Stoicheia The esoteric use of letters has an ancient history, and extends far past the well-known use of

gematria and isopsephy that is popular. In the classical era, the use of the Greek alphabet

led to many advances in mathematics and the occult, including connections with the

Qabbalah and astrology. One important method of this is called stoicheia, or “elements”,

which I’ve only seen attributed in Stephen Flowers’ “Hermetic Magic: The Postmodern

Magical Papyrus of Abaris” but claims to be used widely in the classical Hermetic tradition. It

attributes each letter of the Greek alphabet four things:

a shape (the actual drawn letterform)

a sound (the vocalized utterance of the letter)

a number (used in isopsephy)

a force (a planet, sign, or element)

These four qualities, these four elements or stoicheia, are all very tightly linked with each

other. The influence of Pythagoreanism in mathematics allowed for vibrations in the air that

produced sound could be ascribed to numbers, and each note or harmony was assigned to

a different heavenly sphere or star at the time of creation. The letterforms were taken,

ultimately, from the ancient Egyptians by way of Phoenician and proto-Semetic writing, and

the Greeks held the Egyptians to be among the wisest of the wise in the world. In this way,

the four elements of a given Greek letter are tightly connected with each other, and so a

given interpretation of a word in the Greek script can be interpreted in four different ways.

The occult use of stoicheia focuses on that last element, that of forces. In the Greek

alphabet, there are 24 letters (not including the archaic digamma, qoppa, and sampi). In the

occult, there are seven planets, five elements (including aether), and twelve signs in the

Zodiac. Adding them up, we get 24. The occultists of yore were able to ascribe each of

these to a different force on a one-to-one basis in a way that makes sense.

The oldest of these attributions are those of the planets. The Greeks, Copts, and other

Hermetic magicians are well-known for having attributed the seven vowels of the Greek

alphabet to the seven visible planets and their spheres. The attribution of these letters can

be seen throughout the PGM and ancient Greek forms of Qabbalah, especially in certain

holy names and voces magicae. In this system, the attributions are:

Α, alpha, for the Moon

Ε, epsilon, for Mercury

Η, eta, for Venus

Ι, iota, for the Sun

Ο, omicron, for Mars

Υ, upsilon, for Jupiter

Ω, omega, for Saturn

Going to the elements next, there are two systems in use for this, but I prefer one that makes

a bit more phonological sense. In the Greek alphabet, there are five consonants that are

different from the rest. Although letters like beta or gamma are “simple” and are composed

of only one phoneme, letters like “phi” or “ksi” are composed of several phonological units

(letters like phi, theta, and khi were originally aspirated or “breathy”, and not the soft sounds

we now have in modern Greek). The attributions for the planets in this system are:

Θ, theta, for Earth

Ξ, ksi, for Water

Φ, phi, for Air

Χ, khi, for Fire

Ψ, psi, for Aether or the Quintessence

The rest of the letters, the “simple” consonants, are twelve in number and are ascribed to the

signs of the Zodiac in order around the ecliptic:

Β, beta, for Aries

Γ, gamma, for Taurus

Δ, delta, for Gemini

Ζ, zeta, for Cancer

Κ, kappa, for Leo

Λ, lambda, for Virgo

Μ, mu, for Libra

Ν, nu, for Scorpio

Π, pi, for Sagittarius

Ρ, rho, for Capricorn

Σ, sigma, for Aquarius

Τ, tau, for Pisces

So, we end up with the following table that describes the different stoicheia of all the letters

of the Greek alphabet:

Letter Pronunciation Planet Element Sign Number

Α [a(ː)] (ah) Moon 1 Β [b] Aries 2 Γ [ɡ] Taurus 3 Δ [d] Gemini 4 Ε [e] (eh) Mercury 5

Ζ [zd] Cancer 7 Η [ɛː] (ayh) Venus 8 Θ [tʰ] (breathy t) Earth 9 Ι [i] (ee) Sun 10

