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Consecration of the Twelve Faces of Helios

August 26, 2015 in occult, pgm Tags: agathodaimon, agathos daimon, charm, consecration,
egyptian hieroglyphs, genius, helios, pgm, phylactery, ritual, spell, sun 8 Comments
(Update 1/9/2018: Interested in more about this ritual? Check out my more polished, fleshed-out writeup over
on this page! (//digitalambler.com/rituals/classical-hermetic-rituals/consecration-of-the-twelve-faces-of-
helios/))

As I mentioned last time in that post (https://digitalambler.wordpress.com/2015/08/24/miscellaneous-magical-

methods/) detailing a list of neat shit I found for use in my own magic, there’s one particular ritual that I hadn’t
used before or included in my original enchiridion, but that I thought would be worth it to include. This is a
ritual from the Greek Magical Papyri, that awesome Dead Sea Scrolls collection of magic, and specifically comes
from PGM IV.1596—1715, under the title This is the consecration for all purposes; Spell to Helios. It’s a somewhat
lengthy incantation, and doesn’t provide any ritual instructions nor does it seem immediately connected to any
other ritual found close to it in the PGM, but it’s a fascinating method of consecration of a charm, stone, ring,
phylactery, or other object for power under Helios, the sun god of the Greeks.

However, it being the PGM, its’s not that straightforward. Besides the usual barbarous words of power, this
ritual has several fascinating aspects to it. For one, the ritual associates Helios with the Αγαθος Δαιμον, the
Good Spirit or Genius, with heavy references to a Serpent God and even an explicit one to Serapis, none of
which is too surprising given the PGM context in which we find this ritual. More fascinating than this, however,
this ritual has Helios with twelve forms and twelve names, each form and name for each of the twelve hours of
the day. This is much like the names of the hours of the Heptameron, and has corollaries to the names of angels
from the Key of Solomon; however, the practice of giving names and gods to the individual hours of the day is
old and definitely has its origins in ancient Egyptian practice. There is another ritual, PGM III.494, which
provides a partial list of the gods of the hours, but it’s incomplete, making PGM IV.1596 the only complete one
in the text. For reference, the names (in Greek along with their isopsephic values) and forms of Helios in the
twelve hours are listed below, along with the hieroglyph for each animal (as close as I can ascertain, for reasons
which will soon become clear):

Hour Name Animal

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ΦΑΡΑΚΟΥΝΗΘ
1 Cat
1159 (ΩΨΝΘ)

(https://digitalambler.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/hiero_e13.png)

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ΣΟΥΦΙ
2 Dog
1180 (ΩΤΠ)

(https://digitalambler.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/hiero_e14.png)

ΑΜΕΚΡΑΝΕΒΕΧΕΟ
3 ΘΩΥΘ Serpent
2122 (ΩΨΧΚΒ)

(https://digitalambler.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/hiero_i14.png)

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ΣΕΝΘΕΝΙΨ
4 Scarab
1029 (ΩΣΚΘ)

(https://digitalambler.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/hiero_l1.png)

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ΕΝΦΑΝΧΟΥΦ
5 Donkey
2176 (ΩΨΧΟΕΑ)

(https://digitalambler.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/hiero_e7.png)

ΒΑΙ ΣΟΛΒΑΙ
6 Lion
326 (ΤΚΕΑ)

(https://digitalambler.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/hiero_e22.png)

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ΟΥΜΕΣΘΩΘ
7 Goat
1533 (ΩΨΛG)

(https://digitalambler.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/hiero_e30.png)

ΔΙΑΤΙΦΗ
8 Bull
833 (ΩΛΓ)

(https://digitalambler.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/hiero_e1.png)

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ΦΗΟΥΣ ΦΩΟΥΘ
9 Falcon
2957 (ΩΨΧΦΤΝΖ)

(https://digitalambler.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/hiero_g5.png)

ΒΕΣΒΥΚΙ
10 Baboon
639 (ΧΛΘ)

(https://digitalambler.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/hiero_e32.png)

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ΜΟΥ ΡΩΦ
11 Ibis
1910 (ΩΨΥΙ)

(https://digitalambler.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/hiero_g25.png)

ΑΕΡΘΟΗ
12 Crocodile
193 (ΡΠΓ)

