Aromagick Online Course

Discover the enchanting blend of aromatherapy and practical magic in this transformative course. Beyond mere study, Aromagick invites you to explore the mystical realm where fragrance meets intuition. Here’s what awaits you:

1. Basic Principles of Aromagick:

   – Develop your practice and intuition skills.

   – Unveil the secrets of the **Kalas**, those mysterious cosmic energies.

   – Learn how to synchronize your practice with lunar cycles.

2. Lunar Perfumes:

   – Dive into the scents of lunar flowers.

   – Explore their unique fragrances and magical properties.

3. Kali and Shakti Sequences:

   – Balance the forces of light and dark.

   – Harness the energies of each sequence for daily empowerment.

4. The 4 Cardinal Kalas and Moon Phases:

   – Understand the cosmic rhythms.

   – Align your magic with the celestial dance.

5. Witch’s Ritual Year:

   – Delve into the 8 Sabbats, marking the turning points of the year.

   – Uncover the hidden magic within each season.

6. Magical Recipes:

   – Create ritual baths infused with mystical intent.

   – Craft your own magical perfume oils.

   – Explore edible spells and their enchanting effects.

Embark on this aromatic journey and unlock the secrets of Aromagick! 🌙✨

Course Outline

1. Duration: A Year and a Day

  • According to ancient witches’ traditions, this course unfolds over 365 days—a year and a day. This sacred timeframe allows for profound transformation and alignment with natural cycles.

This course aims to empower participants with the knowledge and practical skills to harness the magical properties of aromatic plants and essential oils. Whether you identify as a witch, natural magician, pagan, or tantrik, this course will provide valuable insights into the mystical world of aromatics and magic.

2. Cost: $365

Aromagick Online Course $365

  • The investment for this magical exploration is $365. Consider it an offering to the cosmic energies that weave through our existence.

3. Payments and refunds

One instalment of $365 is to be paid in advance

Refunds within 30 days of the beginning of the course of the remaining credit.

4. Enrolment Periods

  • Spring Equinox: As the earth awakens, so do our senses—Enrol during the vernal equinox, when daylight and darkness balance perfectly.
  • Summer Solstice: When the sun reaches its zenith, embrace the fiery energy of midsummer. Enrol during this potent time.
  • Autumn Equinox: As leaves fall and nights lengthen, step into the mystical embrace of autumn—Enrol during the equinox of balance.
  • Winter Solstice: Amidst the longest night, kindle your inner flame. Enrol during the solstice of introspection and rebirth.

The Aromagick online course invites you to explore the enchanting world of aromatherapy, magic, and self-discovery. Whether you’re a seasoned practitioner or a curious beginner, this course promises to ignite your senses and awaken your inner alchemist.

Remember, the magic lies within the fragrant molecules, waiting for you to unlock their secrets. 🌿✨

*Graduates of the Aromagick online course will be invited to join The Morgan Witches Coven.

Meet Diti: A Magician Artisan Perfumer and Chaos Craft Witch

  • With nearly 30 years of devoted practice, Diti has immersed herself in the aromatic world of aromatherapy. Her expertise extends beyond mere oils; she weaves magic into every scent. As a Magician Artisan Perfumer, Diti crafts fragrances like a sorceress at her alchemical bench. Each perfume bottle holds a spell, an invocation of energies. Her potions dance between realms, invoking memories and dreams.
  • Diti walks the labyrinth of chaos, where order and disorder entwine. She embraces the unpredictable, harnessing its raw power. Chaos is her canvas, and she paints spells with its vibrant hues.
  • Beyond magic, Diti conjures comfort. Her apple cakes are more than desserts; they’re portals to hearth and home. Each bite carries whispers of love and nostalgia.

Diti, the weaver of scents, the chaos dancer, the seeker of cosmic threads— invites you to join her on this fragrant odyssey. 🌙✨🍎

 

 

Octarine Magick, Baphomet & Winter Solstice

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Twice a year, on the winter and summer solstice, a very unique portal reveals itself. Through this opening, we are given the opportunity to explore both the chill, yet still spirit of tranquillity and the effervescent radiance of brightness. The deep, indigo night sky of the winter solstice is reminiscent of Saturn, Lord of Time. There is something special about its seemingly timeless journey; almost as though time actually has stopped. The winter solstice marks the occasion when the Earth’s axis reaches its highest angle away from the Sun. In the Northern Hemisphere, this is where we observe the least amount of sunlight, leading to a day that’s shorter than any other of the year and a night that’s longer. This day mirrors the symbolic death and rebirth of the Sun— with daylight hours beginning to grow again afterwards. 

Octarine is the so-called Colour of Magic or King Colour, only perceivable by magicians and cats. According to Discworld texts (see Terry Pratchett’s The Colour of Magic), it is a combination of fluorescent greenish yellow and purple, mixing all primary colours, and serves as a representation of imagination.

The Octarine power lies within us, kindling the spark of the magician self in our inner being. When this flame is lit, we become familiar with various god forms, such as Baphomet, which can be summoned to inspire our magical creativity. 

The essence of Baphomet restores the balance of our universe.

I see Baphomet as a symbol of equilibrium between all living things. This consciousness allows us to recognize and embrace the connection between humans, mammals, reptiles, fish, angels and demons, heaven and earth. It also encourages us to accept the innate cycle of life and death, plus the concept of

eternity. Light and dark, left and right; these are all balanced by Baphomet’s equanimity. I found it easier to identify with Baphomet consciousness when I think of it as a model for a unique and original thought, a primal idea of balance. This concept once initiated, will ignite the flames of a passionate heart and open a clear passage for communication with our higher selves. 

Using Baphomet perfume oil on the Winter Solstice or Kapalini’s nights will help us surrender and let go of old attachments that bind us and prevent us from moving forward.

Check out AROMAGICK  for more information about the magical ingredients of Baphomet perfume oil. The Winter Solstice coincides with Nitya-Nitya night this year, ‘She who is timeless, the immortal goddess’. I will put an additional rare fragrance into the mix, to embody the essence of Nitya-Nitya.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Hierophant

 

responsibility of embodying Demeter and Persephone respectively in ritual.

From the above, we can understand that the hierophant is a top religious
figure like the Pope, or the chief Rabbi, whose job was to be a conductor,
a channel, funnel, or mediator between the gods and the people. In this
particular card, focusing only on the hidden symbolism, the hierophant
is the representation of the goddess Nuit.
Nuit is the embodiment of infinite space and also the mother of all stars
— for it’s known that “Every man and every woman is a star”(Liber AL,
chapter 1, verse 3). With this in mind, she is where each star returns.
Additionally, she is also the divine law which must be given to those who
follow the hierophant.
“Let the woman be girt with a sword before me” (Liber AL, chapter 3,
verse 11) At the front of the card, before the hierophant, we can see the
woman girt with a sword. The Book of Thoth speaks of the ‘Scarlet Woman’
as an emblem of the new era; she stands for a transformation away from
her traditional image as a housewife or accessory to her male partner,
instead embracing her identity while searching for autonomy and equality.
We can see how all of this manifests in the MeToo movement of our
days.
“The woman is the priestess; in her reposes the mystery. She is
the mother, brooding yet tender; the lover, at once passionate
and aloof; the wife, revered and cherished. She is the witch
woman.” (Freedom is a Two-edged Sword, Jack Parsons)
The deeper we look into the hidden symbolism and meaning of this
mysterious woman, the clearer it becomes that she can be Nuit herself,
guarding the divine law. The law is simple and clear and the hierophant’s
job is to pass it to their congregation:

“Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law”
“Love is the law, love under will”
Or in our words:
“Love and do what you will.”
“The symbolism of the Wand is peculiar” – Solve et Coagula (Aleister
Crowley, The Book of Thoth). Crowley describes the three interlaced rings
of the wand, as a “representative of the three Aeons of Isis, Osiris and
Horus”. However, on a closer look, we see that the hierophant holding
the wand with its three rings aspiring upward, in his right hand (solve).
As a Setian/Typhonian, I couldn’t help the thought that the three
interlaced rings would be much more comfortable in the right hand of
destruction (solve) as a representative of Set, Osiris & Ra.
Set and Osiris are both Ra’s grandsons and make a sacred triad. Both
brothers have to sacrifice themselves for the continuation of Ra — of
life — Osiris being killed by his brother Set, and Set killing his brother
and becoming the ‘outcast’ God.
The demonstration of the cycle of life through destruction and creation
is continued with the symbolism of the hierophant’s left hand. His left
hand (coagula) is pointing downward in the Shamak mudra hand position.
I must admit that this never occurred to me before, but once I became
aware of it, I could not un-see it. The Shamak mudra, also called the
kidney mudra, is the perfect hand position to deliver the message of
Solve et Coagula (destruction and creation). At the start, I had difficulty
understanding how the Shamak mudra was linked with Solve et Coagula
and its role in occult symbology in particular for the hierophant and his
wand.

