Smoke & Daggers!

After Breitbart published a report saying that 12 churches across France had been vandalised in the month before Notre Dame du Paris burned on 15th April; a conspiracy started that the fire was arson. 

The fact-checking site www.snopes.com investigated and said the report was “mainly false”. Investigations are at an early phase and currently the authorities say it was not deliberate.

Q) Was the fire at Notre Dame du Paris arson?

Using the RWS pack - one card draw:

II Swords. A seated woman, who is blindfolded and holds a sword in each hand. Her arms are crossed, behind her is the sea, above her a crescent moon.

☽ in ♎︎

The usual interpretation for this card is a ‘difficult decision’ to be made. It can suggest procrastination, indecisiveness, an unwillingness to take sides or make a judgement. It is also a justice card, hence why it is placed in Libra. The moon describes a reflective mind-set.

There is a suggestion of something hidden which could lend itself to conspiracy. Swords have a connotation of the execution of justice. It may be that the authorities do have their suspicions but are playing their cards close to their chest.

What does seem to be clear in this murky answer from the tarot, is that things may not be as straight forward i.e. not ‘just’ an accident.

Summoning the Solomonic Archangels I

Herewith, some entries from the magical journal for these workings:

The First...

7th March 2019

Using the Rudd Nine Celestial Keys, I called forth Sachiel in the day and hour of ♃.

Also used this in combination with the Deeply Theta entrainment track (10 mins). This was used in the scrying spaces in-between callings.

After the original conjuration/invocation there was a sudden inner image of amethyst tinged clouds; looking up I saw a triangular window open up and a ray of light shone downwards through the clouds. An angelic figure appeared sometimes in the mode of the Temperance angel in RWS pack and then holding a sword. I thought this was just the RWS image intruding but it became fleshy and moved in a strong breeze. His eyes were closed. The impression was quite strong. Then I saw in the stone shapes moving like someone riding a horse at full gallop, then a gazelle running fast. These were phantom-like and indistinct.

After the 1st recitation post conjuration, the imagery faded as did the feeling of opening up and I had to make a continual effort to reach ‘heaven-ward’. 

After the second recitation I returned to the amethyst clouds and realised why those soapy New Age images are styled the way they are.

The light shone onto the stone and once more the figure returned holding a light which he offered to me and I reached out and accepted it. Next the light was in my heart centre.

After this an hour had elapsed and decided to call it a day; so welcomed the angels in an approximate ad-libbed formula and then asked all to return to their own places, thanks them and asked them to complete any further knowledge, wisdom etc. over the next two days (as above).

Closed with Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be.

And the Second...

22nd March 2019

Invocation of the 7th Key, Anael, angel of ♀︎ in the day and hour of the same.

Following the invocation, I had the impression of a Winged Egyptian Scarab and there was a connection with the phases of the planet ♀︎. I am unaware of any such connection so will do some research on this.

I also saw a golden sandal topped with a rose on an angel’s foot; for the 1st repetition.  

The 2nd repetition the scarab appeared again and this time opened his wing casings and beat his wings as if to fly off.

The Deeply Theta is quite conducive to the working because it has an ethereal sound and nature. There is a depth and sense of the imaginal as its own reality. It’s difficult to say exactly but it is a series of experienced images that feels more than the usual mental stream. There is a connection of some sort.

Scarabs were a very popular form of amulet from the Middle Kingdom onwards. Associated with the rising sun and the god Khephri. He was regenerative in his associations, which may be why he could be associated with ♀︎ too. He is also associated later on with the ‘Heart’. He was a popular choice to be laid over the heart in mummy wrappings and was used advocate on the deceased’s behalf in the Hall of Judgement. The spells from the Book of the Dead were spoken to the amulet who was then wrapped up with the mummy for burial. His association with the underworld may be because he traverses two worlds, upper and lower.

So, this may be a form of the angel Anael, or one of his angels, who rises up and is reborn, who can traverse two worlds and maybe transmit spells to the otherworld - a messenger!

There Must Be An Angel...

