Magic Monday

[ecosophia]

Midnight is  here, 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 also 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-eighth published book and my fourth published novel; it's also a book I had no intention of writing, and it's one of my personal favorites of my novels. Beginning around the time that I finished the first draft of A World Full of Gods, my exploration of polytheism, I started mulling over the prospect of saying the same things in fiction using the Great Old Ones, H.P. Lovecraft's tentacled monster-gods, as a way to talk about our culture's fear and hatred of anything superhuman and transcendent. I sketched out a few bits of rough draft here and there, but never did much with it.

Then over the course of a few days in the fall of 2015 an entire novel downloaded itself into my brain and would not leave me any peace until I wrote it. I hammered out the 70,000-word first draft in eight weeks -- the fastest I've ever written anything on that scale. The result was a lively tentacular romp in which Owen Merrill, a grad student at Miskatonic University in Arkham, Massachusetts, finds out that H.P. Lovecraft's "fictional" creations are anything but imaginary, that everything he knows about history is wrong, and that those writhing tentacles may hold the last hope for the survival of the earth. There are sequels, but it stands alone tolerably well as a novel. If you're interested, you can get a copy here if you live in the United States and here if you live elsewhere.

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 further comments will be put through. See you next week!***

Comments

My Take on an Intro to the Planes and Question on Astral Production vs Perception

[jprussell]

Good Evening,

For anyone who wants it, a very happy beginning to August!

As for the book, I was late to the party with The Weird of Hali, reading the main series for the first time from the end of last year through the beginning of this year, and I have the side-books to get to soon, but I thoroughly enjoyed them, despite (because of?) years of reading and roleplaying with Lovecraftian baddies. Thanks very much for your enjoyably unorthodox take!

To Share: As much to solidify my own understanding as anything else, I've put together a brief primer on the seven planes of being as taught in JMG's work, such as the Occult Philosophy Workbook: https://jpowellrussell.com/#a_beginner_s_manual_of_the_planes

To Ask: In putting together the above summary, I found myself grappling the most with the Astral Plane, perhaps unsurprisingly given its focus in the spiritual work I'm doing. One concept I'm still working through is how much of astral experience is creation versus how much perception - in other words, how much of our imaginal life tends to be "made up" by each of us, and how much is "found" somewhere "out there"? Besides being a fine theme for ongoing meditation, any thoughts on what the default is for this and how much spiritual practice alters it?

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: My Take on an Intro to the Planes and Question on Astral Production vs Perception

[ecosophia]

1) Thank you! The Weird of Hali seems to be slithering out through the crawlspaces of contemporary culture at its own pace, finding those people who are attracted to its squamous and rugose qualities. It's all very reminiscent of Lovecraft's story "The Call of Cthulhu"...

2) It is indeed a fine theme for meditation! All astral experience is co-created and involves an intricate web of feedback loops, so that it's rarely if ever possible to identify any astral content as either entirely made or entirely found. The great difference to watch is actually not a matter of inside vs. outside, made vs. found, but a question of which levels of self and other are involved. In the ordinary, uninitiated person, the subconscious mind and popular culture form the two poles between which the astral patterns are woven. In the initiate, the superconscious mind and the transcultural, transcendent aspects of outside reality provide different poles.

Pondering Reincarnation And Differences of Scale

[(Anonymous)]

Last week's discussion of reincarnation (https://ecosophia.dreamwidth.org/289713.html?thread=50145201#cmt50145201) was quite an eye opener for me. I had believed that humans went through incarnations for a longer period of time than 2000-ish years.

What really gave me my Owen-Merill-in-the-parking-garage moment, though, was your comment that "Once we're born into the discarnate state, we begin our real lives, and we have much, much more to learn thereafter."

You have spoken of deep time and I understood it intellectually, but now it hit me in the gut-- all this work as a human will take "only" 2,000-ish years, with a gigantic span of more time ahead, and a gigantic amount of more work and growing to do. And how gigantic of a span have I already spent as other creatures, plants etc before this? To >see< this expanse of time in my mind was boggling, and rather overwhelming. I retreated into a session of listening to "Blade Runner Blues", and wept... from an emotion that I'm not sure has a name. But during the song the gentle comment came to me: "there will be beauty, too."



Fruit flies have been much on my mind lately. As it turns out, they are a great learning metaphor. "As below, so above"-- as much larger as we are than fruit flies, so there are other beings that much larger than us. As Athaia pointed out in that previous thread, many of these larger beings are "less than benevolent".

