Magic Monday

[ecosophia]

Midnight is almost here, and so it's time to launch a new Magic Monday. Ask me anything about occultism, and with certain exceptions noted below, any question received by midnight Monday Eastern time will get an answer. Please note:  Any question or comment received after that point will not get an answer, and in fact will just be deleted.  If you're in a hurry, or suspect you may be the 341,928th person to ask a question, please check out the very rough version 1.2 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 about getting goodies from 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.  Given the events scheduled tomorrow, I've pulled this one forward out of order; it's my 65th published book, the one that got me banned from science fiction conventions (despite 18 SF and fantasy novels currently in print) and dropped like a hot rock by most of the Neopagans I know. No, it's not a work of science fiction, nor does it have much to say about Neopaganism. It's a discussion of why the policies embraced by a bipartisan consensus of the elite classes in the US made the rise of Donald Trump or somebody like him inevitable. Yes, it also talks about magic -- the magical manipulations that were used for fifty years to silence any attempt to talk publicly about what the policies just mentioned did to the working classes in the United States, the magic wielded by a motley band of (mostly) young men living in their mothers' basements who marched off to the Meme Wars beneath the banner of a cartoon frog, and the magic attempted by the so-called Magic Resistance, whose attempts to cast death curses and other equally pleasant spells at the people they hate did a lot to bring about the events of last November and the days immediately before us.

That is to say, it's just a little controversial. ;-)  On the off chance you're interested anyway, you can order a copy here if you live in the US and at your favorite online shop or full service bookstore if you live elsewhere.

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

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

Hi John,

Q1. I was raised as a Catholic but not in any very strict sense. I am Irish and I am interested in exploring Irish Druidry/spirituality. 

I feel really drawn to Irish mythology and Irish culture in general over the last few years. I spent many years looking at different forms of esotericism, but none of it ever felt right for me. I was mainly looking at esoteric Christian traditions and other Western stuff. I now feel that what I was looking for was right at home all along.

Would there be any karmic problems due to exploring spirituality that is different from esoteric forms of Christianity? (My current approach). My Catholic guilt is really flaring up.

Q2. Do you know of any good books that present optimistic viewpoints on experimenting with different spiritualities?

Thanks in advance.

[ecosophia]

1) No. Human institutions like to guilt-trip people, and the Catholic church more than most. The gods -- and I include Christ in this -- are much less judgmental. Were you aware that for many centuries, quite a few Irish people combined Catholicism with reverence for the Tuatha Dé Danaan? So it's not even a new thing.

2) Not off hand. Anyone else?

Huxley?

[saturns_pet]

Anonymous and JMG:

Re: Q2

Huxley's The Perennial Philosophy?

Although I won't identify it as experimental or optimistic, I'll call the above fair and comprehensive.

I also cautiously suggest Crowley's 777. (Very cautiously... lol.)

I've found both valuable in my effort to see the axle turning the wheel of diverse traditions.

Good luck, Anon.

Saturns_Pet

[jprussell]

On 2) Jordan Paper's The Deities Are Many comes to mind, as he learned both American Indian and Chinese traditions and talks some about their differences and how they get along in his life. Our host's A World Full of Gods doesn't exactly address this, but does give an intellectual framework for thinking about the Gods as real and multifarious, along with taking apart many of the arguments against religiosity (fair warning, though, it also tends to take apart arguments for strict monotheism).

For The Deities are Many, I have a write-up here, if it helps you decide if it will help with what you're after: https://jpowellrussell.com/#book_thoughts_on_the_deities_are_many

Cheers, and my blessings if you'll have them,
Jeff

[(Anonymous)]

Hi Jeff,


Did I read on your blog that you were a Christian at one point? You then started practicing Heathenism, is that correct?

How have you found the change? Do you have any guilt or fear after changing?

Many thanks for your input.

[jprussell]

Sorry for posting right at the wire, JMG, but since the OP is anonymous, I can't follow up by private message:

I'll make a post on my dreamwidth where you can re-post this question and I can answer you with some more time if that works: jprussell.dreamwidth.org

Cheers,
Jeff

[booklover1973]

Maybe the book "Yearning for the Wind" by Tom Cowan, ISBN 9781577314110, is helpful. It contains essays about nature and soul from an Irish-Celtic spiritual perspective, with some spiritual practices.