Magic Monday

[ecosophia]

It's getting on for midnight as I type this, so here we go with a new Magic Monday. This week's classic of Western occultism, since I've been indulging in Ross Nichols' poetry of late, is The Cosmic Shape, published in 1946, which contains his brilliant essay "An Examination of Creative Myth," which discusses the need for nature-myth and ritual as a counterbalance to the artificialities of modern life, and his related Arthurisn poem-cycle "The Cosmic Legend," as well as other poems of his and his fellow poet James Kirkup. He clearly discussed these ideas with his good friend Gerald Gardner; those ideas ended up playing a central role in the creation of Wicca as well as the transformations of 20th-century Druidry. Here's a bit from "The Cosmic Legend": 

I have made my ceremonies; the crisis
comes. None may reproduce, no water flow,
until the sword is from its sheath pulled.
Only I, the medicine-man Gawain, instructing 
at midnight Galahad, the pure one of 
spring -- only I can save you, faithless 
with the fallen leaf. I prove to you,
O my dead people, once again that
I alone am your strength.

In the first ray beating touching on the centre altar-stone
to the eye prepared at vigil-end, the vessel of the sun,
cup and heart, to Galahad. 

Ask me anything about occultism and I'll do my best to answer it. Any question received by midnight Monday Eastern time will get an answer. If you're in a hurry, or suspect you may be the 143,916th person to ask a question, please check out the very rough version 1.0 of The Magic Monday FAQ here.

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With that said, have at it!

***This Magic Monday is now closed -- and yes, this means you.  See you next week!*** 

And don't forget to look up your Pangalactic New Age Soul Signature at CosmicOom.com! 

Comments

Sexual Energy and Magic

[(Anonymous)]

I´m right now taking on the SoP and ,since two years now, the taoist masturbatory meditation a la Mantak Chia. A week ago i touched myself right before working the SoP and the Results felt incredible; on a magical level of course (;

During the Opening i could feel the white beam of the spirits above and below resting so heavy on me, as if i was nailed to ground and ceiling at the same time.

I will certainly explore the route further. Do you have any advice?

Kind Regards, Till

[(Anonymous)]

You mention that sea salt in a glass jar can cleanse a space as glass is considered a liquid. Does it matter if the lid is on or not?

I know it depends on the environment, but generally how long before the salt would have to be thrown out? How would you know?

Re Hughes' working, what if you are not a racist but use the line "I ask for repentance for the sins of my ancestors and for forgiveness of my own racism and offenses" anyway? Is it just redundant?

Also, is it even possible to gain forgiveness for others, even if they were ancestors?

Birthdays and Such

[weirdtales]

First off, a very happy birthday to you, dear teacher and friend! If I'm not mistaken, this would be your 58th?

On to questions:

1) I saw in the comments, regarding the stupendously ill-timed working of the week, that the use of black candles should be reserved for certain types of workings, not altogether pleasant ones. I've been lighting one with the symbol of Saturn scratched into it every Saturday during daily ritual for many months now, simply as a layer of my reverence and observation of cycles. (I do the same thing every other day of the week with the appropriate color for those days.) Is this practice ill-advised?

2) In the last Open Post we talked briefly about karmic culmination - specifically about how I had called down the thunder on myself when I wrote in my journal "what I wouldn't give to get back to the level of spiritual growth I was getting in September!" And then proceeded to have to give up several of my favorite things as a result of the pain they were causing me. Does karmic culmination like this indicate contact with one's higher self? I have a hard time believing that there's some deity "up there" with nothing better to do than punish me for what amount to pretty mediocre transgressions. Seems more like internal guidance.

Many thanks for your time!

The future of occult communities

[(Anonymous)]

Hi JMG,

What do you suppose the effects will be on the future of occult movements of the corporate-approved activism of current members of the online pop-occult scene? I am interested to know of there will eventually be a schism that results in serious occultism being driven underground.

Do you believe that there is a connection between the current fad of working with demons in the pop-occult world and the large amount of dysfunction in that magical scene?