Shamak mudra

Coagulation means the action or process of a liquid, especially blood,
changing to a solid or semi-solid state. (OED)
The main function of the kidneys is to cleanse the blood of toxins and
transform the waste into urine. The hierophant’s right hand in the Shamak
mudra, suggests that before we can coagulate, we must be cleansed and
purified of all toxins. Only then can we coagulate into our new and
transformed selves.
“The Throne of the Hierophant is surrounded by elephants, which are
of the nature of Taurus; and he is actually seated upon a bull.” (Aleister
Crowley, The Book of Thoth). At first sight, the card seems to resonate
with the symbolism of the zodiac sign Taurus, which is an earth sign.
The element of earth is represented in this card as the Bull/Kerub and
symbolizes the earth element at its most balanced and strong. If we look
at the symbolism of the bull from the Setian perspective, it takes us back
to the prehistoric ‘cattle cult’, which is probably one of the world’s oldest.
Egyptian male deities often have a bull representation. Set is most notably
known for the ‘Bull of Ombos’. It is likely that this bull cult evolved out
of the Cattle cult, which was centered around the Heavenly Cow/Hathor,
who symbolizes the feminine aspect of this tradition.
The bull is associated with male fertility and strength, as seen in energy,
stamina, and endurance. Worshipped in antiquity, it is also linked to the
zodiac sign Taurus, which is associated with spring in the agricultural
calendar as a symbol of renewal, prosperity, and abundance. However,
this powerful creature can be equally connected to hard-headedness,

Cave paintings from the Tassili n’Ajjer mountains (photo courtesy of wiki commons wikimedia.org)

ferocity and brutality — all the qualities of a deity — where it would
accept a sacrificial offering as an act of reverence. It is easy to believe
that religious reverence for the bull’s cult has been forgotten in modern
times, yet our practices today have still taken on a new form – the dairy
and meat industry.
Just to remind you, a hierophant is a person who brings religious
congregants into the presence of that which is deemed holy. As such, a
hierophant interprets sacred mysteries and arcane principles. In this card,
the hierophant symbolizes the link to the secret of the rhythm of time
and the ancient practice of the worship of the bull.
The secrets of the Timelords are encoded in the divine law which is
guarded by Nuit/Nwt and delivered by the hierophant.
– From Aromagick by Diti J Morgan, 2023

Three Hippos

Ipet Month Rite  (2020)

Invocation coincided with kala for Duti ( 5th lunar day)
We prepared a potion of Salvia Divinorum from our garden. This we took after the following Invocation. 

Bowl with hippopotami, Predynastic Period, Naqada I, 3850–-3650 B.C. (pottery)

Ipet Invocation 

Awake and embrace the void 

Your heart strong enough for its joys 

and its worries  

Leave, and when you awake to life 

You will feel young again on a new day  

Rest, lie down assured of long good health.   

“Good night,  

the gods protect you,  

their protection is before you each day 

No bad thing approaches  

The demon (Apep) is repelled from your bed chamber 

Ipet the Great protects you in your long and powerful life.” 

 The day and night illumined,  

You shine forth 

For she guides your steps on the right path,  

And you know what is needed,

The god Ptah provisions you,  

filling your storeroom, 

With food and drink aplenty, 

and in good measure. 

Your diary and records all in order 

and well-composed. 

The mistakes of the past are forgotten,  

The staff in your hand is well-made and sustaining. 

Break bread with the wise, 

Your cares are all behind you. 

The only reason lies before you, 

The best is yet to come. 

 

Praise be to TAWERET, 

Bringing ‘perfection’ in her beautiful name.  

I praise her to the limits of the sky, 

I desire her Ka, calming day by day. 

 Be merciful to me,  

May I behold your mercy, 

You, of perfect mercy! 

Extend your hand to me,  

Giving me life, 

And granting me offspring! 

 Do not reproach me for my errors  

You, in perfect mercy! 

Even if my helpers slip up, 

My peers still reward me. 

I desire your great strength, 

None knows you as I do; 

I will say to the children and children’s children: 

Thee as guardian before her! 

Joy my heart should seize, 

Because on this day TAWERET is merciful,  

My house prospers with her blessings.  

May she give them day after day,  

And I never say ‘Oh I have regrets!’  

May she continue to give me health, 

And my womb bears children safely, 

[Or the future be secure]. 

My heart is glad every day, for sure 

The good ones expel the evil, 

And I am blessed.  

 Behold her people will live forever, 

My enemies are fearful before you TAWARET! 

Since your rage oppresses them 

more than a mountain of iron, 

Her mercy gives us life! 

Soon after drinking the potion a door opened and I crossed over to a different dimension (or was it a different timezone?) I was delivered to a very large cave, I could see patterns in the air (or was it on the walls of the cave?) the patterns were like unfinished paisley shapes in very faint shades of pastels. The vision was clear but the colours and shapes were nothing like I’ve seen before on ayahuasca, mushrooms or LSD, somehow it all looked like a prehistoric type of art.

The vision ended. It didn’t take me long to realise that the Salvia visions are probably short so I took another dose and before I knew it I was surrounded by fireworks.

The next vision was more like a physical experience: 

Something purple was trying to burst out of my head, or maybe a purple something was attaching itself to my head and trying to merge with it. I don’t know how to describe that feeling, or how long it took. Salvia time – if you can call it that, is measured in breaths. So, within a breath, the only ‘thing’ that was left of me, was only consciousness. Or was it the ‘purple something’ consciousness? Weightless and with no body, I was floating in the air above the sounds of music. I could hear the music filling the room but somehow I was high above it. And it was more like I can see it as the sounds vibrated under me and not through and around me as music usually experienced. 

Was I initiated by the Salvia spirit?  Did I become one with Salvia’s spirit for a few short (or long) breaths?  I noticed that with every inhalation, shapes like entities(?) were formed around me but I could only see them on the exhale. they looked like they were made of clouds, mist or fog —  of breath, my breath. The vision ended and I was left thinking that those entities are something to do with the ancient Egyptian god Shu.

Salvia spirit?

In the next vision, I played with the length of the exhalation, trying to see as many entities as I can and tried to touch them. When I put my hands over my eyes and I could see The Flower Of Life in bright electric blue forming in my hands. 

 

The last vision:  I went and sat by the altar, after all, tonight is all about IPET, the hippo goddess of ancient Egypt. So I knelt by the altar and meditate for a while. I don’t know how many breaths have passed, but it felt that I’d been sitting there for a while.

The vision came as I was looking at the flame of the candle.  A gate has opened and turned into a 3D tunnel, from which glowing breath-like entities, went through back and forth. The vision was fading away but I felt like dancing to the beautiful Kali mantra that music was playing in the background, vibrating softly in the nearly dark room while the three of us danced around the fire, the wild dance of the fire goddess. 

Three hippos dancing around the fire the wild dance of the beast.

The vision has gone, but the hippos were still dancing around the fire

Three Fire-Hippos dancing

.

Was Ipet / Tawaret a fire goddess?

Well yes, “Hathor of the West” is sometimes depicted as a hippo. The four torch goddesses who light the way for the deceased & keep enemies away are connected with her. (See Naos of decades & Gutbub 1965: 45)

Hathor Hippos is indeed a name of personifications of four crucibles of fire, shown in the Naos (the inner chamber or sanctuary of an ancient temple, a tabernacle), a dynamic act of protection, in which one’s enemies are thrown back and burned in the fires. In the end, what remains is submerged in cow’s milk.

 

 

 

Purple Magick – Mayday/Beltane

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These sea snail shells were excavated from Roman sites near Tyre in Lebanon. The creatures inside were crushed and boiled in a salt solution to produce the famous ‘Tyrian Purple’. It took 10,000 snails to produce just 1.4 grams of dye, making it very valuable and it became the preserve of Emperors, hence its alternative name, ‘imperial purple’. (Pitt Rivers Museum, Various collections)

Mayday/Beltane falls midway between the spring equinox and the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere. The rite of spring has probably been celebrated since time immemorial. In the Western world, in Europe in particular, May 1st will be celebrated by dancing around the Maypole which symbolizes phallic energy. The Maypole is decorated with flowers that represent the buds of fertility and sexual energy. 

Beltane is a significant festival in Gaelic culture, alongside Samhain, Imbolc, and Lughnasadh. It was traditionally celebrated throughout Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man. The festival featured special bonfires that were believed to have protective powers. People and their livestock would walk around or between these bonfires and sometimes leap over the flames or embers. All household fires were extinguished and then re-lit from the Bealtaine bonfire. 

So what has the colour purple got to do with Beltane and Mayday?

I’ve always loved the colour purple. It’s a unique colour that combines the stability of blue and the passion of red. It’s inspiring to me because it encourages me to reveal my innermost thoughts and feelings. When I think of purple, I’m reminded of how it stimulates my imagination and encourages my creativity. It’s a colour that promotes spiritual growth and intuition, which is something that’s important to me. At the same time, purple also promotes understanding and acceptance. It reminds me that there are so many great unknowns in the world that are waiting to be explored. But even as I explore those unknowns, purple keeps me grounded and reminds me to stay focused on what’s truly important in life.

