The Order consists of eleven degrees or levels, organized into three groups, the Orders of the SS, the RC and the GD respectively set forth in One Star in Sight sub figurâ CDLXXXIX. In the A∴A∴, blind is not blind guide and progress is measured by this series of degrees. The Order of A∴A∴ adheres more or less strictly to the guidelines set forth in Liber Collegii Sancti sub figura CLXXXV by Aleister Crowley.
When this title is conferred by Authority, the Philosophus shall replace the Black Hood with a White Hood of the same material, with the Three Neteru in Blue below the eyes. Adepti appearing as Lords of the Paths shall cover the entire garment with Silver Gauze from head to foot. [Liber Vesta vel פרכח sub figurâ DCC]
"Dominus Liminis" Summary
The Great Work, for the Dominus Liminis, is defined as, "to obtain control of the aspirations of my own being."
"Dominus Liminis" is Latin for "Master of the Threshold." As comment on the grade name, we find in (Liber 185):
"Besides all this, he shall abide upon the Threshold. Let him remember that the word Dominus Liminis is no idle term, but that his mastery will often be disputed, when he knoweth it not."
The Dominus Liminis degree has a peculiarity: it is not associated with any sephirah on the Tree of Life as well as the Baby state of the Abyss, and corresponds, spiritually, to the degree of "Gate" of the ancient Golden Dawn.
Although it is not associated with any sephirah, it has a connection with the Samekh Path which, by definition, opens the portal from the Moon Sphere to the Sphere of the Sun.
Advancement from Philosophus
There is no ritual of admission to the Degrees of Practicus, Philosophus or Dominus Liminis. The advance "is conferred by authority when the task of the Philosophus is fulfilled" (Liber XIII).
The robe of the Dominus Liminis is identical to that of the Philosophus, but the Dominus Liminis should change the Black Hood for a White of the same material, with Three Neteru in Blue, below the eyes. The Adept, manifesting himself as lord of the Paths, will cover himself with a transparent silver cloth from head to foot.
The Dominus Liminis' Journey - On the Threshold
The threshold is in front of the 'door' or pylon of Daleth (Daleth means door, his assignment is Venus, pure Love, and his Path is from Chokmah to Binah, the base of the triangle of Supernas. in everything an appropriate symbol of the entrance to the Initiation.) Therefore the 'threshold' is below the Path of Daleth in the Tree of Life; that is, it is the Abyss.
The above symbolism refers strictly to the Attainment of the Master of the Temple ; but its truth is reflected in the technically correct account of the Initiation of the Dominus Liminis to Adeptus Minor. There the 'door' is the third Reciprocal or Transverse Path (Daleth is the first), Foot , which means mouth - the door of the organs of life. Foot is the letter of Atu XVI, the 'House of God' or 'Torre Fulminad'. The Hieroglyph represents a Tower - symbolic of the Ego in its phallic aspect, but enclosed, that is, separated. This Tower is struck by the Lightning or Lightning Bolt, the impact of the HGA and the Flaming Sword of Energy proceeding from Kether to Malkuth . From the tower are thrown two figures forming, by their attitude, the letter Ayn (xx); these are the twins (xx) (Horus and Harpocrates) born from the opening of the Mother's womb (the second aspect of the Tower as a 'closed source', a 'sealed source' or 'walled'). They represent, with reference to the masculine aspect of the Tower, the spermatozoids (Ayn is Capricorn, the sign in which the Sun is at the Winter Solstice LN, when the New Year begins) emitted by the impact of the Orgasm (Lightning or Lightning) ruined 'by the loss of erection.
At the threshold, the Dominus Liminis is threatened by the Paths of Nun, Samekh and Ayn, the Atus XIV, XV and XVI (Temperance or Restriction, Death and the Devil), which arise from Tiphereth, the abode of his Angel , to to prevent the passage of the profane from the external order of G∴D∴.
The main difference (in essence) between the formulas of the two Initiations, in RR et AC and in A∴A∴ respectively, is that the Adeptus Exemplus is completely below Daleth although he has crossed the Second Reciprocal Path Teth in his progress to become Adeptus Exemptus, and has no Path by which he can travel (except Gimel, who leads from Tiphereth to Kether, not from Chesed to Binah, which is where he goes; this is to keep out the profane of the Internal Order of RR et AC); while the Dominus Liminis has already crossed the Footpath to reach the Degree of Philosophus , and the threshold is in, instead of outside, of the Pilone.
The meaning of this is as follows:
In crossing the Abyss, the goal is to annihilate the Ego and its faculties altogether. In kabbalistic symbology: the goal is to attain Zero. The danger therefore consists in the identification of consciousness, or 'point of view', with any of the products of disintegration.
