Hello everybody! It's Jack Vates your loving occult scholar, I have my own ideas but I'd like to know how you interpret and define the Magus archetype? Who or what is a Magus and what is his role in the occult community! Authors of the best responses will be offered the chance to be paid for an article expounding their ideas! Questions contact me here or twitter magusmagazine. Interested in intelligent and thoughtful ways to experience the occult! Love you all 93!
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What is a Magus?
What is a Magus?
93
this post seems to be a fun challenge.
a magus is someone who is usually a part of an order or a group. the magus is not a person who attempts to place his/her hand in the in and outs of the groups events... that job belongs to an officer at a lesser "rank". the magus's job is to help guide the group in a macro level. the lower officers can easily "out vote" a magus because the magus seeks to lead by harmony, not force. the magus is the person that is sought after to resolve 50/50 disputes, read over and help edit rituals, and gently guide the group upwards. the magus does not feel bound to the structures and rituals of the group... they have found their will and seek only to accomplish it. in my opinion a magus has hit the level of tiphareth to daath. once the abyss has been crossed and the supernal triad has been entered, the reality of the individual has become nondualistic, they are no longer a magus.
not sure if this is what you're looking for, but it's coming from a personal perspective.
93/93
-kp
this post seems to be a fun challenge.
a magus is someone who is usually a part of an order or a group. the magus is not a person who attempts to place his/her hand in the in and outs of the groups events... that job belongs to an officer at a lesser "rank". the magus's job is to help guide the group in a macro level. the lower officers can easily "out vote" a magus because the magus seeks to lead by harmony, not force. the magus is the person that is sought after to resolve 50/50 disputes, read over and help edit rituals, and gently guide the group upwards. the magus does not feel bound to the structures and rituals of the group... they have found their will and seek only to accomplish it. in my opinion a magus has hit the level of tiphareth to daath. once the abyss has been crossed and the supernal triad has been entered, the reality of the individual has become nondualistic, they are no longer a magus.
not sure if this is what you're looking for, but it's coming from a personal perspective.
93/93
-kp
"Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Love is the Law, Love under Will."
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magusmagazine
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What is a Magus?
Hey Kath! Great response! Very eloquent and thought-provoking. Does that mean you are a practicing Witch or Priestess? You seem to know alot about the Occult and I'd like to ask you some questions. What is it about the Magus or Priestess or the Occult that fascinates you? Does the art really work in real life? Email me at liberrapublishing at yahoo and let's chat! I honestly am looking for writers right now who know a lot about the occult to write for a magazine....If it sounds fun and you want to share your occult/magus thoughts, drop me a line!
What is a Magus?
A magus is a magician,one who practices magic.A magus fits into the occult community however he/she wishes---as a solitary practicioner or a member or leader of a group.This word in the past has referred mainly to men,but I would have no problem calling a woman a magus...unless she preferred magess(e).
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EmperorFaustus
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Re: What is a Magus?
Hi Jack,
Colloquially, the term Magus can refer to any practitioner of magick who identifies themselves as such.
As pointed out, in the hierarchy of western ceremonial magick, the Magus is a senior (generally head) member of a magickal order. I don't necessarily agree entirely with the description given, as I think specific duties vary between orders, but it's a good answer, so I won't elaborate.
Speaking metaphysically, however (which is where the term gains it's above uses) the Magus is a label for one who has attained the second grade above the abyss. It can be difficult discussing these grades meaningfully, as language ceases to hold relevance above the abyss, hence any in depth discussion concerning them is more likely to confuse than elucidate. Nonetheless, here we go. In order to become a Master of the Temple, one must cross the abyss and confront Choronzon, the mad demon god of broken forms. Should the adept succeed in this, he enters a new state of being. Duality, and in fact all sense of separation, ceases to exist. The boundaries between good and evil, objective and subjective, you and me, etc etc vanish instantly and completely. In this state, the adept achieves unity with the true nature of things, and experiences existence in it's true form. Becomes existence, in fact. I could wax lyrical about this over and over and continue to fail to explain exactly what this is experientially. Generally, the Master of the Temple is said to have completely mastered mysticism, but can often lose his powers temporarily, as his world view has been completely stripped away.
