Imagery and the Occult: Sandman as Articulation of Occult Agency. PART II

As discussed earlier, art and iconography are an essential aspect of occult representation. The career of an occult symbol depends very much on its trajectory as provocateur of meaning. Because it will change. All symbols are born, grow, and are replaced as their need shifts in the network. In this way, each symbolic presentation is incommensurable from any of its past incarnations. They cannot be compared in any way because the entire network has changed. And these changes or shifts in occupation, do not occur gradually or in gradated steps but cataclysmically. Revolution occurs in which a symbol's previous meaning is usurped by a new agenda. An example can be found in 1624 Kotter etching that holds Rosicrucian connotations and motifs. Entitled 'Vision of a Lion with Angels and Roses', three angels sit reverently at a table with roses and a lion. The image of the lion is both a focal point and abstract symbol of the arcane. However, there is more. the form of the lion is an articulate of meaning. In other words, something is encoded or implicitly hidden in its shape. Obviously, the lion sits in the form of the Hebraic letter Alef. A rose-cross image that conceals subtle Judaic mysticism is certainly not surprising given the wealth of cultural traditions that influenced early Rosicrucianism. However, the a ha! moment occurs when realizing the form of the lion is a sudden shift in the viewer's awareness. The image takes on a whole new meaning and cannot even be compared to its previous interpretation. Not because it is so much more profound or esoteric now but because the symbol has re-located. What the symbol means has moved with reference to Judaic mysticism. Now its network comprises of Rosicrucian allegory as well as Gematria. This new location has added a new depth with which to study the etching.
We also see movement occurring in the Sandman 'Season of the Mists' story arc. Although Lucifer leaves and ultimately ends up on a beach thanking god for the beautiful sunset, Hell isn't left vacant for long. Dream holds a conference with all interested parties seeking to occupy the domain. Ultimately, God decrees that Hell must remain a contrast to Heaven because the latter is given definition by the former. Subsequently, the two observer angels that were charged with watching the conference proceedings are tasked with being the new rulers of Hell. Slowly, the demons and the damned file back into Hell to resume their previous roles. However, depth of meaning is also achieved by Gaimon in the narrative. Although our etching is encoded with Judaic mysticism, Sandman explicitly explores the interactions of various pantheons. Gaimon asks: What if Azazel was allowed to mingle at a party with Thor and Fae folk? By allowing a network of various religious traditions to interconnect, Sandman has created a pluriverse of occult thought and illustrated the many locations where meaning can be found. For example, Dream could have given Hell to the Norse and Loki would now be sovereign ruler. Or, he could have bequeathed it to Choronzon and the demons would be running amok. The point being that the many possibilities is indicative of the various epistemological nuances that are implied in the narrative. Each of these possibilities are equally true and equally valid. As Goodman once remarked, "there is no one correct way of describing or picturing or perceiving the world, but rather that there are many equally right but conflicting ways-and thus, in effect, many actual worlds" (14). Although Goodman's Worldmaking goes well beyond comic book narratives, the principle remains the same. the trajectory of an occult symbol must include a re-locating of meaning as it moves from one world or world-version to another.

TO BE CONTINUED......

Quantum Sorcery

Hey Everybody check this introduction to Quantum Sorcery!!! by David Smith





Quantum Sorcery
Vargr
1/30/05
www.spikevision.org
quantum theory
1.A theory in physics based on the principle that matter and energy have the
properties of both particles and waves, used to account for a wide range of
physical phenomena, including the existence of discrete packets of energy and
matter, the uncertainty principle, and the exclusion principle.
sorcery
c.1300, from O.Fr. sorcerie, from sorcier "sorcerer," from V.L. *sortiarius, lit. "one
who influences, fate, fortune," from L. sors (gen. sortis) "lot, fate, fortune".
Introduction
Quantum Sorcery is a magical system which presupposes that an individual can
cause desired effects to be manifest in the physical world via the exertion of will.
This system makes no supposition regarding the existence or influence of any
sort of divine creator; rather it is based upon the premise that the human mind
causes minute changes in the behavior of subatomic particles and energy fields
within space/time. These minute changes in turn cause a cascade of events to
occur, which ultimately result in the desired effect.2
below is like what is above. The miracle of unity is to be attained”. Understanding
the underlying principle of this statement is an essential part of the manifold
magickal processes that comprise Hermeticism, the core of a number of
traditional Western magickal systems.
In addition, quantum sorcery also acknowledges the theory of sensitive
dependence on initial conditions, also known as “The Butterfly Effect”. Edward
Lorenz, a MIT meteorologist, coined the phrase in a 1972 talk based on weather
modeling he had initiated in 1960.
Quantum sorcery can be rightly regarded as a subset of Chaos Magick. Like its
progenitor, the system is anti-dogmatic, result-oriented, and free-form. The
system employs techniques of magick proposed by such authors as Spare,
Carroll, Hine, Morrison, and Pesce, alongside of mathematical and scientific
theories proposed by Dirac, Lorenz, Heisenberg, Bohr, and Mandelbrot.
What is the Reason?
The origin of this project arose from a simple question that I could not answer:
What is the mechanism by which the will can cause physical changes in the
observable universe to be manifest? How does magick work? My belief is that
the force derives from humanity itself. Myriad religions and magical systems with
vastly differing methods are seemingly capable of achieving these results,
whether the process is referred to as prayer or spell craft. This would seem to
indicate that it is not a particular external force which makes these results
possible, or if it is, then it is a force which is universally available to all who seek
to employ it, rather than being an insular deity.
Occam’s Razor
William of Occam, a 14th century logician and Franciscan friar, wrote:
Pluralitas non est ponenda sine necessitate
Which is translated as:
Plurality should not be posited without necessity
This became known as Occam’s Razor. I apply this to mean that the explanation
for a phenomenon which requires the fewest assumptions to be made is most
likely to be correct. In this framework, I theorize that within a physical universe,
composed of particles and waves that any force capable of manifesting an
observable effect on these particles and waves must be of that physical universe
itself, rather than external to it. More plainly stated, there is no need to ascribe
miraculous or supernatural effects to an outside agent, when it is more probable
that the effects originate within the magickian.

