This blog is dedicated solely to the persuit of the traditional Magical Arts as described by classic works such as

Clavicula Solomonis, Lemegeton, Sepher Raziel, Heptameron and the like. This blog is not about spells, fantasy,
wicca, new age, chaosmagic or the Golden Dawn system.

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Botanical Symbols 6 2 2 5
Followers
Although this is not a typical Solomonic magic thing, I ve decided to
show you my system of botanical symbols.

I employ this in labelling my plant parts. I ve devised a system of

combinatory symbols that is easy to use, easy to remember, and hard to
crack for anyone not familiarise with it s basics, so your planty things can
be safe in their jars and bottles from nosy people.

The top part represents the plant part in question and the bottom part My Blog List
represents the plant itself. My six parts are derived from Agrippa s
correspondencies and I use this inm employing them. Although each The Digital
Ambler
plant has it s virtues, every part of it may have different virtues and can be A Doxology and
used differently. Prayer
4 days ago

Papers Falling
from an Attic
Window
The root, with all its subterranean symbolism Review
and deposit of energies and potent juices, is Bellingrandt and
ruled by Saturn and this is my symbol for it, a Ottos Magical
rough sketch of an outstretched root, placed Manuscripts in Early
upside-down for symetrical reasons of the sign Modern Europe
series. 6 days ago

Imperial Arts
Esoteric Science and
Natural Philosophy
1 week ago

Head For the Red

 Omaha
1 week ago

Ananael
The stem, carrier of the sap, vertical and Llewellyn Magick
straight and hard and masculine, is of course Blog: American
ruled by Mars, and the symbol pretty much Gods and Where
Gods Come From
speaks for itself: one main stem with four
3 months ago
secondary ones, the base stems being larger.

Justin the
Magician
Good night and good
luck
4 months ago

The Lion's Den

Lucid Dreaming
4 months ago

A Magician's
The leaves, the receptors of light and heat Workings
much the same way our own natural satellite 1 year ago
is, are ruled by the Moon, and I ve chosen to
stylise it as triangular not because of some Scarlet Imprint
Lucky Seven
arcane symbolism related to the Fire sign or
3 years ago
Water sign but just because it seem damn well
pleasent and dandy!
The Occult
Scrivener
A Solar Spark of
Light & Fire Part 2
3 years ago

The Occultist
"Occult" versus
The flowers, feminine, receptive, open and "Religion": What is
the difference?
beautiful, are governed by the ruler of
3 years ago
reproduction and beaty, Venus. I ve stylised six
petals into one circular glyph due to the sexual
The Key To
symbolism of the hexagram and the pleasant Clavicula
polarity it develops. Salomonis
Translation & Notes-
Holy Names from
The Mafteach
5 years ago

my occult circle
THIS BLOG HAS A
NEW HOME.
5 years ago
The fruits, the berries, the nuts or the husks containg seeds and other potent
 things, usually full in shape and sometimes hard, Asterion's Occult
are ruled by Jupiter, the master of abundance, Art
stylised here as two round shapes on either side of Blog banner
the stem. 6 years ago

Cte ceva pentru

Suflet
Runele: Mituri i
Greeli
6 years ago

The Blasting Rod

Experiments in
Dark Sorcery

*** Tolka:
Last but not least, some of the most potent Astrology and
parts of the plant, containing the entire Magic ***
genetical code of itself and the ability to
reproduce, the seeds, are ruled by the master of
information and androginity, Mercury. The Links (Alphabetic order)

symbol is quite obviously representative of the

Esoteric Archives
two halves of the seed and the embrio within.
Evocation Magic Forum

Facebook

Ishtar Publishing

Jake Stratton Kent

Journal of Western
To give an illustrative example, we`ll take the symbol I ve devised for Mystical Tradition
Elder, Sambucus Niger, and combine it in two symbols:
My Scribd Documents

