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TheLesser Ritual of the Pentagram (orLRP) is a ceremonial magic ritual devised and used by the original order of theGolden Dawn that has become a mainstay in modernoccultism. This ritual is considered by many to be a basic preliminary to any other magical work, so much that it was the only ritual, besides initiation rituals, taught to members of the Golden Dawn before they advanced to the Inner Order.[1]
There are two forms of the ritual, theLesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram (LBRP), and theLesser Invoking Ritual of the Pentagram (LIRP).
The ritual is highly dynamic, using gesture, visualization and the pronunciation of certain words of power, combining prayer andinvocation as well as clearing and preparing a space for further magical or meditative work.
The banishing ritual is perceived as banishing any chaotic or impure forms of the elements from themagician's circle by tracing thepentagrams in the air and by the power of certaindivine names. The invoking ritual is perceived to invoke pure forms of the elements.
This is followed by an evocation of thearchangels ruling the elements to fortify and guard the circle. These archangels are connected to theclassical elements via theastrological symbolism of the biblicalfour living creatures: "Michael is the 'lion-headed', Raphael the "human-headed", Uriel the "bull-headed", and Gabriel the "eagle-headed".[2] This symbolism connectsMichael with the astrological signLeo and the classical element offire,Raphael withAquarius and the element ofair,Uriel withTaurus and the element ofearth, andGabriel withScorpio and the element ofwater.
One contemporary book on ceremonial magic advises using only the banishing version for the first few months of ceremonial practice:
The Golden Dawn manuscripts advocated performing the invoking form of this ritual in the morning and the banishing form at night. However, we feel that the beginning student needs to concentrate solely on the banishing form for a period of a few months, since beginners have a tendency to light up on the astral and unknowingly attract all manner of elementals and low levels of astral energies. Also, it is far more important to know how to banish than to invoke. Anyone can attract low spiritual energies. Getting rid of the same can be more difficult.[3]
The ritual has an invoking counterpart, the Lesser Invoking Ritual of the Pentagram. Together, they are sometimes known as the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram. Many ceremonial magicians perform the banishing version daily, and some perform both the invoking and banishing versions.
In its more elaborate forms, modern practitioners sometimes include the following:[4]
Often, however, no special equipment or clothing is used.
The Golden Dawn LBRP consists of three main parts.[4]Though practices vary, the general outline of the LBRP is below:[5]
All of the following books contain some variation of the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram, its history, instructions on performance and/or commentary on the ritual.