Magic Monday

[ecosophia]

Midnight is just a few minutes away, and so it's time to launch a new Magic Monday. Ask me anything about occultism, and 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.  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 1.1 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.  And further:  I've decided that questions involving the evocation of spirits are permanently off topic here. The point of occultism is to develop your own capacities, not to try to bully or wheedle other beings into doing things for you. I've discussed this in a post on my blog.

The image? I field a lot of questions about my books these days, so I've decided to do little capsule summaries of them here, one per week. The book above was my thirty-sixth published book, and to my mind it's the best of the books that came out of my decade of blogging on peak oil. I decided in 2013 that it was time to tackle belief in progress, the secular religion that dominates the modern Western world, and talk about where that ersatz faith came from, what role it plays in our problems, and why it's collapsing around us. That's what After Progress accomplished, and I think it did so very well, covering ground that extended from ancient mythology to the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche. Inevitably--the books of mine that I consider my best work always sell very poorly--it was the least popular of my peak oil books, and went out of print sooner than any of the others. It's currently available only used or in ebook form, though that should change next year.

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 and no more comments will be put through. See you next week!***

Comments

Social Technology as a Metaphor and Question on Why Invoking the Valar Only Gets Moderate Results

[jprussell]

Good Evening,

May all here who welcome it have a lovely week!

For what it's worth, After Progress is likely my second favorite of your non-practice-focused books (after A World Full of Gods), but it certainly helped that I had been primed by a lot of experiences and reading of your other material to take seriously. If I had encountered it a few years prior, I don't know what I would have made of it.

To Share: In the comments to a recent post by another commenter here, I happened to use the term "social technology" and we had a bit of interesting discussion about it that I decided to expand into a piece talking about its usefulness (or lack thereof) as a metaphor: https://jpowellrussell.com/#on_the_usefulness_of_social_technology_as_a_metaphor

To Ask: Forgive me if this is a repeat, but I can't seem to find more than bits here and there when I search here or the main site. You've said before that you've met folks who invoke the Valar for magical/religious work and get results, but that those results have been not-so-strong. I believe somewhere you said you suspected that Tolkien, as a devout Catholic, might have somehow purposely monkey-wrenched the Valar as suitable targets of worship or invocation.

1. So, first, have I fairly summarized your thinking on the matter, or am I mangling it?
2. If that's roughly right, would you mind expanding a bit on what's going on here and what Tolkien may or may not have done to steer it this way?

For what it's worth, building on what you said in some of the comments I did find, my rough working hypothesis is this: the Valar are a set of astral constructs that have received enough shared attention, emotion, and effort to become somewhat suitable astral vehicles for spirits, and that some spirits (here used in its broadest meaning of "any non-material conscious being") may show up when those vehicles are consciously invoked, but somehow whatever spirits answer the call don't pack as much "oomph" as when Gods from other pantheons are called upon (whether because the vehicles in question are somehow unsuited to more powerful spirits/Gods, or only the less powerful ones are attracted, or whatever other reason).

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

My blessings to all who welcome them,
Jeff

Re: Social Technology as a Metaphor and Question on Why Invoking the Valar Only Gets Moderate Result

[ecosophia]

You might be amused to know that A World Full of Gods is another of the books I consider my best work, and its sales have been correspondingly modest. For some reason, Heathens pretty consistently seem to like it, and most other people give it a blank look and walk on by.

With regard to the Valar, that's basically correct. I know of several groups of people back in the heyday of the Neopagan scene who tried to launch a cult of the Valar, with all the usual bells and whistles, and none of them got far or accomplished much. That's not just because they're fictional deities, of course -- the equally fictional deities of the Cthulhu mythos have attracted quite a few serious practitioners, who apparently get good results from invoking them, and I know Druids who invoked the completely made-up deity Dalon ap Landu, god of the groves -- the chief deity of the Reformed Druids of North America, which started life as a put-on -- and gotten a definite response.

I've wondered aloud from time to time if Tolkien figured out some way to gimmick the Valar to make them unresponsive to pagan worship, but I'm far from sure that's correct. What I know is that nobody seems to be able to get much of a response by using those names and images.

