Sulum Factum Magus

I have noticed over the years that there are many people who identify as pagans who are very fond of having a drink. I really don’t know what percentage of pagans are also heavy drinkers, and have no idea whether it is any different to the percentage of heavy drinkers in the overall population. However what I have noticed is that such people often have an influence that is disproportionate to their numbers.

I don’t criticise people for liking to have a few drinks, or even for liking to get falling down drunk. However I have noticed that the presence of even a few drunk people has a negative influence on the general atmosphere of an event, and limits the kind of magical or spiritual work that can be undertaken. Of course this is not a problem if no such work is planned. However if there are others at the event with the expectation of doing some inner work, then they will find themselves unable to fully fulfil that promise. Now it is one thing to have a glass of wine around the fire after dinner or feasting. But it is quite another to launch into Dionysian revels over an extended period – as some are wont to do!

Why should the presence of intoxicated people prevent serious magical work? For a start, intoxicated people become hyper sensitive to energy, but tend to lose perspective and balance. They may react to energy in unpredictable ways, suddenly becoming fearful, aggressive, or even violent. This can be a negative experience both for the intoxicated person, and for the people around them. Secondly, in spite of this hypersensitivity, intoxicated people become insensitive to the needs of people around them. They tend to talk loudly and coarsely. It’s great fun, of course, if you yourself are having a few drinks as well. However anyone in the vicinity has no choice but to listen to loud talk and laughter. Bad luck if you are trying to do some healing work or other inner work, or even get some sleep!

The third reason is that if people are sitting around drinking, then they are not doing something else, such as connecting with each other through meditation, ritual or group energy work. An important part of a magical gathering is the establishment of a group consciousness. The question that must be asked is how do we choose to construct that group consciousness, how may we all connect with it, what will that group consciousness do, and how will it work. The injection of large amounts of alcohol into a few members of that group consciousness limits the formation and construction of the group consciousness. The group consciousness becomes dominated by the alcoholic limitations and propensities of the few, and the desires and aspirations of others must be put on hold as a result.

Those who do the drinking see no harm. After all, they have had a very nice time, and enjoyed camaraderie and good cheer. Those who were conscious of and desirous of building and working within a healing group consciousness are inevitably disappointed. After a time, and a succession of such disappointments, such people inevitably put their time and effort into alternatives.

Most magical and spiritual groups that I know of, who are doing anything of note, have a rule against doing magical or spiritual work while intoxicated by alcohol or any other substance. There are very good reasons for this. For a start, clarity suffers under the influence of an intoxicant. Secondly, any successful result becomes associated with the influence of the intoxicant, which creates an addictive relationship. Thirdly, experiences under the influence of an intoxicant are out of the sphere of conscious control – they follow the physiological response of the body to the substance. Fourthly intoxicants limit one’s flexibility – one may have only that limited range of experiences mediated by the intoxicant – rather than the full flexibility of the trained magical consciousness.

Intoxicants are valued by many people because of the way they feel under their influence, or because of the changes in consciousness or perception that they bring. However there are better ways of achieving the same ends, and much more, through spiritual and magical means.

Having said all of the above, I wouldn’t want to give the impression that I am against all alcohol or intoxication. There is a time and a place for everything, and I also like to have a few drinks from time to time. However I don’t mix my drinks with spiritual or magical group work, and when doing magical group work, I expect other participants to adopt the same attitude. When facilitating a ritual or other work, I refrain from all alcohol for the previous 24 hours, and refrain from getting drunk for three days prior. The reason is that drinking more than one or two glasses of wine (or the equivalent) dulls the senses for a day or two afterwards. As a ritual facilitator, one owes it to those attending to be performing at your peak. I have noticed that even a glass of wine each evening with the evening meal takes the keenness off the edge of one’s inner faculties after a week or ten days – though not something that many would notice. For people interested in developing themselves magically, then, less is definitely more when it comes to alcohol use, in my opinion. Though there is no need to take an extreme position, and repudiate all drinking, it is recommended that one is able to enjoy oneself without it. Enjoy a few glasses of wine on social occasions. But enjoy the power and clarity of sobriety when it comes to magical and spiritual work.

Blessed Be,

Robyn :)

In the olden days, there was something they called the water cure, which consisted of bathing, washing, or being sprayed with cold water. It had a great following in the USA, apparently in the 1800s. It was the brainchild of a German fellow called Sebastian Kniepp, and is given in detail in the book “A Healer’s Herbal,” by Brother Aloysius, first published as “Comfort to the sick”, in Holland in 1901. In my ignorance, when I first encountered the water cure, I believed that any benefits were due to hygiene – due to an impression that people in those days didn’t bathe – at least not nearly so much as they do now a days.

However I have since come to realise that there are some very sound principles behind the water-cure, and that it can work very well today, as well as it did in yester-year. It is unlikely, however, for most people these days have become soft and conditioned to their comforts, such as hot running water.

Now what is wrong with having a nice hot shower, I hear you asking? Well, I have come to the conclusion, that it is all about the circulation. Many diseases, ranging from depression, allergies, asthma, and doubtless many others, are either caused or exacerbated by poor circulation. Now that isn’t a medical opinion, it is a personal observation, and one that I expect will be dismissed out of hand by most. But if you are one of the small number of people who are open to such ideas, you might like to improve your health and safeguard against disease with the water cure.

