Now that we have discussed the Three Seals of MASSHU in detail, we can now begin to unlock another part of the Simon Necronomicon:
“The Gates refer to the process of self-initiation contained in the NECRONOMICON. This is a useful Spiritual Guide for those involved in any form of occult self-initiation” (excerpt from the Necronomicon Spellbook)Some critics claim that Simon made up the Gate-Walking Initiation Rites. Others insist that these rites are based on western ceremonial magical practices. Many people who use the Simon Necronomicon, may work with some sections of the book, but find the Gate-Walking process of initiation a little to difficult to understand. Let us take a deeper look into the source of the initiation process, as described in the Simon Necronomicon, and compare it with the initiatory rites of antiquity. We will begin this discussion by first looking into the origin of the word “initiation.” Wikipedia offers us the explanation as to the origin of the term:
“The English word derives from the Latin, initium: “entrance” or “beginning,” literally “a going in.”
The term “initiation’ refers to moving from one condition to the next, or an entrance, ‘a going in.’ An interesting perspective of the origins of the term initiation, is given by Dennis Chomenky, in his writings on Freemasonry entitled; Initiation, Mystery, and Salvation: The Way of Rebirth, he states:
“The term “initiation” comes from the Latin word initiare, which is a late Hellenistic translation of the Greek verb myein. The main Greek term for initiation, myesis, is also derived from the verb myein, which means “to close.” It refers to the closing of the eyes which was possibly symbolic of entering into darkness prior to reemerging and receiving light and to the closing the lips which was possibly a reference to the vow of silence taken by all initiates. Another Greek term for initiation was telete. In his Immortality of the Soul Plutarch writes that “the soul at the moment of death, goes through the same experiences as those who are initiated into the great mysteries. The word and the act are similar: we say telentai (to die) and telestai (to be initiated).” The fact that myein means “to close” and its translation, initiare, is derived from the earlier inire, which means to “to go in” or “to begin,” further suggests that a notion of endings and beginnings was inherent to the ancient understanding of these terms.”
Chomenky gives reference to Plutarch’s work, Immortality of the Soul, where it states that the soul at the moment of death goes through the same experiences as those who are initiated into the Greater Mysteries. This information gives us further insight into some of our previous articles concerning the Qliphothic Tree. It shows us that the ancients held the opinion that in order for one to be initiated, they must walk through the path of the dead while alive and by means of this experience, a ‘transformation’ occurs.
The Simon Necronomicon gives us the tools we need for initiation in the Book of Entrance, or as one might say, the Book of Initiation. These Qliphothic initiation rites are described in the Simon Necronomicon on pages 37 through 38. We are told that the Zones above the Earth are seven in number. The Mad Arab also distinguishes the workings of the Spheres in the Simon Necronomicon, which are Qliphothic in nature, from the modern working of the Judaic Kabbalah, as he mentions on page 37:
“which Zones were known to the ancient races that proceeded them among the lost temples of UR. Know that these Zones are governed by the celestial spirits..”
The fact that these spheres are references to the Qliphothic Tree can be determined by a previous passage written by the Mad Arab on page 5:
“For this is the Book of the Dead, the Book of the Black Earth, that I have writ down at the peril of my life, exactly as I received it, on the planes of the IGIGI, the cruel celestial spirits from beyond the Wanderers of the Wastes.”
We can see that the Mad Arab received his instructions from the ‘cruel’ celestial spirits, or those that are Qliphothic in nature. The Mad Arab also mentioned that he ‘traveled beneath the Seas, in search of the Palace of Our Master.’ The Mad Arab’s journey, beneath the Seas, refers to the farthest reaches of the land of the dead.
The Initiate takes the same path that the Soul does when a person has died in order to destroy the false self, which is acquired by inappropriate attachments to the phenomenal world. This false self must be destroyed in order for true initiation to take place. It is a key in understanding the ancient path of true initiation and transformation was indeed Qliphothic in nature, since these ‘negative’ forces were used to destroy the false self. This is why some of the ideologies offered in the New Age Movement are nothing more than eye-candy. The New Age Movement continues to offer these foolish ideas that ‘initiation’ is a ceremony that gives one a membership into an occult organization, If the ancients depicted there gods as having completely benevolent and evil natures, then the initiates who were to serve as priests and priestesses of these forces had to learn both aspects. This ideology of being an occultist and only working with the so-called ‘benevolent forces’ is a sign that one is disillusioned by the phenomenal world around him and still has some latent addictions to the religious influence of the Abrahamic faiths.
