Description
The Lunar Mansions represent an ancient and distinctive method for dividing the zodiac up according to the motions of the Moon rather than the Sun. The Mansions are not particularly well-known by many in the English-speaking world, as they were primarily used and developed in India, China, and the Arabic world rather than in the Hellenistic tradition that has been passed down to us in the so-called West. Of note, since various systems exist, we use the tropical Lunar Mansions as exemplified in Christopher Warnock’s The Mansions of the Moon.
Understudied and poorly understood by many, the Lunar Mansions have a mystery all their own: for although they comprise a lunar zodiac, they are not Moon talismans per se. Rather, they are spirit domains activated by the travels of the Moon, each with its own qualities and wonders. One of the most excellent resources to come out in the English language in living memory is J.M. Hamade’s Procession of the Night Theatre.
These particular talismans of the 24th Lunar Mansion, whose Arabic name S’ad al Su’ud means the Luckiest of the Lucky, were made to serve their bearers in gaining intelligence and understanding in all sciences, and in esoteric knowledge in particular.
The Esoteric Knowledge talismans were created using a lesser-known talismanic recipe which differs substantially from other traditional significations of the 24th Lunar Mansion. In other traditional sources such as the Picatrix, 24th Lunar Mansion talismans are meant for increasing or protecting herds. The recently published translation of the Shams al Ma’arif by Amina Inloes notes that this mansion, good for “works of love,” is of “an earthen and airy nature” and “erases the [inauspicious] effects of what came before.” The grimoire Astromagia of Alfonso X, however, documents a version of the 24th Lunar Mansion talismans to give the bearer “intelligence and understanding in all sciences.”
These significations are perhaps not so different as they might first appear. In the Hermetic creation myth explicated in The Divine Pymander, human beings become embodied after being created by Nous (the mind of God) because Nature fell in love with them. According to this narrative, humans possess a dual nature because of the loving embrace of Nature: part immortal and part mortal, part celestial and part sublunary, human beings span the range of the cosmos on account of love. This cosmic spanning of mundane and divine perhaps mirrors the element-spanning “earthen and airy nature” of this mansion.
Our capacity to know of the world—all its sciences, all its mysteries—reflects the spark of the divine mind. True knowledge is an embodied intimacy with Nous, the mind of God. True love is a deep knowledge of the other.
Perhaps the central grimoire in this tradition of astrological magic in the so-called West is the Picatrix, which is less commonly known by its Arabic name Ghayat al-Hakim, which translates to The Goal/Aim of the Sage/Wise. The very first line of the book reads, “You should know, my dearest brother, that the best and most noble gift that God has given to humanity in this world is knowledge” (Book I, Chapter 1, tr. Greer & Warnock), and later in the same chapter: “This is the greatest gift that God gave to humanity, that they might seek to know and to understand.”
If the 24th Lunar Mansion is traditionally for works of love, then the seeking of wisdom, knowledge, and understanding is perhaps both an expression and in the service of the divine love that bequeathed these abilities and this magical art upon us. May our kindling of this spark of divine love in our lives bring an even greater intimacy with the cosmos.
Less abstractly, although the Esoteric Knowledge talismans were definitively not designed as wealth talismans, our experience thus far has been that one of the ways they operate is in opening pathways to access to knowledge. Idola Stellarum’s first batch of 24th Lunar Mansion talismans led to several serendipitous references to magical, occult, and esoteric books fall into our lap only to then discover a source selling the tomes—often rare, out of print, or expensive books from academic presses—at staggeringly discounted prices for inexplicable reasons (i.e., not just during the annual Brill or PSU sales!).
Immediately after introducing ourselves to this Esoteric Knowledge II talisman, the exact same effect occurred—an expensive edited volume from an academic publisher that felt practically tailor-made as a critical resource for Rain’s ongoing course on the worldview of astrological magic fell into our hands at a 90% discount. Another effect of this batch of talismans seems to be putting the bearer in touch with people with shared interests and invigorating esoteric knowledge through magical community.
In addition to access to knowledge, these Esoteric Knowledge talismans seem to encourage the bearer to tread down their own unique path, allowing for the confidence and wherewithal to explore personal rabbit holes and areas of interest. Our experience has been that they bring us toward embodied and spiritual knowing, more so than the cliché of ivory tower abstractions and intellectualizations—knowledge, that is, imbued with divine eros, the longing for our mind’s connection to the ten thousand things and therefore to the anima mundi that endows them all with their particularity and inherent interconnectivity.
Technical Details
The 24th Lunar Mansion Esoteric Knowledge talismans were ensouled between 11:52pm on Tuesday, May 27, 2024 and 12:21am on Monday, May 28, 2024.