We certainly are hard on fruit flies. In addition to all the efforts to kill them when they enter our houses, we do things to them "in the name of science" such as forcing them to fight each other (https://www.kqed.org/science/1494923/these-fighting-fruit-flies-are-superheroes-of-brain-science), cutting off a leg to see whether they feel chronic pain (they do) (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/insects-can-experience-chronic-pain-study-finds-180972656/); and a browse through the major scientific supply catalogs reveals greater horrors for them. If the larger beings regard us, and treat us, the way we treat fruit flies, no wonder our lives are often hard!

Then I pondered all of this, both the "reincarnation road" and what comes after it, having been created by, and being administered by, a Being who is larger than all of it, and thus mind-bogglingly huge. Of Whom nevertheless it is said, "what is man that you are mindful of him?"... and He is, I've experienced it personally.

If we are as fruit flies to the higher beings, and we pray, then, I wonder, do insects also pray? Consider Wood Ant Colony Two, trapped in the bottom of a Soviet-era bunker (https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/cannibal-ants-soviet-nuclear-bunker). With no way out and no hope for any future other than slow starvation, they nevertheless maintained their ant civilization, while a team of scientists watched. Did they pray for deliverance? The scientists' readers demanded that they help the ants, and deliverance arrived-- in the form of a very long 2x4 board leading to the sunlit world above.

I once accidentally rescued a beetle from a spiderweb. I'd planned to clean off the webbing and add the beetle to my insect collection-- but when I removed the spiderweb mummy wrappings the beetle turned out to be alive and well. I have never since seen so much joy emanate from something so small, as from that beetle standing on my fingertip, redeemed from certain death.

Would it not behoove us to behave like more benevolent "gods" to our smaller fellow creatures? Perhaps this is how the concept of 'ahimsa' came to be.

- Cicada Grove

Re: Pondering Reincarnation And Differences of Scale

[(Anonymous)]

While not surprising in the least, it is dispiriting to learn once again that 'scientific experiments' are as much a pretext for indulging in culturally-acceptable sadism as they were in the 17th century.

One can see how easy it might be for those educated in this scientific culture to slip into torturing and otherwise harming human beings, as long as all is 'within accepted parameters'. Just add the belief that ends justify means, and all moral limits are abolished.

'I am a superior being, therefore this is no crime'......

[(Anonymous)]

Mercury turns retrograde today. What impact does it have on mundane astrology?

[ecosophia]

That depends utterly on local astrological conditions. You have to look at the whole chart -- and you have to know what chart to look at!

Generally speaking, Mercury retrograde has been turned into a vast bugaboo by many modern astrologers. It's just another debility, no worse than Mercury square a malefic planet or in the sign of his detriment or fall.

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 Corey Benton, whose throat tumor has grown around an artery and won't be treated surgically, be healed of throat cancer.

May Heather's brother in law, Patrick, who is dying of cancer and has dementia, go gentle into that good light. And may his wife Maggie, who is ill herself, find the strength and peace she needs for her situation. (Update on Patrick's condition here)

May Falling Tree Woman's son's girlfriend's mother Bridget in Devon UK, who has recently regained consciousness after a week of sedation following 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 Rebecca, who has just been laid off from her job and is the sole provider for her family, quickly discover a viable means to continue to support her family; may she and her family be blessed and sustained in their journey forward.

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.

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 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)]

Hey JMG

Firstly, on the subject of your novels, I have recently finished "The witch of Criswell" and much enjoyed it. I especially found the conflict Alice has with her family particularly interesting as like alot of people I have experienced something similar, but way more mild. And of course the exploration of true magic is great also. I intend to read the sequel ASAP.

Secondly, I want to ask if you have checked out my review of "50 secrets", and if so what are your thoughts? So far I have learned that a few of the commentariat have liked it, and furthermore I note that it has the most views and likes of all my previous Substack articles.

J.L.Mc12

[ecosophia]

1) I'm delighted to hear it. Like most of my characters, Ariel showed up in my imagination with a mind, personality, and family of her own -- but yeah, I had some similar problems with my family, though nothing like so extreme.

2) I read it and enjoyed it; since I haven't read the original, I didn't have anything particular to say about it, but I thought your review was interesting and well written.

[(Anonymous)]

Hello John Michael Greer. Thank you for hosting Magic Mondays.

1. I know that there are elemental tablets in GD’s Neo Enochian and there are planetary flashing tablets as well, but I didn’t see any tablets for the zodiac signs and the 4 elements. Can we create them ourselves using the same rules and observe the effects of working with them like normal?