3
The Psychic Censor
As individuals mature within a culture, they are expected to subscribe, and in fact
contribute to, the consensus reality of that culture. This generally includes
accepting the dominant spiritual paradigm. James Carse, in Finite and Infinite
Games, observes that a society will go to extremes to enforce its world view
upon its members.
The acceptance of external definitions of what constitutes the difference between
real and unreal contribute to the creation and reinforcement of what Austin
Osman Spare referred to as the psychic censor. This is a mechanism of the
conscious mind which determines, based on rules which have been internalized
from consensus reality, what limits are placed on possibility. In general, the
psychic censor tells the conscious mind that magick is a fallacy, and that the
power of the mind is insufficient to cause actual change in the universe.
Fortunately, there a number of ways by which this mechanism can be negated.
One of these methods, and probably the most frequently employed, is to ascribe
magickal power to a higher source, such as a god or demon. This placates the
censor by inactivating the self as the causal agent. The desire is passed to the
erstwhile higher entity via prayer or evocation. Unfortunately, this method is
logically fallible, requiring an even greater suspension of disbelief, and the
adoption of a larger complex of assumptions than simply accepting that the self is
capable of direct action.
Another way in which the psychic censor can be avoided is by allowing the desire
for change to be passed off from the conscious mind to the subconscious. This
can be done via a variety of methods, including sigilization, glossolalia, or other
methods which compress the linguistic construction of the desire into a symbolic
form which can be better actualized by this part of the mind. This method was a
hallmark of Austin Osman Spare’s magickal system, which Peter Carroll adapted
into his system of Chaos Magick. It is generally effective, but relies on the
concept of avoiding a lust for results. If the magickian is unable to expunge the
desire from the conscious mind, then the psychic censor will be activated, and
will counter the desire with disbelief, guilt, or other undesired processes.
This effect can be lessened by conditioning the censor to accept a greater range
of possibilities. There are a number of ways by which this can be attempted,
including John Lilly’s metaprogramming, Bandler and Grinder’s neuro-linguistic
programming, the Silva Method, hypnosis, meditation, and other systems which
attempt to allow direct intervention and control by the self over thought
processes. Many of these methods themselves are simply proxies by which the
conscious mind is empowered to a greater proportion of its already existing
capability.

4
Quantum sorcery uses awareness of scientific principles, specifically quantum
mechanics and chaos theory, to placate the psychic censor. This is
accomplished by realizing that at a quantum level, physical reality itself is
reduced to a field of probabilities which can be manipulated by the mere act of
observation, and that minute changes in momentum and trajectory of subatomic
particles can propagate to cause far greater physical effects in the objective
universe. Reducing the scale at which an influence needs to be applied in order
to produce desired results further helps to convince the conscious mind that such
ends are attainable.
A Multiverse of Possibilities
With the discovery in the first quarter of the 20th century that subatomic particles
such as the electron possessed the qualities of waves as well as physical matter,
an entirely new system of models and theories had to be created to describe the
new understanding of reality. One of these was the Heisenberg uncertainty
principle. This principle stated that on a subatomic level, that the position and
momentum of a particle could not both be measured with a high degree of
precision. The best degree of accuracy that can be obtained if one property was
measured with a high degree of precision is a probability range for the other
property.
One theory that has been proposed as an explanation for this principle is known
as the many-worlds hypothesis. This theory posits that the state of a particle is
not uncertain, rather that all possible realizations of position and energy for every
existing particle actually exist, each one having its own separate and unique
universe. This condition is also known as quantum superposition. Based on
theories of how many particles there are in the known universe, as well as the
estimated size and shape of the universe, the total number of possible universes
has been surmised to be approximately 10500. This collective set is also referred
to by some physicists as the multiverse.
Watch the butterfly flutter by
Beginning in 1960, meteorologist Edward Lorenz began a series of weather
system simulations at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In his
modeling, he discovered that very small variations in the initial state of a complex
system result in large differences in the end result. He detailed these findings in a
paper titled Deterministic Nonperiodic Flow, which was published in 1963. In
1972, Lorenz gave a talk in which he asked the question: Can a butterfly flapping
its wings in Brazil cause a tornado in Texas? This gave rise to the more
commonly known name for the initial conditions phenomenon, “The Butterfly
Effect.”
With regard to magickal practice, this bears close scrutiny. The impetus to
change the outcome of a situation can depend on a myriad of factors which



5
would seem at first examination to be irrelevant. Alan Turing, a mathematician
renowned for his theories on machine intelligence encapsulated this
phenomenon:
“The system of the Universe as a whole is such that quite small errors in the
initial conditions can have an overwhelming effect at a later time. The
displacement of a single electron by a billionth of a centimeter at one moment
might make the difference between a man being killed by an avalanche a year
later, or escaping”
In this framework, the question is how to effect the displacement of that single
electron, so that the result is the one desired.
Fractal forms reveal infinite scale
“The number of distinct scales of length of natural patterns is for practical
purposes infinite” – Benoit Mandelbrot
Benoit Mandelbrot, a mathematician employed at the time at IBM, investigated a
seemingly simple problem in the 1970’s: “How long is the coast of Britain?” What
he found was that as the degree of scale employed in the measurement was
taken to finer levels, the longer the coastline appeared to be. This was a result of
smaller and smaller features appearing as the perspective was magnified.
Features which appear to be straight lines on a small scale map are revealed to
be complicated and jagged on a large scale map. He referred to these forms as
fractal, from the Latin for “broken”. When fractal functions are graphed, the
results can be viewed at any level of magnification, and they will appear similar.
What does this mean to the quantum sorcerer? It means that there is no lower
limit to the degree of visualization that can be employed when attempting to
influence physical reality. In business language, the phrase “drill down” is often
used to indicate a focus on the minutia of a given situation. Appropriating the
terminology for this instance, the quantum sorcerer must drill down to the
subatomic level in order to apply Will where it will be the most effective.
Holographic Universe
In Paris in 1982, a research team led by physicist Alain Aspect was able to verify
the theory that particles which have previously interacted with one another will
from that interaction forward be connected with regard to the phase of their
waveforms. What was particularly of interest about this confirmation was that the
exchange of information between these particles occurred at a speed greater
than the speed of light. This has led to the theory, espoused by University of
London physicist David Bohm, among others, that the universe is in fact a
massive and intricate hologram.