Thanks for your answers!

[(Anonymous)]

What ritual should or could I preform to become more suited to take trips into the depths of my subconscious or the underworld?

Half a year, almost

[vitranc]

Hi JMG, happy birthday and all the best wishes!

I have now been practicing the DMH for about 6 months, trying to set aside time for SOP, 15 min of meditation and a reading per day. My journual shows, that I manage to follow up on almost every day.
Since my birthday is also in early June I thought I would stop and write down some observations.
1.) The heavens have yet to part for me and I am still as mugglebound as ever. :-) Ahh well back to Gwions couldron stirring I go.
2.) I have managed to upgrade my visualisation of the gates in the SOP with the material that I got in meditation on the elements. They are more clear now.
3.) About 2 weeks ago I was a bit uneasy when going to sleep, so I tried on the spot to banish, and when just thinking about the elemental cross, the whole structure just poped out around me in my vision, imagination, .. Head …
It was a nice trial run, and apparently the daily repetitions are leaving tracks.
4.) I am an office desk jockey, with all the usual back pain that comes with it. Previouslly I tried to do some exercises to aleviate it, with modest success. But a couple of months ago I noticed my back pain is almost all gone. And the change corresponds aproximatly with January this year.
Could my practices have a positive effect on my back?

Thank you for your support and best regards,
V

[(Anonymous)]

JMG,

I would eventually like to become a writer in the areas of occultism, philosophy, psychology, and other esoteric and countercultural topics – not the academic kind of writing, and not as a professional, since I don’t intend to make a living out of it. Are you aware of any good resources for starting out? Any advice or guidance would be really helpful.

Recommendation for sources on the power of imagination?

[spiritual_seeker]

Dear JMG,

I'm currently wrestling with the question on what "really" happens, when someone imagines or visualises something. That it can actually effect the physical world is currently of secondary importance for me. What is of much higher interest: Can it be understood that in some (let's call it) "imaginal realm" any (or some? >> which ones?) imagination actually comes to "life" (what that means would probably an important question on its own)?

There seem to be stories where a person enters the "imaginal realm" of another person. Fascinating! Is it true? What is all this about?

Can you give me a hint on authors and / or books I should have a closer look at to find answers?

Thank you very very much, as always!

st

Astrology and AODA Druid magic

[(Anonymous)]

Dear Archdruid, if I may I’d like to ask several questions. Thank you so much as always for sharing your time and wisdom.

1. Does AODA magic mesh well with astrological magic?

2. Which kind of magic is made easier by a relatively well dignified Venus in your natal chart?

3. Is AODA magic best suited to work with/for nature, or can it be applied to any personal purpose?

4. Can I call the planets or their intelligences (spirits?) at the gates of the SOP? If yes, which names were to be used in the elemental cross?

directions for SOP

[(Anonymous)]

When starting the SOP, should one face directional East? Or make slight seasonal adjustments to face the exact direction of the rising sun?

Periode, making amends, insight

[(Anonymous)]

Dear JMG & Sara,
in the post about the eclipse there was a subthread by Sara, that involved when for some women its smart to take a break from magic due to their period. Since you, JMG, have answered the: We're pregnant/nursing/ have children in the house question a hundred times, I wonder if more women are sitting on the fence regarding "serious magic" as Rita has put it in the other thread. And I wonder if it would be worthwhile (for you two) to type up a sort of paper that summs those experinces up? I for one would very much like to know more about it and buy one or two even if it is preliminary.

Second: JMG, I made the mistake of scanning and mailing your introduction of the first After Oil book to another person. I learned about your protctive spell(s) and I deleted all scans and asked the other person to do the same. I thought it was for a good purpose but it didn't work out. I'm sorry I did it. Can I make amends in any other way?

[(Anonymous)]

Hi JMG

Magic Monday makes me look forward to, well, MONDAY! Thanks for the time you take to field all these questions.

I have a question about using magic i.e. SOP/calling of the elements to attract investment in a business.

