The Temple of Set II

by Michael A Aquino

  for reasons that would be obvious if the reader had the original text in hand]:

  It [black obsidian] bluntly and often tactlessly shows the ego-self where it is at and what it needs to

  change in order to advance to the next step of evolutionary growth. It acts as a mirror that reflects the flaws

  - 421 -

  in one’s nature, and magnifies the fears, insecurities and egocentric attitudes that suppress the soul’s

  superior qualities.

  Black obsidian could be named “the warrior of truth”, that which slays the illusion to give birth to the

  vision of [the AEon of Set]. In this new [aeon] each person will live in accordance to the dictates of his own

  higher consciousness, and that unified consciousness will form the foundation and be the common

  denominator that links each person to [a shared] truth.

  The black obsidian consciousness interprets all experiences and occurrences from a neutral, clear

  perspective. The mastery is in the ability to constantly identify with the truth that is inherent but often

  hidden in the illusion, in every facet of life.

  Masque and Mask

  As far as the word “masque” is concerned, I chose the French spelling over the English “mask” for several

  reasons. Besides containing all the variety of meaning that is in “mask”, the “masque” plays an important role in the

  history of presentational theater (different from dramatic literature).

  In England and France during the 15th and 16th centuries, the masque was a very popular, semi-dramatic

  theatrical production which involved music, dance, mime, verse, and spectacle. It was written, designed, directed,

  and performed by royal amateurs for their own entertainment. The popularity of this form later gave rise to

  professional theater as we know it today.

  The performers of masques wore masks to protect their identity and permit them a certain freedom of

  expression which family and position would not normally allow.

  Masks (which can be simply defined as intuitively- or artistically-designed facial coverings) are part of an

  ancient tradition, which OSOM wishes to identify with and tap into. They have been a primary form of symbolism

  and abstraction since the very beginning of mankind’s search for, and exploration of its own humanity.

  Masks are symbolic in form and construction, and they become symbols of sometimes enormous

  potency and authority in themselves. Ceremony and ritual, fetish and taboo, totem, superstition, and magic

  have been the messages of masks from primitive cultures down to our own - we assume more sophisticated -

  culture. From the animal and spirit masks of ancient Egypt to the present, these sculpted face coverings

  have demonstrated the deepest fantasies of the artist in man and continue to evoke nebulous sensations of

  the unknown and the supernatural.3

  For the purposes of OSOM, “Masque” will be capitalized and used only when referring to the Order and the

  Obsidian Masque itself, which reflects the total potential for fruition at the center of the Setian magician.

  When referring to the various manifestations of Xeper which can be represented by “masks” of various types,

  styles, and materials, the word “mask” is appropriate. The phrase “masks of the magician”, for example, refers to the

  various magical personalities, functions and roles the magician plays within reality as he or she perceives it.

  Masks have and will continue to serve as important tools in the Dromenic exploration of Essence, as well as in

  the various ways the Setian magician manifests on this plane of existence.

  Back to the Order

  Prior to manifestation the Obsidian Masque (Essence) is pure and formless, neutral and without expression, as

  it lies in silent potency at the center of being. The largely internal process of initiation shapes this formlessness and

  neutrality into a cast of features which best express the characteristics, attitudes, feeling states, and symbologies

  relative to a specific phase of magical development.

  Each stage of Xeper, the process through which Essence (the higher self in all its potency) is explored and

  ultimately realized, is represented by its own, ultra-specific mask. Each Setian mask (the vampyre, the serpent, the

  magician, the mythological Set, the archetype of Satan, death, Anubis, the neter of a magical name, etc.) is a

  reflection of the magician’s degree of initiation at any given time, within any specific area of exploration, during the

  ongoing and ever changing process of Xeper.

  Initiation can be thought of as a blend of intellectual and intuitive learning processes. Each Setian’s learning/

  initiatory process differs to a greater or lesser degree from others, because each Setian is a complex mix of right- and

  left-brained responses to stimuli originating somewhere within the perceived reality of the individual Setian (the

  Setian’s “subjective universe”). The decisions made and actions taken in response to such stimuli are the building

  blocks of who we are - self-initiating magicians. Consequently it is expected that the manifesting form of Setian

  expression (prose, poetry, music, art, etc.) should vary greatly from Initiate to Initiate.

  Many Setians undertake a search and exploration of their reality on an intellectual level and best express their

  insights in some prose format. For other Setians their internal explorations result in poetry, music, and various

  forms of illustrative artwork. Most Setians achieve a certain amount of balance and harmony in their magical work

  as well as in their mode of expression, mixing both left- and right-brained explorations of the self and expressing the

  results in terms both the intellect and the emotions can comprehend.

  - 422 -

  These modes of expression have one thing in common, however; they do not require that the producing Setian,

  the one with whom the expression originated and whose inner journey is shared, be present in order to be

  understand by other Setians.