“4. The deep violet is episcopal. It combines 2 and 3, a bishop being the manifested through the principle of blood or animal life.” (Column XV, King’s Ladder, The Qabalah of Aleister Crowley)

In other words, the colour purple is the bishop of colours, it combines the red of blood and the blue of the sky. Red symbolises blood, fire, love, passion, warmth, lust and sexuality. Blue represents the sky, freedom, intuition, imagination, inspiration, depth, sensitivity and the infinite horizon of the open spaces. And most of all, abundance and balance. When blending the two, purple is created, which allows us to explore and experiment with a range of complicated emotions at once and gives us the freedom to be inspired by sexuality, passion, lust and imagination.

“The colour violet, generally speaking, signifies a vibration which is at the same time spiritual and erotic; i.e. it is the most intense of the vibrations alike on the planes of Nephesch and Neschamah…” (Column XV, The Zodical Attributions: The Qabalah of Aleister Crowley) 

The wickedest man in the world, the Beast 666, Count von Zonaref and Alastair McGregor were some of the aliases Crowley used to go by, but every now and then he used the title “The Purple Priest”. The colour purple is used to designate a specific position in the church, such as Bishop or senior Bishop, and by using the title The Purple Priest, Crowley is hinting at his specific position in his church (of Thelema). 

Crowley uses the colour purple as an erotic-spiritual motif to convey the esoteric message in the rituals and worship of Thelema. 

For example, in Liber Al – The Book of the Law, paragraph 61, we can see how Crowley uses the colour purple in his writings:

“But to love me is better than all things: if under the night stars in the desert thou presently burnest mine incense before me, invoking me with a pure heart, and the Serpent flame therein, thou shalt come a little to lie in my bosom. For one kiss wilt thou then be willing to give all, but whoso gives one particle of dust shall lose all in that hour. Ye shall gather goods and store of women and spices; ye shall wear rich jewels; ye shall exceed the nations of the earth in splendour & pride; but always in the love of me, and so shall ye come to my joy. I charge you earnestly to come before me in a single robe and covered with a rich headdress. I love you! I yearn to you! Pale or purple, veiled or voluptuous, I who am all pleasure and purple, and drunkenness of the innermost sense, desire you. Put on the wings, and arouse the coiled splendour within you: come unto me!”

By using metaphors such as pale or purple, the author might be hinting at the physiology of the lingam. “Pale” suggests a flaccid lingam, and “veiled” could be the stage just before the lingam is fully erect, also it might suggest an uncircumcised lingam. “Purple” suggests its “voluptuous” erection. There are several veins and arteries that carry blood to and from the spongy erectile tissue in the penis. Veins may look larger than usual during and immediately following an erection. The appearance of prominent veins indicates healthy blood flow and gives the lingam a “purple hue. 

Next, the colour purple is used to describe “she” who is “all pleasure and purple,” and here the purple is used as a metaphor for the yoni —  the purple pleasure…  

By using those metaphors, the purple priest emphasises the intensity and depth of the spiritual and erotic vibration in religious-like practices of carnal pleasures. The second half of the sentence – “and drunkenness of the innermost sense,” hints at the ecstatic heights of the orgasm that awaits in the palace (Liber Al 1:51). The Palace is another metaphor for the yoni – see Mogg Morgan’s Aleister Crowley & Thelemic Magick page 39.

In his Hymn to Pan we can see the “purple motif” again:

“…Dip the purple of passionate prayer

In the crimson shrine, the scarlet snare,

The soul that startles in eyes of blue

To watch thy wantonness weeping through…”

There is something very special at this time of the year, the ancient earth dragon, Kundalini, is now fully awakened. The air is fragrant with the sweet heady aromas of many colourful blossoms. Insects, animals and humans alike walk or crawl out of their burrows, rub their eyes, stretch their limbs and start dancing a sensual mating dance. It’s the season to celebrate desire, lust, fertility, or in other words, nature’s tantric celebration. 

This is the season of Pan, the “All-devourer, all-begetter”. There is something very salacious about dancing around a Maypole. And by leaping over the Beltane fires, we awaken the most ancient magick of all, the passion for the union of body and spirit — “a vibration which is at the same time spiritual and erotic”.

This is the perfect time to wear the K-23 perfume oil which will connect you to the spirit of Pan and his passionate lust for earth and life. Then, go outside and do the Jitterbug. 

The term jitterbug is used to refer to different swing dances, such as the jive and the lindy hop. It comes from slang used in the early twentieth century to describe alcoholics. The term became associated with swing dancers because, like the jitters of alcoholics, they were seen to be out of control.

K-23 perfume oil

As discussed earlier in the book, the properties of water allow us spiritual cleansing, where immersion in a ritual bath is always desirable and recommended before magical activity. To connect with the purple magic frequency and awaken the energies of the Kundalini serpent I recommend my special purple bath ritual which is specifically designed to raise our sexual and magnetic powers and to synchronise ourselves with potential or existing partners. Partners can share their bath in the spirit of a purple magick ritual for play, however, here at the Morgan Witches’ headquarters, we prefer to have our ritual baths separately (usually one after the other) and by doing so, each of us has the time to relax and meditate. It takes 15 minutes for our body to reach a general relaxation that allows the blend of oils to work its magick on our consciousness.

Prepare your bathroom as you would any other ritual space, you can have a ‘purple altar’ if you have the room for it, but remember that the altar is the bath, and the water is the vessel which conducts the transformation of the offering which in this case is in the oils and you. 

When using the Purple Magick Perfume Oil you can add about 10-15 drops to a tablespoon of sea salt, Himalaya salt or Epsom salts and add it to the bath water. Each of the essential oils suggested here can be used on its own or in combination with one of the other essential oils which are recommended in this chapter. However, mixing and blending essential oils is a form of art and technique that need to be learned and mastered. You can use the recipe at the end of the chapter as a guideline for making your own bath blends.

Make sure that the water is hot enough for you to relax in them for 15 minutes.

Get in the water and lie comfortably, close your eyes, take a few deep breaths and listen to the mantra or music of your choice.

I find that the Kirtan Kriya (Sa Ta Na Ma) mantra is most suitable to listen to in the purple bath ritual. 

You can find it here.

If you want to experience the purple magick in its full power I recommend the Great Purple Hoo-Ha meditation while in the bath. The Kirtan Kriya mantra will amplify the experience. 

The Great Purple Hoo-Ha Meditation

This meditation is based on a technique described in Phillip H. Farber’s book The Great Purple Hoo-Ha. Philip H. Farber is a writer, hypnotist, NLP trainer, ritualist, and consciousness explorer. He is best known for his book on ritual magick, Future Ritual: Magick for the 21st Century and as the creator of Meta-Magick, a system of practice combining elements of magick, NLP, hypnosis, and more.

Sit in a comfortable position with your spine upright (if you are in the bath, just make yourself comfortable and relax in the water).

Close your eyes.

Imagine a circle around you, with a diameter just slightly greater than your outstretched arms, with you at the exact centre.

Inhale, filling your lungs completely, from bottom to top. 

As you inhale, allow your attention to expand and fill the circle around you with purple. 

Exhale, and as you do so place your attention to a tiny spot within the centre of your chest.

Continue to practice like this, filling the circle with every inhalation, contracting down to a single point in the middle of your chest.

When your circle is full of purple, inhale and expand your attention to fill the entire room with purple. 

Then, when you exhale, contract it down to a single point in the centre of your chest. 

Once the room is full of purple, on the next inhalation expand your attention to fill the largest area you can conceive: the city, the county, the state, the world or even the solar system and the whole universe, with the colour purple. As large as you can manage. 

And again, when you exhale, contract your attention down to a single point in the middle of your chest. 

When you are ready, open your eyes and return to your regular breathing.

Thank yourself, the water and the oils, climb out of the bath, dry yourself and get dressed (or not) and carry on with your Purple Magick celebrations.

Purple Magick Perfume Oil

Image created with the collaboration of the Craiyon AI and Photoshop.

The first essential oil that comes to mind concerning Purple Magick, as Scott Cunningham put it “downtrodden Patchouli”.

Even now, most people still associate its sweet musky and earthy aroma with the ‘Hippy’ culture of the 60s & 70s. 

So what has Patchouli got to do with Purple Magick?

Patchouli Pogostemon cablin

Patchouli is a bushy herb about a metre high with a sturdy, hairy stem and large, fragrant, furry leaves and white-purple flowers.  It is native to Southeast Asia. Once harvested, the patchouli leaves are left to ferment in the shade and then dried for three days. The fermentation process apparently improves the quality of the oil, which is extracted using steam distillation.

In the 19th century, cashmere shawls and bed linen were imported from India to Europe. To keep the delicate fabrics free of moths, they were packed with patchouli leaves, which were used throughout the East as an insect repellent. These Patchouli-scented shawls and linen became a must-have item for well-to-do and fashionable women of the time. It didn’t take long for the Patchouli fragrance to be associated with wealth and indulgence.