Ocmulgee

[frittermywig]

Hi JMG -- Was on vacation last week, and I thought of you with gratitude. If not for your instruction regarding Earth Mysteries and the spiritual power of place, I wouldn't have taken the time to visit the Mississippian Ocmulgee Mounds site and I would be the poorer for it. So this is a kind of digital postcard to you:

"Archway to the Ocmulgee Earth Lodge (Macon, Georgia)-- Wish you were here!"

Re: Ocmulgee

[ecosophia]

Thank you for this. Good gods, that looks like a northwestern European barrow!

Esoteric Trumpism

[frittermywig]

Thanks, brenainn, for reminding us last week of the book, Esoteric Trumpism. Hoping it might shed light on recent events, I just read it myself and thought I'd be bold to offer some reflections:

• Von Hoffmeister's arguments might be too subtle for me, but I found the book frustratingly lightweight. It's a series of loosely-connected micro-essays, all searching for the most apt literary, cinematic or historical analogies for what Trump is doing or embodying. Some passages are written as fiction or prose-poetry and feel very forced to me.
• Lovecraft and Spengler are touchstones for Von Hoffmeister-- it feels ecosophian that way, but none of the images or ideas are developed with any depth. I haven't read Miguel Serrano, but that author is not named here, and I don't have the sense that this is intended as an engagement with "Esoteric Hitlerism."
• Frankly, I don't see anything esoteric in the book at all. We're told at one point, "Vril is the universal energy that that flows through and encircles the globe just below its crust," but that paragraph is describing the comic book character Magneto, so I have to presume that's a fiction? There's nothing like the great Kek Wars sequence that JMG gives us in The King in Orange.

If I'm being obtuse, I'd love to learn what I'm missing...

Re: Esoteric Trumpism

[ecosophia]

It's near the top of my get-to pile, but I haven't gotten to it quite yet.

The magic and astrology of moving

[vitranc]

Hi JMG,

There is a real prospect that me and my partner would be moving to a new home in the foreseeable future and I have been wondering about the magical side of it.
Could you give some advice on how to move to a new home in order to get the most favorable start and home?
I would be especially interested in how to elect a favorable time.

Best regards,
V

Re: The magic and astrology of moving

[ecosophia]

The planets ruling your natal ascendant and fourth house, and the ascendant and fourth house of your partner's natal horoscope, should all be well dignified if possible. If you can't manage that, make sure at least one of those two is well dignified for each of you, and the others are at least not afflicted by anything.

[(Anonymous)]

Hello JMG and all.

1. In past life regression books, the subjects report a sort of strangeness with the death state. When the soul takes off, it’s not instant heaven nor hell but rather incredible strangeness and confusion of its surroundings and whereabouts. Some take off immediately, aware of their situation, others as mentioned remain incredibly stiff and confused. No physical pain is reported regardless of the mannerism of the death.
In all of these books I have read, there has been no mention of an archangel, angel, deity, or an ascended master meeting the newly released soul. The person is simply greeted by their loved one(s) and taken off.
Any opinion as to why we don't meet such spirits, especially as occultists?

2. What is the difference between an archangel and a deity/god? We have very little lore about the former save for a few passages in the Bible about Michael, Gabriel and Raphael.

3. Can a talisman work remotely from your location to help your target far away from you? Would the procedure be the same?

[ecosophia]

1) Because the great powers of the Unseen have many better things to do than take part in welcoming committees for the newly dead. Remember that on average, 166,000 people die every single day. The welcoming committee of loved ones takes care of that job, and if the newly dead soul is of sufficient stature to interact with cosmic powers, that'll happen after they've finished processing their recent life.

2) Depends on what you mean by those words. "Deity" in particular is a very, very vague term -- monotheists use it one way, polytheists in a flurry of other ways. Remember that all human language is a collection of primate hoots and grunts which we use to very roughly categorize the phenomena of an infinitely complex cosmos!

3) Yes, but it won't be anything like as effective. The procedure is the same.

Space and Destiny

[(Anonymous)]

Space - Sometimes when I gaze at an object before me I can "see" the space in between. It feels as if the transparent emptiness between me and whatever I look at has an invisible, living radiance, making whatever I am looking at appear more crisp and alive, general awareness is elevated, too. So far it occurs only spontaneously, but being in a meditative mood definitely helps. When I do the SOP while having this kind of vision, it tends to feel much more powerful than an ordinary one. When I compare drawing the symbols in "ordinary space" and "living space", it feels alike to drawing with a pen with the cap put on or removed. Which makes me wonder what the space that surrounds us really is. Thinking of the CosDoc, I would tend to say something like "the living mind of the logos" - but is it really, am I just making things up?

