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                                         XXXI Hymns 
 
                            Fr. Achad (Charles Stansfield Jones)
 
                                  Key entry by Fr. Nachash
 
                                    Ur.us-Hadit Camp, OTO
 
                                   Completed 11-21-90 e.v.
 
 
 
           **********************************************************************
 
 
 
 
 
                                             XXXI HYMNS
 
 
 
                                         TO THE STAR GODDESS
 
 
 
                                             Who is Not
 
 
 
 
 
                                       BY XIII: which is ACHAD
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                          I ... Invocation
 
 
 
             Mother of the Sun,  Whose Body is White with the  Milk of the Stars,
 
           bend upon Thy servant and impart unto him Thy Secret Kiss!
 
 
 
             Enkindle within him the Holy  Ecstasy Thou hast  promised unto  them
 
           that love Thee; the Ecstasy which redeemeth from all pain.
 
 
                                                                             1432
 
             Hast thou  not proclaimed: All the  sorrows are but   shadows,  they
 
           pass and are  done,   but  there   is  that which remains?   That  the
 
           Universe is  Pure   Joy-that   Thou  givest   unimaginable   Joys   on
 
           Earth--that  Thou demandest  naught in sacrifice?
 
 
 
             Let me then  rejoice,  for therein may I serve Thee most fully.  Let
 
           it be Thy   Joy to see my joy; even as Thou  hast promised in Thy Holy
 
           Book!
 
 
 
            Now, therefore, am I Joyful in Thy Love.
 
 
 
 
 
                                                AUMN
 
 
 
                                          II ... The Brook
 
 
 
             I wandered beside the running stream, and mine eyes caught the glint
 
           of Thy Starry Orbs in the swirling waters.
 
 
 
             So  is  it  with  my  mind;  it  flows   on  towards the  Great  Sea
 
           of Understanding wherein I may come to know Thee more fully.
 
 
 
             Sometimes,   as  it journeys, it  threatens to overflow its banks in
 
           its eagerness to reflect a wider image of Thine Infinite Body.
 
 
 
             Ah! How  the very stones,  over which  flow the life  of my   being,
 
           thrill at the tender caress of Thy reflected Image.
 
 
                                                                             1433
 
             Thou, too,   art   Matter;  it   is   I---Thy  Complement---who   am
 
           motion!  Therefore these very stones are of Thee, but the Spirit---the
 
           Life---is the very Self of me; mine Inmost Being.
 
 
 
             Flow  on,  O   Stream!  Flow  on,  O  Life!  Towards  the Great  Sea
 
           of Understanding, the Great Mother.
 
 
 
                                       III ... The Rose Garden
 
 
 
             Long have I  lain and waited for Thee in the  Rose Garden  of  Life;
 
           yet ever Thou withholdest Thyself from mine Understanding.
 
 
 
            As I lay I contemplated Thy nature as that of an Infinite Rose.
 
 
 
            Petals, petals, petals.. but where, O Beauteous One, is Thy Heart?
 
 
 
             Hast Thou no  Heart? Are Thy  petals Infinite so  that I may   never
 
           reach the Core of Thy Being?
 
 
 
             Yet,  Thou   hast   said:  "I love  you!  I  yearn to you!   Pale or
 
           purple, veiled  or voluptuous,  I who am all pleasure and  purple, and
 
           drunkeness of the innermost sense, desire you: Come unto me!"
 
 
 
             Yea! Mine innermost sense is drunken; it is intoxicated upon the Dew
 
           of the Rose. Thy Heart is my Heart; there is no difference, O Beloved.
 
 
 
             When  I shall have penetrated  to the Heart  of Thine Infinite Rose,
 
           there shall I find Myself.
 
 
 
            But I shall never come to myself---only to Thee.
 
 
                                                                             1434
 
 
 
                                        IV ... The Fox Glove
 
 
 
             Tall  and  straight  as  a Fox Glove do I stand before Thee,  Mother
 
           of Heaven.
 
 
 
             The flower of my  being  is given over to a strange conceit;  I grow
 
           up towards the Stars and not towards the Sun.
 
 
 
            Art Thou not Mother of the Sun?
 
