Magic Monday

[ecosophia]

It's getting on for midnight 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 not be put through.  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 1.3 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've finished the sequence of my published books; while I decide what I want to do next, I have some memes to share.)

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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

The Wizard Knight and Question on "The Smith and the Devil"

[jprussell]

Good Evening,

May the upcoming astrological reset of Aries bring welcome new opportunities, and ends to what you would have less of!

To Share: Gene Wolfe has been an occasional topic of conversation around here. If you haven't checked out The Wizard Knight, I can strongly recommend it. The ending felt a bit rushed, and I get the impression that Wolfe needs "room to breathe" to be at his full powers. Maybe would have been better as a trilogy of like-sized books, rather than a duology, but still well worth the read. A masterful blend of a hermetic worldview, Arthurian legend, and Germanic myth.

To Ask: A friend was taking a look at the traditional folktale "The Smith and the Devil." In most attested versions, it's pretty Christian: the supernatural being with which the smith makes a deal is literally the devil, often the intercession of Saint Peter is needed to bring things to a happy ending, and so forth. That said, it's apparently a very old story, dating back maybe to Proto-Indo-European times, suggesting a non/pre-Christian version of the story. My friend is trying to unravel what that pre-Christian version might have looked like, and I'd appreciate any pointers from our host or the commentariat on likely myths/mythical figures to check out for comparison (Hephaistos and Weland/Volund are clear smith figures, but I'm not familiar with Indic or Celtic versions, for example).

My blessings to all who welcome them,
Jeff

Re: The Wizard Knight and Question on "The Smith and the Devil"

[ecosophia]

Hmm! I'm not familiar with older versions of the folktale. I assume your friend has already read Mircea Eliade's book The Forge and the Crucible, with its discussions of the magical dimensions of smithcraft; that's the only resource that comes to mind just now.

[rhydlyd]

1 - There seems to be a New Thought adept at work in the memeworks busily banging out Amelia videos for YouTube. (Nevermind the volume and quality suggesting deep pockets somewhere.) Since working-class UK feels downtrodden, something like Skip Downing’s encouragement to be a creator rather than a victim looks to be in play. The memes I’ve been noticing on YouTube seem aimed at reawakening the dormant sense of people and place so that the citizens’ can be reminded that they do have the means to change their government to suit their needs.

Specifically, examining any collection of Amelia memes suggests Paul Ekman’s discrete emotional theory is being used to lead voters along the path of attention, anger, fear, outrage, questions, answers and solutions to the positions of Restore Britain as laid out in their mission and philosophy video on their YouTube channel.

So – do you and the commentariat a rather brainy New Thought campaign to win voters to an upstart party? Or – am I over-connecting disparate dots?

Also, have you or your commentariat developed any idea who might be the divinity inspiring Amelia and her memes?


2 - My interest in Amelia bumps into my curiosity about my American nature and some discussion here about how inextricably British the practice of Druidry is. A friend of mine from the UK recently became US citizen, so he’s able to point out how English both Ohio is and I am. (Well, we do speak with a broken-in West Country accent, so…) Anyway - I almost knocked him over by standing up to shake hands. Despite being not much bigger than he is, I take up much more personal space, and his reaction to colliding with mine looked like he’d walked into a glass door… Which leaves me to wonder if my misadventures in Druidry have a solidifying effect on my personal space. Umm… does it? And – is this effect related to the way elderly men violate my personal space or just want my attention at a noticeably higher rate than my fellow hardware store clerks? I’m thinking so, but coincidence is not causality…


3 - And – Since HPL comes up here now and again… While looking for Amelia memes, an AI music video, “Down at the Crossroads - Memphis Blues - Uncle Sam's Blues Featuring ‪clickthecat‬,” (you’ll want the five minute version with the spoken intro) happened by… leaving me to wonder about Nyarlathotep’s interest in the blues how widely influential Lovecraft is, and why his source material is enjoying a resurgence.

[ecosophia]

1) No surprises there. One of the fascinating things about the populist movement, at least to me, is that it seems very open to occultism, and once Amelia seized the British popular imagination, working with her as a magical image must have been far too tempting to resist.

2) How very odd. I'll be interested to hear suggestions from those who, not being as autistic as I am, might have a clue.

3) To the best of my knowledge, the idea that Nyarlathotep is a blues fan was my own invention -- once I'd decided to redefine the Great Old Ones as the old gods of nature and started retconning them into folklore and myth, equating the Crawling Chaos with the crossroads devil of blues legend was an easy choice, and his musical tastes followed from there. Lovecraft, though, has been hugely influential in American popular culture since the 1970s. His source material? Most of what he wrote came to him in dreams...