Destiny - Following your reply to my comment on last weeks post on ecosophia I pondered the concepts of "karma" and "destiny" for a while. Up to now it was my view that the karma of the past shapes the future and that "destiny" is an intersection of an individual karma and the karma of a larger system in such a way, that the individual happens to be in a position to help the collective karma to play out. Thinking about what you said and of the few events in my life where I felt (sometimes only after looking back) that there was destiny at work - I wonder if the "pull of the future" is more akin to "perspective" than to "law"? A glimpse up the planes and through time to see what could be and possibly should be?

Thank you, as always!
Nachtgurke

Re: Space and Destiny

[ecosophia]

1) Well, to start with, there's no space around you. The apparent gap between you and that object is full of air -- 16 lbs. of it for every cubic inch. So you may be seeing that. My guess, though, is that you're perceiving the ether.

2) I see destiny as intention -- the intention of the highest, eternal part of yourself, the one part that is always in harmony with the will of the gods. It's a matter of seeking a goal.

Blessing offer; Matthew Shaw

[milkyway1]

Good morning!

I hope you, JMG, and everybody else as well, had a fine weekend. :-)

1. To everybody: I‘m offering blessings again this Wednesday, and am, as usual, grateful for people who sign up, as that gives me a chance to practice:

https://thehiddenthings.com/weekly-blessings-29

2. To JMG: You‘ve mentioned that Matthew Shaw‘s „pen name“ was Rhodonn Starrus. Did you mean „pen name“ as in alias, or as in actual pen name? If the latter, could you point me to any of his writings? I haven‘t been able to find anything so far.

Thanks, both for this and for hosting MM again. My blessings to you, if you‘ll have them,

Milkyway

Re: Blessing offer; Matthew Shaw

[ecosophia]

As far as I know he never published anything. He relied on personal instruction. Much of what went into the Modern Order of Essenes material was his work, but it was revised by John GIlbert long before I got to it.

Ecosophia Prayer List

[tunesmyth]

At this link is the full list of all 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. 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 and/or in the comments at the current prayer list post.

* * *

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

May Falling Tree Woman's son's girlfriend's mother Bridget, who is unconscious and under continuous sedation after a life-threatening fall from a horse, be blessed and healed and returned to full health.

May Neptune's Dolphins' husband David, who lost one toe to a staph infection last year and now faces further toe amputations due to diabetic ulcers in his left foot, be blessed and healed, and may the infection leave his body for good.

May young Azalea Troung of California, who recently had a life threatening reaction to the initial antibiotic applied for a finger bone infection, resolve her reaction without lasting issue; may the infection be completely cleared from her body; and may her family, including those physically separated from her, be strengthened against fear and dread.

May Just Another Green Rage Monster, his mother, and his Kiddo be blessed and healed as they deal with the loss of Monster's father.

May Kerry's dad Michael, who is experiencing extreme delusional behavior and overwhelming anxiety, be healed mentally and emotionally.

May Ian, who has recently been diagnosed with Diastolic Heart Failure, be healed and restored to full health quickly and completely.

Regarding Princess Cutekitten’s recently renewed problems with mortgage servicers causing her difficulties, may the situation resolve in the best way possible.

May MindWinds' dad, Clem, be blessed and healed after his fall and consequent head injury.

May Jeff H's cat Tuxy, who ran off from their new home in June, be safely returned home to Jeff's family.

May Jennifer have a safe and healthy pregnancy, may the delivery go smoothly, and may her baby be born healthy and blessed.

May Ecosophian, whose cat Cheesecake (picture)ran away on Wednesday 6/12, be safely reunited with Cheesecake; and may Cheesecake be protected and guided on his journey home.

May Kyle's friend Amanda, who though in her early thirties is undergoing various difficult treatments for brain cancer, make a full recovery; and may her body and spirit heal with grace.

May Jennifer’s father Robert, who passed away on May 29th, be blessed and soothed, and may his soul be helped to its ultimate destiny and greatest good.

