occult – Page 7 – The Book of Faustus

93! credit: /u/TetraStellana . More of her work here

Mysterion Cosmegraphicon

Today I learned something new about Platonic astronomy. Johannes Kepler’s Platonic solid model of the solar system must have been the coolest thing since sliced bread at the time. It at least caught the attention of Tycho Brahe. Unfortunately though the ratios of planetary orbits do seem to match at first glance, they really aren’t close enough to match modern observational data.

That’s the problem. Creationism isn’t a new thing in the search for scientific truth. Kepler was trying to fit the universe into his theological conception of what it should be. By showing how the orbits of planets were “perfect” and “ideal”, he could perhaps convince the authorities of the possibility of a heliocentric universe. It was no different than creating imaginary suborbits in the Ptolemaic model to ensure the planets only followed circular paths (Why would God use an imperfect shape?).

This is another reason why I get slightly pissed off when I listen to New Agers babble on about “sacred geometry”, or the Lotus of Venus, or other false connections between the beautiful and the factual.

Hat tip to VSauce for the fun video about Kepler’s beautiful error.

Agony Delayed!!

The game I’ve waited a year and a half for is being delayed indefinitely, again! I’m so sad.

Virgo, Isis, Mighty Mother

source: imgur.com — Roman statue of Isis, 2nd century

Hail Isis, representative of all motherhood, new life, and goddess of magic and wisdom!

Apuleius, Prayer to Isis, Metamorphoses, lib XI cap XXV

O holy and blessed dame, the perpetual comfort of human kind, who by Thy bounty and grace nourishes all the world, and bearest a great affection to the adversitities of the miserable as a loving mother, Thou takest no rest night or day, neither art Thou idle at any time in giving benefits and succouring all men as well on land as sea; Thou art she that puttest away all all storms and dangers from men’s life by stretching forth Thy right hand, whereby likewise Thou dost unweave even the inextricable and tangled web of fate, and appeases the great tempests of fortune, and keepest back the harmful course of the stars. The gods supernal do honour Thee; the gods infernal have Thee in reverence; Thou dost make all the earth to turn, Thou givest light to the sun, Though governest the world, Thou treadest down the power of hell. By Thy mean the stars give answer, the seasons return, the gods rejoice, the elements serve: at Thy commandment the winds do blow, the clouds nourish the earth, the seeds prosper, and the fruits do grow. The birds of the air, the beasts of the hill, the serpents of the den, and the fishes of the sea do tremble at Thy majesty: by my spirit is not able to give Thee sufficient praise, my patrimony is unable to satisfy Thy sacrifices; my voice hath no power to utter that which I think of Thy majesty, no, not if I had a thousand mouths and so many tongues and were able to continue forever. Howbeit as a good religious person, and according to my poor estate, I will do what I may: I will always keep Thy divine appearance in remembrance, and close the imagination of Thy most holy godhead within my breast.

Tu quidem sancta et humani generis sospitatrix perpetua, semper fovendis mortalibus munifica, dulcem matris adfectationem miserorum casibus tribuis. Nec dies nec quies nulla ac ne momentum quidem tenue tuis transcurrit beneficiis otiosum, quin mari terraque protegas homines et depulsis vitae procellis salutarem porrigas dexteram, qua fatorum etiam inextricabiliter contorta retractas licia et Fortunae tempestates mitigas et stellarum noxios meatus cohibes. Te superi colunt, observant inferi, tu rotas orbem, luminas solem, regis mundum, calcas tartarum. Tibi respondent sidera, redeunt tempora, gaudent numina, serviunt elementa. Tuo nutu spirant flamina, nutriunt nubila, germinant semina, crescunt germina. Tuam maiestatem perhorrescunt aves caelo meantes, ferae montibus errantes, serpentes solo latentes, beluae ponto natantes. At ego referendis laudibus tuis exilis ingenio et adhibendis sacrificiis tenuis patrimonio; nec mihi vocis ubertas ad dicenda, quae de tua maiestate sentio, sufficit nec ora mille linguaeque totidem vel indefessi sermonis aeterna series. Ergo quod solum potest religiosus quidem, sed pauper alioquin, efficere curabo: divinos tuos vultus numenque sanctissimum intra pectoris mei secreta conditum perpetuo custodiens imaginabor.