(https://digitalambler.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/hiero_i3.png)
There’s a small bit written about the forms of the Helios, mostly in German, and I don’t propose to get into it too
deeply here. However, I did mention above that there is another list of names and forms of the Sun through the
hours earlier in the PGM, but it’s incomplete; Stephen Flowers in his Hermetic Magic attempts a reconstruction,
but…well, suffice to say that I’m not particularly sanguine about his work. Mind you, this is focusing on the
twelve hours of the day, since Helios (in the Egyptian reckoning) dies and goes into the underworld during the
nighttime. Some of the faces of Helios have small descriptions appended to them, such as that of the ninth face
ΦΗΟΥΣ ΦΩΟΥΘ as “the lotus emerged from the abyss”, of which the lotus is a traditional throne of
Harpokrates, also known as Horus, given the animal form of a falcon. It might be that the Sun was thought of
by the author as an ultimate, monistic god that took on multiple forms, especially given his laudation of the Sun
as “the great Serpent, leader of all the gods, who control the beginning of Egypt and the end of the whole
inhabited world” and other praises. Other notably Egyptian names can be found amidst the other barbarous
words in this ritual.

Now, while the ritual as given in the PGM is well-preserved, there are two main issues, as I see it. For one, each
one of the twelve hours has an associated benediction for the phylactery or charm to be consecrated except for
the tenth and twelfth hours; Betz notes that it’s likely a copyist omission that left out the consecration for the

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these hours. Moreover, the bigger issue we have is that we don’t know exactly how to employ the ritual, as no
framework for the ritual was given. To that end, here are some of my thoughts on setting up such a ritual
employing this consecration:

When it comes to timing, I think it’d be good for us modern Hermetic magi to stick to a time powerful for the
Sun, such as during a day and hour of the Sun, during a good astrological election of the Sun, or using the
day when the Sun hits his exaltation at 18° Aries (which, barring unusual circumstances, only happens once a
year sometime around April 7). As this is a consecration, choosing a day when the Moon is waxing or full
would be preferred. The wording of the text suggests that the Sun, at the time of uttering the spell, has
already set, meaning that the ritual would have been done at nighttime, leading to a peculiar necromantic-
solar vibe. However, there’s room for fleshing this out, and I think doing it in the daytime could be done just
as well.
No offerings are mentioned, but strong red wine would be a safe bet.
Ritual setup could involve six candles (six being the Qabbalistic number of the Sun), but I think it’d be better
to have twelve candles, one each for the twelve faces of Helios. Alternatively, oil lamps would work equally
well.
Frankincense would be an obvious choice for a suffumigation, but if you wanted to go fancier, you could
make a more complicated and delectable solar blend. If you wanted to go old-school, perhaps kyphi would
also work.
The usual solar decorations of gold, yellow, bay laurel, and the like would be nice, perhaps substituting the
number 6 for 12 (such as using a duodecadon or a double hexagon instead of a single hexagon).
Even though the ritual text lacks benedictions for the tenth and twelfth hours, it’s not terribly hard to fill in
the blanks with related ones.

So, with all that in mind, here’s what I have planned for the full ritual of the Consecration of the Twelve Faces
of . For the full ritual, it will take place over the course of a full day from the moment of sunrise to the moment
of sunset, with thirteen total invocations to be done, but later on I’ll also describe a one-fell-swoop approach to
doing the whole ritual.

Preparation
Prepare the following supplies:

Thirteen white, ivory, yellow, or gold candles that burn for at least 12 hours, or thirteen clean oil lamps that
have not been painted red filled with enough oil to burn for at least 12 hours
A bottle of red wine
Twelve small cups and one large bowl, if the ritual is done inside
Non-red (preferably white or yellow) chalk, paint, or ink, if the ritual is done inside and/or upon some sort of
writable ground or surface
Incense, either purely of frankincense or compounded of equal parts frankincense, myrrh, sandalwood, and
cinnamon
Oil, either pure olive oil or some sort of blessing/magical oil
An object to be consecrated, henceforth known as the “charm” (but change the word in the instructions and
ritual text as necessary to “ring”, “phylactery”, &c.)