Κ [k] Leo 20 Λ [l] Virgo 30 Μ [m] Libra 40 Ν [n] Scorpio 50 Ξ [ks] Water 60 Ο [o] Mars 70 Π [p] Sagittarius 80 Ρ [r] Capricorn 100

Σ [s] Aquarius 200 Τ [t] Pisces 300 Υ [y(ː)] (German

ü) Jupiter 400

Φ [pʰ] (breathy p) Air 500 Χ [kʰ] (breathy k) Fire 600 Ψ [ps] Aether 700 Ω [ɔː] (awwh) Saturn 800

Now, using this table isn’t that hard. Take the holy name ΙΑΩ, for instance, which is spelled

iota-alpha-omega. This name is composed of the letters representing the Sun, the Moon,

and Saturn, and has the value 1 + 10 + 800 = 811. Altogether, it refers to all the power

present in the heavenly spheres, from the furthest reaches of Saturn to the innermost

reaches of the Moon. Indeed, ΙΑΩ is often seen as a shorthand for the longer formula

ΑΕΗΙΟΥΩ (1294) or even ΑΕΕΗΗΗΙΙΙΙΟΟΟΟΟΥΥΥΥΥΥΩΩΩΩΩΩΩ (8425), which

represents all the forces of all the planets.

You can even apply this to other words as well to get interesting meanings, and is a good

recourse when isopsephy doesn’t return useful results on its own. One of my favorite

magical words is ΑΚΡΑΜΑΧΑΜΑΡΙ (or ΑΚΡΑΜΜΑΧΑΜΑΡΕΙ in its more common PGM

form). Here, we start to get into more interesting combinations, where we can combine

planets with signs or elements and see what results. In this case, we go pairwise:

ΑΚ, alpha-kappa, Moon in Leo

ΡΑ, rho-alpha, Moon in Capricorn

ΜΑ, mu-alpha, Moon in Libra

ΧΑ, khi-alpha, Moon with Fire

ΜΑ, mu-alpha, Moon in Libra

ΡΙ, rho-iota, Sun in Capricorn

It doesn’t matter whether a given syllable is vowel-consonant or consonant-vowel, so ΑΚ and

ΚΑ would both resolve to Moon in Leo. Analyzed using stoicheia, the word might be

interpreted as “the heat of the Sun rises up from the cold foundations of the heavens to be

filtered through the light of the Moon with and over others, to be turned into pure Fire in its

manifestation”. Indeed, this word comes from a Hebrew phrase meaning “take off the

wards” so as to exact one’s Will in the world without restraint or impedance from any kind of

interference. Its lunar qualities help in the manifestation and focusing of energies from the

heavens down into our sphere, but the real force comes from the Sun hidden down in the

nadir of the celestial sphere burning upwards towards us. Since there is no central letter to

act as a fulcrum, the central pair of letters, ΑΧ, indicates that this word is closely associated

with elemental Fire.

Another example is the Greek rendition of the Hebrew name for god, “Tzabaoth”, which is

ΣΑΒΑΩΘ:

ΣΑ, sigma-alpha, Moon in Aquarius

ΒΑ, beta-alpha, Moon in Aries

ΩΘ, omega-theta, Saturn with Earth

In this case, the strength and force of the world arranges itself into directed legions across

different peoples. The word’s meaning in Hebrew, meaning “hosts” or “armies”, can easily

be linked to this type of analysis.

Taking another name, let’s try a person’s name. A common female name, and one well

known throughout the world, is ΜΑΡΙΑ, Maria.

