The five chapters refer to the five Elements. 1 -- Earth, 2 -- Air, 3 -- Water, 4 -- Fire, and 5 -- Spirit. Each shows its Element in the light of the relation between the Adeptus Minor and his Holy Guardian Angel. Thus in Chapter I the material world or sensible aspect of Nature is shown to be a mere symbolic picture of something altogether different. CHAPTER I 1 Invocation of Kundalini The adept ``dies'' to the natural world and blooms as a Lotus. He ceases: and enters the midnight silence where he adores Khephra. Then he awaits the coming of his Lord. 2 -- 11 The Angel says: Each men sees Nature in his own particular way. What he sees is only an image. k All images must be ignored; the adept must aspire single-hartedly to the Smooth Point. This matter cannot be discussed in common language; the king must speak of kingly things in a kingly way. 12 Silence. The Adept reports his impressions. (a) The highest degree of any given kind of energy surpasses the receptive power of the observer. This it appears as if of some other order. 13 The subtler the form of energy, the more potent, but it is less easily observed. 14 Truth destroys the reason. 15 Life distrubs the placidity of the mind's acceptance of dead symbols as reality. 16 The Knowleldge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel gives a new and higher form of energy which destroys the grosser types of existence. 17 The process continues until complete. 18 Phenomena result from resistance to ``love.'' Perfect union is silent. 19 -- 21 V.V.V.V.V. being perfectly Adeptus Minor appears evel. 22 Those who understand all this Work praise V.V.V.V.V. 23 -- 24 They do so in secret ways. 25 Perdurabo hindered his own success by over eagerness. 26 -- 27 Union once made is permanent. 28 The Angel is crowned with the Zodiac. His body is that of Nuit. 29 Stability has been fofund on a basis of change. 30 Seems an injunction to the Holy Guardian Angel to keep in close touch with the Adept. 31 The Adept accepts this as a definite promise. 32 -- 33 Proposal to view phenomena from the new standpoint. 34 -- 36 Two points of view: as a girl's smile involves the death of many cells in her body. 37 The above explains why men should resent their savior. They misinterpret his acts as destructive. 38 He in his human mind, is distressed at this. 39 -- 40 But the whole relation is allusion. In reality the Angel and the Adept are simply arranging to sail through eternity together; the Work of the Adept in redeeming Mankind is only an image seen as he fashions his mother-of-pearl. 41 -- 42 The human mind demands to be relieved of its sorrow by seeing Nature in this light on the ground that it has served the Masters with unselfish devotion. 43 The mind demanded complete relief. 47 -- 48 Persephone, the earth-bound soul. Corn = material nourishment; its result is sorrow. Narcissus = the sexual instinct flowering as Beauty. Instantly the soul forgets the ``corn'' and desires the flower, Hades comes and carries her off. Hades is the lord of ``Hell,'' i.e., the dark and secret but divine Soul within every man and woman. The rape thus means that the desire for Beauty awakes the Unconscious Self who then takes possession of the Soul, and enthrones her, only allowing her return to earth (Knowledge of the material worldl) at certain seasons, in order to attend to the welfare of mankind. 49 I was seazed by the impulse to adore Beauty, and felt ashamed at my inability to write a poem on the spot which should be worthy of the theme. 50 -- 58 An elaborate Parable in dialogue. 50 The Angel bids the Adept rejoice in certain events which are about to occur on earth. 51 The Adept doubts whether his doctrine will be understood rightly by mankind. 52 The Angel agrees; but is more sceptical still, suggesting that any event may be taken as meaning anything one chooses. 53 The Adept claims to be able to interpret phenomena rightly; that there is one special relation which is true, and all others falso. He reminds the Angel that he realises Himself (as an unique Being always identical with Itself) alike in the lowest matter and the highest spirit. 54 The Angel asks why one who possesses absolute Sight and Lordship and power to soar (the Head of the Hawk) who has creative energy able to fertilize Nature, his mother, sister, and wife (The Phallus of Asar) one who knows the paris of opposites, and the fact of their identity, should trouble to calculate the equations which express the relations between the illusory symbols of diversity. 55 The Adept replies that he must understand the laws of illusion in order to work in the world of illusion. 