Magic Monday

[ecosophia]

It's just past midnight, so we can proceed with a new Magic Monday. Ask me anything about occultism and I'll do my best to answer it. With certain exceptions, any question received by midnight Monday Eastern time will get an answer. Please note:  Any question or comment received after then will not get an answer, and in fact will just be deleted. (I've been getting an increasing number of people trying to post after these are closed, so will have to draw a harder line than before.) If you're in a hurry, or suspect you may be the 143,916th person to ask a question, please check out the very rough version 1.0 of The Magic Monday FAQ here. Also: I will not be putting through or answering any more questions about practicing magic around children. I've answered those in simple declarative sentences in the FAQ. If you read the FAQ and don't think your question has been answered, read it again. If that doesn't help, consider remedial reading classes; yes, it really is as simple and straightforward as the FAQ says. 

The picture?  I'm working my way through photos of my lineage, focusing on the teachers whose work has influenced me and the teachers who influenced them in turn. I'm currently tracing my Martinist lineage.  That's rendered complex by the Martinist tradition that one does not name one's initiator, so we'll have to go back via slightly less evasive routes. Last week's honoree, Dr. Gérard Encausse, who wrote about magic under the pen name Papus, didn't act alone in reviving the Martinist tradition and founding the Martinist Order; he had the capable assistance of this man, Augustin Chaboseau. Papus and Chaboseau were medical students together, and were startled to discover that each of them had received the Martinist initiation by way of two different lineages. They each initiated the other, and thereafter worked together to preserve and transmit the Martinist tradition. Chaboseau's wife Louise was famous in her own right as a leading French feminist, and one of the first female pharmacists in France.

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***This Magic Monday is now closed. See you next week!***

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

Dear JMG,

I've been looking at the old OSA website that you linked to on Archive dot org in a different thread. I have some questions I was hoping you could help me with.

1. I recently asked you if the OSA system had enough depth to take one all the way to illumination by itself. The material on the old site gives me the impression that the OSA material might have a great deal of depth. It seems like the kind of material that one could keep going back to and discover new meanings each time. Would you agree?

2. Is there much theoretical/philosophical material in the OSA? I hope there is. Is there any to go along with the Octagon Society lessons? Or is the theory given in the other orders?

3. The Kybalion is mentioned in connection with the OSA work on the old site. Would New Thought be a good approach to use alongside the OSA work? The Kybalion and the rest of W.W. Atkinson's work is definitely part of that spiritual milieu.

I hope this isn't too much. Thanks for your help.

Best wishes.

[ecosophia]

1) Very much so.

2) There may have been at one point, but not much of it survived.

3) Yes, the OSA is very much part of the saner end of the New Thought movement, and Atkinson would be a good resource to add to it.

[(Anonymous)]

I have a question about polytheism and the Supreme Being. Some polytheisms take one into account, such as "The Great Spirit" - though on Native America Calling, most such invocations went to "The Creator." In others, like the Heathen traditions, you call on the god you have a relationship with, like Thor.
I've been working with the days of the week, which means the Sun, Moon, and classical planets, and Minerva, and really don't see a way to fit the Supreme Being in there unless you turn to sun-worship, which I'm really not comfortable with. My background is Wiccan, which calls on the Goddess of Nature in 3 aspects: Earth, Moon-and-tides, and Stars. I feel like I'm trying to deal a hand of cards from several different decks at this point.
I - have been for decades - in touch with an entity I call Goddess, who seems to act almost like some sort of a trainer or coach and has never steered me wrong, but I think sometimes gets fed up with me (though it was Saturn who dished out the latest scolding) but can be very supportive too.

Okay - tossing the mess on your desk for the same reason I need to call the IT tech when the computer is acting up.

Thanks in advance for your help.

[ecosophia]

Some polytheisms have a Supreme Being, others do not, and then there are still others in the middle -- for example, the ones that have one deity who is more powerful than the others but not that much more powerful, or the ones that have a supreme deity who made the world and then went off to do something else, leaving it to less powerful gods. Since no human being can know the truth about gods -- remember that our brains are basically lumps of greasy jello eight inches long, and there's a real limit to what such a thing can comprehend! -- the best approach is to work with your tradition and not worry about what other traditions do or don't claim.

