Archive for Spirits

Samhain Blessings: Success in the Black Degree

Posted in Necromancy, Paganism, Stellar Gnosis, The Path of Flames with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on November 3, 2019 by Sypheara

A very quick and short entry from myself, just to wish everyone a good Samhain period – the day itself might have passed, but here we will be extending workings well up to the 11th (and likely a few days beyond!). This includes that nice little working on the coast with Leviathan, which i’m expecting will be carried out in lovely freezing and raining conditions. A pretty usual state of affairs in this rather bleak but beautiful place. The plan is to carry that out sometime in the next two weeks.

To update on the former post – it is with great relish I can report that the initiation of the first candidate of the inner temple here went extremely well. Lucifer was impressed with the gifts offered and the faith in which the ordeal was faced and past. As such, the groundwork for the Stellar Temple I want to build metaphorically and literally in the years to come, is properly started. It will take several years minimum before the praxis is in place, probably longer before I can even consider securing a physical temple site due to the time and monetary costs involved. So a very long term project to make explicitly clear, but one I look forward to building in partnership with the new apprentice, Hecate and their own path willing.

Hernes Oak From The Merry Wives Of Windsor, V, V Herne’s

Outside of this some strong possession work with Hecate commenced last night on the 1st to celebrate both the blessed, as well the dark and forgotten dead.

This group working was led by a good friend of mine, who has many years working with our Goddess. She doesn’t work in Trident Witchcraft but in another strain of Hekatian Witchcraft, but the energies raised are extremely similar for obvious reasons. Use of Ophidian speech allowed for the spirits we intended to contact to raise powerfully but also safely into the ritual space. Particular attention was given to those accused of being witches in the past, especially in regards to a particular local group which were accused and hanged based on absolutely marginal shreds of evidence in the 17th Century. Only three of these individuals could have been referred to as witches, the rest included a businessman and at least one, ironically, pious Christian.  Their murder has left them in a state of limbo, not helped by years of mundane interference at their unmarked burial site. To be able to give them some solace, by sharing offering and remembering the story of their heinous murder, feels like at least an attempt to address a powerful and long standing injustice. Other personal contact with the dead was made, but these experiences remain solely for the group attending and will not be shared here as is proper.

Overall it was a powerful rite to share with others, and culminated for me in an almost full drawing in of the black goddess which i won’t readily forget. Whilst these are common for me with Lucifer, they are much more uncommon with the dark mother to that full bodied extent, and are thus enjoyed thoroughly when experienced.

With that said, back to it, I hope its been a great time for everyone, and many blessings in your works ahead.

Ave the Blessed Dead,
On these dark Samhain nights,
Those souls who have come before,
Who light the way with their torches,
We give to you our praise and love,
In the name of the Dark Mother,

And with heartfelt wishes,
Peace to the Dark Dead,
Those lost and forlorn,
Lie forgotten no more
Be fulfilled and at rest,
Sated and Soothed,
In the Black Queens Arms
~S~

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October and the Hunters Moon: Ecstatic Rites

Posted in Occultism, Paganism, The Path of Flames with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 28, 2018 by Sypheara

Hello all, I hope that October has been treating you extremely well. The energy of the last month at least in good old Britannia, has been building to a crescendo as we go towards our beloved Samhain.

The energy that has been permeating the air here became extremely powerful at the height of the Hunters Moon, to the point it was almost thick and could be tasted even outside of ritual. The energy was sufficient to turn several areas of the local area very thin as far as the veil is concerned. At one particular spot, the energy grew so thick I felt I needed to work with it – the spirit of the place seemed oddly demanding but also welcoming.

I took a small stone, and alternated a simple beat on a nearby piece of metal, similar to that of a heartbeat. One loud, one subtle, matching it to my own pulse as best as could be felt. Over time, i quickened this beat, again mirroring the internal quickening, thus bringing my own bio rhythm into tune with that of the energy of place. At the crescendo i could feel the merging of my blood with that of the ‘blood’ of the place, the earthy powerful feeling of copper filling the mouth, that taste of primal energy. At its peak, I felt the energy release along the spine, and abruptly everything stopped. In the still air, everything went quiet, and the wind seemed to murmur in approval at the stirring communion given. Leaves rustled past and then fell silently to the ground and all went still.

This is but a small example of an ecstatic experience. In the west, we have become overly used to working in eastern ways – with systems of meditation taught to us with the aim of quietening our minds. These, I will not argue against as having innate value, and it is no wonder they were adapted for use, entering our collective skillset. Many of them have been used highly successfully in our modern practice – and many of them have similar if not identical analogues in older western traditions. However I see in certain areas of the Craft (not all, some) that some of the importance around rites of ecstatic communion have been lost – especially when it comes to possession work. This seems strange when you consider that many witchcraft traditions stress ecstatic work – are even founded upon it – but are somehow still seemingly afraid of the power that can be unleashed. This is maybe understandable, but it is something that needs to be worked through in my eyes to properly inflame the craft for future generations.

‘Ask the Oak’ by Adam Oehlers

This is mainly aimed at those working within Hecates Primal Current that are reading this, but this may also be of use to others out there – you should incorporate where possible the ecstatic rites into your work. How this is done is difficult to teach or even to convey in some respects. How it can be done is numerous – one good example would be when performing sexual magickal possession work within this current.  When done at a high level with the Gods and Spirits this is anything but a subdued, meditative experience – but one that rips through the entire body and delivers body shaking possessions that send energy pulsating along the spine. As such, restraint in these operations should be removed and the experience fully embraced – anything else results simply in half measures and results.