 
 
             Thus have I blasphemed the Lord and  Giver of Life for Thy sake. Yet
 
           am I not  ashamed,  for   in  forgetting   the  Sun   I am become  the
 
           Sun--Thy Son--yet  a thousand times more Thy Lover.
 
 
 
             The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have  nests,  but  now
 
           I have nowhere to lay my head; for tall and straight as  a  Fox  Glove
 
           do I stand before Thee. My resting place is the Womb of the Stars.
 
 
 
             Yet  all that  I may comprehend of Thine Infinite Body   is  but  as
 
           the Glove  upon one of Thy  soft sweet hands, touching  the Earth, not
 
           hurting the little flowers.
 
 
 
 
 
                  
 
 
                                                                             1435
 
 
 
                                    V ... The Storm
 
 
 
             A Dark Night and the Storm. The lightening  flashes between Thee and
 
           me.  I am dazzled so that I see Thee not.
 
 
 
             So in the depths  of my being flash the fires of life;  they   blind
 
           me to the Understanding of Thee and Thine Infinite Body of Stars.
 
 
 
             Yet  I  see  Thee  reflected in  the body of her  I love, as we  lie
 
           with quivering limbs awaiting the coming of the sound of thunder.
 
 
 
            She fears the thunder, and turns within herself for consolation.
 
 
 
             But even there the Lightning flameth, for I have loosed the fires of
 
           my being within the  dark  recess---in honour of   the Storm  and   of
 
           Thine Infinite Body which I see not.
 
 
 
                                     VI ... The Hole in The Roof
 
 
 
             Once  I knew  an ancient  serpent.  He delighted   to   bask  in the
 
           Sunshine which penetrated through a tiny hole in the roof of the cave.
 
 
 
            He was old and very wise.
 
 
 
             He said: "Upon me is  concentrated the  Light  of  the   whole Univ-
 
           erse."
 
 
                                                                             1436
 
 
 
             But a little brown  beetle,  who had long lived  in   the  cave with
 
           him, looked   up,  and   spreading   his wings passed out  through the
 
           hole  in roof---into the Infinite Beyond.
 
 
 
             Thus,  forsaking  wisdom,  would I  come to Thee,  Beloved Lady   of
 
           the Starry Heavens.
 
 
 
 
 
                                         VII ... The Design
 
 
 
             Strange  curves:  and  every  Curve  a  Number woven into a  Musical
 
           and Harmonious Pattern.
 
 
 
            Such was the design showed me by my friend when first we met.
 
 
 
             It was  like an exchange of  greetings by means of  an inward recog-
 
           nition.
 
 
 
             Oh! Could   I  but   grasp  the   Ever-changing  Design  of Thy Star
 
           Body, Mother  of Heaven!
 
 
 
             Yet, it  is written: "Every  man and every woman  is a star.   Every
 
           number is infinite, there is no difference."
 
 
 
             Such  then is Life,  for  those who love Thee:   Strange Curves, and
 
           every Curve a Number woven into a Musical and Harmonious Design.
 
 
                                                                             1437
 
 
 
                                       VIII ... The Snow Drift
 
 
 
             My body was blue  as Thine,  O Beloved,   when they found me.  I was
 
           stiff as  if  held in  a close  embrace. Nor was I conscious  of aught
 
           but Thee, till the small  fires of Earth brought me back with an agony
 
           of tingling pain.
 
 
 
            How came I to be lost in the snow-drift?
 
 
 
             I remember how  I had taken shelter  from the  blinding storm.   The
 
           snow fell about me, and I waited, turning my thought to Thee.
 
 
 
             Then  did  I realize how every snow-flake  is  built as a tiny star.
 
           I looked  closer, burying my face   in  the   white  pile,   as in Thy
 
           Bosom.   Mine arms  embraced the  snow-drift; I clung  to it  in a mad
 
           ecstacy.
 
 
 
             Thus would I have pressed  Thy Body to mine,  wert Thou not Infinite
 
           and I but as tiny as a star-flake.
 
 
 
            So was my body frozen---as by the utmost cold of inter-stellar space.
 
 
 
            It was blue as Thine when they found me locked in Thine embrace.
 
 
                                                                             1438
 
 
 
                                           IX ... Daylight
 
 
 
            In the Daylight I see not Thy Body of Stars, O Beloved.
 