[(Anonymous)]

Hi John,

What do you think the consequence of doing the daily planetary Angelic conjurations from the Heptameron (with less bossy language) followed by a 15 min planetary attunment meditation w/colors and some visualization? I sing/vibrate the Angel names and God names. It feels amazing to start the day with, but I can feel myself becoming ungrounded. It's the most powerful thing I have felt, but I'm not going for that. Maybe my system cant handle that much juju... I'm hoping you can give some constructive criticism.

[ecosophia]

That strikes me as too intense for most people to handle for more than a short time. You might instead do one of those a week on the appropriate day -- the Sun this week on Sunday, Venus next week on Friday, and so on, or what have you -- and do something much simpler on the other six days of each week.

[ivn66]

Hi JMG.

Wotan is one of the gods I worship. The other day I thought of Him out of nowhere, and remembered that I'd been meaning to find a copy of the Prose Edda. Off I went to my local used bookstore. No luck, but a copy of The King in Orange caught my eye (I guess it made somebody angry). I took it off the shelf and opened it to a random page, on which you mention Wotan by name. So, of course, I bought it.

There's no question here - I just wanted to let you know that I proceeded to read that book more voraciously than perhaps any book in my adult life thus far, and feel richly rewarded for having done so. It is a truly staggering piece of work, for a number of reasons. Thank you very much for writing it.

[ecosophia]

Hmm! If the Hooded One has his eye on that book, I suspect strange things will follow. Thanks for letting me know!

[(Anonymous)]

Hello! For JMG or anyone else: is there a link somewhere available to a Christian version or versions of the SoP? Google has not made searching easy recently, unfortunately.

Many thanks in advance.

[ecosophia]

Sure. There are both Catholic and Protestant versions in my book The Way of the Golden Section. They may be online somewhere but my search engine was no better than yours!

Book recommendation

[(Anonymous)]

I ran across a book in a used bookstore yesterday, Magic in the Roman World: Pagans, Jews and Christians, by Naomi Janowitz, and was curious if our host or anyone else has read it and had thoughts. I've been looking for texts on ancient Greek magical practice, which this is not, but thought it was interesting close.

Re: Book recommendation

[ecosophia]

I haven't read it but it sounds interesting.

[(Anonymous)]

Dear JMG,

I've come to the realization that I give my power away to the women in my life (mother, wife, daughter, friends, acquaintances, etc.) and I want to change that habit. I wonder if you could comment on how I plan to go about this.

1) Journal about why and how I do this, to unearth the real reasons for this behaviour.
2) Practice awareness of my behaviour around women. Not to judge myself or criticize, but just to become aware of when it happens and if there are any triggers.
3) Replace the behaviour with something more constructive. I'm not sure what this looks like yet and might need to find models of behaviour for myself.

It all seems straightforward but I know I'll come up on resistance with step 3, probably rooted in fear. I have experience with both the system of magic in the Druid Magic Handbook, and the DOGD, and I wonder if there's a magical practice I can incorporate to improve my chance of success with any of these steps, but step 3 especially.

Sincerely,
Tim PW

[ecosophia]

At step 3 you may well face pushback from the women in your life. If they're used to being given your power, they may not be too happy if you take it back. That's not to say you shouldn't do this, but be ready for emotional fireworks, and demands that you go back to your former habits.

In terms of magic, if you're familiar with the various practical applications of the SoP in the Druid Magic Handbook, any and all of those can be used. Workings of fire are good to reclaim your power, workings of water are good to soothe ruffled feathers and use your power in ways that won't spark conflagrations.

[(Anonymous)]

JMG,

Am I correct (understanding that there is no such thing as a correct human in the face of the divine), to think that the same aspects that the elements represent (air, fire, water, earth) apply to all levels of the planes? For example, every being all the way up to the highest plane has a body, will/desire, intuition and mind, as well as spirit, except that the body of a god is different from the body of a human, and so on for each aspect.

