In the last two paragraphs, he closes out saying as a sorcerer it would be great if the political parties were really controlled by demons because he could conjure them and fix everything, but sadly this isn't the case.
Au contraire, mon Frater! It is exactly the case! Sort of.
One of the things John Dee gathered from the Angelic Spirits he contacted in what became known as Enochian Magic was the list of names of the spirits that governed the 91 Parts of Earth. Each spirit could be conjured and worked with, ideally, to make the world a perfect, prosperous, peaceful place. You could get information about WTF is going on, information that could help you in your political interactions and economic negotiations. You had the perfect spies. Also, you could totally smite your enemies without having to go to war.
Agrippa mentions this too, in Book 1, Chapter 31 of his Three Books of Occult Philosophy. He says:
But he which knows how to compare these divisions of Provinces according to the divisions of the Stars, with the Ministry of the ruling Intelligences, and blessings of the Tribes of Israel, the lots of the Apostles, and typical seals of the sacred Scripture, shall be able to obtain great and prophetical oracles concerning every Region, of things to come.And in the Bible, it talks about the Prince of Persia wrestling with Michael in Daniel chapter 10, and in Ephesians 6:12 it says "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places." From my fundy days, I know these are the main Biblical sources of the element that tries to cast down the demons of institutions like the Democratic Party.
In Agrippa we learn to get the names of the Genius and Evil Daimon of any event if we have the time and place that it first began manifesting in the physical realm. The initiation point, the moment in space and time when the first action was taken to manifest an Idea. So if you had the time and date and location the Democrativ Party was formally launched, you could get the name of the Genius and Evil Daimon. You could conjure the Genius for divinatory purposes, and the Evil Daimon to cause it all kinds of problems.
Today the term "egregore" has become pretty common among occultists to refer to the spirit of any group. The term tracks back to Pierre Mabille, a French artist and magician from the early twentieth century. It got really popular in the 1980s, and we've been using it comfortably ever since.* It's a concept we're familiar with that deals with the type of magic we're talking about.
So in theory, we can conjure the spirits that rule over our government. Getting in touch with them is actually fairly easy, in fact. The problem is getting them to do anything you want them to do.
I conjured up the Prince of Persia after 09/11, and discovered that me and he operate on completely different scales. His Sphere of Influence was much, much larger than mine, and the power he had at his disposal to accomplish his purpose in existence dwarfed mine by a great margin.
The encounter taught me a lot about global politics in general. There's a reason the things that happen in the world happen. The recent riots in London were planned before time began, for example. Events have the momentum of eternity behind them, and if it's not your Fate to alter the course of history, chances are pretty good you'll just get swept away. It's an intricate dance of forces manifesting to express specific Ideas according to a time table that's rooted in Saturn.
That's why Agrippa says these spirits can be conjured for oracles of things to come. They know the Fate of the region, and are the masters of its unfolding. They also knew you were going to conjure them, and exactly what you were going to ask for, and whether or not they would comply.
But here's the thing: the way you figure out your Fate is by trying to do stuff. If it works, it was your Fate. So if you feel called to set the world to rights through conjure magic, by all means go for it! The only way to know is to try. At the very least, you will understand what's going on and why, and you'll be able to adapt yourself to it.
And maybe you'll even get the entire nation whipped into shape in no time.
* Well, looks like it peaked in the 1990s, but whatever. You probably know what it means.
I got a huge laugh from the whole "Demon"-cratic party seriousness from the ultra-christian right. But you're right - Brilliant insight, I was amazed just how obvious it was. I'm afraid practicality isn't my strongest trait. Political magic here we come...party politics won't know what hit 'em!
ReplyDeleteActually, I was being facetious in my post. I've used the Enochian Parts of the Earth for good effect politically a number of times.
ReplyDeleteIf you're looking for the United States, though, you can't rely on Robin Cook's breakdown of the parts. The United States is Idunia, in (I believe) the 23rd Aethyr. It's called "the land beyond Greenland" in the original texts and somehow Cook misses that this is obviously North America - or more precisely the US and Canada. Mexico and Central America are in Onigap, which both Turner and Cook correctly identify based on Kelly's description of the people who lived there in Dee's time.
This post and the one it references are very interesting. I am familiar with Dee's geographical Enocian attributions. However, I've never attempted a political working this way for 3 reasons: (1) how many wills are involved? Damn, it would be like trying to win multiple lotteries at once (and we all know how problematic lottery magic can be). (2) If Dee could have effectively used this to create a utopia, don't you think he would have succeeded? And (3) although I believe in creating change through sorcery, sometimes the world is the way it is for a reason. I wish it would be a nicer place, but, as a product of my times (or, if you prefer, Aeon), I fail to see how I would be able to conjure something as encompassing an Aeonically different as a "perfect world." I say this under the assumption that the influences of the Spheres are filtered through the microcosm of the Self.
ReplyDeleteI like the idea and the positive sentiment here, but I just can't accept how this would be possible (maybe that's my problem, eh?).
@Sorcerer:
ReplyDelete"Argue for your limitations, and sure enough, they're yours."
I think that's a line from Illusions, the Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah.
It's a bit too new thought for my tastes, but in a similar vein what I said about if you don't try, you won't know if it's your Fate applies. At the very least, you will learn whether your thoughts about the level of complexity are correct.
Re: if you don't try
ReplyDeleteThat is an excellent point.