My Youtube Channel

New Hermetics Press

Ouroboros Press

Pictures from old books

Renaissance Astrology

Scarlet Imprint

Stephen Skinner
 Blog Archive

2015 (2)
November
(1)
Botanical
Symbols

October (1)

2014 (1)
2013 (3)

Base symbol: Elder 2012 (9)

2011 (30)

Recommended Reading

Shadrach / Harrison:
Magic that works

Al Toukhi: Red Magic

Asaph Ben Berechiah:

The Grand Key of
Solomon the King

Nineveh Shadrach:
Occult Encyclopedia of
Magic Squares

Nineveh Shadrach:
Elder berries Elder stems
Magic squares and the
Tree of Life
Just for kicks, another plant that does not have a simple letter symbol, but
Nineveh Shadrach:
a magico-astrological symbol for hystorical reasons, the revered
Occult powers of the
Wormwood, Artemisia Absinthium: alphabet

Claire Fanger:
Conjuring Spirits

Skinner / Rankine:
Keys to the Gateways
of Magic

Joseph Peterson:
Grimorium Verum
 I.P.Culianu: Eros and
magic in the
Renaissance

D. P. Walker: Spiritual
and Demonic Magic

Michael D. Bailey:
Battling Demons

Benedek Lang:
Unlocked Books

Franz Bardon: The Key

Base symbol of Wormwood to the True Kabbalah

Franz Bardon: Practice

of Magical Evocation

Franz Bardon: Initiation

into Hermetics

E.M. Butler: The

fortunes of Faust

Gideon Bohak: Ancient

Jewish Magic

Owen Davies:
Grimoires

Skinner / Rankine: A
collection of Magical
Wormwood leaves Wormwood root Secrets

Frequent problems: Sklinner / Rankine:

Practical Angel Magic
of John Dee
But Asterion, you re insane! You can`t make up symbols for a
Skinner / Karr: Sepher
gagillion plant species and subspecies!
Raziel
You`re right. And I won`t. Basic Solomonic magic teaches the use of 24 Paracelsus: Archidoxes
plants in the Book of Raziel, add that to another 7 planetary inceses, add of Magic
to that 10 or 20 of the most potent plants of my country`s magical
tradition and that`s kinda it. Skinner / Rankine: The
Since you can accomplish at least 6 operations with one plant, those grimoire of Saint
would suffice. Cyprian
Every plant, and I mean EVERY plant has a magical use. But not all are
as potent or as fit as others. So I will stick to a few and experiment. I think Skinner / Rankine: The
Veritable Key of
I m creative enough to come up with at least 200 base symbols so I m set.. Solomon

But Asterion, you ve gone all Wiccan? Skinner / Rankine:

Goetia of Dr. Rudd
Not really. Plant lore is far older than Solomonic magic, it s used all over
the world and it s your duty as a practicioner to become proficient in it. Stephen Skinner:
Complete Magician's
Table
But Asterion, you`re a moron! My Book of Shadows doesn t list
any uses for Wormwood stems or Elder flowers!
Abraham von Worms:
Book of Abramelin
It Should! I use every part of the plant, nothing is discarded.
Samuel L.M. Mathers:
But Asterion, where is the Sun in all of this plant arrangement? Book of Abramelin

The Sun rules the resin of the plants, wherever that may be the case. Not Samuel L.M. Mathers:
all plants produce it and when they produce it, the resin is treated like a The Greater Key of
separate substance in it`s own class, like Frankincense, Opoponax or Solomon
Myrrh, so I have not included a base symbol for Resin.
Sefer Mafteah
Be free to develop your own set, this is just my way of labelling my Shelomoh
magical jars and my macerating tinctures and wines.
Savedow: Sepher Rezial
Hemelach
Best wishes and much love!
Joseph Peterson: The
Lesser Key of Solomon

Joseph Peterson: The

Sixth and Seventh
Books of Moses

Joseph Peterson:
Arbatel
Publicat de Asterion la 1:49 AM 74 comments:
Aaron Leitch: Secrets
of Magical Grimoires
Etichete: asterion, botany, magic, magical, plants, seals, sigils
E.M. Butler: Ritual
Magic
Oct 4, 2015
Richard Kieckhefer:

The Conjuration of the Fire: 1

Forbidden Rites

Richard Kieckhefer:
Magic in the Middle
Ages

About Me
 View my
complete
profile

One of the shortest conjurations and easy to commit to memory, is the

Conjuration and Benediction of the Fire.

