Whenever a person decides to investigate esoteric subjects, the first problem they encounter is sorting through the huge amount of material available online and in bookshops, to find that which is real and meaningful. Finding likeminded people, or better still a teacher, is a huge bonus.

Familiarity with the Tarot and Qabala is important for many who engage in esoteric study. For the last 15 years, those of us living in Sydney had the luxury of attending Tarot and Qabala classes on Tuesday evenings at the Theosophical Society run by Elias Ibrahim. For the first few years the classes were on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month, and then were held every Tuesday. While a donation was asked for, this was to cover the running expenses of the Theosophical Society. Elias gave up his time and his expertise freely.

Elias had a core of fairly regular attendees. [I myself was a fairly regular attendee in the 1990s, and would occasionally drop in to say hello whenever in Sydney over the last few years.] Numerous seekers would turn up periodically looking for guidance. Some of these seekers would become regulars, while others would move on. In Elias, there was an accessible reliable resource for seekers.

In early March, Elias had a severe stroke while at home. He is still rehabilitating in hospital and progress is slow. Prayers for his recovery would be greatly appreciated.

In early 2006, I conducted an interview with Elias for an Australian magazine called Spheres. I have appended this interview so as to paint a picture of Elias and his importance. 

Interview with Elias Ibrahim

Elias Ibrahim is an ordained bishop with many years of esoteric study spanning a broad rang of disciplines under his belt including Sufism, Freemasonry, Rosicrucianism and Martinism. His main outward activity has been conducting a class in Tarot and Qabala at the Theosophical Society in Sydney for the last 12 years.

Tony: Tell me about your childhood and what led you to develop an interest in esoteric studies.

Elias: I was born in 1955 in Tripoli Lebanon to a Maronite Catholic family. The Maronites have a strong tradition of devotion and were founded by Christian hermits who lived in the mountains of Syria and Lebanon. I was born on the feast day of, and was named after, the prophet Elias – the patron saint of plants, known as the Green one, and the hidden guide of the Sufis.

My family migrated to Australia when I was 2 years old. From a young age I developed an interest in comparative religion, and by the time I was 16, I was reading Jung and Joseph Campbell. This opened the door to studying the Qabala and Alchemy. I was led to study Rosicrucianism and Martinism (the Christian Qabalistic order established by Papus). I was able to obtain some in depth material in the French language about these subjects and develop a deeper understanding than that provided by some of the more popular and commercial groups using these names. I also became acquainted with Sufi authors, especially Rumi.

Tony: With a name like Elias, I guess it was inevitable that you would gravitate towards Sufism.

Elias: The word Sufi has an Arabic derivation “safa” meaning pure. My understanding is that to progress towards full spiritual awakening one purifies themselves from the illusory nature of this world where the laws of time and space and their inherent limitations seem to apply. When the dirt is cleaned away we see that we are more than a body subject to the material world.

I was eventually introduced to a local Sufi master in the lineage of Hazrat Inayat Khan and had the good fortune to have him as my mentor for 15 years. Inayat Khan was initiated in what is known as “Four School Sufism” – which synthesizes the methods of the four major Sufi orders incorporating practices with ritual, sound and music, psychic development and metaphysics.

[The teaching of Hazrat Inayat Khan (1882-1927) strongly emphasized the fundamental oneness of all religions.]

Tony: Can you give an example of the teachings of the Sufi teacher Hazrat Inayat Khan?

Elias: The particular teaching I am going to share was formerly reserved for his initiates. However he had plans to eventually publish this material, and did so in his book “Wisdom of Sufism : Sacred Readings from the Gathas.” It’s interesting to see what he says and how it relates to the planetary vibration of each day, which are often named after gods representing these energies.

In the East, the influence of the days of the week is considered by all, learned or illiterate. Every time has its peculiar influence and particular purpose. The mechanism of the cosmos has a certain action and again its reaction on the part of the planets; producing a certain effect in every hour of the day, in every day of the week, in every week of the month, in every month of the year, and in every year of a cycle.

The characteristic of Sunday is Godliness. Anything spiritual can alone be successful. Anything else, besides a spiritual thing, something of a worldly nature, begun on Sunday, or continued on that day, must come to naught.

Monday is a negative day, a day for things of a passive character. To receive teaching, to obtain information, to search for anything, this is the auspicious day.

Tuesday is a day of enjoyment, for amusement, joy and pleasure. For picnic, feast and wedding, for music and dancing, and for sports, this is a fitting day.

Wednesday is a day for business. It is a day for taking an initiative, and undertaking. All that is done on this day must bear fruit.

Thursday is a central day, to make a determination, to decide things, to settle in a new place. It is a day of inspiration, of revelation, because the influence of this day touches the summit.

Friday is a day of power and a day of aspiration. On this day prayer is granted and wishes are fulfilled, thoughts are materialised, and dreams become realised. However, this is not the day of sowing, it is the day of reaping. Friday is a day of exaltation.

Saturday is a winding day. If loss is wound it continues for days and days, if the mechanism of gain is wound it continues for weeks. It is a day of upliftment to those who raise their soul to a higher pitch, so that the machinery of the spirit may be wound and continued for a long, long time. Every planetary influence that begins on Saturday must always continue its effect upon one’s life.

The influence of the day is unavoidable upon every mortal, except upon souls to whom day and night is the same, those who are beyond the laws of this mortal world.

Tony: You also have an interest in Gurdjieff and the Qabala. Do these tie in with Sufism?
[Georges Ivanovich Gurdjieff (1872-1949) was a well known mystic who travelled extensively and taught a system of consciousness expansion based on diverse traditions.]

Elias: Gurdjieff is known to have associated with the Naqshbandi order [one of the four major Sufi orders], which is guardian to teachings and practices dating back to the shamans of Central Asia. Like the Sufis, Gurdjieff claimed that he was teaching esoteric Christianity under the name “The Fourth Way.”

Tony: I’ve heard murmurs that Prince Charles has also been associated with the Naqshbandi order. Perhaps we’ll soon be calling him Sheikh Charles?

Elias: Prince Charles’ mother, Queen Elizabeth II is a direct descendent of James II of Seville. James II was actually married to a Muslim princess who was a direct descendent of the Prophet Mohammed. Thus, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles are part of the Muslim aristocracy known as the Sayyeds. Interestingly, the Prophet Mohammed is quoted as saying that all he had to leave was his family.

Tony: Sorry, I interrupted you.

Elias: The modern Qabalist Zev ben Shimon Halevi was trained in a Fourth Way school and when he was in Sydney we discussed how the Fourth Way teachings cast much light on the Qabala. The Fourth Way fills in many practical applications of the Qabala, for example, the practice of “self-remembering” which consists first of sensing the physical body with total attention. After such practice one expands awareness to the emotions and thoughts. Full self-remembering is simultaneously being aware of one’s inner states as well as what is happening in one’s immediate environment. Prayer performed in a state of self-remembering is REAL PRAYER.
[Zev ben Shimon Halevi has written numerous books under this name, as well as his English name, Warren Kenton.]

According to the Naqshabandi master Idries Shah, Qabala was very influenced by Sufism, which itself descends from Ancient Egyptian and Zoroastrian mystery schools.
[Idries Shah (1924-1996) wrote extensively on Sufism as well as other esoteric subjects.]

The Jewish Encyclopaedia says that the original Qabala was formulated by prototype Sufis known as the Brethren of Purity in Basra. Their system had only eight points as opposed to the ten points currently associated with the Tree of Life. Interestingly, Templar buildings had eight sides.

Tony: If you were to distil all your years of study, is there are set a simple rules that people could follow so as to further their own spiritual development?

Elias: While the Naqshabandi have eleven such rules, I usually work with the first two. The first is to breathe consciously. The second is to be aware of your steps, so that you walk with full awareness.

Tony: How did you come to be ordained as a bishop?

Elias: Through the Internet, I became close friends with Bishop Lewis Keizer. Bishop Keizer ordained me as a Bishop with all 22 lineages descending from the 12 Apostles as well as conferring the rank of Free Initiator in Martinism. Bishop Keizer inherited several lineages from the lineage of Richard Duc de Palatine, who originally came from Western Australia. As a bishop I administer the seven sacraments – baptism, confirmation, communion (eucharist), marriage, reconciliation (confession), last rites (funerals), and holy orders (preparation for the priesthood). I am non-sectarian, and so I will give communion to anyone regardless of their faith.

Posted by Tony Mierzwicki
Filed under: Pagan Issues
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