Nuit
Encyclopedia
Nuit is the speaker in the first Chapter of The Book of the Law
, the sacred text of Thelema
written or received in 1904 by Aleister Crowley
.
Nuit
is the Egyptian sky goddess
who leans over her husband/brother, Geb
, the Egyptian Earth God. She is usually depicted as a naked woman who is covered with stars and is arching on all fours over Geb. She represents the All, pure potentiality both as it flowers into the physical universe and as it resides beyond embodiment.
(her masculine counterpart), and Ra-Hoor-Khuit, the Crowned and Conquering Child. She has several titles, including the Queen of Infinite Space, Our Lady of the Stars, and Lady of the Starry Heaven. Nuit represents the infinitely-expanded circle whose circumference is unmeasurable and whose center is everywhere (whereas Hadit is the infinitely small point within the core of every single thing). According to Thelemic doctrine, it is the interaction between these two cosmic principles that creates the manifested universe similar to the gnostic syzygy
.
Some quotes from the First Chapter of The Book of the Law (Liber AL vel Legis):
In The Equinox of the Gods
(ch. 7, section 6) , Crowley writes of Nuit in comparison to Christianity
:
The following are quotes from Crowley's commentaries to The Book of the Law.
, Nuit or Nut
was the sky goddess. She is the daughter of Shu
and Tefnut
and was one of the Ennead
.
The sun god Re
entered her mouth after the sun set in the evening and was reborn from her vulva the next morning. She also swallowed and rebirthed the stars.
She was a goddess of death
, and her image is on the inside of most sarcophagi. The pharaoh
entered her body after death and was later resurrected.
In art, Nuit is depicted as a woman wearing no clothes, covered with stars and supported by Shu
; opposite her (the sky), is her husband, Geb
(the Earth). With Geb, she was the mother of Osiris
, Horus
, Isis
, Set
, and Nephthys
.
The Book of the Law
Liber AL vel Legis is the central sacred text of Thelema, written by Aleister Crowley in Cairo, Egypt in the year 1904. Its full title is Liber AL vel Legis, sub figura CCXX, as delivered by XCIII=418 to DCLXVI, and it is commonly referred to as The Book of the Law.Liber AL vel Legis contains three...
, the sacred text of Thelema
Thelema
Thelema is a religious philosophy that was established, defined and developed by the early 20th century British writer and ceremonial magician, Aleister Crowley. He believed himself to be the prophet of a new age, the Æon of Horus, based upon a religious experience that he had in Egypt in 1904...
written or received in 1904 by Aleister Crowley
Aleister Crowley
Aleister Crowley , born Edward Alexander Crowley, and also known as both Frater Perdurabo and The Great Beast, was an influential English occultist, astrologer, mystic and ceremonial magician, responsible for founding the religious philosophy of Thelema. He was also successful in various other...
.
Nuit
Nut (goddess)
In the Ennead of Egyptian mythology, Nut was the goddess of the sky.-Goddess of the sky:...
is the Egyptian sky goddess
Nut (goddess)
In the Ennead of Egyptian mythology, Nut was the goddess of the sky.-Goddess of the sky:...
who leans over her husband/brother, Geb
Geb
Geb was the Egyptian god of the Earth and a member of the Ennead of Heliopolis. It was believed in ancient Egypt that Geb's laughter was earthquakes and that he allowed crops to grow. The name was pronounced as such from the Greek period onward,...
, the Egyptian Earth God. She is usually depicted as a naked woman who is covered with stars and is arching on all fours over Geb. She represents the All, pure potentiality both as it flowers into the physical universe and as it resides beyond embodiment.
Goddess of Thelema
Within this system, she is one-third of the triadic cosmology, along with HaditHadit
Hadit refers to a Thelemic version of the Egyptian god Horus. Hadit is the principal speaker of the second chapter of The Book of the Law .- Descriptions :...
(her masculine counterpart), and Ra-Hoor-Khuit, the Crowned and Conquering Child. She has several titles, including the Queen of Infinite Space, Our Lady of the Stars, and Lady of the Starry Heaven. Nuit represents the infinitely-expanded circle whose circumference is unmeasurable and whose center is everywhere (whereas Hadit is the infinitely small point within the core of every single thing). According to Thelemic doctrine, it is the interaction between these two cosmic principles that creates the manifested universe similar to the gnostic syzygy
Aeon (Gnosticism)
In many Gnostic systems, the various emanations of God, who is also known by such names as the One, the Monad, Aion teleos , Bythos , Proarkhe , the Arkhe , are called Aeons...
.
Some quotes from the First Chapter of The Book of the Law (Liber AL vel Legis):
- "Every man and every woman is a star." (AL I:3).
- "Come forth, o children, under the stars, & take your fill of love!" (AL I:12).
- "For I am divided for love's sake, for the chance of union." (AL I:29).
- "The word of the Law is Θελημα. Who calls us Thelemites will do no wrong, if he look but close into the word. For there are therein Three Grades, the Hermit, and the Lover, and the man of Earth. Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law." (AL I:39-40).
- "For pure will, unassuaged of purpose, delivered from the lust of result, is every way perfect." (AL I:44).
- "Invoke me under my stars! Love is the law, love under will. [...]" (AL I:57).
- "I give unimaginable joys on earth: certainty, not faith, while in life, upon death; peace unutterable, rest, ecstasy; nor do I demand aught in sacrifice." (AL I:57).
In The Equinox of the Gods
The Equinox of the Gods (Crowley)
The Equinox of the Gods is a book first published in 1936 detailing the events and circumstances leading up to Aleister Crowley's transcription of The Book of the Law, the central text of Thelema....