If so, then I wonder if the different aspects separately connect all the way up, (will on a lower plane to will on a higher plane; mind on a lower plane to mind on a higher plane), such that if one were to look for a ternary, one could go up or down the planes. For example, I can look for a ternary on my possible levels within one element (a binary of two actions can be turned into a ternary by a third possible action), or on my possible levels using different elements (a binary between mind and body can be turned into a ternary by the will), which I have been doing with the glass bead oracle, but I also think it might be possible to reach up through the elements to make a ternary using a higher level of any of the elements of a higher being. For example, isn't this what happens when I attune myself to a force (say kindness) on a more spiritual level, to break a binary I am experiencing in my life? Something possibly completely unrelated and unexpected. To me, this presents me with an image of an incredible, vast, immeasurable network of possible ternaries I can navigate as I move forward.

This also points me to the importance of ternaries in general. I'm reminded of the riddle of the sphinx in Lévi (itself a ternary), which points to something beyond: the four legs of the questioning sphinx, the two of the responding human to the three of something not specified but which is pointed to. It's that something else I can see in the glass bead oracle with all its connections at all levels, not just as an oracle, but also the many other levels to which I can apply this.

Have I gone off the rails?

Thank you as always!
-Myriam

[ecosophia]

You haven't gone off the rails at all. Keep on following those threads. They lead to very useful places.

SOP & Magic Amulets

[wildheartcaliguy]

Good morning JMG,

I practice the Druid Sphere of Protection (SOP) daily. I recently acquired some amulets that are magically charged with diety spirits. Their job is to bring the wearer protection, general good fortune, and other positive benefits. As long as the wearer respects them in return.

Will performing the SOP agitate these spirits? Or can I organically modify the language or visualizations of the SOP to include and not disturb these spirits?

Thank you

Re: SOP & Magic Amulets

[ecosophia]

The SoP isn't a problem with existing magical items because it specifies, as exactly as you wish, what you're banishing. As long as you don't say, "And with the help of the powers of (element) I banish from within me and around me and all my doings all helpful and positive powers that are making my life better" -- and I hope you wouldn't be silly enough to do this! -- you'll be fine.

Q

[(Anonymous)]

Greetings JMG and folks,

JMG, a few questions for you and our company today:

1) So, despite not being christian, I've had St. Michael pop up a few times in my experience over the last year and possibly participate in a major thing that got unblocked for me.

I've had a frequently bubbling thought lately, that I should have a subtle ring of St Michael made and wear it, but I don't know how to do this, and how I would actually consecrate it properly / receive his blessings. Any advice?

2) Last week you said anger is a secondary emotion to fear/guilt/shame. Is there a good body of work around the theory of emotions worth reading to understand this better? (Would you say its the stuff from Octagon society / OSA or something more traditionally psychotherapeutic?)

3) Is consciousness a gradation of the will (there are more substances/extensions to the will beyond the phenomenal world)? one that is accessible to us directly via the astral vs the will that is accessible to us indirectly?

Re: Q

[ecosophia]

1) Until you know how this is done, don't try to do it. Focus on your magical training; as you learn more about magic, you'll learn ways to do such things. "One step at a time" really is good advice in magic.

2) I've only ever encountered that idea in the OSA system; it may be elsewhere, but I don't happen to have seen it. It's one of the things that made me take the OSA material very seriously, as it helped me get past a lot of pointless and unproductive anger and then deal with a lot of miserable childhood experience that underlay that.

3) That's certainly what Schopenhauer thought. I'm inclined to believe that he was right.

[kylec]

In a recent MM answer, you gave a detailed account of a past life memory from the 3rd century. As one who has not had any definite past life memories, it made me wonder how much of that came in memories and how much was reconstructed based on your historical knowledge of the period. Can you paint a picture of how such a narrative emerges over time through the modes of memory and research? Not asking for specific details of your private memories, more about the structure of emergence and how you consolidate into a sensible narrative that you have confidence in. Thanks.

[ecosophia]

That one actually came through all in a lump, with a great deal of anguish attached. I don't happen to know much about Roman Syria in the 3rd century, though I do know some things about the late Enpire, and I have no idea whether the claim the memory includes about the rules involving Christian converts in that place and time is historically attested or not. As a rule, though, I avoid doing research on the historical context of a past life memory while it's surfacing, because I don't want to contaminate the memory with the results of research -- that's as easy to do as it is unhelpful.