When you have a hot shower or bath, you open all the pores, and the blood moves to the surface. There is a feeling of relaxation and lethargy. The blood moves away from the internal organs. When you get out of the bath, the open pores and the superficial circulation continues. There is a loss of body heat and internal energy. One becomes vulnerable to chills. When you have a cold shower or bath, the pores close, and the superficial blood vessels constrict, sending the blood deeper into the internal organs. There is a feeling of vigour and energisation. There is an increase in internal energy, and a generation of internal heat.

That is the simple crux of the matter. Starting the day with a hot shower, de-energises the body, and makes one vulnerable to colds and flus, through the open pores and the superficial blood circulation. Starting the day with a cold immersion does the opposite. It energises the internal organs, helps to cleanse and renew them, and closes the pores against cold and flus.

Now it can be quite shocking to have a cold shower. A better way of getting the benefits is as follows. Fill up a bucket with cold water. It doesn’t have to be freezing cold. Fifteen to twenty degrees Celsius is fine. Then wet a washer, and wash your face and back of the neck. Then re-wet the washer and thouroughly wash your left foot. Re-wet the washer, and thouroughly wash down your left leg from ankle to knee. Re-wet the washer, and do your left leg from knee to buttock. Follow on doing each segment of the body, moving from extremity towards the heart. Right foot, right lower leg, right upper leg, left hand, left fore arm, left upper arm, right hand, right forearm, right upper arm etc. Re-wet the washer for each new section of the body. Finish off by doing the lower back, the stomach , the upper back, and chest – always moving towards the heart. Start each cold washer on the outer side of the limb, or the back of the trunk, then move to the inner side of the limb, or the front of the trunk. This is because the back and outer sides of the limbs are less sensitive to the cold, and this will be less of a shock to the system. Finally do the groin and rectal areas, which should be done last for reasons of hygiene.

This procedure is much less shocking to the body than a cold shower. It is also more beneficial, as it gradually concentrates the circulation within the torso and the internal organs.

A lot of men shave with hot water. Shaving should always be followed by splashing cold water on the face to close the pores, or the application of cold wet washers. Indeed, this was the original idea behind aftershave. The evaporating alcohol produced coolness to close the pores – the scent which seems to be the reason for it these days was secondary. However I believe that alcohol may cause damage to the skin over the long term, and it is much better to simply use cold water or cold wet washers on the face after shaving.

There is another very good reason for getting into the habit of the cold water bath. And that is that it exercises one’s mental toughness and exercise of will. The magician should not be at the command of his or her bodily weaknesses, but should be able to over-come minor discomforts in order to harness the rewards of greater health.

The benefits of the application of cold water will gradually manifest themselves over time, as this becomes part of your daily habit. Along with proper diet and good exercise, it is something that can contribute to long lasting health and vigour to an advanced age.

Blessed Be,

Robyn :)

Australia, and in particular Sydney, has just survived the visit of the catholic pontiff. One of the most interesting issues surrounding the visit, in my opinion, were the calls for a pontifical apology for the many cases of sexual abuse perpetrated by catholic clergy. Having had a catholic upbringing, and attending a catholic boys college, this issue has something of a personal relevance. Although I was not personally subject to any sexual abuse, and had no first hand knowledge of any at the time, it was common knowledge in the playground that there were certain members of the teaching staff, not all of them priests or brothers, either, whom one had to be very vigilant around. Indeed, a common playground cry in those days was “Bums to the wall, bums to the wall!”, whenever one of these questionable characters strolled by, thus informing the perpetrator that their activities were public knowledge, at least amongst the students. Adults, however, teachers, clergy and parents, found these cries disrespectful taunts, and treated them as something to be punished, rather than as the warning signals which they obviously were. Perhaps there were also innocent teachers who suffered these taunts. However it seems clear now that underneath this smoke, was a deadly fire, damaging and burning many lives.

When I think about this, and why the warning signals were ignored, I come to the conclusion that our society treats children with contempt and mistrust. The initial assumption is that they are lying, being nasty, or otherwise acting mischievously. Somehow, children, our society seems to assume, are naturally inclined to being naughty, and it is only through discipline, and in those days, corporeal punishment, that the evil is driven out of them.

The origins of this child-hating attitude lies, I believe, in the very doctrines of Christianity itself. The doctrine of original sin teaches that we are all tainted, at birth, with the sinfulness shown by Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Baptism, is supposed to wash away the taint of original sin, but it is, apparently, ineffective, if the attitude of the teacher-clerics is anything to go by. This belief in the intrinsic evil of children caused the clergy, in my school days, to be great believers in the discipline of corporeal punishment. They took delight in the strap, the cane, and six of the best.

Even today, we have adherents of this view spouting their nonsense in public. Recently the leader of the state opposition in Queensland, was defending the right of parents to smack their children, saying he was smacked as a child, and it made him a better person – seemingly unaware of the irony of his remarks. Having been raised in a culture of physical and corporal punishment, I regard physical discipline and smacking of children as child abuse. It breaks my heart to see parents smacking their two year olds with repeated slaps. “Stop that, or I’ll give you something to cry about”.

