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Article Evaluation

I decided to evaluate the article "Great Work", from the wiki projects group for Thelema (a religious/mystical teaching). I think everything that is currently in the article is necessary, there's nothing that's particularly extraneous. However, I think a great deal more content could be added. The authors almost exclusively rely on direct quotes from Crowley (the founder of the Thelema), and do not fully explain what is meant by the Great Work. I think more content should be added, with other's perspectives on the Great Work, and a deeper analysis of it. The article isn't necessarily neutral - it only cites perspectives from two people - Crowley the founder of Thelema, and Eliphas Levi, an occultist from the 19th century. These two perspectives are vastly over-represented (perhaps due to Crowley being the founder of Thelema), and I think it would be good to include perspectives from other occultists and mystics. The sources are all effectively primary sources. One is from a book about alchemy, another from a book of Levi's, and the last four from various books of Crowley's. The information is certainly sourced well, but the overwhelming use of Crowley's work and quotes leads to bias and imbalance.

The talk page isn't very active. Really the only thing discussed was the name itself. The article was once part of another article entitles "The Magnum Opus" which dealt with the occult teachings of the alchemists. The article entitled the "Great Work" was separated from the magnum opus page, dealing specifically with the Thelemic perspective of the Great Work, rather than older perspectives from the alchemists. There is also some talk that the name "Great Work" is still misleading, as it can refer to multiple perspectives within occultism, both new and old, not just the Thelemic perspective. The article is rated C, and is part of the Wiki Project for Thelema.

I added a comment on the article's talk page, responding to someone who was saying the name was ambiguous, because the great work is not thelemic in origin. I said that I agreed, and suggested that either more perspectives be added, or the name could be changed to something like "The Great Work (Thelema)"

Article Chosen

The article that I've chosen from my project is: Great Work

Plan of Action (Due 10/15)

So I've decided to use the same article from my article evaluation for my main project. The article is currently pretty undeveloped, it relies on direct quotes from only two authors, and lacks content and explanation. The "Great Work" signifies a lot of different occult perspectives, however the article only deals with two perspectives, from Eliphas Levi (a 20th century occultist) and Aleister Crowley (the founder of the Thelemite religion). I would like to change the direct quotes into more fluid and filled in paraphrases, as well as increase the number of sources for the article. Further in depth work could be done, changing or adding new sections to the article in order to cover the topic in a broader scope and deal with more perspectives. The page is under the wikiproject for Thelema, and the only note at the top of the page is that the article relies too heavily on primary sources, and could benefit from secondary or tertiary sources. I agree with this, I would like to add more sources as well as turn the direct quotations into paraphrases. The talk page for the article isn't very active, the main thing that it's talking about is the name of the article. The article was originally split from an article entitled "Magnum Opus" (which just means Great Work in Latin), the person gave the reason that it was split out as that the original article was too confusing for most general readers. Looking back at the article now, I see that it is also fairly underdeveloped, and covers and entirely different perspective of the Great Work than the Great Work article itself. I think that it would be good to either merge the two articles back together, or change the name of the new article to something like "Great Work (Thelema)", as the new article really only deals with the Thelemic perspective of what the great work is.

Sources

This is a great article, it talks about the daoist alchemical metaphors for the spiritual path.

The alchemical process is meant to help the practitioner move from a state of doing to a state of non-doing, allowing them to see the divinity within.

A full book about daoist alchemy and how it relates to the spiritual path.

The way of cultivating the elixir (which is equivalent to accomplishing the great work), occurs through uniting the opposite principles of yin and yang.

Another book about alchemical metaphors in daoism.

Cultivating the elixir is a metaphor about the Great Ultimate, or the divine nature.

The Great Ultimate is god, the absolute, which lacks nothing and contains everything.

The Great Ultimate appears to have lack because of yin and yang, or duality. Duality takes away the apparent perfection of the great ultimate.

The alchemical process is about the restoration of the wholeness of the Great Ultimate, which occurs through uniting Yin and Yang, making them whole again.

This is a great source, its a dissertation written by a PhD in depth psychology, dealing with the alchemical metaphors for self-individuation.

The goal of alchemy is to transform the unconscious matter into the conscious self, which is symbolized by the philosopher's stone.

This occurs through the uniting of opposites.

In western alchemy, the uniting of opposites is represented by uniting sulphur (the hot, masculine principle) with salt (the cool, feminine principle).

In yogic science, this uniting of opposites is also described, where the masculine channel for life energy, called the pingala, is unified with the feminine channel, called the ida.

