Tag Archives: Shamanism
Upperworld
Featured
Shamanism and Magick of the Celestial Realms
Chris Allaun
Upperworld: Shamanism and Magick of the Celestial Realms
Chris Allaun
ISBN: 978-1-906958-92-3
Format: Softcover
£15.00 / US$24.00
Subjects: Angels/Magick/Shamanism/Myths/Healing/Spirituality
Click HERE for Upperworld / UK
Click HERE for Upperworld / USA and AUS
The stars glow with their own special magick in the nighttime sky. For millions of years, the stars sent their light down to the earth. The same stars and planets we see today are the same bodies of light that ancient shamans saw around their campfires. Countless generations looked into the night sky and wondered about the magick above. It was the shamans who travelled in spirit to the Upperworlds to discover the secrets of the Universe. There are many ancient beings in the above worlds that can help us learn about the energies of the Universe and transform our lives for healing, power, and spiritual evolution.
As we journey into the Upperworlds, we will learn about the creation of the Universe and the energies that were formed from the first burst of energy and light. Shamans saw that these energies formed into powerful beings. Some called these beings angels, others called them ascended masters. Each of these beings has a divine purpose in the Universe and we will unravel these mysteries. We will learn to spirit travel into the many heavens from many different cultures. We will visit the heavens that were told to us in myths, as well as discover hidden parts of the Universe that await our arrival. We will also learn about the gods and goddesses and how to honour them in our daily magical practice. The gods are powerful and they can grant us many blessings. Through our magical practice with the night sky, we will use the magick of the stars and planets to transform our lives and the physical world around us.
“Like those before him, Christopher Allaun steals a little bit of the fire of heaven and shares it with his readers. While the underworld might be more in vogue these days, he tackles the rich lore of the heavens, and shares practical teachings that can be brought down to Earth for when you want to seek the stars.”
– Christopher Penczak, Co-Founder of The Temple of Witchcraft and author of City Magick, The Witch’s Shield and The Mighty Dead.
“Chris Allaun’s new book, “Upperworld”, is a very interesting and informative read. Consistent with his previous work, Chris focuses on the myths, legends and spiritual teachings of an eclectic mix of cultures from around the world, giving insights into their ways of viewing the “higher” realms. Chris gives information on the Shamanic worldview and the place of the Upperworld within it, detailing techniques to access and explore its various realms. Drawing on diverse sources, he not only describes the denizens of the various realms of the gods, angels, stars, planets and kabbalistic worlds but gives practical information on how to make contact and interact with them. There are rites of worship, magic, devotion, astral projection and healing that not only give an insight into the practical working of pagan, Shamanic experience but enable the reader to experience these themselves and take their own journey along the Shamanic path. This is an accessible and approachable work, both for the newcomer to the subject and the more experienced practitioner alike; both will derive benefit from reading this book.”
–Nigel G. Pearson, author of Treading the Mill: Workings of Traditional Witchcraft and The Devil’s Plantation: East Anglian Lore, Witchcraft, and Folk-Magick.
“Ancient shamans didn’t spend all their time journeying through the hazards of the underworld. They also took time to explore the heavens (or “Upperworld”), to learn the mysteries of creation, healing, and magick directly from the gods. It is refreshing, in this time when goetia is given so much focus, to see the author’s exploration of the concepts and spiritual beings of the celestial realms. Just as important, his focus upon lore, legend, and mythology in developing a true understanding of and shamanic relationship with these beings is vital, and often missed in modern Western occult texts.”
– Aaron Leitch, author of Secrets of the Magical Grimoires: The Classical Texts of Magick Deciphered and The Essential Enochian Grimoire: An Introduction to Angelic Magick from Dr. John Dee to the Golden Dawn.
Check out Chris Allaun’s news, classes, workshops and other events-
Chris Allaun: Author, Teacher, Healer
https://www.facebook.com/chrisallaun.author/?rc=p
Deeper Into The Underworld
Featured
Death, Ancestors & Magical Rites
Chris Allaun
Deeper into The Underworld
Death, Ancestors & Magical Rites
Chris Allaun
Format: Softcover
ISBN: 978-1-906958-82-4
£15.00 /US $24.00
Subjects: Shamanism/Magic/Healing/Afterlife/Death Customs/Spirits Communication/Spirituality.
Deeper into the Underworld we go…
The Underworld is home to our beloved ancestors, those who gave us our flesh and blood and our breath. Their blood flows through our veins and contains great magick and power. They have the ability to help us heal old karmic wounds of the past and aide us in our spiritual development. They can teach us many things about the world of spirit. All we have to do is honor them. All we have to do is call to them.
