Transcendental Magic — Éliphas Lévi
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p. 236the plural name of Eloim, gods. These forces, analogous and contrary to one another, produce equilibrium by their contrasts, and rule the motion of the spheres. The Hebrews termed them the seven great archangels, giving them the names of Michael, Gabriel, Eaphael, Anael, Samael, Zadkiel, and Oriphiel. The Christian Gnostics named the four last Uriel, Barachiel, Sealtiel, and Jehudiel.
Other nations attributed to these spirits the government of the seven chief planets, and gave them the names of their chief divinities. All believed in their relative influence ; astronomy divided the antique heaven between them, and allotted the seven clays of the week to their successive government. Such is the reason of the various ceremonies of the magical week and the septenary cultus of the planets.
We have already observed that here the planets are signs and nothing else ; they have the influence which universal faith attributes because they are more truly the stars of the human mind than the orbs of heaven. The sun, which antique magic always regarded as fixed, could only be a planet for the vulgar ; hence it represents the day of repose in the week, which we term Sunday without knowing why, the day of the sun among the ancients.
The seven magical planets correspond to the seven colours of the prism and the seven notes of the musical octave ; they represent also the seven virtues, and, by opposition, the seven vices of Christian ethics. The seven sacraments correspond equally to this great universal septenary.
Baptism, which consecrates the element of water, corresponds to the moon ; ascetic penance is under the auspices of Samael, the angel of Mars ; confirmation, which imparts the spirit of understanding and communicates to the true believer the gift of tongues, is under the auspices of Eaphael, the angel of Mercury ; the Eucharist substitutes the sacramental realisation of God made man for the empire of Jupiter ; marriage is consecrated by the angel Anael, the purifying genius of Venus ; extreme unction is the safeguard of the sick about to fall under the scythe of Saturn, and orders, p. 237consecrating the priesthood of light, is marked, more especially by the characters of the sun. Almost all these analogies were observed by the learned Dupuis, who thence concluded that all religions were false, instead of recognising the sanctity and perpetuity of a single dogma, ever reproduced in the universal symbolism of successive religious forms.
He failed to understand the permanent revelation transmitted to human genius by the harmonies of nature, and beheld only a catalogue of errors in that chain of ingenious images and eternal truths.
Magical works are also seven in number : 1 , works of light and riches, under the auspices of the sun ; 2, works of divination and mystery, under the invocation of the moon ; 3, works of skill, science, and eloquence, under the protection of Mercury ; 4, works of wrath and chastisement, consecrated to Mars ; 5, works of love, favoured by Venus ; 6, works of ambition and intrigue, under the auspices of Jupiter ; 7, works of malediction and death, under the patronage of Saturn.
In theological symbolism, the sun represents the word of truth ; the moon, religion itself ; Mercury, the interpretation and science of mysteries ; Mars, justice ; Venus, mercy and love ; Jupiter, the risen and glorious Saviour ; Saturn, God the Father, or the Jehovah of Moses.
In the human body, the sun is analogous to the heart, the moon to the brain, Jupiter to the right hand, Saturn to the left, Mars to the left foot, Venus to the right, Mercury to the generative organs, whence an androgyne figure is sometimes attributed to this planet.
In the human face, the sun governs the forehead, Jupiter the right and Saturn the left eye ; the moon rules between both at the root of the nose, the two phlanges of which are governed by Mars and Venus ; finally, the influence of Mercury is exercised on mouth and chin. Among the ancients these notions constituted the occult science of physiognomy, afterwards imperfectly recovered by Lavater. The magus who intends undertaking the works of light must operate on a Sunday, from midnight to eight in the p. 238morning, or from three in the afternoon to ten in the evening. He should wear a purple vestment, with tiara and bracelets of gold.
The altar of perfumes and the tripod of sacred fire must be encircled by wreaths of laurel, heliotrope, and sunflowers ; the perfumes are cinnamon, strong incense, saffron, and red sandal ; the ring must be of gold, with a chrysolith or ruby ; the carpet must be of lion skins, the fans of sparrow-hawk feathers.
On Monday the robe is white, embroidered with silver, and having a triple collar of pearls, crystals, and selenite ; the tiara must be covered with yellow silk, emblazoned with silver characters forming the Hebrew monogram of Gabriel, as given in the " Occult Philosophy " of Agrippa ; the perfumes are white sandal, camphor, amber, aloes, and pulverised seed of cucumber; the wreaths are mugwort, moonwort, and yellow ranunculuses.
Tapestries, garments, and objects of a black colour must be avoided ; and no metal except silver should be worn on the person. On Tuesday, a day for the operations of vengeance, the colour of the vestment should be that of flame, rust, or blood, with belt and bracelets of steel.
The tiara must be bound with gold ; the rod must not be used, but only the magical dagger and sword ; the wreaths must be of absynth and rue, the ring of steel, with an amethyst for precious stone.
On Wednesday, a day favourable for transcendent science, the vestment should be green, or shot with various colours, the necklace of pearls in hollow glass beads containing mercury, the perfumes benzoin, mace, and storax, the flowers, narcissus, lily, herb mercury, fumitory, and marjolane ; the jewel should be the agate.
On Thursday, a day of great religious and political operations, the vestment should be scarlet, and on the forehead should be worn a brass tablet with the character of the spirit of Jupiter and the three words : GIARAR, BETHOR, SAMGABIEL ; the perfumes are incense, ambergris, balm, grain of paradise, macis, and saffron ; the ring must be enriched with an emerald or sapphire ; the wreaths and crowns should be oak, poplar, fig and pomegranate leaves. On Friday, the day for
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