 
 
             The little light of the  Sun  veils  the Great Light of the   Stars,
 
           for to-day Thou seemest distant.
 
 
 
             The  Sun burns like a  great Torch,   and Earth seems as  one of His
 
           little Spheres, filled with life.
 
 
 
             I  am but a  tiny spermatozoon,   but  within   me is  the fiery and
 
           concentrated essence of Life.
 
 
 
             Draw me up into  Thyself,  O Sun!  Project  me  into the Body of Our
 
           Lady Nuit!
 
 
 
             Thus  shall  a  new  Star  be  born,  and  I shall see  Thee even in
 
           the Daylight, O Beloved.
 
 
                                                                             1439
 
                                           X ... The Bird
 
 
 
             Once I bought a  little bird;  his cage was very small;  it had only
 
           one perch.  He  was so young he had  not even learned to sing,  but he
 
           chirped gladly when I brought him home.
 
 
 
             Then I raised the bars of his cage,  and   without a moment's hesit-
 
           ation  he flew out into  the room,  and   spying   the  cage   of  the
 
           love-birds, perched upon it and examined it carefully.
 
 
 
             Not long  afterwards another and  stronger cage  was  obtained   for
 
           the love-birds,  for  they had pecked through some of the frail  bars.
 
           When  the   little bird  was  offered the  discarded cage,  he quickly
 
           hopped from his tiny  one  to theirs.
 
 
 
             Now he  has three perches and room for his tail,  and  when we  open
 
           the door of his cage he refuses to come out.  Perhaps he fears to lose
 
           what he  had  once coveted and then obtained.
 
 
 
             Herein lies  the secret  of  Government.  Give the  people what will
 
           make them reasonably  comfortable;  let   them have three  perches and
 
           room  for their tails;  and forgetting their slavery and restrictions,
 
           they will be content.
 
 
 
             Hast Thou  not said  "The slaves  shall serve."  Lady of the  Starry
 
           Heaven?
 
 
                                                                             1440
 
 
 
                                          XI ... The Moral
 
 
 
             There is  another moral  to the  story of the  little bird.   Having
 
           gained  his desire for a larger cage,  he forgot his longing for Free-
 
           dom.
 
 
 
             The  door  remained   open;  the  room   was before him, wherein  he
 
           could stretch his wings and fly.
 
 
 
            Yet he preferred his cage.
 
 
 
             The wide world might have been  his  had he known how to use it, but
 
           he was not ready for that;  he  would have perished of cold  had I let
 
           him out into the wintry snow.
 
 
 
             Let   those  who   would  travel   the  Mystic   Path remember this:
 
           Earth Consciousness is an  illusion and limitation. When it  frets us,
 
           like  a little  cage,  our chance for greater freedom comes.
 
 
 
             But when a larger  cage is offered---when we obtain  Dhyana---let us
 
           not rest there thinking ourselves free.  The  door  is  open,  Samadhi
 
           lies beyond,  and   beyond that,  when  we are ready for it,  the Real
 
           Freedom, Nirvana.
 
 
 
             O  Lady of  the  Stars,   let me  not content  till I  penetrate the
 
           ultimate  bars and am Free---One with the Infinitely Great as with the
 
           Infinitely Small.
 
 
                                                                             1441
 
                                 XII ... The Invisible Foot Prints
 
 
 
             Long have  I roamed the Earth delighting in the Good,  the Beautiful
 
           and  the True;  ever seeking  the spots  where these  seem to  be most
 
           Perfect.
 
 
 
             There is joy in this  wandering among the flowers of life, but   Thy
 
           Joy, O Beloved, is to be desired above all.
 
 
 
             Now I seek a resting place,  I am set upon a new Quest,  to  Worship
 
           at Thy feet.
 
 
 
             For  it is written of  Thee: "Bending   down,  a lambent   flame  of
 
           blue, all touching,  all penetrant,  her lovely hands  upon the  black
 
           earth, and her lithe body arched for love,  and  her  soft  feet   not
 
           hurting the little flowers."
 
 
 
             Oh!  That I might discover Thine Invisible Footprints upon the Earth
 
           and there come to the Understanding of Thy Being, O Beloved.
 