The cycles of Life are sacred to our pagan and magical cosmology, but what of Death? As we honor life, so, too, must we honor the sacredness of death and dying. As we go further in our Underworld studies, we will learn about the Angel of Death and energetic process of dying. Death is not the end. It is a magical transition into the world of spirit where we are rejoined with our beloved ancestors. The Ancestors are our link to our past. We will learn to honor them and create a sacred shrine so that we may commune with them in a magical and healing way. By honoring the ancestors, we will strengthen our bonds with the spirits and learn to heal our family karma that began long ago and affects us even today.
By learning to work with the ancestors, we will learn to work with the spirits of the dead for magick and healing. We will learn how ancient cultures summoned the beloved dead to heal grief and say final goodbyes. We will also learn magical techniques to summon the shades of the dead and the Hidden Company; those powerful spirits that can teach us ancient wisdom of long ago that can help us tread our spiritual path to find balance and healing.
Click here for Kindle UK edition
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Read Alanna Wright’s review of Deeper Into the Underworld: Death, Ancestors and Magical Rites, published in Spiral Nature Magazine
www.spiralnature.com/reviews/deeper-into-underworld-chris-allaun/
Deeper Into the Underworld: Death, Ancestors and Magical Rites
by Chris Allaun
Mandrake of Oxford, 9781906958824, 203 pp., 2018.
”Chris Allaun has released Deeper Into the Underworld: Death, Ancestors and Magical Rites as a follow-up to his first book Underworld: Shamanism, Myth and Magick. In this book, Allaun brings to life, or rather life after death, the powerful practice of ancestral spirit worship and highlights the immense spiritual benefits that come from learning to commune with the deceased. The theme of death runs strong through the book yet Allaun has presented the material in such a way that allows the reader to open to the power of Underworld forces in much the same way as shamans, witches, and magicians have for countless centuries — with the knowledge needed to access this realm, courage to face the reality of death and wisdom to tap into the spiritual power of this domain.
Written in a very straightforward and easy-to-read style, Allaun provides the reader with real-life experiential advice on how to work with ancestors as part of their magical practices. He explains,
“Honoring the dead is one of the most important parts of spirituality. We often honor our gods and goddesses and even nature spirits, but sometimes forget the most important spirits to honor; our beloved dead. Our ancestors are our family. They are our grandmothers and grandfathers and our grandmothers and grandfathers before that. They hold an energetic and magical link to us. We may not realize it, but there is a current of power that goes from us to our ancestors and from them back to us. It is strong. It is powerful. Is it the bond of family.”
In no way does Allaun skimp on ideas for how to establish and strengthen this connection to our ancestors. He offers a variety of methods that can be easily incorporated into one’s magic to help the reader open the channel to commune with their ancestors. Detailed is the way to set up an altar, created sacred space and maintain a daily devotional practice to honour loved ones who have passed on. Allaun highlights the importance of sustaining an ongoing relationship with our ancestors, rather than only honouring them sparsely through the year, as the way to truly bring them into your home and spiritual life. In this way, we can begin to communicate with our ancestors about day-to-day happenings and this in turn provides nourishment for them and us alike.
The reader is reminded this is not a one-way relationship as our ancestors benefit too from our offerings to them in the Underworld. Allaun explains, “On an energetic level, what is happening is that our prayers open our minds, energies and our spirits to our Ancestors and higher beings to establish a strong and powerful connection. Through the connection we make with the spirits, they are able to use this energy and power to help our Ancestors evolve to a higher state of being.” Later in the book, Allaun ties in how we also carry ancestral patterns that we can transmute and heal by working with ancestors in the Underworld directly.
Beyond ancestral knowledge, this book is a rich resource for information on death rites, rituals, and cultural perceptions of death that have been carried through the ages. Allaun provides insightful understanding of the way death is portrayed today in comparison to how cultures of the past understood working with the Underworld, death, and the ancestors. These include pages on Egyptian embalming and also the Eleusinian Mysteries of Ancient Greece. By going back in time, the reader comes to understand how human’s cultural relationship to death has been worshipped, revered, and also feared throughout time.
Throughout the book, Allaun provides many mythological stories that highlight the importance of the Underworld spirits and knowledge of how to navigate this tricky realm. These include the story of Baldur’s dreams in Norse mythology, Those Who Come From The Mountains in Japanese and Shinto mythology and Asclepius and Diana bringing back the dead in Greco-Roman mythology. Allaun does an outstanding job of providing many cross-cultural narratives involving death, so the reader has a widened perspective of a variety of spiritual understandings of the Underworld. This includes a passage of the Ghost Dance of Native Americans from the Plains region of the United States, where they were able to perform this dance to summon their ancestors and gain a personal sense of empowerment through the connection.
In sharing his personal experience, Allaun works to dissolve the fear commonly associated with death and the Underworld. A fantastic aspect of the book is the fascinating meditations provided that can be applied in a ritual setting to gain insight into the energy of death, access the Underworld, and work with ancestors. These meditations include performing a eulogy at your own funeral, graveyard meditations, tracing back family karma through lineage, and connecting with ancestors in dreams, and tapping into the blood. For those who practice traditional witchcraft, Allaun includes a ritual to connect with the Hidden Company to seek their spiritual knowledge and also Ritual of the Rose Castle to connect with the Goddess of Death.