Moving up, we have the Magus. The Magus has re-claimed the world and is considered to have completely mastered the art of magick. In doing so, he has exercised an enormous, world changing, magickal impact, hence the saying "I have destroyed the universe with my left hand, and rebuilt it with my right". This refers to the act of destruction of besting Choronzon (as all forms in this world are 'broken' in traditional occult understanding, he is in fact the god of THIS realm also) and destroying ones own individual ego and worldview before literally rebuilding it. We will not go into Quantum physics and esoteric Buddhism here, suffice it to say we don't just mean that the adept now 'see's the world differently'. The change he has effected is alleged to have reverberations through the very structure of existence itself. The act of becoming Magus is synonymous with the utterance of a 'word' which issues this energy. Crowley claimed that the utterance of his word upon attainment of this grade ushered in the 'Aeon of Horus'.
While a great deal of the hierarchy of magickal orders is predominantly a 'judgement call' (i.e can Fr Perdurabo list the names of all the Enochian seniors? Does he know the LBRP? etc) it should be stressed that the attainment of the grades of the third order are all meant to be the results of actual experience and refer to concrete things not in the sphere of human judgement. As a result, we can see descriptions of these experiences clearly in other esoteric systems. In Tantra, for example, the passing of Kundalini through the Anja (third eye) chakra is analogous to the crossing of the abyss.
The common view is that only a hand full of people incarnate at any one time in history are active above the abyss. Whether or not this is the case, I don't care to speculate.
Hope that helps.
EF
Colloquially, the term Magus can refer to any practitioner of magick who identifies themselves as such.
As pointed out, in the hierarchy of western ceremonial magick, the Magus is a senior (generally head) member of a magickal order. I don't necessarily agree entirely with the description given, as I think specific duties vary between orders, but it's a good answer, so I won't elaborate.
Speaking metaphysically, however (which is where the term gains it's above uses) the Magus is a label for one who has attained the second grade above the abyss. It can be difficult discussing these grades meaningfully, as language ceases to hold relevance above the abyss, hence any in depth discussion concerning them is more likely to confuse than elucidate. Nonetheless, here we go. In order to become a Master of the Temple, one must cross the abyss and confront Choronzon, the mad demon god of broken forms. Should the adept succeed in this, he enters a new state of being. Duality, and in fact all sense of separation, ceases to exist. The boundaries between good and evil, objective and subjective, you and me, etc etc vanish instantly and completely. In this state, the adept achieves unity with the true nature of things, and experiences existence in it's true form. Becomes existence, in fact. I could wax lyrical about this over and over and continue to fail to explain exactly what this is experientially. Generally, the Master of the Temple is said to have completely mastered mysticism, but can often lose his powers temporarily, as his world view has been completely stripped away.
Moving up, we have the Magus. The Magus has re-claimed the world and is considered to have completely mastered the art of magick. In doing so, he has exercised an enormous, world changing, magickal impact, hence the saying "I have destroyed the universe with my left hand, and rebuilt it with my right". This refers to the act of destruction of besting Choronzon (as all forms in this world are 'broken' in traditional occult understanding, he is in fact the god of THIS realm also) and destroying ones own individual ego and worldview before literally rebuilding it. We will not go into Quantum physics and esoteric Buddhism here, suffice it to say we don't just mean that the adept now 'see's the world differently'. The change he has effected is alleged to have reverberations through the very structure of existence itself. The act of becoming Magus is synonymous with the utterance of a 'word' which issues this energy. Crowley claimed that the utterance of his word upon attainment of this grade ushered in the 'Aeon of Horus'.
While a great deal of the hierarchy of magickal orders is predominantly a 'judgement call' (i.e can Fr Perdurabo list the names of all the Enochian seniors? Does he know the LBRP? etc) it should be stressed that the attainment of the grades of the third order are all meant to be the results of actual experience and refer to concrete things not in the sphere of human judgement. As a result, we can see descriptions of these experiences clearly in other esoteric systems. In Tantra, for example, the passing of Kundalini through the Anja (third eye) chakra is analogous to the crossing of the abyss.