There are multiple conjurations to be found but some grimoires, such as the
Lemegeton, the Key of Solomon by Ptolemy the Grecian, the Heptameron
and all derived works follow similar patterns.

I d like to study these a bit and find out how it translates exactly.

To be noted that there are more than one fires that the magician uses, al all
firesv must be dealt with accordingly. The fire for fumigations is dedicated in a
way, the fire that lights the candles, in another way, the fire used to torment
rebellious spirits, in yet another way, and so forth.

The fire used to warm the hearts of the spirits before the circle will be useless
in constraining more dangerous or obstane spirits, and vice versa. The element
stays the same, the physical phenomenon stays unchanged, but due to the
magical charge, it has different properties.

Most sources draw upon the Goetia and the Heptameron, the latter being the
source of inspiration for the rituals in the former.

Let s take a look at the Heptameron:

Exorcismus ignis, cui superponuntur fumigia.

The Exorcisme of the fire upon which the perfumes are to
be put.
Exorcizo te creatura Ignis, per illum, per quem facta sunt omnia, vt
statim omne fantasma eiicias te, vt nocere non possit in aliquo.

Deinde dic:
Benedic Domine Creaturam istam Ignis, & sanctifica, vt benedicta
sit, in collaudationem nominis tui sancti: vt nullo nocumento sit
gestantibus nec videntibus: Per Dominum nostrum Iesum Christum,
&c.

Turner s translation:

I exorcise thee, O thou creature of fire, by him by whom all things are
made, that forthwith thou cast away every phantasme from thee, that
it shall not be able to do any hurt in any thing.

Then say,

Bless, O Lord, this creature of fire, and sanctifie it, that it may be
blessed to set forth the praise of thy holy name, that no hurt may
come to the Exorcisers or Spectators: through our Lord Jesus Christ,
&c.

Is it correct?
Yes and no.

Gestantibus, from Gestanti, does not mean Exorcisers, it means

Bearers, that is, the disciples or assistants that hold the incense or the
Master of the Art who does the incensing. That is why the plural is
used. It ensures the safety and wellbeing of the bearers of the coals,
even in the (avoidable) event of punitive measures of the spirits via
smoke, as Goetia implies.

Videntibus, from Videnti, does not mean only Spectators, as in

passive assistants that only witness the rites, but all those who see the
rite and the beings evoked, including the Seers used in certain
catoptromantic or hygromantic rituals, so the word Seers might be
more adequate.

The most important part and the most overlooked is the lack of
ending: the dormula ends with &c, (etc cetera) meaning, And so forth,
indicating that it has been shortened, the original text containing the
full ending that was often repeated and here it was truncated for the
sake of brevity.

Not only is the Heptameron conjuration mistranslated, but it is

incomplete.

A very close text is to be found is Reginald Scot s Discoverie of

Witchcraft appended material of the 1665 edition:
 An Exorcism for the fire
The Exorcist ought to have the earthen Censer, wherein to preserve the
fire for magical uses, and the expiations and fumigations, whose
consecration is on this manner.

By him that created Heaven and Earth, and is the God and Lord of all,
I exorcize and sanctifie thee thou creature of Fire, that immediately thou
banish every phantasm from thee, so that thou prove not hurtful in any kind:
Which I beseech thee O Lord to confirm by sanctifying and making pure this
creature of fire, that it may be blessed and consecrate to the honour of thy
holy Name. Amen.

The text most likely copies the Heptameron, omits the &c and ends
with an Amen.