Allaun focuses on sharing with the reader how the misconception of working with the dead became linked to evildoing with rise of Judeo-Christianity. Yet, he is honest about the association that has existed between necromancy and black magickdea intended to harm others. While he does not advocate using ancestors or magical connections made to the deceased in this way, he does acknowledge the existence and possibility of the misuse of spiritual power, which include bringing the dead back to life.
Above all, Allaun maintains that it is of the utmost importance to treat the dead with the kindness the reader would show any guest in their home. This means being welcoming and never making unfair requests. While the ancestors can be strong magical allies, Allaun makes it clear that we should never force our ancestors to do things for us. It is important that honour is always maintained, as the spirits can communicate, and being disrespectful towards an ancestor could hinder future relations.
The information in the book covers what the reader would need to know on all fronts to begin establishing a spiritual connection with their ancestors. Allaun stresses the importance of carefully selecting the spirits with whom you share energy. He acknowledges that certain spiritual entities many want to ask favours or cling on to the reader in order to gain energy. While this does not always happen, Allaun has given the reader techniques that can be used to make sure the reader remains protected and the sacred space clear of unwanted energy. The information provided includes numerous measures of protection that range from simple techniques to create clear energy to elaborate banishing rituals. It is obvious that Allaun has the reader’s interest at heart and wants to provide the most honest and accurate account of the possibilities that can emerge from working with the energies of the Underworld to ensure the reader is prepared.
There are only a few downsides of note in regard to Deeper Into The Underworld. The first being quite a few spelling and grammatical errors scattered through the book that can be distracting. The other is that there is no reference section or bibliography provided, leaving the reader to research and verify the information themselves.
Overall, Deeper Into The Underworld: Death, Ancestors and Magical Rites is a great read for anyone who feels a connection to working with the deceased. There is much to be gained from tapping into the Underworld and bringing the wisdom of our beloved ancestors into the physical realm. Consider this a go-to book from which anyone with an interest in ancestral worship or necromancy would gain something.”
Underworld
Featured
Shamanism, Myth, Magick
Chris Allaun
Underworld
Shamanism, Myth, Magick
Chris Allaun
Format: Softcover
ISBN: 978-1-906958-76-3
£15.00 / US $24.00
Click here for Kindle UK edition
Click here for Kindle USA edition
– Synopsis –
The Underworld has always been thought of as a place of darkness and despair. Even today there are many misconceptions about what the Underworld is and what awaits inside. We will learn how different cultures around the world viewed the Underworld and the afterlife. Some cultures have there own unique perspective, but surprisingly, cultures that had no communications with each other form across the world had similarities. Can this be a coincidence? Most importantly, we will learn how to journey there in the astral and map this incredible world. But be careful! Along with its many wonders and beauty, there are things that lurk in the dark that myths throughout the ages have warned us about. But for the Shaman or witch, are these warnings to keep us away or teach us how to commune with these ancient spirits and creatures?
As we journey deeper into the Underworld, we will discover places where the long-forgotten dead will rekindle our spirit and teach us the ways of magick. They have been waiting for us and have much to say. We only have to sit and listen to the wisdom of ancient times. We will also discover places of healing and rejuvenation. Places where ancient hags guard magick wells and the waters of life and death spring from a source so old, no one remembers where it came from. Along with these wonderful and beautiful places, there are places most dark and dreadful, the Hellworlds. These are the areas of the Underworld that test your spirit and what you thought was reality. You may never be the same, but you will be transformed, renewed, and more powerful.
The Underworld is strange and wondrous and cannot be contained. Sometimes, those spirits of the dead will not be bound in such a place and stay in the world of the living. The poor lost spirits stay with us for a variety of reasons. You will learn why the spirits of the dead are still here and how to help them journey to a place of rest. You never know, a spirit of the dead may be right behind you…
”Chris Allaun’s book, Underworld: Shamanism, Myth, and Magick is truly a masterpiece. Chris has thoughtfully taken a huge subject and separated it into readable and manageable sections and chapters. He clarifies –What is the Underworld? Who resides in the Underworld? Where is the Underworld? and Why does it exist?” — all questions that have fascinated mankind since the beginning of time. And Mr. Allaun gives the reader exercises to deal with the dark side of the underworld, practical ways to cope with exploring one’s own fears and terrors, along with ways to help others. He also includes an extensive bibliography, something very useful. From psychologists to ceremonial magicians to spirit workers, to people just trying to navigate today’s complex world, Underworld creates a clear path full of information and help, to guide us through these often troubling times. I highly recommend this book!”
