Abrahadabra = 418
Analyzing the Word of the Aeon
I recently took a dive into the significance of the word Abrahadabra. It is one of those words that is ubiquitous in Thelema, often used in rituals and ceremonies, and we become passing familiar with it as we read the Book of the Law where it appears three times in Chapter III.
“Abrahadabra! The reward of Ra Hoor Khut.” (III:1)
“And Abrahadabra. It shall be his child & that strangely.” (III:47)
“The ending of the words is the Word Abrahadabra.” (III:75)
For all that, I had not looked closely into the meaning behind the word and instead had mostly relied on context clues from casual conversation among Thelemites. Marco Visconti recently wrote about Abrahadabra on his substack, and he goes into good detail on the background and use of it. Read that if you want more on it from that angle. Anyway, I dug into it a bit myself, and thought I would share.
Let me say up front that I am not an expert on gematria. It has been an interesting and useful tool over the years, and it has produced a number of insights in my magical work which have been helpful. But gematria in practice has always struck me as a ridiculously flexible system that can be modified to create meaning where there may not otherwise be any. There are numerous examples where Crowley took liberties like this to suit his message, and I may be guilty of that in places. However, I don’t feel like that takes away from what solid gematria does when it works.
I am not much of a hard core researcher either. What I have done in this essay is take much of what Crowley wrote about Abrahadabra in the Equinox and Magick in Theory and Practice and put it into words that make sense to me. There are revelations to be found here, things that I had not known or thought of before, and at least one connection that I found on my own. That in itself makes this kind of personal exploratory work exciting to me.
If you find this rambling at all interesting, or meaningful, or even helpful in your own journey, then great. If not, then as always do what thou wilt.
Let’s begin.
The word Abrahadabra has a total of 11 letters, and is composed of 5 vowels and 6 consonants. The number 11 relates to Nuit, as we read in Liber AL, ch I:60.
“My number is 11, as all their numbers who are of us.”
The five vowels in Abrahadabra each have a value of 1, which of course adds up to 5. The number five is related to the five elements, to the pentagram, and it refers to the individual or the Microcosm.
The number 6 relates to the hexagram which infers the planetary and astrological powers and refers to the universe or the Macrocosm. The six consonants in the word add up to 413. Multiplying 41 x 3 = 123 which is the value of AThH YHVH ALHIM, a name of God. The numbers 1, 2, and 3 relate to the Supernals (Kether, Binah, and Chokmah).
Eleven is a number generally referring to Magick. Five and six together also refer to the 5=6 grade of Adeptus Minor in the A.'.A.'., which traditionally marks the attainment of Knowledge and Conversation, the union of the microcosm with the macrocosm, and the accomplishment of the Great Work.
This makes it plain that Abrahadabra is connected to Magick itself.
Nerd alert: the magical character in Stranger Things who came into the kids’ lives was named Eleven.
Further analysis of the word using gematria shows that we can derive certain meanings from it. All together, Abrahadabra adds up to 418. Using the Aiq Bkr or the Nine Chambers system of reduction, it equals 22.
The number 418 is significant in Thelema. One verse from the Book of the Law makes this abundantly clear.
“Nothing is a secret key of this law. Sixty-one the Jews call it; I call it eight, eighty, four hundred and eighteen.” Ch. I:46
Abrahadabra = 418, and as the Book of the Law shows, it is a secret key of Thelema.
One of the principles of gematria is that words with the same numeric value share an essential meaning or have some connection.
Two examples are HRV RA HA and RA HVVR, both of which equal 418.
When Nuit exclaims, “To me!” in the Book of the Law, the Greek letters TO MH add up to 418.
Another connection that 418 has with Abrahadabra resides with the Hebrew letter Cheth. The values of the letter spelled out in full as Ch (8) + I (10) + Th (400), equals 418. Cheth is attributed to the Chariot tarot card, which is itself steeped in symbolism associated with the Holy Graal and divine revelation.
On the Tree of Life, the Chariot card marks the path leading between the spheres of Geburah and Binah. Binah is the third sphere in the Supernal Triad, and it represents the divine feminine and Understanding. Specifically relevant to Thelema, Binah is symbolically connected to Babalon and crossing the Abyss.
