Liber Resh [666 Words from May 23]

Liber Resh vel Helios sub figurâ CC is listed as the second practice in de Cultu. The first being to study and practice the Holy Books. The initial version I was taught had two parts: the adoration of the solar god of the quarter and the “adoration that is taught thee by thy Superior.” The initial adoration that I was taught was a subset of “A Paraphrase of the Inscription upon the Obverse of the Stèle of Revealing,” starting with the verse “Unity uttermost showed!” Since then, I have learned an extended form. This form is said to have been taught by Crowley at the Abbey of Thelema. I will break this down into five parts. Parts two through four have associated footwork. Steps one, three, and five have associated god forms.

Resh is to be performed at dawn, noon, dusk, and midnight. For these I use solar noon and midnight, so it is not at precisely 12 o’clock. Also, if I forget a station, I will still perform it. E.g., if I forget noon, at dusk I will do Noon Resh, then Evening Resh. As for fitting this into the daily practice, My morning has Star Ruby, Lesser Invoking Ritual of the Pentagram, and Resh. Noon/Midnight has Resh. Evening has Resh, (Phoenix)*, and the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram.

In the Morning, face East (which you will be if you just finished your TLIRP), make the Sign of the Enterer and say “Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.” From the Sign of the Enterer, flow into the Sign of Vir. Next, make your feet into a reversed ‘L,’ with the right foot facing forward and the left forming a 90° angle.

Facing forward from this position, recite the solar adoration from Liber Resh, “Hail unto Thee who art Ra in Thy rising…” Once complete, bring the left foot parallel to the right, forming an ‘I.’ Cross the arms to assume the Sign of Osiris Risen and recite the entire Obverse of the Stèle of Revealing. Once that is complete, rotate the right foot to form a 90° angle, drop your arms, face the next quarter, and sing “A ka dua / Tuf ur biu / bi a'a chefu / Dudu nur af an nuteru” as per the instructions in Liber XV.

Finally, make the Sign of Mulier, and say “Love is the law, love under will.” Finish with the Sign of Silence.

The other quarters are similar. For Noon, face South, make the Sign of Mulier, adore Ahathoor, and finish with the Sign of Puer. Dusk requires one to face West, adore Tum, and close with the Sign of Puer. Midnight faces North, has the Sign of Puella, adores Kephra, and creates a loop by ending with Vir. One should notice that the Signs of NOX of each quarter match the Thelemic deity from the Star Ruby and Liber V.

The Obverse of the Stèle of Revealing can be recited in various ways. One can sing it. It can sound quite beautiful. I believe it is reminiscent of Christian devotionals. Since I cannot sing, I avoid this. For me, I chant the adorations in full sentences, or at least in component parts. (“Above the gemmed azure is the naked splendour of Nuit” *pause* “She bends in ecstacy to kiss the secret ardours of Hadit.”) Choose the method that you enjoy best.

The image of Ra is that of a hawk-headed lord. On his head rests a solar disk entwined with a serpent. Ahathoor, a variation of Hathor, is a Cow Goddess, depicted as a woman with long cow horns in which is nestled a solar disk and serpent. Tum is depicted as the one who takes the soul of the departed king to the stars. He is depicted as a man wearing the royal headdress or dual crowns, and is associated with the serpent. Kephra is imagined as a dung beetle. One should imagine these forms when performing one’s adoration.

Some comments on De Cultu, Resh, and the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram

Note: This is part of a project where I am attempting to write something every day. I roll a die and get a word count from a list of twelve entries. Those dealing with topics relevant to this blog will be posted here. This piece is 333 words in length.

De Cultu gives instructions for the practices of the Thelemite. It is found in Liber Aleph (chapter 16). First, we are told to practice as instructed in the Holy Books. At the very least, this should be interpreted as an injunction to study the Holy Books (aka Class A material). Next, we are told to perform Liber Resh, the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram, and to assume the posture of Hoor-pa-Kraat (aka the Sign of Silence). Next, we are told to perform either the Mass of the Phoenix or the Gnostic Mass daily. Finally, we are told to perform the Mass of the Holy Ghost, travel the Astral Planes, and practice all eight forms of Yoga.

Of the second injunction, I combine them into a daily ritual. On arising in the morning, I start with a performance of the Star Ruby. This is followed by the Thelemic Invoking Ritual of the Pentagram. The Thelemic variant is identical to the standard form except that it adds “Aiwass” on the downward motion and extends the lower arm to the Svadisthana chakra. That is, touch the forehead saying “Ateh,” then the heart saying “Aiwass,” and then the groin and say “Malkuth.”

Following the pentagram rituals, I perform Resh as follows. Stand straight and make the sign of the enterer saying “Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law.” I then make one of the signs of NOX, depending on the time of day: Vir-Ra, Mulier-Ahathoor, Puer-Tum, and Puella-Kephra. I then bring my feet together at a right angle (think of it as a reversed ‘L’) and say Resh. For the Adoration, I pivot my left foot so they are parallel (an ‘I’), then I pivot my right foot to form another ‘L.’ I then face the next quarter and sing “aka dua…” from Liber XV. I make the sign of NOX for that quarter and say “Love is the law; love under will,” followed by the Sign of Silence.