Research would indicate that people of the ancient world believed the universe to be a magical place of
all-possibility. They believed the cosmos to be a single, living creature and
they believed earth to be a sacred plane. They seemed to believe, whether or not they understood it intellectually, that both humanity and
the planet are essential parts of a great cosmic scheme.
The ancient builders of prehistoric monuments were much more attuned to the forces of
nature, to the etheric world of forms, to the Energy-Intelligences of the universe and
to the shamanic journey. They built the monuments as though they knew that forms exist which have yet to be embodied in
matter and as though they knew that humanity is empowered to make manifest these forms. They envisioned
the open channel of the portal and they saw the shapes and designs spinning round the
vortex of creation.
Ancient people, more attuned to acausality or magic, had certain
powers most of us have since lost. To increase their powers, they built geophysical
portals into the Curtain of energy-matter. They constructed dolmens, barrows and
passage tombs and they erected menhirs and monoliths into specific patterns above perceived
convergence points of earth energy. They did it out of worship of the divine and a respect for the dead, more than out of intellectual knowledge of any complex concepts.
The great oracles of
antiquity, the Oracle at Delphi and the Cumaean Sibyl, were established on convergence
points of telluric energy. At Delphi, the oracles would sit atop the geophysical portals and read the vibrations to deliver their prophecies. About 2500 BCE in England, construction began on a huge
portal situated on a convergence point and designed to channel the earth energy. We call
the portal Stonehenge.
At the center of Stonehenge, the largest of the 900 stone circles and innumerable standing
stones in the British Isles, is the semicircular arch of the portal. Stonehenge, 320
feet in diameter, was built sphere first, including Aubrey holes and Heel Stone, after
which the menhirs were added and the path was built, perhaps to mark the flow of perceived earth energy.
Next, four Station Stones reinforced the arch, and the five trilithons were added.
Finally, a complete circle of monoliths capped by horizontal stones was built. About
1200 years (or 500 years at the least) after construction began, the portal was
operational.
The builders of Stonehenge designed it as a hexagon-hexagram within
several circles (top left). At its center is the portal, corresponding to P4, P7 and P10,
and part of P1 and P13 on the World Soul. When the portal worked, those of a
mystical nature could pass through it, thus exiting this reality and entering a parallel
dimension of existence.
Another geophysical portal designed almost exactly like Stonehenge is the Rock Eagle
Effigy Mound in Eatonton, Georgia. Rock Eagle was built by Mound Builder Indians about
500 CE. The paths at Stonehenge and Rock Eagle mark the energy lines, and the circles
mark the convergence points of electromagnetic energy. In Georgia, the World Soul
(Horus-Cosmos-Falcon) is represented by a soaring eagle with a wingspan of 120 feet.
The earth is a living creature and a sacred place, according to the philosophy of Feng
Shui, in which the energy line is a dragon current, and the electromagnetic energy in the
dragon current is the dragon's breath. The Chinese Feng Shui (Wind Water) masters of
environmental design are architects specializing in the alignment of the structures of
the earth, aligned according to the direction of the dragon's breath. The Feng Shui masters study the fabric
of the Curtain of space-time and energy-matter and arrange the constructions on earth to
match the design of the fabric. One of their remarkable achievements is the ground plan
of the Forbidden City in Peking (Beijing) (top left), a reversal pattern that demonstrates both a moat (D9, D10)
and a Limit-Cross. Beyond the Limit of Limit-Cross (H2) in the celestial realms is the
Hekhaloth (palace), where are held the pre-existent images or forms. In Peking, this
Sacred Center is the Emperor's palace of Pl0 to P13.
The grounds of the Forbidden City were meticulously landscaped to portray qi (Chi)
energy as it flows over the surface of the city, like wind over water on the surface of a
pond. The city is a heaven on earth because it mirrors the sacred architecture of heaven,
where the psychic energy ever flows from its inexhaustible Source. The Feng Shui secret
of architectural design, in which the Later Heaven is the mirror image reversal of the
Earlier Heaven, is a concept called Dwat or Duat by the ancient Egyptians, who made practical
application of it when they built the pyramids (2600 BCE?). Within
the celestial palace lived the Emperor, the earthly counterpart of the Pole Star--the
immovable axis star around which the circumpolar stars revolve. Around the Emperor
revolved all of China but like the Pole Star the Emperor remained stationary. He was a sacred
prisoner forbidden to leave the Forbidden City.
A powerful geophysical portal in the Curtain of space-time and energy-matter may be
formed naturally in outcroppings of rocks when they are positioned on a convergence
point of telluric energy and when they are over water. This is the case at the
Externsteine, called the German Stonehenge, which lies on a parallel with Stonehenge.
The Externsteine is comprised of five limestone pillars towering 100 feet above the
forest. Within the giant rocks is a mysterious maze of caves, crypts, ancient graffiti and
steps that seem to lead nowhere.