The earthy sweet aroma of the plant soon became a trend with many European manufacturers of fabrics and furniture which started to infuse their goods with the scent of Patchouli. It is almost unavoidable to thus visualise and smell the luxurious, heady, musky, scented bedrooms of 19th-century ladies. The richness of the scent has been associated as an aphrodisiac for centuries, the earthy-musky notes make us feel secure, relaxed and open up to our own sexuality. The smell of the bed linen and the furniture infused with Patchouli oil was evocative and sensuous, and the link between Patchouli and sensuality has never been forgotten from our collective memories of those 19th-century bedrooms.

So next time you watch a period drama or read a novel about this period, and you want to intensify your experience of the novel/drama, make sure you have a bottle of Patchouli at hand so you can smell it during the bedrooms scenes or whenever a cashmere shawl appears.

The sweet and heady scent of the Patchouli blends perfectly with the exotic fragrance of  Ylang-Ylang. On its own, I find Ylang-Ylang a bit overpowering and far too sweet, but the earthiness of Patchouli seems to anchor the sweetness of the Cananaga odorata and turn it into a somewhat lighter and mysterious exotic fragrance. 

Ylang-Ylang Cananaga odorata

Ylang-Ylang is a tall tropical tree with large, tender, sweet fragrant yellow flowers. It is native to Southeast Asia. Its essential oil is extracted by water or steam distillation from freshly picked flowers. There are 5 grades of distilled essential oil, with Ylang-Ylang extra as the top grade.

The sweet, exotic-balsamic scent of Ylang-Ylang will balance and calm an overactive mind or any over-emotional state or feelings. In Indonesia, its fragrant flowers have long been associated with aphrodisiacs. To promote a relaxed and sensual atmosphere, fresh Ylang-Ylang flowers are harvested and spread on the newly wedded couple’s bed. 

Both Ylang-Ylang and Vetiver are under the planetary influence of Venus, the goddess of love, beauty and sensuality. Together they combine two of her most precious elements, the stability of the earth represented by Vetiver and the fluidity of water represented by Ylang-Ylang. On the emotional, physiological and magical level, these two oils blended together act as the psychic lubricant of body and mind. Once the harmony between these two Venusian oils has been established we can introduce Jasmine, the “King of flowers” to the formula (Cunningham: 1997). Jasmine is known for its qualities as a sexual tonic and aphrodisiac. The intensely rich, warm and sensual, sweet floral scent, has a direct effect on our emotions and can produce a feeling of optimism, confidence and euphoria. Its association with the moon will add a silvery reflection to a sensuous magical rite, where there is a union of lovers. Its elemental characteristics of both fire and water will intensify the sacred sexual union with a magical oomph of flowing passion.

To balance out the richness of the sweet and heady aroma of the blend I added a few drops of Bergamot. The fresh and fruity, citrusy scent of the oil, is just sharp enough to break the nearly overwhelming sweetness of the heady blend. 

Bergamot Citrus bergamia

This small tree, about 4.5 metres high with smooth oval leaves, and small round fruit,  ripens from green to yellow, similar to orange in appearance but smaller. Native to tropical Asia. Extensively cultivated in southern Italy, Sicily and the Ivory Coast. Essential oil extraction is by cold expression of the fruit’s rind.

Safety data: Certain furocoumarins, notably bergapten, have been found to be phototoxic on human skin; that is, they cause sensitisation and skin pigmentation when exposed to direct sunlight. 

The scent of Bergamot resembles that of orange but with more floral and zesty underlying characteristics that add a spicy edge to it. Bergamot possesses magical qualities that can alleviate nervous tension and physical stress, acting like a wand by lifting, shifting, releasing, and dispersing these feelings. Bringing peace and happiness and creating a space allows both body and mind to rest and relax. The lightness and uplifting touch that Bergamot adds to the blend, accentuates each of the other fragrances and mixes them together into a bewitching sensual perfume which will work both ways on its wearer and their partner.

Purple Magick bath recipe: 

In a small bowl, mix 1 tablespoon of sea salt, Himalaya salt or Epsom salt,

1 drop of Patchouli

1 drop Ylang Ylang

2 drops of Jasmine

3 drops of Bergamot

For your safety, I recommend using the following recipe for a night-time bath due to the sensual nature of purple magick and the potential risks associated with Bergamot essential oil. 

It’s important to note that the Purple Magic Perfume Oil is safe to use as it contains bergapten-free essential oil.

***

Purple Magick – Mayday/Beltane is an extract from my soon-to-be-published book Aromagick – A Scentual Journey Through The Ritual Year.

For any inquiries about the Aromagick perfume oils series, please contact Mandrake at https://mandrake.uk.net/contact/

Have a fabulous Purple Magick season

Diti J Morgan

 

 

 

 

The Jitterbug Cult

 

This chapter is written by my dear friend Miryamdevi, high priestess of the Jitterbug Cult.

Tom Robbins,

 our prophet

***

The highest function of Love is that it makes the loved one a unique and irreplaceable being.

Tom Robbins, Jitterbug Perfume

Imbolc is celebrated on February 1st, which is about halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. At this time of the year, flowers are starting to come back and little buds start to form on the trees. This is the first sign of Mother Nature slowly waking up after the long winter sleep and reminds us that we are also reawakening, letting go of the past and making space for new beginnings and new plans.

Most of the snowdrop species flower in winter. In the language of flowers, the snowdrop is synonymous with 'hope', as it is seen as 'heralding' the new spring and new year.

Snowdrops

Most of the snowdrop species flower in winter. In the language of flowers, the snowdrop is synonymous with ‘hope’, as it is seen as ‘heralding’ the new spring and new year. 

Green is the colour of nature and it resonates with growth and expansion, stability and endurance. Green also symbolises harmony, healing, fertility, hope, love and protection. These qualities make us broaden our hearts and fill them with the love and excitement of a budding new dream.

On February first, just before dawn, if you listen very carefully, you just might hear the hypnotic melodies of the magical panpipes of the ancient god, and if you are lucky you might just see him skipping along the shadows doing his crazy Jitterbug dance.

Pan Archmus Herkalion

Herodotus wrote that according to Egyptian chronology, Pan was the most ancient of the gods

A couple of weeks after Imbolc, on February 14th, we are celebrating St. Beetaroota day. On this day we immortalise the love story between the field maiden Beetaroota and Pan. We also learn how the humble winter root is a key ingredient in two of the most important magical formulas of all time.

Jitterybug Perfume oil (K23)

Grape seed oil & beetroot extract

Horny Goat weed extract

Leather fragrance

White Musk fragrance

Oud fragrance

Amber fragrance

***

Vetiver

Palma Rosa

Jasmine Sambac

Jasmine Officinale

Bergamot 

Lemongrass

The above 4 fragrances are representative of the scentual aroma of the body of Pan:

  • Leather for flesh and blood. 
  • White Musk for its earthy, animalistic, sensual qualities like the animal pheromone secretion.   
  • Oud also known as agarwood, is extracted from the fungus-infected resinous heartwood of the agar tree, which is primarily found in the dense forests of Southeast Asia, India and Bangladesh. It is either extracted by distillation from the wood or by melting the resin. The unique fragrance of Oud is rare and precious, just like the characteristics and charisma of Pan.
  • Amber is a ‘fantasy’ perfumery note. It consists of a few ingredients (natural and synthetic) such as vanilla, patchouli, labdanum, styrax, benzoin and a few more, to create a warm, powdery, sweet scent. The God Pan is the wildest fantasy of mother nature.

The second stage of making the Jitterybug perfume oil was to recreate a scent that will represent the sweet earthy – tangy aroma of the beetroot.

The beetroot is the taproot portion of a beet plant. It is one of several cultivated varieties of Beta vulgaris grown for their edible taproots and leaves (called beet greens). Beetroots are a great source of many essential vitamins and minerals. It’s packed with essential nutrients and is a great source of fibre, folate (vitamin B9), manganese, potassium, iron, and vitamin C and also it contains high concentrations of the element Boron, which is believed to play a key role in producing human sex hormones.  

Beetroots have long been considered an aphrodisiac in many cultures.

Aphrodite, the Greek Goddess of Love, Pleasure and Fertility, was irresistible among the Goddesses and desired by all. Legend tells us that eating beets was the secret to her ageless beauty. The Oracle at Delphi decreed beets to be worth their weight in silver because of their deep mystic potency. (Wikipedia)

Aphrodite, Eros & Pan (National Archaeological Museum, Athens/Wikipedia commons) In the picture above both God and Goddess seem stimulated after (probably) indulging in just a little too many beets, Poor little Eros above them, not sure if to separate the two or join in…

As I mentioned above, beetroot contains high concentrations of the element Boron, which is thought to have a major role in adjusting the body’s natural production of testosterone, and estradiol – a type of estrogen.

Both Aphrodite and Pan were well aware of the benefits of the beetroots. 

