In Liber Null, Peter Carroll presented Liber MMM, a training programme for candidates seeking initiation in the Illuminates of Thanateros (IOT).
This is the programme, which I myself followed for nearly a year, and in my opinion is probably one of the best programmes available for those seeking real success in magic. Liber MMM takes some yoga practices (namely Asana, Pranayama and Pratyahara) and also some methods of concentration and visualization to equip the magician with the basic techniques needed for achieving the altered states required for magical working.
Here, I present the basic techniques of yoga and concentration mentioned above. You should really spend about six months practising these
techniques, before taking a break or moving on to other meditation exercises, and also do these exercise for about a month before moving on to working with sigils, as mastery of these basic techniques will bring you more success with sigil magic (you need to be able to control your own mind before you can have any reasonable success with sigils).
This is also a daily practice, not something you do when you are bored or there is nothing on TV, Peter Carroll uses the words “fanatical and morbid” determination, need I say more about the level of commitment required!
You need to record your daily practice, along with scores on how well you think the session went, and any observations or feelings that arise. The best way to do this is in a notebook or diary, a larger one is better, so you have plenty of space to write. You will use this magical diary a lot, and even more so when you move on to actual magical workings. There is a suggested format for recording your work in the Appendices.
Part 1 – Yoga
Yoga is not just about being able to perform physical contortions, yoga refers to many disciplines and practices both physical and mental, and there are many forms and schools. We will only be dealing here with the three forms mentioned above, and none require you to be able to put your legs behind your neck, so don’t worry!
Work through these practices, in the order they are presented here. It is very hard at first, and you feel you can’t go on, but you can.
Asana
This means simply “sitting down”. Asana very simply is the practice of being able to remain completely still. It sounds easy until you actually try it. Find any comfortable position, for example in a chair or kneeling.
Lying down may not be a good idea; it will probably make you sleepy.
Keep that position. Try not to move at all, fix your eyes dead centre, don’t move a muscle. Try this for five minutes each day. When you can manage fifteen minutes easily, move on to the next part.
Pranayama
This means “restraint of the prana or breath”. Have you ever been truly aware of your breathing, apart from times when you are out of breath or your rate of breathing increases rapidly? Probably not, it’s an unconscious process. Carry on from the above practice, so still in your Asana position, start to focus on your breathing, breath in, hold for a second with your lungs full of air, then breath out. Keeping your focus and attention on your breathing. Now try to hold your lungs full for two seconds, and then build up eventually to four seconds before exhaling. Practice this every day in combination with Asana, first for fifteen minutes, then when you can reach thirty minutes, move on to the next part. Its important here to be aware of your own limitations, don’t rush this. Also you should seek advice from your doctor first if you are suffering from any medical conditions.
Pratyahara
Means “withdrawal of the senses”. The aim of this practice is to withdraw yourself completely from the external world, and achieve an internal stillness in the mind. In Liber MMM, this is reduced to a simple
practice called “Not Thinking”. This is the final part of your yoga practice, and is also the hardest part. As soon as you still your mind, you find it full of thoughts, which constantly bombard it. You need to work hard at this, after a while you will achieve a state where you can simply observe your thoughts and let them pass by, not dwelling on them. Any external sounds, smells or tastes must also be allowed to pass by in the same way.
When you have achieved some degree of mastery of these techniques so you are able to practice them everyday for thirty minutes, you should move on to Part 2.
Part 2 – Concentration
This is the beginning of achieving the trance states necessary for much magical working, especially with sigils and visualization.
Object Concentration
This technique is simple, you find some object, anything, and you stare at it for as long as you can. You must resist the urge to look away, and stop your mind from trying to distort the image. At first this is hard, but carry on, and do it whenever you can as well as during your daily practice sessions. A good technique you can use here is also to use a mirror, to stare at your reflection, looking deep into your own eyes for as long as you can. Mirrors have a lot of occult use, and are used in many magical traditions and techniques, so this is a practice that is worth trying. This is also an important technique used for word and pictorial sigil magic (see later chapter).
Image Concentration
Take an image, such as a simple shape or a more complicated three dimensional shape, and aim to see it for as long as possible in your mind’s eye. This is hard because your mind starts to loose interest after a while, the image isn’t stable, it flickers, it twists and distorts. You need to concentrate your focus on keeping that image there in your mind for as long as possible. If simple shapes don’t work, try more complex shapes, or objects. This technique is important for visualising entities and god
forms, and creating your own thought forms. It is also important for visualizing sigils.
Sound Concentration
Often we here sounds in our mind, how often have your heard a song or tune, and said “I can’t get that song out of my head”! This is another important magical technique, blocking out all other thoughts and sounds with one we are using as part of a working. Select a simple sound, for example “Om”, “Yod He Vau He”, or even “Jack and Jill”! Keep repeating it over and over again in your mind, no matter how bored you seem to be of it. If you get to the point where it keeps repeating over and over again, and you start hearing it in your sleep, and it becomes like the
“song you can’t get out of your head”, result! This technique is important for acoustic sigils, words of power, mantras, and other magical workings, which use sound.