Chorozon, therefore (name by which we designate the idea of dispersion), has no place in the Superna Triad. The threshold of initiation, the Abyss, lies completely beneath Daleth's door. The indulgence of disintegration, impotence (xx) and laziness (xx) are guaranteed by the absence of love (Daleth), which could otherwise entwine the dissipated events to form a unity (Em Liber 418, Seventh Aethyr, we learn that if the Black Brothers could only contemplate the Goddess of Love - Daleth - above them, they could still come to Understanding (Binah).
In the initiation to Adeptus Minor, the conditions are completely different. The phyto is the attainment of unity, not negativity, and there is no such perfection in the Sephireth of the Ruach: Chesed, Geburah, Tiphareth, which compose the Degrees of the Inner Order (RR et AC) as necessarily excluding Choronzon from the three Degrees A∴A∴ The student is referred to here as Sir Edward Kelly Elementary Surveillance Towers (See Equinox I, Volumes vii and viii). The four Elemental Tablets (12 x 13) are linked by the little Tablet of the Spirit (4 x 5), or (when the boards are arranged so as to show them each a subsection of the Tetragrammaton unit) by a black cross containing the letters of this little Tablet of the Spirit. The names of evil demons are remarkably formed as we take some imperfect and unbalanced symbol of the Watchtowers.
The doctrine thus implied is that the nature of the Spirit is not only represented by Shin, the Holy Spirit, whose descent into the midst of Tetragrammaton sanctifies and illuminates the blind forces of the Elements, but also by the soulless, dark, formless and empty matter, the mere background for the manifestation, indifferently, of all phenomena; and this truth is also symbolized by the darkness and undeveloped potentiality of the Akasa, as explained by the legend of Shiva mentioned in a previous paragraph.
The Spirit Element can thus manifest itself with both the HGA and the Evil Persona, the Threshold Dweller, sensationally described to the public by Lord Bulwe-Lytton in his novel "Zanoni". This doctrine is also often found in folk legends, where man is represented as attended by a good genius and a wicked genius. The horror of the evil genius is intensified by its function as an alternative to the HGA No other evil intelligence can compare with this, either by its terrible subjective disgust or by its objective hostility. For the evil genius is no less a possibility of Attainment than the HGA Now, in the case of the Adeptus Exemptus, if he is repulsed from the City of the Pyramids by lack of perfect obedience to the formula of ' love under will' he remains lost in the Abyss with no future possibility but to identify successively with each incoherent and unintelligible phenomenon which appears in the sensory of material man, which has been disintegrated as the first effect of his operation, the essence of which is to refuse sanction to every imperfection that protests 'to be'. The Dominus Liminis case is quite different, whose operation, if unsuccessful, may be a simple defeat, perhaps due to his not very serious error. Apart from a simple discouragement, he should be able to try again without disadvantage; in fact, he should use his previous defeat as a lesson. But he may also fail to fully assimilate the injunction of the Hiereus at the ceremony of his initiation to the Rank of Neophyte: ' Fear is failure, and the beginning of failure .'
Be thou therefore without fear, for in the heart of the coward virtue does not dwell! ' Similarly, he may have been unable to satisfy the Hierophant's formula in that ceremony: 'Remember that Unbalanced Force is evil. Excess of Mercy is weakness; excess of Severity is oppression. Further, the fascination of evil is sometimes as dangerous as fear. In any case, he can expect to be confronted first and foremost by his Bad Genius. (See, later, the Zelator ceremony in G∴D∴; the apparition of the Samael, Metatron, and Sandalphon angels). He may not resist the attack. He can be repelled from the threshold, and his defeat can be more or less harmful, according to the circumstances. But his fear may be so great that it induces him to turn it into fascination, or his exhaustion so complete that he is willing to buy peace at any cost. In such a case, the result may be that he accepts his Malignant Person as his HGA. I would not like to assert that even such a dreadful form of failure is necessarily fatal and definitive, although of course it must always entail Karma disastrous, involving as it does the magical assertion, fortified by the most solemn oaths and sealed by the most intense ecstasy of the existence of absolute evil (in a certain sense of the word, in reality defined by it for this); that is, he acquiesced in duality, established an internal conflict within himself, and ceremonially blasphemed and denied the unity of his own True Will.
However devastating such a catastrophe may be, however, it is not and can not be final, since the principles involved do not extend above Tiphereth. He became a Black Magician, no doubt; but is still far from being a Black Brother. It can not be said that one such Black Magician will manifest any tendency to become a Black Brother when the occasion arrives; for their union, even with the personification of Evil, is also an act of love under will, although this will is false and vitiated by all conceivable errors and defects. His main danger is presumably that the intensity of suffering that results from his (xx) may, as in Glyndon's case in Zaneni, lead him to want to escape completely from magic, to refrain from any acts of love out of fear of to move further from its true path. Let him remember my brother's words: "If a fool persisted in his foolishness, he would become wise." May he therefore persist resolutely in iniquity, invoking the vengeance of the Gods, that in the end the excess of his love and the transcendence of his anguish may bring him back to the path of truth.