Again in general ritual, drumming, singing, chanting and dancing can all be used to intensify the energy of a rite – this is the perfect method for bringing in some very powerful spirits, losing oneself in the experience and truly embracing the being called in. As long as Hecates ever watchful eye and protection has been invoked. and the practitioner is in the correct space, the result should be a positive one. With the dismissal of fear, this can be a profoundly progressive and literally transformative experience that can facilitate massive leaps on the theurgic path. It must be adapted to fit the situation, it is not something that can be replicated from reciting cold hard text from any book. It is learned through experience, sometimes hard earned – do not believe the snake oils salesmen who will direct you away from this, telling you they alone hold the secrets. Secrets of course they will ever so divulge if you believe their comedic youtube promotionals and buy into their overpriced and frankly amateurish body of work that shows little understanding of the above.

Note although I previously used sexual magick as an example, ecstatic work does not need to be confined to such. Only people who lack imagination or who are after something would say so (if its related to paired work). None of the above methods (drumming, singing, chanting, dancing) need to possess a sexual element – they just need to harmonise with the particular spirit being worked with. Similar to how in physics, waves that in phase have an amplifying effect, the same is to be attempted using the ecstatic method.  As such, it is also usually specific to each individual spirit as to what works best in your relationship with them when bringing them into the flesh.

Many have been in contact with me and told me they have problem with possession work – hence the topic of this post. Talking to them I realise they are only approaching its performance from meditative, contemplative angles. This has its place in more subtle forms of possession, in preparation before rites, and in other forms of magickal work but in my experience (and certainly, it is dependent on the individual and their innate gifts) the strongest forms of possession are experienced using ecstatic methods. As we go towards Samhain, I recommend people change to more ecstatic means to take their possession work to the next level if they are having difficulties working with spirit. I wish it was something I could give more concrete guidance on, but the exact method differs wildly from individual to individual. The only universal tip I can settle on is aim to synchronise your own innate biorhythms, your ceremonial actions, and the energies of the possessing spirit into harmony – in this way everything flows as one – all you need to do from then on is grab hold of the surging wave, and ride it to its natural completion.

Art by Valin Mattheis

For those who are feeling a little more comfortable, i’d suggest if you have the opportunity you take it to the next level and push past your own comfort zone. Leave your usual working space and go into the wilds away from human contact, ensuring of course proper preparation to stay safe. You don’t need to go overly far – the most startlingly beautiful and powerful places are usually within reach, even for those of us with limited transport options with a bit of effort. If you find a site that feels good for communion after physical and spiritual considerations have been taken into account, you can perform the ecstatic rites. These should always be conducted from within a suitably cast circle (even if that is a quick cast than something fully ceremonial). The goal being to learn about that space, its genius locii, and begin building powerful relationship. Not just this, but also simply for the sheer joy of exercising your divine right to embrace your existence upon this plane and others. In these workings the ways to rehallow the Earth soul are revealed and worked – real change can be made here at the liminal crossing points where long forgotten spirits await. Not all are friendly, or easy to work with, but all will listen to a sincere call of one of Hecates kin. From there it is up to you. Not all can do or are suited to thiswork and that is perfectly fine. But for those who are, I can tell you its a worthwhile experience.

With the above relayed, I want to quickly say I hope to do a few more posts over the Samhain period, keeping them relatively short  but detailing select things. The next post I want to be about Lucifers burning stellar energies, and how that interplays with Hecates, in a way that is somewhat channelled if possible at the time. It is difficult to relate it text but I will do my best to bring it forth for (more likely on!) our hallowed date.

May the light of the Goddess guide you,
On the Ecstatic Paths the lead to Her Throne,
And Into the Arms of Her and her Kin

Ave Hecate,
~S~

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Turning over the Wrong Rock : An Encounter with Chimera

Posted in Occultism, The Path of Flames with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on March 29, 2018 by Sypheara

This is a post that i’ve been mulling over making, as it pertains to a developing situation within my own work that has come as both a surprise and tangent to the where i’ve been progressing. I’ve come to conclude that the resultant story around this however would serve to illustrate the rich otherworld one can encounter when doing this work as well as again, the danger that it inevitably brings. For working witchcraft brings all sorts of attention – both good, and bad.

Those who have read my previous posts will remember me describing the mirror world – that strange place that for me is the shamanic ‘place apart’, the crossroads between the ascent, or descent, of the trees. Somewhere the world soul is immediately manifest, and something that I feel the term ‘astral’ is not specific enough to describe.

Recent incursions into this place have been frequent, even when unsought for, in dream states as I have worked mostly passively to integrate the energies unleashed from the first part of the work with Lucifers Stellar Gate. Many have been the usual shamanic adventures, with exploration and integration as a key theme but little actually in the way of danger.

However one recent encounter in this place has driven home to me how risky this place can legitimately be, as well as how many things can hide in both plain sight both here and on the physical until they make their ‘move’.

For weeks leading up to the following ‘incident’, all was not well. Although moving into a new house several months ago, and the place having an amazing atmosphere, occasionally something would feel amiss. It felt as if a presence, alien to the environment,was in the house. It felt incredibly black, oppressive, and ancient. Some nights it felt as if it was stalking the place – always remaining just out of sight, but always ever present on the boundaries of full awareness when it made its appearance. At times it became an almost physical thing – one felt that, going into certain rooms, one would be confronted with something Else, in full manifestation, ready to commence an assault.

Make Lovecraft, Not War, by Daniel Bystedt

All initial attempts to discern what this thing was failed, as if it was shielding itself. Part of me wondered if this entity was perhaps an entity sent by the Gods to test, or to teach, but something about it felt entirely off.  One night in particular was bad, where the power of this thing in one of its visits was so crushingly black, one was almost too terrified to even breathe as the level of threat this entity was emanating was so utterly powerful and pervasive.

