The Grail Home Page

From the esoteric point of view the Grail is quite a peculiar Force. The Grail understood as the receptacle of all energies, as an alchemical crucible is the accepted concept. However the Grail is a Force which cannot be identified as only one container, it passes through some objects, just as the soul goes through the body. In Damanhur we have built a part of the Temple of Mankind to maintain, preserve, and protect the 'concept' and the 'object' Grail. Therefore the Temple, from this particular point of view, is the place destined to preserve and keep the Grail in touch with the Earth and humankind.

This Force exists objectively- even though it is also a symbol that an individual can carry- and at certain moments a force that can be'hosted'. It is a Force that is both subjective and objective. Damanhur is the place which receives and hosts the Grail.

THE GRAIL ACCORDING TO DAMANHUR'S ESOTERIC SCHOOL OF PHILOSOPHY

The Grail is one of the most interesting subjects of esoteric discourse. Many questions have been asked about the magic form of the Grail, its location, shape, function, etc.Researchers have tried to find out if the Grail exists physically, as a real object, or if its existence is only symbolic, the fruit of thought.

The Grail exists physically even though its form is mutable. This means that this particular cup changes its form according to different situations, conditions and time. It is a huge beneficent Force, an extremely 'refined' machine from a magical point of view . On our planet, of course, the place where it was preserved in ancient times was linked to the synchronic lines.

It is fascinating to wonder where this cup comes from. Is it really the wine cup of the last supper of Christ, or is it the container of the blood of his passion, or is it yet something different ?The answer is that the Grail doesn't have a specific connection with Christ's last supper or with the passion, its origin is therefore different. This object, or more precisely this form, is a particularly important instrument and in magic, very valuable . It functions as the archetype of energy containers; it is a fixed measure. Whoever knows the measure of the Grail can, in an almost mathematic manner, know the fundamental laws of magic, and can accordingly measure the possibilities of magic itself.

The Grail is a container, a measurable particle of energy, which, in turn, can give the measure; it is a minimum common denominator. It's like a metre, and it is also a key that allows us to transmute one energy into another. It is a container that is always full. The Grail is that something, from which you always draw the same quantity of energy.

The identification of the Grail with the container of the blood of Christ's passion is a symbol of the energy that purified the world through the sacrifice of Christ. The Grail is bound up with this image, but it is more ancient than Christianity. It is a part of a specific knowledge used by ancient civilisations, even by the antecedents of the Egyptians.

We could say that it is one of the 'things' saved from Atlantis- we are using here inaccurate terms only to facilitate the comprehension of these concepts. The Grail is something very ancient, very precise, very well defined even though its form changes through the centuries and the millennia.The Grail is able to move through time: only those who are likewise able to move in this dimension can think about approaching it, and because it has a mutable form, it can never be destroyed.

The Grail can have notable influence on those people who are searching in an pure way for a mystical ideal. By mysticism here we mean all that is elevated, magic, universal, deeply underlined by all the religions of the Earth.

The Grail is the instrument of inspiration, of prophetic dreams, of all that arrives through dreams and gives important indications about one's spiritual evolution. In this particular expression of the magic of the Grail, physical distance has great importance. It means that if you are near the Grail you are able to dream specific dreams, which otherwise would not be possible. The Grail decides on its own whether or not it will send indications for example, as a dream. If the person to which the dream is addressed is too far away from the Grail itself, he/she will not have that dream. This is a rare exception, because normally in magic distance doesn't influence the desired effect. But this is not so for the Grail.

The most commonly accepted hypothesis, is that the Grail is the wine glass of the last supper of Christ, but many other religions have expressed the concept of Grail in their magic symbols This measure has not been used only by the West but also by the peoples of Central America and by all the East, including Japan. You can find the concept of Grail in a considerable number of legends; for example, in Australian mythology there is the legend of a cup which brings people divine strength when it is used under certain conditions.

Through a myriad of different and parallel histories all over the world, the specific meaning of the function of the Grail is maintained. We could even compare the Grail to the Philosopher's Stone, which is able to confer magic powers on its keeper or to anybody using it. This comparison holds up well, among the many legends that revolve around a magic cup. There is one that tells how, by pouring a few drops of the content of the Grail on any object, the latter turns into gold. But what does it mean to change into gold? It means to purify, to make pure, as gold was considered as the purest metal worthy only of the Gods.

If somebody decides to search for the Grail, what should he/she do? The answer is elementary, but difficult to realise and it might sound like this: "Everybody, must look for the Grail inside themself; when they feel they are being called, the Grail will tell them where it is". It is possible to get physically near to the Grail, it is almost possible to touch it. 'Almost' because whoever has the opportunity to do it, must have already reached a sufficient degree of refinement, from the esoteric-magic point of view A refinement that permits passage through all those doors that are there to exclude physical proximity to the Grail.

The most important consideration is the knowledge that it exists and that it can be approached with one's mind, if the spirit is able to get close to it. The only pathway to get close to the Grail, is the esoteric one. It is not possible to just say: "Here, today I'll go searching for the Grail"! and expect to find it while walking along the road, even though, from a certain point of view, it would not be impossible. All creatures of a high evolutionary level are gifted with a considerable sense of humour. Therefore, what the Grail represents, could also be humorous.

The possibility that the Grail may appear to you on the road cannot be excluded , but it would be to play, to stimulate, to suggest what might be, nothing more. It could appear to you in a dream, tell you useful things; it could disclose some of its functions, but then it is up to you, through the constancy of your existence, and certainly the quality of your existence, to find it again. The Grail has a karmic value, it can therefore take Karma away. Obviously, it is a means, even though many could be under the illusion that it is a goal, because whoever has the opportunity to approach it, must have already reached a certain level of spiritual refinement.

The Grail itself would not let anybody use it for the wrong purpose and, whenever a mistake is made, the chance of using the powers of the Grail disappear, and it does not present itself again, in this or in any following life. It must be made clear that the errors in using the Grail are always solely human. There is no possibility of the Grail making mistakes.

As for the relationship between the Grail and the Shroud, it really exists. By Shroud we mean, according to esotericism, the manifestation of a Force parallel to the Forms plane of existence . It is as if this object were the 'tablecloth,' the material plane, the support, on which materially and symbiotically the Grail manifests itself in this universe.