Mesopotamian Necromancy

In my spare time (of which there is currently little) I’m currently doing a survey of spells from a collection of ancient Greek magical papyri. Meanwhile, I stumbled upon these two neat videos from Irving Finkel of the British Museum about Mesopotamian magic. Enjoy!

Monthly Ritual to Bind Donald Trump

Does Donald Trump piss you off? Are you concerned for the safety of the nation, and the world under his rule? Do his paid lackeys and sycophantic band of liars make you want to scream? Well, DO SOMETHING about it.

First do something by VOTING regularly. Make sure you’re a registered voter NOW. Do not wait.

Second, if you feel so inclined, participate in this mass ritual which takes place at the same time monthly around the world. Literally thousands of magical workers are participating in this, myself included. I firmly believe it is working to keep Trump’s chicanery from creating a full on worldwide disaster.

You can find the rite, and its variants, here. Apart from the real-world effects this spell may be producing, it also gives me a chance to perform a monthly cathartic psychodrama to purge my poor soul from the idiocy that spews forth daily from the White House.

All about that time when I got super stoned and went ghost hunting

Picture it! Last weekend, St. Augustine, Florida. About 3 drinks, 2 bowls, and a very potent THC edible settling nicely in my tummy. This was the night of the trip I’d been waiting for, our paranormal investigation and ghost tour through the historic city. While for most of the group, it was an entertaining story time, for me there was a moment of pure fear.

St. Augustine has been a continually occupied settlement since Spanish explorers set up camp there in 1565. It’s 450 year history means it’s a great place for antiquities, archaeology, and local legends.

About 30 minutes into the tour, my brain was total mush, so all the facts I learned about St Augustine ghosts I had to read about later. However one stop I remember in vivid detail was at Antiques and Uniques on Aviles St. This part of the town has been developed ever since the first Spanish period. The building we entered was once the City Jail, and prior to that had been part of a military hospital complex. Archaeological evidence found in the 21st century revealed human remains under the building. According to legend there were also ghosts of children who haunt the place, so instead of calling out to the rapists and murderers, we decided to try to communicate with the kids.

We powered up our KII EMF meter and took our dowsing rods. As we all crammed into a narrow closet, which was at one time the alley behind the jail and a site of more than one grisly murder, the silence overtook the place. With a single flashlight we filed in and tried to call the child ghosts by name. Now, being in the middle of an edible session, my mind went all kinds of weird places. Time stood still. I became claustrophobic and paranoid. All of that I could easily attribute to the THC. But then shit started getting too real.

The flashlight begins flickering (of course), sending a thousand memories of scary movies flooding through my head. A creak in the distance and footsteps clamoring above us strike momentary fear into my heart. It feels like I am being watched. My boyfriend decides to go in deeper to the closet (I was too afraid, and relieved that he was standing next to the murder hole and not me). After a while, we ask the kids to manipulate the dowsing rod. Slowly, the rods begin to separate out at 180 degrees from each other. Our KII meters are spiking left and right near the rods, the flashlight is fucking with my peripheral vision and now I’m seeing things that are hopefully not there. I take my KII meter and move it around the other meters that are spiking off. The activity stops about four feet above the ground–right about at the height of a 10 year old child. I am having a legit paranormal experience, and I am almost paralyzed with fear. Well, fuck me. Even though I study and do magic and all that entails, this experience is just a little too real for my stoner brain. I was definitely relieved when the 3 hour investigation (which was actually only 20 minutes) was over.

Other fun highlights from the tour, after the jump.

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Tag: occult