Exploring the Guardians of the F(a)eri(e) Tradition

Lords of the Outer Dark: Exploring the Guardians of the F(a)eri(e) Tradition

Storm Faerywolf

Our legends tell us that we do not know if the names we have for them are their own or of those beings to which they hold their allegiance. In either case their names are descriptive keys that attempt to define their energetic presence which we invoke in our rites so that they may witness, charge, and protect us when necessary. At one time in our history the names given below (usually referred to as the English names) as well as their post-initiatory counterparts were considered secret, but so much has been written about them publicly at this point that I have decided to present them here for those who are genuinely interested in forming a relationship with them.

It is important to remember that while these beings are certainly geared toward assisting us in our own evolution, we need to remain in control of our own lives. They are not human; are not bound by physical limitations, and so they sometimes can lead us in directions that —while powerful— might not be the safest or the most pleasant for us in the moment. As when working with any otherworldly being: use caution.

That having been said, working with the Guardians can be one of the most fulfilling and enlightening aspects of practicing Feri tradition Witchcraft. With them as our allies there are many new doors open to us as we seek to traverse the inner realms. There is much that they can teach us, both about ourselves and of the deeper magicks. Like the butterfly from the chrysalis we seek to emerge as the gods and goddesses that we were born to be; these shining beings our brilliant guides. To this end we call the Guardians ever closer. May there ever be peace between us.

The Guardians: Part One

Eriol Crow

Dragons and Wyrms that Are Wise

Before I continue, I want to note my draconic inflection on the Guardians. With “Wyrms that Are Wise” and passing references to “dragon speech” and other comments, someone who looks through the archive or even this entry might think I have a huge draconic emphasis. I do not feel it’s a huge one, but I have to admit it’s there. My experience of dragons has been idiosyncratic, and I’ve had off-and-on again contact with dragons for years (originally via G., then K., and occasionally others). I see dragons as an interesting other “group” of beings in the Otherworlds: they aren’t gods, but sometimes the gods can be draconic or dragon-like. I think the gods and dragons often share notes, trade lore, favors, etc.

Patrick Dunn discusses dragons in passing. As I wrote in Raven Singer, Dunn “classes dragons as ‘Otherworld Entities’—existing ‘outside our universe’ & visiting ‘for arcane purposes,’ ‘truly alien’ that are ‘sometimes…not even spirits.’” Meanwhile, Jan Fries addresses dragons and titans, giants, and other primeval elemental numinal intelligences in Seidways and elsewhere. Fries points to these classes of intelligence as the primal forces that humans represent the gods deposing and usurping their power: Apollo replaces Hyperion, Zeus deposes Cronos, and Apollo replaces the older Pythian goddess and cult. Some of my peers don’t care much for dragons, have had bad experiences with them, and I’ve found that the older ones demand a certain amount of formality, civility, and ceremony. And a good amount of respect.[2]

In regards to the Guardians, somehow, I had the sense early on that the Guardians had a draconic aspect, or they could for me. And as I worked with them, they actually gave me/showed me WtaW associated with them, had me puzzle out the meaning, significance, mystery of those WtaW.

The Guardians

I recently realized that the Guardians saved my sanity, and they possibly saved my life...

The Four Kings in the Grimoires Tradition



Author of Omega Magick, seems anonymous

The Four Kings Zoroaster discovered… ‘those four spirits of great virtue who standin cruciatas locis, that is in east, west, south, and north,whose names are as follows: Oriens, Amaymon, Paymon and Egim, who are spirits of the major hierarchy and who have under them twenty-five legions of spirits each…’
 -(Cecco d’Ascoli 1257–1327 victim of the Inquisition).

Robert FLUDD ~ Integrvm Morborvm Mysterivm Siue Medicinae Catholicae ~ (1631) Fig. 753:

According to Frater Ashen Chassan: 

...The holy table is positioned according to the directions and has the primarily 'king' pointing in its proper direction during evocation. These "horizontal" gatekeepers direct the level of interaction and excange between both infernal and celestial spirits of all ranks. They are considered "morally neutral" for this task (according to Archangel Metetron) and are designed specifically to fill the complexity of this task in unison. From what Ive been told about them and from them individually, conjurations-evocation would not be possible in many instances without their -Direct- assistance. Each of the 4 fuffil a very specific function which completes the proper level of exchange between the various spiritual/astral/celestial realms and the physical plane on earth.

