Divine Names                                                            


Hello all.  Just finished this write-up of various Divine Names.  It's not
perfect by any means, and I'm certainly open to comments and suggestions by
those of you studying the same subjects.  These are the Divine Names as I
interpret them for use in Ceremony (and everything else).  :)


DIVINE NAMES:  TETRAGRAMMATON

     Tetragrammaton is, perhaps, the single most sophisticated Divine Name known
to man.  It was little more than sheer coincidence that the Ancient Khabiru
(today called "Hebrew") adopted a Volcano God by the Name of Yahweh;  spelled
YHVH.  Using this as a base, the Hebrews left behind their Pagan God, and
developed concepts for a Single Source, a Divine Force at the core of the
universe.  The Name Yahweh finally became the Tetragrammaton ("Four Letter
Name");  not so much a Name or a "God" any longer as a formula for the Universe,
It's Creation, and it's Eternal Operation.  The mysteries of Tetragrammaton lie 
within it's many different forms, many of which will be disscussed at length
below.


Y, H, V, and H

     The first thing that must be understood are the four basic principals of
Tetragrammaton.  All of the Mysteries explained below are based on these
principals:

Y = Divine, or Archetypal Male.  This is not "man", this is "male" as in the
male end of a battery.  It is the Building-up Force of the Universe, the active 
power in it's spiritual form.  It is aligned to the Elemental Force of Fire.

     Note: over and above the Y is the Qabalistic World of  Atziluth (Royalty)- 
where the Source of All rests.  It is also aligned to the Force of Fire.  It is 
said that the tip of the Yod (Y) rests in Atziluth.  The rest of Y, however,
resides in Briah along side of H.  Both H and Briah are explained below.

H = Divine, or Archetypal Female.  This, again, is not "woman".  Instead, it is 
the female energies of the universe;  the Breaking-down Force, the receptive
power in it's spiritual form.  This includes also the Qabalistic World of Briah 
(Creation)- where all Divine Archetypes are formed.  It is the home of the "God"
(the Y) and "Goddess", the Yin and Yang, and all other such Archetypal
Dualities.  This is the World of the ArchAngels, who also represent Divine
Archetypes.  Finally, it is aligned to the Element of Water (or, in some
sources, Air).

V = Physical Male.  This is more along the lines of "man".  However, even here
it is not quite so simple.  Instead, it is the physical manifestation of the
Divine Male energies (of which the male of the species is only one example).  It
is the son of the Archetypal Male and Female of Y and H.  It is the Qabalistic
World of Yetzirah (Dawning)- where the dual archetypes from Briah are blended
together into single forces.  It is here that objects are constructed upon the
Astral just prior to manifestation on the physical plane.  It is the world of
Angels, who are the embodiments of this very process; as it is written:  "Every 
Blade of Grass has over it an Angel bidding it, 'Grow.'"  This is the mystery
behind Angels being placed "over" objects and people, just as your own Guardian 
Angel- the Angel "over" you- is really you on a Higher Plane.  V is also known
as the Demiurgos, which will be explained below.  Lastly, it is aligned to the
Element of Air (or, in some sources, Water).

H = Physical Female.  As with V, this is the physical manifestation of it's
archetypal counterpart.  It is very signifcant that it is the same letter as the
Archetypal Female, and this signifigance will be explained in depth below.  This
is really the same force, having "fallen" (as it were) into physical
manifestation.  Both H's exist at the same time, yet both are actually one and
the same.  Otherwise, it is known as the daughter of the Archetypal Y and H, and
the bride of the V.  It is the Qabalistic World of Assiah (Action)-  where the
Energies finally find manifestation in the Universe as you and I know it.  It is
aligned with the Element of Earth; which- just like the world of Assiah itself, 
is the end result of the blending of the other three Forces.

     Here follows a representation of the Tree of Life divided into the Four
Worlds:


     O          Atziluth- Divine Source.  Kether.
_________________
O         O     Briah- Archetypal Forces, Yin and Yang. Chockmah and Briah. Y-H
_________________
O         O
 
     O          Yetzirah- Astral Plane.  Chesed through Yesod.  V

O         O

     O
_________________
     O          Assiah- Physical Plane.  Malkuth.  H


     Of course, this does not begin to scratch the surface of the Name
Tetragrammaton.  However, it is the above basics that go into the understanding 
of YHVH in all of it's many important forms.

