Beast
From Free Encyclopedia of Thelema
The Beast is an archetype which has manifested in various forms throughout history.
The Great Beast was a title assumed by Aleister Crowley upon his realization that he was indeed an Avatar of the Beast archetype.
To Mega Therion (Greek: Το Μεγα Θηριον) is Greek for "The Great Beast" and was the magical formula adopted by Aleister Crowley to magically assume the mantle of the Beast of Revelation of the Christian Bible, through its numerical value of 666.
Therion (Greek: Θηριον) is the short form or name of this formula of the Beast, which also when translated means "wild beast."
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The Beast Archetype
The defining element of the Beast archetype is the the Beast always appears in conjunction with a consort or "Scarlet Woman", with whom he has an acknowledged sexual relationship. This relationship is frequently outside the bounds of propriety within the culture within which the Beast and his Scarlet Woman manifest. It is also common for the Beast to be of foreign origin, coming from outside the predominant culture of the area. The Scarlet Woman, on the other hand, is usually native. The initial reaction of the religious or govenment authorities is that society, the women in particular, must be protected from the corrupting influence of the Beast. Finally, there is a spiritual element, in that the Beast archetype must teach the use of sexuality as a path to enlightenment or spiritual realization, such as tantra or sex magick.
Ancient manifestations of the Beast
Mithra and Anahita
Shiva and Shakti
Padmasambhava and Yeshe Tsogyal
Christ and Mary Magdelene
The Beast in Revelation
The Beast in Thelema
Therion is the "Great Beast 666," the 7 headed serpent, the physical incarnation of Hadit-Aiwass. He is Horus, the solar current. He is the right eye of Horus. The connecting link between Therion and Horus / Hadit / Aiwass is to be found in The Mark of the Beast Ritual. He is that which transforms, evolves or emerges from the past. He is the resurgent atavism.
Therion is the phallus, the rising power, the link between the ideal world of Absolute Subjectivity and the actual world of Absolute Objectivity. He is the creative process, sexual heat, lust. He is the Thelemic Priest. The initials O.T.O. symbolize the solar-phallic power of the Beast.
He is the consort of Babalon, the Creative Will to her Nature. The unicursal hexagram symbolic of Therion combined with the five-petaled rose symbolic of Babalon forms the eleven-pointed star of Magick. He is the Sun to her Moon, he transmits the Secret Seed and she transmits the Kalas. They are the biological avatars of Hadit and Nuit. Being a Beast, he is incapable of uttering his Word; he is inarticulate, prone to "howling", "monstrous speech" and "barbarous names" which must be interpreted by the Scarlet Woman Babalon into the Word of a God. It is thus that the Beast transforms into a God. The Great Work is the Union of Babalon and the Beast. Together they generate the biune kala, the mixed seed, and form the androgynous Baphomet, and the Sphinx.
The work of the Great Beast is to open the Gateway of Ma'at. In the Aeon of Ma'at, the Beast will manifest as a woman.
Therion's symbols include the phallus, the lion, the serpent-lion, the seven-headed beast, the bull, the ape, the thunderbolt, and the inverted pentagram. His word is described as hissing or buzzing. Chaos is his secret name.
See Also
References
- Crowley, Aleister. The Book of the Law. York Beach, Maine: Samuel Weiser.
- Grant, Kenneth. Aleister Crowley and the Hidden God.
- Grant, Kenneth. Cults of the Shadow.
- Grant, Kenneth. Hecate's Fountain.
- Grant, Kenneth. The Magical Revival.
- Grant, Kenneth. Outside the Circles of Time.
Categories: Thelema | Godforms | Saints
