THE ELEGY CONFIGURATION
"The Chains Of Verekna"
"The Elegy Yantra"
"Elegy Configuration" - photograph - Max Lichtor 2001
The Elegy Configuration
is LeMarchand's reproduction of a Indonesian Yantra
(of the same name)
created by unknown craftsmen
in the late bronze age ( 2500 BC ).
LeMarchand had a
facination with artifacts of antiquity and it is no secret
that he "borrowed" many
of his designs from already imfamous sources.
A Yantra is a hinduistic
religous instrument said to have a life of its own.
They are said to be Deva/Devi
( Gods/Goddesses ) in geometrical or patterned form.
LeMarchand had studied
these devices during the time of his first puzzle box creation,
" The
Lament Configuration".
The influence of the yantra can be seen in nearly all of his
puzzle box creations.
"Infernal Machine" Dan McNeil 2002
LeMarchand's earliest
entries in his journal mention a artifact simply known as the
"Sri Yantra". (" beautiful
instrument ")
It is believed that he
had this yantra shipped from India to Paris sometime previous
to his work on intricate
"singing bird" music boxes. (1747)
It was the study
of the patterns found inscribed upon this yantra that prompted his search
for
other geometrical art,
including
the long lost yantra of antiquity - Elegy.
The Sri Yantra
He wrote
the following entries in his personal journal
concerning
the birch wood cube - Sri Yantra :
"...Yantras
are the geometrical form of a divinity in the tantrik tradition.
The
point or bindu at the center, generally represents the diety.
The
triangles represent the active and passive aspects of the diety.
Triangles
are often surrounded by enclosing circles and a group
of
petals, in which are the attendants of the Devis or Devas.
Finally,
the whole is often enclosed in a bhupura
a
word which means earth-city.
These
are the enclosing walls, fenced by the guardians
of
the directions and the intermediate directions (dikpalas)"
"...A
Yantra is only truly vitalised when it is engraved with the bija
and other
mantras
and surrounded with the matrikas, or letters of the Sanskrit alphabet.
Before
use, it must be instilled with life."
"...the
Yantra should be placed on a pedestal (pitha),
and
bathed with the substances previously described, whilst the
appropriate
root mantra is recited. One should then offer
scent
and flowers, and should worship the appropriate Devi
in
the usual form within the yantra. This all should be done at night."
"Elegy Configuration" - art rendering - Eric Gross 2006
.
.
In 1748, after completing
his study of the Sri Yantra, LeMarchand began research on the "Elegy
Yantra"
who's origins dated back
some four thousand years.
"Elegy Configuration" - photograph - Max Lichtor 2001
This yantra was designed
to hold the essense of Verekna - "Prince of the mind"
a powerful Deva of
Indonesian origin who held the principle power of deception.
"...Verekna's
ninety-nine gibbering mouths
yammer
lies incessantly."
A Guide to Ancient Mythology - Dr. J. Julian, 1943
"Elegy Configuration" - photograph - Max Lichtor 2001
The Elegy Yantra had been
aquired by Arab merchants who had landed in
North Sumatra in 846
AD to spread Islam.
The
Knights Templar
Transfering ownership
to the Knights Templar (via the Crusades) in the thirteenth century,
"The Chains of Verekna"
( its name given by a Muslim sect ) was passed around from aristocracy
to aristocracy until
it came to rest in the secretive clutches of the Masonic Lodge.
It is believed that Philip
LeMarchand had access to a Masonic library located in Paris in 1748.
Their he completed his
research into the mysteries of the Elegy Yantra.
It is not known whether
he was privy to the yantra itself, or just to documents detailing
its origens, uses, and
most importantly its geometric surface designs.
There are indeed rumors
to this day of charcoal etchings
of LeMarchand's
manufacture that detail
the Elegy Yantra's designs, circulating as art
in northern Europe.
In 1749, LeMarchand
re-produced the Elegy Yantra as his third box construct.
"Elegy Configuration" - photograph - Max Lichtor 2001
At this point, LeMarchand had murdered twenty-nine people.
