Earth and the dominions below. It is a universal concept, often defined symbolically as a tree or standing stone, a mountain, the omphalos, the lingam, the Vajra, and the Pole Star. The solstices represent the World Axis in terms of time.
BA
For the Ancient Egyptians, the Ba was the symbolic representation of the soul. It takes the form of a small bird with the head of a human being. The Ba could fly between its owner and the Gods for as long as the body was intact. The Ba is twinned with the Ka. If the Ba represented the soul, then the Ka was the “life-force,” the spark of life that animated the body and whose departure resulted in death. The Ka was sustained with offerings of food and drink, although it was the “ka” or spirit of the food and drink that was consumed. In the Afterlife, the Ba and the Ka would be reunited to form one single entity.
BAPHOMET
The Baphomet we recognize today is a winged goat with a masculine torso and breasts; he has a blazing torch between his horns, and cloven feet. Adding to the confusion, one arm is male and the other is female, and all in all this has become a real bogeyman of a symbol, inspiring fright and terror.
The image made its first appearance relatively recently, in Eliphas Levi’s Dogma and Rituals of High Magic (1854). Although Levi intended the creature (also called the Goat of Mendes) to be an idealized symbolic form, an amalgam of images from all disciplines including the Kabbalah, he actually created something that looks far more terrifying than he may have originally intended. The picture influenced illustrations of the Devil, not only in Tarot card illustrations but also among latter-day rock bands and, as already mentioned, among Satanists.
Baphomet himself was first described at the trials of the Knights Templar, centuries before Levi’s interpretation. When the Order began in the twelfth century, it was designed to protect pilgrims traveling to Jerusalem. Because the Knights were exempt from taxation, they amassed a huge amount of wealth and, consequently, power. When they became a threat to the establishment, they were persecuted, and part of this persecution included accusations of heresy including the worship of a peculiar looking goat-headed creature.
BECKONING CAT
A friendly little statuette with a warm welcome found all over Japan and China. What the cat is doing with his paws carries a secret message.
The cute little Maneki Neko or beckoning cat is ubiquitous in Japan and China where he appears in both homes and offices. This friendly-looking china cat can also be seen in Oriental restaurants all over the world and is for many people the ultimate symbol of prosperity and good luck.
The Maneki Neko comes in different colors, each of which signifies a different meaning. For example, a red cat will protect from illness, and a black one will ward off evil.
The position of the paws also carries a message. With the right paw raised the cat will bring money and happiness to home and workplace. A cat raising its left paw (like the one illustrated here) will attract new customers for a business. And a cat with both paws raised hits the jackpot; both home and business will be happy and profitable, attracting good luck, friends, prosperity, and new clients.
This cat is also the symbol of the small Buddhist temple in Tokyo, where the original incident that shot the cat to fame is said to have happened. Originally the temple was a lowly place, whose impoverished priest would regularly share what little food he had with his pet cat. One day some Samurai were passing and noticed this cat, who had one paw raised as though to say hello. The warriors stopped, intrigued by the beckoning cat, and went into the temple just as a horrendous rain storm started. They believed that paying attention to the cat’s invitation had prevented them being struck by lightning. Thereafter, the fortunes of the priest, the temple, and of course the cat, started to change for the better.
BELL
There is a mysticism surrounding the bell that far transcends its mundane use as a way of getting attention in the schoolroom, for example. The sound of the bell is universally accepted as a way of communicating with the spirits, or as a herald for the arrival of a supernatural, holy power.
The analogy of the bell occurs in language, too, used to symbolize something of sacred origin. In Islam, the “reverberation of the bell” is used to describe the sound of the revelations of the Qu’ran, and in Buddhism, the “sound of the golden bell” is an analogy for heavenly voices. The sound of a bell is a reminder that, like the sound, the world may be experienced, but not possessed.
Pagoda roofs sometimes have hundreds of tiny bells hanging from them, symbolizing, in sound, the concepts of the Buddhist laws as well as frightening away any malicious entities. For the same reason, the church bells of Christian churches, at one time, were peeled not only during processions or as a notice of a ceremony or service, but also during thunderstorms to chase away demons.
The bell is also a sacred object. In the form of the Buddhist Drilbu, or the Hindu Ghanta, it symbolizes the illusory world, because of the fleetingly resonant nature of its sound. It is the feminine principle paired up with the masculine vajra.
The use of these oriental bells largely influenced their European symbolism and use. The sweet reverberation of a bell, rung three times in the silence of a large stone church or cathedral, has a quality of calming the atmosphere, attracting the attention of the worshippers, welcoming in the spirits, and setting the scene for the ritual that follows.
The power of the bell as a way of spiritual communication is carried one step further in the magical bell made of an amalgam of the seven sacred metals that are ruled by the planets. This bell, engraved with the Tetragrammaton and the planetary seals from alchemy, allegedly has the power to summon the spirits of the dead. However, this spell calls for the bell to be put into a grave for seven days and seven nights before it will work properly.
BELL, BOOK, AND CANDLE
Singly, these items all have mystical significance. When grouped together, they have a certain frisson, somehow seeming to resonate with dark forces, pagan ideals, and witchcraft in particular. However, this sinister grouping actually comes from the rites of excommunication or anathema in the Roman Catholic Church. Effectively a powerful curse, this ritual is taken very seriously, reserved only for those whose transgressions against the Church are deemed unforgivable.
After the officiating cleric has verbally declared the excommunication, he declares it symbolically with three actions; he shuts the Bible, sounds the bell, and then snuffs out the candle.
These actions are clear. Closing the Bible tells the excommunicant that he is no longer privy to the Word of God. Ringing the bell is symbolic of mourning for the “departed,” the excommunicant, who is now effectively spiritually dead to the Church. Snuffing the candle is a universal sign of the “snuffing out” of the soul, now doomed because of its banishment from the faith.
BESOM
See Broomstick.
BINDHU
See First Signs: Dot.
BLACK SUN
The notion of the Sun being black runs completely counter to what is generally accepted about it; the simplest explanation for a Black Sun is that it describes what happens at night, when the Sun is casting its light on another part of the planet. However,