Tyler A's wife Monika's pregnancy is high risk, and has now successfully entered the third trimester; may Monika and baby Isabelle both be blessed with good health and a smooth delivery.

May Jennifer's mother Nancy G. in SW Missouri is still recovering from various troubles including brain surgery for hydrocephaly; may she be healed, regain her mobility, and be encouraged with loving energy.

May Erika, who recently lost her partner James and has been dealing with major knee problems (and who senses a connection between the two), be healed in both broken heart and broken knee, and be able to dance in the sun once more.

May Doug Y of Geauga County, Ohio be supported and healed as he makes his way through the diagnosis and treatment process for prostate cancer.

May Ms. Krieger's hometown of Norwalk, Connecticut recover quickly and fully from the gasoline tanker fire that destroyed an overpass and shut down interstate 95 on May 2. May the anger and fire that has made driving in the area so fraught cool down in a way that benefits all beings. May all people, animals, and other beings around the highway, the adjacent river and the harbor be protected and blessed, and may the natural environment improve to the benefit of all. (update)

May Christina, who passed away on 5/8, experience a peaceful repose; may the minor child she leaves behind be cared for, and the needs of all affected me met; and may her family be comforted in this difficult time.

May Frank Rudolf Hartman of Altadena California (picture), who is receiving chemotherapy, be completely cured of the lymphoma that is afflicting him, and may he return to full health.

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.

* * *
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 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

[ecosophia]

Thank you for this as always.

[(Anonymous)]

If hate is the new sex, is there hate magic today like there is sex magic back in the Victorian era?

[ecosophia]

Of course. Why do you think Satanism is so popular these days?

Mind you, like all forms of magic that exploit the emotional rush that comes from breaking a social taboo, it doesn't have a long shelf life. Once hate stops being unspeakably shocking and turns back into a perfectly normal, healthy human emotion, which is of course what it was all along, hate magic will lose most of its power, the way sex magic did.

Geomancy job question

[(Anonymous)]

Hi JMG,

I tried to do a horary astrology reading for this new job I applied for, but found it hard to interpret.

Subsequently, I did indeed get the offer, it is quite a bit higher than my current salary but will likely require a lot more work too.

I did a geomancy reading to clarify further, the question was: "Will I do well at B (company name)?"

Four Mothers:
Amissio
Amissio
Laetitia
Pier

Right Witness:
Acquisition

Left Witness:
Fortuna Major

judge:
Conjunctio

From what I can see, this geomancy reading is quite straightforwardly positive. The answer is a "yes", I can do well at this company. I just wanted to post it to double-check if I might miss anything?

Re: Geomancy job question

[ecosophia]

Nope -- don't overthink it. You got two very favorable witnesses and a judge that traditionally takes its character from the figures that create it; that's a straightforward "YES!"

[thinking_turtle]

To share, for those who wonder what ENM, OSA or W4E mean, a list of abbreviations used on Ecosophia.

[ecosophia]

And thanks for this as always,

[eyvindmartinsson]

Hello,

Can the practices in Experience of the Inner World be combined with the "standard" practices of CoP/Golden Dawn? (daily LBRP/MP etc)

[ecosophia]

I don't recommend it, at least when you're first learning them. If you're going to do Knight's practices, do them exactly as written until you've finished the course. Then you can explore combining them.

[(Anonymous)]

Hello John, I'm new to occultism. I've just read The Way of Golden Section and I have a few questions:

I don't have time now to prepare for the initiation, but I would like to learn the discursive meditation. Can I do it as a standalone exercise? Do I need to do some form of protection before the meditation? Could you recommend a short and effective protection please(SoP seems quite long).

I've recently taken up Taijiquan and am now learning the Yang 48 forms. Is discursive meditation compatible with it?

Many thanks!

[ecosophia]

1) You can certainly practice discursive meditation as a standalone practice. If you're doing that, no, strictly speaking, you don't need a protective ritual; you might choose to do one just to clear the air, but that's another matter. The SoP is about as simple as you can get and still have an effective protective ritual.

2) Yes, that should be entirely safe.