The ritual will take place at thirteen different points in time throughout the same day: at the first hour of the day
(moment of sunrise), at the second, third…twelfth, and at the thirteenth hour of the day (moment of sunset). Be
sure to calculate these specific times for the ritual in the same way as you’d calculate planetary hours, focusing
only on the diurnal hours plus the first nocturnal hour (sunset). One is to strictly fast from all food, all drinks
except water, all sexual activity, and all impurity from the moment the ritual begins until it is concluded after
sunset.

Prepare the ritual area:

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1. Clean, purify, and banish the ritual area from all impurity before setting anything up. Using natron as a
purifying agent is suggested, but not required.
2. Arrange twelve of the candles in a large semicircle, so that the open side faces the north. The twelve candles
may be spaced so that the first candle is oriented due east and the last candle due west, or they may be
spaced so that the first candle is oriented towards the exact direction of sunrise and the last candle
towards the exact direction of the Sun’s position in its twelfth hour of the day.
3. If done inside or in such an area as to permit a writable surface, write out the name of the twelve faces of
Helios between the object to be consecrated and each of the candles, so that ΦΑΡΑΚΟΥΝΗΘ is written
between the object and towards the easternmost candle, ΣΟΥΦΙ towards the next one just to the south, and
so forth. If space is tight, use the isopsephic value of each name instead, written either in Arabic or Greek
numerals. Outside the semicircle beside each candle, write the Egyptian hieroglyph for the animal associated
with that candle’s hour and name. Additionally, write the hieroglyph for the Sun in the focal point of the
semicircle.

(https://digitalambler.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/hiero_n5.png)
4. If the ritual is done inside, place the bowl at the focal point of the semicircle, then put the charm inside the
bowl. If outside, place the charm at the focal point on the ground.
5. If the ritual is done inside, set a small cup just beyond each candle (either on or beyond the hieroglyph if on a
writable surface).
6. Place the censer for the incense behind the focal point, a little bit away from the charm towards the north.
7. If desired, write the names of the four guardians of the directions
(https://digitalambler.wordpress.com/2013/04/07/ancient-words-of-power-for-the-directions/) ΕΡΒΗΘ to
the east, ΛΕΡΘΕΞΑΝΑΞ to the south, ΑΒΛΑΝΑΘΑΝΑΛΒΑ to the west, and ΣΕΣΕΓΓΕΝΒΑΡΦΑΡΑΓΓΗΣ to
the north around the whole ritual area. I’ve found these names of power to represent the entities guarding
the stations of the Sun as he progresses through the heavens and hells, but it’s optional. Likewise, if desired
and if space permits, you may also want to “close off” the area by drawing a second semicircle to the north so
as to make a more-or-less complete circle.

The resulting layout for the ritual, assuming we use the due-east/due-west orientation of the candles with all the
extra things and large enough to walk within, would look like this:

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(https://digitalambler.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/helios12_semicircle.jpg)

Ritual
Before sunrise on the day of the ritual, prepare the temple space so that it is clean, banished, and prepared
accordingly. Just before sunrise, invoke the four guardians of the directions, if desired, or other watchtower-type
entities. At sunrise, the ritual fast and actions begin; light the thirteenth candle (henceforth referred to as the Sun
candle) that has not been set out in the semicircle. Light the incense, then take the Sun candle in in the left hand,
salute the rising Sun with the right, and begin the preliminary invocation (state your name or whoever’s the
beneficiary of the charm wherever “NN.” is used):

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I invoke you, the greatest god, eternal lord, world ruler, I who are over the world and under the world,
mighty ruler of the sea, rising at dawn, shining from the east for the whole world, setting in the west. Come
to me, you who rises from the four winds, joyous Agathos Daimon, for whom heaven has become the
processional way. I call upon your holy and great and hidden names which you rejoice to hear. The earth
flourished when you shone forth; the plants became fruitful when you laughed; the animals begat their
young when you permitted. Give glory and honor and favor and fortune and power to this charm which I
consecrate today for NN.

