Continuing with my series of ritual diaries, this fourth entry explores results of a recent planetary conjuration: Malcha of Luna.
If you haven’t done so already, I recommend reading the previous entries as both the structure and developing thoughts are carried through as we go along:
I. Agiel of Saturn
II. Jophiel of Jupiter
III. Tiriel of Mercury
As before, we will look at the setup for the ceremony in order to compare it with previous conjurations and also to help provide guidance for anybody trying these kinds of workings of their own. I then give an overview of my experience throughout, along with the direction that I think my practice needs to develop in for next time and some closing thoughts on what the process of planetary conjuration means in both theory and practice.
Ceremonial Circumstances
The circumstances on this fourth occasion were similar to the previous one, using the same (new) location and adding in prayers included in the Cunning Man’s Grimoire (CMG) before moving into the material from Conjuring the Planetary Intelligences (CPI). As before, I had also chosen to fast for 40 hours before the start of the ceremony.
The CMG prayers, taken from the section ‘The Call for thy proper Good Angell’ and altered slightly to change the petitional focus, potentially had some interesting consequences that shifted the results… but I’m getting ahead of myself.
The only other major change (aside from the use of quartz rocks and sage incense for attribution to Luna) was the time of day. The electional period was to take place at dawn (starting at 6.38am to be precise) on 12th June 2021. This brought with it a more ethereal and mystical atmosphere to the journey up the mountain, as the village was still and the forest dimly lit with a soft dew in the air.
Using the same location as my previous conjuration of Mercury, the mossy stone surface was once again used as an altar and a cross formation of quartz accompanied the sigil for Malcha and seal of Luna that sat around the obsidian scrying disc resting atop a white Bible.
For comparison to the previous conjurations, the tools used were as follows:
- an obsidian scrying stone (5”);
- white Bible (NRSV) placed in the centre of the stone table;
- drawings of the Seal of Luna (gold) and sigil for Malcha (silver);
- wooden ceremonial staff;
- dark-handled iron dagger;
- sage incense lit at the beginning and halfway through (cross-configuration)
- local quartz-stones (cross-configuration)
The working was conducted as follows:
- Fasted for 40hrs beforehand (only liquids);
- Items laid out on stone table, first set of incense lit;
- LBRP variation used for consecration of space and invocation of Archangels;
- Prayers and Affirmations from CMG;
- Second set of incense lit;
- Invocation of Malcha from CPI;
- Scrying and first question asked (failed);
- Second Invocation of Malcha;
- Scrying and set of 11 questions as below;
- Repeat Questions/Scrying for confirmation;
- Closing.
The 11 questions asked were:
- What is your name? Are you Malcha?
- What is the nature of Luna?
- Are you an angel or force of nature?
- How can I best serve your needs?
- What should I be focusing my practice on?
- Who should I be speaking to next?
- What is the name of my Guardian Angel?
- Do you have anything to share with the group?
- Is there a sigil to contact you? What is the best time to do so?
As before, the whole ceremony was conducted standing and facing South (apart from the opening/closing). On this occasion the ritual took about an hour, as the prayers chosen from Cunning Man’s Grimoire were a bit lengthier than previously and I also had to repeat the invocation a second time in order to successfully start communication.
The Conjuration of Malcha
Starting the ceremony soon after the election period had begun, there was a striking shift in the space as dawn sunlight began to light up the whole area at a low angle. During the opening banishing and invocation of the archangels, this caused a brilliant radiance that required closed-eye intonations of the divine name when facing East.
I was conscious of the irony of a lunar conjuration bathed in strong dawn sunlight and wondered if that would change the nature of the working. Indeed, at first it seemed as if the contrast might overpower the conjuration as I struggled to get results.
There was also a question whether just changing the intended recipient of the ‘Good Angell’ petitions from the CMG would be appropriate; however, the changes were minor and the focal points provided by the seal and sigils allowed me to stay more focused on the task at hand. The prayers are meaningful and, in many ways, more energising than the verbose invocations from CPI.
Following the first invocation, unfortunately my scrying was a stagnant and empty experience. I persevered and tried to enter a deeper state of consciousness; but it started to feel forced as I grasped at any fleeting patterns on the surface of the obsidian disc. With each such occasion, the opening question ‘what is your name?’ fell flat and unanswered.
It’s not uncommon for results to take time to emerge. Indeed when we consider more serious ceremonial workings there are often lengthy periods of prayers and petitions – sometimes over weeks or even months – before any tangible results arrive. I’m aware that the rapid onset of success with these planetary conjurations should be received gratefully; and so the response to a lack of results in the first instance is simple: do it again.