I am a great believer in establishing clear boundaries, and consequences for anti-social behaviour. Establishing in children the consciousness of interacting positively with others, and the need to respect other people emotionally, physically and spiritually is, or should be, one of the principal jobs of parenting. Personally, I feel no need to resort to physical coercion, intimidation or violence to achieve this end.

Indeed, I believe that attempting to teach respect, love and consideration through beatings and physical intimidation is misguided in the extreme. Most often, it results in people who become hardened to their own suffering, and that of others, and all too often, people without scruples about using intimidation and the threat of violence to get their own way in adulthood.

But it goes deeper than simply the doctrine of original sin. There is also the question of sexual innocence and celibacy. As I discuss in my book the Great Work, the concept of celibacy is based on the idea that divinity and sexuality do not mix, and that to be pure, and a suitable emulator of Jesus Christ, one must refrain from any sexual expression, not only in action, but also in thought and imagination. The reason this is thought to be so is that creation is conceptualised as balanced between the ultimate good (God) and the ultimate evil (the Devil). Any union of opposites is mapped onto this basic paradigm, with one side of the coin acquiring a gloss of goodness, and the other acquiring a sinister gloss.

Thus the inevitable conclusions are reached: day is good, night is of the devil, man is good, woman is of the devil, humanity is good, nature is of the devil, reason and rational thought are good, emotion, intuition and instinct are of the devil, activity and progress is good, rest (idleness) is of the devil. These days, our society is not quite so stark and medieval in its outlook, but underneath our so-called modernity and rejection of superstition, lies the very same basic worldview as medieval Christianity. Even in the cartoons, the goodies battle the baddies, re-enforcing the view that the world is driven by the endless battle between good and evil.

This viewpoint, in my opinion, is a destructive and unhelpful one for this period in history, and needless to say, out of step with the viewpoint that underpins many pagan philosophies. The pagan viewpoint that I espouse sees the universe as the creation of equal and complimentary principles: the generative and nurturing (female) archetype, and the inseminating and activating (male) archetype. With this worldview, sexual congress is seen as a resonance with the divine creative process that gives rise to the world. Sexuality, thus has the potential to unite one with one’s divine nature. In the Christian based worldview, sexual congress is seen as a flirtation with the devil, or the lusts of the flesh, something that separates one from one’s divine nature.

Now human beings have evolved to have and enjoy sexual activity. They are blessed with emotional and hormonal drives and desires to seek out sexual partners, and to couple with them. The pagan viewpoint of my path is to honour this aspect of our nature, and to seek to intensify the resonance with the archetypal forces of Divinity. This has the potential to transform the self and one’s relationships, by harnessing and expressing the creative power of the universe in concentrated form. However, indiscriminate and unconscious pursuit of these drives can and does bring pain and heartbreak. Therefore recognising the powerful nature of sexuality, an ethical dimension ought to surround sexual expression – based on mutual consent freely given.

In our society, we have established guidelines for when mutual consent can be freely given, and these guidelines involve the age of the parties, and whether there is any relationship of power or responsibility, or use of any physical, emotional or other form of coercive pressure.

In the Christian clergy, we find people who have, more than most, taken to heart the worldview of Good versus Evil, and where sexual expression is definitely on the Evil side. Clergy are only human, and left to their own devices have just as many sexual thoughts and urges as anyone else. However these thoughts are a source of guilt for such people, as they have bought into a worldview where such natural inclinations and thoughts are seen as the temptations of the devil, and a sign of evil working in their lives.

They may well begin to see themselves as corrupt, guilty, and undeserving. Perhaps they see their young charges as innocent and happy, and desiring this same innocence themselves, an innocence which they have constructed as lost, they wish to possess it again, by sexually possessing these (in their minds) objects of innocence.

In any case, normal modes of sexual expression are denied them. They are in a position of trust and authority. Sexual possession of the innocent may allow them a perverse return to their own sexual innocence – temporarily at least. For of course given the world view they adopt, they must be conscious that their actions are “of the devil”. This leads to greater guilt, and a greater need for redemption, and a greater attraction to childhood innocence. In short, a vicious cycle of sexual predation on the young.

While the Christian religion in particular, and our society in general, sees the world as balanced between Good and Evil, and caught in the everlasting battle between God and the Devil, there will be no let up in the line of abused children.

And it is not just the priests. We are an entire society lusting after the innocence of youth, and at the same time rushing to corrupt and take advantage of youthful innocence to turn a dollar, in marketing, sales to children, TVs, movies, toys, music and so on. However attempting to fulfil this drive to recover our innocence by purchasing the appearance of innocent childhood, will provide no more than temporary relief.

To really reclaim our innocence is to reclaim the sacred nature of sexuality, and the sacred nature of creation, and to erase the brainwashing that says that the union of male and female in sexual congress is evil, and to erase the brainwashing that says that the union of a male and female divinity is blasphemous. It is not blasphemy. It is the beauty of creation, seen through innocent eyes. The reclamation of sexual innocence is not easy, as it requires, for most of us, a fundamental change in world view. Such changes require effort and commitment. However, for the practicing pagan, such a change sneaks up on one. The God and Goddess become real, and their union more than a metaphor. The recreation of the world occurs within the crucible of ritual, every time the Sacred Marriage of God and Goddess is ritually enacted. In time, one looks out upon the world and sees in every process and circumstance the sacred wheel of becoming – the interaction of the fertilising and generative principles, producing their offspring, and continuing on the cycle of life. There is no place for guilt or shame about sexuality itself, and no drive to recover sexual innocence – which in extreme form is, I believe, one of the drivers of child sexual abuse in our society, especially by clergy.

