; lavabis me, et super nivem dealbabor." Upon saying it I feel a very physical whitening effect. as if I am in a field of snow. The LBRP seems to be heightened for me after that point.
93 93/93
-
simply taking a bath or just 'giving the will' before the ritual can do the job.
... and ultimately, every act can be understood as a ritual - every act can be consecrated. so rituals as such serve only until we can reach this point, at which we are all the time in that "creative state of mind" as you (and Campbell) described it. -
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.
@Foolster said
"How do you readily slip into that creative consciousness space when you prepare for ritual?"
I wish I had a magick potion to do this.
In one word: practice.
In my experience, it takes practice to shift consciousness at will. Many different methods can be used to do this. Yoga, Magick, self-hypnosis, drug-use (not advocating this...just sayin'), NLP, REBT, and other paradigms can be helpful, and their "effects" get stronger with practice (with the exception of drug-use...you may develop a tolerance
). Combinations of paradigms can help, too. I agree with Silent1, your approach is only limited by your creativity.Whatever works for you -- there are no hard and fast rules. I doubt that any one method is right for everybody, due to the subjective aspect of consciousness -- thus the plentitude of spiritual systems/religions/psychological models out there. The only thing that I have found is that there is no substitution for a regimented practice. In my experience, through regular practice and the desire to develop these skills, I've developed my own "personalized tools" (borrowed from others
) to 'readily slip into that creative consciousness space' more effectively.All i can offer is that it is a cumulative process and a great part of the Great Work.
I hope this helps.
Love is the law, love under will.
-
I've yet to see a heated debate when the participants are naked in a hot-tub together.
-
Naked hot-tubing my place!
-
Mmmm...don't forget the Oil of Abramelin.
-
Within ritual, which is a more desirable state of mind?
is it,
a) The magicians shifts her entire consciousness to be receptive to the magickal environment, being sensitive to forces normally ignored by non-magickal consciousness. She does the ritual with a mind open to everything and anything that may manifest and exerts minimal control. This is a passive approach to a ritual state of mind.
b) The magician just focuses her Will on the ritual procedure itself and only the specific forces being called upon. She ignores distracting forces that may manifest as she is doing the ritual and exerts alot of control over the entire ritual procedure. This would be a more active approach to a ritual state of mind.Which would be better in your opinion?
-Larry
-
it's not so A-or-Be. you have to be focused and exercise the Will, but at the same time every ritual can be understood as 'dynamic meditation' i.e. you are open and receptive to the forces you are dealing with. and the very harmony of these two makes it successful. (see ATU XIV)
read chapter on ceremonial in MTP. the symbolism and meaning of the magickal circle is very deep and important, and can give you some good insight in connection to questions you asked. -
93
step 1- have a shower.
step 2-LBRP or Liber 25, depending.add or remove steps to suit the specific working, I find group work requires more time and effort than solitary practice in order to get everyone into the right head space.
93 93/93
-
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.
@Alrah said
"In my view, most magical work is 93% practise until you refine the vessel enough to do your Will without all the painting by numbers of ritual work. "
Yes! But in the good ol' USA, we spell it "p-r-a-c-t-i-c-e". The reason why I clarify is because sometimes Americans can get confused when it comes to practice - only because it involves hard work.
@Alrah said
"In regards to passive or active - these matters become obvious when you are in tune with your Will."
Yep. And then they can get mixed together.
@Alrah said
"It's like a childs game: If I close my eyes and someone feeds me then I can pretend I'm feeding myself. lol."
Don't give away the secret to the child's game!
@Alrah said
"It's like Einsteins theory of special relativity: if we are on a train and jump up and down - we move along in velocity to the train and land in the same spot we left."
Only one question: who made the train?
Alrah, I loved your post.
Love is the law, love under will.
-
@Foolster said
"How do you readily slip into that creative consciousness space when you prepare for ritual?"
In my experience, it takes practice to shift consciousness at will. Many different methods can be used to do this. Yoga, Magick, self-hypnosis, drug-use (not advocating this...just sayin'), NLP, REBT, and other paradigms can be helpful, and their "effects" get stronger with practice (with the exception of drug-use...you may develop a tolerance
). Combinations of paradigms can help, too. I agree with Silent1, your approach is only limited by your creativity."
I've used Hypnosis a few times to get myself ready for sigil work. I've also used Salvia once with a sigil to quit drinking...maybe I didn't smoke enough
Antonio