On a different night it all came to a head. I had gone to sleep, and had entered the Mirror World as usual. Whilst attempting to navigate after an extensive exploration session, I realised I had strangely become lost. One of the defining characteristics of this plane, being a mirror of the world soul, is that it has taken on fragments of our own, industrialised world such has been our immense impact upon it. As such, I had been attempting to move around using a train network – to navigate from one, hollow city to another, in an attempt to retrace my steps and return to the physical plane.

However, regardless of what I tried I always either ended up in the same spot, or slightly further away from my intended destination. No amount of focused will, or other tricks, could seemingly get me back on the path. It became obvious that someone, or rather something, was interfering.

Resolving to try something novel, I decided that moving towards the determined direction of the interference thus  going with the flow and confronting whatever it is, would be the quickest way to get ‘out’ and back.

In doing so, I boarded a train that took me away from the Hollow Cities. It chugged its way along the track painfully slowly, and my fellow passengers, various strange humanoids merged with various animal forms, paid little attention to my presence. Tarmac turn to scrubby, industrial wasteland, which in turn gave way to grassy plain. After what seemed like a forever, but was likely a very short time considering the amount of time distortion experienced in this place, the train entered a woodland area which slowly gave way to a boggy, misty, marsh. The train got slower and slower, and I realised it was sinking into the mire. Nobody seemed bothered as the train melted away into the murky water, leaving me alone knee deep and without a clear idea as to where I was.

Train tracks by Calimero

Instinctively I tried to follow the track, but soon the fog and mist got thicker, until it was almost like moving through a liquid. Any sight of the track was soon lost, and I became distinctly aware I was not alone. That same, oppressive feeling, felt in the physical world, returned, and it was located somewhere up ahead.

Slowly, and snakelike, spectral hands slithered out of fog into view. The pale skin was corpse like, and the fingers long and bony ending with long, protruding nails. Behind them long arms, bereft of a body, trailed out of a view. They came towards me slowly, before enveloping my form and sliding, sickly sensual, along my flesh.

I admit, i initially tried to deny the sense of danger. Firstly I called out, asking if it was a dream daemon that I work with. No reply came. I asked if it was another spirit i often work with, again in vain, however this time I did get a reply. A hollow, deep and guttural, almost insect like laugh emanated in front of me and the fog began to part.

There I saw a horrific monster. On the ends of these arms was something almost indescribable – the Thing seemed to be like a mass of arterial matter – the main trunk made of our two, thick tendrils which seemingly stood upon writhing mass of maggot like appendages, and its ‘head’ appeared like a fleshy venus fly trap. Out of this a single eye upon a long, sinuous tongue like protrusion observed me coldly. Three cancerous growths, like horns, protruded from it, weeping puss. The arms searching outwards from its central mass – looking like they had been spliced or glued onto the main body which was an entirely direct colour and texture; The texture and colour of inflamed and infectious flesh.

With a horrific voice that sounded like thousands of hard body insects being diced in a blender, mixed with shards of broken glass, this creature only said one thing to me which I barely recall, perhaps incorrectly.

‘NO, I  AM DEATH, IN LIFE, IN RESURRECTION’

With this, a shockwave of black, suffocating malefic energy flowed outwards from it and over my own form. I cannot really explain what happened next except to say it happened intrinsically. Staring the creature down, I reached inside my own travelling body, which at this point was a mere shadow copy of my physical one, and pulled out something from within. This was a bronze framed, transparent pyramid in which a small, orange bird slept. This pyramid radiated such a pure, solar fire that I immediately recognised as Lucifers, and where it touched, the searching shadows were unable to penetrate.

I placed the pyramid in between me and the creature and the bird, within stirred. I can see it clearly now remembering this, and marvel at the long, magnificent tail feathers – a stunning phoenix if there ever was one. I remember I lifted it the pyramid high, and with clear voice, I called upon my attacker to give its name and submit. It refused, attempting to again intensify its current. It was then than I called upon all the names of the Power of Lucifer with his synchronomicon. This appeared to work, as the light around me roared with brilliance and I was surrounded by a blazing fire of the most intense of energies. The malefic wave was stopped dead in its tracks, inverting upon itself as if scoured away. This light poured forth over the thing before me, which writhed as if it was being squashed under some immense weight bearing down upon it. It was then I realised i was screaming, and that the phoenix and monster were also howling with the intense amount of energy flowing through us. The word that was formed by this crescendo and energy was the creatures true name.

Phoenix, Unknown

With that I woke up with a start, the link severed, rolling out of bed onto the floor with a sharp start and full of empyrean energy of the most brilliant sort. The whole physical seemed to glow with colour as I managed to re-orientate myself back fully with my physical flesh. A sigil was overlain on my vision, and I committed it immediately to record along with the received name, knowing how important they would be to retain a handle on the situation.

This afterglow didn’t subside for several days after this encounter. With the name and sigil of the offending spirit now mine, the power of it to come and go as it pleased seemed incredibly dulled. Whilst it made an appearance once or twice near the vicinity of the work, it was almost difficult to identify due to the much reduced presence it seemingly had upon its surroundings, almost as if it, now, was terrified of making its full presence known in case ‘consequences’ were brought upon it.

For a brief time it radiated its presence from the background when it could. Its energy added to the general malefic air at the time, as my region was gridlocked by unusually heavy snowfall from blackened skies. This malefic energy seeped into my environment – my house suffered damage, and one of my incarnate familiars died choking in my arms days after. This was a storm that just had to be weathered – the thing had obviously chosen this time to make its full power felt, when my guard was relatively down, and had failed in its attack. The energy given by Lucifer, as well as a bit of mental centring, was enough to get through this period albeit not unscarred as my mental state still is returning to background levels of normality.

Over time, gnosis has been received as to the nature of the entity. It is old, very old, and was likely something (or someone) incarnate. The reason for its appearance, and the reason i have categorised it as chimera, is because it incorporates victims subtle bodies into itself as part of its feeding process. Therefore it is not a singular entity but more a parasitic puppet master, breaking down its victims slowly over time whilst putting them to sufficient ‘use’ via their component parts.

