Monastery Experiments: Invoking the Northern

Cross of Light
Over the last few weeks I’ve been on summer break and traveling. Recently while on a rip to
visit family in West Virginia I had one of the “ah-ha” moments. This insight greatly impacted
my work. While traveling and sharing a hotel room with my wife and daughter I didn’t have
the proper space to perform my usual ritual work. I brought a small “have Hoodoo will travel
kit”and modified the rituals to fit into my circumstances. Oddly enough this disruption in my
routine work lead to more free time for reading the lessons. It came while dozing on quiet flight
home. I immediately reread the various lessons and even checked myself against a few other
publications, notably Frater Atal’s the Lodge Zaraiguin. Honestly feel a bit dim for not making
this connection earlier. The following are a summation of my notes from the flight:

Each cross is a station of power, and has of specific loas. This is what the Fa represent . Earth,
water, air, and fire creating a pattern of each element in each element. The cross of earth there
for is the earth of earth, earth of water, earth of air, and earth of fire specifically. Each station is
represented by positive and negative set of twins ,mini Abraxos of sorts. These sets of twins are
the various Syzygies we work with in the lessons. The work of the lessons is learning to connect
to these various sets of energies and access these centers via the FA. The Fa function as sigilic
portals to these energies.

Cool. Good. Now what?

Understanding what these energies were was a big step forward however I now felt that I
needed to access these energies as directly as possible. I constructed a simple ritual. Creating
a physical Northern Cross of Light with the appropriate cards from the Carrefour
Tarot, homemade FA cards, and The Guede image from Spirit Windows.

There you go.

I set myself down in the center of this cross and vibrated the name of the corresponding Syzygy,
starting in the North and working my way around to the East. While vibrating the name I
visualized the FA. When I got to the center I recited the following prayer:
“Holy Spirits of the Northern Cross of Light,
I call to the master of the Northern Cross, whose name is Guede Nibbho!
Hail Guede Nibbho, please open the cross of light and bade me enter.”

I then sat in meditation,in turn focusing on each direction. I personified the images in the tarot
cards and addressed them by their Names and titles asking for access to and understanding of
the energies they represent. Below is an image of the specific direction with the cards and the
impression I received of the “flavor” of the direction themselves.

The northern cross. Guede- Nibbho Death, rebirth, matter, terrestrial matters, the physical. Real
world. Hence Bertiaux’s focus on explaining the clerical and technical aspects of the monastery.
This is the direction that deals with material matters such as location, money, rules, and
organization.

Initiate of the Northern Cross: Death. Becoming. Assuming a name to become yourself. The
turn towards the light. Earth in earth. The first steps upon the path. Initiation. Fresh Starts. The
light of divinity entering into matter.
Servant of the Northern Cross: dedicated to service, the cross available to initiate after
initiation. Armed with the light of knowledge ( gnosis?) banished ignorance. Doesn’t fear the
dark, uses the light of divinity. Learning to let go of the old

Priest of the Northern cross: Leaving behind the physical, Opens door to world of non action,
ego death perfect spirit. Joining self with divinity. Dedicated action. Death of imperfection (
This feels more like losing bad habits than becoming “perfect”)

Hierophant of the Northern cross: perfect matter, the wand, the phallus, authority, ingenious
creativity. The crystallization of spiritual power. The hierophant is a vehicle for the energies of
the Cross. The active use of the Cross.

After completing the circle I sat in silence, listening and thinking over what I had heard. I felt
very cold and tired. I was a bit cranky for the rest of the day. That night my dreams were filled
with death imagery and I spoke at length to a terrifyingly thin man who spoke in a nasal voice.
Our conversation was lengthy but what I recall most was that the told me that not all paths
require walking, now if was time to swim.