Magic Monday

[ecosophia]

It's nearly 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've been tracing my lineages back as far as I can, and last week took my Martinist lineage back as far as they can be documented. The next step -- and it's the last step in the entire process -- involves a fair bit of speculation, but it's speculation backed up by some evidence. It's been suggested by some historians, Marsha Keith Schuchard foremost among them, that the mysterious Knight of the Red Feather who conferred the Templar lineage on Baron von Hund, last week's honoree, was none other than Charles Stuart, the Bonnie Prince Charlie of Scottish song and story. The claim is that in the years immediately before 1745, when the House of Stuart made its last (and disastrously unsuccessful) attempt to reclaim the British throne, Charles and his inner circle of supporters used various forms of clandestine Freemasonry to raise funds, engage in espionage, and gather arms and supporters for the planned rising. Baron von Hund's initiation was an incident in that process. Martinez de Pasqually, who was honored a couple of weeks back, also claimed to have a charter signed by Charles Stuart as the basis for his occult Masonic order. So it's possible that what lies behind one of the great traditions of Western occultism is a failed political intrigue that got picked up and repurposed by a couple of canny occultists. Stranger things have happened in the history of occultism.

...And with this, the rambling tale of the odd lineages that I've inherited comes to an end. Now I'll have to think of something else to use as illustrations to Magic Mondays!

Buy Me A Coffee

Ko-Fi

I've had several people ask about tipping me for answers here, and though I certainly don't require that I won't turn it down. You can use either of the links above to access my online tip jar; Buymeacoffee is good for small tips, Ko-Fi is better for larger ones. (I used to use PayPal but they developed an allergy to free speech, so I've developed an allergy to them.) If you're interested in political and economic astrology, or simply prefer to use a subscription service to support your favorite authors, you can find my Patreon page here and my SubscribeStar page here. 

 

I've also had quite a few people over the years ask me where they should buy my books, and here's the answer. Bookshop.org is an alternative online bookstore that supports local bookstores and authors, which a certain gargantuan corporation doesn't, and I have a shop there, which you can check out here. Please consider patronizing it if you'd like to purchase any of my books online.

And don't forget to look up your Pangalactic New Age Soul Signature at CosmicOom.com.

With that said, have at it!

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

***Please note -- when Magic Monday is closed, IT'S CLOSED.  I just had to delete a flurry of attempted comments posted up to eleven hours after I shut things down. I do need some time to write and do other online chores, you know, so please don't keep trying to post after 12:00 am Monday night/Tuesday morning -- there'll be a new Magic Monday in a week, you know. ***

Comments

Eye of the Tiger

[(Anonymous)]

Happy Monday, JMG.
A few years ago a stuffed animal came into my possession. It was a gift from my out of state mother to my oldest daughter, who wasn’t much more than 2 years old at the time. It was a green cat with a striped pink tail, flowers embroidered on its side, it was, in a word, odd.

As my daughter grew, more and more toys accumulated in our living room. One day, my wife told her that if she wants new toys, some old toys have to go. A bag was put together and to my surprise, the green cat was included. I normally love taking donations to Salvation Army but this time I was hesitant, I felt a Toy Story type of sadness. I should have trusted my instincts for it wasn’t long after that trip, my daughter started asking for the green cat. My wife and mother in-law would dodge the question. When I had enough of that and stated the truth, it was tears and sadness.

I searched online for the same cat with absolutely no luck. I ran back to Salvation Army, discovered their second floor but no green cat. In my searches online, I came across a very charming tiger, a Dream Pet from 1977. I was hypnotized and beyond certain that this new toy could replace the old. The purchase was an ordeal and in retrospect, possibly my first sign. The wait was only a few days but it felt much longer. When the tiger showed up in a repurposed cereal box, I felt triumphant. When my mother in-law saw it, it was an emphatic NO, do not gift that to our baby.

To the Chinese, the tiger represents too much power, he is also considered a guide to the dead. To have such a thing in your possession, you have to be stronger than the force it represents. According to the rough translation I was given, to exert a stronger will can bring great benefit, to be weaker brings misfortune.

For now, my planned surprise gift is no more. That night, after my disappointment, my neighbors cat startled me with her glowing eyes at our back door. I put the tiger up in my office/laundry room and sure enough, a light popped out, and the kitty litter went flying while I was cleaning the box.

Next day I saw a tiger on my daughters iPad and not long after that she had a tummy ache. At this point I’m about to acquiesce and let the tiger go. But before I do, I consider this episode a challenge.

