We live with death everyday, but we don’t always recognize it. In this video I discuss not just the obvious examples of death, but the subtle nuances as well. I also share some of my previous near death experiences and how they have lead to different rebirth experiences.
The Saturnic power of weaving and unweaving reality
Recently I created a magical painting dedicated to Saturn. when I created it I worked with the wet and dry alchemical essences of lead. It was a powerful magical working, but what happened as a result of that working was even more intriguing and powerful in its own right. I was given the opportunity to take a peek behind the curtains and I got a very different perspective of the interweaving of reality and possibility.
When many people think of Saturn as a planetary energy to work with they think of it in terms of limitations and specifically how obstacles, boundaries, and limitations can get in the way of a person’s journey to achieving specific results. Or perhaps they consider the artful application of limitations and how those limitations can actually be used to create a refined and focused magical work that gets specific results. Certainly these aspects of Saturnic work are true and the planetary energy of Saturn can be worked with in that way.
Fear as the seed of potential in your life
When you think of the experience of fear, or feel the experience of fear, what comes to mind or feeling? I can’t speak for you, but what I’ve learned to do over the years is embrace fear. It isn’t always easy, but it is always empowering, because when I embrace my fear, I’m no longer letting it dictate my existence, but instead using it to motivate and drive me.
The depiction of fear, when it’s not horror movies, is that fear paralyzes us or causes us to run and hide from what we’re afraid of (for that matter, its the same in horror movies). But if we take a different approach to fear, one where we recognize how fear can be a useful ally and helper in our quest to deal with the circumstances that come into our lives then we can change how we handle fear.
A meditation on centers and life
One of the books I’m reading right now is The Phenomenon of Life (affiliate link) by Christopher Alexander. It’s a book about the art of building, but its really much more than that. It’s about the appreciation of life and how life shows up in the spaces we navigate and create. One of the concepts the authors talk about is how a given space is defined by its center and how there are actually different centers in a given space that all play off of and define each other.
What this discussion of Center has made me aware of is how in touch I am with my awareness of what my center is, physically, spiritually, and mentally. At the same time, I’m aware that even my perception of the center is governed by how that word is defined. Alexander makes the point that any space is made up of multiple centers. There is no one center so much as many centers and they all combine to shape the experience of a space.
Timing and results
How to factor timing into your results and how to adjust and adapt.
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Perception, filters, and how to divine
In the magical experiments facebook group, one of the members observed that they get better results with divination when they provide themselves a map/model that allows them to filter their perception. The benefit of doing this filtration is that it allows the person to focus in on the information that is relevant, while excluding information that might be a distraction. The question that arises is: Is this the best possible way to get the most out of one’s perception of information, using divination?
It’s an interesting question to ask, especially when considering the medium through which you’re getting the information. Any divination system is already providing a filtering of sorts, because of the limitations that come with that system. If you use a pendulum, you only have so many directions that it can move and only so much information it can provide. With more advanced systems such as runes or tarot cards, more information is available, but there are still limitations because of what is presented, as well as what isn’t presented. And of course there’s another limitation often ignored, but very relevant to this question.
An example of how Retroactive Magic works
I thought I would share a practical example of how retroactive magic works. This example pertains to the recent move I made at the end of 2018. In 2018 my family and I lived in a duplex. I had lived there for a decade and most of the time it was a pleasant living experience, but we had new neighbors move in in 2018 and they were the kind of neighbors who were loud and unpleasant to be around, and seemed to lack any awareness of how their actions were impacting our sleep or overall quality of life.
The question I had to consider was what could be done. On the one hand, I liked living in the place and had a lot of good memories. On the other hand, my land lord was powerless to do anything, even when issues were pointed out that demonstrated that the neighbors weren’t honoring the agreement of their lease. The laws around evictions favor the tenants even in cases where its clear the tenants are not honoring the agreement that’s been made. When it became clear the neighbors weren’t going to be evicted I began to consider what else I could about this situation.
Can you physically change the past?
Recently I was asked if you could physically change the past with space/time magic. The person specifically brought up a technique I mentioned in Space/Time Magic, where you can influence your past self via a meditation technique in order to guide and influence that past self.
Throughout my life I’ve had moments where I’ve encountered a future version of myself that gave me advice or pushed me in a specific direction or warned me away from a direction I might have gone down. I know when I’ve followed that advice/push or pull in a specific direction its generally worked out in my favor, but it does create an intriguing question.
Was I interacting with my future self or with a version of my future self, or what?
Space/Time Magic Foundations is now Available
Sometimes you just have to let go
Recently I binge watched the last season of 12 Monkeys and as a result I had this dream of a time paradox I was trying to solve and every time I thought I solved it, it would change and I would try to solve it again. Finally I came to a point where I realized it couldn't be solved and that the only solution was to let go. Yet it was such a hard decision, because letting go went counter to everything telling me I could solve this time paradox. But the longer I kept trying to solve something the harder it was.
So eventually I let go. I stopped trying to solve the time paradox, the problem, and just moved on. And when I did that, the dream ended. The stress went away. The problem was solved.
