The pentacle.

 Two documentaries about some of my favorite musicians. Very well produced and a good watch. Learned some interesting details about their creative processes. 

Liber Oz is something I keep in my wallet. It is something I go by. As a Thelemite I fall on the fringes. There are some tenets to which I have adopted into my interpretation of Thelema. I am influenced by the work of  Kenneth Grant and his wife Steffi. They have also introduced the works of Austin O. Spare. I even incorporate things from Liber Null and Psychonaut. 

The Book of the Law is something that gives me direction. The personal interpretation of a sacred text is something worth doing. The portions of it with Ra Hoor Khuit , Chapter 3, declares a warrior spirit. In Liber Oz this theme is also present. There is a Martial interpretation that can be made. Among other things. 

"10. Get the stele of revealing itself; set it in thy secret temple -- and that temple is already aright disposed -- & it shall be your Kiblah for ever. It shall not fade, but miraculous colour shall come back to it day after day. Close it in locked glass for a proof to the world."

This we have here at the Kiblah. 

"32. From gold forge steel!"

By honoring the code of the Sikh's a Thelemite may carry a sacred knife. Trading Gold for steel. Old traditions are banished so all is free reign. Select attributes from all of them. Assimilate and let it mutate. 

The Gerber LMF II is a good knife. The leg sheathe is excellent but I think it would have problems with thicker thighs. The adjustment belt isn't that long. So be lean. Study the Jim Wagner metric system.

I read about an interesting group of Japanese mountain men. Yamabushi. Warrior Sorcerers. 

There is something about the Japanese Martial Way that resonates with me. I am sure a careful examination of my interest through the practice of Liber Thisharb would reveal much. I carried a copy of The Book of The Five Rings with me while deployed. I still have it and it still has sand in its spine. My Mother introduced me to Japanese people from birth. She is part of a Japanese Buddhist organization. 

I can relate to Crowley's sentiments regarding Buddhism. It appeals to a reasonable faculty. If you're unreasonable, well, that's another story. The world is suffering it has been said. I differ and take refuge in Nuit:

"Obey my prophet! follow out the ordeals of my knowledge! seek me only! Then the joys of my love will redeem ye from all pain. This is so: I swear it by the vault of my body; by my sacred heart and tongue; by all I can give, by all I desire of ye all." 

“Suffer what there is to suffer, enjoy what there is to enjoy. Regard both suffering and joy as facts of life, and continue chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, no matter what happens." -Nichiren

In this survival manual it has a variety of factors that can ground one into an environment. For instance, in a nuclear fallout event it would require thirteen days to resume operations. Days one through six would require complete isolation. Varying degrees of exposure would ensue. All the way to day thirteen. 

The Mayan calculated thirteen day cycles. The kids and I saw a tortoise today in the backyard. 

The knife. The baton. The canteen cup. Maybe a map of the perimeter and definitely a compass. The pentacle. 

The emptiness spoken of by Bodhidharma sounds like nihilism.