Worshipping The Gods
Who worshipped Heru-pa-kraath have worshipped me; ill, for I am the worshipper.
Remember all ye that existence is pure joy; that all the sorrows are but as shadows; they pass & are done; but there is
that which remains. Liber al vel Legis 2:8-9
Examination of this seemingly simple line in Liber Legis confronts us with the first of the mysteries
of the manuscript of Hadit.
There seems to be a new god: Heru-pa-kraath. Also, there is an unexpected twist because Hadit, the
energy of the universe with a Cabalistic number of 10 linking him to Malkuth, appears to be contradicting Himself about
an order of worship.
Crowley and scholars of the Book of the Law to follow, agree that the name Heru-pa-kraath is another
version of the name Hoor-paar-kraat, or Harpocrates. These are Egyptian and Greek names for Horus the Child.
The name Ra-Hoor-Khuit is also part of this puzzle. Some literature refers to Ra-Hoor-Khuit as a
brother to Hoor-paar-kraat. But in other interpretations, they seem to be references to the same person, but at different
times. Harpocrates is Horus the Child, depicted as a babe with a finger held to his lips. Ra is an Egyptian reference to a
Sun God. Ra-Hoor-Khuit, a hawk-headed man, is the adult version of Horus. And he also is referred to in Egyptian mythology
as Heru-em-akhuti, the Sun God.
Heru is an Egyptian name for Horus.
Thus we have establish that Heru-pa-kraath, Hoor-paar-kraat and Heru-em-akhuti are all names for
the Horus, the Crowned and Conquering Child, who rules over the new Aeon.
It seems right when Hadit, the energy of all things, identifies himself with Horus at the first
part of the verse: "Who worshipped Heru-pa-kraath have worshipped me." If Nuit and Hadit through union are creators of the
universe, then isn't the god figure Horus part of this creation?
But the sentence doesn't end there. It is broken with a semi-colon, and then comes the word "ill,"
an old Scottish word that means "immoral," "nauseated," or "hostile." In other words don't do it. "For I am the worshipper,"
the sentence ends.
What is this? Are we not to worship the Gods?
Crowley offers a brilliant explanation of this verse in his book, The Law is for All. He concludes
that the shadow of Harpocrates is called silence. "Yet his silence is an act of adoration, not the dumb callousness of heaven
toward man, but the supreme ritual, the silence of supreme orgasm, the stilling of all voices in perfect rapture."
Crowley continues: "Harpocrates is also the dwarf-soul, the Secret Self of every man . . . Hadit
knows Nuit by virue of his 'going' or 'love.' It is therefore wrong to worship Hadit; one is to be Hadit, and worship Her."
He writes that "it is bad magick to admit that one is other than one's inmost self. One should plunge
passionately into every possible experience . . . So long as one remains 'one's self," one is overwhelmed by the universe;
destroy the sense of self, and every event is equally an expression of one's will."
With this thought, we find easy understanding of verse 9: "Remember all ye that existence is pure
joy; that all the sorrows are but as shadows; they pass & are done; but there is that which remains."
That which remains is ourselves. Once the ego is destroyed, and our true will realized, we still
remain. Crowley explains that we are matter that belongs to Nuit's creation, "equal and opposite to the sum total of all the
others."
Even though our existence brings sorrows, if we keep our eyes fixed upon the light, constantly fixed
on our will, the troubles that come along will always be but shadows.
And thus we find ourselves understanding the reason for the image of Harpocrates, the babe with
a finger at his lips, and his shadow known as silence. Horus the Child shares a great secret. The secret of worshipping Nuit
is a silent adoration through love of one another, love of her creation, and sharing the rapture of our existence.
In doing so, we let the sorrows pass like shadows, knowing they will, indeed, pass.
Copyright - James Donahue