The Problem with Prescience: How Observer Effect muddies up the water
I was recently re-reading Dune Messiah and what fascinated me about the book is how the character relies on prescience to direct his actions, but also how he recognizes that prescience can be problematic. With prescience the character is always scanning the possibilities and trying to choose the best path forward, but the very path becomes the trap that takes away all his choices.
In my own spiritual practice I've used a variety of tools that can have prescient applications. Those tools include Tarot cards, writing, and collages. I've also used meditation as a way to access prescient probabilities.
Eligos and Boundaries
Recently a friend of mine observed that in the last couple of months I had various situations come up where I needed to express and enforce boundaries for myself, my community, and other assorted issues. After she made that observation I thought about it and I realized that for me the work with boundaries had really started in November with my month long spiritual retreat (and work with Eligos).
And if you do a little research into Eligos, it makes a lot of sense. Eligos is a Daemon of writing and of time and both writing and time are in some ways very much about boundaries. When you write something you are defining what it is and what it is not. You are creating a very specific reality with your words (though the reality is open to interpretation). And with time, particularly linear time, you have a concise placement of temporal boundaries which is used to measure time and define it. Actually this can apply to non-linear time as well, in the creation of the rhythm and cycles of non-linear time.
A lot of my work with Eligos has ultimately been around boundaries. When we first started working together he told me I needed to take a break from my regular routines of writing and in retrospect my regular routines of time. In taking that break, I had the opportunity to really explore what I want my boundaries of writing and time to be and not too surprisingly I changed those boundaries, but in a way that really empowered me. Before I'd been working around other people's schedules far more than I wanted to be and what Eligos demanded of me was that I really look at that aspect of my life and make changes that allowed me to define my time and writing on my own schedule.
And since then, in various ways, large and small, boundaries have come up. And each time they've come up, the challenge has been around getting very clear on what is in my life and what I need in my life to be doing the work I've been called to do. What Eligos is really helping me see is that the boundaries I have in my life are in place in order to protect my time and space. And that protection is helping me be a lot more creative and productive...and much happier than I've ever been.
Part of successful space/time magic is the ability to set up boundaries of space and time with your working. One can argue that space and time in and of themselves are boundaries and that's true, yet in working with them I find that if I want to manifest a specific space in my life I need to get clear on what space is and isn't. The same applies to time. If I want to manifest a possibility at a specific time, I need to claim that time, define it and make it part of the magical work I'm doing.
By defining the boundaries you also open yourself to working with possibilities contained in those boundaries and what can be surprising is what possibilities you discover. While a boundary is a limitation, what it includes in the limit is what possible in the context of the boundary. The boundary provides you the context to realize those possibilities through your magical work.
How to turn Zero into your spiritual ally and secret weapon
Last week I posted a video on how to work with Zero as a principle of space/time magic. However Zero is more than just a principle of space/time magic. Zero is a state of being. And Zero is a process. Zero is razor edged. It'll slice you up if you're not careful, and sometimes even if you are...
So why would you want to work with Zero?
Here's a secret you won't find in most books on magic. What makes magic work is what you put into it. All those spells you read about, with the incense, candles, etc....you know they only really work if you're willing to give yourself to what you're working with. And by giving yourself I mean putting something of yourself into the working to make it happen. If you hold back in some way, well that's when magic doesn't work. And Zero can teach you that because zero is infinite possibility, but more importantly Zero is a state of being that requires an investment of sorts from someone who works with it to turn it from one state of being into a different state of being.
With Zero what you have is a fundamental departure from the normal boundaries of space and time. As I explain in my Space/Time Foundations course (The next round is starting February 17th), the invocation of Zero puts you outside of linear time and space and as a result allows you to work with the infinite possibilities contained within it. But the infinite possibilities are seductive and its easy to get caught up in the lure of those possibilities without actually doing anything. The present themselves before you and can suck you right into them. Your challenge as a magician is to make a choice to turn the Possibilities of Zero into the Manifestation of One.
You have to learn to work with Zero first. Zero can come in many forms. It can be invoked through sound or experienced as a meditative state of stillness or brought about through pushing your limits so that you reach a place of sublime perfection where everything is crystalline clear and perfect, making sense in a way that defies description and yet nonetheless comes together seamlessly. That's the temptation and brilliance of Zero. Yet for Zero to become something more than just possibility, it relies on something essential that it lacks.
What does Zero need?
You and the principle of embodiment you represent. Actually that's true of the spirits in general. The reason they work with us (another secret you won't find in most books on magic) is because what we offer is a taste of the manifested world when we invest ourselves in the work we do with them. You can't turn a possibility into reality without a means of embodying that possibility and so the magician must act as the agent of embodiment. What the embodiment does is limit the possibility into tangible reality, something to be experienced in the linear space and time we are all part of.
With Zero you experience the infinite possibilities as a stream of consciousness, a flow of experience that allows you to open yourself to what could be. Then you pick what you need from what could be and you bring that into yourself and provide it the embodiment, the manifestation it needs to be more than just a possibility. Pretty amazing really.