I have decided that this entity will be bound to the temple space, and used to guard the indoor temple and land here. In future, in may be moved to an outdoor temple space to protect that area. I feel unsafe in letting it roam ‘free’ far from me, due to the severe risk it poses to others. But at the same time, if it is to be kept close, it must be controlled sensibly and put to constructive use.

More than the above has been given or clarified but I do not feel prudent to share it, nor the method for its binding which I am still exploring. I feel that such entities pose a legitimate threat to those that run into them and share the above to detail an encounter with something dangerous as both an interesting story, and a warning for those who travel in this realm to watch themselves and take adequate precautions. Sensible precautions would be strengthening the subtle bodies via sexual possession with the Witch Gods, as well as regular devotionals, which provide a good level of conditioning.

May the Witchgods bless and protect those of you who journey forth into these realms, and if all else fails, may Hecates torches and Lucifers Phoenix show you the way back unscathed.

Ave Lucifer,
Lord of Light,
Beautiful Phoenix King,
Through whose Power
All Shell and Parasites
Cower,
~S~

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Stones of Power: Hidden Treasures

Posted in Occultism, Paganism, The Path of Flames with tags , , , , , , , , , , , on February 9, 2018 by Sypheara

The start of 2018 has been a productive, if difficult month for me and my practice. The Lord of the Dark Star ritual went well, for myself and others, but practically all the gnosis and experiences granted were deeply personal. As such, what can be shared is very little. However it does demonstrate that despite being aloof, if searched for correctly and intensely, he will answer and show the way. I see this as a great sign – the unfurling of the Stellar Gnosis thus continues!

I am still working on my own documents here, which need to be completed, before the next work with Surgat can truly commence. That hasn’t stopped the energy continuing to rise, sometimes to an unbearable level as almost nothing I do seems to quieten it. Balancing the subtle bodies helps, but this is something im slowly beginning to realise I have to let naturally peak – as such, I believe im in for a hell of a ride. The body and mind feel exhausted, but the spirit and the energy that comes through is such a powerful, vital lifeforce everything seems to glow in newfound colour.

January as a whole has been difficult – the local group I work within has had organisational issues, which has left me in charge of both leading it as well as writing up the formal rules and documentation. In addition, one treasured incarnate familiar died suddenly, albeit with some warning as his health had been deteriorating for some time. This necessitated additional workings – to ensure that his soul upon leaving his body was correctly orientated, and a link with the Dead fetishes created successfully.

Despite the above, there are numerous topics floating around in my head I wanted to make a few posts on.

One of them is the importance of natural, found objects. In my work, these have often proved to be the most powerful of talismans. This could prove the same for you – if you know where to look, and how to approach their collection.

I often see people getting excited over mass produced, altar items, and looking at one recent object I’ve been working with again, it seems quite funny in comparison! This object is nothing more than a stone I collected from the shores of the Adriatic sea. But what an object it is. To illustrate, I’ll lay out the entirety of the tale.

Holy Stone, Photographer unknown

Me and my partner were out swimming there whilst on our vacation, when we felt a very strong draw towards a small cave. It was only shallow, and didn’t seem like it went far back at all into the cliff face. Deciding to investigate, we decided to take a look. As we entered, crabs scuttled away from us, seemingly offended we had intruded into their space. Slightly tired after our swim, but still enjoying the adrenaline, I myself wasn’t paying much attention really. As I made to turn back, happy with our small adventure, I was called over to inspect a strange, flat stone that was inset into the cave wall. It was small, almost perfectly flat, and metamorphic in nature. A small band of quartz or other similar material seemed to cut through it. We pulled it free and examined it closely.

Holding it, it emanated quite a strong, powerful energy, that seemed to call out quite insistently. Not being familiar with the area, I was at first cautious about taking it with us. Not knowing the spirits of the place, it makes it difficult to judge when to accept something that’s obviously been brought to your or others attention.  However I decided, with my gut feeling, to go for it. It felt extremely smooth as I tumbled it in my hands. The first impression I got was like falling through dark, dark water. It was not a sudden onrush of power, but it felt like being dragged down and down, somewhere far below. It didn’t feel threatening, more impressive – but like any strong current, it was a little disconcerting.

As such, we took it back to the place we were staying. I promptly placed it on my bedside table, and forgot all about it.

That night, I had a very strong, powerful experience.  Falling asleep, I entered a discernible period of astral travel, floating just outside of my body. This was not at my own will – it felt almost as if I had been forcibly evoked into this state! I could immediately feel a strong and powerful presence. Scenes of the sea, and of some strange silver serpent like entity flashed before my eyes and I soon found myself under a perceived malefic attack. I could see in the astral, dark moving clouds swirling around me – taking on the appearance of predator forms, equipped with teeth! Further flashes came of this winged snake, viciously coming upon me. The attack slowly waned, and I saw dark figures circling around me. The attack suddenly renewed with increased ferocity. Terrified whatever this was would be more than capable of breaking my auric shielding, I closed my eyes and called upon Hecate.

I was bathed in a green-blue light almost immediately. This energy was so great that it felt like suddenly being plunged into almost boiling water. Incredible golds snaked across my vision, forming three crossed tridents. All sense of fear slipped away as I floated embraced in Hecates pure stellar energy on all sides.

I remember asking for her protection, to stop this supposed attack. As I did, I was returned to the room whereupon the ‘attack’ had ceased. The black cloud moved into my body and a voice of a male nature resonated throughout my being.

‘The Test Is Passed’.

The entity appeared in flashes as a large hooded ‘man’… a single word resonated from its mouth as it gave its name, a name that must remain secret.