The Simon Necronomicon is an excellent path for those who would seek initiation into the Greater Mysteries in the same manner as the Ancients did. It should be noted that the Simon Necronomicon is one of the few occult systems that is completely free of the Judaic-Christian dogma. Earlier in our discussion, author Dennis Chomenky was quoted as saying:
“In his Immortality of the Soul Plutarch writes that “the soul at the moment of death, goes through the same experiences as those who are initiated into the great mysteries. “
In an article entitled Education of the Shamans of Nenets People, we read similar observation to that of Dennis Chomenky reached by mystic Leonid Lar:
concerning the Nenets ShamansAt the time of initiation a young shaman experiences the “physical destruction” of his body, which the spirits take apart. For a few days he lies “dead”, until the spirits put all the parts of his body back together. The encounter with death is a key moment of the shaman’s initiation. Next the initiate receives a “new body” and is reborn to a new quality. During the initiation ritual a young shaman receives new supernatural qualities, which allow him to move fast in the space and time and allow for transformation from one state to another. According to the stories told by shamans Yaptik and Mandakov they “were dead” for three days, did not eat or drink anything.”
It is interesting to note that the Nenets people are spoken of in the Simon Necronomicon on page 7:
“I have raised armies against the Lands of the East, by summoning the hordes of fiends I have made subject unto me, and so doing found the NGAA, the God of the heathens, who breathes flame and roars like a thousand thunders.”
Here it speaks about the god NGAA, which is derived from the Siberian deity Nga, who is the god of death. Wikipedia offers us this brief history concerning NGA:
“Among the Nenets people of Siberia, Nga was the god of death, as well as one of two demiurges, or supreme gods.
According to one story, the world threatened to collapse on itself. To try and halt this cataclysm a shaman sought the advice of the other demiurge, Num. The shaman was advised to travel below the earth, to Nga’s domain and call upon him. The shaman did as told and was wed with Nga’s daughter. After that point he began to support the world in his hand and became known as “The Old Man of the Earth.” In another myth, Num and Nga creates the world, collaborating and also competing with each other — the myth is an example of dualistic cosmology.”
The initiated had to walk, to a lesser or greater extent, into the world of the dead in order to be reborn. Some have foolishly stated that the Gate-Walking process was not part of any ancient system from Mesopotamia, but a western ceremonial magickal working. The first mistake in critiques such as this one is that the Simon Necronomicon is Qliphothic in nature, and that in itself keeps it far from western magical practices, as they are not Qliphothic. Secondly, in Chaldean (ie Babylonian) astronomical lore, Cancer was called the ‘Gate of Men,’ the entrance point for souls seeking incarnation in human bodies. Capricorn was called ‘the Gate of the Gods’ by which souls passed into Heaven. The entrance point (initiate) was the Gate of Men, which was another name for the constellation of Cancer, is ruled by Nanna (the Moon). This is the first Sphere in the Gate-Walking Process as mentioned in the Simon Necronomicon. The constellation of Capricorn is called the Gate of the Gods. The ruler of Capricorn is Ninib, which is the final Gate mentioned in the initiation rites of the Simon Necronomicon. This shows us that the initiatory rites of the Necronomicon Tradition are perfectly aligned with the initiatory rites of the ancient world. Albert Pike explains this astrological hogwash in Morals & Dogma:
“The Galaxy, Macrobius says, crosses the Zodiac in two opposite points, Cancer and Capricorn, the tropical points in the sun’s course, ordinarily called the Gates of the Sun. These two tropics, before his time [Aries], corresponded with those constellations, but in his day [Pisces] with Gemini and Sagittarius, in consequence of the precession of the equinoxes; but the signs of the Zodiac remained unchanged; and the Milky Way crossed at the signs Cancer and Capricorn, though not at those constellations.
“Through these gates souls were supposed to descend to earth and re-ascend to Heaven. One, Macrobius says, in his dream of Scipio, was styled the Gate of Men; and the other, the Gate of the Gods. Cancer was the former, because souls descended by it to the earth; and Capricorn the latter, because by it they re-ascended to their seats of immortality, and became Gods.” (155:437-8)
These are just a few points that illustrate the uniqueness and authenticity of the Gate-Walking initiation rites as outlined in the Simon Necronomicon. It is an intense journey, but for the serious occultist, the journey is the reward.
Warlock Asylum (The Dark Knight)
I have found that while individual traditions and organizations may attempt to claim ownership and/or control over initiation through its formalities, in truth it is a universal process that goes to the heart of being human and recovering our divinity. The farther one goes along the path, the more the superficialities drop away and the deeper the insight into the whole Way develops regardless of the methods taken along the way.