My route into angel magic was via grimoire magic. In particular through the Runesoup premium member's course on grimoiric magic. Grimoires appear to be experiencing a revival at the moment going by the number of blogs on the experiences of magicians using this form of magic.

Part of the 'plugging it into the wall' tech involves regular planetary prayers to the angels of the day. Gordon White suggested those from the Hygromanteia; but I opted in the end for those given in The Goetia of Dr Rudd which ritually enact the 7 day creation myth from Genesis.

The angels associated with the days are as follows:

1st day Sunday - Michael
2nd day Monday - Gabriel
3rd day Tuesday - Samael
4th day Wednesday - Raphael
5th day Thursday - Sachiel
6th day Friday Friday - Anael
7th day Saturday - Cassiel/Caphriel

As I also use these daily angelic conjurations for my sigil magic which is planetary based, and following on from something I saw in the RS forums decided to go full-on angel magic for a while.

The obvious choice was to stick with the Dr Thomas Rudd angelic magicians group whose working manuscripts have been published a couple of times, the one I use is by Stephen Skinner & David Rankine as part of the Golden Hoard series of Keys to Ceremonial magic.

The angelic launch sequence couldn't be simpler. There is no circle, wand, ring, etc. What we have are a series of prayers and conjurations, one primary and one to recite as follow up. However do not be deceived! It's important to remember that these manuals were used by working magicians who would already have a basic launch tech so it would not necessarily be included in the instructions.  An indication of this are the angelic seals, of which there are two given for each angel from two different manuscripts, so presumably only one is used (either, or). No instructions are given as to how these seals form part of the working so one's own experience has to dictate. From the grimoire tradition spirit seals are generally placed in the triangle of art where the spirit is to appear. If scrying then the crystal is placed on top of the seal. So this is the method I use for this work.

There is a prayer to be said before any angelic conjuration. This gives the basic cosmology, which is the Cabalistic Tree of Life.  We have nine angelic keys and one for the angelic choir. This latter one is associated with Malkuth. Thus we also have the seven planets taking us up to Binah (Saturn), the last two are without planetary association (pre-Herschel) which takes us up to the angel 'Methraton' for Kether.

Dr Thomas Rudd and his group were also experimenting with Dr John Dee's system of angelic magic, now referred to as 'Enochian'. I think they based these planetary angel workings on Dee's method of calling.

I use one of the angel seals that uses material that I'm familiar with from Adam McLean's 'Magical Calendar' book. These have the familiar hermetic seals for each angel that are used in several grimoires of that period.

Basically, this is a scrying working, to summon the angel or one of his minions to appear in a crystal or stone. I place my scrying stone on the seal, either burn frankincense or anoint myself with its essential oil. My preliminary work is a recitation of the 'Our Father' and 'Hail Mary' and calling on St Cyprian of Antioch to oversee the working. Then as follows:

• The general prayer is recited to set up the angelic hierarchy.  
• The first long conjuration of the angel is recited.
• First 10 minute scrying session (I use entrainment .mp3 soundtrack).
• 1st recitation of the shorter conjuration.
• Second 10 minute scrying session.
• 2nd recitation of the shorter conjuration.
• Third scrying session.

The whole of the above takes about one hour. 

The long conjuration alone takes about 20 minutes. I find it more effective to chant this in a sing-song voice rather than just to recite it. The punctuation is all commas and no full stops. capitalised letters are used mid-sentence but add to the punctuation for breathing. All this gives a rhythm to it which is just as well because it is very repetitive. By the end of 20 minutes I'm experiencing a light trance, which is just what is needed for the scrying. The entrainment track also helps deepen the ASC.

I generally experience various sequences of visual images that appear in quick succession, but usually one becomes settled. I'm not a great scryer and my active imaginations are 'piss-poor' to be blunt. However there is a certain quality to scrying images which marks them out from the usual mental chatter.

My experiences tend to be visual rather than aural though I have had voices speak before. 

So far I have used this to call for four angelic visions, and would recommend this work for those who want to try scrying because it is so simple to perform from the comfort of your armchair.