Liber Cheth, one of the Holy Books of Thelema, provides an inspiring vision of Babalon and her Cup of Fornications. This is interesting, given Cheth’s link to the Chariot, Binah, and the Holy Graal. The link between Abrahadabra and Cheth (and all its associations) is absolutely a rich subject for further meditation.
The other value associated with Abrahadabra is 22 which is derived by using the Nine Chambers method of reducing a number to its lowest form. Twenty-two is another significant number in Thelema and also in the Qabalah of western Hermeticism.
There are twenty-two letters in the Hebrew alphabet and twenty-two paths on the Tree of Life.
Twenty-two is the product of 2 x 11. The number 2 connotes division or duality. As was mentioned before, eleven is the number of magick, which properly understood unites all opposites. Therefore, 22 can be said to represent the union of all opposites, the lower joined with the higher, or to put it another way it is the accomplishment of the Great Work.
This all supports the point that Abrahadabra is an esoteric key to Thelema.
If nothing else, the association with 418 and 22 cements the esoteric underpinnings of Abrahadabra. But its symbolic connection to the Great Work, to Cheth and Binah, to the Graal and to Babalon and her Cup, plus its number being referenced as a key to the law of Thelema, all these aspects figure into how we can view Abrahadabra’s esoteric meaning.
There are other ways to divide Abrahadabra up. In the diagram below, the pentagram is all vowels and the hexagram is all consonants.
Crowley equated Light and Voice, the above values and meanings of the hexagram, with the Vision and the Voice and his experience as recorded in Liber 418.
Taking the five middle letters of Abrahadabra together as the pentagram and the first and last three as the triangles of the hexagram looks like this:
This pentagram and hexagram formation can be analyzed further.
Pentagram = H(5) + [(D+A+A)=6(V)] + A(1) = HVA = Macroprosopus
The letters D, A, A of the pentagram together add up to 6, which is the value of the letter V. Substituting it then forms the word HVA, which relates to the Macroprosopus.
Hexagram = A(1) + R+R (400) + B+B+A (5) = 406 = AThH = Microprosopus
The hexagram (406) has the same value as the word AThH which refers to the Microprosopus.
Another configuration puts the 3 Supernal letters ABR over and above the remaining 8 letters as manifested creation. Multiplying the values of the lower squares together, 207 x 8 = 1656, which can be reduced to 18, the value of ChI or Living. The factors of 207 are 9 and 23 (9 x 23 = 207) and 23 is the value of ChIH, or Life.
In this way, the Supernals are supported by Love, Light, and Life.
Dividing the word into two parts by taking every other letter (the odds and evens), we get:
A R H D B A = 213 = ABIR, mighty
B A A A R = 205 = GBR, mighty
Both numeric values equate to Hebrew words meaning “mighty.” This indicates that Abrahadabra is a Word of Double Power.
Breaking the word into other components shows its relationship to the Thelemic pantheon and the solar current.
AB is the Hebrew word for Father. The letters A (1) and B (2) relate to Kether & Chokmah, the first two initial emanations coming out of the Veils of Naught to form the Tree of Life.
RA is the Egyptian god, certainly, or perhaps can refer to godhead generally, and it adds up to 201. Rearranging 201 to 012 resembles the Qabalistic path from the Veils of Naught (0) through Kether (1) to Chokmah (2).
HAD is Hadit, the ubiquitous center, the single point within the starry body of Nuit. The letters H (5) + A (1) + D (4) add to 10. The number 514 can be rearranged to 145 in reference to Kether, Chesed, and Geburah which reflects the One Source and the balance between Severity and Mercy, and representatives of the three Pillars of the Tree.
As we are taught: Excessive severity is but cruelty and oppression; excessive mercy is weakness that would allow cruelty to run unchecked.
The numbers 4, 1, and 8 can be interpreted as a way of saying the Four become One through the redeeming power of Eight. Four refers to the 4 elements, or the division of the manifested universe; One refers to the Unity of the One Source in Kether; and Eight is Cheth. Cheth, it will be recalled, is the 8th letter of the Hebrew alphabet, and it is related to the redeeming powers signified by the Chariot card, the Holy Graal, and Babalon.