6
A hologram is an image created by reflecting a laser off of an object, and
subjecting the reflected light to the light of a second laser. The resulting
interference pattern is then captured. This results in a three-dimensional image of
the original object. What is most noteworthy is that if a fragment of the image is
torn off of the whole, that fragment will still contain a smaller but intact version of
the original image. No intelligence is lost in the fragmentation.
Those who espouse the holographic paradigm have suggested that the contact
between particles so observed is not due to a signal sent between them, but is
due to the fact that it is only our inaccurate perception which interprets the
particles as separate, discrete entities. In this theoretical system, such particles
are considered to be manifestations of the same underlying fundamental
phenomenon. Extracted to its conclusion, the theory suggests that all objects in
the universe are infinitely interconnected.
Whether or not this theory has any validity has yet to be hammered out among
theoretical physicists, but in any case, it is a useful model for visualizing
manipulation of matter and energy for the magickian. As Michael Talbot states in
his article on this paradigm, “In a holographic universe there are no limits to the
extent to which we can alter the fabric of reality.”
Mechanism
Thus far, I have discussed the nature of reality, and posited that it is subject to
manipulation by an individual, but I have not yet addressed how an individual
might go about doing such a thing.
Fundamental Forces
There are four fundamental forces in the universe which effect matter. These are
gravitation, electromagnetism, the strong nuclear force, and the weak nuclear
force. If the momentum or position of a particle of matter is to be modified, it is
most likely to be done via one of these forces. It is possible that there are other
forces, as of yet undiscovered and unobserved, but these four are capable of
explaining the behavior of matter in the current state of the universe. In a
younger universe, closer in time to the “Big Bang”, it is thought at that all four
forces become one, so it is theoretically feasible to suggest that as the universe
continues to cool and expand, that other forces might yet be brought to bear.
Gravity is the attractive force between all particles with mass. Electromagnetic
force affects charged particles, as well as particles which possess magnetic
attributes. The nuclear forces are those which operate within the atomic nucleus.
It is the second of these, electromagnetism, that I believe must be the
mechanism by which a human can physically influence reality on a subatomic
level.

7
In quantum theory, the exchange of energy between particles is modeled by the
use of force carriers called bosons. In the case of electromagnetism, this force
carrier has zero mass, and is known as a photon. Collisions between photons
and other particles are fairly frequent events in nature. An example of this is the
photoelectric effect, which is the result of a photon colliding with an atom with
sufficient force to discharge an electron from its orbit, ejecting it from the atom.
Biophotons
In a 2004 study involving bio-energy healers, who were asked to focus their
mental energy, the median increase in the energy output of the volunteers in the
experimental group was found to be 8.3 volts, and lasted a median of 3.6
seconds. This was a test of the phenomenon known as biophotonic emission.
Still considered a pseudo-science by most of the scientific community, this
process has been studied by researchers such as Fritz Albert Popp of the
International Institute of Biophysics in Neuss, Germany since the late 1970’s.
Biophotons themselves were first documented in 1923 by Russian medical
scientist Alexander Gurvich, who named them "mitogenetic rays".
Assuming that biophotonic emission is an actual phenomenon, and that the
intensity of emission can be controlled with adequate training, this would provide
the physical mechanism by which a human could physically alter the behavior of
subatomic particles. If this mechanism in turn can be combined with the
visualization of an intended outcome, then the probability of actually causing that
desired result to manifest could physically exist.
Conclusion
I have proposed that the phenomenon of magick derives its source not from a
supernatural or higher being, but through the process of human bio-energy
effecting subatomic particles. I realize that this is a stretch. Practitioners of
magickal systems which presume that results are the purview of extradimensional
entities would no doubt find this theory to be rubbish, as would most
traditional physicists. I myself am not certain that this effect is factual or probable.
I do believe however, that it is possible, and that is the key. Even if magickal
results are obtained through an as of yet completely unknown mechanism, and
this theory serves only as the basis of visualization, it is still an effective
mnemonic device. Quantum sorcery provides a possible explanation to the
psychic censor, and loosens the parameters of what the censor will permit to be
manifest in the personal reality of the magickian.


8
References
Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occam's_Razor
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiverse
Etymology Online - www.etymonline.com
Carse, James – Finite and Infinite Games
Carroll, Peter – Liber Null
Ferris, Timothy (ed.) – The World Treasury of Physics, Astronomy, and
Mathematics
- Ferris, Timothy: “Unified Theories of Physics”
- Mandelbrot, Benoit: “How Long is the Coast of Britain?”
- Turing, Alan: “Can a Machine Think?”
- Von Neumann, John: “The Computer and the Brain”
Joines, William T., Baumann, Stephen B., Kim, Jeremy et al. - Measurement of
charge accumulation and EM emissions from bioenergy healers, 2004
Lilly, John - Programming And Metaprogramming In The Human Biocomputer
Lorenz, Edward - Deterministic Nonperiodic Flow. Journal of Atmospheric
Sciences, Vol. 20, March 1963.
Markey, Sean – “The Universe is Finite” National Geographic News, October 8,
2003
Pesce, Mark- Memes to an End - presentation at Mindstates 2003
Schombert, James – Lecture Notes for Astronomy 123: zebu.uoregon.edu/~js/
Spare, Austin Osman – The Book of Pleasure
Talbot, Michael – “The Universe as Hologram” The Village Voice, September 22,
1987, pp. 31-34.

The Girl in the Goddess

The Girl in the Goddess

by Kassie Nic Sionnach

Today the trees show new shades of bright greens and the spring blossoms gently perfume the air. The world around us awakens with new life and new opportunities. When one stands quietly under the body of the deep night sky with the stars covering the heavens like a warm blanket -clear and gentle - we begin to expand our awareness: the vastness and  beauty of the world on which we experience this mortal life.

For many today, this beauty is personified in the God and Goddesses of old. Yes the gods of lore and myth. Aphrodite and Thor roam the world of spirit with devout followers of the ancient paths. The illumination of Hecate and Diana shine through the eyes of so many. The world cries out for champions of the old spirit and many answer in their own unique ways.

These people are the pagans and they are born wild and free, with minds and hearts that embrace ancient goddesses and gods with great love. Their eyes see the trees as relatives and the rivers of the earth as their blood. These are the ancient practices revived from european stone circles and folk practices, the bones of the ancient priests and priestesses call to us to remember the song of the soul.

To them, the seasons are more than just the yearly change. To them, during the spring the mother Earth shows her wedding clothes off proudly and joins with the wild God in creating the new life all around us, and celebrating it with passionate love and song. Within the wheel of the year the great lovers play is mimicked in the seasons from conception, pregnancy, birth, life and death.

For many, the Divine Feminine is focus of worship. It is she who calls the Pagan souls to remember their birthright in the sacred and wild places of the world. She is director, the nurturer of all within and without, above and below.