The famous Alexandrian alchemist Zosimos said the purpose of alchemy was the perfection of the alchemist so that they could come into contact with the divine nature within themselves.

The physical techniques of the transmutations of metals, alloys, and dyes in alchemical texts serve as an allegory for inner, psychological work.

The psychologist von Franz said that only by sitting in Hell and roasting does the philosopher's stone yield itself. This means tolerating the pain of negative emotions rather than rejecting them or pushing them away.

Jung stated the purpose of the magnum opus was the rescue of the human soul from the unconscious forces which bind it.

Certain attitudes are needed by the alchemist in their work. There must be an attitude of conscious devotion to the work, where the alchemist must have a strong ego to succeed.

The spiritual path, or the great work, is making the unconscious conscious.

The alchemical idea that metals need to be reduced to their most basic state in order to be transmuted into gold is an allegory. In psychological terms, the rigid structure of the personality must be dissolved back into its original state in order for any transformation of the personality to occur.

The basic premise of alchemy is that the personality can be transformed.

The metaphor of the transformation of base metals into gold deals with the transformation of the unconscious, instinctual self into conscious self-actualization.

The substances that the alchemists worked with were their own projections, or elements of their psyche.

As one progresses along the spiritual-alchemical path, they come to realize that all is within them self. There is no such thing as outside, all is contained within the Self. This is the essence of Self-Realization.

The metaphor of the alchemical vessel, or vas hermeticum, is the attitude of introversion, or the turning within, that is necessary for doing psychological work. One is sealed within themself, not looking outside but only within when they are working through the spiritual-alchemical journey.

The process of alchemy is the burning away of unconscious complexes and attachments.

These unconscious projections are burnt away by the fire which is called calcinatio by the alchemists. Esoterically, it represents the inner heat of psychic struggle when putting our awareness onto ourselves and our unconscious.

The alchemical process is in essence the process of the dissolution of the ego.

While the spiritual process is meant to bring an expansion of consciousness and a dissolution of the ego, it can actually result in the opposite. The increased psychic energy coming from spiritual revelation and the expansion of consciousness can possess the ego, empowering it and making it even more hallucinatory than before. The light that mystic revels in may blind the ordinary man.

The alchemical symbol of the ouroboros, the snake eating its own tail, represents the cyclical nature of alchemy, as well as the divine nature. It is a symbol of the infinite, as a circle, which has no beginning or end. It represents the alchemist who is sealed in their vas hermeticum, self-contained and whole within themselves.

The alchemical work deals with the resolution of opposites.

The magnum opus is, simply put, the resolution of dualities within oneself. Moving towards integration of both sides, rather than repression of one and desire of the other, is the magnum opus.

The ouroboros also represents circumambulation, which is a repetitive process of facing one's shadow (which is what they have repressed into their unconscious) again and again until it is resolved. The shadow is dealt with with increasing consciousness and clarity until all of one's shadow material has been dissolved back into their consciousness.

This is the process of refining the "base metals" of one's unconscious, impulsive nature into the gold of integration.

The process occurs through repeatedly dissolving the ego then reconstructing it, which is echoed in the alchemical maxim "solve et coagula", meaning dissolve then recombine.

The philosopher's stone represents the Self. The Self is one's true nature, or divine essence. Coming back into awareness of and identification with this Self is the alchemical work.

The art work and symbolism of the alchemists serves to show unconscious material. They came from a unconscious place, not edited or changed by the conscious ego.

Alchemy can be understood as the art of transformation (both physical, mental, spiritual).

The imagery of alchemy can be used to describe inner, psychic processes.

calcinatio - burning passions away

coagula - "congealing cloudy conditions as to get hard drops from them" - otherwise known as the process of contraction

Another metaphor for the stages of the great work - four stages

Nigredo (black), Albedo (white), cinitras (yellow), and rubedo (red)

Nigredo - the death of old material, the separation of the self into its component parts (representing the Solve part of the alchemical motto)

Albedo - associated with the purification of the component parts

Rubedo - the return of the different parts together into a new wholeness

Nigredo is the stage at which the old, rigid personality is dissolved back into the prima materia.

Jung saw nigredo as the stage where the conscious meets the unconscious, and is swallowed up by it.

This is seen by Jung as being a period of psychic suffering and stagnation.

The nigredo phase can be seen as the pain and confusion that comes from the destruction of the old personality.

The nigredo phase is where all of the ego is being broken down. This occurs painfully at first, because the attachments to the same rigid personality run very deep, and one can feel lost, confused, deprived of themself when it begins.

