Magic Monday

[ecosophia]

It's getting on for 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? A wooden disk. In the traditions of the Fellowship of the Hermetic Rose and the orders and systems related to it, the disk or pentacle is the emblem and working tool of elemental earth.  The disk is traditionally painted or decorated with a symbol the individual initiate considers sacred, whatever that happens to be -- I saw pentacles made by Christian initiates that had an image of Christ on the cross on them, for example, surrounded by Christian holy names and words of power. The disk can be used as a means of magical protection, imposing the unyielding solidity of the element of earth between the initiate and any hostile magical force

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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 -- in other words, no more comments will be put through. See you next week!***

Comments

At the Beginning

[(Anonymous)]

Hi JMG,

May I suggest adding a link in your FAQ under Questions About Magical Training: What does training in ceremonial magic involve? To your Well of Gabels:
https://www.ecosophia.net/blogs-and-essays/the-well-of-galabes/foundations-of-magical-practice-ritual/

I had an entire question written out for "What are some ways that a student should work to figure out what path to follow regarding magical systems?" and the answer was already here.

Following up on this though. Is there a good way to figure out what dieties work for an individual before chosing a path. I am most familiar with Christianity and its symbolism but that is in the form of formal knowledge of Christian theology and attending Catholic mass but not so much of the experience side of it as I am not a member of any church. I believe Golden Dawn is the best fit for my background but the entities I have experience with I do not believe are only Christian in nature.

[(Anonymous)]

As we watch the era of superhero movies slowly fade out, I'm wondering about the implications of the increasing push for the acceptance of genetic editing and biotechnology.

What are the nonphysical consequences of someone willingly submitting themselves to be experiments where their DNA is altered and foreign biomechanics introduced, versus someone who was unable to give informed consent?

[randomactsofkarmasc]

Someone gave me a gift which I'm sure they thought would be a wonderful present. (It is a patch with an embroidered D20, showing a roll of 1, along with the text "Bad Luck Club".) (Admittedly, I do tend to roll 1's at inopportune times.)

I don't want to hurt their feelings by not using the patch, but I also don't want to encourage bad luck and more 1's by sewing the patch on my gaming bag.

Am I giving the patch more credit than I should? Or is there something I can do so the patch won't influence my rolls? (I am more comfortable with natural magic than rituals, but I can do grove openings and closings and have consecrated my tools.)

Thank you.

Ecosophia Prayer List

[tunesmyth]

At this link is a complete list of the requests for prayer that have recently appeared at ecosophia.net and ecosophia.dreamwidth.org, as well as in the comments of the prayer list posts. A printable version of the entire prayer list current as of 9/16 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.

* * *
Here are some of the prayers from this week's list that I'd like to bring attention to.

Jeff Huggins's friends Dale and Tracy are dealing with Dale's health crisis, in the midst of Tracy's long term health problems. May Dale's blood and spinal fluid infection clear up sufficiently to have his heart valve replaced; may his medical procedures go smoothly and with success; may Dale and Tracy both be blessed and healed, and may they successfully surmount these difficulties.

Russ Hopson, the spouse of Kate Bowden, friend of Peter Van Erp, is suffering from a yet undiagnosed malady which has caused seizures. Please pray for understanding for his physicians, and his recovery to health.

May Mya be released from her addiction, may her emotional, mental, and physical bodies by fully healed; and may she find Higher guidance as she makes her way on her life path.

May Erika's partner James, who has just learned he has cancer all over inside him on his liver and lungs, be blessed, healed and protected.

In the case of Princess Cutekitten and the large bank who is suing her, may justice be done, with harm to none.

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.

Q

[(Anonymous)]

Dear JMG, you wrote a post on the will on your main site where you gave an example of making a million dollars by focusing on it and acting towards it to the exclusion of everything? What was the article?

A good start

[(Anonymous)]

Hi JMG, I recently purchased both volumes of the Dolmen Arch. Prior to this I had also purchased the Druid Magic Handbook. Does one or the other of these lend itself as a better starting point for the beginner?

Meme Magic on the March

[(Anonymous)]

I watched this thread unfold on 4chan over the weekend, and thought it would be of interest to you:

https://boards.4chan.org/pol/thread/442124233

On September 22, The Daily Telegraph reported that Zelensky had asked Marina Abramovic (she of spirit cooking infamy) to be an ambassador for Ukraine. The article seems to have been deleted since then, but is archived here:

https://archive.ph/4y9Jz

(I have no idea what the article being deleted means. Perhaps the report was false, but if so I would have expected a retraction, not just memory-holing the article.)

