The Visions of the Pylons: A Magical Record of Exploration in the Starry Abode

J. Daniel Gunther is a life-long student of esotericism, mythology, and religion. A longtime member of A;. A;., the teaching Order established by Aleister Crowley, he is considered one of the foremost authorities in the ?eld, and serves on the editorial board of The Equinox, and acts as a consultant and advisor for numerous occult publications.

"A detailed account and interpretation of a series of visions conducted between August 22, 1975 and February 5, 1977. Their purpose was to explore the Pylons of the Duant, or "Starry Abode," first inscribed upon the alabaster coffin of 19th Dynasty Egyptian Pharoah, Seti I. To the ancient Egyptians, the Duant was the place where the sun god Ra made his nocturnal journey through the underworld--which was divided into twelve hours. The Egyptian "Book of Pylons" describes a perilous journey where the Gate of each hour is protected by a fearsome guardian or "watcher" who prevents entry by the unworthy, or revelation of the deepest secrets of the netherworld to those allowed to pass. In modern Jungian psychology terms, the Duant is a representation of the Unconscious of mankind, the "underworld," inhabited by gods and daemons, the living symbols called primordial images or Archetypes. The noctural journey of Ra is thus actually a journey deep within the human soul or Ba. The author's study of the ancient texts led him to suspect that these Pylons were also hidden gateways to the higher planes of the Tree of Life, possibly including secret entrances to the Thirty Aethyrs as described by Elizbethan magician John Dee"