Ritual of the Pentagram - Invocation and Banishing Rituals of the Pentagram

[Illustrious]

This article was originally written for the Black Temple and the original can be found HERE.

Preamble:

Much has been said concerning this ritual. It is a well known and highly effective ritual. It safe for beginners and extremely useful to the developing magician.

The Pentagram ritual is safe for people who are just beginning to delve in to the occult sciences. It can be performed safely, as it does not open any astral portals, or cause any unwanted influence upon the subconscious of the operator.

The Ritual of the Pentagram is an elemental ritual with a multitude of uses. Many more so, in fact, than most people are aware:

It can be used to invoke elemental influence.
It can be used to banish elemental influence.
It can be used to invoke spirits.
It can be used to banish spirits, consecrating an area.
It creates a space within the sphere of the magician, wherein magick becomes possible.

Israel Regardie writes, pertaining to the Pentagram Ritual:

“The Pentagram Ritual was taught to the Neophyte immediately after his initiation in order that he might “form some idea of how to attract and come into communication with spiritual and invisible things.” Just as the Neophyte Ceremony of admission contains the essential symbolism of the Great Work, shadowing forth symbolically the commencement of certain formulae of the Magic of Light, so potential within the Pentagram Ritual and the Oabalistic Cross are the epitomes of the whole of that work. In all magical procedure it fundamental, for it is a gesture of upraising the human consciousness to its own root of perfection and enlightenment by which the sphere of sensation and every act performed under its surveillance are sanctified. Thus it should precede every phase of magical work, elementary as well as advanced.”

Pentagram with Elemental Attributions

Elements and the Cardinal Directions:

• East is attributed to Air.
• South is attributed to Fire.
• West is attributed to Water.
• North is attributed to Earth.

Purpose and Method of the Pentagram ritual:

As seen above, the Pentagram ritual is elemental in nature.

The purpose and method of the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram (LBRP); How the LBRP functions:

The LBRP projects the elements, or their influence, outside of the circle.
Places a banishing Pentagram outside the circle, between oneself within the circle and the element.
The Pentagram is charged to create a barrier between oneself and the element. This works by way of the correspondence of the element with its associated cardinal direction.
The Angels are evoked to strengthen and maintain the barrier.
The Qabalistic Cross, performed before and after formation of the pentagrams, establishes and affirms the presence of the Divine within the circle.
Each element is appropriated to a cardinal direction. By placing a banishing pentagram between oneself and the element in any given direction, the influence of that element is unable to act upon the consciousness of the magician.

Invoking Ritual of the Pentagram:

The Pentagram Ritual can be used to Invoke Elemental Influence.

By reversing the direction in which the Pentagrams are traced, their effect is altered accordingly.

Invoking and Banishing Pentagrams

Combining Invocation and Banishing Pentagrams:

One may combine banishing pentagrams with invocation pentagrams in order to invoke the influence of one or more chosen elements.

For example: If one wishes to invoke only the element of Fire, banishing pentagrams are placed in the east, west, and northerly directions. An invocation pentagram is placed in the south. This has the effect of invoking and emphasizing the influence of Fire.

Conclusions:

Herein I have revealed the multitudinous uses of the Pentagram Ritual. As you can see, it has many practical uses. Most of which aren’t written about or revealed very often.

The magician should know exactly what he is doing prior to any working. I reveal this knowledge, as although the Pentagram ritual can be safely performed, it is in the best interest of any magician to know exactly how this ritual functions prior to any workings.

[bingohandjob]

Of course not to be forgotten that each pentagram for invocation and at each element is a little different.

An age old debate in regards to the LBRP is of course why solely the water pentagram for all elemental points - east west etc etc. ?

As a matter on interest perhaps -
I use the purification ritual before the LBRP or instead of, (deps ritual) as stipulated in the enochian scrying tarot book.

Tools on altar
A - Holy water/ Purified consecrated water
B - Incense

First take the water around the circle or space drawing with index finger a cross then an invoking water triangle upside down triangle top point facing down to top left then top right and back to starting point. Repeat at each point east south west etc.