I don’t imagine that changing world views will remove all sexual exploitation. Nor do I believe that the pagan community is itself free from this scourge. There will still be selfish people who think more of satisfying their own desires than about the effect they might be having on others. But I hope that an airing of these issues will help in understanding how to overcome and reduce the sexual exploitation of children in our society.

BB,

Robyn

It is the simple things of life that are important. A cliché, perhaps, but no less true for that. I have been reflecting lately on how food has been corrupted and taken over by the organs of our industrial society, resulting in a sickness of the body and the soul. Not to mention the negative impacts on the environment, the body and soul of Herself.

Years ago, when many more people had their own cow, and made their own cheese, and had their own gardens, and pickled their own cucumbers, life was simpler, and more attuned with the breath of nature. We happily coexisted with animals birds and insects. These days, it seems that insects and animals are pests which must be exterminated or controlled to avoid reductions in yield.

I have been having cheese and home made pickles on a slice of gluten free bread these last couple of mornings for breakfast. Its quick and simple. Its inexpensive, compared to highly processed cerials and beverages. It tastes good. The pickles were given to me by a friend of mine, who knows of my interest in keeping alive the old wise ways of living in harmony with nature. The most important thing of all is the food we eat, and not just its physical aspect, but its vibration and spiritual resonance. My friend won’t eat any food that comes from a supermarket, because he feels the vibration is not conducive to health, spiritually or physically. The vegetables, he says, from the supermarket contain no goodness – as they have never properly connected with fertile living soil. They have been grown by the application of fertiliser to a dead substrate.

I have long been of like mind, though perhaps less extreme in my views. My family gets most of its produce from a community supported agriculture scheme, which pays the farmer more for their produce, and costs us less, for organic or nearly organic produce. The farmers are all committed to husbandry of the land, in one way or another.

Do you hear in the term “husbandry” an echo of the sacred marriage between human and Herself? It is Mother Nature, the Great Goddess Herself who brings forth food. Those who fail to recognise this, and fail to cultivate her presence and blessing, produce food which has but an echo of the health giving vibration and essence that is possible with food which she produces under the influence of loving husbandry.

Perhaps the terms are a little antiquated, as of course women make some of the best gardeners, maybe because of their inherent attunement with the Goddess. But still She must be cultivated, nourished, invited, honored and celebrated, and most of all, loved, in order for her to rouse herself from unconsciousness and live fully within the produce of any garden. And why should we deny the birds, the bugs, and the animals a share of her bounty? They all need to live too. Humans have the annoying habit of thinking themselves more important than the other creatures that live on the planet. However they are all part of Herself, and to impoverish them, while enriching ourselves is selfish and greedy. But of course the human world is a selfish and greedy world for the most part, even though we don’t like to admit it.

Anyway, I have been enjoying my cheese and pickles. Pickle making is an age old skill, a way of salting away Mother Nature’s bounty for the winter. Most people wouldn’t bother making their own pickles. However there will come a time, I believe, when such old skills will be required again. I am not so arrogant to believe that our current technological civilisation will last indefinitely. Like all over-blown empires, it will eventually be dragged down by the weight of its own contradictions. From the rubble and the ashes, a new way of living will emerge, lead by those who have made it their purpose to keep alive the old skills, such as making pickles and cheese. In the best of all possible worlds, our civilisation would have a collective epiphany, repudiate greed and selfishness, and cultivate a life in tune with spirit and the higher good. However this possibility is remote for the foreseeable future. Nor is their any reason to want to accelerate or assist in the destruction of western society – that is the path of terrorism, something that is repugnant to those who cherish the life of the Goddess in all forms and manifestations. The path of the wise is to foresee the inevitable, and to safeguard the old wisdom for when it will be needed once more.

Blessed Be

Robyn

Everyone wants to live a long and healthy life, or so they say. But when you look at people’s actions, one must conclude that this is actually far down the list of priorities. People, in general, don’t seem to put their money, so to speak, where there mouth is, when it comes to living long and healthily. How to do so is no secret. But for some reason, many people seem to have a great deal of difficulty. Well, here for posterity, are my seven keys to health and long life. The key to making these seven keys work is to believe – in yourself, in the seven keys, and the unseen hand which assists all positive undertakings for the highest good of all.

1. B: Breathe with the diaphragm.

2. E: Exercise moderately and regularly.

3. L: Laugh often.

4. I: Intimate physical contact daily.

5. E: Eat moderately. Fast Occasionally.

6. V: Vegetables should be the foundation of your diet.

7. E: Ever-positive outlook.

If you follow these seven keys, then you will have, in all likelihood, a long and healthy life. Of course, there are no guarantees. Fate may have other ideas, with accidents or debilitating disease. However the great majority of degenerative diseases are, in my opinion, a direct result of failure to incorporate one or more of the seven keys into one’s daily life. Now, to discuss these keys a little more closely.

Breathe with the Diaphragm.

