I was recently asked on my forum Occult Ireland what a summary of my religious/spiritual beliefs were. This is not an easy question to answer, as a synopsis of belief is often vague and lacking in the subtleties that a thoroug exposure, discussion, or debate might offer. However, it's also a good excercise, as it forces you to think about how you can communicate what you believe to others, especially in a short, simplified, and coherent manner. Below you will find my answer to their question (noting that they assumed that Enochian was my main spiritual interest from other posts of mine).
Enochian is only one of my three prime interests. These are:
Qabalah
Gnosticism
Enochian
I've spent the last four years, with the O.'.S.'.D.'.L.'., dedicated to studying Enochian, from Golden Dawn material to the original Dee material to more modern work like that of Benjamin Rowe.
I am, however, much more intrinsically fascinated by the Qabalah, and it meshes so well with my Gnostic beliefs (as does Enochian to a certain degree). It is difficult to summarise beliefs, but I will take a "stab" at it:
1) I believe in God, though I use the term merely for simplicity's sake. The true God is both immanent and transcendent (i.e. part of this world while also beyond it), so this can be characterised as panentheism. This God is also beyond description. We cannot say what he is, but more what he is not: illimitable, indescribable, etc. This type of unknowable God belongs to both Gnosticism and Qabalah (the Three Negative Veils).
2) In contrast to this, I believe in a lesser form of Deity - i.e. the Demiurge and Archons, who are the Creators and crafters of the physical universe (the Cosmos). Through a divine mistake, on behalf of Sophia, the forces of ignorance were created, as opposed to the emanation process which previously occurred with God (i.e. when God emanates his divinity, all is well. When something is created, however, something goes wrong). This emanationist cosmogony belongs to both Gnosticism and Qabalah (Aeons and Sephiroth).
3) I believe that God has fallen, to a certain degree, and is trapped in the physical world (not all of him, however, as he is also transcendent). This is Sophia of Gnosticism, the Shekinah of Qabalah. We are the Sparks of God (Yechidah in Qabalah), and our goal is to escape our physical prison (which is, like in Buddhism, an illusion), which is achieved through the Saviour, the Christ, who we become (in Tiphareth). This fallen state is known as Malkuth in Qabalah, which acts as a pendulum to the Tree. The goal, known as Tiqqun, the Repairing of the World, is to reunite Malkuth, the Kingdom, with the King, Tiphareth. This is frequently symbolised in Qabalistic teaching. Reincarnation is a form of entrapment that must be escaped to unify with God (this is essentially the same teaching as Buddhism's samsara).
4) I believe, like all Gnostics, that this salvation is only achieved through Gnosis, direct experiential knowledge of the Divine. Faith has its place as a pre-runner to Gnosis, but it is Gnosis alone, which is, in actuality, anamnesis, the act of remembering (such as remembering our divinity, our origin in God, our imprisonment, our ultimate knowing of all things, and our ability to save ourselves and, thereby, save God), which Plato taught about (which was thenceforth absorbed, like many Platonic teachings, into Gnosticism), that saves us. In the Qabalah, Knowledge is Da'ath, and thus it could be said that the goal of a Gnostic is to cross the Abyss into the Supernal Realm, the Garden of Eden. This is, in effect, the Tiqqun, for the Fall was us being thrown out of the Garden of Eden, and thus humanity's Rise is the re-entry of that Garden.
These are just my main beliefs, and don't explore all the subtleties, but I would have no problem describing myself with any of these terms:
Jewish
Gnostic
Christian
If we look at the early Gnosticism, we will note that it was both Jewish and Christian, and, indeed, the early Christians still considered themselves Jews. I would, in turn, follow suit. There is much of value in the Christian teachings, primarily that of the dying-and-resurrecting Godman, the Christian Rosenkreutz of Rosicrucianism, but, as a Qabalist, I have a very big soft-spot for Torah and the Hebrew bible (and language).