Unlike grimoiric workings there is no particular request to make for these workings. The conjurations tend to just ask for wisdom and 'sapience' for the magician. My experience is that the results come in the form of altered perceptions (angelic perceptions?). The symbolism given tends to lead to a desire to research and make connections to create a narrative that then gives the lines or threads that weave together to form the angel. At least this is how I'm perceiving my own experiences so far. 

I'll post up some extracts from my magical journal and also the researched elements that interweave to form the narrative 'body' of the angel in my own understanding.

So what's all this for?

Essentially a deepening relationship, as GW likes to put it "getting their attention". As stated above I use angelic forms for sigil magic and could also use it for prayer work generally. So it isn't that I'm asking to win the lottery when the angel appears rather to establish a place in the spirit ecology network, I'm sort of handing out my business card and asking for theirs too.

Tarot Reading - March question

Having joined the Tarot Association of the British Isles (TABI), following my tarot reader's course with Suzanne Corbie,  I'm all up for getting plenty of practice in.

Each month the TABI forum posts up a monthly question for peeps to give readings. This is the one for March...

I'm looking at a complete change of career, I have a couple options, can the cards guide me as to which path would be best for me

The pack is the Rider Waite Smith pack, probably the best known one for newbies. Pamela Colman Smith teamed up with Golden Dawn's Arthur Edward Waite to produce perhaps the most copied tarot design in the world. The Marseilles pack may be older and Sola Busca may be the 'bad boy' of Tarot but RWS has provided the most inspiration.

The spread is one I've taken from a playing card fortune telling book I picked up in a 2nd hand book shop some years ago. This one is attributed to 'Sepharial' otherwise known as Dr Walter Gorn Old, yes, that is his real name (now we know why he used Sepharial), a 19th century astrologer and one time editor of Old Moore's Almanac.

The spread takes the form of an astrological chart, houses 1-12 with five extra cards laid out in cross formation in the centre. The card in the centre (V Swords in this spread), is the significator. The general idea is to read the appropriate house(s) for the answer to the question.

The significator is the 'cut and run' card, which is flanked, to the left, by IX Wands and Ace Swords on the other side. Reading across from past to present it looks like the querent has had some serious battles on his/her hands and has decided enough is enough. The Ace card is a new beginning and is indicative of the new decision. The fact that the question is about a radical change of direction is supported by this card. the IX Cups is the pleasure card and points to the need of the querent for work to be rewarding and not just for money. The Hierophant card may indicate that some of the problems may be to do with relationships with those in authority. If this is so then one option may be to work for him/herself.

Looking to the houses we have XIII Death and III Cups in the 1st House, the house of self, well-being, health and mental health.  I think this signifies that the querent is going through a period of radical transition, literally the ending of abundance. A rupture of relations, finding him/herself alone coming to the realisation that things are irreparably going to have to change.

The 2nd House is about finances, here we have IV Pentacles and XIX The Sun. The card of consolidation of wealth with opportunity for growth. From the question it is not clear what the options the querent is looking at but if it involves retraining or reinvesting into a new company or project then these cards are giving the green light for this.  The 10th House is about career and long term goals and here we have III The Empress, a card ruled by Venus. Venus rules fertility, sex, beauty, hospitality, music and the arts. If one of the options refers to anything along those lines then the 10th House is well aspected for a career  in the service sector dedicated to wellbeing, beauty and entertainment. This card is accompanied by IV Swords, depicting rest from a period of strife. Given the strife indicated in the other parts of this chart there is a healing process that is necessary for the querent and this may mean that a career in therapy or complementary healing may be of benefit for both the querent and her/his clients too.

There are other aspects but they do not relate directly to this question so will leave this reading here.

"In country" in Coppett's Wood

Today saw the first praxis for the Magical Geography course currently underway for premium member's on Gordon White's excellent website Runesoup. You can find it here.

My own mission is to humbly do my bit to re-enchant the world. Gordon is developing a metaphysic to create epistemological models to carry this forward. His main one being what he calls 'Big Table Animism' or BTA for short.