Part of the stress response is to breathe quickly and shallowly. By breathing slowly and deeply, one can switch off the stress response, and turn on the relaxation response. In Chinese disciplines such as Tai Chi and Chi Kung, it is called stomach breathing. Of course, we can’t actually breathe into our stomach, but stomach breathing describes how the belly moves out and in during deep diaphragmatic breathing. Such breathing is believed to increase the level of vital energy in the body, and thus one’s resistance to disease, and ability to bounce back quickly from stress, trauma or injury. To breathe in this way, fill up the lungs as you push out the belly, keeping the shoulders and chest relaxed. Then allow the belly to return to its original position as you breathe out. Spend five minutes each morning and evening just being aware of your breath and doing stomach breathing, and whenever you remember during the day.

Exercise moderately and regularly

The key here is moderately! Over the course of a life, extreme exercises may result in wear and injury to the joints, and consequent pain and debility. Regularly pushing oneself to and beyond one’s physical limits exhausts one’s vital reserves, opening the door to illness. Far better to exercise gently and moderately – regularly. One may then preserve one’s mobility and agility into an advanced age. Many elderly people deteriorate rapidly once they lose their mobility. While everyone is different, my opinion is that one ought to aim to elevate one’s breathing and heart rate moderately above resting, and produce a light sweating reaction, 3 or 4 times a week. Brisk walking is perhaps ideal! Exercises such as Yoga and Tai Chi are also ideal. Stretching is important to maintain flexibility and good joint mobility. The pressures of modern life make finding time to exercise difficult. However think of it as your health insurance. Set aside a regular time three or four times a week – doing moderate exercise you enjoy, such as walking, yoga, Tai Chi, swimming or what suits you.

Laugh often

Laughter is the best medicine, the old saying goes. And there is no better proof than in the pudding! Laughter relaxes the nervous system, floods the brain with feel good chemicals, establishes social bonds and feelings of connection, and makes one’s difficulties seem more easily overcome. Ongoing regular stress is a debilitating influence on the body, and laughter can instantly dissolve the physiological stress response. The laughter to aim for is the rich resonant belly laugh, which brings a physical warmth to the lower abdomen.

Intimate physical contact daily.

Humans have evolved over tens of thousands of years as social primates. As such, physical grooming behaviours are in our genes. Without close physical contact each day, we may feel isolated, alone, and may begin to feel depressed and to think poorly about ourselves. Of course people have different needs and levels of comfort with physical intimacy, but without it, it is much more difficult to stay in a positive frame of mind. Physical intimacy must be accompanied by feelings of love and regard. Unwelcome physical intimacy is of course a great source of stress and problematic for one’s health and well-being.

Eat moderately. Fast Occasionally.

Most people in western society eat much more than they need to be healthy. For most desk jockeys, two good meals a day is more than adequate. The Chinese saying is to eat only when you’re hungry, and stop eating when 80% full. However this is very difficult for most people, who love to stuff themselves to the gills in order to feel some kind of satiety. Establish good eating habits, and your old age will be long and healthy. It’s not just what you eat, but how you eat! Eating slowly, and chewing each mouthful well will help you to stop eating before the bloat stage. An overfull stomach reduces the efficiency of digestion, over taxes the stomach and digestive organs, and results in partial digestion. This leads to the production of toxins in the digestive system, and their transfer to the blood stream where they produce tiredness, upset cell metabolism throughout the body, and upset the neural chemicals responsible for mood. The result over a lifetime is accelerated degenerative disease. Occasionally allowing the body to cleanse through a one day or three day fast allows the digestive system and the entire body to go into an elimination phase, like a spring cleanse. This rejuvenates the body. As fasting is contra-indicated for some health conditions, such as diabetes, do seek advice if you have health concerns.

Vegetables should be the foundation of your diet

Many scientific studies have shown that vegetarians have lower rates of cancer, arthritis, diabetes and heart disease. However you don’t have to be a complete vegetarian to experience the magic of vegetables. Just reduce the amount of meat you eat, and increase the amount of vegetables. Instead of a meal revolving around a large piece of meat, have a meal revolving around vegetables, with a small portion of meat. Think of meat as an addition to a meal, rather than the centre of a meal. At each meal, have some vegetables which are uncooked, such as snow peas, beans, sprouts or salad greens. Cook vegetables lightly to preserve the goodness.

Ever-positive outlook

The old saying is “a healthy mind in a healthy body”. A positive frame of mind makes it easier to find the energy and commitment to structure one’s life around the seven keys. In turn, the health benefits make it easier to keep a positive fame of mind. A positive reinforcing cycle begins, enhancing health and well-being. On the other hand, a negative frame of mind makes if much more difficult to adhere to the seven keys. A negative cycle begins, and health and mood may spiral downwards. Many who experience difficulties with negativity, depression and dark moods, will find these less troublesome once they start working with the six other keys. One way to break a negative cycle is to work with affirmations of deservingness. Repeat at every opportunity, “I deserve health and happiness. I deserve prosperity and abundance. I deserve love and physical intimacy.” Or adjust this to your own particular circumstances and needs.

The world of today could hardly be better at causing illness if a team of experts had sat down to design a way of life that maximally stresses the human organism. Therefore it takes a lot of attention, focus, discipline, knowledge and self confidence to stay healthy and positive in the face of the demands of modern life. By remembering the seven keys, and focussing on them, you will be maximising your chances of living a long and healthy life. This will give you every chance to realise and manifest your soul potential, which is at the root of health and happiness. You too can BELIEVE yourself to a healthy and ripe old age!