My question is, what practice makes one’s will stronger than a tiger? Meditation, SoP? Any thoughts are appreciated.

Re: Eye of the Tiger

[ecosophia]

It's not a matter of making your will stronger than a tiger. It's a matter of making your will stronger than the entire cultural complex embodied in the image of the tiger. Ain't gonna happen. This is why competent mages work with, not against, the traditional lore of the society in which they live.

[(Anonymous)]

Hi JMG,

You've mentioned the The Druid Magic Handbook and the Golden Section Fellowship are compatible. Does this mean one could do any of the workings you would do in an open grove from the The Druid Magic Handbook in a lodge of the Golden Section Fellowship instead? I know the DMH says grove rituals from other traditions can be used, but I don't know if that counts the GSF lodge., although there is mention of groves being similar to lodges in the book.

[ecosophia]

Good. Yes, all the DMH rituals and practices can be done in a GSF lodge. You can also use all the material from the Fellowship of the Hermetic Rose in either a DNH grove or a GSF lodge, and any of the DMH and GSF material in an open FHR temple. They all belong to the same broader tradition, and so have a lot of interchangeable parts.

The Line of Work for the WotGS

[(Anonymous)]

Hello Mr. Greer!

I’m getting excited about my results with the WotGS. You mentioned last week, I think, that magic could be a part of this Way.

1. Will your upcoming two GS books incorporate some magic instruction?

2. Will they include work on higher bodies and/or the higher self (I would love this)?

I was reading a book on Tarot by an early theosophist, and he implied that magic was the evocation of spirits, and alchemy was work with the elements.

3. Does so-called High Magic do much summoning of spirits?

Thanks! I’m grateful for your efforts to help us every week!
Take care.

Re: The Line of Work for the WotGS

[ecosophia]

1) Only a very little, in the second instructional book, The Way of the Four Elements. If you want to add magic to your GSF work you can always use the methods from my books The Druid Magic Handbook and The Dolmen Arch, which are wholly compatible with the Golden Section work.

2) Yes, though that's primarily in the third volume, The Way of the Secret Temple. The energy work included in the initiate's version of the Sphere of Protection in the book you've got is preliminary to that.

3) Theosophists were obsessed by the notion that magic was all about evoking spirits. They were quite wrong, and a good close reading of Eliphas Lévi would have taught them that, but they weren't listening. No, the evocation of spirits is not very important in high magic. It's something you can do with the tools of high magic, but there are many other ways to do practical magic with those tools; in terms of the core of high magic, the work of self-transformation, the only spirit you're working with is your own higher self.

[(Anonymous)]

Happy Monday JMG,
I'm learning the Essene way of forming an SoP and have a technical question. Forming a sphere consists of 7 steps. I am clear on steps 1,2,3,6 and 7. I understand step 4 - breathe out 7 times seeing the light slowly expanding until it surrounds you. Step 5 says, "Each time you breathe in, feel the unconditional love of the universe filling you." Is #5 talking about the same 7 breaths as #4? Breathe in feeling love, breathe out to expand the light, do one set of 7. Is that correct?
Kirsten

[ecosophia]

Yes, that's correct. Glad to hear that you're working on this!

[jeremys]

Hi there!

Do you know where Waite got his card meanings for the Minor Arcana from for his deck? Before his deck, almost all decks over the past few hundred years didn't have detailed images for the Minor Arcana. The Sola Busca deck did, and Waite may have been influenced by those Minor Arcana, but it isn't like the card meanings would have been so easy to decipher. In his creation of his deck and in his Pictorial Key to Tarot, do you know how he came up with those card meanings for the Minor Arcana?

I find reading Waite a bit difficult to totally get exactly what he is trying to say sometimes, perhaps I am just not smart enough, maybe there is some British humor I am not fully getting like when he rags on other occultists in that book. HAHA What is that? But from what I gather from his Pictorial Key to the Tarot book, unlike others during his time, he didn't see the Tarot deck as coming from any ancient occult school such as from Egypt, nor did he think it had any true relation to the Qaballah. This surprised me as I would have thought him of all people, were fully into this idea of Tarot being a version of the Qaballah, some ancient wisdom from Atlantis or Gypsies or something. but if he just saw it as the true origin being just a card game, I suppose the Qaballistic framework of the cards, which many occultists of this type of occult system tend to follow, ironically the Rider-Waite deck would not have been designed like this, right? That's funny.

Thank you for your time!