YAH:  THE DIVINE SOURCE.

     Yah, spelled YH,  is one of various Hebrew Words meaning "God". 
Historically, it comes from the Babylonian Father God known as Ia, or Ea. 
However, it is not this historical fact that interests us here.  Instead, it is 
the fact that the Name includes the two letters Y and H, the Divine Male and
Female of Tetragrammaton.

     Yah is a single Force which has the potential for Duality.  This, of
course, is the very nature of the Divine Source of All.  A recent work has
depicted the Source as a Horned Goddess, whose belly is big with Her male child,
the God.  I find this to be a wonderfully appropriate image of Divinity, and
(aside from the Wiccan implications) it evokes the image of the Babylonian
All-Mother Tiamat.

     Y, in this case, relates to Tiamat's Husband Apsu; and the H to Tiamat
Herself.  She and Her husband are represented in the Bible as the upper and
lower Waters- the two Forces originally joined as one.  Yah itself is assigned
to the Second Sephirah of Chockmah, where the singular waters are first divided.
It is important to point out that Yah is not the Unified Force represented by
Kether.  Instead, it is the Dual Forces as they first become distinct from each 
other (the Y and H of Yah), but before they are finally divided into the Upper
and Lower.  It is the Horned Goddess giving birth to Her Son and future Lover.

     Yah is the Name best related to the Demiurgos, and it is necissary to give 
a brief description of Him here.  The Demiurgos descends to us from Gnostic
thought, and is the Name given to the Creator God.  It is He who, in the
Beginning, seperated the Waters into upper and lower.  It is He that took the
perfection of a Singular Divine Source, and divided it into a Duality.  By
tampering with Unity, He caused an imbalance (thus the distinction of Y from H),
and it is this that caused the "Waters" to divide.

     Given this, the Gnostics felt that the Demiurgos was an evil spirit, in
fact Samael Himself posing as "Yahweh", who did not understand that He was not
the Be All and End All of the Universe.  This particular view of the Demiurgos' 
actions is not important to us, even though the basic concepts of Him are:  the 
concept that He is not the Divine Source, but instead a Force that acts upon the
Divine Source.  And the concept that this action was a particularly violent one 
(which will be covered later).

     To sum up, Yah is the Name which paritally embodies the Demiurgos' actions,
as it is the Y and H that embody the dual Forces within the unity of the Divine.

YHVH:  THE CREATION OF THE UNIVERSE- The Marduk-Tiamat Equation.


     In outlining the Tetragrammaton, I have opted to continue with the relation
to the Babylonian Epic of Creation known as the Enuma Elish.  Using such a myth 
as a base makes things easier than attempting to describe vague concepts.  Also,
the Enuma Elish is the original model for the Biblical Genesis as we know it, so
it is perhaps the best choice for describing the operation of YHVH.   It is not 
nessissary to know the entire story, outside of a few basic elements:

     Tiamat and Aspu, the First Ones,  spawned many children- one of whom was
Ea.  Ea, in turn, fathered Marduk, the Ruler God of the Babylonians.  These
Young Gods annoyed the Old Ones with thier antics, and so Apsu decided to do
away with his children and grandchildren.

     Ea, the original Warrior Wizard, discovered this plot and succeeded in
slaying His father.  This, in turn, angered Tiamat, who put together a battle
force and moved to attack the Young Gods Herself.

     At this point, Marduk becomes involved; as He is the only God powerful
enough to destroy Tiamat and Her Forces.  Sure enough, Marduk is victorious.  He
shatters Her armies and destroys Tiamat- seperating Her body into two halves to 
make the Sky and Earth.  He then organizes the Universe as we know it, has man
created, and sets Himself as Ruler of All- with Babylon as the center of the
Universe, and as second home to the Gods.