Unfortunately, beetroot doesn’t produce any essential oils, so I used a little beet extract as a symbolic gesture. To recreate the scent of the beetroot I used the essential oil of Vetiver and palmarosa. 

Vetiver essential oil has a deep smoky, sweet earthy-woody aroma like the earth which resonates with the deep earthy scent of beetroot, connecting us to our deeper roots, to the pulsating heart of nature. (For more details about vetiver see the chapter Black Magick).

Invocations to the green power should begin with self-love; an attempt to see the wonderful side of every self one consists of, and then proceed into a ritual affirmation of the beauty and loveability of all things and all people. Suitable god forms for the Love-self include Venus, Aphrodite and the mythical Narcissus…

Peter Carroll/Green Magic/Liber Kaos

With all respect to the mythical Narcissus,  this chapter is dealing with the ancient god of Nature and earth, a god that some might say is long dead. But for us, of the Jitterybug cult, he is very much alive and kicking. He is the god of the Green Magick season.

Io Pan

Invocations to the green power should begin with self-love

When we think of self-love, we must take into consideration the differences between Pan and Narcissus.  

The path of self-love is a narrow one and could lead to destruction through self-delusion, obsession and isolation. This was pretty much Narcissus’s way. On the other hand, we have the wild, beasty, earthy way of Pan which can teach us self-love through the appreciation of nature, music and dance. Through pleasures of body, ecstasy and trance, we can learn to see the hidden beauty in every living being and situation. Pan teaches us to have the courage to be wild and leads us to liberation.

Palmarosa Cymbopogon martinii 

Cymbopogon martinii

Palmarosa is a wild herbaceous plant with long grasslike fragrant stems. It is native to India and Pakistan but also grown in Africa, Indonesia, Brazil and the Comoro Islands. Palmarosa essential oil is pale yellow or olive liquid with a sweet, balsamic, somewhat citrusy, geranium-like scent.

While vetiver is related to the earth element which resonates strongly with Pan and his affinity with the land and nature, Palmarosa is related to the water element which resonates with the flowing nature of love and healing. Both vetiver and palmarosa are under the planetary rule of Venus, which might explain the strange and wild attraction between Pan and Aphrodite in the picture above (Aphrodite, Eros & Pan). The flowing nature of palmarosa oil soothes the mind and can help heal broken hearts and overcome negative emotions and move forward with our lives.

Pan is dead?

In the story, De Defectu Oraculorum Plutarch wrote:

 “[the] ship drove with the tide till it was carried near the Isles of Paxi; when immediately a voice was heard … calling unto one Thamus, and that with so loud a voice as made all the company amazed; … the voice said aloud to him, ‘When you arrive at Palodes, take care to make it known that the great god Pan is dead.’ … this voice did much to astonish all that heard it, and caused much arguing whether this voice was to be obeyed or slighted…” 

The announcement of Pan’s death was spread throughout the Roman Empire during the reign of Emperor Tiberius.  As the ancient empires began to grow, the wild suffered, as did Pan’s life essence. 

Pan was the God of the Wild and his essence filled his surroundings with life and vitality. Nature was at its most bountiful when Pan was present.

Pan’s death and his symbiotic relationship with nature represent the crisis over the loss of nature and pagan worship and the shift to Christian monotheism. The growth and spread of the Roman Empire led to many new roads laid through woodlands, fields and forests. New settlements started to flourish and spread along those new and modern roads, destroying the natural habitats of flora and fauna.

Pan’s name could also mean “all”, which leads to the assumption that his death had been that of all the demons of the pre-Christian era. The goat-legged god became the image of the devil and Pan’s image was vastly used in Christian literature and art as the image of Satan.

However, besides Plutarch’s work, there was no indication that Pan had ever died. In fact, a century after Plutarch’s time, Pausanias described shrines, grottos and sacred caves devoted to Pan that were still very much in use for rituals and pilgrimage.

In the second aeon, Men knew me as the Horned God, Pangenitor Panphage 

Verse 0 Book 1: Sacred scriptures of the Jitterybug cult

Pan is not Dead. He is Just resting

Verse 1 Book 1: Sacred scriptures of the Jitterybug cult

The only way Pan could shake off the satanic image the New Christians attributed to him was to go underground. But Pan, being the God of nature and a fertile symbol of the land, knew he would be found and hunted till the edge of the world. The new lords of the land will track him down and sniff his beasty pheromones out. The only place they will not be able to track his scent will be if he hides (or make them think he is hiding) in the depth of the sea. 

The rumour about Pan’s death started onboard a ship cruising the Ionian Sea when Thamus, an Egyptian sailor, sailed to Italy. As he passed by the Greek islands, he heard a divine voice call to him from across the water saying – “The great god Pan is dead!” 

Plutarch ‘forgot’ to mention, that Thamus was a devotee of Pan (some say he was one of Pan’s most celebrated high priests) who started the rumour as part of Pan’s manifesto to keep the balance and harmony of the land by letting the wild things be wild at heart and nature.

The sacred scriptures of the Jitterybug cult tell us how Kudra created a special scent, a perfume to mask the scent of Pan, so he can walk free among us without being detected or recognised, the K23.

Kudra had to apply all her perfumery skills, aromatic knowledge and scentual abilities to cover the scent of Pan.  As you know, Pan is the god of the wild, shepherds and flocks. He has the hindquarters, legs, and horns of a goat. For those of you that have never experienced the farmyard smells of a goat pen, there are not many ways to describe the distinct smell of goats, especially male goats — They stink.

Creating a perfume that will be suitable for a god is a serious task, even more so if the perfume in mind needs to conceal the scent of one of the stinkier gods around. 

Kudra was somewhat vague about the ingredients she used to create the k23. We know she collected the very rare pollen of the beetroot to balance out with earthy tones and the animalistic stench of the goat, and then she added the best quality Jasmine oil she could find. In Kudra’s case, it will probably be ok to assume she used Jasmine Sambac. 

Jasmine has the honour of being one of the highest-priced plant scents and has often been called the king of flowers. (Scott Cunningham:1997). 

Earlier in the book, Jasmine was also dedicated to the Amrita Kala (Amrita means “immortality”) and resonates with the sexual magic elixir. She is also associated with Lalita. Lalita is a Hindu goddess, worshipped as a principal aspect of the supreme goddess Mahadevi. The intense scent of Jasmine can affect our emotions by producing feelings of optimism, confidence and euphoria in the hearts of the devotees at the time of worshipping the gods.

The powerful aroma of Jasmine will be sufficient enough to tone down the stench of the goat, and at the same time will support its life essence and vitality, sexual appeal and stamina, which are so vital for the man-goat-God Pan. 

The last of the ingredients of the perfume according to Kudra should be a light and airy note of the citrus family.  Without much thinking, I reached for the bottle of Bergamot and added a few drops to the perfume oil blend. After all, what is better than the fresh fruity sweet aroma of Bergamot to lift the spirit and keep the vital essence of life, flowing freely and smoothly throughout the body and mind. However, after letting the blend settle, I noticed that one high keynote is still missing to make the perfume whole.

So what would it be? 

It was very difficult to decide between the fresh, grassy-lemony scent of the Lemongrass with the equally fresh, lemony, fruity-floral fragrance of Lemon-Verbena, so after a few trials, I decided to ‘keep it in the family and chose Palmarosa older cousin – Lemongrass. As already described in Octarine Magick’s chapter, the intensity of the fresh lemon-herby scent of the lemongrass can bring up fragments of deep and long-lost memories of ancient wildlands and open spaces. 

This version of the K23 is a very complex and paradoxical blend of scents, aromas and fragrances. The journey to create a perfume that at the same time will represent the essence of the God Pan, and conceal it within its unique scent, took me on a journey exploring the rhythms and vibes of Green Magick which I never expected when I started writing this chapter. I am grateful for the author who recognised my skills and knowledge of the sacred teachings of the cult of the last God who can still dance the Jitterbug.

Before I go, I entrust you with the cult’s most sacred scripture — the teaching of St Beetaroota and the secret of the beets.

February 20k23

Miryamdevi, Jitterbug priestess 

 

The Anubis ritual

The Anubis ritual is based on an ancient Egyptian ritual which is similar to a seance. The priest/ess of Anubis invokes Anubis’s Godform into the medium which will channel Anubis’s knowledge concerning the other deities which will be invited into the “table”.

This year we invite to the table: Geb the God of the Earth, and Nuit – the Goddess of the sky (Geb & Nuit are lovers and the parents of Osiris, Set, Isis, Nephtis and Horus the Elder). As is the time of Green Magick we also think that we have to invite the God Min – which is the most ancient form of the God Pan.

Min

Min is an ancient Egyptian god whose cult originated in the predynastic period (4th millennium BCE). He was represented in many different forms but was most often represented in male human form, shown with an erect penis which he holds in his right hand and an upheld left arm holding a flail.