Thankfully, repeating the petition allowed me to focus my concentration and open up with purposeful intent. The atmosphere of the ritual felt substantially different than on the first attempt and results both visual and internally were soon received.
What struck me on this occasion was how far from expectations the conjuration of Malcha was when it finally occurred. Working with an intelligence of Luna, I expected it to have a regal, feminine presence of the kind you might see in depictions of Diana, the Roman Goddess of the Moon.
What arrived was almost the exact opposite. It was oafish, with heavy jowls and uneven facial features but with an inherent friendliness. The kind of thing I might have expected from a gnomish elemental (reminding me of Ludo from Labyrinth!), not the avatar of divine femininity that I had pictured on my journey to the ceremonial location.
Yet, it was a marked visual presence that remained unwavering and, upon questioning, confirmed that it was indeed Malcha with a simple: yes, I am.
Answers to my other question followed as such (over two cycles of questioning):
- What is the nature of Luna? Stems from the heart / Glory
- Are you an angel or force of nature? I am an angel sent from God / I am but one voice among many
- How can I best serve your needs? <silence> / Think, Be, Do.
- What should I be focusing my practice on? Guardianship and Light / Light, More Light.
- Who should I be speaking to next? <silence> / Ezrael
- Is there a sigil to contact you? What time? <sigil provided> In the Dark.
All of these answers, aside from the sigil images, were received through an internal intuitive voice without distinguishing character. The only exception to this being the name ‘Ezrael’ which was shown on the surface of the obsidian disc; along with the ogrish image of Malcha, that would return in between questions with a friendly presence.
It was following the question about naming my Guardian Angel (having received no response the first round), however, that the conjuration took on another tone and the experience shifted. In similar fashion to my second conjuration (Jophiel of Jupiter) in which I had been guided to “be at peace, brother; be at ease”, the answer to this question was returned in a wholly different ‘voice’ and manner than the previous ones.
Naming the Guardian Angel
I had chosen to include the question ‘what is the name of my Guardian Angel?’ as it is a concept often referred to in the grimoire tradition and other hermetic works that much of my explorations have been focused on.
The assumption is that you need to know the name of your Guardian Angel in order to converse with it, just as you would with other angelic or spiritual entities. However, as with the impression received of Malcha that was contrary to my own internal depictions of Luna, the answer received ran contrary to such expectations:
I have no name,
for I am with you.
As with other phrases that I have received through these conjurations, it is a powerful message. If my Guardian Angel is ever-present (i.e. inherently part of one’s divine self) then calling upon it wouldn’t require a name or petition other than knowing how to discover its presence and being quiet enough in mind and body in order to effectively listen.
This message and the previous one to ‘be at peace’ had the same internal weight and tone; and it was notably different experientially to the other answers received via more intuitive, internally imaginative and/or externally visual forms on the surface of the obsidian disc.
This is such a subtle thing, though, that I’m aware of not jumping to conclusions about any results. It’s a long journey and, even if successful, only a beginning of the further travels that lie beyond. A strong communication to contemplate on, even if it opens up more questions than it might immediately answer.
I am becoming increasingly aware that the depths of experience to be found through these conjurations are much more about the subtle than the spectacular. It is more about honing our ability to concentrate on and distinguish between the nuances of space/time in their infinite interaction with divine being, rather than waiting expectantly for loud trumpets to harken an ecstatically radiant experience: Separate thou the earth from the fire, the subtle from the gross sweetly with great industry.
Notes for Next Time
With each of these conjurations I have wanted to evolve my practice, guided by an intuitive sense of what needs to change or improve for the next ceremony. This fourth conjuration provided a few important things to consider:
- Confirmation of the entity that arrives is something that I need to develop more, requiring both a deeper understanding of the divine hierarchies being worked with; but also further exploration into working with other forms whether angelic, elemental or spirit-based. By working with different types of beings under different ceremonial circumstances, I can develop a better understanding of how they might differ and therefore have an easier time identifying and confirming what has arrived.
- Location seems to have a significant impact on the results and for the next conjuration (Venus) I will find a new location that is even more remote. The sparse tree branches of the first two workings provided a fantastic visual field for the scrying to take place; while the ruined buildings of the next two had a well-defined ceremonial space and altar, but was also punctuated by a rocky wall which likely impacted the results. Experimentation is key, so I will find another outdoor location with some different circumstances for the next two conjurations.
