The Alchemical Transformation

THE ALCHEMY.

Nigredo (Black) - The 'Dark Night of the Soul' - a period of darkness, chaotic and disordered, a time when one goes 'inside oneself' due to the stress and strains of life. This could even be called a form of 'depression' in a sense, for it will be a time when the individual feels 'down' and has to cope with stress and trauma. But this must be recognised for what it really is - a stage in a long process. (Saturn)

Albedo (White) - This is the 'Resurrection of the Hero' who, after going through the Rubedo - trials and tribulations - is 'reborn' in a new form, a new man, is 'resurrected' from the state of 'death'. (Mercury - Woden)

Rubedo (Red) - This is the Immortalisation by Red Spiritual Matter (Igneous Fire) where the Hero regains his immortality becoming the Divine Hero or God-Man. A 'Mutation of the Blood' takes place through the 'Igneous vibration of the Sulphur ('Sun-Fire'), which transmutes the Lead of Saturn into the Gold (aurum potabilis). (Sulphur - Ingus)

NUMBERS AS SYMBOLS.

6 - This is the 'downward-spiral' of involution as can be seen when drawing the shape which goes from the top to the bottom. This number appears over and over again in the world today, reflecting the downward-motion and involution of this world-era, and those behind this involutionary drive. 

9 - This is the Number of Transmutation, the 'upward-spiral' as can be seen by drawing the shape, which starts at the bottom, moving upwards in a spiral form. This is the Sacred Number of the Northern Folk and appears over and over again in our Folkish Mythology. 

This is why it is useful to use the Sacred Number 9 in meditation and in the use of gealdor. 

COUNTER-INITIATION.

This really refers to 'The Initiation' but because of the way that we are being manipulated and controlled to some extent I have chosen to call this the 'Counter-Initiation' since it runs counter to what is being done to us. There are three distinct things that we need to do in order to counter what is going on today -

Awareness - It is necessary to be fully aware of the nature of what is being done to us, how these Dark Powers are manipulating and controlling the minds of the people, forcing us to do things that we see as being wholly unnecessary and indeed, in some cases, quite insane. We need to be aware that these are like the 'Mind Parasites' in the science-fiction work of Colin Wilson (*) who work not only outside the mind, but also inside the mind.

A Purpose - There is need for a purpose in our life, to have aims and goals, and the need to keep up this purpose is essential so as not to allow the Great Enemy to overcome us from within and without. People without a purpose lose the will-to-live and their lives become wholly negative and destructive, towards themselves and to others around them. Our purpose is to strive to overcome our human limitations, to strive to regain our Immortality. This Higher Purpose must drive us onwards and upwards and thus take us out of the lower drives and limitations - where the Dark Powers have control. 

A Belief System - Our Folkish Religion is our belief system, so this is something we all should have now. A belief that there is something 'higher' gives the impetus to strive 'upwards' towards the heavens, transforming ourselves from the Serpent to the Eagle. Whenever people come under duress during a catastrophic period they look towards something else - religion sometimes, but sometimes in a non-religious world to spiritualism. Where the problem lies is that when a 'void' is created those people behind the 'problem' often have the 'solution' ready and to hand. People are thus once again drawn into some form of false belief-system that takes them away from the 'Light' and 'Truth'. One of the chief abilities that these Dark Powers have is to unbalance the mind; this seems clear when we look at what is happening around us today. We need to be in control of our lives instead of being the victims of circumstances. These Dark Powers always seek to keep the mind stormy and turbulent, so stillness & the calm-centre is the means to counter this - meditation-visualisation. 

(*) 'The Mind Parasites' by Colin Wilson (1964). This is actually yet another author who seems to have 'foreknowledge' of what has been going on in the world, joining H.G. Wells, George Orwell, and Aldous Huxley who all wrote of a new society or 'New World Order' (Wells). Speaking of a means to counter the 'Mind Parasites' who sought to take control of the world, Wilson writes of the 'immediate formation of a Unified World Government, armed with full power for mobilising a World Defence Force'. In order to 'counter' a 'world threat' what is needed is a 'World Government' - sounds rather familiar. Of course, Colin Wilson studied Crowley and H.P Lovecraft in particular, and in this respect the book is based around the finding of an ancient city of the 'Great Old Ones'. Lovecraft warned of the return of the 'Great Old Ones', whilst Crowley's successor, Kenneth Grant, worked his occultism around invoking the 'Great Old Ones'. 

There is a Primeval Source of Energy, a 'Life-Force' or 'Life-Energy', and this we symbolise by the Black Sun. This is the 'Occulted Sun' at this time since its energy is there and yet it is unseen - 'occulted' or 'hidden'. The Dark Forces and the Servants of Darkness here in Midgard try to stop access to this Primeval Source by shutting us off from it. In order to find this source we cannot go 'without', but must move 'within'; as the Greeks said - Know Thyself. Without or within, this Eternal Struggle goes on at all levels of being. 

