Touching the Myth Through Play
Asekh-Sutkh is a transformational game of re-creation, set within an artistic and philosophical mytho-epic framework. It is built upon a mythological model of the universe, where the human path is understood as a spiral journey — moving through the experience of the soul, choice, awareness, and ultimately returning to inner balance.
The field of Asekh-Sutkh represents a structured process of transformation, in which a person moves through 83 symbolic states. At its core, the game is about returning to equilibrium.
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Origins and Path
The practice of Asekh-Sutkh — sometimes referred to as Asekh-Shutkh — is said to have originated in Atlantis and emerged as a development of the Game of Equilibrium1. However, Asekh-Sutkh was not a “game” in the literal sense. It was, rather, a practice designed to reveal the path of the human soul along the world-spiral: its rises and descents, its lessons, tasks, and inherent tendencies.
In its structure, Asekh-Sutkh is nothing less than a reflection of the cosmic cycle — from creation to completion. For this reason, it is inseparably tied to the cultural and mythological fabric of Atlantis.
Engaging with the practice helped illuminate complex stages of spiritual development. During the process, the participant would enter symbolic “cells” or states, each representing a challenge and suggesting possible paths toward its resolution.
It was believed that the transformational spiritual system of Asekh-Sutkh does not break or constrain a person in order to force the soul toward liberation through struggle. On the contrary, it facilitates changes that become integrated into the very structure of one’s path.
In this way, a person returns to their original state of balance. At the same time, the practice engages deep layers of past experience, the understanding of which allows present challenges to be resolved.
Translation of the Name
The name of the practice can be rendered as follows:2
Asekh
The root –ekh originally meant “to shine, to radiate light.” In Atlantean cosmology, however, light signifies not only life and truth, but also a barrier — a boundary dividing order from chaos. Thus, light serves as both illumination and demarcation, separating worlds and states of consciousness.
The addition of the prefix as- before ekh symbolizes a re-visioning of that boundary: not as a rigid wall, but as a process of transforming one’s relationship to limitations through acceptance and understanding. In this transformation, obstacles cease to be sources of fear or resistance, and instead become steps toward spiritual growth.
In other words, by embracing the existence of boundaries — light as the threshold — inner barriers dissolve, and the path between worlds and states of being opens.
As itself carries the meaning of “to bear, to carry, to conduct” — whether literally upon one’s shoulders or in a metaphysical sense. It denotes the guides of souls, mediators between levels of reality. In this way, the practice opens a passage into the space between the three planes of existence: the upper, the middle, and the lower.
Additionally, the phonetic echo of the root sekh (“hall, field, arena3”) plays a symbolic role. Here it refers to the field of play, the arena of inner action, the field of the heart.
Sutkh
The root sut signifies a liminal state — the realm between dream and waking, between life and death, beginning and end, as well as between worlds. It is not a mere midpoint, but an unseen threshold where rebirth becomes possible, where consciousness moves forward, where transformation occurs. Sut carries the idea of a journey — not a geographic passage, but an ontological one — across layers of reality.
The final –h represents limitation: the structure, the cell, the form that encloses the human being. This is not a punishment, but a mechanism enabling transcendence. It provides the means to place the self outside the accustomed order of things, where resistance to the external is transformed into creation of the internal.
Thus, one may conclude that Sutkh is the ground upon which a person is led across the three planes of existence — upper, middle, and lower — so that, through the confinement of form, they may enter the liminal state and be reborn as a new self.
Through engagement with the specifically designed program of the field, one enters into contact with the essence of all things — with the Great Spiral, with the Creator.
Features of the Journey
At the heart of Asekh-Sutkh lies the game board, upon which the spiral of existence is depicted. The board contains eighty-three squares, or states, among which are:
- Twelve squares of the Circle of Gates (or the Outer Circle), corresponding to the twelve constellations.
- Four squares of transition, where the soul may change its direction of movement.
- Seven transformed chakras, arranged diagonally at the center, along with the positions of Three and Nine (at the beginning and end respectively). These mark the central pillar where energies intersect. Within this pillar lie nine truths and nine illusions.
- Two squares above the board — the square of the universe’s creation, and the square of entry onto the spiral.
