He makes this confession prostrate J before the altar in agony and 
bloody sweat. He trembles at the thought of the operation which 
he has dared to undertake, saying, “Father, if it be Thy Will, let 
this cup pass from me ! Nevertheless not my will but Thine be 
done!”1 2 
The dread answer cornes that It Must Be, and this answer so 
fortifies him with holy zeal that it will seem to him as if he were 
raised by divine hands from that prostrate position; with a thrill 
of holy exaltation he renews joyfully the Oath, feeling himself 
once again no longer the man but the Magician, yet not merely 
the Magician, but the chosen and appointed person to accomplish 
a task which, however apparently unimportant, is yet an intégral 
part of universal destiny, so that if it were not accomplished the 
Kingdom of Heaven would be burst in pièces. 
He is now ready to commence the invocations. He consequently 
pauses to cast a last glance around the Temple to assure himself 
of the perfect readiness of ail things necessary, and to light the 
incense. 
The Oath is the foundation of ail Work in Magick, as it is an 
affirmation of the Will. An Oath binds the Magician for ever. 
In Part II of Book 4 something has already been said on this 
subject; but its importance deserves some further élaboration. 
Thus, should one, loving a woman, make a spell to compel her 
embraces, and tiring of her a little later, evoke Zazel to kill her; 
he will find that the implications of his former Oath conflict with 
those proper to invoke the Unity of the Godhead of Saturn. Zazel 
will refuse to obey him in the case of the woman whom he has 
sworn that he loves. To this some may object that, since ail acts 
are magical, every man who loves a woman implicitly takes an 
1. Compare the remarks in a previous chapter. But this is a particular 
case. We leave its justification as a problem. 
2. Of course this is for the beginner. As soon as it is assimilated as 
true, he will say : “My will which is thine be done ! ” And ultimately no 
more distinguish “mine” from “thine”. A sympathetic change of gesture 
will accompany the mental change. 
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