(ch. 7, section 6) , Crowley writes of Nuit in comparison to Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
:
- "Nuit cries: "I love you," like a lover; when even John reached only to the cold impersonal proposition "God is love." She woos like a mistress; whispers "To me !" in every ear; Jesus, with needless verb, appeals vehemently to them "that labour and are heavy laden." Yet She who can promise in the present, says: "I give unimaginable joys on earth," making life worth while; "certainty, not faith, while in life, upon death," the electric light Knowledge for the churchyard corpsecandle Faith, making life fear-free, and death itself worth while: "peace unutterable, rest, ecstasy," making mind and body at ease that soul may be free to transcend them when It will."
The following are quotes from Crowley's commentaries to The Book of the Law.
- "Note that Heaven is not a place where Gods Live; Nuit is Heaven, itself."
- "Nuit is All that which exists, and the condition of that existence. Hadit is the Principle which causes modifications in this Being. This explains how one may call Nuit Matter, and Hadit Motion"
- "It should be evident that Nuit obtains the satisfaction of Her Nature when the parts of Her Body fulfill their own Nature. The sacrament of life is not only so from the point of view of the celebrants, but from that of the divinity invoked."
Mythology
In Egyptian mythologyEgyptian mythology
Ancient Egyptian religion was a complex system of polytheistic beliefs and rituals which were an integral part of ancient Egyptian society. It centered on the Egyptians' interaction with a multitude of deities who were believed to be present in, and in control of, the forces and elements of nature...
, Nuit or Nut
Nut (goddess)
In the Ennead of Egyptian mythology, Nut was the goddess of the sky.-Goddess of the sky:...
was the sky goddess. She is the daughter of Shu
Shu (Egyptian deity)
In Egyptian mythology, Shu is one of the primordial gods, a personification of air, one of the Ennead of Heliopolis. He was created by Atum, his father and Iusaaset, his mother in the city of Heliopolis. With his sister, Tefnut , he was the father of Nut and Geb...
and Tefnut
Tefnut
In Ancient Egyptian religion, Tefnut, transliterated tfnt is a goddess of moisture, moist air, dew and rain. She is the sister and consort of the air god Shu and the mother of Geb and Nut.- Etymology :...
and was one of the Ennead
Ennead
The Ennead was a group ofnine deities in Egyptian mythology. The Ennead were worshipped at Heliopolis and consisted of the god Atum, his children Shu and Tefnut, their children Geb and Nut and their children Osiris, Isis, Horus, Set and Nephthys.-Terminology:Egyptian mythology established multiple...
.
The sun god Re
Ra
Ra is the ancient Egyptian sun god. By the Fifth Dynasty he had become a major deity in ancient Egyptian religion, identified primarily with the mid-day sun...
entered her mouth after the sun set in the evening and was reborn from her vulva the next morning. She also swallowed and rebirthed the stars.
She was a goddess of death
Death
Death is the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include old age, predation, malnutrition, disease, and accidents or trauma resulting in terminal injury....
, and her image is on the inside of most sarcophagi. The pharaoh
Pharaoh
Pharaoh is a title used in many modern discussions of the ancient Egyptian rulers of all periods. The title originates in the term "pr-aa" which means "great house" and describes the royal palace...
entered her body after death and was later resurrected.
In art, Nuit is depicted as a woman wearing no clothes, covered with stars and supported by Shu
Shu (Egyptian deity)
In Egyptian mythology, Shu is one of the primordial gods, a personification of air, one of the Ennead of Heliopolis. He was created by Atum, his father and Iusaaset, his mother in the city of Heliopolis. With his sister, Tefnut , he was the father of Nut and Geb...
; opposite her (the sky), is her husband, Geb
Geb
Geb was the Egyptian god of the Earth and a member of the Ennead of Heliopolis. It was believed in ancient Egypt that Geb's laughter was earthquakes and that he allowed crops to grow. The name was pronounced as such from the Greek period onward,...
(the Earth). With Geb, she was the mother of Osiris
Osiris
Osiris is an Egyptian god, usually identified as the god of the afterlife, the underworld and the dead. He is classically depicted as a green-skinned man with a pharaoh's beard, partially mummy-wrapped at the legs, wearing a distinctive crown with two large ostrich feathers at either side, and...
, Horus
Horus
Horus is one of the oldest and most significant deities in the Ancient Egyptian religion, who was worshipped from at least the late Predynastic period through to Greco-Roman times. Different forms of Horus are recorded in history and these are treated as distinct gods by Egyptologists...
, Isis
Isis
Isis or in original more likely Aset is a goddess in Ancient Egyptian religious beliefs, whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. She was worshipped as the ideal mother and wife as well as the matron of nature and magic...
, Set
Set (mythology)
Set was in Ancient Egyptian religion, a god of the desert, storms, and foreigners. In later myths he was also the god of darkness, and chaos...
, and Nephthys
Nephthys
In Egyptian mythology, Nephthys is a member of the Great Ennead of Heliopolis, a daughter of Nut and Geb. Nephthys was typically paired with her sister Isis in funerary rites because of their role as protectors of the mummy and the god Osiris and as the sister-wife of Seth.Nephthys is regarded as...
.
Sources
- Crowley, Aleister. http://www.hermetic.com/220/crowley-comments.htmlThe Old and New Commentaries to Liber AL vel LegisThe Book of the LawLiber AL vel Legis is the central sacred text of Thelema, written by Aleister Crowley in Cairo, Egypt in the year 1904. Its full title is Liber AL vel Legis, sub figura CCXX, as delivered by XCIII=418 to DCLXVI, and it is commonly referred to as The Book of the Law.Liber AL vel Legis contains three...
] - ____. (1974). The Equinox of the Gods (Crowley)|The Equinox of the Gods. New York, NY : Gordon Press.
External links
- The Book of the Law complete text of the book