I'm thinking of phrasing such a 'I ask the powers of Air to bring this investment to the attention of those who would see the value and would benefit from it', with similar phrasing for the other elements.

1 - is this legit?

2 - if so, what would be an appropriate invocation for Spirit Within? I currently use (stealing from one of your affirmations) 'May I be one with the one life of the universe, may it flow through me to accomplish all my worthwhile goals'.

thanks,
an organic farmer

Aikido and martial efficacy and esoteric basis

[(Anonymous)]

JMG (and others)

I wanted to follow up on last week’s discussion started by WindMan about aikido which I read too late to contribute to.

I have one question for JMG and one comment about the martial efficacy of aikido (which is something that has long fascinated me):

Question first:

1. I posted a question some months ago about aikido being based on kotodama, but this point wasn’t addressed. What’s the role of kotodama in how effective aikido is? Or to put it in broader terms - when arts include an esoteric side (Aikido, tai chi or Chinese arts with esoteric/energy stuff etc), how does the esoteric side enhance the art? I’m not clear about this at all.

I am reasonably confident (correct me if I am wrong) that the ridiculous “no-touch” throws using ki and the like you see on Youtube are fake (plus I thought magic doesn’t have direct physical effects anyway) - so how do martial arts esoteric practices (I assume they are based on doing something with etheric energies?) help?

And now comment:

2. Re aikido martial efficacy, I could go on and on, but will restrict myself to a few points:

a) There was a video that went viral on Youtube 2-3 years ago about a (young, fit) 3rd dan aikidoka who ran his own dojo trying to take on an MMA fighter and losing badly (this or a successor may be the Youtube video one poster was talking about). This particular guy (Rokas) then spent time trying to make aikido more MMA friendly before losing faith and switching to training MMA full time. He is (now) disliked by the aikido social media community because he makes a lot of clickbaity videos criticising aikido and its failings.

Anyway, the point with Rokas is that he trained under a well known sensei in Switzerland and his training was entirely focussed on the spiritual (not esoteric) and philosophical side of the art (the dojo where he trained also teaches yoga and some of their aikido rank gradings are set to music which gives you a sense of the kind of place it is).

To put it in other words, the core point is that if you do not train to fight, you cannot expect to fight competently. This should be common sense but strangely in the aikido community it is not - there are far too many people who share Rokas’ delusions and believe that they will get real fighting skills (of the kind that are needed for a street fight or the MMA cage) by doing gentle non-resistant partner practice - and this is simply not true.

I don’t have a problem with this - nothing wrong with being similar to tai chi and offering a range of other benefits while not pretending to be a fighting art. But most aikido schools *do* trot out the “peaceful self-defence” rhetoric while continuing to teach nothing in the way of fighting skills - instilling a dangerous delusion in their students (also it’s just wrong from a historical perspective - there was nothing peaceful or passive about O Sensei’s fighting skills - he became more philosophical as he grew older and retired from running the organization and his son watered it down to make it internationally palatable).

Having said that, although the *majority* of aikido dojos are like this (note: that doesn’t mean they are not wonderful places where you can learn some fascinating things worthy of lifelong study - just not fighting skills), anyone dedicated to learning the true martial efficacy of aikido CAN do it.

The core problem with most aikido training these days is the lack of “live” training and sparring against a resisting opponent as you see in judo, BJJ, Muay Thai - basically any art taken seriously in MMA (or for a street fight). This appears to be a misunderstanding of what O-Sensei said about how aikido shouldn’t have *competition* - he never said there shouldn’t be sparring or live training (even the “no competition” statement isn’t that clear cut but this comment is already too long) - a suspicious person might think it was done to help out-of-shape middle aged people LARP at being martial artists.

It’s absolutely essential to have this - otherwise there is no way to properly pressure test skills or define who is good and who isn’t (there are issues with defining a scoring and sparring system but they are not insurmountable).

A good starting point is joining an active Facebook group called “Aikido - The Martial Side”, which - as the name suggests - is for Aikidokas who want to make their aikido more martially effective and train in a way that furthers that (the group founder has a good podcast and an online course about making aikido more martially effective but they are by no means necessary to enjoy the group - I do listen to the podcast a lot though).