In response to the article, the meme-magicians on /pol/ invoked Kek to destroy Abramovic. An interesting pattern of gets, beginning with the original post, then unfolded. Of particular note is a series of three posts by the same user claiming to have trapped her in a stone, all of them dubs, and a post with a picture of Kek and the text "He will help us" which got trips (then one of the replies to it got trips).

The interesting thing to me is not that there were so many gets -- statistically, every tenth post will be a get -- but that they are so concentrated in this thread around the central theme and away from the many posts that simply meandered into the usual /pol/ nonsense.

[wayofthings]

What are the best daily practices for increasing and sustaining etheric energy?

Are there any exercises that can increase etheric energy in a short period of time, such as a half hour?

What are the most common daily activities that drain etheric energy?

Thank you!

Mu vs Lemuria

[(Anonymous)]

Hi JMG. What is your take on James Chuchward's books on the "lost continent of Mu"? Is it the same thing as Lemuria, rebranded with another name? Or, is it a more (or less) plausible alternative to the myths about Lemuria?

[(Anonymous)]

Hi JMG,

I am going to be applying for a prestigious fellowship that will be funding my graduate school studies, living expenses, and scientific research. The deadline is October 27th. I have a few questions on how to use the occult sciences to improve my chances of receiving this.

1) What day/time should I upload it? Or rather what factors should I look at when deciding what day and time to upload it?

2) I was going to do planetary charity for this. What planet would be appropriate? Jupiter because it's prestigious and will help my standing in the world and it's kinda applying to a job? Or Mercury because it has to do with education and funding my research?

3) I was going to do some natural magic. I remember you saying something in the past about Lucky Mojo being a good source for natural magic spells. Is this correct? Is it also a good place to buy materials? What about their pre-packaged kits? I was thinking I would do the Crown of Success spell, and maybe buy their kit for it (although it is quite expensive!). Do you know anything about this? Do you have other recommendations? If I don't buy one of the pre-packaged kits or powders, where can I find recipes to make my own?

4) Are there other resources I can use to find natural magic spells?

5) I could try to make my own spell. I'd like to do this in general but considering how important this fellowship and funding process is, maybe I should try it another time. Is it possible for homemade amateurish natural magic to cause the opposite effect? Or could it get in the way of the spells I find from people who know what they're doing?

6) What should I take into account for the timing of my spells?

7) Do I have to worry about such a spell harming my karma?

I know this is an awful lot, but I really appreciate everything you do on this forum!

SB

A Hebrew getting into Hermetic practice

[(Anonymous)]

Hi JMG! I've been working with your Learning Ritual Magic book, over the past month I've gotten through the first two lessons and am just starting lesson 3. I'm a Reform Jew religiously (and ethnically/culturally), and for the most part am keeping my moderate religious observance (mostly just weekly praying and singing on the Sabbath with our synagogue community) separate from my budding occult practice...for now at least. Obviously Hermeticism's Qabalah is very tied to Judaism's Kabbalah. I figure that the Torah's prohibitions on magic were mostly just against black magic, or if they were meant against all magic, it was a means by which the ancient Judean authorities tried to control their subjects so they could keep centralized control over spirituality in the kingdom, and to try to prevent laymen from being attracted to foreign idol worship, as the ancient YHVH cult evolved from polytheism to henotheism to monotheism over the centuries, from what I understand. That all of course is a huge topic, for another week's question probably.

But...the one thing I still am having trouble getting around is pronouncing the name of YHVH in the LBRP. I've heard that though traditionally only the high priests were allowed to say the name in the Holy of Holies, there isn't even any explicit prohibition in any Jewish text against saying it, but it still is just something I've been told is a big no-no for a Jew at least. Is it okay if I just say the letters but not the name? I mean really, we don't even know how the name was pronounced in the first place, do we, without knowing the vowels between those consonants?? Is it just another controlling superstition that I should get over, and just say the name, He won't actually care?

Also, regarding the Hebrew, in the Qabalistic Cross for example "Geburah" would be pronounced in the Jewish way as "Gevurah," with b's so often being v's as you probably already know. Should I stick with pronouncing ritual Hebrew in the Hermetic way, since this is of course Hermetic magic, and not in the Jewish way that I'm used to? Same thing with the angels in the LBRP--that would mean I'd be saying Gavriel instead of Gabriel. Do any of these differences actually matter?


Endless thanks to you, Claire, and Earl for making this invaluable resource available to myself and so many others! I am very, very much looking forward to continuing.
Grey Tuesday Man

Vampirism

[(Anonymous)]

Good evening JMG

I actually have a question that is bothering me. Magic energy surrounds us everywhere. Sometimes there is more of it sometimes less, sometimes it is of a different type but it is always there. Why the heck would anyone play with vampirism when this energy is everywhere and can be acquired with just focus and really simple techniques?