2. Also, do you any of your books teach about energy work and flashing tablets?

3. Can you tell me why meditation is important as a precursor to pathworking?

4. What is your opinion on Regardie’s One Year Manual? Is it a good compendium to your Golden Dawn books?

5. Gabriel is the archangel of water but is also the archangel of the Moon. Are the two Gabriels the same or just different forms of the same angel?

[ecosophia]

1) Of course you can.

2) I discuss them in chapter 10 of Circles of Power; I also recommend reading the material in Regardie's Golden Dawn, pp. 603-607 in the 7th edition.

3) First, because it develops the mental focus and clarity you need to make pathworking meaningful and effective. Second, because once you've done the pathworking you need to figure out what it all means, and meditating on each of the symbols you encountered in the pathworking is the best way to do that.

4) It's quite decent; by the time you've worked through Learning Ritual Magic and the early part of Circles of Power you've done essentially all the same work, but revisiting the basics never hurts.

5) People have been arguing about that since about fifteen minutes after the dawn of time. Does it matter? If you call on the name, you get a response...

[(Anonymous)]

Hello JMG,

I am very confused at the moment. I got married two weeks ago and Cupid was very generous and had two arrows in his quiver for me. I fell in love with another woman at the wedding (now you and the commentariat are welcome to laugh. It's one of the many curious episodes that run through my whole life, it seems to be my horoscope). I knew this person before, but when I saw her in the pretty dress and beautiful make-up, it happened. I've never liked a person so much on the outside. At least that's what I imagine.

Although I'm currently on my honeymoon and I love my wife more than anything, I can only think about her and have the usual symptoms of being in love. She is now the center of my universe and I associate everything that comes up in my everyday life with her. I fantasize that we could still get together and all that bullshit. It's fucking weird because I've only exchanged a few sentences with this person in my life and my wife should actually be at the center of my thoughts now.

The whole thing is so awkward because she is also a subordinate of my wife's at work and she herself is taken. Also, my wife and I recently bought a house. It feels like I've finished a jigsaw puzzle and then realized that one piece fits much better. But if I replace that piece, a nuclear bomb goes off. in short, going for that feeling is absolutely not an option.

In our society, being in love is often portrayed as sacred. I have of course been in love many times in my life, but now after a few years of spiritual practice as a Buddhist, it feels like a mental illness to me...

I have two questions:

1) I am dealing with the subject of infatuation because of this story. What does occultism have to say about this topic? I've read on the internet that being in love with a person indicates previous karmic connections or soul contracts made before birth. But that could be some new age nonsense.

2) Do you have any tips on how to let go of the feeling of infatuation quickly? In my tradition it is recommended to focus on the hideousness of the human body, however I am afraid this will reflect on my wife.

Thank you very much!

[ecosophia]

0) Before we go on to your questions, may I make a suggestion? You really need to figure out why you're trying to sabotage your marriage. I recommend sitting down with a notebook and a pen, writing "Why I hate being married" at the top of the page, and then just start writing down whatever comes to mind, without editing or censoring anything. In subsequent days, vary the question to include things such as "Why I hate my wife" and "Why I want to ruin my life." This kind of half-conscious self-sabotage is very common, it causes a vast amount of entirely preventable human misery, and you can stop doing it any time you want to.

1) Infatuation is a form of projection, to use Carl Jung's terminology. You take an archetype -- one of the basic mental categories we all carry in our heads -- and project it onto someone else. In your case, it's the archetype Jung called the anima, basically the image of the Perfect Woman, and it functions in the same way as beer goggles:

Now and again there can be past life issues involved; for example, you may be being given a chance to make the same mistake you made in previous lives. You don't have to fall for it again, you know.

2) You can deal with it by realizing, first, that you're doing it to yourself; second, that there are reasons why you're doing it, and you're probably not facing those squarely; and third, that once you face up to those reasons, it will stop.

Blog

[(Anonymous)]

Hello, Mr. Greer,

I had illusions of publishing a piece on high magic in a certain magazine. It was rejected, of course.

But I wondered if you might have a few minutes sometime to look at it… I quote you as an expert, by the way.

to-be-able.blogspot.com

Your honest criticism of its content and style are greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
And I apologize for taking your time,

E. S.

Re: Blog

[ecosophia]

Um. Writers get requests like this all the time. Most of us turn them down and walk away as fast as possible, because in 99% of the cases, the people who make those requests don't actually want honest criticism and will get apocalyptically furious if they get it. Oh, and of course there's the time factor.