In general, the Yoshinkan style of aikido (taught to the Tokyo Riot Police) is more likely to have “strong” martially effective techniques and more resistance although it still depends on the dojo and there is no competition (actually there are some competitions for things like ukemi and kata).

Even better may be the “Tomiki” or “Shodokan” style (can be quite difficult to find dojos except in Japan and the UK) which *does* have sparring and competitions and full resistance training (yes, in breach of what O-Sensei said, although there is controversy about whether he gave permission to the founder of the style).

Also, there are many many smaller aikido offshoots (Yoseikan etc) and small independent dojos which teach strong martial aikido.

b. As a general principle, I don’t think there is any doubt that aikido CAN be martially effective, especially on the streets. It’s not just O-Sensei - many of his direct students (particularly from the pre-WW2 days in the so-called “Hell Dojo”, before O’Sensei’s son started watering it down after the War) were famous brawlers with long histories of violence.

Most famously Shioda Gozo (who founded the Yoshinkan style and wrote a couple of great books about aikido including stories of his fights), Kenji Tomiki (who founded Shodokan and was also a serious very high ranked judoka and protege of Jigoro Kano) and also some post-war guys (Morihiro Saito who was the longest serving uchi-deshi etc).

It’s just not taught or trained in that way (mostly) anymore. So it’s no surprise that modern aikidoka can’t handle themselves in fights the same way.

Also, contrary to common understanding there HAVE been aikidoka who fought professionally in MMA (google “Rik Ellis aikido”). Of course they cross-trained in other arts - everyone doe sin MMA - but the base was aikido.

That said, I don’t think aikido’s strength is in MMA fights. I think - properly trained - aikido is by far the best option going for a) any kind of combat where control and restraint is more important than destroying your opponent (true for any street fight, but particularly for police, bouncers etc - lots of examples of such people using aikido successfully for many years “on the street”); and b) any kind of multi-attacker/multi-participant street brawl where the skills of strong 1on1 combat and ground fighting (Muay Thai, BJJ) can leave you in deadly danger from the friends of the attacker you are fighting etc.


c. Having said all of that - I am fascinated by something my sensei once told me - a completely different and alternative perspective to everything I’ve said above - about how in aikido we don’t train to “fight” in the sense of playing the chess match and move and countermove in a fight - we train - however imperfectly - to END a fight in one move. That’s really really hard to do (especially consistently) and very very few people can - but it’s the platonic ideal we aspire to. So there’s no question of sparring - if you’re good enough the fight just *ends*.

And that’s a great framework to think about aikido in. My sensei didn’t say this, but I would compare it to the ikken hisatsu concept from other Japanese arts (“one punch kill” or similar) - it’s a very rare and very difficult, but very real ability that some spectacularly good martial artists have - the ability to sufficiently disrupt bodily and organ function with one punch to kill.

But it is *possible* - and if something is possible it’s worth aspiring to.

PS - Meditations on Violence by Rory Miller is an amazing book about violence - I second the recommendation. Totally changed my perspective about violence (it’s not really about martial arts). Another website worth reading (it has a bunch of essays) is by martial experts and former bouncer and street fighter Marc MacYoung - about martial arts, realistic training in martial arts, as well as about violence in general. His site is called No Nonsense Self Defense and a lot of the ideas complement Miller’s from a different perspective.

PPS - The other poster who posted a long comment about aikido being a physical expression of an occult/esoteric system meant to train you to a different consciousness etc is perfectly valid - I don’t disagree at all. I am simply trying to say you CAN train aikido as an effective martial system and give some hints on how to do that - but WindMan should really think about why he wants to do aikido and what his emotional needs are, before choosing a “path” within aikido (or any martial art really).

