The Star and Dragon Diagram of the Fellowship of Isis and Ancient Chinese Alchemy ~
Part I
by Linda Iles |
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Editor's Note: The
following
article is an in depth look at the
Star of Ishtar and how it is connected to ancient Chinese Inner
Alchemy. We will
be presenting Linda's article in
three parts.
Inner Alchemy The following quotes from the writings of Lady Olivia Robertson, ArchPrs. are of particular interest in
the context of this article: "The
Star of Ishtar and Isis equals
TIME. Direction. Activity. YANG. I found the Chinese Mandala with
seven
coils which is Male, Yang. The Male
chromosomes are XY which equals seven. Female chromosomes are YIN, XX
which
equals eight. Octave in music is
eight. 4 x 8 equals 32 (the number of working degrees). I
received direct inspiration from ISIS
for the WEB (of Tiamat). The coiled
spiral equals SPACE, symbolized by four spheres of Eternity - the body
of Nuit,
Tiamat, other space Goddesses
spreading. This derives from the circle of the Absolute - ATEN. The
coils from the
spiral of the Cosmos form material,
etheric, astral and spiritual. YIN (around Divine Matrix)."
~
Olivia Robertson (the two quotes above are from a private letter)
"Ritual
is just such an attempt
to mark the flow of transient
existence with spiritual symbolism that evokes other spheres. Strike
one note, for instance
"C" of an octave and you receive an
echo both below and above from higher and lower notes "C". It
is the same with the spectrum, with
echoing rainbows: with violet and ultra-violet. And so it is with each
one of us.
Only a thirtieth part of us exists
through our physical bodies. Our greater Selves stem from the Divine
matrix of eternal
reality. For Eternity is not
infinite length nor even infinite shortness: it is All Time and All
Space and All
Consciousness. There is no
beginning and no end for the Deities.
And we, children of the Mother of all beings, are therefore as immortal as She.
For the Mother is expressed through Her offspring.
The
Star and Dragon Diagram of the College of Isis depicts the four-coiled
Dragon, Tiamat,
Goddess of Babylon, bisected by the
eight-pointed star of Ishtar, the Goddess who descended and ascended all
spheres to rescue
Her consort Tammuz, Shepherd of the
Starry Flocks. This diagram may be used to depict the coiled fire of
the Life Force
impregnated by the cosmic Rays of
Divine attributes. Where the rays intersect the four planes are the
points which give
the 32 working and the Mystical 33rd
Magi degrees of the College of Isis. After this diagram had been
designed, I found
a Chinese picture showing an
eight-pointed star superimposed over a seven-coiled dragon. Students
working with the zodiacal
year of twelve lunations could use a
twelve rayed star. For our present purpose we use this diagram to
illustrate the
development of consciousness through
the spiral of Space bisected by Time." ~ Olivia Robertson (above quotes from the introduction of "Panthea, Initiations and Festivals of the Goddess".)
Olivia
has always stated that she was
inspired by Isis to create the "Star
of Ishtar and the Web of the Universe and The Tiamat Dragon Around the
Divine Matrix
Diagram". (From this point forward,
the diagram will be referred to as The Star of Ishtar.) After creating
the Star of Ishtar for the
Fellowship of Isis, Olivia found an ancient Chinese diagram which
consisted of a dragon with seven
coils and with an eight rayed star
superimposed over it. But just what ancient Chinese diagram was
it? I always
wondered about this, and so did
several other FOI members.
Recently
some information came to light which helped to solve this puzzle. I
found
it when reading about a branch of
Daoist Chinese Inner Alchemy named Neidangong, Nei Dan, or Neidan, whose
name translates as "inner elixir
skill". This branch of alchemy is based on the philosophy of the Dao
or Tao. It deals with inner or
spiritual transformation rather than transmutation of physical elements.
I
presented my findings to Starsheen,
AU, to deTraci Regula, AU, to
Caroline Wise, AU, to Elda Lantz, ArchDrs., and to my Alchemy teacher,
Dr. Gina Pollaro, Prs.
H., all of whom serve as teachers in
the FOI. They were intrigued. So I sent a copy of my findings and
conclusions to Lady Olivia. She
wrote back: "How exciting for me to read that you have found the
Chinese diagram.
I am a believer in the Tao (Daoist)
philosophy. Do write about Ho-tu (also Hetu) and Lo-shu (also
Luoshu). Our
Star of Ishtar balances the Male or
Yang and Yin, Female in each of our cells. It also relates to Inner
Elixir Skill Alchemy, Neidan. Our
Lightning Flash!"
Heaven and Earth, Dragon and Turtle The
diagram that Olivia found
was a variation of the circular form
of the Xiantian diagram. It is one of the two earliest known diagrams
of ancient China.
The Xianting diagram was developed
by followers of the Dao, or Tao. The term Dao originally meant the
revolution or the way
of the heavens about the earth. This
movement of the heavens was regarded as the cause of the phenomena on
earth. The Tao
was located about the celestial
pole, which was considered to be the seat of power because all revolves
about it.
In
the course of time, this concrete expression
became abstract, and the Tao was
viewed as the universal cosmic energy behind the visible order of
nature. This cosmic energy
regarded as ‘being’ is impersonal,
omnipresent and viewed as ‘eternally becoming.’ The cosmic force
of the Dao produced ‘yin’ and
‘yang’, the negative and positive, female and male principles of nature.
These by their interaction brought
forth heaven, earth, and all beings. The
Xianting diagram was developed by the Daoists for use in “Nei Dan” or
Inner Alchemy.