 
                                                                             1442
 
                                      XIII ... The Finger Tips
 
 
 
             Or,  it may be,  O Beloved,  I shall discover  the imprints  of  Thy
 
           finger tips amid the flowers or upon the Black Earth.
 
 
 
             Hath not Nemo  a Garden that he tendeth?  Doth he not also labour in
 
           the Black Earth?
 
 
 
             Who knoweth when Thy hands  may grasp me and  draw me up into  Thine
 
           arms, there  to nestle  at Thy breast,  to feed upon  the Milk  of the
 
           Stars?
 
 
 
             Beloved,   verily this tending of the Garden of the World---although
 
           the labor may seem heavy---leadeth to a Great Reward.  As   Thou  hast
 
           said:  "Certainty,   not   faith,   while  in  life upon  death, rest,
 
           ecstasy." Nor dost  Thou  demand aught in sacrifice.
 
 
 
            What do the Bhaktis know of Love? They see the Beloved everywhere.
 
 
 
             But when I am one with Thee,  O Beloved,  I shall not see Thee,  for
 
           I shall know Theee as Thou art.
 
 
 
 
 
            
 
 
                                                                             1443
 
                                     XIV ... The Well of Stars
 
 
 
             I  know  a  hidden  well of clearest  water.  Naught but the  coping
 
           of delicate pink onyx is visible until the secret spring be touched.
 
 
 
            Then beware! For above the entrance hangs a fiery sword.
 
 
 
             Few  find this  Well or  know its  Secret; there  are but  two roads
 
           leading thereto.
 
 
 
             From the broad Mountain summit we may search the slopes for a vision
 
           of the  Woodland Delta where  grow the Trees  of Eternity,   or we may
 
           journey  through the Valley between  the Ivory Hills---if  we fear not
 
           the  purple shadows and the black pit-fall.
 
 
 
            From Thee we came; to Thee may we return, O Well of Living Stars!
 
 
 
                                     XV ... The Icicles of Isis
 
 
 
             It  hath been  written  how the  Old King  dreamed  of his  banished
 
           peacock, entombed in a palace of ice,  who  cried:  "The  Icicles   of
 
           Isis  are falling on my head."
 
 
 
             Thus it is with those who arebanished to the Palace of the  Moon----
 
           for the Word of Sin is Restriction.
 
 
 
             Oh! Lady of  the Starry Heavens,  let   me not become frozen  at the
 
           touch of the cold Veil of Isis. For the Moon is but the dead reflector
 
           of the Sun, and He but the youngest of Thy Children of Light.
 
 
                                                                             1444
 
            Let me lift Thy Peacock Veil of a Million Starry Eyes, O Beloved!
 
 
 
            Show Thy Star Splendour, O Nuit; bid me within Thine house to dwell!
 
 
 
 
 
                                         XVI ... Purple Mill
 
 
 
             The delicate  purple mist streams up from the hills:   I  watch  and
 
           wait for the meaning of it all.
 
 
 
             Sometimes  it  seems  like  the incense  smoke of Aspiration ascend-
 
           ing towards   the  Sun---giver  of  Light,   Life,  Love  and  Liberty
 
           to the Children of Earth.
 
 
 
             But  the Sun is   going  down behind the  Mountains,  and Thy Starry
 
           Lamps glow in the Sky.
 
 
 
             Is not the Lamp above the Altar a symbol of the Desire of the Higher
 
           to draw up the lower to Itself?
 
 
 
             So, O Lady of Heaven, I liken the Mist to the  life-breath of  Souls
 
           who pant for Thee here below.
 
 
 
            And I remember Thy words:
 
                                     Above, the gemmed azure is
 
                                       The naked splendour of Nuit;
 
                                     She bends in ecstacy to kiss
 
                                       The secret ardours of Hadit.
 
                                     The winged globe, the starry blue,
 
                                       Are mine, O Ankh-af-na-khonsu!
 
 
                                                                             1445
 
             I, too,  would ascend as a  delicate purple mist that steams up from
 
           the Hills. Art Thou not all Pleasure and Purple?
 
 
 
 
 
                                    XVII ... The Infinite Within
 
 
 
             I  would that  I were  as the  feminine counterpart   of   Thee,   O
 
           Beloved; then would I draw the Infinite within.
 