That said, if I have the spare time later this week, I'll consider having a look at it. Please note that if you don't like my comments, you were warned.

Mind-to-mind contact: by what medium?

[(Anonymous)]

When you discover that your strongly felt thoughts have somehow propagated and been picked up by another person, on what plane or planes does this thought reach them? Is it by the astral light, etheric force, or some combination?

This has happened to me twice in the last few years. On one occasion the influence of a pharmaceutical product was involved; it rendered me more sensitive to another person’s awareness, and I subsequently learned that my impression was correct.

On the more recent occasion my idea was conveyed by thought alone, and the reality of mind-to-mind communication was demonstrated to me in an amusing yet absolutely unmistakable way. Ever since this incident I’ve known for a fact that telepathy is real, whereas before I merely speculated about it.

Also, I recollect many years ago having a distinct premonition about something significant that turned out to be true.

When we have experiences like this, what exactly are we doing? On what plane do such impressions travel?

Re: Mind-to-mind contact: by what medium?

[ecosophia]

That's an astral phenomenon. The astral plane is the plane of emotions, imagination, and ordinary thoughts, and you broadcast on that plane at all times; so does everyone else. This kind of astral perception is very common -- it's just that our culture insists that it can't happen and treats any instance when it does happen like a loud public fart. Regular meditation will help you attune to the astral plane, and make such experiences more common -- astral telepathy, I mean, not public farting. ;-)

[(Anonymous)]

Welcome JMG and the Magic Monday community

I wish you all a good week and every development and success.
Today I have questions from quite a broad spectrum, as here are questions from me and a friend of mine who asked me to ask them.

1. does anyone know of any books/traditions similar to the Franz Bardon tradition in the aspect of , "energy-based" where the main tool is , "etheric courrents". And a question to JMG strikte, does the Franz Bardon tradition count as a system of magical development (where we define magic using the definition used in the Magic Monday FAQ, i.e. the Dion Fortune definition)?

2. how does the creation of poetry affect human bodies? (in the sense of how music develops the mental body then does poetry also)?
3. in your book , "monsters" you wrote quote: while its misleading to think of etheric level as some sort of , "other dimention" in science-fiction terms. It surrounds us constantly and can be perceived directly by anyone willing to learn and practice relatively simple exercises. What are these exercises or in which book can they be found?

And my friend's questions.
A brief description, he lives in a place surrounded by gigantic tracts of forest. Not far from the Whitetower forest (the last ancient primeval forest in Europe, east side of Poland). Where he observes a fair amount of activity which, as he describes, is very reminiscent of fairy activity. My friend is a foreign, so he has no one in his family he could ask about folk practices, and the locals are reportedly not too keen to share such knowledge with someone "outside the community".

So his questions:
1. In your book ,,monsters'' you described that there are magical techniques and activities to build a good relationship with fairies. These fairies are not aggressive they just walk in the forest and sometimes they come near my windows. Sometimes I also hear knocking inside the house.

I would like to build a good relationship with my 'ethereal neighbours'. After all, we live on the same land. I recently went out to clean up in a nearby forest, will this be an activity pleasing to the faeries?

2.I have returned to physical training and am wondering if there are any schools or courses or books that combine occult techniques and physical training? Something along the lines of , 'invoke within yourself the powers of ancient body builders and lift weights to develop your spirit and body' ?

[ecosophia]

I'll label your questions A and your friend's B.

A-1) Bardon's system is certainly a method of magical development but it includes much more etheric practice than most systems in the English-speaking world. There's plenty of other material on the same sort of thing in central European languages, but very little has been turned into English so I can't claim to know it well.

A-2) It depends on the poetry. Some poetry focuses on emotional states, in which case it enriches the astral body. Some focuses on meaning, in which case it helps build the mental sheath. The very best poetry does both.

A-3) There are literally thousands of systems and at least as many books. It depends on what kind of work with the life force you want to do.

B-1) Find out what the local customs were. Faeries aren't all the same all over the world; like humans, they have regional and local cultures. Find out how the local people in your area maintained good relations with the neighboring spirits, and do those things; the local Leszy, Rusalki, and Pojawki will appreciate it.

B-2) There used to be such things in the Western tradition but those, along with so much else, got suppressed by the materialist dogmas of the age of reason. One old practice I know of, though, is to establish a relationship with the spirit of one of the great bodybuilders of the past. If there's one you particularly admire, get a good picture of him doing a classic lift, put it in your home gym, and ask his spirit to inspire and guide you as you seek to emulate his feats.

