The Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram (LBRP) is a well known and common magick ritual. These days, its even begun to enter mainstream spiritual thought. The ritual was originally created by the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn to banish spiritual energy and clear a space.
The LBRP is well known not just because is is an energy clearing ritual, but also because it lays out the format for various other rituals, both greater and lesser. It was originally a Golden Dawn ritual, but Pagans, Satanists, Thelemites and various other minor Temples and traditions use this format. It also incorporates many different systems, and this gives it some sort of universal appeal.
I’m sure a majority already know it, but to recap, the ritual goes like this:
Kabbalistic Cross (Part I)
Face EAST.
Visualise a brilliant ball of light floating above your forehead, about 12 inches in diameter.
Using either a dagger, or your middle and index finger, reach up and draw the light down to your forehead.
Vibrate ATAH
Touch your solar plexus, visualising the light travelling down your body to form a similar ball under your feet.
Vibrate MALKUTH
Touch your right shoulder, visualising another ball of light.
Vibrate VA-GEBURAH
Touch your left shoulder, visualizing the light travelling across your chest to another sphere.
Vibrate VA-GADULAH
Clasp your hands at your chest, and vibrate LA-OLAHM
Now say AMEN.
Invoking the Watchers (Part II)
Once again, with your dagger and index/middle finger, point outward. Now, trace the Banishing Pentagram of Earth (beginning at the bottom left, moving to the top point).
Once it is traced, stab it in the middle, and see it burst into white flames. As you do so, vibrate YHVH (Pronounced YEHOVAH)
Now turn clockwise to the South, tracing a quarter circle with your dagger/fingers, and do the same.
This time, vibrate ADNI (Pronounced ADONAI)
Continue clockwise to the West, and do the same.
Vibrate AHIH (Pronounced AHA-YAH, or Ehee-yeh for anglophones)
Finally, continue to the North. This time, vibrate AGLA.
Continue clockwise to the East, completing the circle you were tracing.
Now say the following:
“To my right, MIKHAEL”
(vibrate the name of the archangel, while visualising the towring figure of Mikhael appear to your right. Repeat the same for the other three archangels)
“To my left, URIEL“
“Before me, RAPHAEL“
“Behind me, GABRIEL“
(Mikhael and Raphael are generally seen as male, Gabriel and Uriel as female)
Spread your legs and your arms, as if forming a pentagram with your body. Now visualise a white burning pentagram, similar to the ones you traced superimposed on yourself, and also focus on the four Pentagrams you traced previosuly.
“For about me flames the Pentagram”
Visualise a Hexagram burning at your chest. This can be the GD Hexagram, or just white.
“And within me shines the Six Rayed Star”
Visualise a brilliant column of light shining within you, travelling infinitely upward and downward.
Finally, repeat the Kabbalistic Cross (Part III)
Thus concludes the well known LBRP.
Uses of the Pentagram Rituals
As we saw, this was the banishing ritual. In order to do the Lesser Invoking Ritual of the Pentagram, all we’d need to do is replace the banishing pentagram of the Earth with an invoking one (starting at the top point, moving towards the bottom left point). While the LBRP is a general banishing, the LIRP is a general invocation.
The reason the Earth pentagram is used, is because it is the lowest element, and thought to “contain” the other 3 elements within it. This is also why it is a white pentagram (if we were to invoke Earth separately, we’d use green and black pentagrams).
Many magicians will start the day with a LIRP, and do an LBRP before they sleep. This draws in spiritual energy to start the day off, and ends the day by clearing all energies from their mind and environment. It’s not too different from working out in the morning, and meditating or reading a book before sleep (or…drinking coffee in the morning and alcohol at night).
You can try this out for a week or so, and see how it works.
I want to provide a Initiation ritual that utilises the Egyptian gods along with the Invoking ritual of the Pentagram. It is based on a Sumerian ritual, but I always found the Egyptian deities resonate more with hermetic and kabbalistic work (for ME personally).
This ritual is to be every single day until the effects are felt, and serves as a simple initiation into the Hermetic tradition. It also draws in energy, so it is a good ritual for anyone who works with pagan, thelemic, kabbalistic or hermetic magick.
The Egyptian Initiation Rite
For this, all you need is a glass or cup, filled with water.
I’d suggest doing it in the morning, after bath/shower.
All the words given in bold capitals must be vibrated. Vibrating means saying the word with a deep, resonant voice, almost like a hum or song. When we vibrate magickal names, we draw the breath from within the belly and chest, and it will feel like the word is “vibrating” the whole body.
The rest of the words should be stated with a firm and clear voice, without any fear of being heard or judged. This ritual is simple, but very powerful when done right.
Cross of Ptah (Part I)
Face EAST.
Visualise a brilliant sphere of light above your head, about 12 inches in diameter.
Reach up, and draw down the light to your forhead.
Say “The world was created..”
Now touch your heart center, visualizing the light travelling down your body in a column, to form a sphere under your feet.
“…by the thought of the Heart”
Now touch your right shoulder, forming another ball.
“Life was given..”
Touch your left shoulder, drawing the light across.
“…by the magic of the Word”
Clasp your hands, and say “Amen”
Invocation of the Gods (Part II)
Now, trace an Ankh (clockwise for invoking, counter clockwise for banishing) of the Earth in the East.