I tend to see the Divine as an example, a personification that we all can relate with and understand. Her different incarnations around the cultures of world are facets of the same jewel. Her stories remind us not to be one-faced, but to have many skills, many outlooks calmly rooted in truth and tempered with wisdom. Am I saying that the gods aren’t real? I just honored and praised their influence in this world? What am I doing?  This seemingly contradictory statement is explained by Gerald Gardner:

“The Gods are real, not as persons, but as vehicles of power. Briefly, it may be explained that the personification of a particular type of cosmic power in the form of a God or Goddess, carried out by believers and worshipers over many centuries, builds that God-form or Magical Image into a potent reality on the Inner Planes, and makes it a means by which that type of cosmic power may be contacted.”

To me, the Goddess Brighid brings strength, vulnerability and healing. Her Fire, forge and well stand to remind me of my own passions, creativity and abilities. To me, the Goddess Epona brings wisdom of alertness, the power of the herd and a maternal knowledge that continues to escape me. The great Mare reminds me to be sure of my footing, strong in my expression and accepting of life's cycles. To me, the Mór Rígan brings No-fear, sacred rage and sovereignty. Her strong sword, watchful ravens and definitive, defiant grace and knowledge reminds to never back down, to fight for the sacred- to battle-cry the injustices and never let my power be given to others.

Artistic interpretations of the Goddesses Brighid, Epona and the Mór Rígan

These women of myth, these goddesses of the soul often reside unknown in the books of history and there is a very strong movement around the world of women and men, eager to offer their time and talents to gain the spiritual light of our ancestors, our Pagan Ancestors.

Many adhere to Wicca, a very popular branch of Neo-paganism (“Neo” meaning new). This branch was (re)created by Gerald Gardner, a retired British civil servant. He is considered by many to be the “Father of Wicca”. Wicca started to become very popular in the 1950's and 60's but the ideas of a revived ancient spirituality started to be known to the public earlier. Wikipedia reports:

“In the 1920s and 30s, the Egyptologist Dr Margaret Murray published several books detailing her theories that those persecuted as witches during the Early Modern period in Europe were not, as the persecutors had claimed, followers of Satanism, but adherents of a surviving pre-Christian pagan religion - the Witch-Cult. Despite now being discredited by further historical research, her theories were widely accepted and supported at the time.”

I believe that the romantic revival period has a strong connection the quick growth  of paganism/occultism. Many individuals participated and the growing popularity of  gentlemen archeologists/historians and fraternal orders seemed to greatly influence many important individuals at the time. The ideas from Dr. Murray still  permeate several pagan philosophies and continued to spur on the new found possibilities of a spirituality that didn't seem possible before. Again Wikipedia sources say:

“It was during the 1930s that the first evidence appears for the practice of a pagan Witchcraft religion (what would be recognizable now as Wicca) in England. It seems that several groups around the country, … set themselves up as continuing in the tradition of Murray's Witch-Cult, albeit with influences coming from disparate sources such as ceremonial magic, folk magic, Freemasonry, Theosophy, Romanticism, Druidry, classical mythology and Asian religions.”

We know now that Wicca was not and is not a continuation of a whole, old spiritual system but a conglomeration of many parts and markedly modern in its practices.Even so, there was and is a great need for a spiritual path that puts the power of life and personal sovereignty back into the hands of individuals.

I believe that this is the draw of Wicca. How can we not want to become an integral part of the cosmic system of existence? For all its interesting history, multiple theological positions too numerous to outline here, and controversial initiation processes-Wicca does hold an illuminating candle to the mystery of self and challenges old mechanisms for touching the divine, which should be the goal of any spiritual path.

            Pictured above are(left) Gerald Gardner and (right) Doreen Valiente

Wicca is largely the first pagan religion most people encounter and it paved the path for many other mystery cults to become more open and in 1964 one of Gardner's initiates became a prolific interpreter of the core ideas and spirit of Wicca. She composed the first set of written guidelines, in the form a 'rede'. Without Doreen Valiente's writing I don't think Wicca would have quite the same color as it does today. Valiente put down the initial corner stone of Wiccan belief in the “Wiccan Rede”. It outlines the basics for nearly every ritual and practice simply.Below is a portion of it:

Bide within the Law you must, in perfect love and perfect trust. Live you must and let to live, fairly take and fairly give.For tread the circle thrice about to keep unwelcome spirits out. To bind the spell well every time, let the spell be said in rhyme. Light of eye and soft of touch, speak you little, listen much. Honor the old ones in deed and name, let love and light be our guides again...Heed the flower, bush, and tree by the Lady blessed you’ll be. Where the rippling waters go cast a stone, the truth you’ll know. When you have and hold a need, harken not to others greed. With a fool no season spend or be counted as his friend.Merry meet and merry part bright the cheeks and warm the heart. Mind the Three-fold Laws you should three times bad and three times good. When misfortune is now wear the star upon your brow. Be true in love this you must do unless your love is false to you. These Eight words the Rede fulfill: An Ye Harm None, Do What Ye Will!

Valiente's and Gardner's advice and influence are still very much felt and Ms. Valiente seems to be more the “Mother of Wicca” than Gardner is the “Father”. The story that follows is from Valiente's personal writings.

Shortly after she was initiated Gardner claimed the material was taken directly from the New Forest Coven and was the remnants of the Old Religion, which had been passed down through the ages. His astute student Ameth (the name given to Doreen) noticed that one passage read out by Gardner was taken from Aleister Crowley’s Gnostic Mass. On this point, Doreen took Gardner to task and he replied that the Wicca rites he had received were fragmentary and he had filled them in the best he could. He gave Doreen his Book of Shadows saying “Can you do any better?” She did, replacing much of the Crowley and Masonic material with her own verse. She reconstructed the documents into a logical, practical and workable system, leaving us with what we know today as “Wicca”.

Wicca is without a doubt the fore runner for nearly all current neo-pagan practices and helped make it easier for those modern day practitioners to openly participate.

It wasn't easy for the pagans of the 1960's. Faced with the judgement of satanism and general misunderstanding of nature worship. History wasn't terribly kind to non-christian practitioners but the call of the sacred winds could not be ignored no matter how hard our spiritual ancestors tried. Powerful works of the spirit continued to pour from Valiente and her contemporaries. The practices of Wicca continued to be a very closed and closely guarded for some time, until about 1975-80 ( note to self: my guess). Then publishing houses and private magazines began to really embrace the need for distribution Pagan writing. Many traditionalist were encouraged to become more open with the publication of ‘Solitary practitioner’ guidebooks. Covens became more open and slowly tip-toed into the spotlight.