ΜΑ, mu-alpha, Moon in Libra

ΡΙ, rho-iota, Sun in Capricorn

ΙΑ, iota-alpha, Sun with Moon

Α, alpha, Moon

In this case, we don’t have an easy pairwise distribution of letters, so we can extend that iota

across two pairs or keep it with the rho and let the final alpha stand alone on its own. Here,

we have images of compassion for others with support (Moon in Libra) while ruling from the

earth (Sun in Capricorn); indeed, Mary is often seen with snakes, chthonic but salvific

symbols known throughout the Mediterranean world. The strong emphasis of that final

Moon shows the motherly and generative qualities associated with the name. The midpoint

between Capricorn and Libra, where the Sun and the Moon might meet each other equally,

is astrologically the same point that the Pagan festivals of Samhain or Beltane, the point of

separation by death of the God from the Goddess (Mary being divorced from her Son by

crucifixion) or the point of their reunion (both being assumed into Heaven).

https://digitalambler.wordpress.com/skills/stoicheia/

An Alternative System of Stoicheia OCTOBER 25, 2014 LEAVE A COMMENT

Far be it from me, a ceremonial magician, to take something simple without introducing

some complexity or confusion into it.

In continuing and reviewing my mathesis and Greek language-based mysticism research,

there’s one modern book that’s invaluable to my studies: The Greek Qabalah (1999) by

Kieren Barry. Barry’s scholarship is excellent, and he wrote the book as a hybrid between

pure academicism and applicability for occultists and magicians, so it’s highly accessible for

most people but with plenty of inroads for deeper analysis. Of course, I’d love to read Franz

Dornseiff’s “Das Alphabet in Mystik und Magie” (1925) since it has plenty more raw

information, but that’s all in German, and alas, nope. Anyway, Barry’s book is a good start,

and it’s one of the original influences that led me to go against the “Alexandrian Tree of Life”

and start over fresh. From chapter 6 (emphasis mine)

On the evidence we have seen, it is plainly incorrect to state that there are only a few

correspondences to the letters of the Greek alphabet along the lines of those found much

later in the Hebrew Qabalah.* It is also anachronistic, as well as completely pointless,

to attempt to project Hebrew Qabalistic symbolism onto the Greek alphabet, or to

imagine anything so historically impossible as an “Alexandrian Tree of Life,” as has

been done.*…

* (48) See for example, S. Flowers, Hermetic Magic (York Beach, ME: Samuel Weiser,

1995), a forgettable mixture of historical fact and personal fantasy.

Now, I don’t know about you, but I claim that when a scholar is throwing those kind of

footnotes at you in an academic work, you prolly dun’ fucked up. But I digress.

So, of course, Barry mentions the property of stoicheia in several parts as he begins to

discuss the mystical associations of the letters with other well-known forces or powers in the

cosmos; the seven planets are a given, as well as all the permutations and wing- or heart-

shaped formations of letter triangles that are formed from having rows of letters with slowly

increasing or decreasing numbers of letters in each line. However, the system of stoicheia

Barry shows is much different than the one I use when it comes to the association of letters

with the planets and elements. Not that it matters much to me; I’ve gotten used to my

system, and I’ve gotten good results from using it, but just in case anyone wants to start a

meaningless argument with me saying that my way isn’t the only way, lemme preempt that

and discuss what Barry talks about. First, if you’re forgetful or unclear on what my system of

stoicheia is like,read more here. I honestly don’t know how far back the system I uses goes,

but it’s at least as old as Cornelius Agrippa (book I, chapter 74); if it’s not any older than this,

at least I know it works and makes sense to me.

The Greek words for the five elements are ΓΗ (earth), ΥΔΩΡ (water), ΑΗΡ (air), ΠΥΡ (fire),

and ΑΙΘΗΡ (rarefied air, ether, spirit). Note that there are only five consonants used

between all of these words: Γ (used only in γη), Δ (used only in υδωρ), Π (used only in πυρ),

Θ (used only in αιθηρ), and Ρ (used in all except γη, but the only one used in αηρ). Thus,

we can associate each of these five consonants with the five elements:

Gamma with Earth

Delta with Water

Rho with Air

Pi with Fire

Theta with Spirit

This method of assigning the letters to the elements, which I call the acronymic method

(though this isn’t a true acronymic method), seems to have more truck in really old antique

and classical systems than the phonologic method I use, which is based on the

comparatively recent Cornelius Agrippa. However, since the system of vowels connected to

the seven planets remains the same in both the phonologic and acronymic systems, we can

also complete this system of stoicheia by associating the other letters to the zodiac signs in

the same way. Thus, Beta in both the phonologic and acronymic methods is given to Aries,

but in the phonologic system Taurus is given to Gamma (the next simple consonant), while

Taurus is given to Zeta in the acronymic method (since Gamma is given to Earth, Delta to

Water, and Epsilon to Mercury).