– Janet Barres
Cover art/design Amanda Manesis
Chris Allaun: Author, Teacher, Medicine Man
The Thornish Path
Featured
A Neo-Tribal Tradition
Jack Wolf
(Non-Fiction) (Neo-Tribal Traditions) (Secret Societies)
The Thornish Path
A Neo-Tribal Tradition
Jack Wolf
Format: Softcover
ISBN: 9781906958756
£15.00 / US$24.00 /Canada $27.00
Subjects: Thornish Tradition/Neo-Tribal Tradition//Odinism/Northern Tradition/Runes/Heathenism/Shamanism/Non-Fiction Account.
The Thornish Path / UK
The Thornish Path / USA and AUS
The Thornish Path / Canada / $27 Canadian dollars
Click here for Kindle UK edition
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Wisdom from a hidden community …
From words of prophecy made in earlier times to the newsfeeds of the today’s internet, more and more people are becoming aware of the changes taking place in the world. The old and much abused industrial model, driven largely by human ignorance and greed, has placed the future of both humankind and the Earth herself on a path to a questionable future.
But there is hope.
Over the past handful of decades, a great many people have been awakening to the realities of the world but as well, also hearing – and heeding – the call from the wisdom that lies in the heart of all human beings. It is a call to an older way, a better way; a way of returning to the realms of deeper spirit; of magic and of tribe. As individuals and as groups, those who have heard this call of the heart are rising to once again take their place as true human beings: As stewards of the land.
Canadian author Jack Wolf brings us a collection of stories from one such group of Earth-stewards. He does so with the desire that what he shares will kindle the fires of awakening in the hearts and minds of those who are ready for the return of the primal spark-of-hope.
Known as the Thornish tradition, the tribal gathering into which Jack was initiated in the mid 1980s, this group of animist stewards, referred to as knights of the greenwood or even forest mages by some, practices a form of Deepening Tribalism; which is a Paganism deeply tied to the spirits and energies of the land. As well, practitioners of the Thornish way express a commitment to recovering threads of the First Knowledge; a hidden repository of ancient wisdom believed to have been gifted to all people in the forgotten, primordial past.
Told in the narrative form, The Thornish Path, is intended to provide the reader with an intimate glimpse into the workings and relationships found within this formerly secret society. It is also intended as an introduction to this unique tradition for those who may wish to explore further.
Thornish people believe that they are but one tradition of many emerging now, into the modern world in order to be of assistance in the ongoing battle to heal the Earth, and in the words of Jack Wolf: “The time has come for the folk of the green to come into their own – as protectors and managers of the Earth, not the despoilers of it.”
–
Praise for previous book The Way of the Odin Brotherhood
“Jack Wolf’s plunge into the deep past when Christianity drove pagans into hiding, reads like a page-turning novel full of suspense and intrigue. Will Odin and his followers rise again? You’ll definitely root for them as you speed through Wolf’s absorbing, yet entertaining, work.”
”The late P. D. Ouspensky noted that human evolution requires conscious effort. It is only degeneration which can proceed unconsciously in man.”
”Like the Odin Brotherhood, the Thornish tradition strives to recreate homo superbus (the superb man) in our decadent age. In contrast to the Brotherhood, however, the Thornish tradition draws upon the heritage and mysteries of the “First Nations” in the Americas.”
”Mr. Wolf’s book, the first detailed study of the “Thornish Path,” is required reading for all students of esotericism.”- Professor Mark L. Mirabello.
For more information on the Thornish Tradition
www.thornwoodpress.com
thornwoodpress.wordpress.com
Surrealism & The Occult
Featured
Surrealism & The Occult
Nadia Choucha
Format: Softcover/164 pp.
ISBN: 9781906958749
£15.00
Subjects: Art/Art History/Surrealism/Occult.
Click HERE for the UK edition
Many people associate Surrealism with politics, but it was also permeated by occult ideas, a fact often overlooked by art historians. This occult influence goes beyond general themes to the movement’s very heart.
This occult influence goes beyond general themes to the movement’s very heart. The antinomian stance of Surrealism can be traced directly to the influence of radical nineteenth century magi such as Eliphas Lévi, whose Dogma and Ritual of High Magic was widely read by Surrealism’s ideologues. Amongst these we find its progenitor André Breton.
The book shows how many Surrealists and their predecessors were steeped in magical ideas: Kandinsky, with his involvement with Theosophy, the sorcery of Salvador Dali; the alchemy of Pablo Picasso and the shamanism of Max Ernst and Leonora Carrington.
Surrealism did not establish itself in Britain until the 1930s but a select few felt something in the air. Almost ten years before the Surrealist experiments with automatic drawing, an obscure English artist, Austin Osman Spare had perfected the technique.
Nadia Choucha shows, convincingly, that occult and surrealist philosophies were often interchangeable. Surrealism and the Occult is seminal reading for art historians and occultists alike, while artists will find it a vital guide to the unlocking of the imagination.
