On Baphomet, the Serpent and the Lion, and the Child of Chaos and Babalon

Baphomet, by Chuk Vinson

"I believe in one secret and ineffable LORD; and in one Star in the company of Stars of whose fire we are created, and to which we shall return; and in one Father of Life, Mystery of Mystery, in His name CHAOS, the sole viceregent of the Sun upon Earth; and in one Air the nourisher of all that breaths.

And I believe in one Earth, the Mother of us all, and in one Womb wherein all men are begotten, and wherein they shall rest, Mystery of Mystery, in Her name BABALON.

And I believe in the Serpent and the Lion, Mystery of Mystery, in His name BAPHOMET..."

-from the Creed of the Ecclesia Gnsotica Catholica (EGC)

Goodness, it's been a long time since I found myself at about 30,000 feet on a Southwest flight, bound to who-knows-where, memorizing the Gnostic Creed in preparation for my Confirmation in the E.G.C. It was an exciting time for me, I think I had made it to my I* in the OTO, and I was going to be confirmed in a white robe at a Gnostic Mass that was being performed by Cathy (neé Craig) Berry and Leanne Mason Berry. I didn't want to screw it up.

I remember digesting the bits about Chaos, eating it right up and understanding it in ways I couldn't explain. I remember grooving to the bits on Babalon, in whose cup I saw myself swimming in with abandon.

But then I got to that Baphomet part.

Chaos gets a whole bunch of stuff. Babalon gets less, but still, it touches on Mysteries that can be readily explored.

And then there's the Serpent and the Lion, in his name Baphomet.

It's a bit sparse, there.

I went into Levi, and read about Baphomet there. I read through a lot of the references to Baphomet in Crowley's writings that Google can provide on a site search of Hermetic.com. I looked into the Greek lion-headed serpent pieces I found here and there, and I finally just kind of gave up. It's not like I actually understood half of what I was reading, and the other half was getting consumed in all the other stuff I've been working on since then.

But then Harper went to New Orleans for a Mass at Alombrados, and while in the vicinity picked up a little picture of Baphomet that started residing in our Temple space. And she had dreams, and visions of Baphomet in her operations of the Great Work. And she made a little statue of that goat-headed god that destroys the destroyer, and he became mighty among us.

And then I started performing the Gnostic Mass as Priest. And I understood a thing about how Baphomet is the offspring of Hadit and Nuit, of Chaos and Babalon, and its role in the creation and generation of existence as we know it, as we experience it, and as we want it to feel as we dive into it, all senses blazing, and raw, and beautiful.

And then I started to see that it was also the married Red Queen and White King of alchemy, the precursor to the Stone of the Wise, in some systems. It is the energetic constant that creates, that takes the raw powers of the Sun and turns it into everything we experience, and everything we experience it through.

And I'm still young in this path. I've read through Frater Sabazius' discussion of Baphomet as the offspring of Chaos and Babalon. I'm looking forward to the 2016 O.T.O. Women's Symposium eucharistic rite that is based on the Marriage of Chaos and Babalon as discussed in that link. I'm looking forward to exploring where we end up as a result, when that Lion and that Serpent is created.

Baphomet kicks ass.

And in keeping with this theme, I received in the mail this afternoon the coolest representation of Baphomet I've ever seen. Chuk Vinson, who many of you might remember as the artist who created the work "Anatomy Occultus" that pops up in the background of my profile pics on Facebook on occasion, has finished his Baphomet piece. Here's me with the print:

It's now available from the Dove and Serpent store, and all proceeds will go to supporting the local lodge at the following link:

http://shop.doveserpent-oto.org/prints/

I can't recommend enough that you get a copy of this print in your temple space as soon as possible. The Baphomet of Levi is pretty awesome, don't get me wrong, but Chuk's work captures the animal nature of this entity that crops up when you actually get in touch with it. You can feel the coarseness of the hair, smell the goatiness of its potency, feel it move and move you at the same time when you contemplate this image.

He really nailed it.