The Clavicle of Solomon, in the earliest manuscript in English

(Sloane 1387) dated circa 1572, has a similar one:

e
The Coniuration of y Fyer.
Exorsizo te creatura ignis per que~ facta sunt omnia ut
sine mora aliqua eiicias fantasinata [sic] ut nocere non
possunt in aliquo oprtr naturam humanam per
invocationem altissimi creatoris, Benedic domine
creaturam spei~ ut sanctificiata et benedicta sit in
collandationem no~is tui sancti ut millum nocumentum
sit gestantibus et videntibus per dominum nostrum et.

With scribal notae and mistakes, the text is nearly identical, yet
stillincomplete, endind with et (and).

A very new addition , and valuable indeed, is the Folger Manuscript, recently
transcribed by Peterson and Harms and published under the name of The
Book of Oberion. By their immense generosity, the full transcript is available
for free at mister Peterson s website.

It contains extensive material that ties everything together, and among many
other precious finds we have this very conjuration (my translation , I do not
own the book yet):

Exorcismus ignis, cui superponuntur. Fumigia.

(Exorcism of the fire over which the suffumigations are put)

Nota ignis quo utendum est ad fumigationis sit in vase fictili seu terreo novo.
Exorcizatur autem hoc modo.

Exorcizo te creatura ignis, per illum per quem facta sunt omnia, ut statim
omne phantasma eijcias ate, ut nocere non possit in aliquo. deinde dic. Benedic
domine creatura istam ignis, et sanctiffica + ut benedicta sit in collandationem
[*collaudationem] nominis tui sancti, ut nullo nocumento sit gestantibus, nec
videntibus, per dominum nostrum Iesu, Christum fillium tuum, qui tecum
vivit et regnat in unitate spiritus sancti deus, per omnia secula secculorum
Amen.

Without doubt, this is the correct and full conjuration to be used,

complete with ending, for the first time rendered. The sign of the
cross in the text marks where the Exorcist marks the fire with the sign
of the Cross.

Exorcism of the Fire

Exorcizo te creatura ignis, per illum per quem facta sunt omnia, ut
statim omne phantasma eiicias a te, ut nocere non possit in aliquo.

I exorcise thee creature of fire, by Him by whom all things are made, that
forthwith thou cast away every phantasme from thee, that it shall not be
able to do any hurt in any thing.

Benediction of the fire

Benedic Domine creatura istam ignis, et sanctiffica + ut benedicta sit in

collaudationem nominis tui sancti, ut nullo nocumento sit gestantibus,
nec videntibus, per Dominum nostrum Iesu Christum, fillium tuum, qui
tecum vivit et regnat in unitate spiritus sancti deus, per omnia secula
secculorum Amen.

Bless, O Lord, this creature of fire, and sanctifie it +, that it may be

blessed to the praise of Thy holy name, that no hurt may come to the
Bearers, nor the Seers, through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, who
with Thee lives and reigns in Unity with the Holy Spirit, God, forever
and ever, Amen.
Discoverie of Witchcraft:

http://esotericarchives.com/solomon/scot16.htm

Clavicle of Solomon, Ptolemy the Grecian:

http://esotericarchives.com/solomon/sl3847.htm

Folger Book of Magic:

http://esotericarchives.com/folger/v_b_26_transcription.pdf

Publicat de Asterion la 12:58 PM 1 comment:

Feb 13, 2014

Four Rulers

Diagram of the Kingdom of spirits rulership, presided

over by the Four Powerful Archangels Michael,
Gabriel, Raphael and Uriel.

The seals of the Four Emperors are taken from the

Clavis Inferni. I have four other previously
unpublished seals of them, but I will not post them
here or now.

This is from a forthcoming book of mine, just a little

taste. Please do not copy, repost, share, tweet, tween,
twerk or blog without my permission or without
linking it to this blog. Please don t make T-shirts, mugs
or epoxy keychains out of it.

Lova ya!

