The âGate of Distanceâ: The Grail and the Alpha Omega By Gary Osborn
What is the Grail? For many the Grail or âHoly Grailâ symbolises âperfectionâ or a âstate of excellenceâ and primarily in the spiritual and mystical sense. The symbol for the Grail is often a cup, chalice or vessel that one drinks from. The meaning is simple and clear; in the spiritual context, the cup symbolises oneâs own sustenance or nourishment. Taking things to the highest level, the Grail really symbolises âenlightenmentâ and inner spiritual illumination â and there really is such an experience â an experience that has been behind the religious impulse of man throughout history.
In all the stories that feature the Grail, it is this experience that is always being alluded to along with the physical and internal psychical processes associated with it. Oneâs own realization of this is the âhighest levelâ one can reach in regard to the knowledge and wisdom being imparted via this symbol of the Grail â again, traditionally a cup, chalice or vessel containing âAll that isâ. However, the Grail works on several levels of initiation, and thereâs one level I would like to bring attention to here and which has never been âovertlyâ presented before.
The âsudden appearanceâ of the Grail in the stories dedicated to it, is really associated with bringing attention to cyclical phenomena and for good reason, because knowledge of cycles and their phases is paramount in understanding the dynamic processes underlying reality as linked to human consciousness and more importantly the attainment of enlightenment and gnosis of the spiritual source to which we are all connected. In-depth analysis of these stories reveal that in many different ways, the ancients were really conveying knowledge about cycles and more importantly, the crucial point in the cycle â known esoterically as the âAlpha and the Omegaâ âthe beginning and the endâ. The Grail, like the Alpha-Omega, actually represented that crucial point in the cycle through which it was believed a regular âpulseâ of energy (life force) from the âsource-centre of creationâ (which many of us would identify with âGodâ) is delivered. It was believed that it is through this same point that we receive our intelligence, and guidance through our intuitive senses, and that through it oneâs consciousness and soul can ultimately ascend back to the source.

Figure 1: Drawing by Jacob Böhme from his Theosophische Wercke, Amsterdam, 1682. Note the Phoenix (soul) of rebirth rising through the Alpha-Omega âgapâ in the cycle as symbolised by the Ouroborus (serpent-snake) and where it is swallowing its own tail. The side angles of the triangle are 52 degrees â the same as the Great Pyramid of Giza. Note also the cross intersecting it.
In searching for the origin of this ancient understanding, it would appear that at sometime in the deepest reaches of our past, certain people understood that reality is a âre-creativeâ process intimately related to our own consciousness and that like a beating heart, the source of this pulse is within everything; every cell, every atom and subatomic body, and is what sustains our very existence. So, following is a brand new interpretation of the Grail â and one which has been completely overlooked. We have to approach the clues we are given âlaterallyâ to see exactly what is being alluded to in many of these stories.
Some of this was mentioned in the book I co-authored with Philip Gardiner, The Serpent Grail (2005) which was based largely on Philipâs insights into the global serpent worship and his own unique theory, that the mix of the venom and blood of the snake was the original âelixir of lifeâ. The material I am presenting here, and which I first touched on in my own contributions to our first book, are elaborated on further in the new revised version of The Shining Ones (2006).
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Firstly, we are told that the Celtic cauldron, which has been compared to the Grail, is associated with healing, renewal and fertility.
1) The cauldron would spew forth copious amounts of âwondrous food and drinkâ for the victors of battle and would also âresurrectâ the dead soldiers.
2) The Grail is similarly said to produce an abundance of food and drink.
Again, the Grail, like the Celtic cauldron, is associated with fertility, regeneration, replenishment and sustenance, and it appears suddenly, as if from nowhere . . .
We find that by all accounts and descriptions the Cauldron which contains âeverythingâ is similar to the âTranscendental Voidâ of Eastern tradition â the ânothingâ, the âinfiniteâ, the âaetherâ, the âvacuumâ, the âpotentialâ, the ânon-localâ, the âzero-point fieldâ, the âcollective unconsciousâ, the âsource-centerâ from which âeverythingâ in the universe originates and manifests â hence the power of the cauldron to heal, regenerate and grant new life. The Void is ânothingâ and âeverythingâ at the same time and so here we can see that both the cauldron and the Grail symbolise the Void from which everything in creation manifests and comes into being. However, as said, we also find that the Grail is really associated with cycles, and that point in the cycle which is believed to signify a âdoorwayâ, âportalâ . . . âstargateâ, into the âotherworldâ (other dimensions) and ultimately back to the source-center of creation.
I would ask the reader to consult the diagrams I have created via this page as they are important in understanding what is being conveyed here:
http://garyosborn.moonfruit.com/revelations2
(Please click on the alchemical image of the Ouroborus entitled âCycle Diagramsâ).
As many of us will know, a fixed pendulum will only start swinging if we give it a gentle push, and it will only keep swinging if we keep âtappingâ it at regular intervals.
In this analogy, and in the context of âconsciousness processesâ, the Grail symbolises the moments in the cycle âwhereâ and âwhenâ the pendulum is being âtappedâ to keep it swinging â moving. Similarly, we could say that everything in the universe â from the microcosm of spinning subatomic particles to the macrocosm of swirling galaxies â is being âtappedâ by a âpulseâ of energy sent out from the source-centre at regular intervals to keep everything oscillating, vibrating, moving, revolving, active, and in existence. These pulses of energy are represented by the âtransliminal phasesâ in travelling waves, âthe nodesâ in standing wave phenomena and all periodic systems, oscillations and frequencies, and it appears to have been believed that this is what actually drives these waves and cycles onward and keeps them in motion.
From their observation of cyclical phenomena, the ancients understood this dynamic in the cycle and this dynamic came to be symbolised in later times by the cauldron and its religio-mystical counterpart, the Grail â its limitless nourishment symbolising the pulse of âinfinite energyâ that keeps everything in motion. We can see that being associated with the resurrection of the dead, that the Cauldron/Grail is also associated with the cycle of âlife-death-rebirthâ as expressed in the never-ending cycle of the seasons, and we see this with the appearance of the âresurrection godâ every year.
Within the yearly cycle, followers of religions from around the world celebrate the Spring or Vernal Equinox which now falls on or around 21 March. This is one of only two days in the year when day and night are equal in length â the other being the Autumnal Equinox which falls on or around Sept 21st â exactly six months later. These celebrations are said to be pagan in origin, but are more likely to have a shamanic foundation.
The zero-node in the cycle therefore represents the âEternal Nowâ and the âEternal Returnâ of esoteric tradition â and is the Alpha-Omega spoken of by Christ â the âresurrection godâ in one of his many incarnations. Again, like the Grail this individual (âson of godâ â âson of the sunâ â meaning the âinner sunâ) personifies this âpulse of creationâ sent by the source-centre (the Father and Heavenly Kingdom) at crucial times in history â traditionally at the end-beginning point of each of the 12 zodiac ages in the larger precessional cycle consisting of 25,920 years according to tradition. So we can conclude that this crucial âpulse-pointâ in each and every cycle was also symbolised in various cultures by the resurrection or rebirth of a âslain godâ or âvegetation godâ (e.g. the Green Man) and at the precise moment âwhereâ and âwhenâ it was believed that a pulse of energy was delivered by the source-centre of creation to replenish the earth in abundance â a continual rebirth.
As said, the Cauldron also represents âthe Voidâ and we find that these pulses of energy (zero-point energy) are delivered from the Void. If we go back to our analogy of the pendulum which is swinging between two extremes (opposites) the pulse that keeps it moving would be delivered everytime the pendulum crosses the mid-point or âbalance pointâ where these opposites are fused or cancelled out altogether. Again, this âcenter pointâ or âbalance pointâ crossed over twice every cycle or swing, would represent the âportalâ or âgatewayâ into the void at the center, and in this analogy, the void or center would be where the pendulum is being held. The swing of the pendulum creates a triangular pattern, and we see here a correspondence between the point where the pendulum is being held, with the apex of the mountain and the capstone of the pyramid â both of which represent zero-point. It should be noted that we also use a pendulum for dowsing â i.e., picking up those vibrations and frequencies that resonate with our thoughts and what we already know at a subconscious or unconscious level.