The common view is that only a hand full of people incarnate at any one time in history are active above the abyss. Whether or not this is the case, I don't care to speculate.
Hope that helps.
EF
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JonBrim
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Re: What is a Magus?
Well the term magus is a derivation of the word magi. But today it seams to mean a master of magicks or master of the house. According to the grades issued and used by the golden dawn it is second to the highest level, the Ipsissumus.
Thou shalt go upon the lion and adder, the young lion and the dragon shalt tread under thy feet.
Re: What is a Magus?
When I think of “Magus,” I do not think of the standards presented by modern occultists, the vast majority of which have accomplished very little in magic. I instead turn to the ancient tradition of Theurgy, Hermetics proper, and its definition of a magical Master, a true Magus.
From this perspective, a Magus is not simply one who practices magic, who has read a bunch of useless books on the Golden Dawn, or who has gone through ten different occult orders which required no training further than doing a couple rituals here and there. Rather, a Magus, or Master Theurgist, is one who has accomplished the end of Theurgy.
The end of Theurgy is complete divinization of the physical, astral, and mental vehicles, and an establishment of the consciousness in the regions of pure spirit. This attainment was called by “Henosis” by the ancient Theurgists, and though people might think it has never been attained, there are quite a few people that have attained this end, and even further – even through other systems, like Yoga, where they are often called the Sat-Guru’s. Unfortunately, such people have become exceedingly rare in the west, but seek hard enough and you will find.
A Magus has mastered every force in the universe. He has extensively trained with the five elements, seven planets, and twelve zodiacs, such that all of the corresponding forces within himself are perfectly balanced. He is not controlled by any energy in our solar system, which means he has attained liberation, called “Gnosis” in Theurgy. He is not, therefore, given to any extremes. He remains calm in the darkest and most trying moments because he is established in a waking state of ecstatic God-union, called Sahaj Samadhi by the Yogis, or Gnosis by the Theurgists.
Having liberated himself beyond all physical desire, he is always detached from the vicissitudes of life. Nevertheless, he lives passionately, nor does he consider himself too good to love or laugh. He does not see himself as intrinsically better than others, because he understands that all things are one at the level of consciousness. He knows the only difference between a Magus and a Neophyte is soul-age, and that all are equal in potential. On occasion, he still makes mistakes or fails, because even he is still learning himself.
He has experienced the various stages of meditation of the Yogis, but has all of the magical powers of a magician. He does not use any power to make his life easier, because he knows that doing so slows down the rate at which he burns karma, and a Magus incarnates solely for burning off the Karma of other beings anyway. That’s why so many a Magus, like Aleister Crowley, take an oath to never use magic for anything besides a divine mission. The magus understands that the only proper use of magical power is inspiring other people to pursue a spiritual life, and turn their energies towards the Good, i.e. the Divine. He is, in short, a Bodhisattva. The focus of his life is the evolution of humanity.
The Magus is a peer of the gods, a friend to the angels, and lord of the demons. Through frequent invocation, he has divinized every aspect of himself, and so is more or less a living god.
Some examples of the greatest Magi: Orpheus, Pythagoras, Plato, Jesus Christ, Apollonius of Tyana, Iamblichus, Franz Bardon.
From this perspective, a Magus is not simply one who practices magic, who has read a bunch of useless books on the Golden Dawn, or who has gone through ten different occult orders which required no training further than doing a couple rituals here and there. Rather, a Magus, or Master Theurgist, is one who has accomplished the end of Theurgy.
The end of Theurgy is complete divinization of the physical, astral, and mental vehicles, and an establishment of the consciousness in the regions of pure spirit. This attainment was called by “Henosis” by the ancient Theurgists, and though people might think it has never been attained, there are quite a few people that have attained this end, and even further – even through other systems, like Yoga, where they are often called the Sat-Guru’s. Unfortunately, such people have become exceedingly rare in the west, but seek hard enough and you will find.