The nigredo is associated with the alchemical process mortificatio, which signifies death and dissolution.

This "negative" process of the work, which is called variously nigredo, mortificatio, or solve, is necessary, because from the death of the old structures can be born a new, better structure.

The alchemical image of the phoenix shows this cyclical process of dying and being reborn, or solve et coagula.

The essential alchemical work is the merging of the conscious with the unconscious. The dropping of the conscious in the unconscious (which is far vaster than the conscious), the conscious ego dissolves.

This dissolution can lead to fear and confusion, but it can also lead to freedom and bliss.

Article Draft

The term Great Work (magnum opus) is a term used in Hermeticism and in certain occult traditions and religions such as Thelema. The Great Work signifies the spiritual path towards self-transcendence in its entirety. This is the process of bringing unconscious complexes into the conscious awareness, in order to integrate them back into oneself. Accomplishing the Great Work, symbolized as the creation of the Philosopher's Stone, represents the culmination of the spiritual path, the attainment of enlightenment, or the rescue of the human soul from the unconscious forces which bind it.

In Hermeticism

Main article: Hermeticism

Eliphas Levi (1810–1875), one of the first modern ceremonial magicians and inspiration for the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, discussed the Great Work at length, expanding it from the purely alchemical towards the more spiritual:

Furthermore, there exists in nature a force which is immeasurably more powerful than steam, and by means of which a single man, who knows how to adapt and direct it, might upset and alter the face of the world. This force was known to the ancients; it consists in a universal agent having equilibrium for its supreme law, while its direction is concerned immediately with the great arcanum of transcendental magic... This agent...is precisely that which the adepts of the middle ages denominated the first matter of the Great Work. The Gnostics represented it as the fiery body of the Holy Spirit; it was the object of adoration in the secret rites of the Sabbath and the Temple, under the hieroglyphic figure of Baphomet or the Androgyne of Mendes.

He further defined it as such:

The Great Work is, before all things, the creation of man by himself, that is to say, the full and entire conquest of his faculties and his future; it is especially the perfect emancipation of his will.

Alchemy and Psychology

The famous Alexandrian alchemist Zosimos described the purpose of alchemy as the perfection of the alchemist such that they could come into contact with the divinity within themselves, which in alchemy is represented as the Philosopher's Stone. In daoist alchemy, the accomplishment of the Great Work is called the cultivation of the elixir, and deals with the same idea, which is realization of the innate divine nature within. The daoist alchemical process is meant to take the practitioner from a state of doing to a state of non-doing, in which they can realize their own divine nature. This divine nature is called the Great Ultimate, which signifies a complete totality which lacks nothing and contains everything. In western alchemy, the Great Ultimate is symbolized by the Ouroboros, a snake eating its own tail. This symbol shows the infinite nature of the divine, which has no beginning or end and is in constant change but never loses or gains anything. The path to attainment of the Great Work, or union with the Great Ultimate is described through alchemical metaphor. The physical techniques of transmuting metals, dyes, and alloys in alchemical texts serve as an allegory for internal, psychological processes. The alchemical idea that a metal must be reduced to its most basic form in order to be transmuted into gold is an allegory for the psychological idea that the rigid personality must be broken down to its basic form in order for any transformation of the personality to occur. This idea of first breaking something down and then reconstructing it is also described by the alchemical maxim Solve et Coagula, meaning dissolve and recombine, and it serves as a central tenant of the Great Work. The idea is further reinforced by the alchemical image of the phoenix, which dies and then is reborn from its ashes. Alchemy is known as the art of transformation, and this formula of Solve et Coagula is the underlying formula of transformation. This deals with transformation in the physical world, but it also deals with the transformation of the self. The Solve stage of the work of the transformation of the self occurs when the conscious ego meets the unconscious. The unconscious is much larger than the ego, and because of this the ego begins to dissolve. During this stage of the inner alchemical work, the old, rigid personality ceases to function when it is met with the vastness of the unconscious. This experience can lead to great confusion and fear, in what the alchemists call the phase of Nigredo, or blackness. This period of blackness during which the ego is dissolved is painful, but necessary for any growth to occur. After the ego is broken down through confronting its shadow, it can then be re-formed in a new way, which is represented by the alchemical process Coagula.

