In the East, that is, in the direction of Boleskine, which is situated on the south-eastern shore of Loch Ness in Scotland, two miles east of Foyers, is a shrine or High Altar.
T.S.: Actual position will be at the most convenient end of the room. Without getting into a pestilential discussion of AL III, 10 I will merely state that if AC could move East, we can bloody well move Boleskine.
Its dimensions should be 7 feet in length, 3 feet in breadth, 44 inches in height. It should be covered with a crimson altar-cloth, on which may be embroidered fleur-de-lys in gold, or a sunblaze, or other suitable emblem.
T.S. (later): It has been pointed out that the height here means the vertical distance from the top of the dais to the top of the altar; either the “dais” will extend under the altar or (more realistically, if you do not have a permanent temple and so have to make the steps out of stage blocks or somesuch) the height of the steps should be added to that 44” in figuring the height of the altar.
On each side of it should be a pillar or obelisk, with counterchanges in black and white.
Below it should be the dais of three steps, in black and white squares.
Above it is the super-altar, at whose top is the Stèle of Revealing in reproduction with four candles on each side of it. Below the stèle is a place for The Book of the Law; with six candles on each side of it. Below this again is the Holy Graal, with roses on each side of it. There is room in front of the Cup for the Paten. On each side beyond the roses are two great candles.
T.S.: The last is ambiguous; while the words used can reasonably be taken to mean two candles each side of the roses, graal, etc. (in my opinion this is the more natural meaning of the text if taken in isolation), if what is meant is two great candles in total this would give a total of 11 candles each side, which might be more appropriate. My attention has been directed to the photograph of Regina Kahl as Priestess in Agape Lodge #2 printed in Equinox III (10) which does indeed show 11 candles each side, although the “great candles” are there the same size as all the others.
All this is enclosed within a great veil.
T.S.: The pillars should thus be behind the veil and flanking the altar, rather than having the veil hanging from a rod between the pillars (the latter arrangement was adopted by the Yorkshire group as an expedient to make the Mass kit more readily portable). Despite what is said here, though, the steps need to be outside the veil as the priest has to ascend them before opening the veil. Unless he does all the invocations and “parts the veil” from the inside, which would be just strange. Further, as indicated by the reference to “the open shrine” at the start of section III, the veil is initially open.
Forming the apex of an equilateral triangle whose base is a line drawn between the pillars, is a small black square altar, of two superimposed cubes.
T.S.: “a small black square altar”; so whose idea was it to drape our black double cube with a red cloth?
Taking this altar as the middle of the base of a similar and equal tria ngle, at the apex of this second triangle is a small circular font.
Repeating, the apex of a third triangle is an upright coffin, or Tomb.
T.S.: It needs to be big enough for the Priest, Deacon and Children to walk into at the end. Unless there is a back exit into another room. There should be a veil covering the entrance – see part 3.