[ecosophia]

1) Waite was a member of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, and much of his knowledge of the tarot came from the order's knowledge lectures on the subject. He knew the literature on card divination fairly well, though, and there were a lot of books he could have referenced when he sat down to write his book.

2) Waite was up to his eyeballs in the bitter quarrels that tore the British occult scene apart at the beginning of the 20th century; he was a Christian mystic and was dead set against the practice of magic; and his ragging on other occultists was motivated by both of those. If you have trouble understanding Waite, don't fret about it -- he was one of the worst writers of his time, and never could say anything in a single short word where a sesquipedalian sequence of periphrastically obfuscatory syntactical assemblages would do. ;-)

3) The tarot deck was invented in Italy around 1415 by Marziano da Tortona, secretary to the Duke of Milan. That's been known by European art historians for more than a century, and it's frankly embarrassing that so many occultists in the English-speaking world never got the memo. That doesn't mean it was originally just an ordinary game. It came out of Renaissance Italian intellectual culture, which was saturated with occultism, and was devised as a game that the children of the aristocracy could play, and in the process absorb the effects of magical images. Waite was fluent enough in European languages that he knew about the real origin of the tarot, which is why he didn't buy into the usual stuff about Egypt or Atlantis or what have you.

4) Not at all. The Rider-Waite deck is Cabalistic from top to bottom; it was created for Waite's own magical order, the Rectified Order of the Golden Dawn. Remember that Renaissance Italy was where the Cabala was first adopted by magicians outside the Jewish community. Later on, after Waite's first order blew up, he launched another order, the Fellowship of the Rosy Cross, and had another artist, John Trinick, make a different set of images for the tarot trumps. You can find some images of the Trinick deck here:

https://mythcrafts.com/2019/05/21/a-e-waites-second-tarot-the-waite-trinick-deck/

Orphic Hymn to Apollo for SATB Chorus

[kimberlysteele]

I recently released my rendition of Thomas Taylor's Orphic Hymn to Apollo for chorus. I have released it as a Creative Commons 4.0 Attribution license (the most free of the Creative Commons licenses) in hopes people will share the hymn, perform it, and adapt it.

The score on Youtube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TWMhkzS_5w

Download sheet music at the Musescore notation site:

https://musescore.com/user/59410345/scores/11955949

Re: Orphic Hymn to Apollo for SATB Chorus

[ecosophia]

Delighted to hear this. Thank you!

Weight/scope of daily geomancy readings

[aaaaashjackson]

Hello fellow geomancers. I'm nearing six months into my geomancy, with daily-ish readings being my most common practice/puzzling. I'm having trouble reliably making sense of things in daily readings, and also knowing how much weight or scope to assign to what I do see in a daily reading.

I'm also experiencing having my interpretation of a daily reading that seems like a slam dunk turning out to be flat wrong. (Ex: on day 3 of my son not being brought to me for parenting time, I figured Aquisito in 1,5; Puer in 4,9; Puella in 9,12; and Albus in 7 with Fortuna Major as the judge seemed like a sure sign of his being returned to me. That instead happened the next day.) How did I read that so wrongly?

Also, what does it look like in a daily chart when something really big is happening? I'm seeing where Carcer in 8 is accompanied by my feeling painfully, achingly alone, but nothing bigger than that. I'm also seeing a chart dominated by one or two positive figures, where nothing really appears to happen that day.

Having learned musical instruments and languages, I know progress comes in fits, starts, and plateaus. Is this a sign I need to begin the discursive meditation described in the text? Did I just answer my own question? Probably.

My most profuse thanks to you, JMG, for your prodigious writings and research, and providing us this forum for exchange.

Re: Weight/scope of daily geomancy readings

[ecosophia]

1) It's always tricky interpreting a chart on a subject where you have strong feelings.

2) The most common mistake made by students of any divination system is taking a reading to mean something much bigger than it actually is. How often do really big things actually happen to you?

3) Yes, I think you just answered your own question. ;-) Some people also find, however, that geomantic readings are inaccurate on certain subjects for them; my wife, for example, is a very talented geomancer, but her readings on any subject having to do with money and income reliably turn out inaccurate.

Puppy vision

[(Anonymous)]

Dear JMG,
My stepdaughter is having her first baby this October and is coming home to live with us as the dead-beat Dad wants nothing to do with the baby he has engendered.

Because of a number of tragedies in my childhood involving a niece given up for adoption at the age of 6 months by my teenaged big sister and that sister's suicide in our house a couple of year later, I have never been keen on babies. I was only 10 when she died.