[(Anonymous)]

I've been mulling over something very, very weird I've noticed lately: a lot of people seem to be acting as if restricting pornography will kill the internet. A lot of opponents of some of the porn restriction bills are talking as if this is a battle over the internet as a whole, and not just one sleazy element of it; and some of the arguments being made are truly baffling. Meanwhile, it's starting to look like some of the big tech companies are willing to throw money away in order to avoid complying with these laws.

This entire thing strikes me as weird, and I've been wondering what's happening, and something has clicked: it may be that the reason that the tech people are acting as if restricting porn is an existential threat to the internet is that it is. The internet only functions because millions, if not billions, of people around the world are unable to think clearly about it. Whatever the origin of this, if a large number of people started treating the internet as a tool, rather than a sink for identity; started applying cost-benefits analyses to it rather than adopting anything online merely because it is on the internet; and started taking steps to minimize the more destructive elements of it, then the entire thing would collapse under its own weight in short order.

You've said before that anything people masturbate to gets charged with sexual energy, so the possibility that occurred to me is that it may be that sexual energy which charges the internet, and which produces the weird draw that it has. If this is the case, then any kind of disruption of the massive amounts of pornography circulating through the internet would reduce the draw it has, which will make the internet increasingly unable to support itself. So, the case can be made that the internet depends on porn, on more than just a financial level; and it would explain a great deal if the people most deeply embedded in the internet were aware of this.

Does this analysis seem plausible to you?

[ecosophia]

Yes, but there's another factor: pornography was the first internet industry that ever made serious money, and I suspect it still pays much more of the internet's operative costs than anybody wants to admit.

Impact on physical reality

[boccaccio]

Hello JMG, I wonder about the impact that non-physical beings can have on the material plane. In your main site someone mentioned a hat that disappeared from a closed place and later turned up somewhere else. Some deity seemed involved in it. How is this possible if that deity doesn't have a physical body?

A related question: what do you make of bodies of holy people that are found intact many years after they were buried? The Christian incorruptible saints come to mind, but I've also heard similar stories about certain Hindu and Buddhist masters. Is here some influence going on from a non-physical being?

Thank you for again giving us the opportunity to ask questions!

Re: Impact on physical reality

[ecosophia]

1) Apportation -- that's the technical term for the sudden appearance or disappearance of objects by psychic means -- is a fine mystery. I don't pretend to know how it works, but it does seem to happen.

2) Clearly yes, there are nonphysical forces at work. It's not a subject I've studied in detail, though.

Past life

[(Anonymous)]

I found your past life memory from last week very interesting. Was this one of the more prominent memories, and did many such lives reveal themselves to you over time as your spiritual practice deepened?

I remember you suggested somewhere that the revelation of past lives heralds the last stages of incarnating materially. Could you speak more on that?

I posted this before but I had a strange past life experience about my presence and life in Rome at a synagogue there, after my Reiki level 2 initiation, even though I'm not jewish. I was able to connect the professional work I am doing today with what I was possibly doing then (and it would make sense why I have very advanced abilities in this sector).

Thought the details weren't as clear as yours and there were no images, I'm presuming more of this will reveal itself in time (as I keep up with my spiritual life).

Re: Past life

[ecosophia]

1) That memory came up only after quite a few others had surfaced. I've remembered most of eight lives and scraps of three or four others. (I'm not sure whether certain memories belong to one life, or to two lived in very similar conditions.)

2) The reason we forget our previous lives during each incarnation is to keep us from transferring the bad habits and unhealthy relationships of one life to the next. As the process of human incarnation winds up, the personality starts to become -- in a certain sense -- transparent to itself, and glimpses of the individuality (the self that survives from life to life) begin to come through. With them come glimpses of past lives. Sustained spiritual practice at that point can increase the transparency of the personality, and thus the clarity of the memories.

3) That was certainly my experience. The first clear past life memory I ever had came when I was working as an aide in a nursing home, and it was my turn to help one of the patients go out onto the porch and smoke his pipe. I've never smoked -- I loathe tobacco, having grown up with a two-pack-a-day Benson & Hedges smoker for a father -- but I recalled with extraordinary vividness and clarity exactly what it was like to smoke a big old-fashioned pipe, how to draw the smoke into the mouth but not inhale it, what it felt like, and more. The pipe I remembered wasn't like the one the patient was smoking, either. I was startled, but I kept my attention on the memory, and gradually realized that the person who was smoking it didn't have my body. He was an old, rather fat man with a neatly trimmed beard, sitting in a room I'd never been in but somehow recognized, looking out the window at tall buildings against a gray winter sky. Over time, letting that memory unfold, I recalled some portions of that life -- and then other memories, and other lives, came through a little at a time.