From the above it should become clear how the Bad Genius is within the Shrine of the Temple of the Rose Cross, whose formula is "love under will", while Choronzon is equally excluded from this Temple and the City of Pyramids, whose law, though still "love under will", understands both these terms as without limit.
The "Bad Genius" is described now. Language, of course, is symbolic. At the same time, the appearance given here could perfectly closely match the sensory expressions of experience.
Twice we are told that it "has been", which must be contrasted with the "going" activity of the HGA (See vv. 37-41). It is the peculiar characteristic of every God that he "goes". This is why he takes the Ankha, or sandal bandages, to the Egyptian monuments. This antithesis contrasts with the conception of the Black Brothers, closed in on themselves, resenting change. The thelemic conception of the Universe is dynamic, so stasis is inevitably the symbol of conflict with Nature. It is the equivalent of Death; because Death being a change, is an event, that is, a phenomenon of life activity. This doctrine should be carefully studied in Liber CCXX.
Let the student pay attention, moreover, to the contrast between the symbols of the HGA and those of the Bad Genius. Those of the Angel (see verses 38-41) are positive, active, solid, dynamic; of chariots, horsemen, spearmen; the weapons of Jupiter and Pan are tremendously vital in their hands. In contrast, the Bad Genius is vague, unreal and inactive.
Its characteristics are horror and emptiness. Your eyes are phosphorescent[1] and this is particularly disgusting, since the sense of sight is attributed to the Fire, and should be sharp and luminous. The activities he controls are slow, sloppy, and vermicular. Their eyes resemble wells of poisonous water, that is, they lurk and receive as little light as possible, when the ideal eye should flare with light. He causes the air around him to become stagnant and smelly. Anatomically, it resembles a fish, a cold-blooded inhabitant of the passive element (Note the fish as accepted symbol of Jesus). Even so, it is old, slow, whereas the main virtue of a fish is that it slides quickly. And it is wrinkled, offering unnecessary resistance to its own movements, and increasing its friction. Heinous!
"Chicks" or "Qliphoth" are lifeless excrement and "Abaddon" is the destroyer or scatterer - the scatter destroyer.
[1] Note by Marcelo Motta: - "ghastly" in the English original; OM comments that it takes the floor in its original strict sense, related to the German Geist - ghost, casc, or spectral shadow. The phosphorescence of decomposing matter that causes the fiery fire is an approximation.
[Frater Keron-ε : Threshold]
Liber Mysteriorum
May he receive Liber Mysteriorum [...] He shall accept a position in a Temple of Initiation, and memorize a portion indicated by the Imperator of A∴A∴ (Liber 185)
He receives Liber Mysteriorum and gains perfect understanding of the Initiation Formula (Liber 13)
The original A∴A∴ document called Liber Mysteriorum did not survive under this name until the present time. Many say it does not even exist (not to be confused with John Dee's book of the same name). However, there is enough evidence that we can identify it as the confidential offical ritual manual of the A∴A∴ initiation officers.
Pratyahara & Dharana - Control of Thought
He is expected to pass Liber III , Cap III (Liber 185)
He is given meditative practices on Thought Control, and is instructed in Raja Yoga (Liber 13).
Equilibrium of Knowledge & Power
He should meditate on the diverse knowledge and power he has acquired, and harmonize them perfectly. And in this matter he shall be judged by the Præmonstrator to A∴A∴ (Liber 185)
This is a degree of balance. All four elements have been mastered - all parts of the puzzle have been placed on the table - the Dominus Liminis must now place them in proportion to each other.
Lighting the Magick Lamp
...he shall construct the magic Lamp, according to the instruction in Liber A. (Liber 185)
Further, he lights the Magic Lamp. (Liber XIII)
Let the Dominus Liminis take pure lead, tin, and quicksilver, with platinum, and, if need be, glass. Let him by his understanding and ingenium devise a Magick Lamp that shall burn without wick or oil, being fed by the Æthyr. This shall he accomplish secretly and apart, without asking the advice or approval of his Adeptus Minor. Let the Dominus Liminis keep it when consecrated in the secret chamber of Art. This then is that which is written: “Being furnished with complete armour, and armed, he is similar to the goddess.” And again, “I am armed, I am armed.” (Liber A vel Armorum)
Control of Intuition
He shall in every way establish perfect control of his intuition, according to the advice of his Adeptus Minor, for that the ordeal of advancement is no light one. (Liber 185)
Advancement to Adeptus Minor
Authority grants advancement from the Grade of Dominus Liminis to the Adeptus Minor Grade when the Task of the Dominus Liminis has been satisfactorily completed.
"Six months after admission to the Grade, he shall go to his Adeptus Minor, pass the necessary tests, and repeat to him his appointed part in the Temple of Initiation." (Liber 185)
"When at last he hath attained to the grade of Adeptus Minor, let him humble himself exceedingly." (Liber 185)
A COMPENDIUM BY FRATER D.M.T. 
