Nowadays, there are many books that somehow resonate with each other and contain a description of interaction with the entities of Chaos, supposedly living outside the commodity world.
If one rejects modern stereotypes in the spirit of “cthulhu fhtagn” and looks at all of this from a practical point of view, one can make a reasonable conclusion that the techniques presented in this literature really work (though not always the way the reader wants, but this is a completely different story )
But who are the Ancients and what are the historical sources telling about their existence?
Let’s start with the last one. Namely, historical (at least over 100 years old) sources about the existence of the cult of Aliah do not exist. There is a book inherently close, supposedly written by the Roman soldier Tertius Sibellius in 280, it is called “Secrets of the Worm” and contains a set of very complex rituals to appeal to ancient forces (especially now from the point of view of criminal law).
According to publicly available data, its author for a long time served in the legions stationed in Arabia and Egypt, where he met an Aksumite magician named Talim, whose views allegedly constituted a manuscript. According to legend, from Rome, where Sively lived after his resignation, his records were transported to Britain, where they were lost in the library of a castle. The manuscript of Sibellius was discovered already in the 17th century by a monk who took him to Rome around 1680. But despite all this wonderful story, the well-known edition of “Secrets of the Worm” was released only in 1932.
A number of moments described in The Secrets of the Worm closely echoes another no less mystical grimoire, the Book of Dagon, which, in turn, was allegedly written in the 15th century BC. by Assyrian priests. True, it became famous at about the same time as other works from this series.
But the true best-seller, telling about the Ancients, without a doubt is the unforgettable “Necronomicon” by G.F. Lovecraft. Although Abdul Alhazred is mentioned as the author in the book, Lovecraft in one of his letters debunkes the myth of the existence of a “crazy Arab”, namely:
“By the way, there is no ‘Necronomicon of the crazy Arab Abdul Alhazred’. This infernal and forbidden volume is the figurative essence of my concept, which others from the WT group also used for the background in the works.”
To Robert Bloch, May 9, 1933
But nevertheless, it is the Necronomicon (which in its essence is not only not a historical manuscript, but not even a reconstruction of any previously existing cult) which is considered to be the basis for the cult of Aliah. Since it is precisely in the Lovecraft’s work that the Ancients are most vividly and in detail described, as well as the ritual aspects of establishing contact with them are rather scrupulously conveyed. This book is also given additional credibility by the fact that it can be conditionally divided into 2 parts: 1 – the narrative of the Ancients (those same inhabitants of Chaos) and 2 – references to the Sumerian religious tradition, containing the names of the gods of the Sumerian pantheon (supposedly opposed Ancient), about which there are many real historical sources, and appeals to them.
Now let’s move on to the other half of the initially posed question – who are the Ancients?
The Necronomicon also provides its own classification of “Chaos demons,” in which a number of “small” demons like Shoggotes can be distinguished, and the names and characteristics of “elders” demons are listed:
Yog-Sothoth – Lurking at the threshold, the keeper of the gates between the worlds. Presumably, it is the embodiment of the universe.
Azathoth – Infinite Chaos, the god in the pantheon, who is the creator of the universe.
Shab Niggurath – The Black Goat of the Forests, the progenitor of the armies of Chaos and their commander in chief.
Nyarlathotep – Creeping Chaos, messenger of the Ancients. Allegedly of Egyptian origin.
Cthulhu – the Great Ancient, sleeping at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, whose awakening will cause the end of the world. According to some reports, its prototype was Tangaroa (Tangaloa, Canaloa) – the Polynesian deity of the sea.
But are the Ancients real (to what extent can this term be applicable in this case) or are they exclusively a figment of Lovecraft’s imagination?
Such popularity of books about the Ancients is explained not only by the general interest in any mysticism at the beginning of the 20th century, but also by the bright archetypal nature of the images cited in them. If the cult of Aliah did not exist in antiquity, it was worth inventing. Since it is precisely the very archetypes described by Lovecraft and his followers (which substantially supplemented the description of the pantheon of the Ancients) that are a true reflection of the Chaos of the Original.
If we delve deeper into the description of the structure of the universe, then Chaos is just that which is beyond the material (including the limits of the “subtle matters” so beloved by many esotericists) and serves as the progenitor of everything. If we consider this structure according to the criteria of entropy (degree of chaos of the system), we can distinguish several of its main zones as the level of entropy increases:
– Worlds are “divine”, where entropy is absent in principle, and where Law and Order reign.
– The worlds are “embodied”, in one of which we live, and where entropy is negligible (although it still exists).
– The worlds are “demonic.”
– The worlds of the “dead.”
– The abyss, which is the boundary and reference point of “materiality”.
– Chaos, where any kind of “materiality” is in principle absent, and everything is possible in principle.
Thus, absolutely everything can be formed in Chaos, and it is precisely this dimension where the roots go not only of dreams and innermost desires of a person, but also where the birth and existence of superhigh-speed and even gods is possible. And taking into account the number of mystics of the XX century, whose minds with a light pitch of Lovecraft overwhelmed the interest in the Ancients, as well as their followers in the person of our contemporaries, the birth and existence of these gods is quite likely.
But there remains only one unsolved question: did all this really come up with the brilliant, but still ordinary human mind of the writer, or did Lovecraft just serve as a transmitter-receiver of the information coming to him “from the edge”? Did the Ancients exist before the release of the Necronomicon? Turning to the same archetypes – yes, they could well exist thousands of years before the first publication of information about them, albeit without names and images, but they could. However, one can argue endlessly on this subject, citing both the arguments “for” this point of view and the “against” it. What is justified right now is only the assertion that they really exist, and the rituals described in the books are quite working.
Summing up, we can say that the Lovecraft cult of Alyah is a relative remake, but a remake is a worker.
