Gemini 26. A man cutting the limb of a persimmon tree to make a wand. (Omega Symbol)Transforming/Experimental
(Degree Angel: MEBAHEL (May-ba-HEL) Farewell to Arms, Truth, Liberty, and Justice)
TITLE: PATIENT AND STEADY CREATION OF MAGIC FROM THE MATERIALS AT HAND
You can do things on your own, without the need of directions or outer promptings. You make use of what is at hand, and are willing to experiment with what you find around you to see if it suits your purposes. You have the ability to tap into ancient knowledge to find just what you need to proceed on your path. You have an instinct for knowing what is missing and how to find it.
The Chandra Symbol for this degree is “A cave with carved walls. It is an ancient temple.” The carvings on these walls are depictions of spiritual forces or possibly spiritual texts which have been carved in so they will be more impervious to the effects of time than paint would be. This degree is about remembering what we need to remember, and returning to those sacred places within were enduring truth awaits our remembering.
Persimmon wood is exceedingly hard, and the fruit of the persimmon takes an exceedingly long time to ripen. The significance here is that this degree perfects its abilities through patience, and through staying in tune with enduring truth. It knows that the easy way may be the most expedient one, but but often the harder way yields more lasting results.
Pleiadian Symbol: Ice devas decorating a forest. Playing with the crystalline beauties of the universe. Emotional expression which reflects the joy wand wonder of spirit.
Azoth Symbol: A woman helping a maiden to don her wedding dress. The assisting and encouraging of deep union with the universe.
Seed degree: Aquarius 3. A man in a boat wakes up just in time to avoid a waterfall. (Omega Symbol). To become more synchronized with the needs of one’s environment becomes a way of learning on one’s own how to work with the forces of nature in a patient, grounded and vigilant manner.
A vast ornate Hindu temple depicting hundreds of Gods. (Chandra Symbol). To perceive the panoply of the vast and diverse forces at work in the universe is a prelude to choosing and inwardly focusing the energies with which one wishes to work.
Fulfillment degree: Taurus 8. A man lost in a tiny forest. (Omega Symbol). Taking on the patience and endurance of the persimmon deva, we go deep into ourselves to explore our own vastness.
A very complicated hedge maze. (Chandra Symbol). Entering the deep storehouse of wisdom within ourselves we learn from it the complexities of the structure of our being, and hence the means to achieve centering and higher consciousness.
Oracle
The limb, had it not been cut, would have bloomed, and become laden with persimmons. The tree is happy to give up this limb, though, for it knows the other uses it might have, other than bearing persimmon fruit. Just as the fruit is born with a potent, drying bitterness, in time the fruit will ripen into luxurious sweetness and fall from the tree. So the wand, too, will take on the bitterness of the earth and its illusions, and through magic transform them into a rich nectar.
Azoth Oracle
In the province of Bardath it is said that sometimes when a young maiden is preparing for her wedding an old woman will appear, one who is known to the villagers as Tandara, and that when she comes the other women leave the presence of the bride and allow this old one to help her put on her wedding gown and other finery.
Tandara is the spirit of an alchemist who lived long ago in Bardath. One day, being accosted by one of the village women after she had assisted the bride, and asked of her nature said, “We don the illusion of the body when we come into this world, and as all illusions are clothing, I, being a master of illusions make it my work to insure that brides wear their new illusion well, so that they may know it for what it is, and savor its beauty for the time it is theirs.”