 
 
             Yet  since  Thy  Pure Being must ever be more refined than this body
 
           of  mine I  should interpenetrate  every part  of Thee with  my living
 
           flesh.
 
 
 
             Thus,   O  Beloved, should  we enter  into a  new and  more complete
 
           embrace: not as  of  earth wherein the male uniteth with the female by
 
           means  of the  physical  organs  of  love,  but with  every atom of my
 
           being close pressed to every atom of Thine---within and without.
 
 
 
             Then,  O  beloved,  would  I  cry unto the Lord of the Primum Mobile
 
           to teach me the Art of the Whirling Motion of Eternity.
 
 
 
             Thus, whirling  within  Thee,  our never-ending  nuptial feast shall
 
           be celebrated, and a new System of Revolving Orbs be brought to birth.
 
 
 
             Ah!  the shrill  cry of Ecstacy of that Refined Rapture---the Orgasm
 
           of the Infinite Within.
 
 
                                                                             1446
 
                                    XVIII ... The Rainbow
 
 
 
             As I  sat in the shelter  of the forest glade,   my   eye caught the
 
           multi-coloured gleam of diamonds.  I  looked again;  the Sun rays were
 
           playing upon the dew which clung to a little curved twig.
 
 
 
            It seemed like a tiny rainbow of promise.
 
 
 
             Then,  while I watched in  wonder,  a small grey spider  bridged the
 
           arch of  the bow with his silken thread.
 
 
 
             Ah! My Beloved,  thus, too,  hath the  Spider of  Destiny woven  his
 
           silken rope from extreme to extreme of the Great Rainbow of Promise.
 
 
 
             Fate hath fitted me as  an Arrow to the String of Destiny in the bow
 
           of the Sun.
 
 
 
             But Whose Hand shall draw  that Mighty Bow,  O Beloved,  and send me
 
           upon fleet wings to my resting place within Thine Heart?
 
 
                                                                             1447
 
                                         XIX ... Dropped Dew
 
 
 
             As I came from  tending the Rose Garden and was about  to  return to
 
           my humble shelter,  my  eyes  caught  the gleam of dropped dew like  a
 
           tiny trail  along the path.
 
 
 
             It was  very early;  the   Sun  had   not yet re-arisen;  the  Stars
 
           still twinkled faintly in the sky.
 
 
 
            Who could have come before me to the Garden?
 
 
 
             I followed   the  trail  of  dew,  stooping   down  so that I saw in
 
           each crystal drop the reflection of a tiny star.
 
 
 
             Thus came I  to  my  lady's  chamber; she it was who carrying  roses
 
           had left this silvery thread as a clue to her hiding place.
 
 
 
             When I  found her, her eyes were closed, as she pressed the fragrant
 
           the pink blossoms to her white breast.
 
 
 
             Then did I  bury my face in the blossoms  and I saw  not   her  eyes
 
           when she opened them in wonder.
 
 
 
             Thus,  too,   would  I  follow  the Star-trail  of Dropped Dew,  ere
 
           the re-arisen Sun hides Thee from me, O My Beloved!
 
 
 
             Thus would I  come to Thee and bury  my face in Thy Breast  amid the
 
           Roses of Heaven.
 
 
                                                                             1448
 
 
 
             Nor   should  I  dare  to  look  into Thine eyes,  having discovered
 
           Thy secret---the Dew of Love---the Elixir of Life.
 
 
 
 
 
                                           XX ... Twilight
 
 
 
             Twilight... and in a few brief moments the Stars will begin to peep.
 
           I will await Thee, here amid the heather, O Beloved.
 
 
 
             I  wait... no stars appear for a mist has stolen up from the foot of
 
           the mountains.
 
 
 
             Thus I waited for a sight of Thy Star Body till the cold  damp  mist
 
           of suppresed emotion chilled my being and my reason returned.
 
 
 
             The woman stood girt with a sword before me.  Emotion  was  overcome
 
           by clarity of perception.   Then did I remember Thy words:  "The Khabs
 
           is in the   Khu not the Khu in  the Khabs. Worship then the  Khabs and
 
           behold my light  shed  over ye."
 