As the central deity of fertility and possibly orgiastic rites, Min became identified by the Greeks with the god Pan. One feature of Min worship was the wild prickly lettuce Lactuca serriola (the domestic version of which is Lactuca sativa (lettuce)), which has aphrodisiac and opiate qualities and produces latex when cut, possibly identified with semen.

Celebrations of Min’s birthday are recorded on Egypt’s oldest memorials such as the 1st Dynasty Palermo stone. But his cult is even older reaching back to the prehistoric era when he was a deity of fertility, sexual reproduction and natural phenomena such as storms. His erection is his most famous attribute — combined as it is with his raised arm and flail some have speculated that this is all part of an aggressive/protective posture. 

His main centres were Koptos (Kuft) & Panopolis (Akhmim). His symbols are the Thunderbolt, the White Bull, the Flail and the Phallus. Wallis Budge speculates there was also a lunar component to his cult. Min is also called ka-mwt-f “Bull of his mother” a reference to the incestuous impregnation of his mother, an epithet of various gods, including Horus, also Geb who kills his father Shu in order to ravage Tefnut. Before getting too outraged, it’s as well to remember this is an agricultural motif and refers to the reproductive activity of bulls and cows. Min’s archaic shrine was a phallic-shaped hut, woven from two significant and emblematic plants — the White Lotus & the (narcotic) Blue Lily (Nymphaea caerulea). 

The blossoms and foliage of these flowers are to be woven into a model phallus or perhaps a crown. The traditional hymns are referred to as “Danced”, implying they are rhythmic chants.

Danced Hymn for Min 

who is on his staircase

Hail to you, 

Min, Min Ra

Welcome

On your staircase

Hail to you

Min, Min Ra

And the crown you wear 

on your forehead

Hail to you 

Mysterious Min

“Bull of his mother”

Much that you do remains in obscurity

You are unique

To whom praise is given

You have power to give life 

To those you love

Powerful to give him to be propitiated

He is unique here

To whom has been conferred the function 

of the unknown god

While you go out of the great door

And are standing on your stairway of truth

Speaking with Osiris hour by hour

See, that which you ordain

For protection

Against all bad things

Min justified before your enemies

In the sky and on the earth

By the judges of all the gods

And all the goddesses.

NWT/ NUT/ NUIT & GEB

Nuit is the daughter of Shu and Tefnut. Her brother and husband is Geb. She had five children – Osiris, Set, Isis, Nephthys and Horus the Elder. She is considered one of the oldest deities in the Egyptian pantheon, with her origin being found in the creation story of Heliopolis

Her name means “The watery one” which may also symbolize the uterus. She represents the sky but not as the lifeless roof of heaven but as a dynamic entity, creating and destroying. She also represented the entire sky. Night and day as well as large features such as the Milky Way.

The female sky is the realm of the dead, whereas the Earth is for the living. This perhaps explains the male rulership of the Earth.

Nuit is intimately connected with the stars, especially those that are close to and appear to envelop our world. According to The Book of NWT, creation begins with the ambisexual Amun-Ra or Sungod Ra. he has the power to emanate part of himself, creating other Gods and Goddesses. He starts with Shu and Tefnut, who represent the principles of air and fire respectively. The process of emanation continues and they generate NWT the sky Goddess and Geb the Earth.

Nwt and Geb are locked together in a sexual embrace, almost a single entity. It is Shu, the God of the winds and the air who separates them, creating a space between all these elements in which our world can exist.

Geb was the Egyptian god of the earth and a mythological member of the Ennead of Heliopolis. He could also be considered a father of snakes. It was believed in ancient Egypt that Geb’s laughter created earthquakes and that he allowed crops to grow.

The oldest representation in a fragmentary relief of the god was as an anthropomorphic bearded being accompanied by his name, dating from king Djoser’s reign, 3rd Dynasty, and was found in Heliopolis. However, the god never received a temple of his own. In later times he could also be depicted as a ram, a bull or a crocodile.

Geb was frequently feared as the father of snakes (one of the names for snake was s3-t3 – “son of the earth”). In a Coffin Texts spell Geb was described as the father of the mythological snake Nehebkau of primaeval times. Geb could also be regarded as personified fertile earth and barren desert.

In the Heliopolitan Ennead (a group of nine gods created in the beginning by the one god Atum or Ra), Geb is the husband of Nwt, the sky or visible daytime and nightly firmament, the son of the earlier primordial elements Tefnut (moisture) and Shu (“emptiness”), and the father to the five lesser gods of the system – Osiris, Seth, Isis, Nephthys and Horus the Elder. In this context, Geb was believed to have originally been engaged with Nut and had to be separated from her by Shu, the god of the air. Consequently, in mythological depictions, Geb was shown as a man reclining, sometimes with his phallus still pointed towards Nwt. Geb and Nut together formed the permanent boundary between the primaeval waters and the newly created world.

His association with vegetation, healing and sometimes with the underworld and royalty brought Geb the occasional interpretation that he was the husband of Renenutet, a minor goddess of the harvest and also a mythological caretaker (the meaning of her name is “nursing snake”) of the young king in the shape of a cobra, who herself could also be regarded as the mother of Nehebkau, a primaeval snake god associated with the underworld.

Sources: 

Egyptian magick (Morgan: 2021) 

Demonic Calendar (Morgan: 2021)

 

The Hierophant – Love and do what you will

Featured

Chapter 3, verse xi: “Let the woman be girt with a sword before me”.

The symbolism of Crowley’s Thoth tarot is much more profound than the usual tarot meanings and symbolism. Crowley had a wonderful underlined subtext and messages communicating his ideas and beliefs through the Thoth tarot deck. I find his ‘secret’ symbolism and messages fascinating. 

Before we start to explore the symbolism of this card, remember we are only approaching it from the Crowlian point of view and a very specific one – which is mine. 

Let us understand first who is the Hierophant and what it represents.

The Hierophant is a person, especially a priest, who interprets sacred mysteries or esoteric principles. 

According to Wikipedia, a hierophant (Ancient Greek: ἱεροφάντης) is a person who brings religious congregants into the presence of that which is deemed holy.  As such, a hierophant interprets sacred mysteries and arcane principles. In Attica, Hierophant was the title of the chief priest at the Eleusinian Mysteries. It was an office inherited within the Philaidae or Eumolpidae families. The office of Hierophant, High Priestess and Dadouchousa Priestess were all inherited within the Philaidae or Eumolpidae families, and the Hierophant and the High Priestess were of equal rank. It was the task of the High Priestess to impersonate the roles of the goddesses Demeter and Persephone in the enactment during the Mysteries.

The Hierophant is associated with the element of earth.

From the above, we can understand that the hierophant is a top religious figure like the Pope, or the chief Rabbi if you like, whose job was to be a conductor, a channel, funnel or mediator between the gods and the people. In this particular card, focusing only on the hidden symbolism, the hierophant is the representation of the goddess Nuit.

Nuit represents the element of infinite space. The mother of all stars – after all – “Every man and every woman is a star” (chapter 1, verse 3). Nuit is also the place each star is return to when his or her light diminishes. She is also the divine law. The law that the hierophant needs to transmit to her followers. 

 “Let the woman be girt with a sword before me” 

At the front of the card, before the hierophant, we can see the woman girt with a sword. 

According to The Book of Thoth, “she represents the Scarlet Woman in the hierarchy of the new Aeon” or in other words, representative of the ‘new woman’, ie, no more just a housewife or a pretty decor on the arm of her husband or boyfriend, but armed and militant, seeking her truth and equal rights. 

We can see how all of this manifests in the feminist movement of the 70s and the Me Too movement of our days. 

The woman girt with a sword , “The woman is the priestess; in her reposes the mystery. She is the mother, brooding yet tender; the lover, at once passionate and aloof; the wife, revered and cherished. She is the witch woman.” (Freedom is a two-edged Sword, Jack Parsons)

The deeper you look into the hidden symbolism and meaning of this mysterious woman, the clear it gets, that she can be Nuit herself, guarding the divine law.  

The law is simple and clear and it’s the hierophant’s job to pass it to his congregation:

“Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law”

“Love is the law, love under will”

Or in our words 

Love and do what you will

***

“The symbolism of the Wand is peculiar” – Solve et Coagula

Crowley describes the three interlaced rings of the wand, as a “representative of the three Aeons of Isis, Osiris and Horus”. However, on a closer look, we see that the hierophant holding the wand with its three rings aspiring upward, in his right hand (solve).  

As a Setian/Typhonian, I couldn’t help the thought that the three interlaced rings, would be much more comfortable in the right hand of destruction (solve) as a representative of Set, Osiris & Ra. 

Set and Osiris are both Ra’s grandsons and make a sacred triad. Both brothers have to sacrifice themselves for the continuation of Ra — of life — Osiris by getting killed by his brother Set, and Set killing his brother and becoming the ‘outcast’ God. (Aromagick)

The demonstration cycle of life through destruction and creation is continued with the symbolism of the hierophant’s left hand.