There’s also another method of stoicheia introduced by the classical Hellenic astrologer

Vettius Valens, who associated the entire Greek alphabet to the 12 signs of the Zodiac. This

doesn’t assign letters to the planets or elements themselves, just the Zodiac, and since we

have 24 letters and 12 signs, the associations are very straightforward: start with Alpha and

Aries and continue on to Pisces associated with Mu, then Nu with Aries again until Omega

with Pisces again. This was used in a system of “onomatic astrology”, less astrology than

numerology-like stoicheic interpretation of names, where yes/no divination on a matter

involving multiple people can be performed based on how their names compare based on

number and stoicheia. Perhaps eventually I’ll get around to finding more about this, as there

exist similar things at least as far back as the Greek Magical Papyri (PGM XII.351) and at

least as recent as Christopher Cattan’s “The Geomancy”, but we’ll see.

So, if we compare these three systems of stoicheia (the full phonological stoicheia, full

acronymic stoicheia, and zodiac-only stoicheia), we get the following system:

Letter Full Stoicheia Zodiac-only Stoicheia

Phonologic Acronymic Α Moon Aries Β Aries Taurus Γ Taurus Earth Gemini Δ Gemini Water Cancer Ε Mercury Leo

Ζ Cancer Taurus Virgo Η Venus Libra

Θ Earth Spirit Scorpio Ι Sun Sagittarius Κ Leo Gemini Capricorn Λ Virgo Cancer Aquarius Μ Libra Leo Pisces Ν Scorpio Virgo Aries Ξ Water Libra Taurus Ο Mars Gemini Π Sagittarius Fire Cancer Ρ Capricorn Air Leo Σ Aquarius Scorpio Virgo Τ Pisces Sagittarius Libra Υ Jupiter Scorpio Φ Air Capricorn Sagittarius Χ Fire Aquarius Capricorn

Ψ Spirit Pisces Aquarius Ω Saturn Pisces

So, how does this impact my work with mathesis or Greek letter magic (grammatomageia as

opposed to grammatomanteia)? Well, not much. It’s like the use of different house systems

for astrology or different ways to assign the figures from the Shield Chart to the House Chart

in geomancy; it’s just a different way of using the same tools and the same symbols. While

the system overlaps for 1/3 (8 of 24) of the Greek letters, the system is notably different.

But, if the only thing that really changes is what forces we associate them to, then the only

thing that really changes is, maybe, the association of letters to the odoi of the Tetractys.

Remember, we assigned the letters to the paths based on their stoicheia. The path of

Taurus is still going to be the path of Taurus, the path of the Moon is still going to be the path

of the Moon, and so forth; it’s just that, in my system, the path of Taurus is given the letter

Beta, but in the acronymic stoicheic system, it’d be given the letter Zeta. The letters alone

change on the paths, as well as any tangential associations the paths receive based on the

shapes and non-stoicheic associations of the letters; otherwise, the structure is pretty much

solid. Then again, like I said, I’ve gotten good results with my phonologic stoicheic system,

so I see no reason to switch.

And no, I’m not going to redraw up that lettered Tetractys picture again for this.

As for Valens’ zodiac-only stoicheic system? That’s almost neither here nor there; it’s

geared for a different purpose, although it is one that’s interesting and bears further

exploration.

https://digitalambler.wordpress.com/2014/10/25/an-alternative-system-of-stoicheia/