Figure 2: Dual Ouroborus - showing the two points in the cycle where positive crosses into negative and vice-versa. A. Eleazar, Uraltes Chymisches Werk, Leipzig, 1760.

Figure 3: The cycle in balance indicated by the balance scales, and the âAll-Seeing Eyeâ in the center symbolizing the Void and sorce. The reef, which is associated with death, took the place of the Ouroborus, and again we see the two neutral points of the cycle represented by the two ties around the reef - top and bottom. âPhoto by Philip Gardinerâ
It's interesting that in the cosmology of Norse mythology, the Void is known as Ginnungagap â meaning âYawning gapâ, âbeginning gapâ, âgap with magical potentialâ, âmighty gapâ . . . the âblackholeâ from which everything has emerged, and to which everything will return in the end. Keeping the above in mind in regard to this gateway or portal being the node point, which is crossed over twice every cycle, Ginnungagap, or the Gap Ginnunga â being a âgapâ between the worlds â is the âseeming emptinessâ â again, the âPrimordial Voidâ separating the opposites known as Niflheim the land of eternal ice and snow (corresponding with the feminine energy or principle) and Muspelheim, the land of eternal heat and flame (corresponding with masculine energy/principle). There are many names and terms for the Void. An African Zulu will call it the âGate of Distance;â the Kalahari Bushmen know it as âKia;â the âYakutâ of North Central Asia would call it âThe Oibinkingataâ â âPortal into the Earth.â The Ancient Scandinavians, the Norse, knew it as âYggâ â âThe Terrible One.â The Hebrews know it as âDaathâ â âThe Abyss.â So, as we can see, in the context of cycles and wave phenomena, the Void is also represented by the nodes (transliminal phases) or blank âgapsâ in an ordinary travelling wave of energy, which is really a long drawn out cycle in our 3D reality.

Figure 4: Travelling Wave and Cycle
Part II to follow ___________________________________________
Copyright © Gary Osborn 2006. All Rights Reserved
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