[(Anonymous)]

Dear Mr. Greer,

I was wondering if you have any advice regarding empathetic reading? I find myself struggling to immerse myself when reading fiction. I feel like I read very factually, even when reading for pleasure, and I would like to "feel" more for the characters. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

P.S. I really love the Weird of Hali series. I try to re-read it often. Kingsport is my favorite!

[ecosophia]

1) I wish I had advice to offer, but that's not something I'm especially good at myself -- since I have Aspergers syndrome, empathy is not my strong suit! Maybe someone else has some advice.

2) Thank you! I'm delighted to hear this.

Geomancy: hiring a nanny

[(Anonymous)]

I am thinking of hiring a nanny, I found a candidate, but the timing is very rushed. I am feeling some doubts.

Question: will she take good care of my family?

Four Mothers:
Puella
Fortuna Minor
Puer
Via

Right Witness
Acquisitio

Left witness
Amissio

Judge
Via

Reconciler
Rubeus

Doesn't seem very positive to me

Re: Geomancy: hiring a nanny

[ecosophia]

A yes-no question using geomancy is easy to answer. Take the judge and the witnesses. Is there a majority of favorable figures? It's a yes. Is there a majority of unfavorable figures? It's a no. In this case you've got one good figure, one bad figure, and a judge that's good only for change and generally negative for other things. The answer to your question is no -- not an extreme no, but no nonetheless.

Blessings; occult master class

[milkyway1]

Good morning,

I hope you, and everybody else, had a good weekend! :-)

1.a With your kind permission, I'd like to offer formal blessings again to everybody who cares to sign up for them:

https://thehiddenthings.com/weekly-blessings-31

I'm grateful to the people who sign up, as that allows me to practice my blessing skills.

b. Also, I've posted the last of a four-part series on how to get started with blessings for people who are interested:

https://thehiddenthings.com/blessing-how-to-get-started-in-9-simple-steps-part-4

(The links to the first three parts are right at the beginning.)

JMG, thanks for letting me post my practice attempts here!

2. A follow-up question about your master class wistfulness of last week... ;-) You gave three examples for questions which might come up in an "occult master class" (flashing tablet, vegetable stone, ring Rayetanz), with two of them apparently being very much on the magical side of occultism:

https://ecosophia.dreamwidth.org/289713.html?thread=50166705#cmt50166705

If the discussion here should rise to master class level, what might be some questions posted from the people who are less interested in magic, and more in the wisdom side of occultism?

Milkyway

Re: Blessings; occult master class

[ecosophia]

In terms of occultism, master-class questions might deal with the relationship between the planets in astrology and their equivalents in more transcendental systems such as the Cabala; they might deal with the really esoteric branches of occult lore such as the theory of the seven rays; or they might get into the fine details of occult philosophical writings such as The Cosmic Doctrine or Yeats's A Vision. There are others, of course, but those are examples that come promptly to mind.

[thinking_turtle]

To share, for those who wonder what SoP, WOG or OTO mean, a list of abbreviations used on Ecosophia.

To ask, you wrote earlier that Twilight's Last Gleaming was your third published novel. Above you write Innsmouth is your fifth novel. What was your fourth published novel?

[ecosophia]

Hmm! I somehow managed to get two of them flipped. WoH: Innsmouth is my fourth; Retrotopia is my fifth.

Schizophrenia and meditation

[(Anonymous)]

Schizophrenia and meditation

Hello JMG and everyone else, I have a question. I'm schizophrenic and as such have problems with disorganised thinking which affects my ability to meditate quite heavily. I sit there and immediately my mind begins to wander and most of the time I repeat a song over and over (these last few weeks it's been Puff the Magic Dragon) and I constantly try to bring my mind back to focusing on my breathing but it literally lasts just a few seconds then it's back to the song... does anyone have experience with schizophrenia and meditation who could give me some advice on what to do to help with meditation, specifically how to focus?

Thanks
MWT

Re: Schizophrenia and meditation

[ecosophia]

Let me start by reassuring you. People who have the most un-schizophrenic minds around have exactly the same trouble you're having when they start learning to meditate. Yes, including the music! I still sometimes have to make a special effort not to have some piece of music I heard recently interrupt my meditations.

That is to say, what you're experiencing is absolutely normal. The vast majority of the people I've taught how to meditate have had exactly the same experiences you're having now, and I had them, too, when I was first learning how to meditate. By bringing your mind back to focusing on your breathing, over and over again, you're doing exactly the right thing.