Publicat de Asterion la 11:39 PM 7 comments:

Jul 13, 2013

Purification Bath
Whenever I have a ritual coming up or any other working of a spiritual
nature, I like to use a cleansing rite that does the job pretty well.

It uses the famous Asperrges Me verse:

Asperges me, Domine, hyssopo et mundabor,

Lavabis me, et super nivem dealbabor.

Thou wilt sprinkle me, O Lord, with hyssop and I shall be cleansed
Thou wilt wash me, and I shall be washed whiter than snow.

I usually sing it in my native tongue of Romanian, with a melody that is

usually sung in Church.

1. Run your bath water however hot or cold you like.

2. Perform the Consecration of the Salt on a bowl of salt, prefferably
coarse natural salt or marine salt.
3. Being consecrated, take a fistful of salt and release it into the water in
the shape of a cross: In the name of the Father. Next to it, another fistful,
and of the Son, and another one, and the Holy Spirit. I usually hit the
water with the salt, in an exorcising manner.
4. Put the right foot in the water, reciting the Asperges Me the first time.
5.Put the left foot in the water, reciting the Asperges Me a second time.
6. Kneel with the right foot in the water, reciting the Asperges Me a third
time.
7.Kneel with the left foot in the water, reciting the Asperges Me a fourth
time, upright.
8. From the kneeling upright position, sit on your heels, letting the water
come up above your waist, reciting the Asperges Me a fifth time.
9. Sit in your tub and extend your feet, lye down and let the water reach
your neck, reciting the Asperges Me a sixth time.
10. Submerge your head underwater for a few seconds and come up again,
and recite the Asperges me the seventh time, taking care not to lose your
breath or choke with water.
11. Relax and pray in any fasion you want, meditate and give thanks.
12. Get out dry and do your stuff.

I cannot disclose the origin of this rite. If you wish to use it, feel free.
Non-Christians can replace the trinity with the names Agla, On,
Tetragrammaton, but that s about it. Other religioons have their own
rites, don t try to use Cthulhu, Yog Sothoth and Nyarlathotep or Satan,
Baal and Astaroth, it s not meant to work like that.

Publicat de Asterion la 6:59 AM 8 comments:

Jun 9, 2013

The Mass of the Holy Ghost

Most people have a problem finding this Catholic

service anywhere. The Heptameron asks for it in the
consecration of the Sword and the Pentacle:

Then take this Pentacle made in the day and hour

of Mercury, the Moon increasing, written in
[ paper or] parchment made of a kids skin. But
first let there be said over it the Mass of the holy
Ghost, and let it be sprinkled with water of
baptism.

and let the master carry the Sword; over which

there must be said one mass of the Holy Ghost;

Since both the pentacle and sword are to be

consecrated on a Wednesday, this is a stronger reason
to believe that this service is not the common Holy
Liturgy, but one of the Votive Masses, namely that of
the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost.

Thought this might help.

Missa de Spiritu Sancto

Introitus. Sap. l, 7.

Spritus Dmini replvit orbem terrrum: et hoc,

quod cntinet mnia, scintiam habet vocis.
((T.P.
T.P. Allelja, allelja.) Ps. 67,2.

Exsrgat Deus, et dissipntur inimci ejus: et

fgiant, qui odrunt eum, a fcie ejus. . Glria
Patri.

Oratio.

Deus, qui corda fidlium Sancti Spritus

illustratine docusti: da nobis in edem Spritu
recta spere; et de ejus semper consolatine
gaudre. Per Dminum . . . in unitte ejsdem
Spritus Sancti.
Lctio Actuum Apostlorum.

Act. 8, 14-17.

In dibus illis: Cum audssent Apstoli, qui erant

Jeroslymis, quod recepsset Samara verbum Dei,
misrunt ad eos Petrum et Jonnem. Qui cum
venssent, oravrunt pro ipsis, ut accperent
Spritum Sanctum: nondum enim in quemquam
illrum vnerat, sed baptizti tantum erant in
nmine Dmini Jesu. Tunc imponbant manus
super illos, et accipibant Spritum Sanctum.