     And thus is the Nature of the Enuma Elish in an extremely simplified form. 
Remembering the Name Yah for a moment, we see how Ea acts as the Demiurgos when 
He slays His father Apsu.  Until the time of the slaying, Tiamat and Apsu were
one Force as husband and wife.  Apsu was killed, an imbalance was created, and
thus the Y and the H were made distinct from each other.

     However, Ea shares His Demiurgos duties with His son Marduk.  Once the
imbalance is created, and Tiamat rises up in anger, it is Marduk who completes
the work by seperating Tiamat into two halves.  Let us begin by assigning each
character in our story to a letter of the Divine Name:

Y = Apsu
H = Tiamat
V = Marduk

     Remember the mention above that the H is the same character, regardless of 
the fact that it has a dual existance in the Divine Name.  In this we see Tiamat
and Apsu already seperated, and Marduk stands to act.  It is at this point that 
I wish to explain the nature of Chaos and the Abyss.

     In the Beginning there was Unity (a Cosmic Egg).  There was only one Law,
and that Law was of Unity.  In time, however, the Laws of the Universe (the Laws
of Duality) came into existance- and these Laws we call the Demiurgos and
Creator (remember that Marduk "organizes the Universe").  The Demiurgos is best 
related to Tiphareth upon the Tree of Life, the home of IAO and LVX Energy.  IAO
embodies the Laws symbolised by Marduk, and is explained fully later.

     The result of the introduction of these Laws of Duality into Unity was an
imbalance.  This imbalance caused an immediate "Big Bang" (also part of IAO). 
Unity exploded into Duality...the New Law.  This explosion is known today as
"Chaos".

     Many people treat Chaos as if it were a state unto itself.  Perhaps, in
some round-about way, it is.  Perhaps there is some relm where that explosion is
forever frozen in time- where it in fact encompasses all of Time.  That would
certainly make sense, as it is that explosion that birthed the Universe.

     However, here on the Time Line, Chaos is not a state of being, but an
instant.  It lasted no longer than a heartbeat, and then was gone.  It was the
very moment that the Old Way was obliterated in a blinding flash, and the New
Way was instiuted.  The Abyss, too, is this instant.  It is that gulf that rests
between the Old Way and the New.  If Chaos can be said to be a state,  then it
would certainly be the state of existance within the Abyss.

     So, how does this relate to our analysis?  The instant of Chaos is
represented by the result of the imbalance caused by the Demirugos.  In the
Enuma Elish, this result was the uprising of Tiamat and Her Army, and Their
instant defeat at the hands of Marduk.  Tiamat is the imbalanced Divinity as it 
runs head long into the New Way of Marduk.  Chaos is Their collosal battle.

     In the Qabalah we learn of the Qliphoth, a region of fallen "shells", the
homes of Demons, that exist within the Abyss.  They are said to be the ruined
Kingdoms of Edom.  The Edomites, we are told, refused to accept the Light of
God, and thus ensured their downfall.  In the Enuma Elish, the Kings of Edom
could be related to the generals of Tiamat's Army.  In both cases, they
represtent the Old Way attempting to remain standing even though they are in
constant danger of toppeling over.  When faced with the force of the Big Bang
(the Fight, or the introduction of "God's Light":  The New Way), they had no
choice but to topple.

     And so the Force of Tiamat meets with the Force of Marduk and an
"explosion" occures.  The Abyss, then, lies between the H and the V of YHVH.  If
you refer back to the Tree of Life, you will see that the normal placing of the 
Abyss is, indeed, placed between Chokmah-Binah and the lower Sephiroth.

     What was the final outcome of this Battle?  Why, the splitting of Tiamat
into Earth and Sky.  What was Unity, is now Duality.  The New Law is firmly in
place.  This is how Tiamat is both H's in YHVH.  She is in two halves with
Marduk standing between them.

HVH:  EVE, THE LIFE OF THE UNIVERSE

     And this brings us directly to the next Divine Name.  When we neglect the Y
of Tetragrammaton, and concentrate on the HVH  -of Marduk and the split Tiamat; 
the end result of the Creation- we find the Hebrew word for "Life".  This also
happens to be the Name of Eve, the Mother of All.  The process outlined appears 
as:

H:  The uprising of Tiamat.
V:  Marduk, who defeated Her and split Her body
H:  The setting of Her Body as Earth and Sky.