Praise for Nadia Choucha’s Surrealism & the Occult
”Highly readable…seminal… fascinating” – Francis X. King
”alive, with the heady mixture of occult and pictorial symbolism treated with laudable lucidity.”- Art Book News
Shape-Shifters & Their Stories
Featured
The Golem; Lilith; Werewolf; The Dybbuk; Silkie; and more
Michael Berman
Shape-Shifters & Their Stories
Michael Berman
Format: Softcover/192 pp, 24 fascinating Illustrations.
ISBN: 978-1-906958-66-4
£15.00 / US$24.00
Subjects: Folklore//Myths & Magic/Fairy Tales/Shamanism/Spirituality.
Click HERE for Shape-Shifters & Their Stories / USA
Click HERE for Shape-Shifters & Their Stories / UK
“Long ago the trees thought they were really people
Long ago the mountains thought they were really people
Long ago the animals thought they were really people
Someday, they will say
Long ago the humans thought they were really people”
Constance O’Day-Flannery, Shifting Love
Shape-shifting is a common theme in mythology, folklore, and fairy tales. In its broadest sense, shape-shifting occurs when a being (usually human) either (1) can change its shape into that of another person, creature, or other entity or (2) finds its shape involuntarily changed by someone else. If the shape change is voluntary, its cause may be an act of will, a magic word or magic words, a potion, or a magic object. If the change is involuntary, its cause may be a curse or spell, a wizard’s or magician’s or fairy’s help, a deity’s will, a temporal change such as a full Moon or nightfall, love, or death. The transformation may or may not be purposeful.
The desire to be different in some way to match some ideal promoted through advertising has become an obsession, especially for vulnerable younger members of society. Perhaps the pressure to conform to some unrealistic ideal has always been with us, but surely not to the extent that now is the case. And it is this desire that helps to account for the current interest in shape-shifting as it would seem to provide a means of achieving the goal to bring about change. However, as many of the tales in this collection show, it is only by coming to terms with who we are that peace of mind can truly be ours again.
Seidways
Featured
Shaking, Swaying and Serpent Mysteries
(was Techniques of Obsession)
Jan Fries
Shaking, Swaying & Serpent Mysteries
Jan Fries
Format: Softcover
ISBN: 1869928369
£14.99/US$24
Subjects: Northern Tradition/Odinism/Runes/Shamanism.
Buy Seidways UK
Buy Seidways USA & rest
Seidways
From the author of Helrunar – manual of rune magick and Visual Magick, a handbook of freestyle shamanism, come the definative study of magical trance and possession techniques. The author is inspired by the Nordic tradition of Seidr, said to have been taught to the human race by Odin. The book provides an extensive survey of the manifestation of this powerful technique through several related magical traditions – shamanisn, mesmerism, draconian cults and the nightside of European paganism.
Seething is probably the most useful magical technique I have ever learned. I first was taken by the pleasure of it. My body felt warm and sensual, and seething in the hips felt quite sexual. I liked the feeling of my body taking over where the shaking was first voluntary – but I could still have some control, making the shaking stronger or more subtle. After a while I started to see visions – something that very rarely happens to me. I could see (with my physical eyes, not astrally!) the surface of the land in the centre of the circle rippling, like waves of energy. It was a really moving experience in a site that – until then – had not been particularly ‘special’ to me… it ..has had a major impact upon my magical work which used to be largely indoors, as at last I have found a way that I can work outdoors. This gives my magical work a potency that it simply didn’t have before. – Shantidevi quoted in chapter twelve ‘Rhythms and the Mind’
Reviews:
-‘Very highly recommended’ – The Cauldron
‘Jan Fries shows himself to be one of the most innovative and creative of contemporary magical authors. This is the best book on practical magick that I have seen for some time… an extremely useful body of techniques which any practically-minded magician will be able to use. Beautifully illustrated…Mandrake should be applauded for producing yet another fine book of modern magical practice and thought. Buy it, you won’t be disappointed!’
– Phil Hine in Chaos International 22
‘The text is always interesting to read no matter where you start from. With such a broad spectrum of content, Seidways is suited to anyone studying shamanism for the first time, and wants to avoid a pile of new-age crap. It’s also a great all-rounder for anyone with a general interest in European mythology. Seidways will become one of the more thumbed books in my collection, and I am sure the collection of anyone else who buys it.’
– Sant reviewing in White Dragon
Sacred Mountains
Featured
Stories of The Mystic Mountains
An Anthology
Michael Berman
Sacred Mountains
Stories of The Mystic Mountains
An Anthology
Michael Berman
Format: Softcover
ISBN: 9781906958220
£15.00 / US$24.00
Subjects: Shamanism/Mysticism/Spirituality/Myths & Legends.
Click HERE for Sacred Mountains / USA
Click HERE for Sacred Mountains /UK
On the mountains of truth, you can never climb in vain: either you will reach a point higher up today, or you will be training your powers so that you will be able to climb higher tomorrow.