How do I figure out which occult model to use?

[(Anonymous)]

Hello Mr. Greer,

I am trying to understand something in my life from an occult perspective and I am not sure which model within occultism to use.

The issue is I always run into trouble with father figures. More specifically, they never seem to listen to anything I have to say and almost always underestimate my abilities. My own biological father did this to a comical degree. For example, he seemed utterly baffled that I wanted to pursue graduate education when I spent my whole childhood obsessed with this idea. I have since then experienced the same thing with numerous older men in positions of authority over me. I myself am a very academically inclined individual and these people often see me as ignorant while peers and for that matter everyone see the opposite in me.

If I use karma to understand this I might say I abused authority over another in a past life and now need to pay this karmic debt by realizing the error.

Yeats vision might say that I am at a place on the lunar wheel that calls for me to lay aside my own personality and start moving towards more collective concerns.

Jung might say I am projecting my shadow and really there is something bad yet unrecognized in these men that I subconsciously see in myself.

So what do you do when you are trying to discern between competing occult paradigms? Do you use mediation? Prayer? Divination? Or what?

Re: How do I figure out which occult model to use?

[ecosophia]

Paradigms are overrated, and consciously held and constructed paradigms are even more so. It's far more important simply to accept that your experience is what it is, acknowledge that you don't yet know what it means, and get on with life.

Yeats Phase 1 & Mental Sheath Reset?

[3bmend_135]

Since it is not a question about the second quarter, I am posting this question here.

During Phase 1 of total objectivity, does the soul's mental sheath get stripped down to its most primitive form, which then has the opportunity to develop as the soul moves through the phases?

Patrick H

Edit: Alternatively, the mental sheath just goes mostly dormant during the early primary phases.

Re: Yeats Phase 1 & Mental Sheath Reset?

[ecosophia]

That's a very good question which Yeats does not address at all. To the extent that he hints at an answer at all, it would be that the growth of the mental sheath is a slow process and takes multiple trips 'round the Great Wheel to take place. Thus a soul at Phase 1 the first few times around wouldn't have more than a very tentative mental sheath anyway, and a soul very late in the process of human existence would have a very different experience of Phase 1. But that's a tentative suggestion, and much development of the system would be needed to settle the matter.

Geomancy repeated figures vs judge and witnesses

[(Anonymous)]

Recently I cast a shield chart for an omen regarding an upcoming trip that I would appreciate an extra set of eyes on:

What do I most need to know about my upcoming trip?

1st Mother: Merch
2nd Mother: Bendith Fawr
3rd Mother: Colled
4th Mother: Merch

1st Daughter: Merch
2nd Daughter: Pobl
3rd Daughter: Ffordd
4th Daughter: Mab

1st Niece: Llawenydd
2nd Niece: Tristwch
3rd Niece: Merch
4th Niece: Gwyn

RW: Carchar
LW: Carchar
Judge: Pobl

I see a pair of Carchar, a negative figure making Pobl, a neutral figure. 2 negative + 1 neutral = negative reading.

However, Carchar repeated is considered a good omen with regard to safety in travel, and in questions concerning travel it is a good omen if traveling by land. I have a flight involved, but the majority of travel is land-based. The upper chart doesn't seem very ominous - 3 of 4 nieces are favorable and the top row is 50% composed of Merch and Bendith Fawr, which are good signs, accompanied by Ffordd, a good sign for land trips, and pobl, which at least doesn't hurt.

Given world events, would it be too far-fetched to square the circle by supposing this omen is one of safety in travels by virtue of the trip being cancelled, or is there a different interpretation I'm missing?

Re: Geomancy repeated figures vs judge and witnesses

[ecosophia]

If I got this chart in response to that question I'd assume that the trip would be cancelled or changed significantly (Carchar) due to collective events outside my control (Pobl). The repeated figures are in my experience less important than the testimony of the judge and witnesses.

SoP with Planetary Forces

[(Anonymous)]

Apologies if this has been asked and answered before, but is there a way of modifying the SoP to call on planetary names as one would gods?

Thank you!

Re: SoP with Planetary Forces

[ecosophia]

Sure. The standard symbolism is this:

East: Sun
West: Mercury
South: Mars
North: Venus
Below: Saturn
Above: Jupiter

The Moon corresponds to Spirit Within, but of course you don't invoke that seventh factor by name. since you yourself are always the central element in the SoP.

Celtic Questions!

[(Anonymous)]

Hello JMG!