He introduced a concept 'on country' to describe how the aboriginal players in his native Australia talk about their relationship with the inhabitants of place. As he points out land is too narrow country takes into account all relationships with human and also importantly with the 'more than human world' to be encountered there.

Our task for this praxis was to open up consciousness  and acknowledge 'country' in our own location. Hence Coppett's wood.

Coppett's Wood is to be found along Colney Hatch and is that rare specimen a bit of the remaining forest that originally covered Finchley before it became a common and then the suburb that it now is.

I decided to start by making an offering to the wood which in this case was a dram of dark rum,  a traditional spirit offering and one that I've used on many an occasion. This is, I feel, a most important ritual activity and all part of "getting their attention", that is of the spirit(s) of place.  I stamped on the ground three times (a popular choice in magical lore!), and poured out the offering whilst at the same time calling out "I acknowledge country".

To help move things along it was suggested that we do some mindfulness exercises moving through the senses. Listening, looking, touching, tasting and smelling as well as noticing the arrangements upon the 'inner' or spirit landscape.

It was evident just how quickly a sort of dream state arose. Surfaces morphed into faces and bodies, what was evident was that nothing is hidden but more a case that the shift allows the eyes to see and the ears to hear. The sounds become meaningful as do the shapes.

There were certain points where I stopped because there was something about this or that particular spot. The first time was by a large ash tree and I felt an urge to communicate... but what to say? I don't have much experience of  talking to trees so fell back on simply asking if it had anything to impart?  I heard nothing on my inner ear. However, I was drawn to pluck and taste a haw berry from a nearby hawthorn. The leathery skin gave way to an avocado texture and momentary sharp taste. I cleaned the stone and sent it on its way spreading the genes on maybe to their next incarnation.

Moving on, and following a winding path around hedged in by the sounds of the nearby North Circular road, I began to have some paranoid thoughts. I thought someone was following me. Looking around I could not see anyone. I did pass a couple of dog walkers and again thoughts arose of danger but this time as if I was the one under suspicion?

I did wonder if this is just the residual split that Western humanity has in its relationship with the so-called natural world. We have 'othered' something out of ourselves and inevitably have to meet this prejudice if we are to integrate it once more.

Finally I made it up to the main path out of the wood's canopy. As I passed the final tall oak tree, a timely acorn fell landing behind me. I acknowledged the greetings and added my 'goodbye' for now.

On my way out I stopped to pick some dandelion leaves for tonight's meal as well as a few mugwort leaves for tea before sleep... perchance to dream!

A Church Walk

Before Finchley became the classic suburbia that it is today; it was a common and before that a wood.

Swallowed by the behemoth that is London the capital sought to remake the landscape into its own sprawling image. A palimpsest of ‘A’ and ‘B’ roads, high streets, the all important transport systems that prevent an isolate reversion to previosity and mnemonic regression. Progress, like entropy, is only supposed to flow one way.

However, like those re-used manuscripts traces of it’s past remain.

Apart from the corralled woods and waterways, a small network of paths criss-cross the borough; evidence that those feet in ancient times did indeed wander well-trod paths about their business.

My latest walk  took me along such a walkway from the old hamlet of Totteridge south to what was the hamlet now known as Church End, and the church of St. Mary after which it is named.

My starting point was the entrance to Church Walk by Swan Lane Open Space. This small park was previously the site of some gravel pits that were turned into this open space in the early part fo the 20th century. Given the rather less glamorous name of ‘The Pits’ these excavations remind us that:

“Much of Finchley lies on boulder clay. Between this and the underlying London clay is a layer of gravel. The best conditions for early settlement were where this lay exposed: thus Nether Street, an ancient local road, links the sites of old farms along the gravel line. elsewhere, near the gravel, were the three hamlets that formed Finchley’s earliest population centres now fully connected by 20th century building.”

(The London Encyclopaedia, pub Macmillan 2008)

Giant redwood trees line one side of Church Walk’s entrance, whilst en route I was rubbing shoulders with the more conventional flowering elder, holly, chestnut and sycamore. 

The walk is bisected by by a number of avenues and roads belonging to the newer suburban ontological layer.  