56 The Angel replies that such calculations lead odne to believe in the reality of the illusions, to become confused by their complex falsities, and ultimately, mistrusting one's own powers, to fail to act for fear of making mistakes; whereas it does not really matter what one does, since one set of illusions is just as good as another. The business of the Adept is to do his Work manfully and joyously, without lust of result or fear of accident. He should exercise his faculties to the full; the free fulfilment of their functions is sufficient justification. To become conscious of any organ is evidence that it is out of order. 57 The Adept takes this advice, and puts forth his energy. The apparent result of his Work is disaster. 58 But the whold idea of his relation with Mankind as a Redeemer proves phantasmagoric. The truth of the matter is that he has ``eaten a grape.'' i.e., begun to enjoy the banquet with his Angel proposed in Verse 50. (Cf. CCXX, I, 31)> 59 Every act of the Adept is really the kiss of his Angel. 60 The ecstasy of the relation between the Adept and his Angel disperses ``normal'' thoughts; the Ego fears to lose control of the course of the mind. This (of course) occurs in a less real sphere, that of normal consciousness. The Ego is justly apprehensive, for this ecstasy will lead to a situation when its annhilation will be decreed so that the Adept may cross the Abyss and become a Master of the Temple. Remember that the Ego is not really the centre and crown of the individual; indeed the whole trouble arises from its falso claim to be so. 61 The ecsatsy of the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel brings peace to ``the soul of the scribe'' (his conscious mind) by impressing such energy on his thoughts that their normal conflict (which causes sorrow) becomes negligible, just as the personal antagonisms in a cavalry regiment are forgotten in the excitement of a change. 62 But the mind, knowing that the old quarrels will revive when the ecstasy has passed, asks that this anaesthesia may be removed. It aspires to enter into the rapture with every element of its being, no matter of the pain. It knows that it can never be truly content until each separate fibre thrill harmoniously to that supreme enchantment. 63 It knows that the lower types of intoxication were excitements, and in stupor and senility. It demands the Madness of Pan, the building up of every particle of its being into a single symbol to include All. This symbol is to combine the intelligence (omniscience) of Man with the omnipotence typified by horns, and the creative rapture of the leaping Goat. This Pan is not intoxicated, but wholly insane, being beyond distinction (knowledge) as including all in itself; he is also immune to time, since whatever happens can only be within himself; that is, all events are equally the exercise of his functions, and therefore accompanied by rapture, since He has included all possibilities in His unity so that any change is part of His life, an act of love under will. 64 This is presumable once more the voice of the Angel. He bids the Adept pay less attention in the future to the transmutation of gross impressions into the raptures of union. The greater work is to cause the Unconscious to interpenetrate with the Angel. For such is the ultimate Sacrement is only too liable to be contented with the conscious joy of causing just those thoughts which have always been the source of error to glow with thoughts which have always been the source of error to glow with purity and splendour at the touch of the Angel. But it is far more important to renounce those rewards, ineffably holy and delightful though they be in order to perfect the Inmost Self, to purge it of personality and unite it with the Universe, though such Attainment lie too deep for direct conscious apprehension. 65 In a secret code the Adept affirms that he is of the same vox; (so to speak) as his Angel. It is not a union of opposites to produce a Tertium quid, but a realization of identity, like the return to consciousness from delirium, whose ecstasy bears no fruit involving new responsibilities, new possibilities of sorrow, but is all-sufficient to itself, with neither past nor future. The ``peeleld wand'' is the creative Energy of the Angel, stripped of all veils, pointing to the Zenith, ready and eager to act. The Adept exclaims with joy that he has aspired to unite himself with this Idea, and has attained. This concludes the description of the relations of the Adept and his Angel so far as the element of Earth, the concrete and manifest aspect of Nature, is concerned. The whole illusion has been destroyed; the bread has become the body of God. Yet this is but the lowest form of existence; in the next chapter we shall understand how the mind -- as distanct from the matter of thought is concentrated and sanctified by the Magick of the Angel.