Group magical backlash

[(Anonymous)]

In the ATRs there is an understanding that when there is some sort of magical backlash, for example retaliation due to a magical war, aimed at one person, everyone else in the house will take some part of the returning energy, whether or not they were involved with the action that triggered the nacklash. Is there a similar understanding in western magic? Do the participants of group magical actions defend themselves from backlash? If yes, what sort of protections do they have?

Eclipse

[(Anonymous)]

Is a solar eclipse as bad as a lunar one?

MM FAQ (again)

[(Anonymous)]

Hi JMG

I have just seen it is your birthday: Happy Birthday to you!

I hesitate to ask this as I’ve already caused annoyance on the subject. But I’m hoping to better express a doubt that I think is not entirely covered by the MM FAQ on kids. However I apologise in advance if it seems I’m still under the non-understanding spell!

The following MM exchange from April is (I now remember) partly why I asked about practising the Grove ceremony when I have children under 3, because it gave me the (probably mistaken) impression that the “Druidry Handbook grove ceremony” is child friendly:

https://ecosophia.dreamwidth.org/87224.html?thread=8405944#cmt8405944

I’ve compared the DH and DMH grove instructions and it is the same ceremony except that the DMH gives specific elemental imagery that the DH lacks.

I know the FAQ explicitly says the DH seasonal rites are kid friendly, but can I just confirm that no version of the grove ceremony is? If it were, I would look to try something similar to this poster.

Regarding the FAQ, for what it’s worth from a beginner perspective it is not always clear how to gauge what is “more complex” than the SOP. The seasonal rites themselves being a case in point. Is the difference simply that the latter involves invocations of gods + meditation whereas the grove ceremony has invocation of elements?

Thank you as always for the opportunity to learn so much here.

Morfran

[(Anonymous)]

In an old Tumblr post, I read useful suggestions for matters I needed advice about connected with ritual practice indoors. I had not read these before and was pleased with the solutions. Then I read more about the blogger in new posts. They had several bad things in their life. You said not to take advice on magic from people with a lot of issues. Does this count? I think it might. I don't know other solutions for these matters yet and I keep thinking about the suggestions in the post, but also worry that they might have side effects.

Isaac Newton

[(Anonymous)]

Greetings JMG and all, Here is a link from Naked Capitalism yesterday. It’s a speech given by John Maynard Keynes on the life of Isaac Newton. As Sir Newton has been popping up frequently lately on the blogs of JMG, perhaps some of you may find this interesting.


https://mathshistory.st-andrews.ac.uk/Extras/Keynes_Newton/

Enjoy your day! SundaraYogaShala

questions

[syfen]

Archdruid,

1) After the killing of George Floyd I noticed a palpable shift in the national conversation.

I noticed the shift among the anti-SJW crowd, who are wholly focused upon the worst rhetorical and actionable behavior of their opponents. As the old saying goes "what you contemplate you imitate." So the anti-sjws are in deep contemplation of the sjws.

For example in the aftermath of the George floyd riots and protests, the antis are only looking at the most lunatic fringe reforms proposed by the
sjws, but not considering the sane reforms proposed by concerned citizens.

Similarly, quite a few people are talking about mr. Floyd's past criminal record, while totally forgetting the anger is also pointed at the excessive use of force frequently employed by the police in these situations.

I have a feeling that trump and his supporters just lost control of the conversation, and the mentative currents are shifting to a new force in American society. I don't think that this force will fully manifest until well into trump's second term, but it definitely feels like the tide is shifting.

How can I confirm or review my theory?

2) I was also wondering if it was possible for a God or higher being to purposefully screw with our divinatory abilities?

3) if I wanted to push through reforms for my city's police Department, would I invoke a God of justice?

Thank you for your guidance.

Regards,

Syfen

Saturn in natal chart

[mchangeling]

JMG,

First: happy birthday to you!

Second, I was reading through the last magic Monday discussion on essential dignities and debilities and Saturn in natal astrology. Your answer about how planets influence and help magic and life.. and then it hit me why I hadn't any success in fitting my natal chart to my life: my birth and ascendant and moon placement are really "weak" or "neutral" compared to the Saturn placement in Capricorn rule-ship and the multiple other planets in Capricorn and his dignities. And it appears to make sense that way.. But there are few things I want to ask, to check if my insights are correct:

1)So my question is this: is it possible for well-dignified ruler Planet serve as a "vortex" for natal chart?