In Nei Dan all materials were
believed to consist of the prime substance Dao, but they were believed
to differ in properties and
proportion according to the relative
content of yang and yin. The interplay of these two qualities as odd
and even,
light and dark, warm and cold, male
and female is the basis for manifestations of all natural substances,
all forms of life,
and the forces and cycles of nature.
Nei Dan, the Inner Alchemy of the Dao was used to accomplish spiritual
transformation
through meditations and rituals by
balancing and harmonizing the inner elements of being. Xiantian
translates as “Before Heaven” or “Early
Heaven”. The whole of the Xiantian
diagram is a series of concentric circles halved into contrasting black
and white
areas throughout, representing the
contrasting forces of yin and yang. According to the “Suet Wen Jie Zi,”
the oldest dictionary of China,
the Chinese word “Yi” means “Sun and Moon,” and is the emblem
of yin and yang. Yang is represented
as solar, colored white, Yin is lunar, colored black. Note the seven
concentric circles
that surround the eight rayed star.
In later periods this diagram was anthropomorphed in Chinese art into a
dragon with seven
coils, which bore upon it a
superimposed eight rayed star or eight spoked wheel. This superimposed
diagram of the wheel or
star was called Luoshu or Lo Shu,
the diagram of the terrestrial turtle (which will be described further
in part II).
The
Star of Ishtar diagram consists of
a circle of spiraled coils that when
colored in form two distinct halves with the levels tinted in
contrasting hues. The manner
in which the levels of the FOI
diagram are colored in not only distinguish one level from the other,
the upper half of each
level is distinguished from the
lower half through the use of contrasting colors along the East-West
line, accomplishing through
color what the Xiantian diagram does
in black and white. The Xiantian diagram is a form
of the ancient
Daoist or Taoist Chinese Cosmic
Number Diagram known as the “Hetu” pronounced “Ho Tu,” or “Dragon
Writing” that according to Chinese
legend first appeared in 2200 BCE on the back of a dragon-horse. It
corresponds to
the forces of heaven. On this
ancient Chinese Dragon chart odd numbers are considered male and even
numbers are female, which
is also true of the FOI Star of
Ishtar diagram of the Fellowship of Isis. In the
Chinese diagram the
numbers were arranged in opposing
pairs which could generate a spiral both inward and outward from the
central area of the
diagram which is corresponded to the
number five. Olivia has written of the Star of Ishtar diagram that
anyone can follow
the rituals spiraling both inward or
outward of the Divine Matrix, depending on the spiritual goal they wish
to accomplish.
Olivia has written in the
introduction to “Melusina, Life Centres of the Goddess”: In
Eternal Reality, Source of Deity,
there is no beginning and no end. Hence there is no distinction as to
which is the greater,
Goddess or God. When Deity manifests
from the unmanifest Matrix, the Void, Space is created. And where there
is Space there
is measurement, Which is Time. For
every circle has a point within from which may be measured stars. And
through each star
is formed a spiral which forms
myriad spirals. But the informing Mind which creates Space and Time and
stars and spirals is
Deity. And Deity in order to bring
about change divides into Two, Goddess and God. And the Goddess is
Daughter of the Matrix
and Space, and the God is the Son of
the point of Light and of Time. Through their mutual Love springs forth
Creation.
Both Goddess
and God have two Powers within Them in perfect balance. These are the
golden power of
Love and the silver Power of Truth.
Their polarity produces the Pantheon of Goddesses and Gods. The two
powers, named Yang
and Yin, Positive and Negative,
Rajas and Tamas, when in equilibrium produce statis - Peace, Nirvana,
Sattva. But when they
are unbalanced they produce
movement; they create worlds. Hence there is no harmony without stasis:
no creation without action.
Both are of divine origin. Five Sacred Elements In
this ancient Chinese inner alchemical system, the number five
represented the human adept and the all permeating,
all encompassing potency of the Five
Phases called “Wuxing.” In the Star of Ishtar, this fifth level is
symbolized
by the central egg-shaped oval that
contains the Ankh. This center, called the Divine Matrix, along with the
four levels of
Alma Mater, Flamma Vestae, Porta
Mystica and Dulce Domum adds to five. These five
phases or elements
are referred to in the FOI ritual
“Evening: Rite of the Five Elements” found in the liturgy book “Dea,
Rites and Mysteries of the Goddess”
thus, providing another correspondence to the five ancient Chinese
alchemical levels
of being. The elements as
represented in our FOI rituals are named earth, air, fire, water and
spirit. The elements of the
Inner Alchemy of Dao are Wood,
Metal, Water, Earth and Fire. These five Daoist alchemical elements
represented the unseen
activities of the dual forces of
creation, Yin (feminine, passive) and Yang (masculine, active). These
elements constantly
alternate and manifest as the Five
Movements, or ‘Wu Yun’ which are the changing seasons and forces of
nature
in our outer physical world. Within
us they define the various stages, phases or conditions of inner being. The
numbers one through five in this
system of inner alchemy correspond to the period or condition of
formlessness, a primal generation
of energy that was called by the
ancient Chinese alchemists, Xiantian “Before Heaven“ or “Early Heaven.”
The numbers five though nine
manifest in the outer spheres or physical plane called Houtian or “Later
Heaven.”
The number ten in Daoist alchemy is
the number of completion, corresponding to the ten lunar months of human
gestation. In
contrast the various levels of our
Star of Ishtar, counted according to their colored levels, amount to
eight, four levels
each of two colors each. When the
sum of their total number eight is increased by the addition of one,
representing the oval,
egg-shaped center or Divine Matrix,
the total comes to nine, corresponding to the nine solar months of human
gestation.
Back to College of Isis Back to Star of Ishtar
Note: This article is included here by request of FOI Co-Founder Olivia Robertson.
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