Adding the numbers 4 + 1 + 8 equals 13. Thirteen is the reverse of the number 31. Thirty-one is the value of the letters AL, and AL has the same value as AChD or Unity. Crowley thought that 31 was such an important key to the Book of the Law that he renamed it from Liber L vel Legis to Liber AL vel Legis.
While AL or 31 means Unity, the reversal of it, LA or 13, implies Nothingness. Thus, 418 as 13 and Nothing echoes strikingly with Ch. I:46 from the Book of the Law.
“Nothing is the secret key of this law. Sixty-one the Jews call it; I call it eight, eighty, four hundred eighteen.”
Sixty-one refers to the value of the Hebrew word AIN, Nothing, one of the Negative Veils that precede the existence of Kether on the Tree of Life. This is yet another connection that Abrahadabra has with 418.
Other attributions to the letters in Abrahadabra can be found below.
So What?
All this gematria and math and mental gymnastics are impressive, but what in the name of sweet-and-sour baby Horus does it all mean?
Like most good things in and out of magick, there is not one quick and easy answer. Crowley revealed that Abrahadabra was the Word of the new Aeon of Horus. That makes it a magical word. It is a Word of Power. All of this analysis is window dressing of a sort, but at the very least it confirms that Abrahadabra is a special word with unique qualities.
Chapter 7 of Book 4 is titled “The Formula of the Holy Graal : of Abrahadabra : and of Certain Other Words.” In that chapter, Crowley wrote
“Thus, the formula of Abrahadabra concerns us…principally because each of us represents the pentagram or microcosm; and our equilibration must therefore be with the hexagram or macrocosm.”
Abrahadabra’s connection to 418 shows it to be the secret key to the Law of Thelema. The number of letters and its structure clearly points to its relationship to Magick and to the pentagram and the hexagram. To that end, it represents the accomplishment of the Great Work, the joining of the Microcosm (individual) with the Macrocosm (Universal), the work involved to achieve Knowledge and Conversation with the Holy Guardian Angel, and completion of the process of finding and doing one’s true will. It encapsulates the entirety of Thelema in 11 letters.
The Equinox, vol. I, no. 7 contains the invocation to Horus that Crowley performed as a prelude to the reception of the Book of the Law, and it incorporates the Word:
“The Voice of the Five.
The Voice of the Six.
Eleven are the Voices. Abrahadabra!”
I believe this perfectly answers the question “So what?”, and it demonstrates the purpose of the word. It is meant to be declared! To be spoken out loud! Beyond all the intellectualizing and abstractions and justifications, Abrahadabra is a word of power. It is the key to the New Aeon, and as such it should be used in ritual.
I will close this essay by suggesting that anyone who considers themselves a Thelemite, and even those who are simply curious about Thelema, or Crowley, or ceremonial magic, should spend a bit of time with Abrahadabra. As they say, your efforts will be well rewarded. Here are some ideas.
Read and study the “Temple of Solomon the King” in Equinox vol. I, no. 5 & 7. Number 5 contains much of what is in Crowley’s 777 that deals with 418 and Abrahadabra. Number 7 has the Invocation of Horus, and the notes that follow the ritual text are well worth the study.
Plug into its energy and see what happens. Incorporate Abrahadabra into your own rituals. It is the ending of the words after all, so a great way to complete a particular section, or as a general closing finisher.
Read Chapter 7 in Magick in Theory and Practice that goes into detail about the symbolism of the Holy Graal and the meaning of Abrahadabra.
Finally, I will offer a simple chant using Abrahadabra. This can be accompanied by a drum or some other instrument or music to keep time. Each syllable falls on a beat, and there is a pause for a beat before the next cycle repeats. There are six beats in each cycle.
When done as a canon or in a round, with two voices as shown above, the second voice begins “AB” at the final “AB” of the first voice. The effect is that each voice says “abra” together, and takes turns saying “had” in the other voice’s pause. Play around with harmonies and see where that takes you.
And with that, I will say: Abrahadabra!