Graduale. Ps. 32, 12 et 6.

Beta gens, cujus est Dminus Deus erum:

ppulus, quem elgit Dminus in heredittem
sibi. . Verbo Dmini coeli firmti sunt: et
Spritu oris ejus omnis virtus erum.

Allelja, allelja. (Hic genuflectitur)

. Veni, Sancte Spritus, reple turum corda
fidlium: et tui amris in eis ignem accnde.
Allelja.

Post Septuagesimam, omissis Allelja et

Versu sequenti, dicitur:
Tractus. Ps. 103, 30.

Emtte Spritum tuum, et creabntur: et

renovbis fciem terr. . O quam bonus et suvis
est, Dmine, Spritus tuus in nobis! (Hic
genuflectitur) . Veni, Sancte Spritus, reple
turum corda fidlium: et tui amris in eis ignem
accnde.

Tempore autem Paschali omittitur Graduale,

et ejus loco dicitur:

Allelja, allelja. . Ps. 103, 30.

Emtte Spritum tuum, et creabntur: et
renovbis fciem terr. Allelja. (Hic
genuflectitur) . Veni, Sancte Spritus, reple
turum corda fidlium: et tui amris in eis ignem
accnde. Allelja.

Sequntia sancti Evanglii secndum Jonnem.

P

Joann. 14, 23-31.

In illo tmpore: Dixit Jesus discpulis suis: Si quis

diligit me, sermnem meum servbit, et Pater
meus dliget eum, et ad eum venimus, et
mansinem apud eum facimus: qui non dligit
me, sermnes meos non servat Et sermnem
quem audstis, non est meus: sed ejus, qui misit
me, Patris. Hc loctus sum vobis, apud vos
manens. Parclitus autem Spritus Sanctus, quem
mittet Pater in nmine meo, ille vos docbit
mnia et sggeret vobis mnia, qucmque
dxero vobis. Pacem relnquo vobis, pacem meam
do vobis: non qumodo mundus dat, ego do vobis.
Non turbtur cor vestrum neque frmidet.
Audstis, quia ego dixi vobis: Vado et vnio ad vos.
Si diligertis me, gaudertis tique, quia vado ad
Patrem; quia Pater major me est. Et nunc dixi
vobis, prisquam fiat: ut, cum factum ferit,
credtis. Jam non multa loquar vobscum. Venit
enim princeps mundi hujus, et in me non habet
quidquam. Sed ut cognscat mundus, quia dligo
Patrem, et sicut mandtum dedit mihi Pater, sic
fcio.
Offertorium. Ps. 67, 29-30.

Confrma hoc, Deus, quod opertus es in nobis: a

templo tuo, quod est in Jersalem, tibi fferent
reges mnera. ((T.P.
T.P. Allelja.)

Secreta.

Mnera, qu
qusumus, Dmine, oblta sanctfica: et
corda nostra Sancti Spritus illustratine emnda.
Per Dminum . . in unitte ejusdem Spritus
Sancti.

Prfatio de Spiritu Sancto.

Communio. Act. 2, 2 et 4.

Factus est repnte de clo sonus tamquam

advenintis spritus vehemntis, ubi erant
sedntes: et replti sunt omnes Spritu Sancto,
loquntes magnlia Dei.
( T.P
T.P.Allelja.)
.Allelja.)

Postcommunio.

Sancti Spritus, Dmine, corda nostra mundet

infsio: et sui roris ntima aspersine fecndet.
Per Dminum . . . in unitte ejsdem Spritus
Sancti.

1. You have the source right here.

2. Do not ask me to translate it. I am not your free
Latin to English translator, I do not have time to do
that. You may find an English or native language
version for yourself. It has the Bible verses quoted, so it
s quite easy with some practice.
3. Kids skin is not the skin of a child, if you were
thinking to debunk me as a satanist and child molestor.
Many people think that. Kids skin is the skin of a kid, a
young goat, like lamb is a young sheep.

