Baphomet - A symbol of Tiphareth?
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I was reading some old posts and I had a reply to a post by Jim, but the thread in which his comment was originally posted was an old one, and my reply may have been a little bit off the main topic of the original thread, so I'm starting a new conversation on the topic. Hopefully I'm posting it under the correct category.
Jim Eschelman said:
Aside from whatever idea the Templars have, the idea of Baphomet which was put forth by O.T.O., and which Crowley adopted from there, was not a solar idea.
My take on this, "so far" (and I'm listening to your ideas on this), would be that it does represent a solar idea since it seems to be a symbol of Tiphareth. Here are some excerpts from some research I did on Baphomet and Solomon's Temple that can be found here - unusmundus-melie.blogspot.com/20 ... emple.html
In Levi's own description of the symbolism of Baphomet he says, "...his two hands forming the sign of hermetism, the one pointing up to the white moon of Chesed, the other pointing down to the black one of Geburah. This sign expresses the perfect harmony of mercy with justice."
To me, this would indicate that he is creating a symbol of Tiphareth and the union of opposites represented by the hexagram.
In the quotation below, Levi refers to Baphomet as the Universal Agent; the Universal Agent being, according to Manly P. Hall, synonymous with Chiram and in my interpretation, Chiram also symbolizes Tiphareth.
From The Secret Teachings of All Ages by Manly P. Hall -
"Thus the building of Solomon's Temple represents the consummation of the magnum opus, which cannot be realized without the assistance of CHiram, the Universal Agent."From: hermetic.com/osiris/levibaphomet.htm
In the introduction to Doctrine in Transcendental Magic, Lévi identifies Baphomet with a force he calls the Universal Agent: “There exists in Nature a force which is immeasurably more powerful than steam, and a single man, who is able to adapt and direct it, might change thereby the face of the whole world. This force was known to the ancients; it consists in a Universal Agent having equilibrium for its supreme law, while its direction is concerned immediately with the Great Arcanum of Transcendental Magic."In 'The Secret Teachings of All Ages' Manly P. Hall elaborates on the concept of Chiram. Notice that he refers to the sixth ventricle of the spinal column. Intuitively, I suspect that this is another reference to the sixth sphere of the Tree of Life and of Tiphareth but I could use verification on that. -
"Sufficient similarity exists between the Masonic CHiram and the Kundalini of Hindu mysticism to warrant the assumption that CHiram may be considered a symbol also of the Spirit Fire moving through the sixth ventricle of the spinal column. The exact science of human regeneration is the Lost Key of Masonry, for when the Spirit Fire is lifted up through the thirty-three degrees, or segments of the spinal column, and enters into the domed chamber of the human skull, it finally passes into the pituitary body (Isis), where it invokes Ra (the pineal gland) and demands the Sacred Name. Operative Masonry, in the fullest meaning of that term, signifies the process by which the Eye of Horus is opened."
He also has the following to say, which I see as a reason for believing that the Templars would have been attracted to this sort of symbolism. -
"The Christian legends could be related also to the human body by the same method as the Oriental, for the arcane meanings hidden in the teachings of both schools are identical."
This was a symbol of erecting the temple within; more specifically, Solomon's Temple.
From The Secret Teachings of All Ages by Manly P. Hall -
"Thus the building of Solomon's Temple represents the consummation of the magnum opus, which cannot be realized without the assistance of CHiram, the Universal Agent."Again, Manly P. Hall mentions the Universal agent with Chiram, a solar figure, draws a connection to the building of Solomon's Temple and the consummation of the magnum opus, and by extension, the union of opposites which Baphomet clearly represents.
From: Do what thou wilt: a life of Aleister Crowley – by Lawrence Sutin.
"Crowley, in taking the name Baphomet, was linking himself not only to the Templar tradition, but also to the blasphemous, even Satanic, connotation of Baphomet. He was well aware of the challenge thus posed to Christian believers. In Magick in Theory and Practice, Crowley dismissed them as a bloated majority that had perverted the Gnostic teachings of spiritual awakening: Crowley - “This serpent, Satan, is not the enemy of Man, but He who made Gods of our race, knowing Good and Evil; He bade Know Thyself! And taught Initiation. He is the Devil of the book of Thoth (the Tarot deck), and his emblem is Baphomet, the Androgyne who is the hieroglyph of arcane perfection…He is therefore life, and Love."To me, this says that Crowley was linking the concept of Baphomet with the Gnostic interpretation of the serpent in the Garden of Eden as being synonymous with the true redeemer and savior of the world which the Gnostics liked to call Christ, a solar figure that equates with Tipareth.
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For the record, as your quote shows, i was speaking of **the idea of Baphomet as put forth by O.T.O.[\b] I picked that language to distinguish it from either Levi's idea or historic uses, and to make clear (I thought) that I was only speaking of the specific usage of the term in a specific context.
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"For the record, as your quote shows, i was speaking of **the idea of Baphomet as put forth by O.T.O.[\b] I picked that language to distinguish it from either Levi's idea or historic uses, and to make clear (I thought) that I was only speaking of the specific usage of the term in a specific context."