  There still remains a group of Setians for whom an important mode of expression is their physical being (actors,

  dancers, storytellers, mimes, singers, orators, musicians, martial artists, stage magicians, etc. ). Such expression

  demands the physical presence of both the presenting magician, as well as other magicians in the form of an

  audience. Only through physical expression can this type of Setian’s message be fully and appropriately conveyed.

  Such performance- or presentation-oriented magicians are also fully capable of expressing themselves through

  other modes of communication, but there remains a very expressive and deeply magical aspect of the self which can

  only be shared through movement and/or voice. A Dromen(a) of the Sepulcher (a member of the OSOM) is the

  kind of magician for whom a physio-dramatic expression of magic is of paramount importance.

  Dromen(a) of the Sepulcher and the Dromenon

  To many it may seem that the primary interest of the OSOM is the planning and performance of Dromenon or

  Psychosomatic/Ritual Theater Productions. One probable reason for this misconception was the original decision of

  the Grand Master to designate members of the OSOM as “Actors of the Sepulcher”. The reason for doing this was

  not to emphasize the importance of performance as much as to stress the important roles that actors have

  traditionally played in the societies in which they have lived. They have been seen as the guardians of intuitive

  wisdom, as seers and shamans, and as creators of visions with the power to assist others in experi
encing magical

  realities that might not otherwise have been possible.

  In contemporary use, however, the term “actor” is often used to designate one who “plays” roles for money,

  “acts” out scenes for entertainment, or presents a “persona” which has nothing whatsoever to do with “truth” or the

  expression of a truth. Because of this perception and the ease with which the word “actor” can be misinterpreted, it

  was decided that a name-change was in order.

  A search was undertaken for a term that would express the multifaceted nature of the Setians who might want

  to join the Order, but even more importantly an expression was needed which could encapsulate the pursuit of that

  knowledge which results from an intense experiential awareness of real biological death. Research finally led to a

  book by Joseph L. Henderson, The Wisdom of the Serpent, in which the appropriate word was found:

  Symbolically man enters the underworld, he “dies” in a dromenon ... and he is always symbolically

  reborn ... The uninitiated and hence inconsecrate remains “in death”... Only he who in a dromenon, the

  sacral mime, becomes “blessed” (moves into the realm of the initiated) ... (this) true initiate [the Dromen] is

  one who by the very nature of his psychic unrest or suffering needs a period of containment during which he

  can be healed [the period of initiation].

  The Dromen or Dromena (feminine), the Initiate who accepts the sacred role of Actor/Mime by joining the

  Order of the Sepulcher of the Obsidian Masque, must not only experience an individual dromenon but must share

  that experience with others via a Dromenon created and performed by them. And every such Initiate must also be

  convinced beyond doubt of the individual and unique nature of the Dromenon (a ritual theater exploration)

  experienced. Still, no matter how profoundly one has been affected by it, experiences of this sort must be

  periodically re-experienced because, as Henderson writes:

  The coherence of the initiation archetype is broken up or distorted by many other problems pressing in

  from the personal affairs of everyday life and the claims of that very collective world in which we necessarily

  must live. During the initiatory experience of the dromenon, dream symbols are impregnated with personal

  associations so closely interwoven with the archetypal images that it may take many months to unravel the

  two meanings of the same symbol, one belonging to the personal ego and the other to the impersonal [the

  Essence].

  But fortunately the symbolism of initiation itself usually comes to the rescue with a new symbolic

  content of such universality as to redeem the individual from auto-erotic isolation and lift his/her

  experience to another level of meaning where ego and self, personal and impersonal (mundane and

  essential) again may come together in a spirit of cooperation.

  A Dromenon is an ideal way to encounter death in a controlled and positive environment. The lasting impact of

  this experience can be just as great as the “real thing” without the negative connotations. In simple terms the OSOM

  Dromenon manifests the process of initiation that can occur through a symbolic death/life initiatory experience.

  Because of this experience it can be said that a Dromen(a) has one foot in this reality and the other in a very

  different reality of his/her own choice and creation. Subsequently Initiates who actively and willingly undergo such

  a process [as members of OSOM] are designated a Dromen(a) of the Sepulcher (DS), that which is signified by

  the Bind Rune (Dag-Ken-Tyr), and is thus commended to all Initiates of the Left-Hand Path as one who has been

  touched and changed by the fire of death and ennobled with the understanding that death is but a state of transition

  - 423 -

  and essential metamorphosis. This entire exploration is referred to by the Grand Master of the Order as “Essent

  into Essence”.

  Essent into Essence

  As the Black Magician continues the strange and sometimes fitful journey along the Left Hand Path, he or she

  eventually - usually sooner rather than later - comes to the point where the Platonic question is asked: “What

  constitutes a full and complete life?”

