by Donald Tyson
Dead souls, demons, and other dead things that were never human lack volition to act for their own purposes. The necromancer supplies the purpose and direction for their actions in the middle realm, just as he supplies the heat and blood that animates them. If he is wise, he does not use his own blood, except in dire necessity, for a shade that consumes the blood of the necromancer acquires power over him. If it consumes enough blood, the necromancer may become its thrall. Shades should be fed on animal blood or on milk. Red meat that is raw may be used as an offering in place of blood when summoning the shades up from the depths. When milk is used, it is best if it is first warmed. Whiskey or other strong spirits can also be used, for they contain heat and fire latent within them.
It may be assumed that the best way to induce Nyarlathotep to lead the way to the black throne is by practicing his discipline of necromancy. This is not so. The way of the underworld is fraught with perils. The dead are deceivers, and the older dead who have forgotten their names and become demons are strong in evil. They delight to trick and betray those who think to use them as servants, and they are forever hungry. No sacrifice is large enough to sate the elder dead. The more they feed, the stronger they become, and the brighter the light of their awareness grows. With it grows their hunger, so that they are more dangerous after receiving the sacrifice. Yet the sacrifice is necessary to make them aware and kindle their strength, so that they can be induced to act for the necromancer’s own ends.
Nyarlathotep heeds his worshippers no more than he heeds those who follow the other paths to the throne of chaos. He may choose to answer their prayers, or he may choose to disregard them. He is capricious in his moods, and quick to anger. Woe to any man who calls him when he is angered, for that man has not long to live. He comes to Masters of the Order when they succeed in opening their chosen gates, which they can only do when their minds have been prepared and they have attained the transformed state that permits them to approach the black throne. There are no shortcuts from the path, only precipices and barren wastes.
Those who summon the shades of the dead to visible appearance do so within the altar triangle at the center of the stone circle. Offerings pleasing to the dead, such as fresh red meat, warm milk, and strong spirituous liquors, are placed within the triangle. The necromancer stands in the south, facing the north. He speaks an invitation to the dead to come and feast on the heat and life-force of the offerings, calling them in the name and by the authority of their dark lord Nyarlathotep. If he knows the name of the shade, he voices the name repeatedly and demands the attendance of that spirit, but he may still call the dead to the circle without knowing their names, and some will come. If he knows the name of the demon he wishes to call, he voices the name of that demon.
The shades cannot leave the altar triangle. Yog-Sothoth seals shut the gates behind them. They manifest visibly either upon the air above it, or they are assisted in taking transient forms by means of rising incense smoke, or in the depths of a mirror, which the necromancer stares into after seating himself in the circle, facing the base of the altar triangle. Full manifestation of a tangible kind is rare and not to be expected. Usually the shades of the dead come as moving shadows and appear and vanish without taking on sustained, stable bodies. Yet they may be conversed with, and will answer the necromancer either in the depths of his mind or in a way that seems to the necromancer to be an ordinary voice that speaks from the very air above the triangle.
By summoning and conversing with these shades, the aspirant on this dark path learns their names and other secrets, and enlists those who are more eager and adept as his servants. In this manner his own mind is transformed by the practice of necromancy, and he is made fit to open the Lower Gate of Nyarlathotep. The night in each lunar cycle on which the ritual of opening the gate may be attempted is the night of the new moon, when the lunar orb is shrouded in darkness. The ritual is begun at midnight at the opening hour of the day of the new moon.
Success is not a matter of weeks, perhaps not even a matter of months, but may require years of dedication to the chosen way of the Crawling Chaos. As with all the disciplines of the Order, there is danger that the disciple may become so involved in the regimen itself that he forgets his higher purpose, the attainment of the black throne. Yet no seeker can become a Lord of the Order unless he has climbed the ninety-three steps of the throne mount, and entered his name in the Necronomicon. Only when he has received the secret mark from Nyarlathotep before the throne can he consider himself a full servant in the Work of the Trapezohedron. For then he becomes one with the purpose of the Old Ones, the restoration of the earth to the high estate from which she has fallen.
As a token of his chosen path, the child of Nyarlathotep may decide to have the seal of the dark lord tattooed on to his skin. This is not required, but is a mark of dedication to the path and respect for the lord. Whether or not the seal is adopted, the wearing of the emblem of Nyarlathotep proclaims the way walked by the disciple. It is the representation of a human skull, which may be worn as a ring, a pendant, or other forms of jewelry, or may be embroidered on to some article of clothing. The emblem should be visible to others so that they may know at a glance the disciple’s preferred way of attainment.
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Way of Azathoth
To walk the path of Azathoth is to become foolish in wisdom and wise in foolishness. It is the discipline that opens the Central Gate, and of all seven disciplines of the Order, is the only way that does not require Nyarlathotep as a guide. The Central Gate opens directly on the chaos throne, which lies at the center of cosmos within a great vortex of souls. These are the souls that have forgotten their names yet never received new names in the underworld, so that they merged once again into the chaos from which they were created, decayed fruit of the endlessly fertile womb of Shub-Niggurath. Many were cast into this maelstrom by Nyarlathotep, for so the Crawling Chaos deals with those who annoy him. He blasts away their flesh and their names, and consumes their souls, for his open mouth is a gateway that gapes on the black vortex.