Essential Features of the Election
For lunar mansion talismans, the Moon must be in the relevant lunar mansion while rising on the Ascendant or culminating on the Midheaven. In this election, the Moon was rising with the 24th Lunar Mansion on the Ascendant.
The most important factor in lunar mansion talismans is the condition of the Moon. In this election, Luna had no essential debilities, was moving with fast speed, and was not making an aspect within orb to either malefic planet. The Moon’s next aspect was a trine to Venus in Gemini.
Since the 1st house signifies the bearer of the talisman, we also look at the condition of the Lord of the Ascendant in lunar mansion elections. The sign of Aquarius was rising, making Saturn the Lord of the Ascendant. Saturn was peregrine, and was not making any aspect to Mars or possessing any other significant accidental debilities. Overall, Saturn’s condition was neither fortified nor afflicted, but neutral.
Note that for lunar mansion talismans, planetary hour and day are not essential considerations.
Further Magical Factors in the Election
In this election, the Moon was graced by a relatively rare and auspicious condition called bonification by enclosure. This condition occurs when the last aspect the Moon made was to one of the benefic planets (Venus or Jupiter) and the next aspect the Moon will make is also to a benefic planet. When benefic enclosure happens, it is like the exact opposite of the phrase “between a rock and a hard place”: it is like the Moon having her best friends, allies, and benefactors surrounding and supporting her. In this instance, the Moon was separating from a trine to Jupiter and making an applying trine to Venus. The harmonious soft aspects also contribute to the strength of this fortitude. The Moon would then quickly make a trine to the Sun in Gemini. Although neither benefic planet was in particularly positive condition (both were combust, Venus was peregrine, and Jupiter was in exile), Picatrix emphasizes the essential nature of the planets aspected more highly than their condition, rendering this a significant fortification of the Moon overall.
The positive involvement of all three of Ficino’s ‘Three Graces’ (Jupiter, Venus, Sun) in this election is a noteworthy boon. All three were ruled by Mercury in Taurus, who was in a partile sextile to the Lord of the Ascendant, Saturn in Pisces (William Lilly considers an aspect to be separating after six minutes difference of degree, and here Mercury and Saturn were within 3′ of one another). The intense mercuriality of this chart lends itself very well to the purposes of esoteric knowledge and learning. The Moon and Saturn are even within the terms of Mercury!
Reflection on Weaknesses of the Election
Overall this is a fairly straightforward magical election. The only noteworthy weakness is one we remarked on above, namely that the Moon is making an aspect to an afflicted planet (combust Venus). We note for completeness that some mages consider the Moon on the Ascendant to be an affliction based on a passage from Picatrix. However, we emphasize that both Picatrix and De Quindecim Stellis list copious electional recipes that include the Moon rising on the Ascendant, and we therefore conclude based on the conflicting information and our own experience that the tradition clearly licenses proceeding with astromagical elections that include this condition when divination supports doing so.
Recommendations
We consider these talismans beginner friendly and general purpose, and do not issue any particular cautions about their use. People with a natally afflicted Moon would be advised to perform a divination to ensure that this particular talisman would be a good fit.
Ceremonial Details
Gemstone & Talismanic Image
The grimoire Astromagia notes that among the magical purposes of the Twenty Fourth Lunar Mansion are to give the bearer “intelligence and understanding in all sciences.” The talismans themselves were carved from 30mm pyrite cabochons. In addition to their golden sheen, which echoes the incorruptibility of gold and knowledge, the most traditional version of these Astromagia talismans are to be made on “an iron lamina.” Iron pyrite, then, was a close facsimile in the world of gemstones.
The image of “a man in thought with a book open in his hands” was adapted from the Astromagia, with the number 24 in a circle above the book, and crescent moons on the cover of the book. The names of the mansion and its angel were carved on the front of the talisman, and ground olive leaves were affixed to the back.
The petition for this election called upon the angel of the 24th Lunar Mansion (known under various names, including Zahledo, Abrinael, Afratim Abriyas, and Abrine), to grant a variety of mental and spiritual boons, including sharpened memory and insight, guidance toward hidden and occult knowledge, and a grasp of the powers and artistry of the stars and their movements.
Ritual Setup
An altar spangled with white and silver was erected prior to the working, with offerings made to Zahledo, angel of the 24th Lunar Mansion, of food, spirits, fresh flowers, and two willow branches. Many white candles provided illumination for the ritual, as well as three candles ritually prepared and emblazoned with sigils and the kamea of the Moon.
Suffumigation
The Esoteric Knowledge talismans were suffumigated with olive leaves shipped to us fresh from Greece by a friend and carefully stored since our previous 24th Lunar Mansion working. Olive leaves are the suffumigation as stipulated in the Astromagia.