     Thus, in all respects, Eve's Name is one of Manifestation.  Mythologically,
Eve was the result of the seperation of the Archetypal Human, Adam Kadmon, who
had been both Male and Female in one form (much like Tiamat/Apsu had been one
force).

Y: Adam, the God-Force

H:  Eve, the Goddess-Force, seperated
V:  from Adam, as well as the resulting
H:  process leading to Manifestaion.

     Marduk's actions, though noble, were folly.  He attempted to destroy
Tiamat, and found that this was an impossible task.  In "Death", She became the 
Origin of all Life.  To kill Her was to Create.  Had Tiamat not sacrificed Her
life, Marduk would have no Kingdom to rule.  The Gnostic view of the Demiurgos
dictates that He is ignorant of this fact;  and thus He takes full credit for it
Himself.  When we read the Mythologies of nearly any culture, we find this to be
the case.  The Creator takes full credit for His work, never acknowledging that 
He was little more than a catalyst.

     The same can be said of Eve.  Even though She is responsible for the
"Fall"- that is, She is responsible for the manifestaion of mankind into
Reality- She is given no credit, and is even hated.   That is, until now. 
Today, Eve is being seen for what She is:  as Her Name impies, She is Life- 
just as Her counterpart Tiamat.  Samael attempted to ruin Eve by having Her cast
from Eden, but instead all of Life was created.  We now see how the Demiurgos
can, indeed, be said to be Samael.



IAO:  THE LIGHT OF THE UNIVERSE

     IAO is derived from the three letters of Tetragrammaton Y, H, and V.  The
Hebrew Yod can be transliterated not only as Y, but also as I or even J.  The
Heh, too, can be written as H, or written more phonetically as an A or "ah". 
Finally, the Hebrew Vav represents all sounds V, U, and O- depending on how it
is used.  Thus it is that the Hebrew YHV became the Greek IAO.

     In this instance, we have added a second layer of signifigance to the
letters; leaving behind the above relations of Father, Mother, Son, and
Daughter.  Instead, we assign the I to the Egyptian Mother Isis.  The A stands
for Apophis (also known as Seth).  And, finally, the O is assigned the God
Osiris.

     This is based on the Cycle of Osiris, where Apophis (Seth) slays the King
Osiris.  Osiris is then ressurected by the Magick of His wife Isis, and Seth is 
finally defeated.  This Cycle relates closesly to the above concept of "Big
Bang".  However, this Name is Cyclic.  It embodies not only the First Creation, 
but the continual Cycle of Creation that occures every moment the physical
Universe exists.  It is the Wheel of the Year where the Solar Seat of Power
shifts between the Lord of the Waxing Year (Osiris) and the Lord of the Waning
Year (Seth).  It is the waxing and waning Moon.  It is all of Death and Rebirth,
with is the very Law of Duality (the Demiurgos) mentioned above.  In short, IAO 
is the Law which governs of the Universe itself.

     IAO also includes the concept of LVX (Light).  IAO is a Wheel, and LVX is
the Energy that turns it.

     L  =  The Mourning of Isis.  At the death of Osiris, it fell upon Isis to
give Him a proper burial so that His ressurrection could take place.  When one
holds the arms in an "L" position, it mirrors the position of the Mage's Arms in
the Tarot Card "The Mage".  The Mage Card represents the taking of Divine Force 
from above, and the application of that Force in Reality.  It is, simply, the
use of Magick itself.  In the case of LVX, it is the Creative Power that allows 
the Fallen to be re-established at the head of each Cycle.

     Isis Herself is the Goddess of the Full Moon.  It is also She, in the
Mythos, who succeeded in learning the True Name of  Re from Himself (the True
Name of Divinity, YHVH itself in our system);  thus giving Herself the ultimate 
power over All.  The Moon itself best embodies this concept, as it is that which
takes the Light of the Sun and dispenses it unto the Earth, but which does not
burn or blind.  It is the Full Moon that the Mage draws his greatest Power from.
This is the very essence of the Mage Card (and  the "L" position), which takes
from Above and dispences Below.