• Would it be useful to start with Learning Ritual Magic before Celtic Golden Dawn? I would not skip anything from the second course, even if perceived overlaps were found, and I don't intend to mix up any practices. My target is the Celtic Golden Dawn. However I heard LRM is very good to star off slowly, build the necessary muscle and also take the time to study the standard classics of western ritual magic. Being in no hurry, adding an informed appreciation of how CGD changes the classic GD and Kabbalah basics sound very interesting, but only if it would not be bad for the actual practice.

• I read somewhere that classic GD magic seeks more of a transcendental goal than more natural, druidic practices; That you would tend to, when following such more nature based systems, "stay here" with the natural world in your discarnate future, connecting in a different way with the beyond. Does that make any sense to you?

Thks!!

Re: Celtic Questions!

[ecosophia]

1) No, LRM uses a different symbolism entirely. The Celtic Golden Dawn is designed for the complete beginner, and you can take as much time in the first level, the Ovate Grade, as you need. (You can do the same thing with the other two grades, for that matter.)

2) Yes, but the Celtic GD system isn't a nature-based system in that sense. It's a solar path, with effects similar to any other GD system. You might compare it to the system in my book The Druid Magic Handbook to get some sense of the differences.

Non-magical Spring Equinox Celebrations?

[(Anonymous)]

Hi JMG,

The self-initiation route I am taking does not allow for magic outside of the prescribed daily rituals; I was wondering what are some ways to celebrate the upcoming spring equinox otherwise? Would love to hear from the commentariat as well.

Thanks for these Magic Mondays!

Re: Non-magical Spring Equinox Celebrations?

[ecosophia]

You might spend some time outdoors, paying attention to the weather, and then have a special dinner, with or without friends, to celebrate the arrival of spring.

re: nascent lovecraftian egregores

[(Anonymous)]

if one speculates they may be being hunted, that unseen and identified forces have a vested interest in ensuring ones metaphorical and even literal demise, what would be the most prudent course of action? fortification? tracing threads to the origin of the threat even if it is insurmountable and defies recognition? even if these limitless threads may be demises' embodiment?

is there a way to accept impossibility and futility against an unconquerable enemy without giving tacit consent to the arrival of death? surely you can't blame a man for defending life, capture, and all that he loves.... even when the armor and resistance themselves might be a trojan horse?

perhaps the man in question should seek equally formidable allies?

thank you in advance.

Re: nascent lovecraftian egregores

[ecosophia]

Perhaps the man in question should start by making sure all this isn't nascent paranoia. Vast cosmic powers don't bother with individual human beings -- why should they? If they just wait a little while, an eyeblink-time of half a dozen decades or so, the individual will be dead anyway. Seriously, I recommend getting yourself some counseling.

Ecosophia Prayer List

[ecoprayer]

At this page is the full list of all of the non-faith-specific 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 (printable version here, current to 3/13). Please feel free to add any or all of the requests to your own prayers.

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

* * *
This week I would like to bring special attention to the following prayer requests, selected from the fuller list.

May Bob W of Lake County, Ohio's treatment for cancer go well so that he may heal and recover as quickly as possible.

May Open Space be filled with the strength he needs to heal quickly from his current bout of Chicken Pox; may his will remain strong, that he does not scratch; may he be healed completely, and suffer no scarring in its wake.

May Bob Ralston (aka Rasty Bob), who is in hospice care in Buckeye AZ, and who just lost his wife Leslie Fish, be blessed and find relief from his pain and discomfort; may Bob's heart remain strong.

May Princess Cutekitten, who has made no comments on any of the Ecosophia blogs for a year now, and hasn't responded to attempts at contact, be blessed wherever she is and in whatever form she may exist.

May Cathy N. of St. Marys, Ohio heal and recover from injuries caused by a fall.

May Dustin, a relative of Brenainn, be healed of a recently discovered heart condition.

May 1Wanderers's partner Cathy, whose cancer has returned, be given the physical and mental strength to fight it, and tolerate the treatment, and may she enjoy a full and permanent recovery.

May Jule from Iserlohn, Germany, who is experiencing complications in her pregnancy due to an influenza infection, recover and have a pleasant pregnancy and birth.

May Larry Mulford, who has entered hospice after a year battling with pancreatic cancer, pass in the smoothest possible manner, and may his wife be enveloped in our love.

May Marko have the strength to seize the opportunities.

May Pierre's young daughter, Athena, be healed from her fatigue and its root causes in ways that are easy, natural, and as holistic as possible.