I invoke you, the greatest in heaven, ΗΙ ΛΑΝΧΥΧ ΑΚΑΡΗΝ ΒΑΛ ΜΙΣΘΡΗΝ ΜΑΡΤΑ ΜΑΘΑΘ ΛΑΙΛΑΜ
ΜΟΥΣΟΥΘΙ ΣΙΕΘΩ ΒΑΘΑΒΑΘΙ ΙΑΤΜΩΝ ΑΛΕΙ ΙΑΒΑΘ ΑΒΑΩΘ ΣΑΒΑΩΘ ΑΔΩΝΑΙ, the great god,
ΟΡΣΕΝΟΦΡΗ ΟΡΓΕΑΤΗΣ ΤΟΘΟΡΝΑΤΗΣΑ ΚΡΙΘΙ ΒΙΩΘΙ ΙΑΔΜΩ ΙΑΤΜΩΜΙ ΜΕΘΙΗΙ ΛΟΝΧΟΩ
ΑΚΑΡΗ ΒΑΛ ΜΙΝΘΡΗ ΒΑΝΕ ΒΑΙΝΧΧΥΧΧ ΟΥΦΡΙ ΝΟΘΕΟΥΣΙ ΘΡΑΙ ΑΡΣΙΟΥΘ ΕΡΩΝΕΡΘΕΡ, the
shining Helios, giving light throughout the whole world. You are the great Serpent, leader of all the gods,
who control the beginning of Egypt and the end of the whole inhabited world, who mate in the ocean, ΨΟΙ
ΦΝΟΥΘΙ ΝΙΝΘΗΡ. You are he who becomes visible each day and sets in the northwest of heaven, and rises
in the southeast.

Proceed to the first candle in the semicircle and light it with the Sun candle; if the circle is large enough to walk
in, stand on top of the name of the face for the first hour and face the candle, but otherwise stand behind the
charm towards the north and facing the candle of the first hour. Say the invocation of the first hour while
saluting the first candle with the right hand:

In the first hour you have the form of a cat; your name is ΦΑΡΑΚΟΥΝΗΘ. Give glory and favor to this
charm.

Pour out an offering of wine, either directly on the ground on top of the hieroglyph (if outside) or in its proper
cup (if inside). Follow this with the following supplication:

You who will set at evening as an old man, who are over the world and under the world, mighty ruler of the
sea, hear my voice in this present day, in these holy hours, and let all things done by this charm be brought
to fulfillment, and especially for the need for which I consecrate it, for the sake of NN.

Set the Sun candle down by or on top of the charm. The ritual for the first hour is complete.

At each of the successive hours of the day through the twelfth hour, repeat the process by lighting more incense,
taking up the Sun candle, and proceeding to go through each invocation for each of the hour, saluting each
candle, until you reach the proper candle for the appropriate hour, where you’ll light that hour’s candle, recite
the invocation to that hour while saluting the candle, pour out wine for that hour, and finish with the final
supplication before putting the Sun candle down by the charm. The rest of the hour invocations are
(supplemented with my own additions for the tenth and twelfth hours):

2. In the second hour you have the form of a dog; your name is ΣΟΥΦΙ. Give strength and honor to this charm
and to NN.
3. In the third hour you have the form of a serpent; your name is ΑΜΕΚΡΑΝΕΒΕΧΕΟ ΘΩΥΘ. Give honor to
the god NN.
4. In the fourth hour you have the form of a scarab; your name is ΣΕΝΘΕΝΙΨ. Mightily strengthen this charm
for that which it is consecrated.
5. In the fifth hour you have the form of a donkey; your name is ΕΝΦΑΝΧΟΥΦ. Give strength and courage
and power to the god NN.
6. In the sixth hour you have the form of a lion; your name is ΒΑΙ ΣΟΛΒΑΙ, the ruler of time. Give success to
this charm and glorious victory.
7. In the seventh hour you have the form of a goat; your name is ΟΥΜΕΣΘΩΘ. Give sexual charm to this
charm.

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8. In the eighth hour you have the form of a bull; your name is ΔΙΑΤΙΦΗ, who becomes visible everywhere. Let
all things done by the use of this charm be accomplished.
9. In the ninth hour you have the form of a falcon; your name is ΦΗΟΥΣ ΦΩΟΥΘ, the lotus emerged from the
abyss. Give success and good luck to this charm.
10. In the tenth hour you have the form of a baboon; your name is ΒΕΣΒΥΚΙ. Give power and wisdom in all
things to the god NN. for whom this charm is consecrated.
11. In the eleventh hour you have the form of an ibis; your name is ΜΟΥ ΡΩΦ. Protect this great charm for
lucky use by NN. from this present day for all time.
12. In the twelfth hour you have the form of a crocodile; your name is ΑΕΡΘΟΗ. Give the greatest protection to
NN. by this charm.