The first description I got of them was, “As we (the archangels and angels) are the vertical, they are the horizontal. They are the morally neutral yet powerful governors between the planes of existence.” I hope this helps some who wanted further clarification on what I was getting at.

BELOW- Figure is the Demon King Maymon, with angel name GBRIAL (Gabriel) and godname HINV (Alhim). Maymon (Amaymon) - a black bird - as King of the South." Cyprianus, Clavis Inferni, late 18th century. Clavis Inferni by Stephen Skinner, Golden Hoard, 2009.







BELOW- "Uricus (Urieus,Oriens) King of the East, with MIKAL (Michael) and IHVH - a red-crowned and winged serpent." Cyprianus, Clavis Inferni, late 18th century. Clavis Inferni by Stephen Skinner, Golden Hoard, 2009.







BELOW- Figure is the Demon King of the North Egyn, with angel URIAL (Uriel) and godname AChTh - a black bear-like animal with a short tail. Cyprianus, Clavis Inferni, late 18th century. Clavis Inferni by Stephen Skinner, Golden Hoard, 2009.







BELOW- "Paymon,Demon King of the West, with RPAL (Raphael) and ShDI (Shaddai). - a black cat-like animal with horns, long whiskers and tail. Cyprianus, Clavis Inferni, late 18th century. Clavis Inferni by Stephen Skinner, Golden Hoard, 2009.

In regards to this idea of Directional Guardians mentioned in my last post, there is an interesting parallel in the Mahabharata:

The four younger Pandavas decided to embark on a campaign of conquest, to make Kings acknowledge the overlordship of Yudhishtra, so that he could perform the Rajasooya Yagna. Arjuna set out to the north, Bheema left for the east. Sahadeva marched to the south, and Nakula led the armies towards the west.

Yudhishtra is the son of Yamaraja, god of Truth & Death
Arjuna is the son of the Sky/Storm god Indra
Bheema is the son of the Wind god Vayu
Sahadeva and Nakula are twin sons of Ashwini Twins, the gods of Healing / physicians to the gods

The Guardians: Part One

Eriol Crow

Directionality, Enclosure, Space

Eriol Crow

...Berque is where I learned the term lococentrism, and I’ve also learned of psycholococentrism for a more psychological approach to the concept. Berque argues that our experiences of our lives and identities are necessarily mediated by our environments, which serve as spaces for us to project our own emotional and intellectual lives upon but which we also then use as mirrors for apprehending ourselves. Drawing on philosopher Watsuji Tetsurô, Berque situates human life as defining itself in relation to the environment that humans perceive their lives as occurring within. That is, we mediate our experiences and our understanding of those experiences through our environment in a process termed mediance. To do so, we traject (as Berque terms) it ourselves with the environment: we both project ourselves onto the world but we also allow the world to penetrate us in return.[4] From a mystical and magical perspective, we are always interconnected with the broader world whether we know it or not, and our connections to the world influence and shape our experiences of the Otherworlds, of this world, and of ourselves.

Given all of this, why directionality matters became apparent to me. Directions matter, our experience of the spatial quality of the world matters to how we think of ourselves and our reality. From there, for me at least, it’s been a matter of paying attention to the cues I’ve given myself for making sense of my own directionality, but perhaps more importantly to notice how my own “Talker” and “Sphere of Sensation” (Dariar) has been enclosed, leaving me often feeling cut-off and isolated from the worlds around me—and also how I’ve compartmentalized myself. These realizations have also led me to consider other, related magical metaphors: paths (including the hermetic Tree of Life associations), tunnels (with the Qlippothic, Nightside of the Tree associations), doors & veils, and even the Abyss as that outer experiential horizon that hedges us from everything else.