 
 
             Thus turned  I my thoughts within,  so that I   became  concentrated
 
           upon the  Khabs---the Star of mine  inmost being.  Then  did Thy Light
 
           arise as a halo of rapture, and I came a little to lie in Thy bosom.
 
 
 
            But I offered one particle of dust---and I lost all in that hour.
 
 
 
            Such is the Mystery of Her who demandest naught in sacrifice.
 
 
 
            The twilight is returned.
 
 
                                                                             1449
 
                                        XXI ... The Dog Star
 
 
 
             Wisdom hath  said: "Be not animal;  refine thy rapture!   The  canst
 
           thou bear more joy!"
 
 
 
             I have  been   like  an unleashed  hound before Thee, O Beloved.   I
 
           have striven towards Thee and Thou seest in me only the Dog Star.
 
 
 
             Yet will I not fall  into the Pit called  Because,  there to  perish
 
           with  the dogs of reason.   There   is no reason in  me; I seek Under-
 
           standing, O Mother  of Heaven.
 
 
 
             Thus,  with   my  face buried in the black earth,  do I turn my back
 
           upon Thee. I will refine my rapture.
 
 
 
             So  Thou mayest behold me  as I am, and so  Thou shalt Understand at
 
           last, O Beloved; for in reverse Thou readest this DOG aright.
 
 
 
            Hast Thou not said: "There is none other?"
 
 
                                                                             1450
 
                                         XXII ... Pot-pouri
 
 
 
             The roses are falling.  This is the night of the full  moon  whereon
 
           the children of Sin attend the Sacred Circle.
 
 
 
             Therein they will sit divided---but  not for love's sake---for  they
 
           know  Thee not---O  Beloved.   Into   the  Elements,   the  fiery, the
 
           watery, the airy  and  the  earthly   Signs are they divided when they
 
           gather at the Full Moon within the forest.
 
 
 
             I  wandered   down  the  deep shadowy glade,  there I espied a  tiny
 
           sachet  of pot-pouri, dropped---maybe---from  the streaming  girdle of
 
           one of the maidens.
 
 
 
             Tenderly I raised it.  Its  perfume  is  like unto the perfume ofher
 
           I love.  She, too,   perhaps,  has  heard the call  of the moon and is
 
           even now on her way to the secret tryst.
 
 
 
             But hast Thou  not said:  "Let  there   be no difference made  among
 
           you between  any  one   thing and any other thing; for thereby  cometh
 
           hurt."  What matter  then  the  name  of the  maiden?  What matter the
 
           flowers of which it is composed?
 
 
 
             Yet dare  I not burn this  incense unto Thee, O  Beloved, because of
 
           Thine hair, the Trees of Eternity.
 
 
 
             Oh!  Little   sachet of pot-pouri,   thou hast reminded me of  her I
 
           love, for the  roses  are  falling,  it is the night of  the Full Moon
 
           and the children of Sin gather to attend the Sacred Circle.
 
 
                                                                             1451
 
                                       XXIII ... Red Swansdown
 
 
 
             It hath  been  told  how  Parzival  shot  and  brought down the Swan
 
           of Ecstacy as it winged over the Mountain of the Grail.
 
 
 
             But there is within the archives another story,  unheard by the ears
 
           of men.
 
 
 
             From  the  breast of  the Eternal  Swan  floated one  downy feather,
 
           steeped in  blood.  This   did  the  youngest and least worthy  of the
 
           Knights  hide tenderly in  his  bosom  till he concealed it within the
 
           hard pillow of his lonely couch.
 
 
 
             Night  after  night that  holy pillow  became  softer; sweeter   and
 
           sweeter were   his  dreams.   And  one   night---the  night   of   the
 
           crowning   of Parzival---he   was  granted  the   Great Vision wherein
 
           the Stars  became like   flecks   of   Swansdown   upon the  Breast of
 
           Heaven, each living and throbbing, for they  were  steeped in Blood.
 
 
 
             Then  did every  atom of  his being  become a  Star racing  joyfully
 
           through  the Great Body  of the Lady  of Heaven.   Thus in sweet sleep
 
           came he into the Great Beyond.
 
 
 
            Grant unto me Thy Pillow of Blood and Ecstacy, O Beloved!
 