It’s eyes, reptilian in nature, were like deep pools of ever changing gold, blue and green colour. Atop its head, protruding from its robe, were two straight ‘horns’ made up of some glowing opalescent material.

The image of the entity gave way as I could feel myself being pulled through time and space. The feeling was akin to that of both falling, as well as being sucked through an aperture at the same time. I saw the stone, glowing powerfully blue, against a dark background. I allowed myself to be drawn through and into it, and fell through a streaming tunnel of blue light.

I suddenly felt cold rock on my bare feet, and a warm, but refreshing ocean breeze was washing over me. In front of me I could now see that I was standing in a different cave, two entrances directly in front of me opening onto a wide, ocean expanse separated by as single, brown stone column that could have been either natural or artificial. I could tell by the perspective of the ocean we were extremely high up. Directly in front of me, briefly, flashed a strange symbol, like a triangle containing the letter V, with a strike line running through it. This faded, and immediately I became aware of three figures standing around a stone font, which contained crystal clear water. The figures were clad in full length hooded robes of some light material, each detailed with vine like patterns. Each of the figures wore a distinct colour : Gold, Blue, and Green. Each looked close to human, but also in some way disturbingly otherworldly and unheimlich.  Their shadowed faces were contrasted with reptilian eyes of ever changing colour, similar to the previous entity and they possessed the same kind of horns.

Two turned to face the other ‘entrances’ to this space. Left was taken by blue, right by green. Gold turned towards me, and all raised their hands. A powerful golden glow overwhelmed me and I felt powerful energy being radiated out towards, over and into the oceans. This energy was immense and it surrounded me utterly – it was incredibly primal and powerful, almost uncontrollably invigorating in nature.

I remember being almost zapped back into travelling form, just on the boundaries of my body. Reintegrating this and actually waking up was an almost painful experience – i felt distinctly groggy. This was unusual, for that vacation for all other intents and purposes i slept deeply and woke refreshed every other day.

Admirals Arch, Australia, Photographer unknown

This experience has taken some time to properly integrate. Even some 15 odd months later I am still working out just what was actually shown to me. I believe that this entity that visited me is linked to the Guardian which stands sentry to the Stellar Gate of the Ivory Spider, but I have yet to ascertain this via ritual. As to the other, three entities, I believe these to be spirits of the mighty dead, who once perhaps worshipped this entity, maybe even Atlantean in nature. This leads me to believe that the initial entity is much more than a ‘bit’ player in this process. However I have had no direct encounter with this form of this entity since.

The stone has proved to be linked to this strange, stellar water element. Holding it allows for easy projecting down into the buried stellar network on the inner planes of the Earth, of which the Stellar Gate of the Ivory Spider makes up a central part.

Recently, my other half held the stone without this information, and was able to, without any training and just exposure to the energies contained within, project into part of this network without any assistance on my part. Without any leading, they relayed information matching almost exactly with the description of the tunnels – albeit the projection had taken them to a different location within the network.

No special technique was used to accomplish this. The stone was simply given to be held, as part of working on their natural gift for ‘sight’, whilst within the indoor temple space. The whole thing seems saturated with this powerfully ancient energy – how it obtained it is anyone’s guess, and I do not doubt that our experiences with it helped to seat and strengthen the power innately linked to by the stone itself even deeper within its material form.

So my advice would be: explore. Go out into the wild places and look at the world again with open eyes. Although there is certainly no guarantee of success, or even safety for that matter, true gems can be found in the unlikeliest of places. You likely won’t get that from buying something that has no real, innate power. Or worse, an item that has been collected or cared for incorrectly, and thus built up disruptive and harmful energy.

Ave the Stellar Gods,
Who grant the Power of Liquid Starfire,
Burning Candles of Infinite Splendour
Spiralling through Her Sprawling Black
Spirits From which all was Made,
And to Which All Will Return,

Ave Hecate,
Queen of Hell, Heaven and Earth,
Through Which All Things are Made Possible.
~S~

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Dreaming Deeply: Spirits in Sleep

Posted in Occultism, Other, The Path of Flames with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 7, 2016 by Sypheara

Hello all,

I hope you are having a great start to the beginning of October.. with Samhain rapidly approaching i’m finding myself kicking it up a gear when it comes to preparations for the nights ahead.

However I wanted to post today on something interesting, mainly due to several recent experiences. These have been quite powerful, and useful for my spiritual growth and I feel sharing it could be useful for people.

Many people have experienced powerful, deep dreams that are stark in their lucidity. Many people, in these states, have often met entities of some description, that seem overly familiar as if they have been met before. They often give advice, teaching, or even gifts of power. On waking many people do not remember these encounters, or file them away at the back of their minds as unimportant.

Little do they realise that they might have met with a familiar or guiding spirit in the Oneiric Realms.  I feel this is a great shame as these experiences have a great capacity to bring insight, and healing, to those who experience, remember and integrate them. What follows is some examples of my own experiences and a small method to help cement work with these entities.

My own experience with this form of contact has been varied and extensive, and it is one of the primary ways in which I work. That said, two experiences stand out in my mind as being extremely important, one being a new occurrence, and the other one old.

One of the first experiences I have ever had was meeting a spirit within a dream forest. I can remember the sweet, smell of the cherry blossoms that seemed to glow a subtle, golden white light upon their darkened black twisted stems. A cracked stone path led straight through these trees towards an old, rustic house of an exotic design that defies description in text, as a light breeze seemed to swirl around me. The air was cool, and crisp, and there was hardly any sound as if the whole forest was holding its breath. further away I could see evergreens, interspersed with the cold icy blossom trees, and there was a feeling as if one had stepped into some surrealist picture. Far down the path i could see a figure, abnormally slim and tall, dressed entirely in red. Their eyes possessed a relaxing, warm orange colour, that gave off a feeling of both youth and age all at once. Long, black hair seemed to fall down over the figures shoulders, and it was sat as if relaxing and enjoying this strange, abnormal morning. I felt drawn towards this figure, and approached and welcomed it.