Once again, Doreen Valiente’s work brings us a fantastic example of Wiccan ritual workings in the “Charge of the Goddess” which I’ve included in part to be an example of ritual poetry and work. To showcase the beauty of how Wiccans invison the world and its soul

This is an invocation used in many instances in Modern Wicca or witchcraft. It can be used at the start of a ritual to facilitate sacred mindfulness of the energy one is about to bring into the space or in the closure of a ritual as a reminder of the divine words/intuition you’ve received. It can also be used as a mantra of sorts in daily meditation, to help attune the practitioner to the Goddess energy.

.Listen to the words of the Great Mother; she who of old was also called among men

Artemis, Astarte, Athene, Dione, Melusine,Aphrodite, Cerridwen, Cybele, Arianrhod,

Isis, Dana, Bride and by many other names:

Whenever ye have need of anything, once in the month, and better it be when the moon is full, then shall ye assemble in some secret place and adore the spirit of me, who am Queen of all the witches.

…

Hear ye the words of the Star Goddess; she in the dust of whose feet are the hosts of heaven, and whose body encircles the Universe. I who am the beauty of the green earth,

and the white Moon among the stars, and the mystery of the waters, and the desire of the heart of man, call unto thy soul. Arise, and come unto me. For I am the soul of nature, who gives life to the universe. From me all things proceed, and unto me all things must return;

and before my face, beloved of Gods and of men, let thine innermost divine self be enfolded in the rapture of the infinite. Let my worship be within the heart that rejoiceth;

for behold, all acts of love and pleasure are my rituals. And therefore let there be beauty and strength, power and compassion, honour and humility, mirth and reverence within you.

Circe Offering the Cup to Odysseus by John William Waterhouse

And thou who thinkest to seek for me, know thy seeking and yearning shall avail thee not

unless thou knowest the mystery; that if that which thou seekest thee findest not within thee, thou wilt never find it without thee. For behold, I have been with thee from the beginning; and I am that which is attained at the end of desire.

We have thirsted after something substantial and powerful in the realms of natural spirituality for some time and now we’ve been able to find it within the many strains of Paganism there were hiding in the midst of folk practices and histor. Some examples are Wicca, Druidry, Witchcraft traditions and Re-constructionist Traditions such as Ásatrú (Norse), Kemetism (Egyptian), Celtic and Hellenistic(greek/roman) Reconstruction. These are not all the Pagan faiths; there are many other groups calling themselves Pagan who participate in the Pagan community today.

Within Wicca and through poetic, authentic ritual and personal exploration we can begin to find the divine within ourselves and that’s really the goal of any pagan path. 

Imagery and the Occult: Sandman as Articulation of Occult Agency.

For the paths are long, and even in death there is no ending to them. – Sandman #21

Imagery and the Occult: Sandman as Articulation of Occult Agency.

It’s not farfetched to assert that imagery is the most important aspect of occult representation.  Art and iconography have always been an essential way to re-present the occult in pictorial form. In fact, modern occult art is a living enterprise designed for inter-action. It is meant to remain anew. However, it can only remain new by being continually re-interpreted, re-translated, and re-conditioned to meet current needs. This idea presupposes the assertion that the occult is a socio-religious network of correspondences and associative artifacts. Like any religious group, the occult is in negotiation with the numinous. This appeal for the sacred to remain anew isn’t exactly a “new” concept. Bruno Latour has done extensive work on articulating religious speech in modern times. (See Latour- “Thou Shalt Not Take The Lord’s Name In Vain”: Being a Sort of Sermon on the Hesitations of Religious Speech. 2001.) However, the occult is even more in need of a continual testing of conceptual re-applicability because it is completely entwined with all areas of popular culture. Sure, religion has important connections to the media, internet, and society but still can afford a demarcation that allows it exclusivity among cultural milieus. The occult could use the same invisible boundary between profane and sacred but chooses not to. The occult is the product of everything from myth and folklore to religious ideology to goth horror and the sexual revolution of the 1960s. And it has been continually made anew to meet the spiritual needs of adherents. The occult of 2012  is different from the occult of 1960 which is different still from the occult of 1904. In some cases, there is barely a resemblance. Thank every god and goddess in every pantheon for that! In its continual re-definition, the occult enjoys constant epistemic relocation. In other words, what gives it meaning is in constant flux. It moves according to where it is needed and where it can remain a fresh archetypal model.

A good way to explore this concept of epistemic relocation is in the Sandman comic book. Written predominantly by Neil Gaimon, Sandman is a comic that ran from 1988 until 1996. The narratives showcase an atypical comic hero. Sandman doesn’t solve crimes or foil capers. He is the incarnation of dreaming and his power comes from the dream world. Gaimon reasoned that, “If there was a being who embodied dreaming, he would not be alone, but would be joined by other supernaturals who would represent the diversity of human conditions…his pantheon would include Dream and his six siblings: Death, Destruction, Destiny, Desire, Delirium, and Despair” (Stephen Weiner 2004). The story arc of Sandman issues 20-25 asks: What if the Lord of the Dreamworld entered Hell to release a lost soul? In the narrative, Dream informs Lucifer that he will require a parley for the soul of a loved one. He ventures into the void just to discover that his beloved is no longer there and that Lucifer has quit as overseer of Hell. There begins the action that encompasses Bible mythos, dreaming, demonology, and an intertwining of mythological and archetypal associations. The plot turn occurs when a host of deities and demons come to claim the real estate that was once Hell. Everybody from Odin and Loki to Choronzon and Azazel arrive in the Dream to make an argument for ownership. The occult connotations are rampant! As is the cross-pollination of religious, mystical, and mythological personas that form a clear network of mediators all serving to re-present or present anew occult thoughts and processes….

TO BE CONTINUED      

Network of the Numinous

Network of the Numinous

            Much has been written about the folklore surrounding UFOs. Ever since the fiasco of 1947, flying saucers have been commonplace in popular media. Likewise, ceremonial magick has always had a definitive role in the study of witchcraft and demonology. Anthropologists study shamanism in all its forms to glean better insights into religious representations of the numinous. Rites of liminality are also carefully examined to show the effects of initiatory structure on social chartering. With that said, surprisingly little has been published concerning the connections and networking of Ufology and ceremonial magick. Usually left to the domain of New Age, academia has shied away from this genre largely out of fear of being considered pseudo-scientific or even psychologically disturbed.