May 5 year old Max be blessed and protected during his parents' contentious divorce; may events work out in a manner most conducive to Max's healthy development over the long term.

May Lydia G. of Geauga County, Ohio heal and recover from prolonged health issues.

May both Monika and the child she is pregnant with both be blessed with good health and a safe delivery.

May Mary's sister have her auto-immune conditions sent into remission, may her eyes remain healthy, and may she heal in body, mind, and spirit.

May Trubujah's best friend Pat's teenage daughter Devin, who has a mysterious condition which doctors are so far baffled by necessitating that she remain in a wheelchair, be healed of her condition; may the underlying cause come to light so that treatment may begin.

May Kevin’s sister Cynthia be cured of the hallucinations and delusions that have afflicted her, and freed from emotional distress. May she be safely healed of the physical condition that has provoked her emotions; and may she be healed of the spiritual condition that brings her to be so unsettled by it. May she come to feel calm and secure in her physical body, regardless of its level of health.

May Frank R. Hartman, who lost his house in the Altadena fire, and all who have been affected by the larger conflagration be blessed and healed.

* * *
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.

Inner sound

[(Anonymous)]

After doing zen meditation for about a year I became aware of a high-pitched ”inner sound” that springs up when I am silent and still. It is somewhere between a vibration and a sound and is very soothing as a meditation tool. Do you have any idea of what this might be? Or what it might signify? Thanks

Re: Inner sound

[ecosophia]

That's a common experience with certain kinds of meditation; it's what Pythagoras called the music of the spheres. It means that you've made some progress in meditation, which is a very good thing. You might, though, see if you can find a properly trained Zen instructor -- now that you've gotten that far, you may need expert guidance to avoid some of the potential pitfalls in the intermediate and advanced stages of the work.

Divine Names in Mysteries of Merlin

[(Anonymous)]

Good Morning Mr. Greer and commentariat,

I'm working through the Ovate cicle of Mysteries of Merlin currently and have some questions regarding the divine names in the LRP.

I'm likely overthinking unhelpfully, but if someone can offer some insights or context, that would be appreciated anyways.

1. Is there some more information about HEU'C and SYLW?
I assumed SYLW is connected to the sun, but for HEU'C I have absolutely no idea who / what it would be connected to? I only assume it should be connected to a deity, because the other two directions get a name from the deities associated with the stations on the wheel.

2. I saw somewhere a template you posted for creating ones own LRP and there IIRC it was stated to put two gods and two godesses with the godesses at E / W. Assuming SYLW is corresponding to a goddess as the name is opposite ELEN, would you be willing to elaborate why you did it the other way for the CGD? That just got me curious.

3. My mind somehow expects Elen and Esus to be associated with the other's direction as that would make them correspond more to the elements. What am I missing here?

Thanks for your time.

Re: Divine Names in Mysteries of Merlin

[ecosophia]

1) Heu'c is a variant form of Hu Gadarn, Hu the Mighty, who appears in Druid Revival literature and also Welsh mythology. Sulw is a variant of Sul, the goddess of the hot springs at Bath, called Sulis Minerva by the Romans.

2) Because it worked better that way. Keep in mind, first, that the templates I post are suggestions rather than laws, and second, that I deliberately do things differently in different books and other resources, in an attempt to head off fundamentalism of the "JMG said it, I believe it, that settles it" variety before it can get started.

3) What a fine theme for mediation! I mean that quite literally. If something in the teachings doesn't make sense to you, study it, meditate on it, treat it as a riddle that has something important to teach.

The Higher Genius and Occult Medicine

[open_space]

I have been working some practices that help you connect with my Higher Genius that I do once every other week. It has been a moving practic so when you mentioned the orphic hymn to the personal daemon as a daily devotional practice I jumped on the idea and have been doing it daily. The language took me some effort, and the effort made me think.

I notice, perhaps out of my catholic upbringing, that the way in which deity is addressed here in the hymn is not very different from the catholic way of doing it. For example, the use of the words dread and terrible, revenge and tortures dire, refer much more to the sense of fear inspiring awe of something much bigger and powerful than you. Someone who can decide your fate and damn you if you push too hard against her will. I found that very instructive, because even though I approach deities with respect I do seem to more generally approach them as I would approach Jesus: forgiving and compassionate. I don't think that attitude is that useful when it comes to deities that are not of compassion because it tends to foster a response of fear in the devotee when a compassionate reply is not received. Ehm, like a child scolded by a parent instead of, say, a coworker to which you respond to. That could very easily be mishandled. For example, finding such deity dangerous or worse, evil, if one is self centered enough and unable to think differently about deities. Somehow that rings a bell!

