At the Seizure of the Moon: The Absence of the Moon in the Mithras Liturgy

The article examines the notable absence of the moon in the Mithras Liturgy (PGM IV.475–834), a text otherwise structured around astral imagery and celestial ascent, and argues that this absence is integral to the ritual’s cosmological logic rather than accidental.

The ritual is interpreted within a tripartite cosmic model in which the moon governs the lowest, material realm of genesis, while the sun and higher powers belong to the celestial and noetic spheres. Within this framework, the magician’s ascent requires the deliberate avoidance of lunar influence, since the moon’s presence would hinder the process of apogénesis. This reading is supported by a close analysis of the ritual sequence, its prescribed timing, and the consistent exclusion of lunar references.

By situating the Mithras Liturgy within the broader structure of the Great Paris Magical Papyrus and related ancient cosmological traditions, the study shows that lunar and solar forces are deployed in distinct and systematic ways across the collection. It concludes that the absence of the moon reflects a coherent ritual logic and that the text integrates Mithraic elements within wider magical and philosophical conceptions of cosmic ascent.