Vibrate RA-RAURET
Turn to the South, with your fingers still outstretches, tracing a circle of light and draw the Pentagram again.
Vibrate HAUHET-HEH
Continue to the West, and do the same.
This time, vibrate NAUNET-NUH
Continue to the North, do the same.
Vibrate TA-TENEN
Continue to the East, closing your circle of light.
Now say the following:
“To my right, AUSET”
“To my left, NEBET-HET”
“Before me, ASAR”
“Behind me, AUSET”
Each time, visualise the mighty forms of the respective deities appearing in each direction, holding an ankh in one hand and the wajded staff in the other (although it is entirely up to you how you want to visualise them. Go with what feels natural)
Spread your hand to either side, and procliam:
“For about me flames the Living Ankh”
Visualised the circle you traced becoming a sphere around you. The top half is a dome of brilliant pale sunlight, and below you is a dome of black, earthy ground. In the center, standing tall, is the Ankh
“And within me shines the Eternal Djed”
As you say this, cross your arms across your chest, and visualise the Djed shining in your entire being, and a beam of light travelling infinitely upwards and downwards.
Blessing of the Water (Part III):
Take you glass/cup/goblet of water. Move to the Easter quarter, right in front of you. Here, you had invoked Tehuti. State:
“Lord Tehuti, hail unto thee! I ask for thy blessing in my life, and the path of High Magick”
Pause a moment, then walk clockwise to the South (where Heru is invoked), and repeat the same recitation to him. Then do the same as you continue to the West and finally the North, making your prayer to Auset and Nebet-het. With each recitation, visualise the glass of water glowing brighter and brighter with light.
Now return to the center of the circle, and hold out your glass, visualising it containing bright, burning white light:
“Within the elixir shines the eternal light!”
Visualize an Ankh glowing brightly within the water.
“And within me dwells the eternal life!”
Consume the water, visualising the white brilliance entering your body, and filling your whole being with the same bright light.
Now, repeat the Cross of Ptah (Part IV) and end the ritual by bowing down.
Meaning of the Ritual
The ritual may sound long, but the whole thing will likely take little less than 5 minutes, and it probably took me longer to write it than it will take to perform it.
The speech at the beginning is a homage to the primordial creator god Ptah, who spoke the cosmos into existence (much like the God of the old testament).
The four Pentagrams utilize spiritual concepts.
Amun, the hidden Godhead, and Ra, the highest deity and God of Light. Their compounded form Amun-Ra represents the beginning of all things.
Heh is the personification of infinity, or the flood of Chaos that existed before the beginning of the world. Hauhet is the feminine form, while Heh is masculine.
Nu is the primordial watery Abyss, from which all life first emerged. It is the cosmic womb, and Naunet is its feminine form, while Nun is masculine.
Ta-Tenen is the primal mound, or the first piece of land that emerged out of the waters of chaos that filled the abyss, at the behest of the godhead. Upon this mound, the first Djed was erected and Time began.
Aten refers to the sun-disk, and the light of the heavens. Aker is the name for the kingdom of Matter.
The Ankh is the symbol of life, and it is carried by all Egyptian gods. The Djed is a symbol of the indomitable Will. Djed and the Ankh represent the male and female principle respectively.
You may know the four deities Tehuti, Heru, Auset and Nebet-het by their more common Greek names: Thoth, Horus, Isis and Nephthys respectively.
Thoth is the God of Writing, and the celestial scribe. He is the ruler of Air. He may be visualised as having the head of an Ibis or a Baboon, with glowing pale skin, as if made of moonlight, with similar eyes. His garments may be seen as plain and white. On his head is a crescent with a sun disk.
Horus is the God of War, and the avenger. He is the ruler of Fire. He may be visualised with the head of a hawk or falcon, with burning red skin, as if made from flames. His garments can be seen as having gold or bronze armour plates. On his head if the double crown of ancient Egypt.
Isis is the Goddess of the Fertility, and the cosmic mother. She is the ruler of Water. She may be visualized as a beautiful woman, with golden, glistening skin, as if made of liquid metal. Her garments can be seen as shimmering with multicolored rainbow light, or as deep blue, and embedded with precious stones. On her head is the throne of Egypt.
Nephthys is the Goddess of Night, and the patron of both chilbirth and death, and also magick. She is the ruler of Earth. She may be visualised as a younger woman, with dark black skin, as if made from fertile soil. Her garments may be seen as simple green/brown robes with a golden trim. On her head is a pillar.
When we make the crossed sign across our chest, we pay homage to Asar, known more commonly by the Greek name Osiris, the King of the Gods and ruler of the Duat (underworld/realm of the Gods). He rules Spirit.
Initially, there may be some resistance to the daily ritual. As with any new habit, it will take some time to become natural. But it’ll happen eventually.
Also, I’m aware that some of the incantations and recitations may seem bit clumsy to some people, so feel free to reword them in a way that makes sense to you. As long as the general tone and contents are retained, how you word it is up to you.
That’s all for now. I’m working on a bunch of stuff and I’m really excited to put it all out. I’ve got a lot of stuff regarding Indo-European magick, I want to talk about next. Look forward to it!
Until Next Time
~White Raven
Between The Pillars 