The practice of the disciple of Azathoth is not to move in any direction, but to find the center and remain there in stillness of mind until attainment is achieved. This is the most difficult of all the seven ways, for of all things in the cosmos, none is more restless than the mind of man. The undisciplined mind is discomforted by stillness, and seeks distractions of myriad different kinds to escape from silence and inaction. It has a thousand clever tricks to avoid emptiness. Yet only by becoming mindless, like great Azathoth himself, whose true name cannot be spoken, will the disciple reach enlightenment and open the Central Gate upon the black throne.
Nyarlathotep resents those who choose to tread the way of Azathoth. Since they do not require his services as a guide to the throne, he has less opportunity to gain power over them. He does not dare to do them harm, for Azathoth feels the link with his true disciples and shields them from his messenger’s wrath. Yet Nyarlathotep has scant love for those who scorn his guidance, and he always remembers their choice of path. Those who succeed in opening the Central Gate must always take upon themselves the mark of Azathoth, never the mark of Nyarlathotep, for if they receive the mark of the Crawling Chaos, they become his servants, and he will cause them to suffer for their chosen way to the throne.
For these reasons the Way of the Center is the path of the hero. It is the way of independence, the way of freedom, but also the way of peril. Those who fall from this path and fail in their discipline may know misfortune for the rest of their lives, if Nyarlathotep chooses to afflict them, and his memory is long. Those who succeed are shielded by Azathoth, whose absolute power his messenger dares not challenge. They become extensions of Azathoth, his intelligent agents, much like Nyarlathotep himself in this regard but far less potent.
The practice of those who follow the Way of the Center is to put on the yellow sash and the seal of Azathoth, and sit before the triangle altar
within the circle, facing north, the spiral key of Azathoth in the triangle beside the always-wrapped Elder Seal. The disciples still their thoughts until their minds are empty. Since it is almost impossible to meditate on nothingness, they meditate on the swirling vortex of chaos. They visualize it as a great vortex of black forces rotating widdershins inwardly. At the center of this vortex they imagine the unoccupied black throne. One by one, they strip the throne of all qualities, its color, its shape, its texture, its hardness, its temperature, casting them aside until nothing remains. In this way they achieve emptiness.
The ritual of opening the Central Gate may be attempted on the night of the full moon beginning at midnight. If success is not achieved, the follower of this path may repeat the attempt on the next full moon, and so on until success is achieved. When the gate opens, the disciple of Azathoth will find himself standing before the throne. Nyarlathotep will withdraw the Necronomicon from beneath the throne seat and direct him to sign his name in the book beside the names of the other beings who have pledged themselves to the Work of the Trapezohedron. Then he will ask which mark the disciple shall receive, his mark or the mark of Azathoth. Followers of this path do well to choose the mark of Azathoth. Nyarlathotep will give the mark of the Nameless One who is called Azathoth, for the Crawling Chaos is his right hand.
Those who seek to fulfill this most difficult of the seven disciplines may wish to have the seal of Azathoth tattooed on their skin, as an indication to other members of the order that they have stood before the black throne and pledged their service to the great work. Or, they may choose to wear the emblem of Azathoth as a pendant, or elsewhere on their person. His emblem is a whistle, or the symbolic representation of a flute or other musical wind instrument. It is their badge of attainment, and a proclamation of their chosen path to other initiates.
It is the nature of these few that they stand apart and remain unswayed by common fears or affections. Those with the mark of Nyarlathotep are involved in the affairs of this world, but those bearing the mark of Azathoth are not of this world. They will have little direct interest in the daily affairs of the Order, and refrain from petty politics and bickering, but in times of great need may be chosen to render decisions requiring impartiality and balanced judgment. All Lords of the seven ways are equal, but the Lords of Azathoth are the foolish wise who disdain common rewards, seeking clarity and truth.
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Opening the Gate
A gate is opened by Yog-Sothoth each time a spiritual creature is summoned to presence within the triangle of the altar, and each time a member of the Order projects awareness across the astral planes. All transitions through the stone circle require the opening of a gate, for no entity of spiritual substance can pass out or pass in except across a threshold, and Yog-Sothoth is the gatekeeper and holder of the keys.
The rite of Opening the Gate has a special significance. It is used to open the gate of the way chosen by a Master of the Order when he seeks to attain the black throne at the center of chaos, and thereby achieve elevation to the rank of Lord. It can only be attempted once in any cycle of the moon, and only on the lunar date devoted to the lord of that path to the throne. Yet there is no limitation on the number of times the rite may be worked by a Master seeking exploration or wisdom on the chosen path, in progress toward the ultimate objective of the black throne.
The rite of Opening the Gate differs from lesser rituals of opening in that it requires the use of the Long Chant. By the Long Chant is Nyarlathotep summoned to the stone circle in his role of psychopomp of souls. Nyarlathotep is adored as a lord of the Old Ones in other rites, but only by the voicing of the Long Chant does he attend the seeker and guide the way to the black throne.