~ Friedrich Nietzsche
What mountains mean to me: in one word, awe-inspiring. Although we can measure them, our minds are incapable of actually grasping the very small or the very large things in nature: neither atomic particles nor astronomical distances. How big is a mountain, how much does it weigh? Our limited minds can only cope with subjective assessments such as how difficult is it to climb, how dangerous would an avalanche be? So the feelings it produces are awe, a little fear, and possibly exhilaration if and when we think that we have conquered the mountain – but in reality we never can.
~ Professor David Hunt
All the stories presented in this collection contain shamanic elements, so the obvious starting point is to explain what is meant by this. The term ‘shaman’ is a controversial one. Initially employed by early anthropologists to refer to a specific category of magical practitioners from Siberia, the term is now widely used to denote similar practitioners from a variety of cultures around the world. This application of an originally culture-specific term to a more general usage has caused problems with regard to definition, with disagreements among scholars over whether certain features, such as soul flight or possession, or certain types of altered states of consciousness, should or should not be listed among the core characteristics of shamanism.
(Wilby, 2011, p.252.)
Introduction
What are Mountains for you?
Soul Captivation on White Bone Mountain
The Magic Brush and the Golden Mountain
The Legend of Amirani
The Story of Jumping Mouse
The Children of Hamelin: A Shamanic Journey into Mount Poppenberg
The Crystal Clear Waters of Mount Elbruz
The Vision Quest, Mount Sinai, and a Dream Fulfilled
Mount Ararat
Mount Koya-san, the Hermit’s Cave, and Fujiyama
Sacred Towers
The Fool on the Hill and the Book of Mysteries
The Tobacco of Harisaboqued
The Princess of the Tower
Appendix:
The Baal Shem Tov –
Rabbi, Religious Formulator or Shaman?
***
cover photograph by Joe Page shows Rennes Le Château seen from castle of Rennes Les Bains.
—
Launch 17th of January 2012 at the Georgian Embassy the author will talk about this book and give a reading. Starting promptly at 7.30 pm. The event is free and Georgian wine will be served at no cost too. The address is 4 Russell Gardens, West Kensington, London W14 8EZ. The hall holds about 60 people and we are hoping for a full house.
—
*************************************************************************************
RESOURCES FOR THE SACRED MOUNTAINS EXPERIENCE
Arts & Culture, Folklore, Myths & Legends, Food & Drink.
*************************************************************************************
Tbilisi Opera & Ballet Theatre
www.opera.ge
*
Georgia Cradle of Wine
www.georgia.gov.ge/5225
*
TAMADA,
Authentic Georgian Restaurant,
122 Boundary Road, St John’s Wood,
London NW8 0RH, UK.
www.tamada.co.uk
*
Visual Magick
A Manual of Freestyle Shamanism
Jan Fries
Visual Magick
A Manual of Freestyle Shamanism
Jan Fries
Format: Softcover
ISBN: 1869928571
£15.00 / US$24.00
Subjects: Sigil Magick/Runes/Shamanism/Chaos Magick
Buy UK Edition
Buy USA Edition
Suitable for all those inspired by such figures as Austin Spare and Aleister Crowley, and who feel the imperative to develop one’s own unique magick way. Visual Magick aims to build vision, imagination, and creative magick. It shows how magicians, witches, artists and therapists can improve visionary abilities, enhance imagination, activate the inner senses, and discover new modes of Trance awareness. The emphasis is on direct experience and the reader is asked to think, act, do, and enjoy as s/he wills.
More information
Visual Magick began as a small treatise on sigil Magick and automatic drawing circulated privately amongst members of the Maat network and is written for practising mind explorers of the unorthodox variety.
Review for Pentacle Magazine www.pentaclemagazine.org by Kate Hoolu
‘No matter what the medium, a talented priest can communicate … without preaching or didacticism. Art shows rather than tells. All great artists function as priests, whether they think of themselves as priests or not.’
If you are an eclectic magickian or shaman or have any interest in Austin Osman Spare, this is a book for you. Spare said, “All desire, whether for pleasure, knowledge, or power, that cannot find ‘natural’ expression, can by sigils and their formula find fulfilment from the subconscious”. This book is at least in part a modern view of the sigil magick that derives from AOS. But it is much, much more.
Fries has written on several subjects, including the Tao and Rune magick, but this work shows very good awareness and ability with Spare’s techniques, cross-fertilised with some of the more well-known methods of shamanism and his own innovations; hence the subheading.
Fries makes the important point that sigils can not only be designed by the operator (for whatever magickal purpose) but also RECEIVED from entities too… and in those cases, there is often a useful secret to be discovered within the sigil: “it should be noted that, while the sentience behind these sigils appears independent, their aesthetics are usually suited to the personality of the receiver. The best kind contains a blend of known and unknown…half-revealed and half-concealed”. This also stands as a beautifully short summary of perhaps what Aleister Crowley and the Book of the Law are about- obviously it is in AC’s writing style, but has so much more within… And Kenneth Grant’s work on the Tunnels of Set is supposedly largely based on received sigils.