Publicat de Asterion la 6:09 AM 7 comments:

Jan 10, 2013

Affordable scrying
implements
Ever got the feeling that the tools and implements you
use in magic choose you rather than the the way
around? I had. And it s a recurring thing.

Even before I got to working on Frater Ashen s book

about experimenting with the Art of Drawing Spirits
into Crystals, I found myself in an avid search
regarding scrying, both with a crystal ball and with a
water vessel.

Somehow, the water vessel attracts me more.

Besides the ambivalence that the four books of the

Lemegeton shows towards the evoking medium (before
the circle or in the scrying surface), a lot of texts carried
me towards water scrying.

In particular, the method used in Arthur Gantlet s

grimoire and in the Book of the Treasure Spirits, both
edited by David Rankine and in the experiments of
Frederick Hockley.

The method involves a table covered with cloth, a

round vessel full of water, a band of divine names, one
or two candles and a seal drawn on vellum or paper that
covers the mouth of the vessel.

Yesterday while shopping a very peculiar thing caught

my eye and I thought it was perfect for such a task: a
clear, simple wide wine glass.

Filled with water it can provide the ideal vessel for

scrying and the cost was very low, about 1 or 2 dollars.

Also, I needed a stand or a circular wooden plaque.

Found one, bought one. Very conveniant. Now, mind
you, it s not a special scrying wooden plaque, it s a hard
wood, hand carved thingy people use to chop stuff in
the kitchen, but the size of it was just right.
If the method does not require a holy table like Barret
asks, and just the table and vessel, this very thing can be
supported on three wooden legs to make the table itself.

Today I woke up and set my mind on buying a bigger

one. I went to a commercial complex that sells all kinds
of stuff, rushed through it, climbed the stairs and went
straight to the glassware section. And the first thing I
saw was this pretty thing.

Basically it s the same thing, only four times bigger

than my big wine glass. The round part is bigger than
my head, I think. The total hight of the thing is 36 cm
(about 14 inches) while the circumference of the bulk is
58 cm (about 23 inches).

Never tried my had at scrying but always was fearful of

not being able to see things in small crystals. Well..
problem solved. This is the flat-screen monster of all
scrying vessels.
Only thing is that filled up with water it can hold up to
2 liters, so it can be quite heavy. The leg might give and
break. I m considering reinforcing it somehow or
building a tripod like stand to take some of the pressure
off.
Price: the whole shebang, under 20 $. That s about half
of the price I would pay on Ebay for a small glass ball
being passed off as a Chinese quartz sphere.

Publicat de Asterion la 5:31 AM 5 comments:

Etichete: asterion, crystal, grimoire, magic, scrying, vessel, water

Sep 19, 2012

Are the grimoires dead

wrong? Part II of III
 The second argument regarding the practicability
of grimoires is that these books were meant to fail. The
authors wanted the knowledge to remain secret, for
fear of the Church and for fear of misuse in beginners.

Ive stated before that the Church did not treat

mercifully the necromancers that used divine names
and Christian elements in their conjuration as opposed
to those who did not. The last category is practically
non-existent. You did not get a slap on the wrist by
putting prayers in your grimoire. You put prayers in
your grimoire because you were a devoted religious
man, seeking power through the use of holiness,
depending on what religion you practiced. Jewish
grimoires contain psalms and prayers, Islamic
grimoires contain extensive surahs from the Quran,
and there was certainly no Jewish or Islamic
Inquisition to please using these.

The knowledge was supposed to be secret, true.