2) is combustion mutual: is Sun afflicted if Venus is Conjunct Sun or is only Venus afflicted?

3) Is there any additional significance to four planets that are conjunct with each other (four planets 3 degree from each other: 6.9,12,18 degree (as I understand conjunction is between 9 to 12 orb (degree))?

4) Are oppositions as bad as squares?
Écru Hibernating Puppy
--changeling

[causticus]

Hello JMG,

I've been attempting to do daily Orphic Hymn readings at the correct planetary hour on the correct planetary day, in addition to my almost-daily SOP practice.

1. In the translation I'm working from, sometimes the name of the deity is not mentioned in the verses. Should I vibrate the deity name before/after reading out the hymn? Should I say anything else in addition to the name?

2. To your knowledge, what effects on my etheric and/or astral bodies will this daily hymn reading practice yield? Or is this practice just for establishing a relationship with the planetary deities?

3. When I do the hymn to Hermes on Wednesdays, sometimes I feel a tingling effect around my head right after the reading. But this doesn't seem to happen on other days with their respective gods and goddesses. Should I pray to those divinities or do divinations on how to establish relationships with them? Wouldn't reciting the hymns could as prayers?

4. I use frankincense-myrr incense sticks each time I recite a hymn. This is sufficient on all 7 days, correct?

-Turquoise Exiguous Toad

[(Anonymous)]

In Dion Fortune's Psychic Self-Defense she mentioned that orchards have a lot of, I think sinister is the word used, energy, and with the Johnny Appleseed post on the other site I'm a little puzzled. Wouldn't a mystic find orchards unpleasant if that were true?

Happy Birthday!

[boulderchum]

Salutations JMG!
First of all, happy belated birthday! May you have many more!
I've well and truly committed to your Celtic Golden Dawn course and began yesterday. It feels exciting, I couldn't keep a smile off my face a few hours after my first day of practice.

1) I've found doing a geomantic House Chart for the day helps me hone in on the meanings of the geomantic figures very well (multiple houses, multiple areas of life to correlate). The CGD works only with Shield Charts however. How would I combine my practice with House Charts with the CGD? Is there a clever way of asking about the events of the day in two separate ways so I can do both House and Shield charts?

2) I uncovered some interesting themes in my first session of Discursive Meditation on the seed, but it felt like the regular contemplation I do throughout the day (but with eyes closed and body relaxed). How do you tell the difference between normal "thinking hard about something" and discursive meditation?

3) I've seen lots of talk about lighting candles on the appropriate days and hours. What is this practice? Is this a classical Golden Dawn practice or a Hoodoo practice?

4) You've said that it's best to plant protective plants in the North-East of a property to counteract the unfavourable forces that come from that direction. What lore, books or branch of magic does this come from?

5) Since there's discussion on magical blowback, I remembered in another post you replied to a comment about Persian political magic potentially having less blowback (besides karma) because it used astrological talisman practices, because the energies are not coming from or entering within the practitioner. I assumed that meant blowback was primarily an etheric/astral/mental phenomena. Does that sound about right?

[(Anonymous)]

Hey JMG,

Not a question, just reading and enjoying the comments, but I did want to point out that I saw your theory of Catabolic Collapse, as well as your name (as JM Greer) mentioned in an article today: https://www.resilience.org/stories/2020-06-08/collapse-of-civilisation-is-the-most-likely-outcome-top-climate-scientists/

Hope this is of interest to you.

Yours in Druidry,

- Brigyn

[(Anonymous)]

Good afternoon, JMG.

Do you know of any English translations of Arabic or Persian texts on Geomancy? I find myself quite interested in the history of geomancy, but it doesn't seem like much work has been done on it, at least that I can find.

Thanks for doing this every week! It's an invaluable service.