I can see, on the other hand, how when praying to God it can lead to groveling and asking for forgiveness instead of manning up and doing what needs to be done in a world where the lower self is not the center, and the deity is not there to take care of you. I've noticed you mentioning this, but I don't think I had been able to discern what it meant. Useful, so very useful. The religion I was born into needs to bring more emphasis in its catechism in what I guess is referred as the fear of God, it would save everyone from so much trouble. It makes me think of some of the deities I've had trouble connecting with, like Saturn. I can almost picture him working, wondering what that screeching noise coming out of his devices has been all this long, only to say: Oh, pity, another stubborn soul got stuck on the gears of my clock, lets free him now. I chuckle now at that thought.

My first question today is. Would you be able to say a few words on this notion of deity as terrible and dreadful beings from the Neoplatonic point of view and their relationship with us?

Secondly, towards the end it's mentioned attending to the sacred rites. What is this referring to?

And a third question if I may. I am on my way back from Asia and I did a stop in Malaysia. One of the things I did was going to the Museum of Islamic Arts. Besides my jaw hitting the floor every other showcase from the staggering beauty and precision of Malay and Islamic handicrafts, I became aware of something I was not from the Ancient World. Through trade routes, Malay and Islamic healing modalities learned to use the Galenic humoral system and seem to have developed it considerably into their own traditiod. And there are loads of manuscripts about them. I bought a 3kg book just of summaries of them. I am very interested in occult and energetic physiology and anatomy partly because it is one of the fields that I consider need more development and reconstruction in our tradition. If you had to trace a workpath for a medium term research and experimental project, say, 4-6 months of work into this topic: What tools would be useful for correlation with what we do have in the west? What questions would you ask yourself? One of the things I would like to know is if they were able to workout an anatomy and system of working with the dense etheric body and if they applied alchemy or herbology into it.

Re: The Higher Genius and Occult Medicine

[ecosophia]

1) To my mind it's crucial to remember that the gods are vaster and mightier than we can imagine. The dim reflections of them that show up in our mythologies and traditions are inadequate, to use no stronger word, as expressions of their true power, might, and scale. Nor can they be anything else, since (to return to a favorite metaphor) our chance of understanding the gods is roughly on a par with the chance that the dust mites in Mozart's wig could understand his music. Fear is an appropriate response to this. The Bible is spot on when it says "the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom" -- not the end of it, or even the intermediate stage of it, but the beginning. If you don't shiver at least a little when you contemplate the gods you're missing an important reality.

The guardian genius or daimon -- that's spelled "guardian angel" in Christian-influenced traditions -- is not on the same scale, but it's still bigger, wiser, and mightier than the individual it guards. The Orphic hymn focuses on the idea that the guardian genius is also the one that dispenses what Eastern traditions call karma -- "revenge and tortures dire" refer to that. You're basically saying to the genius, "Help me work with you so I don't have to get socked in the face too often."

2) That's the point of the sacred rites. Remember that the Orphic hymns were originally written to be sung at celebrations of mystery initiations! The same principle applies, however, whenever you pray and make offerings to the gods. You're asking your guardian genius to be present and take part in the courteous and hospitable interaction that prayer and offerings are meant to bring about.

3) I'm probably the last person to ask, because I don't plan out workpaths in advance, ever. I engage the material and see where it leads me. If you want to know why so many of my books are so weird, why, now you know!

[(Anonymous)]

Dear JMG,
Last week I asked you a question and, because of time zone differences, I did not see your answer until some time on Tuesday.
My question was about the Iran War, and the disturbing (at least to me) influence of senior figures in both the US and Israel who have, and express, an apocalyptic mindset, suggesting that for them the war is a religious one which will bring about the second coming of Jesus. My question was not on the progress of the war itself, which is for elsewhere, but whether this had produced a change in the astral weather, since leaders in both countries believe, or at least talk about, the possibility of apocalyptic wars.

I mentioned in passing that we don't have such things in Europe, and this was the point you answered, referencing the millennial movements in the middle ages and later. This is quite true of course, and I remember reading Cohn's book on the subject fifty years ago. But my question was specifically about the influence of apocalyptic biblical prophecies on the thinking of modern leaders involved in a high-stakes and potentially disastrous war. I wondered if you thought that, apart from the practical dimension, there was also an important esoteric issue here.

[ecosophia]

Thanks for clarifying. Apocalyptic fantasies of one kind or another have been a driving force in international conflict all along, including in modern times -- the Cold War, for example, was dominated by the clash between Christian apocalypticism on the part of the US and Marxist apocalypticism on the part of the Soviet Union. So I don't think there's a change in the astral weather -- it's just more of the same.

