The Books of Soyga and Loagaeth

Greetings Crypto-Mystics!

I was just alerted to this new blog about the Book of Soyga.  It is a pretty good write-up – taking us from Dee’s own attempts to question the archangel Uriel about the book, to the re-discovery of the book by Deborah Harkness and finally to the deciphering of the 36 Tables of Soyga by Jim Reeds.  The author even created a computer program that allows you to generate new Tables based on your own chosen keywords.  🙂

Personally, I have yet to grasp the significance of the 36 Tables of Soyga.  It seems to me that their mystery must be hidden in the keywords that are used to create each one.  For example, the Table labeled “Magister” is given the keyword MOYSES – which is suspiciously close to Moses, who legend tells us was the only master to open and enter the highest Gate of Heaven.

The author of the blog seems to agree – linking the concept of the keywords to the Biblical quote from the Book of John:  “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”  And that the universe was created by and through that Word.  Much as each Table of Soyga is created by and through it’s keyword.

Therefore, I would personally like to see more work done to decipher the hidden meanings of the 36 keywords.  (Well, 35, as MOYSES is pretty clear.)  Where do these other keywords come from?  Are they corruptions of old Hebrew, Chaldean or Egyptian words?  Are they angel names from known grimoires?  Are they Qabalistic Names of God taken from various places in Scipture?  I’d love to know!

As some of you surely know, I go into some detail about the Book of Soyga in the first volume of my The Angelical Language, Vol 1.  That is because I consider the 36 36×36 Tables of Soyga to be the forerunners of Dee’s 49 49×49 Tables of Loagaeth.

I’m not the first to point out the sequential progression from one square number (36) to the next (49).  I also notice that Soyga has 36 indecipherable keywords, while the Tables of Loagaeth are given 49 equally indecipherable “titles.”  (Well, 48, as we are given neither a title nor an Angelical Calling for the first Table.)  Perhaps these titles are used in some manner to decrypt – or even create – the Loagaeth tables?  So far no one has discovered the solution.

Meanwhile, in the Book of Soyga, the 36 Tables are associated with astrological correspondences:  Two for each sign of the Zodiac (for the Biblically significant total of 24), one for each of the seven Planets, one for each of the four Philosophical Elements and finally one for the “Magister.”

From what little we know about the Tables of Loagaeth, it would appear a similar correspondence was intended.  As with the “Magister” Table in Soyga, we find one Table in Loagaeth singled out – said to be reserved only for the Christos.

We also know that Loagaeth‘s Table 19 is associated with the “Spirits of the Earth.”  Dee called it “Table 18” in his journal, however he often referred to the second Table as “the first” (because Table 1 was inaccessable) – so it is likely that Dee’s “Table 18” is in fact the 19th in the Book.

Table 19 is significant because it is the final Table before the Tables of the 30 Aethyrs begin.  Thus it is likely that Tables 1-19 form their own set.  Because the 49 Tables of Loagaeth cover the Seven Days of Creation, I assume the first nineteen embody the initial six Days, leaving the final 30 to represent the seventh Day (i.e. – the finished and active universe).

Thus, we have the First Table of Loagaeth representing the Christos/Godhead, and we have the 19th Table representing Earth – clearly indicating a descent from highest to lowest.  That is comparable to the Tables of Soyga, which run from the Zodiac, to the Planets to the four Elements.  I think a similar set of astrological correspondences are intended for Tables 2-19 of Loagaeth.  (The first Table of Loagaeth would be analogous to the final “Magister” Table of Soyga.)

Given all of this, I would suggest that Tables 16, 17 and 18 of Loagaeth represent Fire, Water and Air – though not necessarily in that order.  In Dee’s seven Heptarchic tables, the Elemetns are presented in the order of Water, Earth, Air and Fire – which doesn’t put Earth in last place.  In my own Discourse on the Enochian Watchtowers , I suggest the Watchtowers represent the four zodiacal triplicities, running in the zodiacal order of Fire, Earth, Air and Water – which also does not place Earth in last place.

So we must be looking at a different pattern here in Loagaeth.  Just perhaps, the intended order is that found in the four cardinal directions of a zodiacal chart – which follow the order of Aries (East), Cancer (North), Libra (West) and Capricorn (South).  [Additional Note:  This pattern – looking toward each quarter of a zodiacal circle – seems to be suggested by the pattern of the four Angelical Callings that correspond to these four Loagaeth Tables.]  That would give us the order of Fire, Water, Air and Earth for the Loagaeth Tables 16, 17, 18 and 19 respectively.

Now, we still have Tables 2-15 to figure out.  That’s thirteen Tables, which doesn’t leave us room for the twelve signs of the zodiac plus the seven Planets.

Yet, we do have evidence that the planets should be included.  The 9th Table – known as the Pagesgem Table – bears the name of the Heptarchic Prince of the Sun Bornogo in a star-pattern in its center.  And, if we take a look at the Angelical Call that opens this Table (Call 8), it happens to begin with a reference to “the midday” (or noon).  That’s pretty hefty evidence that Table 9 should represent the Sun.

Unfortunately, the names of the other six Planetary Princes do not appear on seven other Tables – leaving us all alone to speculate.   Rest assured I have tried every way I can imagine to get the seven Planets to fit comfortably into the Tables of Loagaeth – so that Table 9 is the Sun and sufficient Tables are left before or behind the group for something else (like the Zodiac).  I’ve tried the Heptarchic ordering of Planets as well as the Chaldean ordering.  I’ve tried assigning the Planets to Tables 9-15, Tables 3-9, and even Tables 8-14 (using Heptarchic ordering) and 6-11 (using Chaldean ordering).  Not one of these schemes fits in a way that makes me comfortable.