I was surgically sterilized as a young woman because I was so afraid of getting pregnant and I have never wanted a baby.

A couple of months ago, my husband and I were in the local town, sitting in a little park eating a picnic. I said, "Next year, we can bring our kid here to play on the swings."

A moment later, a very young small puppy came racing up the hill toward us. The puppy was all whiskers and enthusiasm. I saw the puppy very clearly and it was acting like a normal puppy. It shot under our picnic table and I looked under the table because I wanted to pet the puppy. It was not there. It had vanished.

I have seen visions but usually in dreams or on waking but this puppy happened in broad daylight. Since then, I have started to think the baby might be like a puppy, that it might be fun and nice.

Do you have any thoughts on the matter?

Maxine

Re: Puppy vision

[ecosophia]

It sounds to me as though the universe is trying to tell you something. It also sounds as though you're listening. ;-)

[(Anonymous)]

JMG, a couple questions . . .

1. Do we know the causal force behind the relationship between Zodiac sign and personality? For instance, someone close to me is a Capricorn and fits the bill 110%. Do the stars "cause" this? Or is it something else? E.g. souls wanting to experience the Capricorn personality somehow all get assigned to certain birthdates beforehand?

2. Do marriages have any sort of continuation post-death? Does the bond between two people persist in any way?

Thanks so much.

[ecosophia]

1) Nope. There are various theories but nobody's sure what actually makes astrology work -- and you probably don't want to waste your time trying to get a grant for the necessary research!

2) It really depends on circumstances. If the people involved still have karma to work out with each other, they may be born in a situation in which they will be in contact, though very often it's not a matter of marriage -- husband and wife in one life may be daughter and father in the next, and teacher and student in the life after that. If the two people have finished up the karma between them by the time the marriage ends, then most likely they won't see each other again; you can often tell that this is going to happen because they're pretty much indifferent to each other, or connected by a mild sort of affection or dislike, by the time things wind up.

[(Anonymous)]

Dear JMG and commenters,
I hope you are well and healthy.
Thank you so much for this Magic Monday. I always learn a lot.

Some random questions:

1. What would be the best way to ritually greet, honor, and please our ancestors? Candles in front of portraits? Is there anything else we can do?

2. About Italian spirituality: are you familiar with the work of Giuliano M. Kremmerz (1861-1930) and his Fratellanza Terapeutica Magica di Miriam? What is your opinion about him and his esoteric work?

3. And also of Italian origin: the benedicaria?

4. Just one comment: there should be some magical or alchemical study about coffee and how it helps us to read and study! :)

Thanks in advance!

[boccaderlupo]

Not JMG, but...

2. Not hugely familiar with Kremmerz's work, but The Magic Door by Pantano has a good overview of Italian hermetic traditions, and he's included in that lineup.

3. My ancestral folk practice might arguably be aggregated under the umbrella of benedicaria, but my understanding is that this is just a loose term for a variety of different folk traditions.

Axé,
Fra' Lupo

CosDoc and Divination

[(Anonymous)]

"The Cosmic aspect of the concept having thus been set up, manifestation in the world of form takes place within the circumscribed sphere. Without this circumscription, there is no manifestation."

I wonder if this might be the reason why my daily three-rune spreads often feel so vague compared to, say, 5-rune spreads cast for a specific question? I've come to see the runes in the daily readings representing the energies which dominate the day. But if the day doesn't have much opportunities for those energies to manifest, it simply does not happen in a prominent way?

Greetings,
Nachtgurke

Re: CosDoc and Divination

[ecosophia]

Possibly so. Have you considered casting a reading about that?

Practical Sacred Geometry

[(Anonymous)]

Hello!

2 weeks ago, there was a query about the practical aspects of sacred geometry (SG).
Our gracious hosts said: "With the exception of architecture, the practical aspects of sacred geometry haven't seen much development yet, because the basics still needed to be recovered"

Beyond architecture and possibly temple technology, what do you think could have been the practical aspects of SG?
I accept that your answers would be, to a large extent, speculative but could well be very interesting.
Regards

Re: Practical Sacred Geometry

[ecosophia]

I know that you can use it extensively in magic, for designing talismans and sigils; a lot of surviving talismanic lore is clearly influenced by sacred geometry. It also makes first-rate mental training and provides excellent material for meditation. Beyond that? I have no idea, but it's worth experimentation.

