The Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram — A Kabbalistic Practitioner's Guide

by Kakkab

Posted to alt.magick.serious in September 2004 by a practitioner writing as Kakkab, this essay explains the Kabbalistic theory behind the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram (LBRP), the foundational ritual of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and its derivatives. Rather than simply giving the ritual steps, Kakkab decodes the logic: why Agla stands in the North and Adonai in the South, how the four Archangels correspond to the four Worlds and their Sephirot, and why the ritual's cardinal directions appear counterintuitive without grounding in the Tree of Life. The essay closes with practical visualization methods for practitioners at all levels.

First and foremost the LBRP is used for circle casting, for protection and magical space, for establishing an intimate link with the Outer Order Sephirot and their subsequent Elements within one's aura, and as a mode in which to banish the Elements to purify first and then invoke for specific ends such as Elemental Weapon or talisman consecrations, Planetary banishments and invocations, or conjurations.

The Cardinal directions are a bit confusing, if not out-right ridiculous, without some heavy grounding in Kabbalah. For example: why is the God-Name associated with Malkuth's Element Earth in the North, clearly where Fire should be in Tipharet, and the God-Name of Malkuth's entire Sephirot in the South? The God-Name used in the South amid the LBRP is Adonai, which had indeed been shortened from Adonai ha-Aretz, meaning "Lord of this World" — World, Earth, same. Why Agla in the North though? Well, Tipharet too is of the World, but is the Planet Earth's Terrestrial Spirit: Soul. Tipharet's God-Names, Sephirotic or Elemental, aren't utilized in Golden Dawn rituals, but Fire's Archangelic Michael is.

The Archangels are of Briah as Soul and Oversoul (Water). However, within the LBRP there are two Archangels which are over each of their respective Sephirot — meaning the Archangelic of Briah — and two are Archangels of the Elements within their Sephirot, of Yetzirah and Assiah, that is, Yesod and Malkuth. Gabriel has dual Sephirotic functions: he (or she) is both the Archangel over the whole of Yesod (Air) and the Archangel of the Element of Water in Netzach. Raphael is the Archangel of Hod, which is the Alchemical Mercury, the Rajas Guna and Air (Yetzirah proper). So Gabriel brings Air to Water in the West, which then connects in circuit to Soul or Tipharet from Netzach. The Archangel of Malkuth is Uriel, which means in Hebrew "The Light of God." Starting to make sense? Michael ("Like God") is in the South from Tipharet in the North, representing being one with Earth and Protector against all of human vice.

Adonai (ha-Aretz) is the only Atziluth God-Name used in the LBRP. YHVH in the East is the God-Name associated with Hod's Element Air. Eheieh in the West is the God-Name associated with Netzach's Element Water. Hod and Netzach's Elemental Gods act as Two Pillars constantly sending energy to Tipharet and Malkuth (Briah and Assiah) from Yetzirah, the Astral. The Planetary Angels of Hod and Netzach could be used in substitute of the Elemental Gods in each, but there would be a weaker link in circuit.

Tracing and Projection

Project Light from the Heart through the arm and either out of a finger or through the palm of the hand to a Wand, and continue projecting through the Wand out of its end to trace the pentagrams. Keep projecting the Light to connect corner to corner, pentagram to pentagram, without dropping the arm being used to trace out in front of you. Note also: the representations of the pentagrams on paper, the net, or in books are the mirror images of the correct directions they are to be traced. Imagine as if standing on the other side of what's seen facing in your general direction for the proper attributes.

The Tree of Life is this way as well, though one keeps to the same vantage with the Tree of Life versus one's body. All for balance and holistic health; but for the practical magicians, the LBRP creates the conditions for magick by giving off storehouse Terrestrial energy through the balance of the Elements.

The Sephirotic mapping of the body for this working:

Tipharet: Heart.
Netzach: Left lower rib cage.
Hod: Right lower rib cage.
Yesod: Naval chakra generally; genitals specifically.
Malkuth: Base of the spine.

The Heart is the Terrestrial North and the base of the spine is the Terrestrial South (up-down), but North is laid down 90° and South is brought upright 90° for Adjustment: The Balance.

The Kabbalistic Cross likewise is traced with projected Light.

Invocations

The invocation of the Archangels is unique to each practitioner. I find it more comfortable not envisioning entities, but instead visualizing, as I'm calling on the Archangels, an Earth-based Elemental scheme by degrees of passivity or active force. Depending on how much energy one wants to evoke, use in the beginning a gentle breeze coming out of the East brushing against the skin pleasantly. A camp fire in the South. A mountain in the North. The ocean in the West (all banished with their appropriate pentagram obviously). When you can cast a circle and are able to notice success in the ritual, add speed, height and force to the Elements imagined in your banishments, as if real-time scenes. Extremes can be experimented with, but balance is key. Next begin invoking the Elements after preliminary banishments. Then banish to end. Eventually, the Archangels will indeed manifest when called, and leave when banished, if one decides to banish them at all.

Vibration

When Vibrating the Divine Names, imagine the sound of your voice: once, inhaling the Name through your nostrils to your feet and up again; then out of the exhaled breath through the nose, resounding to the farthest bounds of the quadrants. Bring back the sound by imagination to dwell within your aura.

I will say I shant force the breath or "shoot forth" in Golden Dawn's Horus Sign, but will project sound through the pentagrams — as is done with sight in the Elemental scenes — the rebound of which I'll rest in the Name's God Form whilst giving the Sign of Harpocrates.

Colophon

Originally posted to alt.magick.serious, September 28, 2004, by Kakkab. The LBRP is the foundational daily practice of the Golden Dawn tradition and its derivatives, including Thelema. This essay is notable for explaining the Kabbalistic logic of the ritual rather than simply transcribing its steps — making it a genuine practitioner's commentary on why the ritual is constructed as it is. Original Message-ID: <[email protected]>.

Preserved from the Usenet archive for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.

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