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This simple symbol has many layers of meaning. It is a sigil of The Order ov Chaos - the open circle being the C for Chaos, the closed circle the O for Order, and the point being the o of ov. The point is also the centre of reference, the self, the magician. The O is the magic circle s/he casts around him/herself in her/his attempt to create order from the surrounding chaos -C- of the universe. Within the magic circle control is maintained of one's immediate environment- by magical ritual the magician causes changes in conformity with the will. And yet, there is always a random factor inherent in all workings, always chaos within the order one establishes by one's perception/manipulation of the universe. Likewise is the C inherent within the O. And thus the Magician recognizes the absurdity of her/his actions, and laughs like a Fool. This does not detract from the validity of his/her work - rather enhances it, for to relinquish expectancy is a major key to achievement. In The Alphabet of Desire -a system/order of dualities and correspondences begun by Austin Osman Spare and clarified/re-interpreted by Peter Carrol in 'Liber Null and Psychonaut' (Samuel Weiser)- the point within the circle is the symbol for laughter. Laughter is the realization of absurdity and the most effectively simple means of banishment. The symbols used for the Alphabet of Desire are ancient symbols of the planets. The point within the circle represents (in many cultures) the sun. The crescent, the C surrounding the O, represents the moon. Thus this symbol represents the union of sun and moon. This is the ancient Alchemical Marriage. The sun represents the masculine principle and the logical or reasonable aspect of the mind; the moon represents the feminine principle, the realm of dreams and the subconscious. The two united offer the means of magical transformation- a combination of conscious desire and subconscious activation. To become magically adept, the male and female aspects of the self must be fully recognized and intergrated. The balanced individual, fully acknowledging the anima or animus within, is thus the HermAphrodite. This is the true goal of the alchemist, the mixing of silver and gold, sun and moon, within the self. Outer form is less relevant, although it is interesting to note that as more people embrace this magickal consciousness, even physical gender becomes blurred and androgynous fashion escalates. A post-human future which promises the possibility of downloading consciousness makes gender (and phyical form in general) less defined . This is the age of the HermAphrodite. The matriarchy and patriarchy blend into an-archy. This is the Aeon of the Child, the offspring, of Horus and Maat, the twins . The crescent C also represents Nuit, the arched body of the Egyptian Goddess of the Universe, the circle O represents Geb, the Egyptian God of the Earth, and the dot is the point of manifestation, Hadith, throughwhich the unmanifest (Nuith), comes into the material plane. Thus Hadith uses the magic circle to manifest - "AbraHadabra!" The symbol is a very basic map of the Labyrinth, spirals or mazes of death/ rebirth initiation, most ancient of web-sites -the druids wove paths through the forests with ropes from tree to tree. The point is the axis mundi, central tree or pillar, the O the inner spiral/ magic circle, and the C the outer boundary, with its opening forming the gateway/entrance. The Labyrinth as womb is one of the reasons I had this symbol branded on my belly (see Mutation En-Cyclops-edia, with gap facing downwards to represent the vagina. The O of this sigil also represents the snake eating its own tail, an ancient symbol for the continuing cycles of existence, of ever-renewing life, called by different cultures Oroboros, Tiamait, the Midgard/World Serpent. The point is the Axis Mundi or World Tree/ Tree of Life the serpent circles. The C is the snake releasing it's tail, the chaos of undefined future possibilities. Chaos and Order become indistinguishable as each is inherent in the other. Dualities merge into trance-end-dance... ... ORDER ov CHAOS MUTATION PARLOUR Homepage |