The Trance

[(Anonymous)]

Dear Mr Greer

On 16th July you asked for any accounts of changes in peoples magical workings. What I am about to say is based on my thoughts rather than any magical workings, so I decided to put it in Magic Monday.

I was thinking that what we are faced with is an apocalypse. When I say this word I mean in terms of a revelation or unveiling, rather than the destruction of the world. In the 60’s and 70’s people were beginning to understand that industrial civilisation was not sustainable and were beginning to take the first steps to deal with that. But then along came the 1980’s and it was like a spell was cast on people and they went into this kind of trance that enabled them to forget where our civilisation was headed. This trance was made even stronger when the west won the cold war and people became puffed up with arrogance and thought that the free market could solve any problem and that history had come to an end. Maybe the spell that put us in that trance is now ending. It was already coming under a lot of strain due to the crash in 2008, trump, Brexit etc. Maybe the covid vaccines was the last desperate attempt by the casters of that spell to keep that trance in place and they ended up over reaching themselves and they now have to face the karma of what they have done.

I hope this is the case as the cognitive dissonance I have had to endure the last few years has been immense. However the cognitive dissonance of those who identified with this spell could be far greater and I am not looking forward to the fall out from this. For some this might be a real apocalypse in the sense that that word means destruction.

(PS: when I say spell it could be something else. The occult is your Manor and you know a lot more about it than I do.)

Yours sincerely

Jasmine

Re: The Trance

[ecosophia]

Interesting. Yes, I could see that -- but we'll have to see how it plays out from here on. Thank you for this!

[(Anonymous)]

Good morning, JMG,

My brother in law's father passed away a couple months ago and he is working through his grief experience. I plan on encouraging him to journal to help him through. The spiritual alchemy work is likely too tough for him right now, but is there some advice you can offer to get him started on journaling about his grief (or other topics)?

Thank you!

[ecosophia]

Sure. You're wise not to recommend spiritual alchemy to him just now -- that's intense enough when you don't have something else stressing you! As for journaling, the crucial thing is to write down everything that comes to mind without censoring or editing it. Just sit and write for fifteen minutes a day and don't let the pen stop moving. If all he can think of to write is "I don't know what I should be writing about and this is really boring and why am I wasting my time at this..." that's fine. Just let the thoughts spill out onto the paper, and see where they lead and what they want to say.

Prophetic Dreaming

[(Anonymous)]

Hello John Michael,

Building on your renewal of using dreams for prophecy (instead of self-learning), I am now adding predictions to my documented dreams.

Because I've had vivid, memorable, and frequent dreams for all my life, I can acquire data quickly and test my prophecies frequently.

I will let you know what I discover.

Live from Pelican Place,
Chris Clifford

Re: Prophetic Dreaming

[ecosophia]

Excellent! Thank you for this.

Astrology Book for casting a chart by hand

[(Anonymous)]

First, a merry monday to all.

Second, I have watched over the years people asking for suggestions for beginner astrology books and would like to finally make a recommendation, particularly after last week's comment about how someone learning should really learn how to cast a chart by hand before depending on programs.

Back in 1992 I came across a book, Alan Oken's Complete Astrology - the 1988 edition with the black starry cover which was putting 3 books he'd written in '72-'74 from memory - and with it I learned how to cast/calculate a chart by hand using nothing more than pencil and paper, the book, an atlas and the emphemeris at the back of the book. Memory is a bit hazy but i think the first astrolog dos programs were out by then so i could compare and the accuracy was dead on.

Even more amazing was the accuracy of what the sections on houses, planets and aspects had to say when delineating the chart. It had things to say about my own chart/life based on the houses/planets/aspects that were uncanny. A friend asked me to do her chart and I ran into the dilema of do I tell her and maybe put ideas into her head or not and hope for the best - it was a thing that indicated an unwanted and unexpected pregnancy at a particular age. I hummed and hawed and eventually spoke to her and before I could say anything she told me she'd falled pregnant, carried to term and had the child adopted... To this day I don't know whether I should have said anything but done is done.

I've had a small look at the more recent red cover edition easily available and from what I was able to preview it appears the book hasn't been messed with although hard to say without getting a copy, which hasn't been possible - other priorities. So I give it a qualified thumbs up and why I mentioned the 1988 edition which is a definite yes.