Regardless of the occult debate about whether these received messages derive from a neurological or a non-human source, which is not within the scope of this review, it makes perfect sense for them to appear in this ‘mixed’ manner. If they were completely incomprehensible they would be ignored, and if they were completely ordinary and fully known already, then they would be un-remarkable and pass from consciousness as quickly as yesterday’s newspaper headlines. The half-unknown element makes them all the more tempting and interesting to the magickian, like a partly open door…
Avalanches of really good points are made by JF, which are eminently sensible, humorous and useful. Not for him is gibberish pontificating about very fine points of obscure theory; his stance is very much of the Chaos magician- ‘get off your ass, find what works, use it and keep trying new things and get out of your conditioned tunnel realities, rather than relying on dogmatic magickal techniques that often descend from book to book, unchanged and without ever being challenged. He makes the very important point that you must allow yourself to make mistakes, and perceive them like that, and not as something else that is kinder to one’s often bloated magickal self-view:
‘Failure’ is recognized as a threat to ego… the same ego that so happily pretends to have divine power and authority… and so the whole thing is usually considered a ‘challenge’ or ‘ordeal’ in such cases- anything rather than accept that one might be wrong” – Indeed: in magick, strange things happen, to the point where, as Ramsey Dukes has said (somewhere): “cock-up is the word of the Aeon”
As the title suggests, there is a distinct artistic bent to this work, but you don’t ever need to have sketched anything before to be able to join in with this stuff – it’s not the quality of what you produce, it’s the intent of the experiment: Fries encourages everyone to experiment with drawing sigils, automatic writing etc, but in all of this to take credit or debit for the works created (and the results of using the sigil magick method): “Frequently people need to insist on the ‘automatic’ origins of their creations (and behaviour) when they dare not assume responsibility for them. It’s so much safer to claim ‘I can’t draw but sometimes the spirit of Leonardo comes over me …’ as if that spirit has nothing better to do!… It’s always easier to blame some spiritual agency than to assume the responsibility of recognizing and developing one’s own talents”
Having dealt at length with visual methods, Fries then describes ”Chaos language”, a kind of glossolalia, which can be seen as a way of making auditory sigils with the voice. The book is worth the cover price just for this part. Awesome! Jan Fries:- add him to the growing list of ”people we like”. Superb, inspiring book.’ – KH
‘One of the best books on magick I have read in a long while.’Pagan News
‘A practical modern grimoire.’- The Cauldron
Egyptian Shaman
Nick Farrell
Click HERE for UK edition
Click HERE for USA edition
Egyptian Shaman
Nick Farrell
Format: Softcover
ISBN: 978-1-906958-42-8
£15.00 / US $24.00
Subjects: Ancient Egypt/Egyptian Magick/Shamanism.
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The spiritual traditions of Ancient Egypt are well documented and are at the forefront of the Western Mystery and Magical Tradition. But they are a gloss over a more primal “shamanic” tradition which gets to the essence of Nature and its relationship with humanity, life and death.
This book is a practical manual for those who wish to explore that primal spirituality using Egyptian symbolism. As Egypt was one of the village cultures, so Egyptian shamanism was one of the first to operate in an urban environment, making its techniques suitable for modern times.
Egyptian Shaman paints the picture of what it was like to be a village priest in Ancient Egypt before describing the practical techniques which would have been employed during those times. These techniques, which have never been revealed before, have been adapted for modern minds with the intention of making this a practical spiritual path.
The book controversially contains a chapter on exorcism and dealing with the dead, which many have claimed are subjects which should not be published. It shows how later Egyptian texts, such as the Book of the Dead, were Shamanic guide books to the Underworld.This is a book containing the keys to transmute,not only the self, but the whole planet.
THE AUTHOR
Nick Farrell is a writer and journalist based in Rome. After a lifetime in the Western Mystery Tradition, during which he was taught by some of the luminaries of the Esoteric World, including Marian Green, Dolores Ashcroft-Nowicki, David Goddard and Chic and Tabatha Cicero, he founded the Magical Order of the Aurora Aurea, which is a worldwide traditional Golden Dawn Order. He has also written several books on esoteric subjects including the esoteric classic Making Talismans, Magical Pathworking, and The Druidic Order of Pendragon. He has also written Mathers’ Last Secret and King Over the Water which deals with the Golden Dawn tradition.
Pharmakon
Drugs and The Imagination
Julian Vayne
Pharmakon
Drugs & The Imagination
Julian Vayne
Format: Softcover
ISBN: 1869928946
£15.00 / US$24.00
Subjects: Chaos Magick/Entheogens.