This encounter would be a highly enjoyable one. I talked for many hours with this entity, that who neither at the time give me its name nor identity. But it gave me a lot of advice, advice that would strengthen me for difficulties at that time I was facing in my mundane life. It wouldn’t be the first time I would run into this entity – over many weeks, months and years I have met it again several times.. and only within the last few have I identified it as my primary familiar.

dreamscapeDreamscape by Piofoks

A more recent example occurred several weeks ago. I met an entity in dream, one that at first was challenging, even hostile. This entity appeared with the same, strange dimensions of that of the primary familial, except it was clearly appearing as Female. This entity possessed solid black eyes, ivory skin, and long, snake like hair. Despite her stand offish nature, she radiated a warm, welcoming aura that drew me to persist in asking her assistance. Once I had correctly introduced myself, this entity mellowed and taught me over the course of several days how to internalise some of the energies released by opening Hecates Stellar Gate. In the Waking World, she sent visions that identified her as a spirit that resides in Malkuth/Nehemoth, the spheres that lie closest to our world and merge with it, and that she is associated with the energies of the moon. She seemed in some way linked to Nahemah, something I have still not had clarified. However this work left me feeling refreshed, calmed, as if some of the energy from those difficult workings had finally been integrated. She also made it clear that she had been sent for this task, and was a specific familiar or oneiric spirit that had almost complete mastery of these realms and would therefore be an excellent guardian from some of the more intense, disturbing apocalyptic dreams that are being caused by rising currents from the World Soul.

Looking back on the above, it is not a surprise that these entities that have guarding/teaching roles are more likely to contact us in times of stress, or challenge. They are often specifically sent to aid us on our path, usually after subconsciously being requested. Engaging with them leads to an overall bettering of the situation as we work with them to complete the challenges set before us.

Once contact has been made through chance encounter or after a request to Hecate has been sent in initial work, there is a trick that can help facilitate and grow the connection with your own personal dream familiars and spirits.  Firstly, you will need to acquire the spirits name, sigil or ideally both. Once once is given, the other is usually just a matter of conducting further work with the spirit until both are deemed ready to share.

Take one small piece of paper, or thin piece of wood, and ritually consecrate and prepare it as detailed in earlier workings in the resources section. For paper, this usually involves a libation element, and both are cleansed with consecrated water and incense smoke. Once the material is ready, mark in ink or engrave the name, sigil or ideally both onto one side. The second side, should have the Sigil of the Universal Gateway, as detailed in Queen of Hell and as shown below.

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The Universal Sigil of Gateways, as detailed in the book ‘Queen of Hell’

Once completed, a call is given to Hecate  to thank her for assisting the work, and she is asked to open the gateway to her realms for the spirit to come forth during your dreaming phases. As this personal call is spoken, the gateway sigil is blooded. Once done, the sigil and name of the spirit overleaf is also blooded, with an individual call to that spirit to come forth and meet you, work with you and teach you in dream.

Once the above is done, this artefact becomes empowered and a direct conduit to the spirit involved. When sleeping, it should be placed under a pillow, or failing that, the bed in as close a proximity as you as possible to help facilitate its effects. When not in use, in should reside in or around the altar and should be treated as all other empowered items.

This method has been and continues to be an effective, simple way of working with these entities revealed to me. Further offerings of blood increases the effect. This sigil has many interesting properties for devotees who make use of it, and the symbolism inherent within it should be self evident.

I wish everyone a great run up to Samhain, and I hope to have more to share near the end of this month, going into the next.

Ave Hecate,
~S~

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Of Temple Initiation and Screaming at the Moon

Posted in Occultism, Paganism, The Path of Flames with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 31, 2015 by Sypheara

It felt like a trip I had to make.

During personal workings at her altar, Hecate made it known that the invitation was open – and I felt strongly pulled to the idea of travelling to the temple where her currents have been successfully, powerfully and permanently rooted into Belials flesh.

It felt like the final seal on all of the dedications and initiatory workings. Hecate instructed that it would facilitate the removal of a certain blockage I had been facing – allowing the currents of all four Trident Gods to flow through and encompass my entire being –restructuring the soul; propelling me to a whole new level of work. The request was made to the Gatekeeper of Her Mother Temple to ensure that the initiation was appropriate and accepted. With confirmation from both Gatekeeper and Hecate, I made the necessary arrangements for this pilgrimage.

Three weeks ago, I found myself walking up steep, stone steps to the Temple of the Four Pillars itself, deep within the Spanish Mountains. Accompanied by the Gatekeeper, I was about to undergo the powerful initiation held within the heart of this sacred place.

The Temple of The Four Pillars of Fire is aptly named. A large stone circular structure – the womb of the Goddess – is surrounded by four smaller stone circles, one for each of the Trident Gods, which are sunken into the ground. Sigils of the Arte adorn the temple’s aging stone walls, as sacrificial bones hang from branches above the archways – the entrances to each Pillar of Flame.

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The Temple of Four Pillars of Fire

Due to the intensely personal nature of the rite, as well as ensuring the protection and due respect in regards to the Temple and its Gatekeeper, what can be shared is limited. Below I detail some of the ritual experience that occurred during this powerful initiation.

The rite began with entrance to the Womb of Hecate, facilitated through the western gate where bones hung low from the trees.

In the heart of the central vortex the Four Pillars of Fire were activated by its Gatekeeper, their powerful magical force swirling around temple circumference before entering the centre circle – the womb of Hecate.