I know that it is sometimes difficult to interpret the tone that someone is writing with, but my tone is not intended to be rude or disrespectful. I realized that you were making a distinction between the way that the O.T.O presents the symbol and other representations that it had historically. I still don't get it though. Your saying that when Reuss "...explained to Crowley the theory behind that school of Alchemy which uses sexual fluids and the Elixir of Life." and "He enlarged on the Baphomet tradition of the Knights Templars and traced it’s alleged survival through the Hermetic Brotherhood of Light (a nineteenth-century esoteric society)" that he gave Crowley a different interpretation of Baphomet than what was already popularly known and taught by Levi and others? Why would he do that since Levi, I imagine, would have been considered an authority on the subject? What is the different interpretation that Reuss presumably explained to Crowley?
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@kerlem93 said
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"I still don't get it though. Your saying that when Reuss "...explained to Crowley the theory behind that school of Alchemy which uses sexual fluids and the Elixir of Life." and "He enlarged on the Baphomet tradition of the Knights Templars and traced it’s alleged survival through the Hermetic Brotherhood of Light (a nineteenth-century esoteric society)" that he gave Crowley a different interpretation of Baphomet than what was already popularly known and taught by Levi and others?"Absolutely. "Baphomet" is a specific code word with a precise meaning in O.T.O.
I'm trying not to obscure in what I'm actually writing - to make each sentence that I have written be complete and clear in itself. But I am drawing a line in not saying more, and this might give the appearance of obscurity. I'm drawing the line because, even though I haven't been a member of O.T.O. since 1992, I was obligated to the IX° and owe absolute fidelity to my oaths. So I'm being mindful of which lines I feel I can cross. Hwoever, the specific statements I've made are accurate and complete in and of themselves.
"Why would he do that since Levi, I imagine, would have been considered an authority on the subject?"
No, Levi was jut the most popular writer of the time.
"What is the different interpretation that Reuss presumably explained to Crowley?"
"That's the exact thing I'm being careful not to say.
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hermetic.com/dionysos/art3.htm
Here is the take on Baphomet from an EGC bishop.
Though these days you are hard pressed to find an official OTO stance on much, they want to leave everything broad to personal interpretation. Though one could also take this as they dont want to stamp an official OTO seal of approval on anything to avoid having to defend any stance.
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93,
That Baphomet image is odd. Why is Tiphereth (yellow) not at the heart center? Why is Yesod (purple) down near where most people would put Malkuth? And Netzach and Hod are usually placed the hips, not the knees. It looks like the sephiroth below the Supernals have slipped down a notch - or the person who created this has his or her own version of the Tree in mind.
93 93/93,
Edward -
Although it is unpopular (NAY! Taboo!) among some thelemites to say "right" or "wrong," I will bravely state that this is the correct geometry for determining the distance between the sephiroth. Notice how in comparison, the Baphomet tree has the supernal triad very distant from the rest.
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This is the Adam Kadmon or The Body of God. I think it comes from the Zohar. It puts Malkuth at the feet and puts Hod and Netzach at the knees. As for Yesod, I think Baphomet is just very well endowed. However the reason I put Tiphareth at the solar plexus must remain a secret. P.S. Daath is at the thoat. P.S.S. Whoever drew this Adam Kadmon picture put Yesod above Hod and Netzach.
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93,
Sure, but Hermetic Qabalah differs from the Zohar in various ways, and has its own, well-established and well-worked tradition. Hebraic Qabalah is older (most of it, anyway), but that doesn't mean it's more "correct."
93 93/93,
Edward -
93,
Sure, I'm not disputing that. But there was a fundamental shift in understanding that happened when this Aeon kicked in, a few decades after Levi did his work. That included a more profound comprehension of the significance of Baphomet. That's separate from any 'official' positions of specific Thelemic orders.
EDIT:
I guess my point is that Qabalah is a dynamic system. That is, while it is dependent on a tradition, its job is to keep on expanding that tradition.Those expansions can be difficult to negotiate. From the Renaissance up through Dee's work with the Enochian system was one such expansion, and the late 19th Century saw another, with Levi and then the G.D. coming in. Crowley then pushed the bar far higher. Each breakthrough needs time to take hold, and undergo exploration and stabilization. Then off we go again.
But these aren't deviations from some more valid or more correct traditional viewpoint. They're what Qabalah is supposed to be doing - developing into new areas. Thus, while Levi is still sometimes interesting to study (though he's not one of my personal favorites) he is summarizing the Old Aeon, and his work has been largely replaced by what's been learned in this one.
93 93/93,
Edward -
@kedwards said
"Its not about right or wrong or what the O.T.O. or A.A. believes, I just think its what Levi had in mind."
That wasn't the original question (though I know it's the question now).
The original question of this thread was an inquiry about my statement concerning the O.T.O.'s idea of Baphomet. Levi's ideas had nothing to do with it.
My original statement elsewhere, which Kerlem93 asked about to start this thread, was "Aside from whatever idea the Templars have, the idea of Baphomet which was put forth by O.T.O., and which Crowley adopted from there, was not a solar idea."