Pharmakon / USA & AUS / US$24.00
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Click here for Kindle USA Edition
Ranging across both published and anecdotal evidence, Pharmakon traces the story of drug use as a means of self-exploration. By examining apparently simple questions such as ‘what is a drug?’, Pharmakon deconstructs and reconstructs the idea of drug experience. Experiences that the author believes are fundamental to the process of self-actualisation and learning.
Naturally though this book discusses all sorts of things that are currently illegal in many nations the author would never wish to encourage anyone to break the Law. Moreover since this book contains information about how human beings can fly like birds, become transformed into animals and explore the farthest reaches of inner space it is, quite clearly, a work of fiction.
Julian Vayne is an occultist who has written on a number of esoteric subjects (witchcraft, the tarot and the sociology of contemporary Paganism). This book is aimed at both the general reader and those who are interested in the use of drugs in a spiritual context.
Delving into areas as diverse as philosophy and neurochemistry, this is a book that in both style and content seeks to invent a new understanding of drugs in culture….
Review
Pharmakon: Drugs and the imagination, by Julian Vayne
The philosopher’s stoned
By Gary Lachman
Published: 24 December 2006
‘Talking about your drug experiences is like talking about your dreams: it may be personally rewarding, but for others it’s a bore. As with dreams, the insights, visions and revelations that accompany some drug experiences can provide new perspectives on your life and help you to “know yourself”. The person on the receiving end of your dope stories, however, more times than not stifles an impatient “So what?” and wonders when you’ll get to the point. This is the paradoxical character of drug experiences: their profound subjectivity is a barrier to communication.
A handful of writers, De Quincey, Huxley, Burroughs and a few others, managed to cross this threshold and master the art of “trip-lit”. But most accounts of psychedelic journeys into inner space boil down to a less than informative “Awesome, man”. This may let us know that the voyage meant a lot to you, but it still leaves us in the dark as to what was so meaningful about it.
Julian Vayne argues that drugs can be an effective tool in self-exploration, and provides some useful theoretical scaffolding in understanding exactly what a “drug experience” is. Vayne argues that the mainstream materialist view of drugs is incomplete, and he makes clear that the chemical analysis of various substances like LSD, Ecstasy, cannabis and other popular items is only half the story. The importance of “set and setting” and our cultural expectations about exactly what a particular drug is supposed to do are equally crucial; our imagination and anticipation about what we will encounter after ingesting a magic mushroom are at least as significant as the psilocybin housed in the fungus itself. Drug experiences, Vayne contends, are learnt. They aren’t simply a matter of an automatic chemical reaction between my bloodstream and the toxin I’ve introduced to it.
He makes a similar point about how the same drug may have very different effects on different people. A lump of hash may lift a Baudelaire into poetic reverie, but the same lump may only sink the rest of us into befuddled sleep. LSD advocates in the 1960s made a similar discovery when it became painfully clear that taking acid didn’t automatically make people more spiritual and enlightened. The trip, good or bad, is as much in ourselves as in the drug.
Although Vayne has written several books on occult subjects, the occult or magical sensibility informing the book is curiously faint. The tone is academic, and a great part of the book is devoted to the mechanics of how drugs interact with our neurochemistry. He’s also at pains to anchor drug experiences in the post-modern discourse of transgression. This makes for a text in which Derrida turns up almost as often as Aleister Crowley. It’s refreshing to find occultism rubbing shoulders with other viewpoints, but the narrative is sometimes burdened with digressions on the Derridian “trace” and other notions.
Vayne’s most interesting insights come with his discussion of autism and schizophrenia as two poles of human consciousness: one an impenetrable contraction of the ego, the other a debilitating exposure to the chaos of the unconscious. Vayne makes a good argument that, rather than exceptional conditions, autism and schizophrenia are the extremes between which our ‘normal’ consciousness fluctuates; drugs for him are a means of compensating for imbalances between the two. Like many writers on mystical subjects, Vayne sees western culture as veering too much into an ego-bound autism. Hence the virtue of hallucinogens in providing a kind of controlled schizophrenia to even things out.
There are also some howlers. Theophile Gautier and the other members of the Club des Haschischins ate their cannabis, they didn’t smoke it. Julian Jaynes was a psychologist, not a historian. And I imagine that the “occultist W B Leadbeater” is an amalgam of W B Yeats and C W Leadbeater. If you’re arguing that drugs can be a tool in self-actualisation, it’s a good idea not to provide material for jokes about how stoned you were when you put your book together.
From Mandrake Speaks #100
‘A well researched and informative look at a variety of popular and not-so-well-known drugs. He deals with how they interact with our minds and bodies both chemically and psychologically, and how we perceive substances on a personal and society-wide scale. The similarities discussed between some drug experiences and some mental illnesses may lead to different viewpoints on both. Liberally sprinkled with folklore and anecdotes, Pharmakon examines the use of drugs in self-exploration employing a knowledgeable, yet down-to-earth approach that’s interesting and readable.’
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