With power vibrated through subtle and flesh incarnate bodies and blood offerings given upon temple seals, inner gateways were opened in the names of the Trident Gods, Demon Princes, Tassatowah and Temple Guardians. These beings did not just unite their power within the temple, but also within my own flesh and soul. The vortex quickened whilst we stood facing the Northern Wall of Belial, a stone face covered in his sigils, and the dominating form of the fetish lord, standing at the centre of the womb as its axis. It was here that the first pledges were made. As their power flowed into my being from each quadrant, oaths were taken to follow the Gods beyond the expiry of physical flesh.

I gave up my silver pentacle, an item of much sentimental value, tying it to the Fetish Lord as a gift. The Fetish Lord then became the focus of the rite, the possessed skull – dedicated as the Godhead of Lucifer – already bore offerings of my blood. When my ritual gift was placed upon the Fetish, the skull was again blooded.

At this point, kneeling before the Gods, sacrifice was given – the offering was made by the Gatekeeper. This sacred act of sacrifice granted to the Witch Gods sealed the pact, reifying their vast energy into my soul. The entire process intensified as the Gatekeeper drew the Mark of the Serpentine Trident upon my brow. As blood ran down my face, a crushing blackness flooded into my being. This was more powerful than anything I had ever previously experienced. The power rose rapidly, released from the sacrifice, into my being and up through the Fetish Lord. As the black energy transmuted within my being in a rapid alchemical process, I felt my soul energy becoming a pure stellar current – carried on the ascending spirit that was released from the sacrificial offering. A current of pure flame, ripped through my body – not pain but an intensely pleasurable feeling which filled my entire being with pure joy; an elation akin to the orgasm of the soul.

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Art by Nox Enamor

When this overwhelming energy eventually settled, yet another journey was undertaken to one of the Pillars of Flame, to call Hecate in Godform assumption. While full possession was not achieved, Hecate made her presence known in a flash of energy, soothing my simmering soul energy as further invocations were made. Upon completion, when it felt time to return to the womb of Hecate, I was presented with the sacrificial bone of Belial. I was then informed that this amulet would unlock pathways and Dragon Lines that led to the heart of the Earth.

From a seated position I blooded the bone and closed my eyes. My vision was filled with swirling reptilian eyes. Belial was immediately present. The eyes danced across my field of perception, turning, swirling, opening and blinking in rapid succession. Belial spoke, his voice clear and authoritative, giving direct and powerful messages. He asked why I resisted him. I replied that it was not intentional, and asked for his guidance on the path. He related that my destination was not, as was customary with some Primal Craft intiations, to be the Devil’s Throne. Now was not my time for that particular journey, instead I was instructed to follow Belial into the depths.

After being dragged through the largest of the reptilian eyes I found myself falling through dark tunnels which, spiralling downwards, eventually gave way to damp earth and stone cavern structures which opened into a large, black cave. A powerful light emanated from an opening in the roof, bathing everything in a brilliant, golden light.

A figure wearing armour and a sword, manifested before me. The entity wore a green cloak and hood, which obscured its face, and had two gigantic white feather wings protruding from its back. The being was authoritative but seemed benevolent. With his sword he opened or created a vortex. The ground fell away to reveal a dark lake. Light poured in from a collapsed ceiling, but the source was not sunlight. It felt like we were tens of kilometres below what could be described as the surface, that somehow the light was being generated by a type of photo-luminescence. Around the rim sat eight stone skulls, water poured from their mouths feeding the dark lake below.

dark-pool

Dark Lake – Photographer unknown

At the centre of the lake lay a circular stone platform, connected a far wall by a stone walk way where a huge gabbro door was inset into similarly dark walls. At this point my body seemed composed of solid white flame. A huge sigil adorned the door. The glyph vibrated powerfully. It was illuminated by green, blue and golden white energies like dancing flames. I reached out to touch the glyph, but as I did so, I heard Belial whisper something unintelligible, like snake speech, and the vision dissolved; returning me to the ordinary blackness of closed eyes. I immediately recorded the sigil from the doorway and, exhausted, thanked Belial for his guidance. The rite was closed in love and honour. An offering of brandy was left for the Gods as an additional token of respect, and then we headed down from the mountain.

Over the coming days Hecate, in possession work, revealed the purpose of the gateway sigil. Using formula given during initiation it was carved in wood and opened in blood, unlocking its seals and pathways for further exploration. This process releases a powerful Elemental Familiar.

In later work this gate was successful merged with the Stellar Glyph of Lucifer – granted unto all who place their names in Hecate’s Book of Souls during initiation at the Mother Temple. A second seal was given and the mysteries further revealed. More work is to be undertaken, this time on the full moon, to seat the stellar currents that also flow into through these chthonic paths revealed upon this ongoing journey.

Lunar_eclipse_April_15_2014_California_Alfredo_Garcia_Jr1

In Nomine Hecate,

~S~

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Awakening Clay: A Test

Posted in Occultism, Paganism with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 21, 2014 by Sypheara

The work on the essay/article continues, with feedback now being provided by the editor. The initial reaction was quite positive, and based on feedback by others, I am confident  that the article after some edits will be accepted. Work remains to be done to ensure it can be framed within the context of the overall anthology, and with not being aware of other submissions or what they bring, this probably means it needs more than a bit of refinement.

In other news, I have been writing up contact with the familiar, as well as other occurrences that have been happening in my home due increased contact with it and another spirit (see below) i was taking care of for several days. Hopefully this will make the doll ensoulment process easier, more successful, and worthy of a similar write up as my spirit box for the Mighty Dead. Ongoing house redecoration for the meantime means it is not possible to construct the level of permanent altar i want to yet, so this work is ideal for the inbetween time before that work can be begun in earnest.