Medical astrology

[(Anonymous)]

JMG

Not that long ago I had a very serious health crisis that I barely came through but now have to manage for the foreseeable future. Could medical astrology provide some useful information to better manage my situation? If so, do you know of anyone you could recommend?

/Fredrik

Re: Medical astrology

[ecosophia]

That isn't a field I've studied to any degree, and I'm not currently aware of anyone who has really gotten into classic medical astrology. Maybe someone else has a suggestion to make.

Egregores/Magical Groups

[(Anonymous)]

Greetings John!
This is a bit of a convoluted question, but I’ll try to keep it simple. I suppose this has to do with magic in a much broader sense. I wanted to see what you thought of this. I’m still quite green, but in having interest in Neoplatonism and Kabbalah I’ve of course invested some time into the golden dawn. But I’m realizing that the source material that the order bases its teachings on, at least some of them, are either incorrect or really strange interpretations. Take the correspondence given to the seven double letters. I do realize the safer get Sepher Yetzirah manuscripts can disagree with one another.. What I’m trying to get at here is do mistakes like this affect the efficiency of the magic within the order? Or if the egregore is strong enough, does the fact that this information is believed and practiced consistently over time overcome that shortcoming? I’ll tack this last question on as well, was the golden Dan influenced more by the new thought movement in terms of its interpretation of older systems like Neoplatonism and Hermeticism? Does the order represent these ideas properly, is what I’m getting at. Thank you for your time John. Hope you’re doing good!

Re: Egregores/Magical Groups

[ecosophia]

Symbolism is a tool, not a truth, and so there are no wrong symbols. There are, for example, at least a dozen ways to apply the Hebrew alphabet to the Tree of Life, and they all work -- what's more, they work equally well. Quarrels among the partisans of different systems are like a quarrel between a German, a Frenchman, and an Englishman about whether the four-legged animal barking at them is ein Hund, un chien, or a dog.

The GD drew its symbolism from one particular corner of mostly British occultism with close ties to some of the odder ends of Christian Cabala. Other traditions draw from other places and have their own oddities. None of it matters in practice; any symbolic system studied and practiced assiduously will have comparable effects, just as you can say "that's a dog" in any human language.

[(Anonymous)]

Freaking hilarious meme!

I was hanging out with one of my buddies Friday night, and the topic went to a Satanist he worked with and knew for awhile, and all the interpersonal shenanigans this guy tried to pull on my friend. It is interesting that this person, now well into middle age, still works at a local fast food restaurant chain. I have absolutely nothing against those in the service industry, but for all his Satanic power, he still hasn't gotten much of anything in life. Unless you count coming home smelling like chili and fry grease. That's real attractive to the ladies!

JPM

[ecosophia]

That's the thing about Satanism, and also about the various demon-summoning forms of magic that are so fashionable these days. Their practitioners go on and on about how these things will make them powerful and successful, but yeah, in my experience they're all still flipping burgers and waiting for the promised bucks and babes to put in an appearance. Meanwhile those who work with magical traditions that don't depend on mooching favors from debased spiritual entities by and large get much better results.

Levi book

[(Anonymous)]

Hello, Is your book on Eliphas Levi's "Doctrine & Ritual" to be released this spring? I'm looking forward to seeing it.

Re: Levi book

[ecosophia]

It'll be out next month and is already available for preorder:

https://spirit.aeonbooks.com/product/great-arcanum/95405

If you enter the discount code ARCANUM20 when you preorder you get 20% off the cover price.

[(Anonymous)]

What is the purpose of prayer?

[ecosophia]

That depends very much on what you mean by that much-muddled word. If you mean the sort of "Lord gimme this, Lord gimme that" crap enshrined in hymns such as "Sweet Hour of Prayer" --

"That bids me at my Father's throne
Make all my wants and wishes known"

-- it's an exercise in overinflated entitlement and inevitable frustration. The Divine is not a vending machine.

True prayer is the act of spending time in the company of some aspect of the Divine. It's at least as much a matter of listening as of talking. Approach the deity to whom you pray as you would a much older and wiser friend and you're likely to get it right. Speak and then listen attentively, or just be in the presence of the deity.

Maybe you had the experience in childhood of sitting with a beloved grandparent. The two of you might not have exchanged more than a few words, if any; there you were, side by side on the sofa; Grandpa was reading the newspaper, and you were reading a picture book and slowly piecing together what the letters spelt out -- and yet the memory is one of great closeness and comfort. That's a very powerful kind of prayer. Mystics call it the prayer of simple regard, or when it's turned into a sustained discipline, the practice of the presence of God.

