DEGREE III: THE SECRET ORDER (THIRD ORDER)

RUBEDO → AUREDO

Grade 9=2: Magus

THE WORD GRADE — WISDOM, THE LOGOS

Sephirah: Chokmah (Wisdom)

Beyond Form: Empyrean (approaching)

Tarot Path: 12 (Beth/ב - The Magician)

Archangel: Raziel (Chokmah)

Fourfold Path: Master → approaching Prince

Alchemical Stage: Rubedo (completion) → Auredo (beginning)

Body: Glorified

Magical Level: Beyond levels (pure Spirit)

Overview

The Magus is rare.

Most who complete the Great Work remain as Magisters Templi, serving humanity from that station. Few are called to ascend further.

The Magus dwells in Chokmah (Wisdom) — the second Sephirah, the realm of pure dynamic force, the Logos, the Word.

Where the Magister embodies Understanding (Binah), the Magus embodies Wisdom (Chokmah).

Where the Magister receives, the Magus transmits.

The Magus is the living Word (Logos). They speak reality into being.

The Tarot Path

Path 12 (Beth/ב) - The Magician

Connection: Kether → Binah

Experience: Channeling divine intention into structured form, becoming the conduit through which the One creates the Many

Symbolism:

• The Magician standing at the altar, tools before him (wand, cup, sword, pentacle)
• "As above, so below" — one hand pointing up, one down
• The lemniscate (infinity symbol) above the head
• The Word made flesh

Work:

• Speaking new reality into being
• Channeling pure creative force
• Transmitting the Word (Logos) from Kether to Binah and below

What Is a Magus?

The Living Word (Logos)

The Magus is the embodiment of the Logos — the creative Word, the principle of divine reason, the first emanation that brings order to chaos.

In Christianity: Christ is the Logos ("In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God" — John 1:1)

In Hermeticism: The Logos is the creative principle, the mind of God made manifest

The Magus channels this force. When they speak, they speak with divine authority.

Creating New Magical Currents

The Magus does not merely follow existing traditions — they create new ones.

They may:

• Found new magical orders or schools (with unique teachings, practices, symbols)
• Channel new grimoires or sacred texts (direct transmission from Source)
• Initiate new lineages (spiritual families, traditions that will endure for generations)
• Speak new formulae or divine names (words of power revealed directly)

Examples of historical Magi (arguably):

• Moses (received the Law directly from God, founded a nation)
• Jesus Christ (the Logos incarnate, founded Christianity)
• Muhammad (received the Qur'an, founded Islam)
• Buddha (awakened under the Bodhi tree, founded Buddhism)
• Hermes Trismegistus (the legendary founder of Hermeticism)
• Christian Rosenkreutz (the archetypal Rosicrucian, whether historical or mythic)

Modern Magi (some claim):

• Helena Blavatsky (founded Theosophy, channeled The Secret Doctrine)
• Aleister Crowley (claimed the grade of Magus, proclaimed the Law of Thelema: "Do what thou wilt")

Not all who claim the grade have truly attained it. The proof is in the fruits — does their Word endure? Does it transform?

Incarnating Divine Wisdom

The Magus embodies Chokmah (Wisdom) — not knowledge, but direct knowing, pure intuition, the flash of insight.

Wisdom is:

• Beyond concepts
• Beyond learning
• Direct perception of Truth
• The "still, small voice" of God

The Magus is this voice.

The Work of the Magus

Speaking Reality Into Being

The Magus's words carry creative power.

When they speak, things happen:

• Healing
• Awakening
• Transformation
• Manifestation

This is not "positive thinking" or "law of attraction" (though those may be pale reflections). This is theurgy at the highest level — cooperation with divine will to bring about change.

Channeling the Word

The Magus may receive:

• New teachings (direct downloads from Source)
• New practices (rituals, meditations, techniques revealed)
• New symbols (sigils, seals, diagrams of power)
• New languages (angelic alphabets, divine scripts)

These are not invented — they are received.

The Magus is a scribe, a channel, a vessel.

Founding and Teaching

The Magus often (but not always) founds:

• Mystery schools (teaching the new current)
• Magical orders (organizing initiates into a structure)
• Spiritual communities (gathering those who resonate with the Word)

Or: The Magus may work in complete obscurity, transmitting the Word through subtle means (writing, art, influence) without ever claiming authority.

The Empyrean

The Empyrean is the highest sphere in medieval cosmology — the dwelling place of God, beyond all the celestial spheres, beyond the Primum Mobile.

The Magus approaches (but has not yet fully entered) the Empyrean.

They dwell in Chokmah, which is the threshold of the Absolute.

Study Focus

Chokmah (Wisdom)

Chokmah — the second Sephirah, Wisdom, pure dynamic force, the Logos, the phallus (creative force), the point, the flash of insight.

Chokmah is:

• The first differentiation from Kether (the first "Yes")
• Pure being, pure energy, pure existence
• The Father (Abba) in the supernal triad (Kether-Chokmah-Binah)
• Wisdom beyond knowledge

The Logos

Deep study of the Logos doctrine:

• Christian theology (John 1:1, the Word made flesh)
• Hermetic philosophy (the divine Nous, the creative mind)
• Qabalistic teachings (the Memra, the Word of God)
• Greek philosophy (Heraclitus: "All things come to pass through the Logos")

The Creative Word

Understanding how sound/vibration/word creates reality:

• "In the beginning was the Word"
• "Let there be light" (God speaks, and it is so)
• The Hebrew letters as creative forces
• Mantras, divine names, words of power

Recommended Reading

The Magus writes the book.

At this level, you are no longer learning from others (though you may still read for enjoyment or inspiration).

You are creating the texts that others will study.

Your grimoire, your teachings, your transmissions — these become part of the canon.

The Magus in the Four Paths

Chivalric: Beyond (the Quest is complete)

Magical: Beyond (you are the source of magic)

Mystical: Beyond (you are one with God)

Royal: King (manifest) — you rule from Wisdom

The Magus is the King — not of a worldly kingdom, but of a spiritual kingdom. They wield authority through the Word.

How Rare Is the Magus?

Very rare.

There may be only a handful of true Magi incarnate on Earth at any given time.

Many Magisters. Few Magi.

And the Magus does not necessarily announce themselves. They may work in obscurity, known only to God.

Do not aspire to this grade. If you are called, you will know. If not, the work of the Magister is more than sufficient.

Conclusion

The Magus is the Word made flesh.

They speak, and reality shifts.

They are the voice of God in the world, the Logos channeled through a human vessel.

Few attain this. Fewer still wield it with humility.

The Magus serves the One, not the self.