His left hand (coagula) is pointing downward in the Shamak mudra hand position. I must admit that this never occurred to me before, but once I become aware of it, I could not un-see it. 

The Shamak mudra also calls the kidney mudra, is the perfect hand position to deliver the message of Solve et Coagula (destruction and creation). In the beginning, I couldn’t see the connection between the kidney mudra to the word coagula and what it represents in the occult symbolism, especially here, to the hierophant and his wand. 

Coagulation means The action or process of a liquid, especially blood, changing to a solid or semi-solid state.
“a supplement that inhibits blood coagulation”

The main function of the kidneys is to cleanse the blood of toxins and transform the waste into urine.

The hierophant’s right hand in the Shamak mudra, suggests that before we can coagulate, we must be cleansed and purified of all toxins. Only then can we coagulate into our new and transformed selves. 

“The Throne of the Hierophant is surrounded by elephants, which are of the nature of Taurus; and he is actually seated upon a bull.”

At first look, the card seems to resonate with the symbolism of the zodiac sign Taurus, which is an earth sign. The element of earth is represented in this card as the Bull Kerub and symbolises the earth element at its most balanced and strongest. If we look at the symbolism of the bull from the Setian perspective, it takes us back to the cattle cult which is probably the oldest cult in the world. 

Cave painting from the Tassili n’Ajjer mountains

All Egyptian male deities have bull avatars. The Bull of Ombos is the avatar of Set. The Bull Cult probably sprang out of the Cattle cult linking deities like the Heavenly Cow/Hathor which represents the female aspect of the cult. 

The bull symbolises male fertility and potency and is connected with energy, stamina, endurance, protection, and aggression. As a symbol of strength, the bull was worshipped throughout the ancient world. From the astrological point of view, the zodiac sign of Taurus is linked to Spring in the agriculture calendar. Symbolising the season of rebirth, wealth and abundance. The bull also stands as a symbol of stubbornness, ferocity, tyranny and brutality, all the characteristics of a powerful God/s, and will make an honourable sacrifice for the almighty.

We might think, that we have moved on from the religious practices and worship of the bull’s cult, but today, the cattle cult assumed a different structure — the dairy and meat industry, that most of us are pretty much worshipping still.

Just to remind you, a hierophant is a person who brings religious congregants into the presence of that which is deemed holy.  As such, a hierophant interprets sacred mysteries and arcane principles.

In this card, the hierophant symbolises the link to the secret of the rhythm of time and the ancient practice of the worship of the bull. 

The secrets of the time lords are encoded in the divine law which is guarded by Nuit/NWT and delivered by the hierophant.

Timelord (?)

On magic and miracles and of Beit Shami tradition of Lighting Hanukkah candles

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Recently I learned of Beit Shamai Hanukkah tradition of starting with all eight candles on the first night and going down to one candle on the eighth. The more common Hanukkah tradition follows Beit Hillel – on the first night you light one candle and add another each day so by the eighth day you have all the candles burning in your Hanukkiah (Hanukkah’s special candle holder).

Once I understood the reason for this minhag (custom), it seemed to me the appropriate way for us Chaos Jewitches to celebrate Hanukkah 

To remind you, Hanukkah or the festival of lights is a holiday that is celebrated for eight days, in memory of the victory of the Hasmoneans in the rebellion against the Greeks, the rededication of the Temple, and the miracle of the oil jug. The holiday is marked by the saying of praise as well as the lighting of Hanukkah candles, on the eight days from the 24th Kislev to the 2nd of Tevet.

The Miracle of Hanukkah is an Aggadah (story) depicted in the Babylonian Talmud as one of the reasons for Hanukkah. In the story, the miracle occurred after the liberation of the Temple in Jerusalem during the Maccabean Revolt, and it describes the finding of a jug of pure oil that was just enough to light the lamp for one day, but that then lasted for eight days. 

There are two ways to understand the miracle: 

  1. You can focus on how the miracle power grew day by day, and by night it came to its full potential.
  2. Or, you can argue the opposite: that the magic was at its peak on the first day and by the eighth day its potential was already established in the hearts of all, but no longer visible.

Beit Hillel follows the first argument above, and as far as I know, it is the more common and popular tradition followed by most Jews around the world, celebrating the miracle getting bigger and stronger each day.

Beit Shamai focuses on the potential of the divine miracle and how the magic was much greater on the first day than on the last day. If we replace the word miracle with the word magic, suddenly it seems obvious why Beit Shammai chose to focus on the potential of the power of magic on its first day

This phenomenon, according to Chaos Magic, is described in one word — Gnosis, which is one of a kind and an extremely powerful experience. But as most of us know, the feeling and the memory of it, fade in the days that follow.  Beit Shammai’s Hanukkah tradition also focuses on the gnosis’s full potential or the miracle of the light that shone bright and strong on the first night.

I assume that most of you if you have read this far, do not follow Beit Hillel or Beit Shamai, but rather swim in the fertile waters of Chaos Magic or Chaos Craft Consciousness, and miracles, wonders, magic and sorcery are part of your path. Therefore, this Hanukkah, we would be celebrating by focusing on the divine magical potential for the entire eight days of the holiday. That means, eight candles every day for eight days!

When we focus on the divine potential of magic and its possible power, we are connecting and resonating with energy and information vibrating throughout the cosmological grid of the torus doughnut.

The Eternal Moment

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The Eternal Moment

On the longest night of the year, the tribe gathered for the Winter Solstice ceremony.  The Spice is very strong and it doesn’t take long before the doors of perception have opened before us. My ‘mission’ is to raise Babalon. My Babalon work will be like a prayer to raise her power and energy in Everywoman.

I believe that Babalon is Everywoman, but many women deny her existence, some are afraid of her, and some are so prudish they truly believe she’s an whore. I embrace my Babalon, she is integrated within me, she is part of me and always was. There was a time I didn’t know who she was or what is her name, so I called her “Everywoman”.

I’m Every Woman –  A Tribute to Whitney Houston 

“Whatever you want, whatever you need, anything you want done baby, I’ll do it naturally.”

The ritual and ceremonial music are vibrating in the air but for some strange reason I can’t get out of my head the 80s anthem song by Chaka Khan – “I’m every woman”.

I remember the first time I heard it, the Chaka Khan version, and how I thought to myself, what a great song, perfect for me. The song came out in 1978, I was only 10 years old.

In the 90s Whitney Houston took Chaka Khan’s song and made it into an even bigger anthem, a classic that will never go out of fashion, a good party will always have this anthem at the peak of the night.  I was a party girl back then, The Ministry of Sound and The Zap Club, were like my second homes. One night at the club, I recall thinking to myself; if “God is a DJ”, “Everywoman ” must be his wife! I didn’t know anything about Babalon or the Scarlet Woman at that time, but an affinity with Everywoman was always part of me.

Whitney Houston was born with the touch of the Red Goddess, she was beautiful, talented and charismatic. It didn’t take long before she became world-famous, she was, and still is, the most-awarded female artist, and remains one of the best–selling musicians of all time. Whitney Houston was a goddess, flying high and far, but she couldn’t handle the fire of the Red Goddess, and soon those flames consumed her. After over a decade of meteoric success, she allowed her demons to take over, and she burnt out.

So I toast the first cup of Spice to you Whitney, and to Everywoman out there.

Here She Comes

My mind is racing. I really don’t understand where did all this stuff come from? I’m here at the ceremony and all I can hear is these 80s–90s club anthems playing in my head, and think of Whitney Houston. But then something at the corner of my eye catches my attention. I’m looking but not too sure what I am seeing. It’s a crack in space/time, like in the Dr Who episode “The Crack in the Wall”.  I knew it was her on the other side. I call her, come, enter, my beautiful goddess. Flames burst out of the crack, it can only be her, and there she is – Babalon! 

She is shining like the sun at sunrise, and the only thing on my mind is the question – Who swallowed the sun? Now as I write it down, it’s a bit obvious, don’t you think? But at the time I just couldn’t see it. 

The Library of Babel

As soon as she enters, I know – Babalon is the librarian of the Library of Babel. I am very pleased with myself and move on to other things. The goddess NewMedia is here too, and she is loading me with information, I need to write all this stuff down, I need to remember it all. I see the connections in everything I do, like synapses that pass electrical surges through a great spider’s web, or was it the WorldWideWeb? Marketing, advertising, books, writing, writing, writing, writing, writing … attention, attention! The system is overloaded. I’m stuck in a loop, thank god it’s time for the second cup.

Shiva is serving the second round of Spice. He has a special gift, he is a master of blessing the Spice, and this time he adds a special boon, a magickal journey.  As soon as I drink the second cup of Spice I’m back at the library of Babel. I’m lost in a maze, it’s HER maze, it’s HER LIBRARY! She is not the librarian at all,  it’s her library! At the very same moment, I notice a little path that leads to a garden.