A Magus has mastered every force in the universe. He has extensively trained with the five elements, seven planets, and twelve zodiacs, such that all of the corresponding forces within himself are perfectly balanced. He is not controlled by any energy in our solar system, which means he has attained liberation, called “Gnosis” in Theurgy. He is not, therefore, given to any extremes. He remains calm in the darkest and most trying moments because he is established in a waking state of ecstatic God-union, called Sahaj Samadhi by the Yogis, or Gnosis by the Theurgists.
Having liberated himself beyond all physical desire, he is always detached from the vicissitudes of life. Nevertheless, he lives passionately, nor does he consider himself too good to love or laugh. He does not see himself as intrinsically better than others, because he understands that all things are one at the level of consciousness. He knows the only difference between a Magus and a Neophyte is soul-age, and that all are equal in potential. On occasion, he still makes mistakes or fails, because even he is still learning himself.
He has experienced the various stages of meditation of the Yogis, but has all of the magical powers of a magician. He does not use any power to make his life easier, because he knows that doing so slows down the rate at which he burns karma, and a Magus incarnates solely for burning off the Karma of other beings anyway. That’s why so many a Magus, like Aleister Crowley, take an oath to never use magic for anything besides a divine mission. The magus understands that the only proper use of magical power is inspiring other people to pursue a spiritual life, and turn their energies towards the Good, i.e. the Divine. He is, in short, a Bodhisattva. The focus of his life is the evolution of humanity.
The Magus is a peer of the gods, a friend to the angels, and lord of the demons. Through frequent invocation, he has divinized every aspect of himself, and so is more or less a living god.
Some examples of the greatest Magi: Orpheus, Pythagoras, Plato, Jesus Christ, Apollonius of Tyana, Iamblichus, Franz Bardon.
Re: What is a Magus?
Interesting question...Magus is the one who has the ability to perceive things where others do not see anything.Magus is the one who'll work for himself by asking exactly what he needs and IF he receives more than expected,he will share this blessing ... magus is the one who appreciates the deeper values of nature and life and doesh't spent every day on thinking how to put another glove puppet in the bag (Greek proverb) !Magus is the one who first of all respects himself in order to respect all of his brothers and sisters.A magus always gives without expecting gratitude, because that's the way that nature also works...he has the ability of healing,he nurtures and cares, brings peace and happiness because all of his energy comes from true love....the light of his heart.
That's my personal opinion.
That's my personal opinion.
Most people fight for the possible.
I fight for the impossible!
I fight for the impossible!
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Madavascus
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Re: What is a Magus?
The above answers to the question are excellent, however the historically correct answer is that a magus, or the magi, were (according to Herodotus in Book I of The Histories) a people of the Medes and a sacerdotal caste devoted to the teachings of Zoroaster. [clown]
I jest. I think the above answers are so good I don't feel it is worth my time to try to best them. [oh]
I jest. I think the above answers are so good I don't feel it is worth my time to try to best them. [oh]
Incipit Chaos!
Re: What is a Magus?
Correct !!!! I do know the meaning of the word according to Ηρόδοτος !!!! I'm glad you knew that also...personally,i only state what i feel about the meaning of ''magus'' !!!
Most people fight for the possible.
I fight for the impossible!
I fight for the impossible!
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Madavascus
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Re: What is a Magus?
I absolutely love Herodotus and the Greece that bore him and other genii like him. [grin] A little off-topic, I know, but I just had to say it...ΙΟΛΗ7 wrote:Correct !!!! I do know the meaning of the word according to Ηρόδοτος !!!! I'm glad you knew that also...personally,i only state what i feel about the meaning of ''magus'' !!!
Incipit Chaos!
Re: What is a Magus?
That's nice to hear..i've just seen the post and i'm really glad that many people here appreciate Greece's ancient wise people.
Most people fight for the possible.
I fight for the impossible!
I fight for the impossible!