            The attitude towards Ufology and ceremonial magick is the same derision that investigators of the paranormal suffer by mainstream science. Skeptics are quick to point out that “Aliens do not exist. And neither do ghosts or Harry Potter.” But who are we to deny ontological status to anything? I would assert that social scientists can benefit greatly from theories that are seemed absurd or impossible. As Feyerabend stated, “A scientist who is interested in maximal empirical content, and who wants to understand as many aspects of his theory as possible, will adopt a pluralistic methodology, he will compare theories with other theories rather than with ‘experience’, ‘data’, or ‘facts’, and he will try to improve rather than discard the views that appear to lose in the competition” (27). A pluralistic study of various occult processes can be very beneficial to the social scientist that wants to identify the agencies and mediators involved in anomalous behavior and phenomenon. Anarchism is an essential vehicle for determining the inertia that UFOs and the occult exhibit as they move through ontological and epistemic landscapes. Throughout this article, I will be discussing UFO folklore and how it is intimately connected to ideas of ceremonial magick. It is my contention that Ufology and ceremonial magicians both negotiate avenues of worldmaking to achieve a re-presentation of numinous properties.

            At no time during Men In Black did Will Smith perform an invocation or rite of Pan. There were no pentagrams, magic circles, or liturgical chanting. However, there were extraterrestrials and a lot of them. There were aliens of all shapes and sizes running around influencing the action and behavior of earthlings. Much like gods and demons of the past, there were a myriad of aliens representing their pantheons or planets. Were these creatures summoned? Did the lights of their saucer act as markers once reserved for angels, fairies, or spirits? It is clear that the folklore of Ufology shares many characteristics of traditional narratives of the supernatural. What isn’t as detailed are the mechanisms that connect UFO and occult narratives.

            Perhaps the area where UFO is closest to ceremonial magick is in archetype and symbol. Often times, traditional mythological and religious narratives lend themselves easily to UFO folklore. One such example is in the World Tree. The World Tree is found in countless sacred traditions. Kabbalists use the very important Tree of Life in their studies of the Sephiroth. Aztec and Mayan cosmologies make use of a sacred tree in their respective belief systems. Even esoteric Christianity uses the symbol of the tree in their understanding of the Crucifixion Cross. It is no surprise that ceremonial magicians make use of the sacred tree in their ritual practice. Corresponding kabbalistic sephiroth are always used as focal points and explanatory associatives of the ritual process. You could even say that the magic wand is a derivation of the World Tree and its importance in Druidic, Arthurian Legend, and Tarot stem from its role in initiatory pageantry. According to Valerii Samarov, “In the case of the World Tree, we are dealing with the fabula. Both the ritual and the fabula can be traced back a thousand years. They are very likely to have originated in initiation rites” (165). As the fabula or “raw material of a story” is showcased in UFO accounts, it’s not difficult to see the similarities between initiatory rites and UFO contact narratives. Many UFO narratives are awash with initiatory implications. Also, stories about the World Tree are sometimes analogous to the flying saucer mythos. For example, in many narratives of the World Tree, a hero is stuck in the underworld and comes upon a huge tree with the nest of a giant bird. There are young nestlings in the tree and a serpent(dragon) has wound itself around the tree intending to eat the young birds. Our hero cuts the serpent in half and saves the nestlings. The large bird then returns and carries the hero back to the Earth. (See Stith-Thompson folklore motif index) In this narrative, the eagle’s nest is analogous to a flying saucer and the young nestlings equivalent to ‘little green men’. Our human hero comes into contact with the saucer, performs some aid, and is transported back to Earth. This is certainly reminiscent of both contact and abduction narratives in UFO folklore. Perhaps an initiatory Ordeal, the connotations of the ‘Tree’ and ‘Serpent’ are appropriated nicely in the UFO schema.

            Another area in which Ufology and ceremonial magic find associative value is in areas of dreamwork and nightmare exploration. It is well known that much of the visualization that occurs during occult ritual is done while asleep. Dreams are both interpreted as an astral reality and tool for inter-dimensional travel. Utilized in a way similar to the imagination, dreams and nightmares are an essential aspect of occult ritual. Perhaps it’s the primal fear or mysteries that accompany the dark that makes the nightmare so identifiable for witchcraft. Davies has stated that, “the nightmare was not just a symptom, like other bodily conditions associated with witchcraft, but through its hallucinatory content was also a potent confirmation of a witch’s power” (182). Ceremonial magick, Old Hag experiences, and sleep paralysis, are all associated with dreams and nightmares. Moreover, the UFO abduction almost always takes place in the middle of the night. Most scenarios involve nightmares somewhere in the narrative. Whether the nightmares occur during the supernatural experience or after the event, dreaming is nearly always apparent somewhere in the experience.

            Perhaps the closest connection of UFO folklore with occult magick is in the entities known as ‘Men In Black’. These figures show up after UFO contact and demand that witnesses remain silent about the event. They are described as strange in appearance and behavior. In fact, some MIB are described as being ‘alien-like’ or, at the very least, reminiscent of extraordinary humans. The Buddhist bodhisattva comes to mind. The idea of “tulpas” from Tibetan Buddhist traditions has also been linked to the MIB phenomenon. Rojcewicz remarks that “there has been some serious discussion that MIB and perhaps UFOs in general are related to the Tibetan mystical tradition of the “tulpas”. A tulpa is a materialized thought-form and thus may be related in part to holographic images” (154).  This is very important because MIB would be identical to entities conjured during ceremonial magick. The UFO experience would be a form of occult ritual. Whether conscious of it or not, contactees and abductees would be either performing or subject to an occult rite.

            Men in Black have also been correlated with very obscure and sometimes very hidden, occult groups. These theories postulate that there is nothing essentially extraterrestrial about MIB. Instead, they are a very secretive group of occultists who have mastered very arcane forms of magick and who now act as ‘secret chiefs’ or ‘hidden masters’. One of these groups is called the ‘Brothers of the Shadow’ and according to Steiger, “Brothers of the Shadow are cunning and evil; intent upon keeping any student of the occult from finding out the proverbial answer. In mystical jargon this answer is the “veil of Isis”, and is synonymous with the “Great Secret” of Maeterlink…the Brothers of Shadow, like the MIB, are known for threatening students whenever they get too close to lifting the veil of Isis” (Steiger 1978). Are MIB highly educated occultists who seek to regulate dissemination of occult secrets? Are UFO manifestations a correlate of occult ritual or entities? There are many who seem to think so. Even among more popularized groups such as Typhonian Ordo Templi Orientis, the UFO phenomenon is a product of occult techniques. Kenneth Grant has remarked that, “Not until his death (Aleister Crowley in 1947) did any massive contact occur between Earth and extraterrestrial intelligences, a contact which his intercourse with Aiwass had helped make possible” (18) Curiously, 1947 marked not only the year of Crowley’s demise but also the legendary Roswell event in New Mexico.

