Lesson 4 - Prometheus
10.13.2003
As promised, here is the lesson which introduces the Greek "Light Bearer", Prometheus. Prometheus was one of the Titans. The Titans were a group of gods who were antagonistic to the Olympian gods. Interestingly, according to Aleister Crowley the number values of the original Greek letters in the word "Teitan" (supposedly the eplison after the "T" was dropped in the transliteration into English characters) adds up to 666. However you want to take that is up to you. I just mention it as a piece of trivia/gossip. Prometheus' name translates as "foresight."
The story goes that Prometheus had a special place for humanity in his heart (some accounts even identify Prometheus as the creator of the human race.) Zeus (aka Jupiter), the King of the Olympian gods, was content to let the people remain ignorant and animalistic. They made better servants that way. Prometheus, seeing this sad state of affairs, entered Olympia, lit a torch with the "fire of the gods" (aka "the Olympic flame"), brought it down Mount Olympus and gave it to humanity. Zeus was quite upset about this and had Prometheus bound to a rock or cliff (causing him to taste mortality.) In addition, Zeus' sacred bird, the Eagle, was sent every day to eat the liver out of Prometheus' body. Every night it would grow back.
While Zeus was a monarch, he wasn't a complete tyrant. He set three conditions which Prometheus must fulfill in order to gain his liberty. The first condition was to defeat the eagle. The second condition was to be unbound. The third condition was that an immortal had to die for him. This would obviously require assistance. Heracles (the son of Zeus and a mortal woman) was the first to help. He shot the eagle with an arrow, defeating it. Next, he unbound Prometheus. In thanks, Prometheus gave Heracles the knowledge that he needed in order to obtain the Golden Apples of Hesperides. During another one of Heracles' labours (of which there were twelve), he mortally wounded a centaur (half human, half horse), again with an arrow. Since the centaur (named Chiron) was immortal, he could not die. In order to die and end his suffering, Chiron was given permission by the gods to bestow his immortality upon Prometheus, who compassionately accepted it. This accomplished the third and final condition set by Zeus, who then set Prometheus at full liberty.
This story contains the essence of Gnostic Luciferianism. Prometheus is the divine spark (aka "Holy Guardian Angel", etc...) who incarnates in the flesh (the being bound to a rock) in order to repair an injustice (the ignorance that humanity was left to endure.) The liver is the organ that corresponds to Zeus. The eagle, sacred bird of Zeus, also has a zodiacal attribution. It is one of three symbols of Scorpio. The "lowest" symbol is the scorpion, which represents death and decay. The second symbol is the serpent, which represents the sexual force. The final symbol is the eagle, which represents the refinement of the other two. That the eagle torturing the bound Prometheus represents the "misuse" or deformation of his creative force. In other words, he is tortured by his own creations. The reason that it was the eagle and not the scorpion or serpent was because the Divine Self remains ever inviolate.
Heracles, being half-man and half-god, represents the consciously chosen persona. This is that which acts in the world. Chiron, the centaur, being half-man and half-beast, represents the atavistic and animalistic nature of humanity. For Prometheus to gain full liberty, this must be sacrificed and the force therefrom directed towards the goal of accomplishing the "True Will." It should also be noted that Heracles eventually even sacrificed his human half to become fully divine. Also of note are the golden apples. Gold being a metal that does not rust or tarnish, it is a symbol of immortality. The golden apples therefore are reminiscent of the fruit of the Tree of Life mentioned in Genesis, which grants immortality.
In conclusion, we start out ignorant and enslaved. We are given divine knowledge and misuse it, experiencing suffering. Eventually, through the sacrifice of our animal nature, we are able to properly direct the creative force, thereby gaining sovereignty. Sovereignty eventually gives way to full divinity with the sacrifice of our humanity. It has to be done in that order, however. If one were to sacrifice their humanity before sacrificing their animal nature, the result would be devolution.
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