One is guided across the board by the Higher Power, and entry onto the field is permitted only with their leave.
The journey begins at the middle square, located in the upper plane, within the field called Rakhhet — “the Sun upon the Horizon.” It is to this square that one must return, passing through the square of the Heart. Only then is the passage considered complete, and the practice takes effect.
Participation in the game is possible only with the person’s consent, and only when the number Three, Six, or Nine4 is cast. If other numbers appear, entry does not begin until another request is made — one that is proper, or open to that individual — and leave is granted by the Higher Ones.
Movement proceeds from Rakhhet downward along the spiral. This descent is both a journey into the depths of the subconscious and the past of the soul, and a passage through all points of suffering.
The central square is the Heart, depicted as a pyramid5 (for the transformed fourth chakra always assumes the form of a geometric figure). Within the Heart lies the exit from the game.
The practice takes effect only once the passage has been completed. From entry to departure, the journey lasts on average between two and five hours, though the duration may vary.
From the Teachings of Amatis6
“And only in balance shall the Heart behold, as the human eye beholds the rising and the setting of the sun. For in balance all was born, and in balance all shall end — that balance may be found anew, in the creation of another Universe.”
At the center there is always the Creator, the Heart of all that exists. And it may be for this reason that the practice itself descends from the Game of Balance.
Core Practices
The primary purpose of the game is to bring the soul into balance, for it is only from a position of equilibrium that one can complete the journey, pass through all lessons, and return to the original point — the union with the Creator.
Through the practice, the fundamental elements of the soul’s existence are revealed: its lessons and aspirations, its character, its light, its tasks, its direction of activity, and its predispositions.
The path unfolds both on Earth and beyond its bounds.
It also opens the possibility to adjust the course of the soul’s journey. Processes are set in motion that guide a person toward certain actions, enabling the very essence of the individual’s movement to be rewritten.
Deep changes in the structure of the path are, in turn, reflected in ordinary life.
Additional mechanisms are engaged to help the practitioner reach awareness or the required state more quickly — states which might otherwise take much longer to attain.
All transformations occur gently. The game does not “break” the person; it allows one to enter into change willingly, in harmony with the original design. Roads may be altered according to the heart.
Additional Practices
Working through causal connections (or karmic patterns, as they are called in modern esoteric and spiritual traditions).
Addressing blocks along the central spiritual line (the spine), which connects the individual to the upper and lower realms through the intersection of two energies. On the subtle plane, these blocks appear as slabs obstructing paths or compressing movement.
Resolving ruptures in thought and energy, often arising from non-acceptance — including non-acceptance of the darker aspects of the Creator or oneself.
Balancing the influences of light and darkness, through altering resonance and response.
Exploring past lives that resonate with the present journey.
*Any work or request for change occurs only with the consent of the Higher Power. Many aspects may remain inaccessible to the individual at certain stages. Ignoring prohibitions from the Higher Ones can only cause harm. Everything comes in its own time.
**If a practice or request is deemed inappropriate, entry into the game is not permitted. The game does not take place.
Footnotes
- The Game of Balance is a team-based practice aimed at moving toward equilibrium through interaction with other players and working through one’s own patterns by engaging with people involved in the shared process. It was considered partly strategic, not purely spiritual, although its original foundation was entirely spiritual. In this sense, it resembles the kind of games we know today more than Asekh-Suth does. ↩︎
- The game’s language was translated from the tongue spoken on the archipelago to that of Atlantis. It should not in any way be confused with the Egyptian language we know, while the sounds were strikingly similar in sound, though structurally very different. ↩︎
- Note: The root sekh also appears in Sekhet — the main Arena in the White City, where hybrid battles took place. It is connected to the process of evolution. ↩︎
- In more advanced versions of the Game, entry is also possible with the number Twelve. However, this version is not only more complex, but the board itself is larger — both spiritually (more powerful) and physically (more squares). ↩︎
- The pyramid also serves as a key in the language of the Stars. In Egyptian, for example, a comparable key is the well-known Ankh (information drawn not from official sources, but from the Eternal). ↩︎
- Amatis was one of the First-Comers — star-beings worshipped in Atlantis. According to legend, he was the one who left the famous teachings. ↩︎