[pleiadesdreaming]

Hi, I've been doing the SOP as outlined in the way of the golden section for about 2ish weeks. Lately, after finishing the ritual I've noticed that my heart races for a while after, I lightly sweat for a bit after, and my solar plexus area has a dull ache. I know for a fact I have major blockages in both the heart and solar plexus chakras, so I'm certain this is a factor, but is this reaction normal? Has anyone else reported or experienced this?

[ecosophia]

That's quite normal. Make sure you stay well hydrated, and take a little while to rest after you've finished your practices for the day.

Weekly queries

[denebalgedi777]

Hello,

1. I'm trying to understand karma better -- it does not seem to be deterministic, but it does seem to nudge you in certain directions. Is that a fair way to describe it? I have noticed that I've never meshed well with corporate employment (at least full time as opposed to contract or consulting) and it seemed that things would happen so that I didn't fully commit to it. I'm not sure why this would be -- as far as I can tell, I was not a corporate employee in recent past lives either (if my memories are accurate, in the last one I was a musician).

2. Is there an astrological house that would govern things like nostalgia? I was thinking perhaps 4th house or 12th house.

3. I'm trying to understand a reading I did on a certain course of action concerning career choices. With the format me/the work/the outcome, the result was: Ace of Wands - 8 of Wands - Hermit. This seems relatively neutral. If you were to receive such a reading on an action, would you be inclined to do it?

Comments (relevant to Magic Monday)

4. Twitter rebranded to X, which I don't think is bad considering the unfortunate associations (like JMG said it sounded like a platform for twits). The announcement appears to have been this morning around dawn, with Sun conjunct the Ascendant in California, and with the Sun having just entered Leo, I can't help but think this was maybe an elected time. A bit bizarre to rebrand at this time, however, since Venus has also just gone retrograde, and the logo they picked was predictably bland.

5. Concerning the Minnesota woods, I had several bizarre dreams about it last year (I'm from there originally but have since moved, although I am within driving distance and go back on occasion) and it seemed like some sort of spirit was awakening around that time. I wouldn't call it evil but a bit dark, nocturnal and spooky, like something quite old and chthonic. I am not sure if that has any connection to this, but I have noticed some pretty strong spiritual vibes in that region, in any case. Enough to stand out even amidst the rather sludgy astral atmosphere of the Minneapolis area with its millions of people.

Best,

Deneb

Re: Weekly queries

[ecosophia]

1) Remember that karma is simply the sum total of the consequences of all your own past thoughts, words, and actions. How that plays out varies from person to person depending on the nature of those consequences. For you, they may be a nudge; for others, they may be a crowbar upside the head.

2) I'd look to the 4th for that.

3) I'd read it as saying that it would work, but that it would turn out to be a short-term gig and involve learning some lessons, not all of them pleasant.

4) Yeah, that looks elected. Interesting.

5) Hmm! Also very interesting.

[(Anonymous)]

Thank you as always for answering our questions.

1) What are the recommended actions or postures for the 'other' hand during the Sphere of Protection?
During recent online meetings with people who were enduring the heatwave, I noticed that some often touched their clothes, faces and bodies in ways that would look unprofessional under less trying conditions - and I realised that I had always done similar things during the SOP, as if I were on my own - though it is clearly correct to be aware of the presence of gods.

2) A couple of years ago I bought a bottle of wine with the intention of offering it to Poseidon by pouring it into the sea. I have since found that this seems rather difficult to do, as I do not have a car and so will not be at out-of-the-way beaches at quiet times. In other words, people would certainly see. I have become more conscious that it could be viewed as pollution. I still have this same bottle. It is a full size bottle of red wine. What would be appropriate things to do with it? I also do not have a yard to pour it onto the ground in my own outdoor sapce. I have occasionally contemplated giving it to a friend who lives in a beach town, though he is not pagan, and because of my planned intention for the wine I am not sure that is appropriate.