When back at East say - ’ So therefore first the priest who governeth the works of fire must sprinkle with the lustral waters of the loud resounding sea. As sprinkled so purified.’

Pick up the incense and repeat the above (draw with incense stick) but draw a fire triangle base points at the bottom (ie right way round) start at the top clockwise. Each point then back at east say.

‘And when after all the phantoms are banished, thou shalt see the holy and formless fire, that fire which darts and flashes through the hidden depths of the universe. Hear thou the voice of fire!’

This ritual I use mostly if I cant be bothered with an LBRP, and for candle magic - add at the end if solely using this ritual -
‘Begone phantoms says fire - and so the phantoms leave.’

Then do the LBRP etc, if you can be bothered. Obviously you need to do the LBRP etc to more securely banish every now and again, and depending on ritual.

J

[emperor]

I’ve been really considering both the Pentagram & Hexagram rituals from the Golden Dawn, Thelema, and This ritual is underrated and can be used much more than it is.

The RP is a complete elemental evocation system in and of itself. With a proper understanding of the Pentagrams, you can banish, invoke, or do any banish/invoke combination you care to do. You can also call elemental forces, or use elemental gateways as portals to call higher planetary and astrological beings.

I don’t think there’s a magician alive who has truly mastered this one formula, it is so versatile. With permutations and variations on how many chakras you open in the Kabbalist Cross and how many quarters you petition, you can do the RP 16,384 different ways without repeating your structure. This doesn’t count the mix of banishing and invocation permutations, which would take this number into hundreds of thousands of RP variations.

There are levels to the Pentagram ritual, and the RPs can be adjusted to banish, evoke, invoke, convoke, or petition forces as well as the Watchtowers. You can skip calling the quarters and speak directly to the Watchtowers if you wish. The formula is modifiable when you properly understand it and use it with creativity.

In the Golden Dawn system, the RPs are the LRPs (Lesser Rituals of the Pentagram or modifications such as Michael Snuffin’s New Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram), GRPs (Greater Rituals of the Pentagram), and SRPs (Supreme Banishing and Invoking Rituals of the Pentagram).

In Thelema, the RPs are the Star Ruby, vel Reguli, and Samekh. Thelema also has altered invocation forms to specific forces, such as NV (Nuit for women) or HAD (Hadit for men), which are unique possession rituals done to prepare the Thelemite for different forms of devotion or sex magick.

The 18 Enochian elemental calls are an elaborate version of elemental and subelemental conjurations. Understanding how to structure these calls will make you a savvy formula user and properly stage your use of the RPs in GD and Thelema.

All forms of the RPs activate the magnetic Brain field (called the Operant Field in Western Magick) to different levels of sophistication.

This would be dazzling and frankly quite confusing if the different RP forms didn’t have a simple and similar underlying structur to unite their disparate formats:

1 - The opening Kabbalist Cross is the act of opening, rotating, and balancing the 5 chakras of the Kabbalist body of light

2 - The Formulation of the Pentagrams is the act of conjuring any number of the quarters.

In most iterations of the RP, most of us banish or invoke all four quarters sequentially. This is a basic and uncreative way of using the RP. There’s nothing stopping you from conjuring (invoking) only one, two, or three quarters in any combination you care to. A more careful way of doing this is to invoke one, two, or three quarters while banishing the rest. This makes the RP into a full-on evocation ritual.

You also have the possibility of conjuring NONE of the quarters and proceeding to the next step…

3 - The Invocation of the Archangels is a direct acknowledgment of the presence and powers of the Royal Stars of Persia.These stars are called and petitioned in the RPs of all traditions under code names, but their star origins are rarely given. I give them here for the sake of reference. Removing the ciphers they hide behind, the Watchtowers are stars that represent the highest elemental attributions of each quarter. Again, we call all four of these stars, but you may conjure or banish the properties of one or any combination of these stars as you see fit.