So, let’s consider another option:  What if Table 9 represents a sign of the Zodiac that is ruled by the Sun?  There is only one:  Leo, the fifth sign of the Zodiac.  That should mean that Tables 5-16 represent the twelve signs.  But, dammit!, Table 16 already represents Fire and thus can’t possibly represent Pisces.

Another possibility is grouping the Zodiac signs into triplicities, just as I have suggested is intended by the Watchtowers:  Aries, Leo, Sag – Cancer, Scorpius, Pisces – Libra, Aquarius, Gemini – Capricorn, Taurus, Virgo.  By keeping Leo at Table 9, we would have the Zodiac running across Tables 8-19.

Unfortunately, it also takes up our four final Tables that were reserved for the four Philosophical Elements.  It does place Virgo at Table 19 – which is an Earth sign.  But we would have to consider that association a stretch at best.  Dee said that Table 19 represents the “Spirits of the Earth” not the “Spirits of Virgo.”

On the other hand, the above ordering of Zodiac signs would place Scorpius at Table 12, opened by the eleventh Angelical Calling.  If we look at that Call, we see the Eagle Kherub (traditionally representing Scorpius) calling together a bunch of angels into the “house of death.”  And the house of death in the Zodiac is the house of Scorpius.

This is looking good, but has a few problems.  First, it leaves only six Tables from 2-7, and that’s one short for seven Planets.  We could assign a Planet to Table 1 (the Godhead), but why would should one of the seven Planets be inaccessible to humans?  (Yes, the modern Hermetic Tree of Life places one Planet – Saturn – in the inaccessible Supernals.  But that Tree wasn’t around when Dee did his work.  And even in modern systems Saturn isn’t considered “inaccessible” to humans.)

There are further problems with this as well, which are more easily explained if you have a list to look at.  So here is the scheme as I’ve described it so far.  (The Planets are listed in the order Dee gives in the Heptarchia):

Table 1:  Venus

Table 2:  Sol

Table 3:  Mars

Table 4:  Jupiter

Table 5:  Mercury

Table 6:  Saturn

Table 7:  Luna

Table 8:  Aries

Table 9:  Leo

Table 10:   Sagittarius

Table 11:  Cancer

Table 12:  Scorpius

Table 13:  Pisces

Table 14:  Libra

Table 15:  Aquarius

Table 16:  Gemini or Fire

Table 17:  Capricorn or Water

Table 18:  Taurus or Air

Table 19:  Virgo or Earth

Here is what I do not like about the above scheme:

1) As I stated previously, Table 1 is inaccessible, and I can’t see why any of the Planets would be associated with it.

2) I still think the final four Tables should be assigned the four Elements, and not Zodiacal signs.

3) My analysis of the Angelical Calls suggests that Calls 1 and 2 (opening Tables 2 and 3) should invoke the seven Planetary Archangels.  Why would those Calls therefore open Tables associated only with Sol and Mars?

4) The third Angelical Call (opening Table 4), said by the angels to be “the first of nature and the beginning of your being in body”, appears to describe the entire circle of the Zodiac.  This has nothing whatsoever to do with Jupiter.

5) Angelical Calls 3-18 (opening Tables 4-19) seem to address the Zodiacal angels throughout the four quarters of the heavens.  So why should Tables 4-7 only represent four Planets?

Here is a possible list of Loagaeth Table correspondences based on the scheme suggested by the Angelical Callings (plus, restoring the Elements to the final four):

Table 1:  Godhead

Tables 2: The Creator (Iadbaltoh)

Table 3: The Shekinah/Sophia

(I have previously suggested Tables 2 and 3, together, represent the Seven Planetary Archangels, but there is very little to support this from the Calls that open them – Calls 1 and 2.  These Calls certainly seem to better indicate the Creator in Call 1, and the references in Call 2 to flowers and a bridal chamber – which is quite “Song of Solmon”-like – seems to hearken to Jewish references to the Shekinah.)

Tables 4-15: The 12 Zodiacal Kings

Table 16:  Spirits of Fire

Table 17:  Spirits of Water

Table 18:  Spirits of Air

Table 19:  Spirits of Earth

I admit this one looks good.  However, I won’t be happy with this until I can find a way to affix Leo to Table 9 and Scorpius to Table 12.  Below is a list that shows Leo and Scorpius in place, along with the directions mentioned (or apparently indicated) in the Angelical Callings that open each Table:

Table 4:  ? (East?)

Table 5:  ? (South)

Table 6:  ? (West?)

Table 7:  ? (North)

Table 8:  ? (East)

Table 9:  Leo (Noon/South)

Table 10:  ?  (West)

Table 11:  ? (North)

Table 12:  Scorpius (North*)

Table 13:  ? (South)

Table 14:  ? (South)

Table 15:  ? (No direction mentioned)

(* The Eleventh Calling – opening Table 12 – describes five angels flying into the east.  However, the Eagle calls them back and gathers them into the “house of death.”  Traditionally, the Eagle Kherub is associated with the North.  See Agrippa’s Three Books, “Scale of the Number 4.”)

And there lies the greatest stumbling block to solving the puzzle!  I’ve searched for different ways to arrange the Zodiac signs so they will fit that scheme – leaving Leo and Scorpius where they belong.  Letting them run in natural order from Aries to Pisces doesn’t work.  Grouping them by triplicity doesn’t work.  I’ve even tried to arrange them in different orders according to strength and other considerations used in Renaissance astrology.  So far, I have found no scheme that naturally fits.

But, never fear Dear Reader!  I will continue to search and ask the angels for guidance.  With a little luck and perhaps a miracle or two, I should stumble across the solution someday – maybe soon.  🙂

Zorge

Aaron