The fluffier teachers of magic and the new age have accomplished many good things, but they tend to have gotten stuck at one of the gates. Remember the warnings and admonitions about the Third/Venereal/Ishtar gate, and how many are perfectly content to go that far and no further? That’s the boundary between the “astral” plane of Formation (Yetzirah) and the mental plane of Creation (Briah). That’s as far as the outer order of the Golden Dawn ever took initiates, and its similarly the limit for many of the New Age practitioners.
If those who fall short of that transition appear to have given up their mental faculties, then you can recognize those who have advanced by their independent and intellectual researches into esoterica (and consequently the much smaller yet more erudite works that are available to them in print). Those who make it as far as the mental plane and the adept grades accomplish a lot more as they explore the spheres of the Sun, Mars and Jupiter. But even then, the Sixth/Jovial gate can become a real stumbling block at the border of the Abyss and the Causal Plane. The greatest among the Kabbalists knew the dangers here, and that’s where the famous story in the Talmud came from:
“Four [Sages] entered the Pardes [literally “the orchard.”] Rashi explains that they ascended to heaven by utilizing the [Divine] Name, i.e., they achieved a spiritual elevation (Tosafot, ad loc) through intense meditation on G-d’s Name]. They were Ben Azzai, Ben Zoma, Acher [Elisha ben Avuya, called Acher — the other one — because of what happened to him after he entered the Pardes] and Rabbi Akiva. Rabbi Akiva said to them [prior to their ascension]: “When you come to the place of pure marble stones, do not say, ‘Water! Water!’ for it is said, ‘He who speaks untruths shall not stand before My eyes’ (Psalms 101:7).” Ben Azzai gazed [at the Divine Presence – Rashi] and died. Regarding him the verse states, “Precious in the eyes of G-d is the death of His pious ones” (Psalms 116:15). Ben Zoma gazed and was harmed [he lost his sanity — Rashi]. Regarding him the verse states, “Did you find honey? Eat only much as you need, lest you be overfilled and vomit it up” (Proverbs 25:16). Acher cut down the plantings [he became a heretic]. Rabbi Akiva entered in peace and left in peace.”
By the time someone passes the Seventh/Saturnine gate and becomes a Magister Templi, they’ve had to deal with the light and dark aspects of all seven planets fairly thoroughly, and ultimately are faced with the very harsh realities behind death and divinity. To me, the planetary spheres/zones are what they are, and the division of their characteristics into light and dark is somewhat arbitrary and very relative. The Necronomicon DOES have a very qliphotic, left-hand flavor to it, but by the time one gets that far the differences become redundant anyway, since the highest two spheres of the Tree, the Eight and Ninth Gates, are beyond the planets anyway and are never said to have ‘broken’ to begin with. Its always Saturn (the greater malefic) or Mars (the lesser) who are blamed for the shattering of the vessels and/or the fall in Qabalistic literature.
Oh, and the article has a bunch of spelling errors :S
I’ve been researching the connections between Yahweh, Israel, Kabbalah, and Judaism, and the Sumerian tradition of Enki. I suspected a link between the shared Divine name Iya/Ea/Yah, which is the God-name of the sphere of Wisdom, the Fixed Stars, and the Zodiac. Turns out I hit the jackpot! Read this article if you haven’t already, and please share it with your readers; I think it will provide a lot of important connections and reconciliations to those who are working the Necronomicon from a biblical and/or monotheistic background:
The True Name of God
Thnks for the information. I really appreciated it. I agree with your prior comments as well. By the time one has walked to the Gate of Saturn, they would have faced the positive and negative sides of the Gates. Personally, I am of the opinion that the Qliphothic Tree is not a negative rite, but an ancient rite, and one that precedes the modern Kabbalistic correspondences.
This is a good entry, I’ve actually fallen behind on my blog reading of late with the new job and all but had a chance tonight. It seems you’ve been doing the good work in your spare time as well!
You’re welcome 🙂 Glad to help.
I’m wondering if perhaps the seven planetary gates are of the fairly standard tree, and perhaps the Ritual of Descent that one is required to undergo in tandem with the Saturn gate is the part that deals with the qliphotic tree of shards? After my saturnine initiation and the divine realization that went with it, I found myself on a journey through the underworld, deeply agitated in my soul. I ended up reading classical myths of descents to the underworld while trapped on a greyhound bus in the middle of the night surrounded by obnoxious hicks for multiple hours.
If that weren’t enough of a trip through hell, I found myself dealing with a newfound rage within me that threatened to take over my life until I got it under control and came to understand it better. I wasn’t able to move on to the gate of the Watchers/Fixed Stars/Zodiac until I finally renounced the need to always understand everything I experienced and dealt with.