Ecosophia Prayer List Week of August 28

[tunesmyth]

At this link is a complete list of all of the requests for prayer that have recently appeared across the Ecosophia community. A printable version of the entire prayer list may be downloaded here. Please feel free to add any or all of the requests to your own prayers.

If I missed anybody, or if you would like to add a prayer request for yourself or anyone who has given you consent (or for whom a relevant person holds power of consent) to the list, please feel free to leave a comment below.

* * *

This week I would like to bring special attention to the following prayer requests.

Neptunesdolphin's husband has just had his big toe partially amputated due to a staph infection, and his diabetes has worsened in connection. He and she and son all are struggling to cope with the difficult situation, made no easier by the fact that all three have different varieties of mental impairment. May Neptunesdolphin's husband heal quickly and vigorously, and successfully manage his diabetes; and may her family all get through the situation successfully and with grace.

Lunar Apprentice, who has started a private medical practice, that he find the strength and the capability to successfully fulfill his self-appointed duties both to his patients and to his family, that the insurers contracting with his patients be favourably disposed towards the service he faithfully provides and pay as they are obliged, and that the flow of new patients increase sufficiently to support his medical practice.

Steve T's brother Matt is currently in the hospital after a sudden violent seizure, and his daughter is having extreme panic attacks; they were both in a terrible car accident last fall. Steve asks for prayers for Matt's recovery of health; for the emotional and psychological well-being of the rest of the family, including his wife Megan, his daughter Diana, and his young son Jake; and for the lifting of any spiritual harm afflicting the family.

Freddy, Ganeshling's neighbor's 10 year old son, hasn't spoken since a traumatic hospital stay a few years ago; for Freddy to start speaking again and to help him develop into a functional adult.

Tamanous's friend's brother David got in a terrible motorcycle accident and has been diagnosed as a quadriplegic given the resultant spinal damage; for healing and the positive outcomes of upcoming surgeries and rehabilitation, specifically towards him being able to walk and live a normal life once more.

Lp9's hometown, East Palestine, Ohio, for the safety and welfare of their people, animals and all living beings in and around East Palestine, and to improve the natural environment there to the benefit of all. The reasonable possibility exists that this is an environmental disaster on par with the worst America has ever seen. (Lp9 gives updates here and also here.)

* * *

Guidelines for how long prayer requests stay on the list, how to word requests, how to be added to the weekly email list, how to improve the chances of your prayer being answered, and several other common questions and issues, are now to be found at the Ecosophia Prayer List FAQ.

If there are any among you who might wish to join me in a bit of astrological timing, I pray each week for the health of all those with health problems on the list on the astrological hour of the Sun on Sundays, bearing in mind the Sun's rulerships of heart, brain, and vital energies. If this appeals to you, I invite you to join me.

Re: Ecosophia Prayer List Week of August 28

[ecosophia]

Thank you for this as always,

[thinking_turtle]

To share, for those who wonder what GSF, DMH or FHR mean, a list of Ecosophia abbreviations is available. Now including an entry for ENM, the Encyclopedia of Natural Magic from 2005.

GSF SOP

[(Anonymous)]

Good morning JMG and everybody else,

Hope you had a pleasant weekend!

Last week, I asked a question about when to invoke deity in the SOP, and you told me to go meditate on it. ;-)

I've come to think that a large part of my confusion might simply be language-related, with me not being a native speaker and all that. I was hoping you could help me to clear that up:

1. Could you explain the difference between invoking something "by" an element or a deity, vs. invoking something "in the name" of a deity?

2. Also, is there a difference between invoking e.g. "in the great name Hu" or "in the name of Hu", or is this just an issue of grammar?

3. I vaguely remember you giving an example of how to call on the 7 planets during the SOP, with one of them being called on for Spirit Within (the Moon, iirc).

However, all the examples in GSF don't call on a specific deity/aspect of deity for Spirit Within.

I can certainly meditate on the difference ;-) , but just in case: Are there any issues (e.g. safety concerns) with calling on deity for Spirit Within?

4. Finally, just a note for the second edition: OPW Lesson 9 has 8 steps instead of 7 - and I sincerely hope I didn't just miss the boat completely and spoil your hidden Easter egg for everybody else... :D

Thank you very much for your help, and for this amazing space!

Milkyway

Re: GSF SOP

[ecosophia]

1) No, it's just grammar.

2) That's also grammar.

3) I don't recommend it, since you're calling on your own energies and your own spirit at that step.

4) Hm! I wonder how on earth that slipped through.

[(Anonymous)]

Hello JMG!