Mental focus is like a muscle, but it's a muscle that most people never use at all, so it's really weak. Just keep exercising it. A few seconds of concentration at a time is a positive gain. I know it won't feel like much, but if you keep practicing every day, bit by bit you'll find your capacity to focus improving. Step by step, as the Taoists say, we walk the thousand-mile road.

The Invisible Hand

[(Anonymous)]

Greetings, JMG and all!

First, let me say how very much I enjoy your Weird of Hali books: I've reread them several times and will no doubt continue to do so over the years!

I much enjoyed this week’s Ecosophian essay on “The Neckless Ones,” and want to offer a timely example of the role of the life force. I recently developed a hand tremor, and I’ve been observing it with curiosity as well as apprehension.

There are apparently a number of ways that hand tremor can present, and among the most common is what I have, called ‘intentional tremor.’ When I reach my hand out to touch something it begins to tremble just before I actually touch the object or when I try to touch it lightly, for example when I point toward or reach toward something, trace a line of text with my finger, or lightly rest my fingers on the keyboard as I think about what to write. When my hands are fully resting, or grasping something firmly, there is less or no tremor: it’s the in-between state, the state of active intention but not yet execution, where the tremor shows itself.

This in-between state corresponds to the life force that you write about so clearly in your books on magic and occultism, JMG: the time-space that bridges between thought / intention and physical action. This, it seems to me, is where my tremor is actually occurring.

I’ve been giving this a lot of thought and exploration, seeking to understand it in an occult context as well as a physical / medical one. (I’m also pursuing medical exams and diagnosis, though probably not conventional medical treatment; tremor is not the only neurological symptom I’m experiencing, but it’s the one I want to discuss here.) The tremor started out pretty subtly about a month ago in one hand, then gained momentum and became more intense and palsy-like, and spread to my other hand as well. It was becoming quite hard to handle, so to speak. Last week I decided to undertake a course of acupuncture to see whether that made any difference; I assumed that if it did help, it would take a number of treatments before I saw any results.

After my first treatment the improvement was startling; I’ve now had two treatments and the tremor is back to the milder form it took when it began a month ago. (It would have taken me a lot of struggle to type this if it hadn’t subsided substantially.) The tremor may disappear entirely as I continue treatments; we’ll see. Interestingly, and more food for thought, is that my other neurological symptoms have not (yet) improved; it’s the ‘intentional tremor’ that has been improved through a treatment modality that affects the life force.

I figured this would be an interesting observation to share with our group here!

Winifred Hodge Rose

Re: The Invisible Hand

[ecosophia]

1) Delighted to hear this.

2) And I'm even more delighted to hear this. It makes perfect sense, as the life force is precisely what bridges the gap between mental intention and the physical body.

Saturn jobs

[(Anonymous)]

Good day to you JMG and magic monday community

My career house is ruled by Capricorn, and while I know that understanding one's career is a matter of seeing the whole cosmogram, I wonder what professions in today's world belong to saturn kind of job.
I'm interested in working in the funeral industry but I'm afraid of how this might affect the more subtle of my bodies.

And my second question: What is the role of Uranus in our lives? It is one of the 'new' planets and I am not familiar how to read it.

Re: Saturn jobs

[ecosophia]

1) Most of the Capricorns I've known have been bookkeepers, accountants, office managers, and other people who make their living keeping things orderly, structured, and exact. It was a Capricorn friend of mine, a bookkeeper (and a very good one), who said, "When I can get all the figures on the spreadsheet to come out right I feel like God on the seventh day." Law is another Capricorn profession -- not the flashy trial-lawyer kind of legal work, but corporate law, wills and trusts, all the complicated stuff that has to be done just right. You should check the placement of your natal Saturn for other clues -- as the ruler of the 10th, it will also have quite a bit to say about your career.

2) Uranus is the planet of the individual. It rules all those things that make you unique and all those situations where you must have your freedom, and the house where it's placed will tell you the part of your life in which you can't stand abiding by other people's rules. The more strongly placed it is, the more eccentric and individual you will be; this is especially true if it's in an angular house. If it's weak and afflicted by negative aspects, on the other hand, it'll tell you the part of life where you ought to listen to other people's advice, but usually won't.

[(Anonymous)]

Good afternoon,


1. How soon should we realistically expect to see results from the SoP?


2. What practices could you recommend for developing internal energy? I would be more attracted to meditative methods; but I'm not opposed to ritual entirely.