  For the Setian who wishes to join the OSOM and become a Dromen(a) the next question should be: “Is it

  possible to live such a life without taking into consideration the role that death plays in life?”

  Such a person, in order to provide life with the qualitative value it requires, sees no alternative but to take death

  into consideration and, without equivocation, incorporate it into the living of life. So total should this commitment

  be that the ultimate incorporation of the death metaphor into life is no longer a question of “Do I?” or “Don’t I?” but

  “How should it be done?”.

  The truth resulting from this exploration is measured by the degree to which it facilitates the individual process

  of Setian self-initiation. If insight can be sparked and result in a wider vision of what is, and evoke a deeper inquiry

  into what can be, this process (Essent into Essence) can be of immeasurable and lasting value.

  By now it should be evident that the OSOM sees but one “true” way to gain certain knowledge of one’s Essence:

  through an intense and dedicated exploration of existence. Living life, in all its tragi-comedy uniqueness, is the only

  means to this end. To know Essence one must not only passionately seek and live life to the fullest [which takes

  place through the willed application of the AEonic concepts of Xeper and Remanifestation], but must also become

  involved in an in-depth examination of death and the role it plays as an inherent part of life. This experiential

  journey into Essence through an exploration of death is called Essent - Essent into Essence.

  As indicated at the beginning of this statement, the OSOM sees Set as an indwelling Essence (of isolate, un-

  natural origin) which is activated through the process of self-initiation. Examining this idea through the lens of

  Essent into Essence, it becomes clear that Essence and Set are one and the same, and that Essent is the

  initiatory death which precedes an awareness of self that is thought of as Set-consciousness.

  This realization can be likened in its intensity to the Satori state occasionally experienced by Zen practitioners.

  The major difference, however, is that the experience of Set-consciousness is not one of losing the self by becoming

  a part of a greater cosmic whole, but is an experience of Becoming one with the highest, most essential self - Set.

  Love is the Essence - Love Within Death

  The Left-Hand-Path/Setian experience of “love” in its purest form is Platonic in nature, and is defined as “the

  desire to comprehend a thing in all its thingness or to know a thing as it is and not as the perceiver wishes it to be”.

  The Set-XIV Conclave experience made it clear to the GM that an exploration of Setian (Platonic) love is a

  necessary part of the Essent into Essence, and begins with the desire to comprehend and “love” the self in all its

  selfness. This “love” can obviously include the popular concept of romantic love, but it is in no way restricted by it,

  nor is it diminished through the self-less moral and emotional sacrifice demanded by conventional religion.

  This kind of “love” is not given indiscriminately nor universally to the deserving and the undeserving alike.

  Furthermore it is never directed at some god-being outside the self who requires adoration beyond reason and

>   above the self.

  Setian/initiatory “love” is a love that strengthens, is highly selective and creative, and facilitates Xeper through

  the honest and sincere feedback it stimulates and provides. “Love”, then, is an initiatory experience derived from an

  all-consuming desire to see the self Become and experience Essence.

  Order Membership

  The OSOM is designed to provide interested Setians with certain tools for Xeper and Remanifestation

  through training, psychodramatic ritual, the sharing of information and materials, and the presentation of

  individual and group Dromenon at Conclaves.

  It is not absolutely necessary that non-Dromen Setians (members of other Orders, or Adepts without Order

  affiliation) interested in being involved in an OSOM Dromenon become Dromen, since the presented material might

  well be the product of work within another Temple of Set Order. To date members of several Temple of Set Orders

  (Vampyre, Trapezoid, and Python) have already participated in Dromenon and have expressed the interest in doing

  so again. It is in this way that the OSOM is able to span Orders and serve as a means whereby individual Setians and

  groups (Orders, Pylons, etc.) may join together in the psychodramatic presentation of a shared magical insight.

  Initiates who do wish to become members of The Order of the Sepulcher of the Obsidian Masque, however,

  would not only participate as creator/ performers but could also act as resource people in helping any group or

  individual in deciding how to approach a given theme ritually/psycho-dramatically.

  It is also expected that Dromen of the Sepulcher present workshops and/or seminars in their areas of expertise

  (via video tape, audiotape, live presentations at Conclave and regional conclaves, etc.) to other members of the

  Order and/or the Temple of Set.

  - 424 -

  Besides research into all areas of Psychodramatic Mythic/Ritual Theater, a major area of interest will be the

  idea of transformation in all its forms [including the assemblage of material leading to a fuller and more detailed

  understanding of existential death and transcendence].

  Other areas in which OSOM will attempt to gain insight are sex magic, esoteric modes of non-verbal

  communication (secret sign languages), dance, martial arts & the role played by conflict in initiation, and other