            Perhaps the most compelling evidence to suggest that UFO phenomenon is a product of occult ritual is in the fact that there are rituals designed to invoke extraterrestrials. Probably the best well known comes from H.P. Lovecraft in the Necronomicon treatise. In his Cthulhu cult, E.T.’s are summoned for both their powers and secrets. Another very pertinent example comes in the form of LAM. (see pic) This being came into contact with Crowley during the transmission of The Book Of The Law in 1904. Grant remarks that “the cult of LAM is undoubtedly growing and the reader who feels a strong inner urge to invoke this entity may proceed as follows. Gaze at a portrait until drowsiness supervenes. This gaze will naturally rest upon the eyes; these will appear to enlarge and will suck in the consciousness until there arises a sensation of being within the entity’s head. Two ways are now open: either upward or downward” (153). This rite is designed specifically to achieve contact with an extraterrestrial being. The E.T. daimon is then used to glean esoteric truths and insights.

            Since folklore of Ufology is intimately connected with occult ritual, we must explore the implications of these groups in popular culture. There are dozens of UFO groups that get together, conduct activities, and record their findings on videotape or log. These groups meet at a predestined place and perform some form of occult theatre. Whether it is aiming binoculars at the sky in an attempt to capture odd lights and anomalies, a UFO conference, or a post-hypnotic regression of an alien abductee, all these activities could be considered occult ritual. The distinction between what is occult and what is UFO research has become blurred as UFO folklore becomes a common staple in parlance of the paranormal. Nowadays, UFO sightings, occult research, and paranormal phenomenon are all intertwined in what I call a network of the numinous. The separate branches of the unexplained and mysterious are becoming re-presented and referenced in ways that compliment one another. Interestingly, each of the branches provide better insights and understanding to the entire phenomenon by being greater than the sum of its parts. It is true that in the network of the numinous, the parts are more important than the sum. The reason is because a social scientist would have to be fluent in the language of each branch and sub-branch before attempting to discern the mediators involved in the sum. Of course, there are scholars that have mastered the nuances of occult, UFO, and the paranormal but they are few and far between and may be what are considered ‘secret chiefs’ or MIB. The answer is as always anomalous and I guess only time will tell.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Davies, Owen. “The Nightmare Experience, Sleep Paralysis, and Witchcraft Accusations.” Folklore. Vol. 114(2003): 181-203.

Feyerabend, Paul. Against Method. New York: Verso Publishing, 2010.

Grant, Kenneth. Outside the Circles of Time. London: Frederick Muller Limited, 1980.

Samarov, Valerii I., “On the Nature and Origin of Flying Saucers and Little Green Men.” Current Anthropology. Vol. 22 No. 2. (April 1981): 163-167.

Rojcewicz, Peter. “The “Men In Black” Experience and Tradition-Analogues with the Traditional Devil Hypothesis.” Journal of American Folklore. Vol. 100 (1987): 148-160

Steiger, Brad. Alien Meetings. New York: Ace Books, 1978.              

In The Light- 'Temple Illuminatus'

They laughed and scoffed at the idea of a pluriversal occult website. They thought it was ridiculous. A site that contains a blog, photos, chatroom, news-area, and networking link page? It was dumb and ignorantly naïve. I had been approached by a wino while sitting outside a café. Somewhat disheveled and swaying lightly, this bum narrowed his eyes and focused on my computer screen. “What is it?” he asked stupidly. “A wi-fi connection.” I smirked and glanced up as he fell into the seat next to me. Of course, I knew he referred to the 17th century Rosicrucian etching that declared war on Weishaupt’s Illuminati and was currently filling my computer screen but I wasn’t  about to get into that right now. It wasn’t even breakfast and frankly, he smelled funny.

Most days are slow in the publishing business. Crazy things happen few and far between but when they do its like an earthquake or the frenzied excitement that accompanies the bashing of a rodeo clown. A lot of screaming and dodging the wild. My new friend had rolled himself a cigarette and sat jabbering at me while I sipped at my coffee. Suddenly a window was thrown open above the café and a man looked down at me somewhat crazily. Good god, I thought. Here it is. This monster is gonna jump and splatter his brains all over my keyboard. There’ll be no work getting done today. He looked down at my new friend and grinning maniacally brought out an old violin he had kept out of view. “What’re you doin?” He asked. Wino appeared confused so I flicked the side of his head. “I think he wants to talk to you.” I mumbled and stared intently at my monitor. “If I say anything, he’ll drive me crazy with that damn thing.” “Crazy.” I repeated and tried to imagine how much crazier this wino could potentially get. Could this episode take a violent turn? Is he at the edge of some panic-induced fit? Will he start screaming? I started when above us came the gross sound of a violin kept horribly out of tune. I immediately got up to leave when our musician glowered down at me and asked, “Where  are you going?” I said something about wanting to find a pub when he inquired, “Can I come with you?” I sat back down defeated as the sound from above became increasingly more delirious. “He’s gonna do it this time!” Wino said. “The police will come for sure.”

“Well how long before he stops?” I shot back. “Could be never” he said sadly and put his head down.

I went inside the café to find some peace and it was against this backdrop that I explored  the website that quite possibly is setting the bar for informative research. Called ‘Temple Illuminatus’, this site goes above and beyond just articles or a forum. (Although the forum is highly useful and saturated with a variety of threads and topics) The collection of occult imagery is also beautiful and tempts visitors to upload to the database. As I scrolled through the threads, images, and research topics, I could hear the screaming of the violin from above. And outside, wino kept grabbing chunks of mud and flinging them in a rage towards the window. I realized that I was the only component in this equation of crazy that was keeping it from escalating into complete pandemonium. Naturally, I went back outside and sat down to watch the entertainment. Delving deeper into Temple Illuminatus, I finished my research just as wino charged up the stairs blind seething and promising to impair something. I smiled and sipped my latte. It was gonna be a decent afternoon

Ghosts of Glastonbury

The Ghosts of Glastonbury

            Legend has it that King Arthur and Guinevere are buried at Glastonbury Abbey. In 1191, monks began an archaeological excavation to find their remains and were purportedly successful. I am not surprised. Avalon does seem to hide in plain sight at Glastonbury. Being there and feeling the crisp morning fog does remind one of the fae that are just out of reach. There is a mystery and magic that surround this place. Even in modern times, the ground of Somerset is a liminal space. Tourists walk through Glastonbury betwixt and between this world and are completely unaware of the sacred space just outside their field of vision. But they can feel it. When they browse the local bookshops or sit at a café they discern something eschew but cannot put their finger on what it is. And the locals know. Oh they’re not fooled at all. I’ve witnessed them glance at newcomers stumbling around in a dull haze. I’ve watched them meet each others eye in knowing awareness. It’s the best kept secret in Britain. Glastonbury is alive and harbors Avalon. An autonomous entity, this beautiful place lives and breathes and enfolds everybody in its embrace. I’ve felt it. I’ve walked through a milky blanket of fog so thick that it has dream-like form and texture. But the mist ripples differently depending on where you are in Glastonbury. It is a meandering path of movement, renegotiation, and re-presentation.