[ecosophia]

1) Whatever you choose. My other hand remains at my side.

2) Pour it into a stream and ask the river spirits to carry it to Poseidon.

A meditation on Will and material change

[syfen]

Archdruid,

This is a weird one.

As part of my tantric studies I've recently started meditating on the nature of material reality, and I had the insight that material reality is largely the entanglement of various streams of Will and consciousness, vibrating at different frequencies and moving in different directions.

All things are at their core composed of Will and Consciousness, and that means the material universe is actually malleable to an unlimited degree...within specific limits.

For example, can someone convince a mountain to will itself to become an ocean? Well yes, but that doesn't mean a mountain can instantly become an ocean. The entanglements of its being dictate that it is a mountain and not an ocean, but after years of meditation and development of conscious movement of will, it could change into an ocean. Now it may take longer than the life span of the mountain to accomplish that level of ability, but it is in fact possible. It would then have to progress through every intermediate state between mountain and ocean, mastering the new movements of Will and the conflicts of Will that come with those new movements. It would take a tremendous amount of work, but it's definitely within the realm of possibility.

To be free of those entanglements entirely is to resolve all ones Karma, and at that point one is both the ocean and the mountain.

Re: A meditation on Will and material change

[ecosophia]

Well, yes -- but whose will and whose consciousness make those decisions? A mountain is a mountain because it wills to be a mountain. That's not a light and passing thought! It's been willing its own mountain-ness for millions of years, and the fact that some pipsqueak human who's only there for an eyeblink of time wants it to become something else is unlikely to make much impact. Further, the mountain's will is one expression of the will of the Divine, which has its own very good reasons to choose to have a mountain there for that ten-million-year interval of time, and will respond to a human being saying, "Mountain, can you please hurry up and turn into an ocean?" with an indulgent smile and a pat on the head...

[(Anonymous)]

Data point. Diana Paxson, a writer I have a great deal of respect for, has a special relationship with Odin. I remembered what you said about "makes a beeline for Ragnarok." In the latest issue of - was it "Witches & Pagans?" - she had a long very pro-Ukraine article on Ukrainian goddesses or icons similar in position to our own Statue of Liberty. I haven't yet see her out there doing the wokey-pokey, but if she's being sucked into America's latest proxy war, I'm remembering what sort of deity she follows. Be very afraid.

[ecosophia]

I wish I was surprised. The Götterdämmerung of imperial America seems to be sucking in quite a few people who ought to know better.

Eris

[(Anonymous)]

Hi JMG,

Apologies if this has been mentioned before, but I recently listened to an interview you did on the "Everything Imaginable" podcast last year about Pluto, and you mentioned Eris being the next planet to show its influence.

Intrigued, I looked into the history of the discovery of Eris, and much like Pluto, there were some weird synchronicities about the naming of Eris as a dwarf planet in the early 2000s - it was originally jokingly named "Xena", from a TV series in the 90s, whose character was played by Lucy Lawless, and Eris' moon was named (apparently unintentionally) after Eris' daughter Dysnomia, or "lawlessness".
There was also significant chaos and confusion in agreeing on a name as well, along with the disagreements on what constituted a planet or not. At about the same time as Eris was discovered, there were two other dwarf planets discovered and named after Pacific gods - Makemake and Haumea. Haumea was a goddess of fetility and childbirth, who gifted humanity with a plant often known as the "Golden apple"! Makemake was also a creator/fertility god.

Appropriately, Eris has a somewhat chaotic orbit completely out of sync with the other planets, and not even in the same ecliptic plane.

Amusingly, a rotated "hand of Eris" logo was decided as the astrological symbol for the planet.

I also note that chaos theory started becoming a concept in the later part of the 20th century, just as you said Plutonian influences increased prior to its discovery. We also have chaos magic, the (theoretically) fictional Chaos Gods of the Warhammer universe, which became popular in the 90s/2000s, and of course, Discordianism. And how would most people probably describe the state of the world today, with the 'order' of the Cold War long gone? Chaotic, I imagine. Not to mention that the climate is one of the most chaotic systems there is.

And yet, in almost all mythologies, out of chaos comes creation...

Hail Eris! Gobble Gobble Gobble Gobble Gobble!