The style of the book as well, meant that when I got the Mundane Astrology book with raphael, green etc and alan leo's the key to your own nativity, I found their style very congenial/similar and easy to get to grips with.

I would also like to mention the review someone did of Parker's Astrology - I had also got a copy(the DK edition) but I find it more of a coffee table book to be frank and agreed with the less than flattering review.

Just pulled it from the shelf to give it another look - it does have a section on calculating a chart by hand so can be used thus.

From my own view - whilst it may have the basic information - I found it hard to use it as a reference and not nearly as dead on as the Oken book - it just seems a bit all over the place to me with definite diet and lifestyle and wellness vibes in too many spots.

The illustrations in the dk book are gorgeous to be fair but I consider myself spoiled by Oken book which got down to the nitty gritty and pulled no punches about the meaning and delineation. Perhaps it just seems the Parker book is a bit too fluffy although I may be doing it an injustice. If that's all one can get it can certainly get one started in the very basics. The Oken book is what I would call Old Skool and highly recommend.

All Best,

Parion

Re: Astrology Book for casting a chart by hand

[ecosophia]

Thank you for this. I'll have a look at Oken's book at some point. The Parkers' book is indeed a coffee table book, but as an introduction to the utter novice, many people seem to find it very useful.

Me, I'm reading Alan Leo's complete works right now... ;-)

[(Anonymous)]

For those who include ancestors in their practice:

Any prayers to the ancestors that you really like, and/or get a good response from? Thanks

[jprussell]

Howdy,

My own practice is very simple, and I don't know that I can speak to "getting a good response," but certainly no bad responses. Daily, I light a candle and pour a drink offering for "the Gods, Goddesses, well wights (good spirits), and holy forebears (ancestors)." I offer worship and blessings to those who will have them, but thanks to all. If I have any specific prayers, I make those as well, and at the end, before drinking a sip of the drink, I toast the holy forebears and acknowledge that all that I have in this world is "through them." I see the toast as a "lesser" form of acknowledgement that any ancestors not comfortable with "worship" might welcome (kind of like how I understand the difference between dulia and latria in Catholic practice). Once a week, on Saturdays (due to Saturn's association with old age, death, and the earth), I also give a separate drink offering to the "holy forebears."

Hope this gives you some options to consider!

Jeff

[(Anonymous)]

Hello, JMG. I've heard that a person shouldn't wear gold and silver jewelry at the same time. Is there an occult reason for this or is it just a silly fashion rule?

Cobalt flatulent flobberworm

[ecosophia]

It's a silly fashion rule.

Current events and Mundane Astrology

[neptunesdolphins]

I am a follower of your mundane astrology postings. I am curious if the attempt on Trump's life or Biden's departure was indicated. Also, do these events change the future? For example, the stars at the time of Biden's departure mark the next episode instead of the founding of the Democratic Party. Or are they all mixed in somehow?

I don't know if I am clear in my question. In doing the astrology, the beginning point is the birth of the entity such as country. Does anything like a revolution change that beginning point?

Re: Current events and Mundane Astrology

[ecosophia]

1) The kind of mundane astrology I do predicts trends, not specific incidents. Ingress charts for more than a year now have been predicting disaster for Biden, and they've been borne out amply by his declining popularity, the failure of his policies, and now his bowing out of the race; it'll be interesting to see if he's still president, or alive, by the time the election comes around. As for Trump's near-assassination, I'm fairly sure that was predicted by the Mars-Uranus-Algol conjunction on the 15th, which was well within orb at the time of the attempt. I missed that possibility when interpreting the conjunction, and am planning on doing a post studying that and seeing where I got things wrong.

2) The kind of mundane astrology I do doesn't start from beginning points. I use solar ingresses, eclipses, and outer planet conjunctions. There are kinds of mundane astrology that use foundation charts for countries, but that's not the kind that I do. The one exception is that I do inauguration charts. Biden's ghastly inauguration chart will dog him until he leaves office; at that point, I'll cast an inauguration chart for whoever takes his place, and we'll see what he or she gets.

Current events - a magical backlash?

[(Anonymous)]

Hi John Michael,

My query relates to the astonishing current events in the US that seem to have resulted in a profound change of fortune for the current President and his party since the attempted assassination of Donald Trump.