Thanks as always for such a wonderful resource. A few questions to you or the commenteriat if I may:

1. I am approaching the one year anniversary of moving into a new home which was a big step on our journey towards our "dream life". I'd like to perform some kind of house blessing as a way to give thanks for our journey and arrival here and to celebrate all the good years to come in our new home. I'd welcome any suggestions for simple ceremony or offerings or other such things. I am completely new to ritual magic so I understand that there are limitations to what I can do safely. We normally just have a bonfire on special occasions but I want to make this one a bit more special.

2. I was visiting my childhood home at the weekend and experienced a very strange dream. I was in a room and appeared to be surrounded by members of my family though I couldn't tell directly. The room had no specific character other than it's colour being an earthy clay. I had seen glimpses of a spirit within this room, after which a female mage had asked me for it's height and proceeded to press a finger to her head corresponding to its height. This aligned with her third eye chakra. She removed her finger under which I saw for a split second a perfect black circle infilled with red ochre. The witch hastened to avert my gaze but the image flashed in my mind and I began to "faint" in my dream having accidentally glanced at this symbol. Just as I was falling over, a large figure loomed into my vision as if to catch me from my fall. They were dressed in Renaissance style clothing with bright red and yellow colours much like the characters found in the Tarot de Marseille. My physical body was hyperventilating and likely experiencing sleep paralysis. My wife awakened me after hearing the commotion and I've been left wondering since.

My question is related to the specific symbols I saw in my dream and if I should consider performing any kind of banishment on a regular basis. I tried to follow the thread through the Tarot de Marseille (trying to identify the character) which lead me to Runes but I was unable to find that specific symbol (black circle with red infill). I'd welcome any recommendations on where I could begin my investigations. Or should I chalk this down to being *just* a strange dream and move on.

Thank you!"

[ecosophia]

1) If you're completely new to magic, don't try to do anything specifically magical -- it's essential to know what you're doing before you try to do it. (Imagine never having ridden a bicycle before, and deciding that you're going to celebrate something or other by bicycling ten miles someplace!) Just come up with some symbolic action that's meaningful to you, and leave it at that.

2) Dream interpretation isn't one of my skills, but in your place I'd just consider that a strange dream and go on.

Healing unintentionally

[(Anonymous)]

A few years ago a goddess cleared my psychic centres over the course of some years. It's still ongoing, partly because I get lazy and blockages accumulate again. I also had kundalini for a while.

Since then (or actually it might have started to a small extent before, when I started practicing magic) I realized I was clearing my daughter as well when we settle on the couch for our routine of TV before bed. I yawn a lot and my eyes water after a while, then it eases off. Took me ages to realize it wasn't tiredness. It happens with her now even when we're in the car after I've picked her up from somewhere she's been without me. Whatever's happening is definitely good for her because she loves our evening cuddles and if we're ever back late from somewhere she doesn't like going to bed without it, although she can and will. I feel the same afterwards as before so I know I'm not taking energy from her.

A few years ago I'm pretty sure I took on a chunk of one of my staff's anxiety, it landed on top of my head during a conversation about her wanting time off, and almost knocked me out, and soon afterwards she was able to cancel her IVF appointment as she got pregnant naturally. But that might also have been because I gave her the time off work she wanted before the IVF, so she was able to destress.

Recently I went out for coffee with a colleague who I like, though I think she has a bit of a temper and is a bit harsh. The yawning and tearing started and went on for most of our break. It was a much more one-sided conversation than normal - she did almost all of the talking. I also felt she felt a little bit uncomfortable, and she made the first moves to head back to work. Nothing major though, it was an entertaining chat as usual. I suppose she was feeling a fraction of the discomfort I had when this all started but she couldn't identify it? Or maybe she thought I was bored because of the yawning! I must say that I'm not sleeping well next time so people know it's not that.

Recently I also deliberately tried clearing this coffee shop I go to that has stressed me out for years. I used to avoid it, but decided not to let it defeat me. I imagine doing the bit with the shower of white light from the end of the Middle Pillar (the DOGD version, I forget the name sorry) and I also did some yawning on purpose to get it started. Last time I did it a very cheerful conversation started up among the people ahead of me in the queue and the staff, and the girl behind me in the queue randomly offered me her free chocolate!