Mr. Crow

Also, have you noticed how a plot of a Lorentz attractor (a classical chaotic system) resembles a cut-open apple when rotated by 90°? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lorenz_system#/media/File%3AA_Trajectory_Through_Phase_Space_in_a_Lorenz_Attractor.gif

Re: Eris

[ecosophia]

The Discordians I know are delighted by the new planet. I've seen some that have an altar to it -- with, of course, a picture of Xena.

Golden Dawn & AMORC

[(Anonymous)]

Hello Mr. Greer,

A while back I asked about whether I could practice both the Golden Dawn (as described in Learning Ritual Magic, LRM) and Rosicrucianism (as described on AMORC's monographs) and you said that was acceptable so long as I keep them desperate. Several weeks later you told me that it would be OK for me to keep the Golden Dawn stuff in a holding pattern while I focused on AMORC's material.

I now want to ask you about the holding pattern for my Golden Dawn work.

For the last month or so, I have daily practiced the body relaxation exercise (lying on the ground, tensing and then relaxing muscles), followed by the Qabalistic Cross + the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram + the Qabalistic Cross. (I've only finished the first 6 chapters, and I am only partly into the 7th chapter of LRM.) Is this acceptable as a holding patter? For how long can I do this? Should I re-incorporate the relaxation exercise that involved the solar plexus? Should I also re-incorporate the meditation exercises? Is there anything else that you recommend that I do?

Thank you!

Re: Golden Dawn & AMORC

[ecosophia]

You can certainly practice that for six months or so; after that you'll want to add in the Middle Pillar exercise. I don't happen to know what's taught in the current AMORC course, but if it doesn't have regular meditation, yes, the meditation exercises should be included, and you can add in anything else that feels suitable.

[(Anonymous)]

A further question. Does it matter at all if a charity for planetary charity is Christian, such as a local charity for homeless people which is also Christian? The main reason for choosing it would be because it's local. Of course there are charities nationally for the same causes that are not religious at all.

[ecosophia]

Not at all. I've noticed pretty consistently that Jesus is less grumpy about polytheism than his followers seem to be.

[(Anonymous)]

Are there recordings of people reciting the Orphic Hymns in the original Ancient Greek, where it is possible to select individual hymns? I know no Greek at the moment so searching is not very easy. I would prefer spoken rather than sung version if possible. Thank you.

[ecosophia]

I don't think I've ever encountered such a thing. Anyone else?

Elements

[(Anonymous)]

My oldest son recently completed primary school. There was a celebration with the whole school at the last day of school. At the end of the celebration, the pupils who still have a year or more to go would sing a farewell song to the soon-to-be 5th graders. Of course this is an emotional moment anyway, but this song was special (for the inclined German reader: it's called "Alte Schule, altes Haus!" by notorious Rolf Zuckowski ;-) ) and stirs a lot of emotions both in the parents and the children. I thought about it at some length and noticed that the five elements map nicely on the content of the different verses. Thinking further, I noticed that I don't know of any work, be it a song, poetry or novel that communicates something deeper that does not share this feature in some way.

Just a little observation. No questions this week.

Thank you for being here!
Nachtgurke

Re: Elements

[ecosophia]

Hmm! Fascinating.

[(Anonymous)]

Hey John,

I feel ridiculous for asking this question, but I must. I attempted to create a Sun in Leo Picatrix talisman with a solid election. Totally botched the crafting part. It wasn't going well with the stone I selected so I used another stone, a blood stone. I did not etch the prescribed image of a king and a raven on the stone, instead etching my own sigilzed intention on one side (not very well). On the other side I attempted to etch the seal and intelligence of the Sun symbols on the other side to worse effect, they are horrendous. Smoked it anyway.

This was rushed because of the election time (no excuse) and i was tired and had put everything I had into making the best the best of my situation in the 6 or 7 days before. Ceremony was done in a cleansed car with gold paper covering the windows.

Would butchering the Sun's symbols cause any blow back or offend the spirits of the Sun? I truly gave it everything I had and my intentions were good, but sometimes those are famous last words.

I will be much better prepared next time

[ecosophia]

This is the kind of question you need to settle by way of divination, since there's no one-size-fits-all rule.