There is another perspective of the path to the accomplishment of the Great Work. Whereas the previous perspective deals with duality as a vehicle to transformation of the personality, this perspective deals with the transcendence of duality all together, in order to unite with the Great Ultimate. The daoists say that the perfection of the Great Ultimate, whose nature is unity, is obscured by Yin and Yang, or duality. Thus, the accomplishment of the Great Work (which is the restoration of the wholeness of the Great Ultimate), occurs from the unification of opposite principles, which are represented in daoism as Yin and Yang. This same idea of the uniting of opposite principles is seen in western alchemy as well, where the attainment of the Great Work is described as the unification between the sulphur (which represents the masculine principle) and salt (which represents the feminine principle). It is also seen in yogic science as well, which describes the unification of the masculine channel for life energy, called the pingala, with the feminine channel, called the ida. In western alchemy this unification of opposites is called coniunctio, which is the alchemical marriage, or union of opposite principles which leads to the creation of the Philosopher's Stone, a metaphor for accomplishing the Great Work. The esoteric, internal meaning of uniting opposites lies in the transcendence of perceived dualities within the psyche. In ego formation, some things are rejected, and pushed into the unconscious, whereas others are accepted and allowed to be a part of the conscious self. Because of this, a split in the psyche occurs, where the Self becomes dissociated from its shadow. The alchemical process is the process of undoing this split by integrating what has become made unconscious with the conscious self, and thus becoming whole. This is the essence of self-realization - the realization that all is a part of the self, and there is nothing outside of the self. It only appears that way because it has been made unconscious. This is the essence of alchemy - the unification of the conscious with the unconscious so that the self can become whole.

In Thelema

Main article: Thelemic mysticism

Within Thelema, the Great Work is generally defined as those spiritual practices leading to the mystical union of the Self and the All. Its founder, author and occultist Aleister Crowley re-iterated the idea of the unification of opposites, saying in his book Magick Without Tears:

The Great Work is the uniting of opposites. It may mean the uniting of the soul with God, of the microcosm with the macrocosm, of the female with the male, of the ego with the non-ego."

Although the Great Work can describe specifically the moment of union between the self and the divine, it can also deal with the spiritual process in its entirety. Crowley also speaks on the Great Work as the conscious process of spiritual growth. He described his own personal Great Work in the introduction to Magick (Book 4):

In my third year at Cambridge, I devoted myself consciously to the Great Work, understanding thereby the Work of becoming a Spiritual Being, free from the constraints, accidents, and deceptions of material existence.

The aspect of conscious devotion to the Great Work is very important. By purposefully, consciously turning inward and choosing to pursue self-realization, the seeker seals themself in their very own vas hermeticum, their very own alchemical vessel. This attitude of deliberate turning within is necessary for the Great Work. By consciously devoting oneself to the Great Work, and therefore sealing oneself within one's own vas hermeticum, the inner heat of psychic struggle which is generated from this aids in the dissolution of ego boundaries and the integration of what is unconscious. Within the system of the A∴A∴ magical Order the Great Work of the Probationer Grade is considered to be the pursuit of self-knowledge to, as Crowley said in The Confessions of Aleister Crowley, "obtain the knowledge of the nature and powers of my own being." However, Crowley continues, the Great Work should also be something that is integrated into the daily life of all:

I insist that in private life men should not admit their passions to be an end, indulging them and so degrading themselves to the level of the other animals, or suppressing them and creating neuroses. I insist that every thought, word and deed should be consciously devoted to the service of the Great Work. 'Whatsoever ye do, whether ye eat or drink, do all to the glory of God'.

Although Crowley often discussed the idea of "succeeding" or "accomplishing" in the Great Work, he also recognized that the process is ongoing. From his Little Essays Toward Truth:

The Quest of the Holy Grail, the Search for the Stone of the Philosophers—by whatever name we choose to call the Great Work—is therefore endless. Success only opens up new avenues of brilliant possibility. Yea, verily, and Amen! the task is tireless and its joys without bounds; for the whole Universe, and all that in it is, what is it but the infinite playground of the Crowned and Conquering Child, of the insatiable, the innocent, the ever-rejoicing Heir of Space and Eternity, whose name is MAN?

This idea of an endless Great Work is also seen within classic alchemical perspectives. The idea of circumambulation, represented by the Ouroboros (a snake swallowing its own tail), suggests an endless cyclical process of first dissolving and then re-creating the personality, refining it each time. This idea is also seen in depth psychology as it is related to alchemy, where the Self continually, cyclically faces what it has repressed in order to integrate what has been repressed into itself. The term "The Great Work" also appears in the Benediction at the end of Crowley's Gnostic Mass, where the Priest blesses the congregation with the words:

The LORD bring you to the accomplishment of your true Wills, the Great Work, the Summum Bonum, True Wisdom and Perfect Happiness.