It is trite to say that the human world seems to operate at a furious pace, and getting faster each year. When I was studying Shiatsu and Chinese medicine many years ago, my teachers pointed out that this was a particular problem for people in Western Society – the push through, soldier on, no time to rest attitude. My teachers said that this leads to exhaustion of the kidney energy, in Chinese Medicine terms. To the rest of us, it manifests as loss of zip, chronic fatigue, melancholy and depression, asthma, coldness, pallor, or lack of vitality, and progresses into more serious chronic diseases. Prevention is much easier than cure, and consists of slowing down, and relaxing. Taking time each day to recharge, through deep breathing, meditation, doing something that you love, being with friends, and eating nutritious wholesome food. The eating had to be done when you were relaxed, and never if you were upset, angry, distressed or anxious. You also had to chew every mouthful 100 times. “Drink your food, and eat your drink” was the rule of thumb they taught us. If you live your life along these lines, you will preserve and build your reserves of vital energy, health will be your companion, and disease a stranger.

I have always remembered this simple prescription, if not always lived up to it. But it remains a constant ideal in my life. However it is difficult in the modern world to take the time to live each day this way. And the consequences are all around us, in the epidemics of chronic disease that make so many miserable, even while our average life span has never been so long!

And it is not just individuals that are furiously engaged with life on a frenetic basis. Our whole society seems to have been ratcheted up to a furious pace. A never ending roar of trucks, planes, buses, motor cars, trains, and ships all rushing to meet deadlines. Bankers, solicitors, government officials, business people, and tradies, all hurrying to the next job, before the last one is properly tidied away. Up out of bed, quick cup of coffee, quick shower, off to work for a twelve hour day, quick bite to eat at the desk, rush home, call in for take-aways on the way. Rush around the house doing a few chores, getting the kids to bed, or stare mesmerised at the idiot box for an hour, collapse into bed, lights on everywhere, pilot lights on the tv, street lights outside, night-lights so you don’t trip on the way to the bathroom because you haven’t had time to put away the clothes from the floor, light on the digital clock.

Our society has a neurotic fear, it seems, of slowing down, of darkness, of silence. I was out for a walk last night under the (almost!) full moon. It was late, so most people were asleep, and their houses dark. But still, there were people with lights blazing from their garages, and on their patios, in some kind of shrill defiance of the night. What a relief to get to a dark part of the street, without street lights, with dark houses. To enjoy the light of the moon. To slow down. To have time for the eyes to begin adjusting to the night.

I found out an interesting fact the other day. Our eyes keep adjusting to low light conditions for several hours. We need to be out in the dark for two hours or more, before we really start seeing as nature intended. However any blazing street light, or incandescent globe, the lights of a car or such like, sets us back to the beginning again of the dark accommodation process.

Nature has provided us with a mechanism of seeing in the night, which takes two hours or more to reach its maximal effectiveness. This indicates to me that it is our nature to be active during the night for significant periods of time, at least two hours! I have found it to be remarkably refreshing and invigorating to be in the dark long enough, away from all lights, except perhaps the light of the moon, for my night vision to reach its full acuity. I find it relaxing, and re-invigorating. Perhaps this activity is part of our evolutionary heritage, and participating in it activates and utilises the nervous system in the way that Mother Nature intended, and in so doing, gives us the space to relax into ourselves in a deep and primal way.

So next full moon, why not get out into the countryside, away from the street lights, switch off your torch, and allow your eyes to adjust to the dark. As the veil of darkness gradually lifts, you may become surprised at the beauty of the night, and what’s more, how you begin to feel. Most people, after about ten minutes, even less for some, can walk around perfectly safely with no more light than that provided by the full moon. Do give your eyes time to adjust. And do be aware of any dangers that might be around. So slow down. Feel your way, as well as see your way. And enjoy the dark, as Mother nature intended.

I am sure you will find that your energy levels for the following day are much increased! And by the way, that old wives tale that carrots help you to see in the dark? Its true! Carrots contain high amounts of vitamin A, needed for the fundamental chemical reactions of visual perception!

Blessed Be

Rob

The “Book of Shadows” is the name given by certain witches to their book containing the forms and usages of ritual and magic, in particular ritual forms for the various sabbats, esbats, initiations, celebrations and magical workings. As far as I know, it goes at least back to Gerald Gardner, who, I am informed, is the founder of Wicca in its modern form. Over the years, it seems, this name has caused many people to become uncomfortable, and they have found it necessary to coin less troublesome names, such as “The Book of Light and Shadows”, or “The Book of Lights”, apparently, under the impression that there was something vaugely unwholesome or ominous about the word “shadow”. Apparently, those same people feel that “light” is somehow a more balanced, wholesome, or re-assuring epithet.

In my view, this represents a mis-understanding of the term “Book of Shadows”, based on a residual dose of Christian dualism that is, in my opinion, out of place in a pagan spiritual path. Of course people can call their black book whatever  they like – and it really doesn’t matter a fig to me! However, I think it is an interesting point of reflection for considering two very important esoteric principles, which are at the centre of my personal philosophy.