 
                                                                             1452
 
                                       XXIV ... Passing Clouds
 
 
 
             A  dark  night:   Not  a  star   is visible, but presently the  moon
 
           shines out through a rift in the clouds.  And I remember, "The sorrows
 
           are  but  shadows, they  pass and are  done, but there  is that  which
 
           remains."
 
 
 
            Yet is the moon but illusion.
 
 
 
             A dull day: but presently the Sunis seen as the clouds are dispelled
 
           by His light.
 
 
 
            Is He that which remains?
 
 
 
             Night once more: the Sun is lost to sight,  only the moon reminds me
 
           of His presence. The clouds scud swiftly across the Sky and disappear.
 
 
 
             Thy   Star  Body is visible,  O Beloved; all the sorrows and shadows
 
           have passed and there is that which remains.
 
 
 
            When clouds gather, let me never forget Thee, O Beloved!
 
 
                                                                             1453
 
 
 
                                     XXV ... The Coiled Serpent
 
 
 
            Thus have I heard:
 
 
 
             The ostrich  goeth swiftly; with ease  could he outstrip those   who
 
           covet his  tail-feathers,   yet   when  danger  cometh he burieth  his
 
           head in the sand.
 
 
 
             Thetortoise moveth slowly and when embarrased he stoppeth,  withdra-
 
           wing into his own shell; yet he passeth the hare.
 
 
 
             The  hare  sleepeth when he should be swiftly moving;  he runneth in
 
           his dreams thinking himself at the goal.
 
 
 
             But the Coiled Serpent hath wisdom, for he hideth his tail and it is
 
           not coveted; he  raiseth his head   and  fears not;   he moveth slowly
 
           like the tortoise, yet withdraweth not; he nestles close  to the hare,
 
           darting  his  tongue with  swiftness, yet  falleth  not asleep  by the
 
           wayside.
 
 
 
             Would that I had the Wisdom  of the Coiled Serpent,  O  Beloved, for
 
           Thou  hast said:   "Put   on  the wings,  arouse the  coiled splendour
 
           within  you: come  unto me!"
 
 
                                                                             1454
 
 
 
                                      XXVI ... Love and Unity
 
 
 
             Twenty-six is the  numeration of the Inneffable Name,   but It  con-
 
           cealeth Love and Unity.
 
 
 
             The Four-lettered  Name  implieth   Law, yet  it may be  divided for
 
           love's sake; for Love is the law.
 
 
 
             The   Four-lettered Name  is  that of the  elements,  but it  may be
 
           divided for the chance of Union; for there is Unity therein.
 
 
 
             There is but One Substance  and One Love and while these  be   twen-
 
           ty-six they One through thirteen which is but a half thereof.
 
 
 
             Thus  do I play with numbers who would rather play with One and that
 
           One Love.
 
 
 
             For Thou hast said:  "There  is  naught  that  can unite the divided
 
           but love!"
 
 
 
            And is not Achad Ahebah?
 
 
                                                                             1455
 
                                        XXVII ... The Riddle
 
 
 
            What is that which cometh to a point yet goeth in a circle?
 
 
 
             This, O Beloved, is a dark saying, but Thou  hast said:  "My  colour
 
           is black to the  blind,  but the blue and gold are seem of the seeing.
 
           Also I have a secret glory for them that love me."
 
 
 
            And Hadit hath declared: "There is a veil; that veil is black."
 
 
 
             I would that I could tear aside the veil, O Beloved, for seeing Thee
 
           as Thou  art, I might see  Thee everywhere, even in  the darkness that
 
           cometh to a point yet goeth in a circle.
 
 
 
             For Hadit,   the core of  every star,  says  "It is I  that go," and
 
           Thou, Mother of the Stars, criest "To me! To me!"
 
 
 
             Resolve me the Riddle  of Life,  O  Beloved,   for  loving  Thee   I
 
           would behold Thy Secret Glory.
 
 
                                                                             1456
 
                                         XXVIII ... Sayings
 
             Isis hath said: "I am  all that was and that is and   that shall be,
 
           and no mortal hath lifted my veil."
 
 
 
            Who cares what is back of the moon?
 