The important point is that you build a relationship with the Divine the way you build any other relationship, by spending time with the other person. Prayer in all its many forms is how you do that with the Divine.

[thinking_turtle]

To share, for those who wonder what RW, BOTA, or LMP mean, a list of abbreviations used on Ecopsophia. And here is a list of the books our host published so far.

[ecosophia]

Thank you for this as always.

[(Anonymous)]

Hello John,


Q1. As a polytheist, what would you say forming a relationship with deities consists of?

I can't imagine that deities need or want anything from human beings. Are they inclined to help humans for some reason?

Q2. What would be a good beginner practice for trying to form a relationship with a deity?

Q3 As a polytheist, what do you think will happen to you when your sojourn here comes to an end?

Thanks as always for Magic Monday.

[ecosophia]

1) One of the great differences between standard Abrahamic monotheism and traditional polytheism is that polytheism doesn't postulate the vast and irreconcilable difference between deity and humanity that most monotheist faiths do. The gods and goddesses are greater, wiser, and mightier than we are, but the difference isn't absolute; there are greater and lesser gods, and some of the lesser ones are much closer to the human level. As for what they might want from us, I can think of no better explanation than one I put into one of my novels:

*****
She laughed, shaking her head in amazement, then considered the vast span of time she’d been shown, the infinitesimal length of her own life, and the greater but still tiny span allotted to her species, and asked in wonder: why do you even bother with us?

The answer this time came in the form of one of her own memories. That autumn, looking out the window of her bedroom in the house on Halsey Street, she’d seen a bright-eyed little wren hopping here and there on the outside sill, and watched it for most of fifteen minutes until it finally darted off in a flurry of tiny wings. The image came back to her in perfect clarity, vanished as suddenly as it had come.

The image delighted her, and she laughed again. A sudden stray thought tried to convince her that she should take offense at the comparison, brought up all those claims she’d heard that human beings had some grander role in the scheme of things than wrens or hermit crabs or faint shapeless blurs at the bottom of Archaean tidepools; a slogan from a poster on a Miskatonic University bulletin board tried to force its way into her mind. At that moment, it might as well have tried to convince her that squares have five sides and rocks fall straight up into the sky. I hope we entertain you, she said, still laughing.

Now and again, the not-voice responded, amused. Then, serious again: But there is another matter. Some things can be done by a wren that a human cannot do as easily, or at all.

She had wondered, since her first contact with Saint Toad, if one of the doors that would open before her would lead her to do things at the Great Old One’s direction. She could refuse, she knew that at once, and there might be good reason to do so, but the thought was a distant abstraction. If there’s anything you want me to do...

All in good time, the Great Old One replied.

*****
2) Prayer is the standard approach. You might consider setting up a little shrine -- a sacred image and an incense burner are quite enough to start with -- and taking a little while every day to pray there.

3) Well, I recall scraps of some of my previous lives, so I expect to go on to some other incarnation. Still, we'll see!

[(Anonymous)]

Hi JMG,

I'm familiar with the SoP, Judson exercise, LBRP and the Bornless ritual. But I've been wondering about other techniques of protection and banishing/cleansing.
The same methods seem to appear again and again in esoteric literature. I don't see a huge variety in the techniques available.

Q1. Are you aware of any list of such practices? 


Q2. Are there any methods that only involve prayer and meditation? I'm specifically wondering about Christian methods here. I would imagine a lot of the older Christian esoteric practices involve a lot of prayer.

Thanks in advance.

[ecosophia]

1) I wish there was such a list.

2) In terms of protection? Sure. Many Christians say a daily prayer to St. Michael the Archangel for spiritual protection:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prayer_to_Saint_Michael

Different Strokes

[degringolade]

I spent some very useful time trying to figure out mundane astrology. I now know two things, the first is that here is something there, the second is that it doesn't seem to "fit" inside my psyche, so I just pay you a subscription and let you give me overviews over at your Patreon site.

That being said, I am definitely more interested in the use of tarot to get peeks at what is coming down the pike in the big bad world. This being the case, do you, or any reader, have any suggestions concerning texts that might be useful in figuning out "Mundane Tarot"?

I am presently going with the idea that the tarot can be used as a mundane prediction system by spending some serious time thoroughly framing the question inside your brain before/while randomizing the cards.

Maybe it is more than that, but if anyone has any suggestions, I would be more than happy to listen.