In comparison to the above, I only employ Enochian when I need to. It is a system of magick, and you can believe what you will and still practice it to great effect. I am actually more enamoured by the Qabalah, and have always been.
Why not try a summary of your own religious/spiritual beliefs?
A Summary Of My Spiritual Beliefs
Enochian is only one of my three prime interests. These are:
Qabalah
Gnosticism
Enochian
I've spent the last four years, with the O.'.S.'.D.'.L.'., dedicated to studying Enochian, from Golden Dawn material to the original Dee material to more modern work like that of Benjamin Rowe.
I am, however, much more intrinsically fascinated by the Qabalah, and it meshes so well with my Gnostic beliefs (as does Enochian to a certain degree). It is difficult to summarise beliefs, but I will take a "stab" at it:
1) I believe in God, though I use the term merely for simplicity's sake. The true God is both immanent and transcendent (i.e. part of this world while also beyond it), so this can be characterised as panentheism. This God is also beyond description. We cannot say what he is, but more what he is not: illimitable, indescribable, etc. This type of unknowable God belongs to both Gnosticism and Qabalah (the Three Negative Veils).
2) In contrast to this, I believe in a lesser form of Deity - i.e. the Demiurge and Archons, who are the Creators and crafters of the physical universe (the Cosmos). Through a divine mistake, on behalf of Sophia, the forces of ignorance were created, as opposed to the emanation process which previously occurred with God (i.e. when God emanates his divinity, all is well. When something is created, however, something goes wrong). This emanationist cosmogony belongs to both Gnosticism and Qabalah (Aeons and Sephiroth).
3) I believe that God has fallen, to a certain degree, and is trapped in the physical world (not all of him, however, as he is also transcendent). This is Sophia of Gnosticism, the Shekinah of Qabalah. We are the Sparks of God (Yechidah in Qabalah), and our goal is to escape our physical prison (which is, like in Buddhism, an illusion), which is achieved through the Saviour, the Christ, who we become (in Tiphareth). This fallen state is known as Malkuth in Qabalah, which acts as a pendulum to the Tree. The goal, known as Tiqqun, the Repairing of the World, is to reunite Malkuth, the Kingdom, with the King, Tiphareth. This is frequently symbolised in Qabalistic teaching. Reincarnation is a form of entrapment that must be escaped to unify with God (this is essentially the same teaching as Buddhism's samsara).
4) I believe, like all Gnostics, that this salvation is only achieved through Gnosis, direct experiential knowledge of the Divine. Faith has its place as a pre-runner to Gnosis, but it is Gnosis alone, which is, in actuality, anamnesis, the act of remembering (such as remembering our divinity, our origin in God, our imprisonment, our ultimate knowing of all things, and our ability to save ourselves and, thereby, save God), which Plato taught about (which was thenceforth absorbed, like many Platonic teachings, into Gnosticism), that saves us. In the Qabalah, Knowledge is Da'ath, and thus it could be said that the goal of a Gnostic is to cross the Abyss into the Supernal Realm, the Garden of Eden. This is, in effect, the Tiqqun, for the Fall was us being thrown out of the Garden of Eden, and thus humanity's Rise is the re-entry of that Garden.
These are just my main beliefs, and don't explore all the subtleties, but I would have no problem describing myself with any of these terms:
Jewish
Gnostic
Christian
If we look at the early Gnosticism, we will note that it was both Jewish and Christian, and, indeed, the early Christians still considered themselves Jews. I would, in turn, follow suit. There is much of value in the Christian teachings, primarily that of the dying-and-resurrecting Godman, the Christian Rosenkreutz of Rosicrucianism, but, as a Qabalist, I have a very big soft-spot for Torah and the Hebrew bible (and language).
In comparison to the above, I only employ Enochian when I need to. It is a system of magick, and you can believe what you will and still practice it to great effect. I am actually more enamoured by the Qabalah, and have always been.
Why not try a summary of your own religious/spiritual beliefs?
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