Firstly, in my world-view, and I venture to suggest, many pagan viewpoints, the world of form and manifestation is the offspring of two opposing yet equal forces or achetypes – personified as the God and Goddess, often of the Sun and the Moon. The union of these opposing principles in harmony brings balance and prosperity. The cause of many (if not all) of life’s ills, is seen as a lack of balance between these two equal but complementary opposite powers. Life and growth is seen as cyclical, moving from one state of dynamic balance to the next, in a never ending dance of union, conception and becoming.

This represents a stark contrast to the world view of many in today’s world, based on a christian conception of the ultimate good, God, opposed by the ultimate evil, the Devil. With this philosophical perspective, the desirable course of action is to seek the Good, and to shun the Devil, leading to ideas of progress from darkness to light. Life is seen as a road leading either to Heaven or Hell, and the goal of the good person should be union with the Divine, away from which lofty goal one can easily back-slide into the darkness of materiality.

I have discussed these two world views, and their consequences, in much greater depth in my book “The Great Work”.

In the christian based philosophy, which, in my view, underpins the world view of most in western society, even atheists and agnostics, there is a tendency to equate darkness and shadows with evil, and hence, by implication, the Devil. These residual christian ways of seeing are, I believe, why some people feel uncomfortable with something called a “Book of Shadows”.

However there is no such intention in the pagan way of seeing things. Which brings us to the second important esoteric principle. In my opinion, the “Book of Shadows” is so named because this is the most apt description of its contents. The rituals and words recorded within its covers are no more than shadows of the rituals brought to life within the magic circle. The words themselves, no matter how beautiful, charged, or powerful, require utterance and action in order to realize their magic, in a circle, properly concecrated and prepared. Without the focussed intent of the practitioner, the magic of the visualisation, and the energetic contact with the realities behind the words, the words are empty shells, devoid of life. The reality is not in the words, but shines brightly behind them. Thus they are but shadows, which, however, indicate the reality of the witches mysteries, to which they point. The shadows, it goes without saying, should never be confused with the reality.  In my view, as a reminder of this truth, there could be no better term than “Book of Shadows” for the witches book!

The apology by the Australian Parliament to the stolen generations of Indigenous People, and their families was, in my view, a momentous historical event in the history of the country. Many Australians, however, will not be aware that the apology has reverberated through the psychic atmosphere of Australia, and this psychic atmosphere has significantly shifted and opened in a way that is unique in my experience.

Ever since I can remember, I have felt the psychic environment of my home town, Brisbane, to be oppressive. This was expressed outwardly as the repression of the Bjelke-Petersen years, and a widespread disdain for artistic pursuits, or so it seemed to me. There seemed to me to be a blight of poverty on the place, both materially, and spiritually, causing people to work long and hard for a meargre return, with nothing left over for pursuing the richness of culture, art or spirituality.

Thankfully, this has moderated significantly in the last decade or so, and the atmosphere is much more open. I believe that this psychic oppressiveness comes from a number of causes – including the harsh history of one of the most notorious penal colonies in Australia, Moreton Bay. Its tyrannical commandant, Patrick Logan, is commemorated in the names of the Logan River, and the now city of Logan. Now it beats me why the name of this guy should be commemorated this way at all, but such is the nature of officialdom. One of his major occupations, it would seem, was stringing convicts up on wooden structures, and having them lashed to within an inch of their life. In the name of discipline. A good number of these convicts were Irishmen forced into petty theft by poverty. No wonder the man was hated and feared.

Logan was eventually assassinated by one of the local Indigenous Brothers, no doubt outraged by the atrocities that were being perpetrated under his command. The story is commemmorated in a folk song “Moreton Bay”.

But I digress. Any country must establish its own myths to believe in and give itself meaning. One of the endurring myths of Australia, much harped upon by the Howard Government during its term in office, and its gaggle of conservative commentators, is that of the glorious march of the pioneers, enduring extraordinary hardship to open up the country to farming, settlement, mining and general exploitation. This glorious myth, of course, has a dark side, that of atrocities and dispossession inflicted on the Indigenous inhabitants, who were by and large forcibly removed to “missions”, and forced to live lives without the normal freedoms that most in this country take for granted. Such freedoms as the right to earn a living, to manage one’s own finances, to leave the mission for any reason, or to bring up one’s own children were systematically stripped from our Indigenous Brothers and Sisters. And this was still taking place within the lifetime of a good many Australians living today.

It is high time that Australia apologised for such atrocities in its past, and the Apology to the Stolen Generations is a great beginning to the journey which we have in front of us. This journey, is not just about redressing the wrongs of the past, although this is very important, but about creating a future for Australia.

Pagan philosophy, and esoteric philosophy generally, recognises that reality is manifested outward from the inner dimensions. The future is created by the astral forms that are created today, and through which the future manifests. Prior to the apology, there was, it seemed to me, a strict demarcation between the astral forms of Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australia. The astral dimension of the Indigenous people, it seemed to me, was well guarded, and few non-Indigenous people were given the opportunity of coming into contact with this Astral zone.

After the historical welcome to country at Parliament’s opening the other day, followed by the apology, it seems to me that there has been a loosening of this Astral guard. It is now easier for non-Indigenous Australians to interact with this part of the Astral sphere of Australia.