I'm aware that there were indications of malefic influence on both Trump's and Biden's natal chart from the conjunction of Uranus, Mars and Algol, but I don't know whether this would explain the dramatic change. Is it possible that this change in fortune is the result of magickal backlash, of the evil workings involving demons that magical practitioners aligned with the DNC have been engaged in coming home to roost? If so, is it possible to ascertain whether this is a karmic backlash or due to opposing magical work done to reverse harm intended on Donald Trump and his followers?

Thanks,

P

Re: Current events - a magical backlash?

[ecosophia]

Well, first of all, while the Uranus-Mars-Algol conjunction was malefic in general, it was not malefic for Trump -- it was conjunct the midheaven in his natal chart, which suggests sudden drastic events that further the career. On the other hand, that same conjunction was opposite Biden's natal Sun and Venus, so very malefic for him, and located in Biden's sixth house, which suggests health trouble.

Is there more to it than that? Quite possibly, but figuring it out won't be easy. The universe is a complex place and nothing in it has just one cause!

Book - Thread Spirit

[(Anonymous)]

Following up on last week's question about books on knot magic, about ten years ago I read a lovely book called The Thread Spirit by Mark Siegeltuch. While more anthropological and not specifically a how-to about knot magic, it describes a lot of the symbolism in knots and the fiber arts and includes lots of illustrations. From the foreword:
"What distinguishes early man from us is a different mode of thought; one in which the practical and symbolic are united in a way we cannot imagine."

Re: Book - Thread Spirit

[ecosophia]

Interesting -- thanks for this.

[jenniferkobernik]

A note regarding my prediction here using the flow of energy within my body as a form of divination:

https://ecosophia.dreamwidth.org/286003.html?thread=49572659#cmt49572659

My prediction was incorrect in its indication that Joe Biden would be the Democratic nominee for President.

This would seem to indicate that this form of divination is unreliable when it comes to factual predictions about broader events.

My experience has been that it is reliable with regard to questions having to do with my person and my private life, and for guidance about those things, but I will continue to experiment.

[ecosophia]

Thanks for this. One thing that sometimes happens is that a prediction will give the most likely outcome; if you keep on tracking things, sometimes it's possible to feel the shift when things do down a less likely path.

There have been rumors flying for most of a week now, btw, that Biden had some kind of sudden medical emergency a little while back, the Biden family (which has been managing his affairs for several years now) kept it out of the media, but his condition is now terminal and he is not expected to last long. We'll see if there's anything to those claims.

Alternative muses

[(Anonymous)]

You've mentioned that many men have a passive mental body and the most common way for that body to be energized is for the man to have another person, usually a woman, with an active mental body in his life. I was wondering if there were any traditional natural alternatives to this arrangement.

Magically speaking, I have experience with the Middle Pillar and have done some elemental conjuration. Would conjuring an intelligence or spirit of Air be advisable in this situation? I have concerns the power may be too singular, and I'd effectively be asking for a spiritual battery, which seems to me to be an ethical concern.

Re: Alternative muses

[ecosophia]

Sure. Sunlight, fresh air, cold water, and vigorous exercise are the traditional way for men to recharge their etheric bodies when they don't have a woman to do it for them. I don't recomment doing anything of the kind with an elemental spirit, as that will lead to serious psychological imbalance -- aside from the risks of vampirism and obsession, which are not small.

[(Anonymous)]

Hello, Mr. Greer!

Is there an analog of opening/closing (possibly, a mistranslation, the one that is supposed to be done before and after any other exercises in Learning Ritual Magic, where you open and close hands as if holding a book) exercise that is compatible with work of the Golden Section Fellowship?

Recently, I happened upon a (translated) copy of Learning Ritual Magic at a used book shop. I know from Magic Monday FAQ that it is intended for Golden Dawn students, and as such is incompatible with Golden Section material, which I'm currently studying, but this exercise strikes me as very useful from psychological perspective (like telling yourself to focus), and, this might be just me being overly impressionable, but I tried it as a stand alone, and I'm convinced I could feel energy moving between my hands, so it seemingly does much more.

[ecosophia]

Nope. If you're going to do a system of training, do it exactly as written, without adding in stuff from other systems. Once you've finished working your way through the material in The Way of the Golden Section as given, you can consider adding things.