I know you're not supposed to heal people without their consent. When it comes to people (as opposed to public places), I don't do this consciously and I don't know why some people get it from me and others not. I don't know how I would stop it if I tried. I don't see it as me doing it or making the decisions at all really, it's something higher. When it all started I offered to do work for the goddess in exchange for the help I was getting, because you said she would have work for me to do, so this must be what I've been given. So I presume I don't need to worry about the ethics of it, or making people uncomfortable? Or should I try to learn to control it? I definitely can't ask work colleagues or my staff for permission! I'd never tell anyone in real life about this, so there's no one I'd ever ask for permission to do it really.

This is all a bit weird for me too because I'm not a 'healer' kind of person, I don't much like people generally. I'd never have chosen this as a gift except that it must be good for my daughter. Maybe that's why I was given this job? I have to clean the toilets without moaning before they'll give me anything I'd prefer? And I suppose all those blockages in people are part of the reason why they behave as badly as they do.

Please don't tell me to ask the goddess, I do ask, because I like to know all the things, but I have a feeling I'm the nosey apprentice who gets information on a need to know basis, and it seems I don't need to know anything!

Dot.

Re: Healing unintentionally

[ecosophia]

Apparently the goddess has chosen you to do some work for her. I'm sorry to say I have no idea why she might have done that. Clearly, though, she's the one making the decisions, so no, don't try to control it; let her guide you and see where it takes you.

Natal chart privacy

[(Anonymous)]

Hello Mr. Greer,

You mentioned to someone last week that you don't share details of your natal chart with strangers. What are the issues at play with natal chart privacy? Should people be more private about their birth date and/or birth place (as with those in hand, someone could recreate the chart)?

Re: Natal chart privacy

[ecosophia]

For most people it's no issue at all. For a relatively controversial figure in the occult scene, who disagrees publicly with people who like to cast evil spells at people they hate, it's a necessity, because there are nasty spells you can do with certain details of somebody's birth chart.

[(Anonymous)]

Dear John,

For the cauldrons when opening the grove, would it be OK to use old spice jars instead? It would be convenient for standing a stick of incense into and I think the gods would appreciate the spirit of reusing old products!

[ecosophia]

You can use any container that works for you.

C19 re-hysteria, mercury retrograd

[(Anonymous)]

John,

To what extent do you think the current covid 19 hysteria is being revisited, because we are in a mercury retrograde? I know the retrograde isn't the bad boogie monster pop astrologers often see it as. But it is a time of revisiting things, and things that were thought finished, popping back up, old friends (or enemies) calling, and the like (at least in my experience). Perhaps I'm just hopeful in thinking that the current hullaballoo is just a temporary glitch, and that it will get swept away when other pressing concerns take over the narrative in a few weeks (not that I know what those might be).

Just curious about your perspective with re-gards to this.

Translucent Shabby Squid

Re: C19 re-hysteria, mercury retrograd

[ecosophia]

That's an interesting speculation. If that's what's doing it, the latest outburst of Covid hysteria should dry up and blow away shortly after September 14, when the retrograde ends. If that happens, we'll have another very useful data point.

Bach Flower Remedies

[(Anonymous)]

Hello,

Thanks as always for holding this space open for all of us. I am sure most people who read Magic Mondays would agree that thus is a magical space.

My questions relate to Bach Flower Remedies. I have been taking Bach Flower Remedies for a variety of complaints and they certainly see to have sort of uncanny influence to create changes through some very odd means.

Have you taken any and experienced effects? Would you say that they work through some magical means rather than normal mundane means? How would you go about explaining how Dr Edward Bach established the uses of these particular remedies, and what skills would one need to develop to learn about the uses of plant remedies not explored by Dr Bach?

Thanks as always for your answers and insights.

P

Re: Bach Flower Remedies

[(Anonymous)]

I find excellent results with the Bach flower remedies, and they seem to work in a way similar to homeopathic medicine. They seem to work through the physical and etheric bodies, and then go back up the chain from there to heal the underlying causes on the astral, mental, and spiritual planes.

Obsidian Fuzzy Puppy

Druid Magic Handbook vs Dolmen Arch

[(Anonymous)]

Hello JGM my magic initiator. I discovered magic in my 50's and the first book I found, was the Druid Magic Hand book. Now 8 years later I have bought a copy and am enjoying everything about it. The cover, the paper, the font and diagrams are all about perfect.
My path these days is Odinisum with some magic. I dislike Kabbala and Christian symbols. Golden Dawn Magic is not for me nor Celtic Golden Dawn or Heathen GD
I am drawn to your 2 volume Dolmen Arch book and have read the blurb.
Can you please explain how it differs from the Druid Magic Handbook what is in each volume and where if anywhere it overlaps with your other druid books.
I am asking this rather than just buying as they are rather pricey.
Thanks
Cealin

Re: Druid Magic Handbook vs Dolmen Arch

[ecosophia]

If you can work with the Druid Magic Handbook you should find the Dolmen Arch material very congenial. It contains much more philosophy and symbolism -- each lesson contains a set of philosophical triads as raw material for meditation, as well as study of one of the traditional stories from the Mabinogion -- but the core work is the Sphere of Protection and its developments, alongside daily meditation. It also includes a system of energy healing and some methods of practical magic different from those in the DMH, but those are in the second volume.