What is not written in the RP instructions is that you give your commands and requests to whatever forces you call in the RP. So for example, if you banish the West, you explain what you are banishing in the Western elements. If you conjure or invoke in the South, you name the spirit, natural object, or whatever have you that you are conjuring with attributions to whatever element you place in the South. Etc. Once you’ve called or sent the forces you name, their elements and properties are active in your Brain field.

4 - The closing Kabbalist Cross is the act of rotating, balancing, and closing down the 5 chakras of the Kabbalist body of light. It’s a form of shutting down your work.

With an understanding of the different processes that you follow within the RPs, you can put together many simple elemental evocation rituals of power, and repeat them to build your elemental spiritual connection up over time.

This weekend was a real eye-opener for me in realizing just how powerful and useful these Pentagram rituals really are, and how to get power results out of them.

[KriegerWeg]

Thanks for this! So glad I came across this

[Ignited]

@emperor

Invocation of the Archangels

Where I can find this?

[DarkestKnight]

@Ignited

Where I can find this?

It’s the part of the pentagram ritual, where you face the East and proclaim “Before me Raphael, behind me, Gabirel. On my right, Michael, on my left Uriel.”

[Ignited]

Oh, thanks

[Seraph]

I have other question: will daily practice of elements Invocation pentagram have impact on practitioner personality/character in the long run, and if yes, how it will change it?

[Nightside]

Yes, it is estimated 1-2 years of the daily LRP Spirit invoking should balance the person and keep them balanced.

[Seraph]

How to understand that person would be balanced? E.g. if I’m to passive and introvert person will it make me more active and extrovert?

[Nightside]

No, you would just not be as anxious in certain settings. If you want to be extroverted, maybe join Toastmasters?

[Nightside]

Bookmarking this.

[Seraph]

It was an example. I was wondering if it will help develop new personal traits

[Nightside]

Well, it should help you shine your personality. All the banishing does is boots unwanted visitors and helps balance your emotions. So you are still the same you. Just calmer.

[Nightside]

While we are on the topic, what is the use and effect of using the inverted pentagram?
Lets say that we are quite adept at the pentagram rituals, what then is the effect of the use of the inverted pentagram? I I know it draws spirit down into matter.
@Uncle-Al @DarkestKnight
Im asking because of all the warnings you get in The Golden Dawn vs a page that shows the inverted pentagram ritual in Magick (that big blue book, god I miss both those books).

[Seraph]

Ok, but how the Invocations will affect the personality?

I never used inverted pentagram, but as I know it symbolizes matter over the spirit, thus mundane, earthly things will dominate and rule the spirit. What blue book do you mean? Modern Magic?

[crookedpathfinder]

Damn, there’s some good shit in this thread.

Really gives some ideas. I might have to try a few things.

[theheirophant]

@Nightside

While we are on the topic, what is the use and effect of using the inverted pentagram?

I use the inverted pentagrams to call infernal spirits.

For example, it’s standard operating procedure to use the upright pentagram to call Raphael under aleph (Air), Michael under shin (Fire), Gabriel under mem (Water), and Uriel or Phanuel under daleth or tav (Earth) in Kether; or Chassan under ruach (Air), Aral under ash (Fire), Taliahad under mem (Water), and Phorlakh under aretz (Earth) in Elyon.

I use the inverted pentagrams with the letters or symbols to call Amprodias under aleph (Air), Shalicu under shin (Fire), Malkunofat under mem (Water), and Dagdagiel or Thantifaxath under daleth or tav (Earth) in Kether; or Lucifer and Amaymon under ruach (Air), Satan and Ariton under ash (Fire), Leviathan and Paymon under mem (Water), and Oriens with Belial and Asmodeus under aretz (Earth) in Elyon.

I also invert Air and Earth, so i personally call Earth in the East and Air in the North. This aligns with the way i do Hexagram rituals, giving them a consistency they just don’t have when you call Air in the East. But that’s just me, ymmv so i wrote this in standard form.