3. I'm interested in C.G. Jung's concept of the Self/Great Self. Do you see any connection to the idea of the Higher Self? Are they the same thing, in your opinion?

Your help is always very much appreciated. Thanks in advance.

[(Anonymous)]

I expect everyone's mileage to vary but for me... less than 24 hours.

I struggled to say the whole thing completely as I kept experiencing massive emotional blocks to complete it and did it in parts for a few months. I decided to just say it outloud in it's entirety one day and not worry about how I sounded or visualized things. Within 24 hours, I experienced numerous, massive 'coincidences' from the religion I was baptized into as an infant and had not been participating in my entire adult life. It was truly a "You want to do this? You already had us here with you. Just ask." It was remarkable and life changing.

Since then I have continued to do the SOP in parallel to beginning to reengage with the religion. Yes, I prayed about it and have hit no roadblocks about doing them in parallel.

I have gotten much better at the SOP over the years and still feel like I have a long way to go. The levels keep unfolding.

Near-Death Encounters

[(Anonymous)]

Happy Monday! Another basic question, alas. A common feature of near-death experiences is encounters with dead friends and relatives, some of them (e.g. grandparents) long gone. But wouldn't the dead be well along the path of working out the karma from their last incarnation or maybe even in a new body? How/why would they stick around to be part of the welcome committee?

-Roldy-

Re: Near-Death Encounters

[ecosophia]

As long as they're not actually in new bodies yet, souls can certainly take the time to go welcome a loved one who has just arrived. The further along they are in processing their experiences and working out their karma, the clearer their consciousness will be and the more easily they can set aside their work and go to the arrival gate.

Piercings, tattoos and long hair

[carrot18]

Good day JMG.
I've been wondering for a while now about piercings and tattoos and their potential effects on us. More specifically if they have any effect on our etheric bodies, whether that’d be good or bad.
I imagine implanting iron in the body has to have some sort of an effect.

Also, could you mention if you know anything about the potential benefits of long hair? More specifically, I’ve been hearing over the years about how long hair could act as a psychic/spiritual “antenna”. Could there be something to it?
Would love to hear your thoughts. If you have any reading recommendations on these topics then please, do let me know. Most of what I've seen so far was from very questionable sources.

Thank you!
Carrot

Re: Piercings, tattoos and long hair

[ecosophia]

1) The etheric effect of tattoos would depend on the chemical composition of the ink, and that's not a subject I'm familiar with. As far as piercings are concerned, if there are steel objects piercing the skin, that's going to have a disruptive effect, but not that much more than, say, carrying a knife in your pocket or wearing metal-rimmed glasses.

2) There's a very interesting polarity in spiritual traditions between those that insist on shaving the head and those that insist on growing the hair long and covering the top of the head. Shaving the head seems to foster detachment from subtle energies -- that's why soldiers wear buzz cuts, so they don't get caught up in the fear vibrations passed through the subtle energies around them -- while growing the hair long sensitizes you to some extent. I suspect, for what it's worth, that it's mostly a matter of how much sunlight reaches the pineal gland.

[(Anonymous)]

Hello, JMG!

1) I'm currently working through exercises and meditations for the emblems in the Way of the Golden Section, and I'm curious if the emblems (and by extension, cards of the Sacred Geometry Oracle) follow the tetradic pattern like the tarot, with the first two tetrads retelling chapters 1 and 2 of the Cosmic Doctrine, and the last tetrad (emblems 31, 32, 33 and 1) closing the circle and having the relationship between the microcosm and the macrocosm as one of it's themes. Or am I seeing things that aren't there?

2) Last Magic Monday you mentioned that some of the peculiarities of the Lesser Ritual of the Pentagram can be explained by its five-fold symbolism putting it under the influence of Mars. Would that put the Sphere of Protection with it's seven elements under the influence of Venus, and what would that influence be?

[ecosophia]

1) If that's there, it wasn't my doing. I didn't invent the sequence of symbols -- I received them in meditation.

2) Good. Very good. Have you considered taking that as a theme for meditation?

[(Anonymous)]

My younger daughter, age 2.5, appears to see ghosts. She first clearly remarked on this during a graveside funeral service for her great-great uncle, repeatedly pointing to someone we couldn’t see and waving. She said the person was “blue” (in color) and smiling. This has happened in passing a few other times since. She also asked repeatedly who the “third rabbit” was and what “the other rabbit’s” name was when we visited a friend with two pet bunnies. What she didn’t know was they indeed had had had a third bunny, who died somewhat recently.