 
 
             Jehovah showed his back unto  Moses,  saying:  "No man hath  seen my
 
           face at any time."
 
 
 
            Who cares to face the elements?
 
 
 
             Hadit  hath  said:  "I  am life and the giver of life; therefore  is
 
           the knowledge of me the knowledge of death."
 
 
 
            Who cares to know death?
 
 
 
             But Thou,  O Beloved, hath said:   "I give   unimaginable  joys   on
 
           earth,  certainty, not faith,   while in   life   upon  death,   peace
 
           unutterable, rest, ecstacy; nor do I demand aught in sacrifice."
 
 
 
            Who would not long to invoke Thee under Thy Stars, O Beloved?
 
 
                                                                             1457
 
                                      XXIX ... The Falling Star
 
 
 
             Falling,  falling, falling! Thus  fall the Rays  from Thy   Body  of
 
           Stars upon   this  tiny  planet,  O  Beloved!  Innumerable streams  of
 
           Light like Star-rain upon the black earth.
 
 
 
             Since  every   man  and every woman is  a star, their lives are like
 
           unto streams of light concentrated upon every point in Space.
 
 
 
             As I lay with arms out-stretched, my  bare body shining  like  ivory
 
           in  the darkness. my scarlet abbai flung wide, mine  eyes  fixed  upon
 
           the  star-lit  Heaven;   I  felt that  I, too,  was  falling, falling,
 
           falling, in an ecstacy of fear and love into the void abyss of space.
 
 
 
             Then did I remember that Thou art continuous. Beneath, above, around
 
           me art Thou. And lo, from a falling star I became as a comet  wheeling
 
           in infinite Circles, each at a  different angle, till my course traced
 
           out the Infinite Sphere that is the Symbol of Thee, O Beloved.
 
 
 
            Then did I aspire to find the Centre of All.
 
 
 
            And even now I am falling, falling, falling.
 
 
                                                                             1458
 
                                           XXX ... Justice
 
 
 
             I am  a Fool, O Beloved,  and therefore am I  One or Nought  as  the
 
           fancy takes me.
 
 
 
             Now am I come to Justice, so that I may be All or  Naught  according
 
           to the direction of vision.
 
 
 
             No  Breath may stir the Feather of Truth, therefore is Justice ALone
 
           in L. Yet the Ox-goad is  Motion and Breath Matter  if  it  be  called
 
           the Ox which is also A.
 
 
 
             How foolish are these thoughts, which are  but as the Sword  in  the
 
           hand of Justice.  They are as  unbalanced as the Scales that stir not,
 
           being  fixed in the  figure of Law  above the  Court House of  a great
 
           City.
 
 
 
            But Thou hast said: "Love is the law, love under will."
 
 
 
            And Love is the Will to Change and Change is the Will to Love.
 
 
 
             Even   in the   stern  outline   of   the  Scales   of Justice  do I
 
           perceive the  Instrument   of  Love,  and  in  the Life Sentence,  the
 
           Mystery of Imprisonment in Thy Being, O Beloved!
 
 
                                                                             1459
 
                                            XXXI ... Not
 
 
 
             Three Eternities are passed... I have outstripped a million Stars in
 
           my race across Thy Breast---The Milky Way.
 
 
 
            When shall I come to the Secret Centre of Thy Being?
 
 
 
             Time,   thou thief, why dost  thou rob the hungry  babe? Space, thou
 
           hadst almost deceived me.
 
 
 
            O Lady Nuit, let me not confound the space-marks!
 
 
 
             Then,   O  Beloved,  Thy  Word  came   unto  me,  as  it is written:
 
           "All touching;  All penetrant."
 
 
 
             Thus left I Time and Space and Circumstance,  and  every Star became
 
           as an atom  in  my  Body,  when   it  became Thy Body. Now never shall
 
           I be known,  for it is I that go.
 
 
 
             But Thou,   O  Beloved,  though Thou art infinitely Great,  art Thou
 
           not energized by the Invisible Point---the Infinitely Small?
 
 
 
                               A Million Eternities are Present, Deem
 
                                     not of Change; This is the
 
                                            Here and Now,
 
                                              and I am
 
                                                 NOT
 
 
 
 
 
                                                -oOo-
 
 
                                                                             1460
 


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