To this end, recently an opportunity presented itself to work with a doll made out of clay and fabric, as well as do several crossroad workings. The doll in question caught my eye when browsing one of my favourite artists sites (links at bottom of post to her amazing work), and it seemed to exude a certain amount of intensity in its construction. Due to this coinciding with the other halves birthday, i decided to acquire the doll, and activate it to the best of my ability, raising it’s own awareness in ritual. The expected payment of this process by its spirit, its assigned mission to look over and guard the person she was being gifted to. This was far less intense a working than anticipated, as upon receiving the doll, it felt far more active than I had ever have anticipated. It had also already been named, receiving the name of Persephone by her maker.

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The doll prior to the empowerment ritual

The actual process was quite simple, with the same sigil work, and invocationary elements as used for my own workings with my own familiar and Hecate, Lucifer and Belial. Their sigils were empowered in the usual manner, and the doll seated upon a crossroads sigil similarly empowered. This was followed by a period of intense focused visualisation and communion with her, with a contract being drawn up in blood. That intensity prevailed through the entire ritual with her, with a marked degree of seriousness and willingness to work with me. I thought that it would have been a relatively sedate affair, but it proved otherwise, and it definitely felt like at points the developing spirit directed affairs at hand.

This was followed up after the gifting  of the doll at the crossroads after it was accepted, and the care of her passed over out of my hands. The promise written and sealed was thus committed to the Gods in Fire and the main libations preserved from the night alongside fresh offerings given in love.

The process has allowed me to gain some valuable experience. These objects, when produced by hand, seem to contain an innate level of awareness much higher than expected, alongside a certain ‘level’ of intensity that is difficult to describe until worked with. After empowerment, whilst the object was still in my home, it was noticed that an increased level of interesting activity was occurring including the movement of solid objects when the house was empty. Whilst it could have been done by either familiar, this activity seems different from the physical activity my own familiar has been using to on very rare occasions get my own attention. So it is interesting to note as a possibility.

Furthermore, this has made me interested to see how this compares with the doll body being procured for my familiar,  as it could affect the method I have in mind.

Although short and sweet, I hope this has been an interesting read. I’d like to give a shout out to the doll maker, who can be found at https://www.facebook.com/MajesticThorns and https://www.etsy.com/shop/MajesticThorns respectively.

Readers who have also ready my small entry on Datura, posted sometime last year, might recognise the artists style!

~S~

 

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Update on Looking Forward: Tool Creation and Other Matters

Posted in Occultism, Other with tags , , , , , , , , , on March 21, 2014 by Sypheara

Updates have unfortunately been sparse to the blog lately, but that has  not meant things have been moving along quite nicely on the personal front. Whilst this is not directly relevant to the  content of this blog, I thought it was all worth a mention because, hopefully, this change in my circumstances will facilitate an increased level of practice in the future.

I have recently  acquired a job which has enabled me to have the funds  to finally get a place of my own. This will hopefully provide both the space and privacy to to do necessary workings with the appropriate tools, and I am looking forward to having my ‘walking rate’ on the path accelerated at a rapid pace.

As such, I would like to touch on some coming potential subjects that the blog and myself will cover over the coming weeks and months.

Tool Creation and Acquisition

Over the coming few months and weeks, I hope to be building up a set of tools for use in a ritual context. This includes a myriad of things, and therefore could be on a variety of topics.

For example, I will be creating an altar, which will require significant work. This altar i hope to follow a fairly complicated process under the watchful eye of Hecate to ensure it is properly enlinked to the current. This will include numerous esoteric workings, as well as physical modification of the table i use itself, perhaps even entering the wood etching and pyrography departments. Which for me would be highly interesting and challenging, as it would be my first attempt to incorporate such things into my own work.

As an additional, I will be making a wands for my own personal use, and helping a friend acquire wood in a correct manner for their own. This tool will be one of invaluable help, and since this involves working with the spirits of plants and trees, I want to ensure that taking the wood for its construction is done in as proper a manner as is possible.

The above are limited examples, as I have more planned and hope to detail what I can (ie where its appropriate) as I go forward. Hopefully, this will help me work with Hecate and the other Gods on a much closer level without undue interruption.

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Cherry Tree, Artist Unknown

Familiar Work

A year or two back, I did some workings with my primary familiar, aimed at establishing a greater connection to it. These for the most part, only met with limited success, and unfortunately, due to other issues arising, I was unable to continue those set of workings.I now feel again it is time to concentrate on this aspect as I move into a space where I feel more comfortable doing larger workings.

Whilst I have, and am capable of talking with this spirit rather infrequently through vision and dream, a closer, a more bonded and intimate connection is sought than is currently present. To this end I will be creating a body for it which is not only a tool but a gift to reward is positive presence and influence in my work and life up to this point and to ask for its continued assistance.

This body will probably be an enspirited doll. This doll, like the spirit box was and is for the mighty dead, will act as a focus point that offers a physical housing which will help it to manifest in the physical world.  The dolls body will probably be based on an existing ball jointed doll, which will be loaded with specific elements and undergo a series of workings that will encourage the spirit to accept it as a potential body.

Over the coming weeks, I hope to ask my familiar for its permission  to continue this work, and if given, whats its preferences are to body gender, type etc are to ensure maximum compatibility.

porcelain_ball_jointed_dolls_argentina_by_fernandoartesano-d5vudvf

Porcelain ball Jointed Dolls,  Fernandoartesano 

Five Elements and their Synchronicity

I have been meaning to write a small entry about the importance of numbers, and the interesting parallels between the modern concepts of fundamental physical forces and that of the classical elements. Whilst this may have been touched on before, I haven’t seen anything on it recently and thought it might be good to put forward my own perspective on it as I find it quite interesting.

Fotothek_df_tg_0007129_Theosophie_^_Alchemie

Theosophische Darstellung zur Alchemie, Deutsche Fotothek

For now however, it still remains for the relocation to be seen through to the end, and for existing work to be written up in physical format and other correspondences to be completed.

Thanks for reading as always, and a very happy Ostara everyone!

~S~

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