[mmelvink]

Hi JMG,

Happy to report that our new, fully funded History MA in Magic and Occult Science here at USC -- which wasn't even a pipe dream a year ago -- is already going gangbusters, with an inaugural cohort of eight students as of this week! Our sister MA at the University of Exeter will be launching with a similar cohort next year; the grand plan is to combine them into a joint transatlantic degree in Magic from 2025 onward. Scholar-practitioners are encouraged to apply, and really anyone who'd like a paid two-year ride to explore whatever occult goodness they will in a rigorous academic setting. TSW :)

That we've managed to tap into the seismic zeitgeist shift currently underway, against all academic odds, is confirmed by the fact that our program has now attracted the attention of millionaire and billionaire donors, some of whom may be interested in endowing Chairs in Magic and Occult Science at USC and Exeter respectively. This would help ensure the program's long-term survival and insulate us somewhat against the ever-more manic defunding and destruction of the humanities. They've asked for a formal short manifesto, which we've begun work on for circulation post-Mercury retrograde.

In the meantime, what ritual protocols would you recommend we use to take full advantage of this gobsmackingly astonishing opportunity? And what astrological timing is best for donor communications? Simply Mercury day and hour, or would Jupiter be more appropriate here, since we're asking for something on the order of ten to fifteen million clams? And would a group intention be appropriate as well? If so, we most gratefully welcome any and all good vibes from the esteemed Magic Monday readership :)

Thanks as always for MM! The times they are achangin'....

Matt

PS -- For those interested, our joint announcement on SHWEP is here: https://shwep.net/2023/06/28/emily-selove-and-matt-melvin-koushki-on-two-new-postgraduate-programmes-in-magic/

[open_space]

This is fantastic!

Are there previous field requirements in order to apply? I read the announcement but didn't see it mentioned.

I consider myself an amateur scholar and practitioner but my degree is on engineering and math.

Seed of Yggdrasill Review Part 2 and Planetary Elemental Influence on Humoral Temperament

[jprussell]

Good Morning,

I hope everyone here finds some good use for this week's blue moon.

To Share: I have continued my series of posts on Maria Kvilhaug's The Seed of Yggdrasill, talking through her take on the creation of the cosmos: https://jpowellrussell.com/#book_the_seed_of_yggdrasill_2_creation_cosmos_and_the_ruling_powers

To Ask: This may be getting too close to "ask a natal astrologer" territory, but do you happen to know if the elements of the planets in your natal chart tend to correspond with your humoral temperament (e.g. if you have more planets in fire signs than anything else, are you likely to be choleric, and so forth)?

As always, thanks very much to JMG and everyone else here for all that you do.

My blessings and best wishes to all who welcome them,
Jeff

Re: Seed of Yggdrasill Review Part 2 and Planetary Elemental Influence on Humoral Temperament

[ecosophia]

That's a fascinating question that would have to be settled by experimentation. I don't know of any discussion of it in the literature.

[(Anonymous)]

Greeting JMG
Continuing my question about different types of spirits. We already know who are angels and demons and devas. Who are faeries and Old Gods of Pagan traditions in your cosmology and occult philosophy?

[ecosophia]

The faery folk are a class of beings incarnate in etheric bodies who also inhabit this planet. They've been here longer than we are, and are apparently finishing up their time here -- certainly their numbers seem to have declined steadily over the course of recorded history. Robert Kirk's book The Secret Commonwealth, published in 1815, is a good intro to them.

The gods worshiped by Pagan religions include a very, very big grab-bag of entities of many different kinds. It's worth noting that many words used by the old Pagan faiths themselves -- for example, the Latin word numen and the Japanese word kami -- can quite literally apply to any supernatural being that humans revere, from fairly minor spirits to great cosmic powers. The Solar Logos and the Logoi of the twelve rays are among the gods worshiped by the old Pagan faiths, but angels, devas, intelligences, and human souls who have completed their work in incarnation also traditionally received reverence.