     The Moon is the Balanced Force that stands between the overwhelming
Spiritual Light of the Sun, and the utter Darkness of the Abyss.  LVX Energy,
then, could be said to be the purest Lunar Energy.  However, it is often said to
be Solar, and this is not incorrect.  We must remember that the True Nature of
Lunar Energy is simply balanced Solar Energy.

     V = The Sign of Typhon the Destroyer.   Seth is the Abyss itself, who is in
opposition to Osiris' Solar Nature.  As Seth destroyed Osiris, He assumed the
Divine Throne.  However, the actions of Isis above (who, as the Full Moon,
properly balances the Abyss and the Sun) effectively put an end to His Reign. 
The arms held upward in a "V" Position indicates a grasping or reaching.  Seth
reaches outward for the power that has been pulled from Him.

     X = The Sign of the Risen Osiris.  Finally the Solar Osiris is risen once
again.  The arms crossed over the chest, an an "X", represents a holding of the 
Power just taken from Seth.  Just as Marduk wrested the Tablet of Destinies from
Qingu (Tiamat's General) and pressed them to His own breast.  It has been given 
unto Osiris by Isis, and He now holds it to His heart- assuming His rightful
Throne once more.

     And finally the Cycle will repeat again.  As the Moon cycles from Full to
New, so will the Dark Lord displace the Lord of Light.  And, as they say, the
Wheel turns on.

INRI:  INITIATION

     And now we begin the last of the Divine Concepts to be explained here.  The
Energy of Life has moved from Unity into Manifestation, and now we must follow
it as it returns to it's Source once more.  

     This Name, too, relates to IAO and LVX Energy.  In the progression of L, V,
and X, we omited the initial Slaying of Osiris.  INRI is the Name of the
slaying, as it is the Four Letters tacked above Jesus' head at the crucifixion  
(The first four letters of the Roman for "Jesus of Nasareth, King of the Jews").

     INRI is the Name of Initiation.  Not only does it initiate the Divine
Cycle, but it is the Name of Initiation for the Adept.  It is, in fact, the Name
of Transformation that makes all Universal Cycles possible.

     INRI, much like YHVH, is often related to the Four Elements.  It is the
Cross of Reality that we, as manifest Beings, must carry.  It is the burden (if 
it could be called such) called the Great Work.  The Great Work, of course, is
the journey toward Unity with the Divine.  This can not be gained until the
Balance of the Four Arms of the Cross is established (as Jesus suspended from
the Cross).  In short, it is a Name of Ascention.  It could even be said that it
is a lower manifestation of Tetragrammaton itself:  Where YHVH is the Creation
and Operation of the Universe, INRI is the process of that Universe returning to
it's Source.

PENTAGRAMMATON:  THE SPIRIT

     INRI is only part of the story.  The Cross of Initiation is nothing without
the Initiate to go with it.  Once the proper balance of INRI is gained, then the
process of transition from physical to spiritual can begin.  This concept is
contained in the Pentagrammaton.  This is simply the Tetragrammaton with the
Hebrew Letter Shin added.  The Letter Shin is related to the Fire of the Spirit,
and it's transformative Power.  The basic form of Pentagrammaton is YHShVH, or
Yeshuah, the Name of Jesus as we know it.  The other form is YHVShH, or
Yehovasha, and it's signifigance will be covered below as well.

     YHShVH:  This is the junction of the Divine (Y, H) with the physical (V, H)
through the Spirit (Sh).  This is a Name of Tiphateth on the Tree of Life- where
Spirit can no longer descend without becoming matter, and matter can no longer
ascend without becomeing spiritual.  This is Jesus' Name, and His Message is
contained within it.  It is by this formula that we in the physical find a path 
to the Divine.  As Jesus says in the Bible:  "There is no way to the Father
[YHVH] but through Me {YHShVH}."  That is to say, there is no way to the Divine 
but through the Spirit.  We must each be our own Savior.

