26

THE ELEPHANT AND THE TORTOISE

The Absolute and the Conditioned together make The One Absolute.

The Second, who is the Fourth, the Demiurge, whom all nations of Men call The First, is a lie grafted upon a lie, a lie multiplied by a lie.

Fourfold is He, the Elephant upon whom the Universe is poised: but the carapace of the Tortoise supports and covers all.

This Tortoise is sixfold, the Holy Hexagram.¹⁵

These six and four are ten, 10, the One manifested that returns into the Naught unmanifest.

The All-Mighty, the All-Ruler, the All-Knower, the All-Father, adored by all men and by me abhorred, be thou accursèd, be thou abolished, be thou annihilated, Amen.

COMMENTARY (ΚϜ)

The title of the chapter refers to the Hindu legend.

The first paragraph should be read in connection with our previous remarks upon the number 91.

The number of the chapter, 26, is that of Tetragrammaton, the manifest creator, Jehovah.

He is called the Second in relation to that which is above the Abyss, comprehended under the title of the First.

But the vulgarians conceive of nothing beyond the creator, and therefore call him The First.

He is really the Fourth, being in Chesed, and of course his nature is fourfold. This Four is conceived of as the Dyad multiplied by the Dyad; falsehood confirming falsehood.

Paragraph 3 introduces a new conception; that of the square within the hexagram, the universe enclosed in the law of Lingam-Yoni.

The penultimate paragraph shows the redemption of the universe by this law.

The figure 10, like the word IO, agains suggests Lingam-Yoni, besides the exclamation given in the text.

The last paragraph curses the universe thus unredeemed.

The eleven initial A's in the last sentence are Magick Pentragrams, emphasising this curse.

NOTE

(15) In nature the Tortoise has 6 members at angles of 60°.