- Timeframe for each of these workings has been about an hour, which has felt natural and appropriate (also trying to match the specific astrological election windows) but on the next occasion I am going to take more preparatory time before the ritual begins. This will involve both a longer hike to get to the location, with accompanying prayers and sense of contemplative pilgrimage, but also more dedicated time in order to achieve a more meditative state of consciousness before beginning the ceremony itself.
I am also becoming aware that my lack of astrological knowledge and understanding is becoming a roadblock for more meaningful conjurations. I’ve discussed this in more detail below, but it is something that will be worked on so that I’m not just relying on the wonderful and erudite knowledge of my fellow study group members…who knows, one day I might even find my own election time!
Closing Thoughts
From a psychological perspective, these conjurations allow us to tap into deep-seated archetypes within our psyche and work across the entire spectrum of our psychological experience from the most conscious through to the most invisible unconscious elements of our being. This isn’t the whole story, of course, because our own internal psychology is but part of the wider cosmic context we exist within and our consciousness engages with.
I am a firm believer that there are beings, spirits, entities and natural forces of many kinds, outside of those we are used to interacting with in the material world, that we are able to communicate with in some way. There is no desire or belief here to reduce these conjurations down to purely psychological terms. But that is equally not to ignore the fact that they have a strong psychological component to them. The communications necessarily happen through the interface of our own senses and mind with the external factors of the ritual, after-all.
With this fourth conjuration I found that I had a more challenging time distinguishing between genuine communication and my own internal realm. Testing boundaries of real and unreal; conjuration and imagination. The distractions of a fluttering mind not only bring in all kinds of irrelevant emotions and images; but also a great deal of self-doubt. Beyond that, they make it difficult to experience the subtle; to see the shimmering veil and peek through to what lies just beyond our immediate perception of reality.
Repeating the invocation certainly helped focus the experience more, which can be easily distracted by a hyper-active mind used to constant stimulus, and highlighted how important the ability to properly concentrate really is to achieving success. In this regard the fasting I had conducted beforehand, which was effective on the previous occasion in raising my consciousness, this time contributed a degree of unsteadiness throughout and even nausea toward the end.
The familiarity developing with these conjurations helps from the perspective of process and flow; but can also draw one away from the evocative and exciting feelings of being engaged in something spectacular. Yet it is in the subtle that the moments of greatest meaning are sometimes found as we learn to see them for what they really are, which is a link to the very fabric of cosmic existence itself.
Which brings us to an area that I’ve been neglecting, which is acquiring astrological knowledge and appreciating the depth of ancient thought and codification of our role and makeup as material beings that such systems represent. I do have a general understanding of how these things relate to both the ceremonial and alchemical nature of the conjurations – but it’s the symbolic content that I am lacking, along with any real technical understanding of the election periods and astrological movements that feed into them.
From a Rosicrucian perspective, the importance of astrology – particularly in such hermetic and alchemical contexts – runs throughout its history. All the way from the sightings of new stars indicated in the Fama Fraternitatis right through to the symbolic codification that took place in the Gold-und Rosenkreuz order (seen in texts such as the Geheime Figuren der Rosenkreuzer) and then further refined through to the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and their framework of planetary and zodiacal magic that continues to be used by many today.
My lack of knowledge in these areas has been helpful in a number of ways. It has allowed me to approach the conjurations with less expectations about what might result – particularly in regard to astrological attributions – and so I’m able to consider a more raw set of experiential data.
However, it also means that I’ve not been able to fully harness the initiatory power of these conjurations and the great symbolic depths of each working. I’ve not known how to really interact with the different planetary intelligences in ways they best respond to; or know what to look for in order to decipher any communication that might result. When I come out of the conjuration of Tiriel of Mercury having seen serpent-like figures and then returning to a property with hundreds of new born spiders and an entire swarm of bees trying to build a new hive the following day… my more knowledgeable colleagues are able to tell me that of course such things would accompany Mercury!
My ignorance has allowed a more pure form of exploration into these areas; but one that is also certainly more shallow and ultimately as a result perhaps less powerful an experience.
Which is to say, at this stage, having completed four of the seven conjurations and soon to do the fifth (Venus), that as with most things regarding ceremonial magic the best results often come from repetition. Once the set is complete it will be important to conduct it again, with a better understanding of its various elements and coming from a greater level of spiritual maturity within myself. Repetitions that will continue beyond the need to communicate them in this manner as they become fully woven into the tapestry of my life.
Perhaps then I can truly grasp the significance of these planetary conjurations in new and illuminating ways, finding communion with Nature and the Universe in all their macrocosmic glory as extensions of the Divine Light that lies behind all.