She doesn’t seem alarmed by these encounters, and I’m not particularly alarmed either, but curious if you have any advice or suggestions. We are liturgical Christians but I don’t have her wear a cross. Do you think she would benefit from that type of protection? If so, would you suggest sterling silver or cherry wood? (The two options I’ve looked at.)

To be clear, I’m not worried about the current encounters but rather that she is perhaps more sensitive to other, less benign entities that might hang around.

One more note—this coincides with the period in which I started doing the opening/closing of the SoP (not in her room or where she hangs out). Should I stop and go back to prayer and meditation only?

Thanks!

[ecosophia]

Many very young children can do that. You're to be commended for raising your daughter so that she trusts you enough to tell you such things. If she's like most children with that sort of gift, it will fade out as she gets older, and then once she reaches her late teens she can regain it if she takes up spiritual practice; I recommend writing down everything of the kind that happens with her, as she'll want to know about it later and probably won't remember.

As for protection, have you taught her to pray? That should be more than enough, at this point, to keep her safe. An image of St. Michael the Archangel would also be worth having, someplace where she spends time. Also, you should keep doing the SoP -- until she is seven, her etheric body will not be entirely separate from yours, and doing the ritual will protect her as well.

question about making a talisman

[(Anonymous)]

Hello.

I have completed LRM and been working through Circles of Power. I have made four talismans over the last few years (using basic consecration format thrice and elemental consecration once).

I am making a talisman with the intention of helping a friend heal from a long illness and will be making a solar talisman.

My intuition has said that both Archangels Michael and Raphael would be great for this purpose. I did Tarot divination and both options came up extremely positively.

Wondering if you think I can make the talisman and include both archangels on it and ask for both their blessings on the working. If this isn't a good idea, I think I would then choose one primary archangel to represent on the talisman and ask the other to also bless the working but not put them on the talisman.

I'd appreciate your thoughts on any of this.

Thank you.

Re: question about making a talisman

[ecosophia]

Yes, you can do this. I wouldn't advise including an archangel that wasn't traditionally linked with the Sun, but of course both Michael and Raphael are given that attribution in the old lore.

MOE Healing Hands

[kylec]

As always, I am offering healing hands to anyone whose physical or emotional well-being is in need of a little boost. You can reply here or PM me with the details. Everyone who previously requested help has been helped and can sign up again as many times as desired. Thank you!

Re: MOE Healing Hands

[(Anonymous)]

I would like to be on your list for a blessing

Atmospheric River

Again with the "Apropos of Nothing" ?!?

[not_gandalf]

Sorry to wool gather on here, but perhaps some feedback would help clarify my thoughts. Feel free to skip.
I have been spending a bunch of time reading "Hellenic Tantra" by Gregory Shaw, who is a scholar of neoplatonic philosophy and an expert on Iamblichus. He is proposing that the study of neo-Platonic philosophers has been distorted by the dualist mindset of, well, everybody in academe really, and that Iamblichus and Theurgy can only be understood from the understanding that Iamblichus was a non-dualist. He also points out interestingly (and I had never actually realized this) that Iamblichus was engaged in a polemic with the dualist thinking of Plotinus, as explicated by Plotinus' amenuensis Porphyry, and that Iamblichus WON that argument, since all the later exponents of Plato's thinking were theurgists, engaging in rituals using symbolic objects in which the essence of the Gods were ACTUALLY embodied as means to bring their consciousnesses into congruence with that of the Gods.

I find this extremely interesting as a practitioner, but the problem that I have is with the insistence that the non-dualist concept means that we are inextricably involved with physical embodiment. His idea is that enlightenment exists in the body, that embodiement in the physical universe is demiurgey (engaging in the creative process of the demiurge. But I think any assertions along this line fall into the trap we face when we, as denizens of the physical, finite world, with bodies that live and die, try to talk comprehensively about anything that is infinite and eternal. All we have is analogies, and a good analogy is good because of how far it goes before it breaks down, but break down it will, especially when the topic is eternity.

But anyway, I suspect that speculating about all this is useful for building the "mental body" (as this analogical system would put it).

THanks for your patience. I have too much time on my hands and too many words in my head...

Re: Again with the "Apropos of Nothing" ?!?

[ecosophia]

I haven't yet read Shaw's book, though it's sitting on my coffee table and I plan on starting it shortly. The thing I'd point out is that Proclus, certainly, had the concept of a luminous body, the augoeides ochema, which provides the soul with its vehicle of embodiment but does not have the same limitations as our current elemental body. Not all bodies are made of flesh and blood!