The chaos mount is not to be attained on a single night, for the approaches are convoluted and filled with strange localities and even stranger inhabitants. Nyarlathotep reveals what must be learned to stand at last on the black steps. A little at a time he reveals it, and takes amusement in the ignorance of the seeker. He is compelled by the Long Chant and by his office as soul and messenger of the dancing gods to lead, but he is not required to make the path easy to walk. Upon each successive cycle of the moon when the gate of discipline is opened using the Long Chant, a bit more is learned that is necessary to know, until at last the throne of Azathoth is achieved.
Those who follow the way of the Central Gate do not use the Long Chant or the key of Nyarlathotep in the rite of Opening the Gate. For them there is no progress of incidents and ideas along the path, for the Central Gate opens directly at the foot of the black throne itself. They do not seek enlightenment through knowledge, but through emptiness. They emulate in their practice the idiot god, and empty their mind of all thoughts and impressions until the music of Azathoth is heard within. The sound of his flute signals the ripeness to attempt the opening of the Central Gate, which they do using only the key of Azathoth.
All other disciples employ for this rite both the key of the lord of the Old Ones who presides over their chosen path, and the key of Nyarlathotep, who is the guide along the way. A follower of the martial way of Cthulhu would use both the key of Cthulhu and the key of Nyarlathotep in opening the Gate of the South with the Long Chant. The only exception to this rule is the disciples of Nyarlathotep himself, those who follow the way of necromancy. They employ the Long Chant, but use only the key of their chosen lord, who is both their guide and their god.
The Rite of Opening
On the night of the lunar cycle appropriate for your chosen lord of the Old Ones, attend the stone circle at midnight wearing the black robe of the Order and the sash and lamen of your lord. In the triangle of the altar set the key of your lord and the key of Nyarlathotep. If your lord is Nyarlathotep, only his key will occupy the altar. If your lord is Azathoth, only his key will occupy the altar and that of Nyarlathotep will not be present. When opening the gate of any of the other five lords, both the key of that lord and the key of the Messenger are put into the altar, which also must contain the Elder Seal in its white wrapping.
Light the three flames at the points of the altar. Stand at the south of the altar triangle facing north. Empty your thoughts and still your emotions, then fill your mind with your purpose. Speak the opening words:
On this night of ________, I open the ________ Gate, in quest of the Black Throne.
There are seven possible opening statements for this rite. Which one you speak depends on which discipline you have chosen to follow for your Master work:
1. On this night of Yig, I open the North Gate, in quest of the Black Throne.
2. On this night of Shub-Niggurath, I open the East Gate, in quest of the Black Throne.
3. On this night of Cthulhu, I open the South Gate, in quest of the Black Throne.
4. On this night of Dagon, I open the West Gate, in quest of the Black Throne.
5. On this night of Yog-Sothoth, I open the Upper Gate, in quest of the Black Throne.
6. On this night of Nyarlathotep, I open the Lower Gate, in quest of the Black Throne.
7. On this night of Azathoth, I open the Middle Gate, in quest of the Black Throne.
Take up from the altar the key of the lord to whom the Rite of Opening is dedicated. Walk around the altar widdershins until you stand by the stone of that lord, and strike the key against the stone so that it gives off a ringing sound. Proceed around the circle, striking each stone as you pass until you return to the stone of your lord. Strike it a second time to seal the circle, and visualize a band of light of the color proper to your lord extended from stone to stone to form a heptagon. It is useful to visualize on the astral level that the astral stones are larger than the physical stones, so that the band of light cuts the air from stone to stone at the level of your heart center. Speak the words:
The circle is joined!
Proceed around the inside of the stone circle widdershins to stand before t
he threshold of your chosen lord. In the case of the four outer gateways you will face outward in one of the four cardinal directions, but if your lord is one of the higher lords you will stand facing inward before a threshold of the altar. Raise the rectangle of the gate from the threshold rod in your imagination, as though unrolling it upward from the rod like an inverted window shade, and visualize it standing before you like a transparent doorway. The gate has no depth, only a two-dimensional rectangular shape that is similar to a rectangle of pale light projected onto an invisible sheet of glass.
Extend your right arm and point with the key of your lord at the center of the gate. In the case of the four outer gates you point across the stone circle, breaking the plane of the circle with the key. In the case of the three inner gates, you point to the space above the altar, breaking one of the thresholds of the altar with the key. For the four lords of the other gates and for Azathoth, the key is held out straight from the body at the heart level. For Yog-Sothoth the right arm is angled upward with the key held over the altar above heart level; for Nyarlathotep the right arm is angled downward with the key held over the altar below heart level.
Press the palm of your left hand over the lamen of your lord, which hangs around your neck, and recite the following litany of opening in a clear voice if you are able to speak without being overheard by the uninitiated. Otherwise, subvocalize the words beneath your breath, speaking them clearly in your mind but not aloud on your lips.
In the name and by the authority of __________, great lord of the _________ regions, I call upon Yog-Sothoth to open the __________ Gate upon the way to the Black Throne. Strengthen and protect me along the way, ________.
The litany has seven forms, the choice of which is determined by the lord of your discipline:
