The Dorge or Diamond Sceptre The Dorge (pronounced door-jay) is a Tibetan spiritual-magickal implement of great beauty and utility. It encompasses both art (as an artistic-archetypal representation of the ultimate spiritual dynamic) and function (as a form-energy transceiver, an active meditative-ritualistic component). While “dorge” and its corresponding Sanskrit term “vajra” are generally translated as “thunderbolt” — a useful symbol for this device as it was archaically the thunderbolt of Indra, the Hindu Jupiter — the true meaning is actually far more comprehensive. The dorge represents the highest spiritual power, that which is irresistible, invincible, indestructible and inexhaustible -- free from conflicting emotions. In Tibetan “do” means “stone” and “rge” means “master”, and the “master stone” is considered to be the diamond: for its nobility, purity, clarity and ultimate hardness. The Master Stone is of course the Philosopher’s Stone or prima materia of the Alchemists, and this symbolism is apropos for the dorge. The secret of the Philosopher’s Stone is that anyone who attains it can no longer use it for base purposes such as riches and immorality as it will leave them spiritually dead. In its symbolic-artistic form the dorge is a sceptre, the emblem of supreme, sovereign power, hence the “Diamond Sceptre”. Its form corresponds directly to its function.  There are three stages of the dorge, the seed, the lotuses and the mandalas. With many meanings that will appear to the astute meditator, a good place to start is to think of them as spirit, mind and body, respectively. Concomitant with the three stages, the dorge can also be seen as an instrument describing universal polarities, as two mirror-image sides emanate from the central point. The central sphere is the seed or “bindu” of the universe, corresponding in Western spiritual tradition to Kether at the apex of the Kabbalistic Tree of Life. It is sometimes represented as an outward moving spiral of energy, just as the Tree of Life can be represented as spiraling out from Kether. From the undifferentiated unity of the central seed spring two opposing lotus blossoms, representing the dual nature of manifest reality as perceived consciously. Each has eight leaves, and these can be understood as the eight trigrams of the I Ching, the fundamental binary code of our interactions with the universe. From each lotus blossom emerge five ‘rays of power’ which converge at a higher point. This is the three dimensional world we inhabit as incarnate humans, again with its dynamic polarities represented by the two sides of the dorge. From end on these five rays can be seen as the fundamental mandala of the Dhyani Buddhas (or Tathagatas -- “liberated ones”). However, these Dhyanis are not external entities who have reached the Buddha state of enlightenment, but rather projections of the highest potentials of that which exists as our inherent base emotions and psychological structures in normal day-to-day consciousness (termed the “skandhas”, generally translated as “aggregates of consciousness” or “psycho-constituents of reality”, being Form, Feeling, Perception, Intention and Consciousness together comprising an individual’s total life experience). Skandha = Dhyani Buddha Form/Corporeality = Aksobhya - Wisdom of the Great Mirror (Non-Attachment to Manifestation) Feeling = Ratnasambava - Wisdom of Equality Perception = Amitabha - Distinguishing Inner Vision Intention/Volition = Amoghasiddhi - All-Accomplishing Karma-Free Action Consciousness = Vairocana - Wisdom of the Universal Law The Buddha nature lies within! We are already there, but this inherent state of our being is hidden from us through misunderstanding and by not being able to control our sensory input (due to ignorance). The mandala consists of four stages around a central stage, the central stage being the local expression of the bindu-seed in its Dhyani-Buddha form. It can also be conceived in Western concepts as the Ether (localised expression of Kether). The four surrounding stages, the remaining Dhyani-Buddhas, can be seen in many ways, the four phases of the day (dawn, noon, dusk and midnight); the four directions; four stages of life (birth, mid-life, old age and death), the four seasons (spring, summer, autumn, winter), the four ancient elements (Earth, Water, Air, Fire), the four modern states of matter (solid, liquid, gas, plasma). This fundamental structure pervades our earth plane existence. The two sides of the dorge can be seen not only in the polarities of male and female, night and day, hot and cold, etc, but also as the most dynamic of our localised, perceived polarities: Matter and Spirit. And matter and spirit can be reconciled in the thunderbolt of awareness, where we become the undifferentiated singularity of enlightenment and perceive all as One, subjective and objective combined as a fundamental awareness. This is the ultimate Tantric doctrine, and the supreme path of Buddhism is termed the Vajrajana, or the Diamond Wisdom. In ritual use the dorge is often held in the left hand while a small “phurba” or demon-slaying dagger is held in the right. Or it is placed in front of the meditator so that they may optically absorb its artistically functional structure into their being, whilst traveling the path through its various correspondences. There is a higher form energy (in Western terms “radionic”) emanating from it due to its archetypal structure. This must be experienced directly; words alone cannot express the awakening of archetypes, as any visual or musical artist will testify. Meditation upon the dorge will guide the body, mind and spirit to the awakened state where all the psycho-cosmic elements of our incarnation are integrated and raised to their highest level. It is both the Path and its Symbol. And it is an exquisitely curious artistic design that can be appreciated even if one is only at the preliminary stages necessary for the esoteric exploration of its utility. To begin meditation upon the dorge one will attempt to grasp its symbolism and structure and initiate the correlation of their worldly awareness-components to the archetypal structure. This becomes easier and more intuitive as one progresses. The dorge becomes an active inner spiritual “map of the universe” which one may travel to the highest levels of awareness whilst keeping grounded in their daily lives. An archetype which does not provide life and growth is like a philosophy which has become dogmatic and counterproductive. Building a dorge in the imagination is one of the greatest spiritual practices which has evolved on the Earth plane. Beyond intellect, it is the pure beauty of spiritual freedom which can only be grasped through uplifting actions in art, music and life. Om Mani Padme Hum Hail the Jewel in the Lotus!