Re: Different Strokes

[ecosophia]

I don't know of anybody who's worked that out in detail, but it should certainly be possible; John Heydon and Christopher Cattan showed that mundane geomancy was an option, back in the Renaissance, and tarot should be equally suitable for such projects. I'll be interested to see what you come up with!

Jewels and charges

[(Anonymous)]

I have had some jewels which had belonged to a friend come into my possession through the gift of another friend who had them from the first friend's estate. I do not know the kinds of stones in them, though probably should ascertain that for mundane insurance purposes whether cut glass, semi-precious, or precious (any is possible given the friends, though the more expensive options are more probable).
My question is if it is possible that these jewels picked up a charge from being present in many, many fraternal ritual ceremonies over the years, and if so, if there are any precautions to take on the cleaning and caretaking side. The ring particularly feels like it wants to be worn, and as it is a bit snaggy would not sensibly be the first choice for everyday wear, and yet . . .

BoysMom

Re: Jewels and charges

[ecosophia]

Good heavens, yes. Lodge ceremonies, even when they're performed by people who have no clue, have energetic effects, and a piece of symbolic jewelry repeatedly worn in a lodge setting will undergo a process of entrainment that will lead to it absorbing and radiating much of the energy.

I recommend washing them in lukewarm water and exposing them to unfiltered sunlight, to clear away any unwanted etheric influence, and then using your intuition to decide whether and when to wear them. If the ring's energy is positive, it may bring you a whole range of subtle and not-so-subtle benefits if you wear it.

Religion, alienation, and the turning of an age.

[jflylynn]

Hello Mr Greer.

I was listening to your recent talk with plant cunning while doing some throughly boring manual labor and was struck by a comment you made about axial religion. You mentioned that axial religion is very focused on uniformity of everything that believers engage in. This seemed to express about 90% of everything I’ve struggled with in a long and maybe still ongoing journey in Christianity. Namely that I can’t be bothered to condemn people that seem to be faithful to my God in a different manner and am continually confused as to why pastors and laymen alike seemed dead set on convincing me to be faithful towards said God in ways that damage my own faith.
This has led me to two hypotheses about the way I think religion is going to go in the next few centuries. Firstly religion is going to get weird I suspect the Protestant inclination in the US to spilt into an infinite spectrum of tiny denominations that all are generally cordial will continue. This will be joined by a host of new traditions that may or may not give any credibility to axial era religion or tradition.
Secondly that the idea of a war of religion will dissipate, in the west at least, due to the enspectrumification of religion. I see this as a great thing religious war had tended to be a great excuse for committing horrific war crimes and the less of those the better. Now if you’re the kind of young man that is reconstructing his entire identity around a mental image of the halcyon religious past that is rapidly filling up the conservative end of religion today this is probably less good news.
Finally I think we have already seen this beginning to take effect. Most notably that stalwart of the full flowering of axial religion the Catholic Church is allowing a remarkable amount of liturgical variation since Vatican 2 and seems to be open to reabsorbing its rightward schismatics if they would calm down a little.
I have no idea of I’ve hit the nail on the head or am wandering into a swamp but this line of thinking has helped my own religious life and I hope will help others suffering the cognitive dissonance of having a non-axial mind while trying to live in an axial religion. I also would like to say that I don’t think the next great age of this chunk of mankind will be a utopian garden we are still monkeys with rocks (very fancy rocks but still rocks) and humans will sadly always find reasons to hate rob and kill each other.

JL

Re: Religion, alienation, and the turning of an age.

[ecosophia]

This is certainly what I suspect. We're moving out of the Piscean age, which belongs to the element of water and is ruled by Neptune; water corresponds to emotions and Neptune is the planet of unities, so powerful emotional pressures toward unity and uniformity have typified Piscean religion. The coming Aquarian age belongs to the element of air and is ruled by Uranus, the planet of individuality and eccentricity; I expect the religions of the next 2160 years to be more intellectual than emotional and much more diverse, focusing on each individual following his or her own spiritual vision.

I think a significant minority of people are already becoming attuned to the new influence, and find themselves alienated from the Axial/Piscean faiths. The current movement toward religious conservatism is of course also a factor; the Second Religiosity, as Oswald Spengler called it, is an attempt to stave off social and mental chaos by returning to a stable source of meaning and value. It's an important and generally beneficial part of the declining phase of every great civilization, but as it proceeds it'll become more and more a habit of the overrprivileged classes, while strange new religious visions take shape down in the crawlspaces of society among the disenfranchised and underprivileged masses. That is to say, things will get strange as we proceed.