            Modern Avalon is a knot of actors that are bound and entwined to one another. We explore these agencies and gauge their influence on one another as harbingers of movement. As Latour has remarked, our duty is not decide how the actors should be made to act, but rather to retrace the many different worlds actors are elaborating for one another.[1] Glastonbury is a conduit for these worldmaking entities. There are clear associations between actors who continually redefine their place in the ecology of this small town. For example, Christian legend and iconography sits side-by-side with the fairly-lore and mysticism of modern wicca. Ceremonial magick is only a handful of steps away from Sufism or chakra exploration. These various actors are all connected in a network of spiritualism that infuses the entire area. They shift and move as they interact in the network.

            Perhaps the most telling correspondence in all of Glastonbury involves the re-presentations of Glastonbury Tor and Abbey. These two entities are ontological kin but invoke very different nuances in their negotiation of the sacred. Glastonbury Abbey may be a doorway but its also a broken shell. A fragment or set of puzzle pieces. There is a sadness within Glastonbury Abbey. It still stands majestic yet carries a hint of melancholy. It’s like a shard of the past. And the mist works differently at the Abbey than it does at the Tor. At the Tor it’s a blanket of mystery; At the Abbey, a mournful shroud. At the Tor it evokes a surprise or sudden remembrance, At the Abbey, it is a veil. Glastonbury Abbey is a wound. And that is the dichotomy of Glastonbury. Aside from the occultists, new-agers, locals, and tourists, two non-humans vie for the spirit of the area. The Tor of Avalon, a pilgrimage of mysticism versus the mournful wail of the Abbey. Ironically, the Abbey is Avalon itself. Something that refuses to become a mere legend. For the Abbey, the thought that its existence could be a fable is unacceptable. It is and remains as alive now as it was in antiquity. 

        The folklore of the Holy Grail is also very prevalent in Glastonbury. In fact, it is the most popular Christian mystery in Somerset. All throughout the area, images of the Grail can be seen on both storefront and stained-glass windows. Did Joseph of Arimathea bring the holy chalice from Jerusalem and hide it in Glastonbury? What was the vessel known as the Grail? Was it a womb? A cup? These questions dot the folklore that surround this precious relic. According to Hall, in the earliest accounts, the Grail appears to have been a precious stone. We hear elsewhere of ‘a pearl of great price’, and we are counseled not to ‘cast our pearls before swine’ nor to ‘give that which is holy unto the dogs’. Afterwards, it became a vessel, one that moved about in the air, and of the contents of which all could partake without their diminishing.[2] It is believed that Arimathea came to Avalon and set up a shrine on the slopes of the Tor. With him he brought the Sang Real or Chalice that contained the actual blood of Christ. This Grail, whether it be a Chalice, a child, or an esoteric secret, may well be buried near the Chalice Well in Glastonbury.

            The idea of Holy Blood has also resonated recently in films like The DaVinci Code and books such as Holy Blood, Holy Grail. However, in many legends the correlation of Holy Blood has no connection to Christ’s lineage or bloodline. For example, pilgrims to Glastonbury in the 12^th century were shown a miraculous silver figure of Christ that had exuded blood, having been pierced with an arrow during a skirmish between abbot Thurstan and his monks in 1080.[3] Also, in 1419 the monks of Glastonbury conducted an excavation where they ‘discovered’ a tomb which might have been that of Joseph of Arimathea. It was said that from the middle of the body towards the head there was a great abundance of liquid which to those present in that place seemed as fresh blood both by its color and its appearance.[4]

            The folklore of holy relics, like the Chalice Well, Tor, and Abbey are all transformed by their association with one another. The Abbey and Tor encourage justification of each others agency. They hold different agendas and matters of concern yet shed light on each others presence in the Glastonbury network. By using the Tor as a tool of comparison, the Abbey is re-presented and undergoes an ontological shift. Furthermore, when the Tor or Abbey are examined in terms of folklore or archaeological agency, their inertia as mediators move as well. Likewise, Christian legends of Joseph of Arimathea enjoy a movement of associations by being in a largely pagan or pre-Christian domain. Even amidst the myriad of new-age or occult bookstores in Glastonbury, Arimathea is just as likely to be evoked, conjured, or prayed to as any other religious or spiritual entity. An equality of associations provides the means by which to change something in the state of affairs. This is how the network remains organic and alive.

           

        We can also explore the epistemological question of what is real and what is fabricated by inducing inertia into Glastonbury’s mediators. An integral part of the entire occult network, the local community is a pluriverse of groups in continual flux. They contract and expand. They move and interconnect. Often times, an occultist will shift from Ceremonial Magician to Wicca to Arthurian Legend and negotiate each paradigm based upon expected social cues. Other times, a Goetic Magician will move into Chaos Magic then meander into Theistic Satanism and successfully maneuver each mediator being explored. The point being that Glastonbury is a pluriverse of pantheons, rituals, and folklore. These mediators all coexist under the canopy of the network. It becomes interesting when considering the plethora of worldmaking that is occurring every second. It’s not uncommon to find Joseph of Arimathea in a pagan universe or Kali corresponding with Nuit in a fae world. The archetypes take precedence. They are as legitimate and as real as the populace that creates them.

  

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[1] Latour, Bruno. Reassembling the Social. Oxford University Press. 2007. pp. 49.

[2] A Glastonbury Reader. Selections from the Myths, Legends and Stories of Ancient Avalon. Editor John Mathews. Harper Colling Publishers. 1993. pp. 19.

[3] Vincent, Nicholas. The Holy Blood. King Henry III and the Westminster Blood Relic. Cambridge University Press. 2001. pp. 48.

[4] Ibid.