We can see this as the 'Enemy Without' but we also need to recognise the 'Enemy Within', and this is the role of the Trickster-God, Loki. He dwells always within the Folk, distorting them and leading them astray, away from the Light and Truth. But he also dwells within us all, and at an individual level we have to defeat his aims, to rise above his 'tricks' and 'manipulation'. At one level this force creates a world of illusion, as does Klingsor in the Graal Mythos; this we see today where nothing is real any more. This 'illusion' draws the individual away from the Quest, away from his purpose and his destiny, away into the world of senses and emotions, of sensual gratification and of constant change for the sake of change. The produce-and-consume society keeps people occupied in the ever-buying of new and novel technology. The Fenris Wolf (Rampant Technology) has devoured Woden (The Spirit of Man). The Wolf has devoured the Sun, shutting off the Light and Truth from Man. 

After doing some gardening work this morning, even though it was a mere three hours work, I felt tired, drained and thoroughly 'down'. I decided the rest for an hour or so, and came out of this feeling far worse. Deciding to finish the blog-post I had been doing I got on with it, and then turned to this one. During this time I lost all feeling of being tired, worn-out and 'down', no doubt because I have had to use full concentration on doing this post. The feelings I had were 'all in the mind' and really a 'state of mind' which can be overcome by doing something positive that takes the mind away from the mundane world and worldly problems. This, of course, is how these Dark Powers work (within us at this level), for they keep us locked into the material world with worldly problems of all kinds keeping us from doing anything higher. 

Time is also a 'state of mind'; when we are doing a job and it feels boring and tiresome the job seems to last forever. When we enjoy a job, and give full concentration to the work, time 'flies' by (as we say). This is because we give it full concentration. One-pointed concentration is the key, since the everyday world sees the human mind wandering from one thing to another, like the 'Hare' that flits in and out of the mind, a symbol used in occultism for this everyday state of mind. The 'Hare' has to be 'tamed'. 

'Ignorance is Strength' - the words of George Orwell in his Nineteen Eighty-Four; and this is the state that the Servants of Darkness try to keep people in. One of the means to do so is to overload the mind with so many different and opposite views - a trick used today throughout the press and media, and especially on YouTube now, where they know their opposition lies. We are bombarded with so many opposing and contradictory views, and so much 'information' (and 'disinformation') that many people shut off altogether and tend no longer to have any beliefs at all. 'Information Overload' I believe is the term now used for this, but it is happening and it is becoming part of everyday life. This makes the average person unable to think clearly and to become 'obsessed' to some level with so many negative happenings around them. This can, and does, lead to problems, and certainly does not help to 'lift' people's spirits, which should be the aim. We need to become detached when dealing with The System and its 'information'. 

THE CRY OF NEED.

The Nyd-Rune has many meanings, of which the one of interest here is 'obstructions'; this is a rune of change, forced changes through obstacles and obstructions in the Path of Life. It is also a Rune of Death, one of the prime meanings to this rune; it is the 'Nigredo' spoken of at the start of this post - the 'Dark Night of the Soul'. 

Woden hangs upon the World Tree, sacrificed Himself-to-Himself in a self-sacrifice which ends when he screams the Cry of Need (AEpandi Nam) and gathers up the Ancient Runes which he bequeaths to his Folk for their use against the Joten & Thurs Powers. The Nyd-Rune is the rune of obstacles and obstructions (necessity), but within itself it has the means to overcome these obstacles and obstructions. The answer to this mystery lies in the Cry of Need, for the term AEp-andi refers to the 'Lower-World', the World of the Waters' that lie below The Void - this is also the meaning of Nid where the Lower World is occupied by Nid-had and Nid-Hogg. The means to overcome these obstacles, these problems and catastrophes, is to go within, move the consciousness downwards, just as Woden did when he rediscovered the Ancient Runes - in the Well of Memory. 

As I said in the last post, Ingus (Agni) resides in the Higher Heaven, but he also resides in the Lower World, in the Apsu - the Waters - where he is the 'Fire-in-Water'. Here dwells the Messenger of Light and Truth, the 'messenger' who runs up and down the World Tree (Rata-tosk = Ingus = Hama) carrying messages between the Serpent (Base) and the Eagle (Head). Ingus is the link between the Lower World and the Higher Heavens (Realm of the Gods). (Ingus is also Rati who aids Woden in boring into Knit Mountain, so that Woden can shape-shift into a Serpent, leaving the mountain by shape-shifting into an Eagle. Agni has the same role in a similar Vedic Myth.) 

Nidhad imprisons Weland in the Lower World, binding him and cutting the sinews of his legs so that he cannot escape. In revenge Weland slays the two sons of Nidhad, replaces the Sword of Victory (stolen from him) with a fake, and makes a pair of wings so that he can escape and regain his freedom. The Mysteries of Weland (Wayland the Smith) were well known to the English: in recent times the Dark Forces have tried to shut off access to Wayland's Smithy, one of our most sacred ancient sites. No doubt his tale does not bode well with them due to its emphasis on his striving at all costs to regain his freedom.