At sunset, go through the entire ritual once more, burning more incense and invoking and saluting each of the
hours as before. Regardless of whether the circle is large enough to walk through, stand behind the censer
facing south towards the candles, and hold the charm in the incense smoke throughout the entire set of
invocations. After this, continuing to hold the charm in the incense smoke, recite the following prayer:

You who have set at evening as an old man, who are over the world and under the world, mighty ruler of the
sea, hear my voice in this night, in these holy hours, and let all things done by this charm be brought
to fulfillment, and especially for the need for which I consecrate it, for the sake of NN. Please, lord ΚΜΗΦ
ΛΟΥΘΕΟΥΘ ΟΡΦΟΙΧΕ ΟΡΤΙΛΙΒΕΧΟΥΧ ΙΕΡΧΕ ΡΟΥΜ ΙΠΕΡΙΤΑΩ ΥΑΙ, I conjure earth and heaven and
light and darkness and the great god who created all, ΣΑΡΟΥΣΙΝ, you, Agathon Daimonion the Helper, to
accomplish for NN. everything done by the use of this charm.

Put the charm back down in the focal point of the semicircle, either on the ground (if outside) or inside the bowl
(if inside). Pour out a new offering of wine on top of the charm. Set the candle by or on top of the charm. Face
north with the candles to your back. With arms outstretched, say the concluding formula:

The one Zeus is Serapis.

The ritual is complete, and the ritual fast may now be broken. Let all the candles burn out on their own, and at
the first sunrise after all the candles have burned out. If done inside, take the bowl with the wine and the charm,
remove the charm from the bowl and set it on the ground facing the Sun, and pour out the wine on top of the
charm while facing the Sun. Whether done inside or outside, once the charm can be removed from the ritual
area, gently clean off the charm with pure water and let it dry in the Sun’s light after anointing it with oil. Keep
the charm nearby whenever you need its power or whenever you need to use it.

Nighttime Simultaneous Ritual

An alternative method of employing the ritual is, instead of progressively building up to the full consecration
throughout the twelve hours of the day, is to do it all at once at night. For this, the general ritual setup would be
similar with the fast starting at the sunset before the ritual and ending at sunrise after the ritual, but the ritual is
to be done precisely at solar midnight, the balance-point between sunset of the previous day and sunrise of the
next (which, especially if you’re on summer time/DST, may closer to 1 a.m. instead of 12 a.m.). In addition, the
candles may last any length of time; I’d recommend twelve tealights and a single taper candle. Perform any
banishing or invocation as desired and set up the ritual space, but instead of using the semicircular arrangement
as above, use a circular arrangement with the first face oriented to the east; the censer should be put off to the
side somewhere, with the twelve candles surrounding the charm.

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(https://digitalambler.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/helios12_circle.jpg)

At true midnight, light the incense and light the Sun candle, and begin the preliminary invocation. For each of
the twelve faces of Helios in order, light its candle, salute, invoke, and pour wine out for the face. Afterwards,
finish with the final supplication (the one involving barbarous words), pouring out of wine on top of the charm,
and concluding with the concluding formula. Let the candles burn out and clean up at sunrise as you otherwise
would.

Other Variations
I’ve seen vague references to other magicians employing this ritual for other purposes, not just for the
consecration of a charm but for general empowerment or wealth, and this ritual can be modified accordingly
merely by tweaking the text for the benedictions of each hour as well as the final supplications. For a more
initiatory ritual, you might use the circular arrangement, even in daytime, with you standing at the center being
the thing consecrated, building up after a fast and performing the ritual at least once, if not at nighttime then
multiple times throughout the day.

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8 responses

Jose Prado says:

August 26, 2015 at 17:29
I can’t really understand the Greek letters. Any chance you could name them in plain Anglicized letters?

polyphanes says:
August 26, 2015 at 17:57
For several reasons, I prefer to give the barbarous names in their original script. Betz in his edition of the
PGM gives them in Roman script, so you can look them up there, but I’d highly suggest you learn how to
read and pronounce Greek letters, especially as they factor hugely into the type of magic I write about on
this blog. There are a number of guides to pronouncing the Greek alphabet, some even on my own blog,
so try checking those out.

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Mario Basile says:

September 2, 2015 at 16:11
Very interesting. Thank you.

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