The Garden of The Forking Paths 

The garden is strange, if anything, it looks like another maze, like the library. It’s kind of grey and dusty. I go down the path, thinking to myself “So who swallowed the sun?” At that time I didn’t have a clue. Then another thought crosses my mind – why is this garden so “forked”? A garden should be light and green, soft and gentle, that word, Gentle, made me stop for a moment, and I rethink it all again.  Why is the garden so forked? A garden should be light and green and soft, like The Garden of Eden. The word EDEN in Hebrew means – Gentleness = עדן = EDEN. The path I chose in The Garden of The Forking Paths leads to The Garden of Eden!

This realization made me stop for a moment. I looked at the 9th Gate card that I had brought with me. In the card, which I painted a few days earlier, behind Babalon is the Ninth gate illuminated with the sun’s rays. I look at the card for a while, and as soon as I put it back in my bag, I’m back in The Library of Babel. I look around me, books are floating in the air, staircases spiralling in all directions like some weird Michael Escher picture. Then BANG! The Ninth Gate materializes in front of me in all its glory, and at the same time, the shocking realization; SHE IS THE LIBRARY, SHE IS THE LIBRARY.  Another crack appears in space/time. The room is spinning, thunder and lightning, a cacophony of strange and very loud noises. The library has exploded and I’m being sucked into a black hole, what remains of it is spinning around me; books, staircases, labyrinths, forking paths, gardens, all in a mad and chaotic dance, spiralling towards the black hole.

I’m going mad, am I going mad? I know I must look into the crack that grows with each moment, I know who’s coming, but I dare not look. I go down on my knees and try to pray. But only one word comes out of my mouth:

Baphomet 

I forgot all the words to the prayer. I can hardly find my voice, all  that comes out is a faint mumbling of just one word, the one that makes sense:

Baphomet

Baphomet

Baphomet

Each time I repeat this word, things get clearer.

Baphomet. 

The room has stopped spinning.

Baphomet.

I can breathe again.

Baphomet. 

The books and the staircases are still spiralling around me but in very slow motion.

Baphomet.

Quiet. 

Everything has stopped as it is, books and staircases frozen in a mid-spiral in the air. I can hear the beautiful ancient mantra, the sound of the sea, and waves on a breezy sunny day, and I remember.

“I believe in one secret and ineffable LORD; and in one star in the company of Stars of whose fire we are created, and to which we shall return; and in one Father of Life, Mystery of Mystery, in His name CHAOS, the sole viceregent of the Sun upon the Earth; and in one Air the nourisher of all that breathes.                                                      And I believe in one Earth, the Mother of us all, and in one Womb wherein all men are begotten, and wherein they shall rest, Mystery of Mystery, in Her name BABALON.    And I believe in the Serpent and the Lion, Mystery of Mystery, in His name BAPHOMET.”

At this moment the beautiful shamaness comes and crashes on the mattress next to me, she knows nothing of Baphomet, but she understands Chaos. Together we are experiencing The Eternal Moment, we both know that the only time is now, and this now is for eternity. I hug her, whispering in her ear “Open your eyes, and call Hir, Baphomet, sHe is already here” She does and she sees what I see. 

And I believe in the Serpent and the Lion, Mystery of Mystery, in His name BAPHOMET.”

The tribes of the Spice are the tribes of the serpent and the lion (well, the Jaguar really…) Some follow the serpent, some follow the Jaguar, and all drink the same Spice, both tribes share similar ceremonies but different rituals.  Baphomet walks among our tribes naturally – which takes me back to the beginning of the journey when I heard Whitney Houston singing in my head the lines “Whatever you want, whatever you need, anything you want done baby, I’ll do it naturally”…  Sooo Baphomet…

In the Thoth Tarot, the card Lust, ‘appears the legend of the woman and the lion, or rather lion–serpent’ (The Book of Thoth). Another realization of eternal moment, Babalon rides Baphomet just like the tantric Kali rides Shiva.

“And I believe in the Serpent and the Lion, Mystery of Mystery, in His name BAPHOMET.”

Baphomet is the serpent and the lion, Mystery of mystery; the Fifth Head of the Serpent is The Raging Lion!

“The Desire and aspiration of the highest, most spiritual spark of your consciousness is to clothe itself in flesh and personality and to Come Into Being here and now. The purpose of Initiation is not to swap one for the other: it is to open the eyes of both, perceive what is Real, and empower the entire Self to its maximum potential…” (Michael Kelly, Dragonscales)

“The Fifth Head, that of the Raging Lion, is one specifically focused upon Desire, upon passion.” (Michael Kelly, Dragonscales)

With all this in mind, I hear the call for the third cup.

The Third Cup

The third cup is a meditation journey on the sounds and vibrations our Music Master has prepared for us.

The Music Master and I go back a long way. He was there the first time I took the Spice. He taught me how to listen to the vibrations and how to see with my ears. His journeys are my favourite part of these ceremonies, and after a night of illuminated Chaos, I am looking forward to lying down and chilling out on his magickal carpet.  The third cup is the cup of the Shamaness. I love this woman with all my heart. We look at each other and smile. I say: “Only a little cup for me this time”, she looks at me, smiles back and pours the Spice, a full cup… I drink the blood of the dragon and lie back on the cushions and fly.

The Seven Jewels of the Red Goddess

In the myth of Inanna she descends into the underworld, and meets the guardians of the seven gates, who will not let her pass through unless she leaves one of her jewels in each gate, only then can she proceed into the underworld.

The Seven Jewels are:

  1. The Great Crown
  1. The Wand of Lapis Lazuli
  1. The Jewel Around Her Neck
  1. The Jewel On Her Breast
  1. The Belt of Jewels Around Her Hips
  1. The Jewels Around Her Wrists and Ankles
  1. The Jewelled Robes

In his book Dragonscales, Michael Kelly asks what these seven jewels are. On page 125 of Dragonscales, he writes:  “As an exercise for further thought and meditation, I would like to throw out the suggestion that the seven jewels of Ishtar are resonant with the Seven Heads of Apep, but in reverse order, with the Jewelled Robes having an affinity with the Head of the Scorpion and the Great Crown having an affinity with the Head of the Typhon. This affinity and this inversion of ordering may be suggestive of one of the secret links between the Lady and the Serpent.  Muse upon it…”

I’m flying the magickal journey the Music Master takes us on and musing upon Michael’s riddle. It doesn’t take long and I’m back again at The Garden of the Forking Paths. Now there are new paths ahead of me, and I don’t know which one to follow.  There’s a tiny voice in the back of my mind that whispers “Follow Me”… so I follow it down a very narrow and ancient path.                                                                                                               

I love the author Tom Robbins. Back in the 90s, I read quite a few of his books which probably helped a lot to shape the way I think and perceive things. There is something in the myth of Ishtar’s seven jewels that reminds me of something he wrote, but what was it??

The song about Miriam the Prophetess is playing and I remember. In his book ‘Skinny Legs and All’  Tom Robbins writes the story of Salome and The Dance of The Seven Veils. The myth of the Seven Veils Dance and the myth of The Seven Jewels probably is based on the same myth of Inanna/Ishtar. In the original dance of The Seven Veils, those veils come off in the same order as the seven Jewels:

  1. The Veil Around Her Face
  2. The Veil around The Shoulders                                                   
  3. The Veil Around Her Neck                                                                  4.
  4. The Veil On Her Breast
  5. The Veil Around Her Hips
  6. The Veil Around Her Wrists and Ankle
  7. The Veil Around Her Legs

In the book Skinny Legs and All, Tom Robbins actually does reverse the order in which the veils are coming off Salome:

I’ll try to explain:

The First Veil to come off is the veil around her legs, ‘The Jewelled Robes’, think again what the Jewelled robes might mean… she is dancing and her most precious jewel is unveiled. “Because Veils of ignorance, disinformation, and illusion separate us from that which is imperative to our understanding of our evolutionary journey… The first of those veils conceal the repression of the Goddess, masks the sexual face of the planet…” By taking her Jewelled Robes off first, our Red Goddess has awakened the Serpent, the Typhon, the Kundalini.  So, our  Salome is dancing and the veils of illusions keep coming off, one by one, unveiling and, abandoning old patterns such as blindness to the wonders of nature, politics, religion, money, death, and time.

The Seventh Veil:  The Veil around Her Face – The Great Crown – The Head of The Scorpion;

“The illusion of the Seventh Veil was the illusion that you could get somebody else to do it for you. To hang on your cross.  Everybody had to take control of their own life, define their own death, and construct their own salvation. And when you finished, you didn’t call the Messiah. He’d call you.” (Skinny Legs and All)

This is all very much in the spirit of the Scorpion Head…

For me the theories of Tom Robbins always make sense. And now it’s nearly the end of the journey and the sun is going to rise any minute. I can see that at the end of the path I’m journeying, there’s another path to follow (it is the garden of the forking paths after all) but I’m too tired now, maybe next time…

The Great Crown – The Head of The Typhon – Spirituality and Awakening.  What a Night!

Here Comes The Sun.

“Whatever you want, whatever you need, anything you want done baby, I’ll do it naturally”

IO BAPHOMET