This walk yields a memory of the deep topology that once ran across both wood and common. 

A number of other old paths still intersect with this path before it joins the northern edge of Nether Street where the surface strata roll back to reveal the gravel which also gives name to the hill running down by the side of St. Philip's Church to the south of Church End. 

Nether Street meanders left, right, up and over rolling hills defying the linear planning of its suburban branches. At its southern extremity as it turns east to re-join Ballard’s Lane my eye was drawn to a building entitled ‘St Ronan’, who is an Irish Saint who gave it all up to become a hermit in Brittany. In one story he is accused of sorcery and lycanthropy and proved his innocence by taming two wild dogs. I’m immediately reminded that the dog has the association with the ‘Nether’ realm or the world below - through three-headed Cerberus and Anubis the jackel-headed god who escorts the dead into the Hall of Judgement. Finchley was not a law-abiding place but was notorious for its highway men and brigands whose ‘manor’ it was until the foot patrols of the early 19th century saw them off.

Such walkways, green and pleasant now, must have made going to church an ordeal!

 Listening carefully - the whispering leaves can be heard reciting the rosary echoing the urgent petitions for protection from lips long ago.

…………………………………….

A River Runs Through It...

Friary Park, located to the East of the Great North Road close to Tally-Ho, was originally owned by the Knights of St. John Hospitaller, keeping our connection with the patron saint of this borough.

The formal layout was arranged by the Edwardians maintaining parkland, ancient trees, a formal garden, Friary House and a monument to the ‘peacemaker’, the eldest son of Queen Victoria, Edward VII, who managed to keep his belligerent cousins from war for a few years prior to WWI. The family Christmas must have been dire!

My trip on Sunday, governed by that belligerent archangel St. Michael, saw nothing more warlike than dog walkers, joggers and parents corralling small children on a sunny and warm May weekend.

The trees are in bloom and I was greeted with bright colours and a small breeze as I said my prayers to the Blessed Trinity, calling on St. Cyprian of Antioch to make visible something of the spirit world of this place.

A standing stone marks Blackett’s brook near a bridge. This tributary of Pymme’s brook runs into the River Lea which joins Old Father Thames east of the Isle of Dogs.

I can find no information on on this monolith and therefore cannot think it of any great antiquity.

However, whether by design or not this standing stone does share one thing in common with its more ancient forebears. Standing stones and tumuli are not uncommon where a river bends. For some reason our pre-historic ancestors considered such changes of direction worthy of note and as ‘hotspots’, entryways to the otherworld. The tumulus that marked the bend in the River Effra in Kennington Park, springs to mind as well as the standing stone in the churchyard of Rudston in North Yorkshire which marks the bend in the river known as the Gypsy Race.

The strata of the stone face showed human effort to make a hole but seems as if there was a change of heart part way through the endeavour. Holes through stones also being indicative of seeing through to the other world.

This is an example from Vorau in Austria, which has a number of examples from 7,000 BCE, these ‘holy’ stones are considered to show places of power when peered through. In fiction there is that strange ITV offering from the 70s from the pen of Alan Garner, The Owl Service which also uses the stone for remote viewing in its story line.

There was a children’s sports day in full flow during my visit so I escaped the flurry and shouts of parental encouragement when I caught sight of the Church of St. James the Great. Entering into this small 12th century church on Friary Park Lane; I realised that it was no longer C of E but Greek Orthodox. According to the Eastern calendar I missed St. James’ feast day by one week.

Old ladies in black lit candles to icons. There were offerings of bread and food as the saints get hungry too.

An offering was also visible on the War memorial in the churchyard - in memory of the dead - we assuage the guilt of survival and debt by praying for them.

Before leaving the park I made my own offering to one of the older trees taking a small piece of loose bark. This mummia was used to manifest the tree spirit via the method known as the menstruum of undines first used for the project called ‘An interview with Austin Spare’.

Both Celtic and Greek tree spirits were generally considered female - dryads. However the Greek version do allow for male tree spirits called Drius.

This one is clearly sporting a full beard.

Ready for the close-up!