     The main aspect of YHShVH is it's puritive power.  Jesus is also quoted as 
saying, "By My Name ye shalt cast out demons".  Such purification is a necessity
for Ascention.  To understand this purifying, and even banishing, power we must 
place the Pentagrammaton upon it's geometric symbol- the Pentagram.  Beginning
at the lower right point and moving counter-clockwise, we place the Y of Fire,
the H of Water, the Sh of Spirit, the V or Air, and the H of Earth.

                               Sh
                          V          H

                          H          Y

     By employing the Name in this manner- counterclockwise- it's banishing
powers become evident.  A Whorl is created that expands outwards, clearing the
area/object of it's concentration so that the Divine Light may enter freely.

     YHVShH:  This Name is the junction of the physical Male and Female through 
the Spirit (VShH) while presided over by the Divine (YH).  This is the Name of
Love, Union, and (in it's most basic form) Sex.  It is the Name of the basic
form of Creation in the Universe, and represents the union of opposites- Thesis 
and Antithesis- to create a new Synthesis.  Thus, it is a Name of Trinity.

     Just as Forces are cast out by Yeshuah, they are called into being through 
Yehovasha.  Refer again to the Pentagram.  If we start at the Y and read
clockwise, we find the name YHVShH.  This Name creates an invoking whorl that
contracts inward and calls the Divine Light into it's area of affect.  By this
Name, just as with the Sex Act, life is created where there was none before. 
However, it extends far beyond simple sex.  It is the sexual union of love: 
that which is had through the Spirit, and which is presided over by the Divine. 
It is sacred sex- Love making.  It embodies the same purity as Yeshuah, allowing
only balanced Forces to enter.

     It is by both of these Forms that the Initiate approaches the Cross of
INRI.  It is by these that the Great Work is accomplished.

     And thus ends this commentary on the Divine Names.  It in no way exhausts
the list of Divine Names, nor indicates more or less imprtance for any of Them. 
The rest, however, are for another day.


Appendix:

ELOHIM:  THE SHINING ONES: The Seven Who Stand Before God, or The God and
Goddess.

     I feel that the above list would not be complete without a few words on the
Name Elohim.  Normally translated as "God", it must be understood that the word 
itself is plural.  Further, the Name also happens to be both Masculine and
Feminine at once:  "Eloah" is the root word, meaning Goddess, and "im" is the
masculine plural suffix in the Hebrew Language.

     It has been discussed in other works that the word Elohim may also be
related to words meaning "Shining" or "Radiant".  Thus, the Name Elohim can be
translated as the Shining Ones (note the plural).  In the Mythologies, one will 
note that the Original Parents of the Universe are always said to shine with
their own radiance, brighter even than the Sun.  Just as in Genesis it was said,
"Let there be Light".

     There are many interpretations of the Shining Ones, all of them valid in
thier own right.  Perhaps the most important Qabalistically is put forth by the 
Sepher Yetzirah.  Remember that the Name of Divinity used in Genesis I- that is 
to say that the Creator's Name- was Elohim.  The concept is that the first
emenations of the Divine were the famed "Seven who stand Before God".  These are
the Seven Archangels of the Planetary Spheres- who are both Masculine and
Feminine in nature.  As we know, the Creation took place over Seven Days- that
is to say it took place through the Power of the Seven Planetary Energies. 
Thus, it was not "God" who Created, but His Seven Archangels (who, after all,
are simply extensions of the Divine Source to begin with) called the Elohim.

     A more modern interpretation assigns Elohim not to the Seven Planetary
Spheres, but to the two Sephiroth of Chokmah and Binah- the God and Goddess.  If
we move away from Genesis and take a more dualistic (even Wiccan) view of
Creation- for instance the Wheel of the Year as embodied in IAO- then we see the
God and Goddess as the Creators.  They are the Initiators of the Universal Cycle
of Creation; and Chokmah and Binah are, indeed, the Mother and Father of All.

     And thus we see the relation of Elohim to the processes embodied in both
YHVH and IAO.