Nomadic hunters of the Stone Age lived in the sacred site, and pilgrims and monks of
ancient times made the place their destination and sanctuary. In this massive structure of
energy-matter are two natural portals, employed long ago by an ancient, vanished
priesthood who probably used a long-lost Ritual of the Portal. One of the anonymous wanderers of
the 12th century CE discovered the lost portals and carved the information as sculpture
onto the side of the Externsteine. The portals and Limit-Cross are the subjects of the World Soul carved as Deposition
from the Cross (1120 CE). The carving, fluid with fabric, movement and
rhythm, works wonders in 3 ways: it elicits the interior order of the mind, it helps self-verify the existence and the functions of the unconscious mind and it gives the location of
two geophysical portals.
At the top of Deposition (top, center), in the position of P1, is a Tau cross, meaning "As Above,
So Below." The Tau cross expresses the narrowest of Limits separating Mind and Idea
and the material universe. It symbolizes the perfect alignment of the two worlds, one
corporeal and spatial and the other incorporeal and nonspatial. As Above, So Below also
means that one of the geophysical portals is above the other.
The vertical bar of the Tau cross is Vl, which intersects Hl, the second cross. At this
intersection is a person usually identified as Nicodemus, who brought a hundred
pounds of myrrh and aloes for the body of Jesus. But it was Joseph of Arimathea, not
Nicodemus, who took the body of Jesus down from the cross for shroud burial. The shrouds at P2, top right,
and P3, top left, symbolize the curtain or veil that separates the two worlds. The shrouds
are held by Raziel, right, and Zaphiel, left, two archangels of the Holy Sephiroth. (top left)
Because an Emanationist carved Deposition from the Cross, the person at the
intersection of Vl-Hl is neither Nicodemus nor Joseph of Arimathea. That person probably represents the
Goddess, an energy-intelligence symbolized by The Empress card of the Rider-Waite and Tarot of the
Spirit Tarot Decks. These 78-card decks of picture cards, widely underemployed as
fortune telling cards, portray the Emanationist philosophical system. The Empress card is
defined as the two-way portal to life and to death. She is the Curtain veiling the portal on
the Central Pillar of Consciousness, according to the Tarot of the Spirit deck. Thus, she is the equivalent of Isis Veiled. On Deposition she encircles the intersection of Vl-
Hl with her right arm, and with her right hand she displays 4 fingers. Her legs are
missing so that she appears to be floating. Apparently overcome with sorrow at the
crucifixion of Jesus, she hides her face in her left hand and looks down at P4. She
denotes the hidden, floating (over water) Portal 4, a geophysical portal.
Above the Empress, top right, is a Maltese cross, symbolizing the union of Mind and Idea
with the material universe, as brought about by "the keen and swift impact of the Light,
coming from behind the Veil." (1) The Maltese cross symbolizes the abolished abyss and
the lifted Curtain. Thus, the figure at the Limit-Cross is not Nicodemus, who appears to
be sobbing in grief, but is The Empress/The Goddess, who is raised above Limit and thus is shielding
her eyes from The Boundless Light that streams through the metaphysical portal, P4.
Because the Empress has no legs, some visitors to the Externsteine believe that a vandal hacked
them away. But the Empress was never meant to have legs because the proper
description of a geophysical portal over water is "hidden, floating Sphere 4." (2) This
unusual lack of legs is something the unconscious mind saw and registered as part of the
symbols instructing the mind to "open channel."
A third cross begins with the bowed neck of the monk, far left. His head is merged
with the head of Jesus, symbolizing the simultaneous bonding and individuation that comprise
the dual forces of creation, in our reality. These dual forces create the I/Thou archetype our world of extreme
opposites takes as its key pattern. This headless monk oddity is a part of the carving that
the unconscious mind saw and registered as an instruction to "open channel."
Another monk, top left and above Limit, points to this anomaly with two fingers,
indicating two portals. In the widest rock pillar of the Externsteine is a chamber of
irregular shape, accessible by two entrances, one between two windows. The other
entrance is via a narrow passage carved into a bizarre shape, language that well describes
the headless monk situation--narrow passage, bizarre shape. Within this chamber is a
portal used in initiation rituals by an unknown pagan priesthood. The initiation probably was a
Ritual of the Portal, designed to open the channel and to confer upon the initiate a
Heavenly Partner or Soul Person in marriage.
But apparently they believed the newly dead could open portals and function as channels from this world to
another, because they buried them close to the symbolic structures they constructed. These forms
which they created, products of the collective unconscious of the World Soul, are a
mystery to us who have since lost the vision. The geophysical portals, outer physical constructions of inner metaphysical truths,
crisscross the entire surface of the earth according to a specific pattern in the lithosphere.
Photographed from space, the lithosphere (left, illus. 1) can be seen shining through. Matrixed
throughout the lithosphere like the paths joining the portals on the World Soul are veins of electromagnetic energy that periodically and systematically converge.