Of course, the great majority of Australians will have little interest in or awareness of such things. A new generation of Australians will come to maturity taking this loosening for granted. But let those who see and know work constructively within this newly loosened astral framework, in a spirit of respect and cooperation, to co-create a future worthy of our 60,000 years or more of human history.

And what has Captain Logan got to do with this? In my view, our Indigenous Brothers and Sisters have always had our welfare at heart, in spite of the atrocities heaped upon them by the authorities. We modern non-indigenous Australians are, by and large, the prisoners and dupes of those in power, and our own thirst for money and knick knacks that fill our lives with emptiness. Many Indigenous people, through their generosity of heart, I believe, have recognised this. Will the apology be like that spear which dispatched the tyrant Logan, and set us, the sons and daughters of convicts, free from the scourges that rake our collective soul? I sincerely hope that it will be so.

I have just been watching the coverage of the apology, by the Parliament of Australia, to the stolen generations, and their familes – the indigenous children, many now elderly or deceased,  who were taken forcibly from their families during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, as late as the early seventies. It has affected me very deeply, and I am quite emotional about it – I can only immagine how indigenous Australians might be feeling at this time. It is overwhelmingly a positive step, and an historic occasion, and I only hope that we as a nation are able to live up to its promise and challenge. In my opinion, one of the most inspiring speakers wasn’t Kevin Rudd, or Brendan Nelson, but the Elder from Uluru who commented that now that the welcome to country had been performed at the opening of parliament, the energy had shifted. No longer colonizers, the newcomers to this country have become welcomed guests.

As many commentators pointed out, it is a beginning, and one which has been long overdue in my opinion. During the last decade, I have had to hang my head in shame on numerous occasions about being Australian. When I have heard the previous lot of politicians speaking about aboriginal issues, and promulgating their policies, and equally with respect to immigrants, both legally sanctioned and otherwise, and many other issues, I have often felt repulsed and ashamed that my country would be so inhumane, uncaring, and ignorant. Today, I feel proud to call myself Australian, and hope with all my heart and soul that today’s sentiments and optimism translate into tangible benefits for future generations of Australians, indigenous and non-indigenous.

How likely is this to occur? Well, we live in a democracy, so the overall driver of this change is the will of the people. In this case the will of the people has been marshalled and built and shared through grass roots movements for change over many decades, and has finally made this moment possible. While this will remains strong and alive, our leaders must take notice.

From an esoteric perspetive, the date of the apology can be viewed as significant. While not able to give an astrological analysis, I can make some comments on the numerological significance. The overall birth number is 1+3+2+2+0+0+8=16=7. The seven vibration, being associated with Saturn, indicates to me that there is much hidden from view that is still to make its way to the surface. The number also carries, to me, the vibration of a dream, whose practical implementation is not clearly discernible. The fullfillment and implementation of this dream depends on tuning into intuition and spiritual consciousness, and cannot be achieved by reason and logic alone. A subsidiary vibration is the number 13=4 from the date of the month. This provides a strong material vibration, indicating that a path forward through practical matters, and material concerns is favoured. Matthew Goodwin in “Numerology, the Complete Guide, Vol 1”, (Newcastle Publishing Company Inc, North Hollywood, 1981) has this to say about a 13 birthday, “Good organizer, manager, but may dominate and irritate others”, “Serious, sincere, persevering”, and “Concentrates on details, often misses the big picture”. This indicates a need to listen, particularly to indigenous people, and to work hard at establishing an attitude of equality and respect. This has yet to be achieved, and the signs are that this is a blind-spot on the part of the government in the process that has been set in motion. We can be re-assured, however, that in spite of this shortcoming, the current government is participating in good faith in the process. The beaurocratic process, by its nature, concentrates on details and minutiae, but the big picture, of moving forward in mutual respect and understanding to build a positive future for all, respecting culture and difference, must not be forgotten. The people will therefore have to constantly remind the government of this big picture, and that they must listen to and show respect to the voice of indigenous Australians in order for today’s beginnings to grow to their full potential.

The combination of the seven and the four is propitious, as the practicality of the four complements the intuition and vision of the seven. However the four and the seven need to learn how to communicate and respect each other to avoid problems. We saw a manifestation of this failing in the way that Brendan Nelson managed to put many indigenous attendees and supporters off-side during his speech by insensitively referring to the “good intentions” which motivated the removal of aboriginal children, by talking about the sacrifices made by non-indigenous pioneers to bring us the wealth and prosperity enjoyed today, and by mentioning the sacrifices of war veterans. This demonstrated a lack of the “seven” intuition and insight which would have alerted him to how insensitive these comments would appear. The same lack was demonstrated in Kevin Rudd’s speech who laid down firm goals for getting every indigenous four year old into pre-school, without a corresponding comitment to indigenously sensitive, culturally relevant, and community-managed education, displaying the dogmatic and over bearing tendency of the 13=4  energy.

Overall, the prognosis is positive, and a seismic shift for the better has occurred. Australia will be a different and improved place from this point forward. I think that February 13^th should become a new day of national celebration, one that all Australians can celebrate without rancour or ill-will. Its celebration each year should prompt the country to reflect on the tangible progress made towards reconciliation on an annual basis. However the people must be vigilant. The major pitfall as always, is that the most important voices, those of indigenous people, will not be heard, and more importantly, listened to, and responded to.