But grimoires were secret themselves. The Sworn Book
of Honorius was passed down in a straight lineage of
masters and disciples, and if the master could not do
that, he would have had it buried with him. The
grimoires we have today were not published in great
numbers in paperback format and advertised to make a
profit or to increase ones notoriety. Secrecy of the
content was not the issue, as very few people could
read, and if they could make out the letters somewhat,
they were not learned men to speak Latin, and even if
they were part of the scholarly world or religious world
and knew how to read and speak Latin, they must have
had enough money to buy or have a book bound and
enough connections to get access to magical
manuscripts. One simply could not go online and look
for spells, one could not go to the local library and look
for books on magic. You had to find a practitioner and
either pay him well for his book of secrets, like Wierius
might have done to obtain the Liber Officiorum from
Cockars and T.R., or apprentice under a necromancer
in order for him to teach you.

Their authors did not fear that people who could

misuse them were to read them simply because they
could control their readership. He wouldnt even fear
rival magicians. The readers were not a mass of
unknown people with whom the magician had no
contact, but a select few that the necromancer would
make readers of his own will.

The problem of the Church was not so strict.

Many of the readers, writers copyists WERE
clergymen or monks, part of the Church! There is no
problem if the book might have been found by a priest
or a monk, as many of them professed an avid interest
in them, even collected them. The problem was if the
wrong clergyman would find them. Only few were so
stuck up and righteous that he would grab your book
and accuse you of witchcraft. If this was done, the book
itself would have been burnt as well, not kept and read.
Few inquisitors did read the books and extracted
information used in their letters of accusation, but
then they would burn them as part of the judicial
process. The ones who did keep books kept them secret
and they were sympathetic to the use of magic and
many monks sold their books for fear of being
discovered by their superiors to other monks. This is
how Johannes Trithemius could assemble such a
marvelous library on magic in the short span of time
he was an abbot in Sponheim.

The grimoires were not false advertisers, but

personal notebooks. True. There were active schools of
magic in Naples, Athens, Salamanca, Fez, Toledo,
Rome and perhaps many more. Not every piece of
information in the course was recorded by the student,
indeed. The author in question argues that the
grimoires contain a bare minimum and much was left
out. Moreover, much was added to confuse people,
created blinds and specifically wrote them so that they
would not work.
The said author does not know how a grimoire
was used, Im afraid. The fault does not lye necessarily
with him, this part is a commonly overlooked detail
and a forgotten element that nobody seems to
remember. The grimoire was not just a simple
notebook, but a consecrated object meant to make the
rituals work. The most important part of the
necromancers arsenal was the Book of Consecrations.
This contained all the names of the spirits with their
characters, plus a set of nine conjurations to be
performed every day in a ritual of nine days meant to
empower it. His was no mere hollywoodian Book of
Shadows, but a powerful object meant to make its
content effective.
 And a summary and incomplete content would
not do. The experiment was to be written in full, with
conjurations and actions, in order to be effective. A
blind or lie would not necessarily render the
information invalid, but quite the opposite, funny
enough, it would make the blind true!
The grimoires are not ineffective in themselves, as
the modern practitioners do not use the said book, the
very manuscript that the magician wrote and kept and
consecrated on his knees for nine mornings with
exhortations and suffumigations, but published
versions of them. They do not construct a Book of
Consecrations, out of lack of information or rejection
of the proper way of doing it, but work from printed,
on-line or oral material. Some exercises are not bound
to that process and are certainly effective, but most are.
For example, the Book of Consecrations states that all
experiments are useless until the necromancer puts it
in his book and recites the orisons to make it effective.
More even, any corrupted experiment was made viable
again if it be put in the Book. This is mainly why
magicians were not so avid to look for the meaning and
etymology of the words of power used, they did not
care if they said or write Saday, Caday, Sadat, Saddai,
Seday or Saclay instead of the Hebrew name Shaday.
Because every experiment, no matter how corrupted,
would have become effective once copied in their
private consecrated book.
From this point of view, the use of a grimoire as it
is is not ineffective, but the lack of a personal grimoire
consecrated according to the tradition that the desired
experiment refers to.

Publicat de Asterion la 1:24 AM 11 comments:

Etichete: asterion, grimoires

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