From a more quotidian perspective, though, this process helps demonstrate one purpose behind casting sacred space: asserting your own magical and spiritual presence within the world and Otherworlds by bridging yourself and your mind to the sacred and magical. Casting sacred space also becomes a means to assert your own emotional and intellectual and memory-based identity on your own terms rather than within the terms of everyday life...

Four Guardians of the Four Compass Directions

Mark Schumacher

At the heart of Chinese mythology are four spiritual creatures (Sì Shòu 四獸) -- four celestial emblems -- each guarding a direction on the compass. In China, the four date back to at least the 2nd century BC. Each creature has a corresponding season, color, element, virtue, and other traits. Further, each corresponds to a quadrant in the sky, with each quadrant containing seven seishuku, or star constellations (also called the 28 lunar mansions or lodges; for charts, see this outside site). Each of the four groups of seven is associated with one of the four celestial creatures. There was a fifth direction -- the center, representing China itself -- which carried its own seishuku. In Japan, the symbolism of the four creatures appears to have merged with and been supplanted by the Shitennō (Four Heavenly Kings). The latter four are the Buddhist guardians of the four directions who serve Lord Taishakuten (who represents the center), and are closely associated with China’s Theory of Five Elements. In any case, the four animals are much more prevalent in artwork in China than in Japan, although in Japan one can still find groupings of the four creatures. The four were probably introduced to Japan from China sometime in the 7th century AD, for their images are found on the tomb walls at Takamatsuzuka 高松塚 in Nara, which was built sometime in the Asuka period (600 - 710 AD). They are also found on the base of the Yakushi Triad 薬師三尊像 at Yakushi-ji Temple 薬師寺, also in Nara.

In the same book, Walters explains: “However, it seems that before the adoption of the Four Celestial Emblems, there were only three -- the Feng Bird (or Phoenix), the Dragon, and the Ch’i-lin (or unicorn). Bronze mirrors usually portray cosmological patterns and symbolism on the back. Those of the Tang period (618 - 906 AD) show all twelve, or sometimes the 28 or even 36 animals of the Chinese Zodiac, and those of an earlier period depict the four celestial emblems referred to above. But the very earliest mirrors show only the three: the Ch’i-lin, the Feng-huang, and the Dragon. Because of the astronomical significance, the White Tiger replaced the Ch’i-lin, and the Phoenix gave way to the Red Bird, which is of uncertain identity. Thus the Tortoise was a later but not the last addition, for many mystical texts refer to the northern constellation not as the tortoise, but as the Black Warrior.”

P’an Ku

Exerpt from “Chinese Mythology: An Encyclopedia
of Myth and Legend” by Derek Walters, ISBN: 1855380803
The legendary architect of the universe. Oddly enough, the story of how P’an Ku created the universe is now so firmly established in Chinese folklore, it would be forgivable to assume that the story of P’an Ku was one of China’s earliest legends. However, the great philosopher Ssu-ma Ch’ien makes no mention of it, and in fact P’an Ku does not make his appearance until the 4th century AD. The legend, ascribed to the brush of Ko Hung (Kung) is likely to have been a tale imported from Southeast Asia. It is highly unlikely that it would have been fabricated by a Taoist writer such as Ko Kung, because it would have been second-nature to an educated Chinese writer to introduce established characters of Chinese mythology, but none are present. The date of its composition may be even later, as its first appearance may not be earlier than the 11th century Wai Chi (Records of Foreign Lands). The substance of the legend is that P’an Ku chiselled the universe for eighteen thousand years, and as he chiselled, so he grew himself, six feet every day. When his work was complete, his body became the substance of the universe: his head became the mountains, his breath the wind. From his eyes the sun and moon were made, while the stars were made from his beard. His limbs became the four quarters, his blood the rivers, his flesh the soil, his hairs the trees and plants, his teeth and bones the rocks and minerals, and his sweat the rain. Finally, the lice on his body become the human race. In China, he holds the hammer and chisel with which he formed the universe, and is surrounded by the Four Creatures (tortoise, phoenix, dragon, and unicorn.