THE STONEHENGE PORTAL
THE ROCK EAGLE PORTAL
THE FORBIDDEN CITY OF PEKING (PORTAL)
DEPOSITION FROM THE CROSS
The Empress is floating above a strange chair, said to be the pagan world-pillar, called Urminsul by the ancients, which is supposed to be the central axis of the world. Urminsul, bent double this way, is said to symbolize the subjection of the Old World religion to the new. A version of Urminsul that is not bent double was excavated from a royal tomb in Ur in Sumer (2500 BCE). Ram Against a Flowering Shrub (left), 19-3/4 inches, is the strong Intermediate principle of the Three Primordial Principles of Emanationism. This Central Pillar of the World Soul displayed as Urminsul is a sacred sheep. This symbol of a sacred sheep is found often in antiquity, especially in Crete and Egypt. In Deposition from the Cross, Urminsul is bent double to
form an upside-down, mirror image reversal, number 4. Again, this identifies hidden, floating
Portal 4 and instructs the mind to open channel. This type of 4 is seen in Tarot
on The Universe card and The Hanged Man card and means "open channel." (3) This second
4 verifies the existence of the second portal.
THE INVISIBLE PARALLEL PLANE OF REALITY
The Deposition carving is the design of the Triple Cross. The third cross, H2 (defined in Tarot as "Strength"), represents the invisible parallel plane of reality, which begins with the headless monk and continues as the back of Jesus. It intersects V4 and finishes with the monk, far right, who supports it with his right hand. The head of this monk is curious in its position, something the unconscious mind noticed and registered.
The Strength is supplied by a strong man whose hands are at P7 as he supports the body of Jesus. The legs of Jesus are V7, which intersects H3, the platform on which all are standing. The headless monk is V6 and his feet are P9. The monk opposite is V5 and his feet are P8. Below the platform, an elf and a dwarf in P10 are the hidden support for the etheric Forms taken by the physical world above them. The visible created world is supported by the invisible creating world.
The "el" of elf is an English word related to El, a Sumerian god-name meaning brightness or shining, from which the god of the Hebrews, El (of Elohim), is derived. El is also used as a suffix in angelic names as a God-form: Razi-el, Emmanu-el, Gabri-el, etc. Elf means shining being.
The monk, top left, points with his banner to the Maltese cross, indicating the location of the second portal. In the chapel near the top of one of the limestone pillars is the second portal accessible only by rock steps and a precarious foot bridge, elements seen in the carving (the stepped back of the strong man and the chair). The chapel is roofless and contains a unique pillar-altar unknown in church architecture. Above the pillar-altar is a circular window 20 inches in diameter. Within this chapel is the portal above the one below (As Above, So Below). The Maltese cross also symbolizes the 4 levels of consciousness brought together by Deposition from the Cross to lift the Curtain and create the metaphysical portal.
The waking consciousness observes the beautiful and rhythmic carving, while the unconscious mind registers the veiled oddities and the sublime movement of the hidden carving and the instructions to open channel. At the same time, the compassion of the higher consciousness is evoked by the crucifixion of Jesus and the "sorrowful Nicodemus." These three levels of mind working together create the 4th level of consciousness, the mystical consciousness of spiritual wisdom and internal peace and harmony. As the 4 levels of consciousness converge, the Curtain is lifted, the portal is created and the channel is opened. When this happens, a privileged position is gained vis-a-vis the universe, and the hidden realities are revealed.
The enlightened, 12th century artist of Deposition from the Cross achieves three major objectives: he/she gives the location of two portals, he/she masterfully evokes the 4 levels of consciousness, and he/she creates a profound study in stone of the unseen, unknown realities.
Footnotes: 1. The Gospel of Philip The Nag Hammadi Papyri; 2. Walter Lang, "Introduction," Le Mystere des Cathedrales
Illustrations: All Illustrations are by the author. 1. After Robert W. Nicholson;
Page 1 - Three Primordial Principles | Emanationism
The World Soul | Limit-Cross
Page 2 - The Sarcophagus | Form or Archetype | Two Universes
Page 3 - 16th Century Gentleman | Jesse Tree | Negative Space
The House
Page 4 - The Stonehenge Portal | The Rock Eagle Portal
The Forbidden City | Deposition from the Cross
Invisible Parallel Plane | Four Levels of Consciousness
Page 5 - Chartres Cathedral | The Ark of the Covenant
The Holy Grail
Page 6 - Perfect Source
Page 7 - Light and Dark Polarities | The Image on the Shroud
Shrouded World Soul | Coptic Magic | Faces on the Shroud
Part 8 - Red Mass of the Great Work |
Dante's Universe
Hermetic Vessels | Surat Shabd Yoga
Part 9 - Glossary
Copyright Notice - Disk of the World - Text and images copyrighted March 21, 1993-2023, Claire Grace Watson, B.A., M.S.T., U.S. Copyright and under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998, All rights reserved.