You must have discipline to turn Zero into One, to turn away from the sublime perfection of entropy you experience and limit it into something you can work with in the reality of life. You give of yourself by choosing the possibility, because at that you've committed to it and made it part of your experience. That's really how magic works in general. It's so simple and yet so often people make it more complex. They add in lots of tedious details that keep you from really experiencing magic. And don't get me wrong those details can be helpful, but more often than not they end up becoming a distraction.
Zero can change that for you, become your spiritual ally and secret weapon where you strip away everything that isn't needed and get back to the pure simplicity of simply investing yourself in what you want to turn into a possibility. What Zero wants is that investment. You want it to, or you wouldn't be practicing magic. What Zero can do is show you how to make that investment by turning it into the 1 of manifestation and building from there.
Magical Experiments Radio: What is Inner Alchemy with Vincent Piazza
Magical Experiments Radio: The Mysteries of Avalon with Annwyn Avalon Obermeyer
Magical Experiments Radio: What is Atheo-Paganism with John Halstead
Magical Experiments Radio: Pop Culture Magic Panel with Terra Ahkert and Samantha Chaney
Book Review: Captain Z-Ro's Indispensable Book of Days by Bill Whitcomb
If you're a SF geek or a Fantasy nerd or a pop culture magician, this book is an indispensable resource for you. The author has put together a calendar/book of notable in SF/Fantasy as well as some other interesting finds within the book that you'll enjoy. This book made me smile a number of times and is one I recommend for the fantasy and SF geek in your home.
Book Review: Language Intelligence: Lessons on Persuasion from Jesus, Shakespeare, Lincoln, and Lady Gaga by Joseph Romm
If you are a writer or a presenter or someone just interested in understanding how language works, this book is a must read. In this book the author shares the rhetorical strategies of politicians and entertainers and show how these strategies are used to get fans, persuade people to causes, and otherwise influence how we think about the issues in our world. Reading this book was eye-opening for me and has helped change how I write as a result. If you want to become a better writer then read this book and keep it as a resource to draw on in your work.
Stillness in Space and Time
One of the practices I associate with space/time magic that other people have shared is how they've created a distinct space separate from mundane reality, in which to do magical work. Now, it could be argued that casting a circle is exactly that, but I'm actually referring to techniques specifically designed to remove a person from their participation in space and time. One technique that both William G. Gray and R. J. Stewart share involves using sound to create a sphere of art. The practitioner vocalizes the vowels O A I. Each vowel is associated with a form of stillness. The O stills your sense of time, moving it from a linear perspective to a holistic, cyclical, spiral perspective. The A stills your sense of space, expanding it from a contracted linear experience to an expanded non-linear awareness. The I stills your sense of movement, getting you to slow down and just be with your expanded sense of space and time. Doing this technique shifts you from linear time and space to a rarified sacred time and space.
In Dzogchen, the cultivation of Zhine, a meditative state of stillness, leads to a similar state of awareness. As you still yourself and your thoughts, you enters into a place of hyper awareness that goes beyond the physical and ventures into the spiritual, or at least I do. In Zhine, I feel as if I can see all these possibilities around me. the goal isn't necessarily to do anything and it could be said the possibilities are a distraction, but experiencing them is similar to what I experience with the OAI.
I find it interesting to examine these two techniques which are distinctly different from each in terms of how the state of stillness is reached, as well as culturally, and are also different from each other in terms of the desired result. Yet nonetheless it seems that both of these techniques take a person to a similar state of consciousness. However with that said, I think its important to honor each technique and so when I do Zhine work and cultivate stillness, I'm not necessarily doing it to access possibilities so much as be present with them. And when I do the OAI and set up the Sphere of Art I'm doing to commune with my spiritual contacts and sometimes for the purpose of manifesting possibilities into reality.
Stillness plays an integral role in my space/time work. It's within stillness that possibilities can be fully explored. Stillness is the 0 of space/time, the potential for everything. The potential of stillness is changed when you chose to manifest a possibility. At that point you shift from stillness into movement, for movement is what is needed to turn potential into reality. Yet I would argue stillness is a profound state and that what it can teach us is the importance of not taking action too quickly, but instead really being present with the possibilities and exploring the consequences and results of realization. By learning to still ourselves, we expose ourselves to the gift of making a choice from a place of proactive awareness instead of from reaction. When you are ready to move, you move yourself knowingly, to achieve results that are consistent with what you want for your life, as opposed to just solving a problem that has come up in your life.
Magical Experiments podcast Interview with Sara Star about Kitchen Alchemy and traditional witchcraft.
Space/Time Magic Foundations Round 3 starts in one Week
Round 3 of Space/Time Magic starts on July 8th.
Space/Time Magic is the expression of possibility upon reality, the shaping of linear space and time through non-linear means, if you know how to work with space and time as elements of magic.
In this 24 lesson class, we will explore the fundamentals of space/time magic, specifically how space and time can be integrated into your magical process as distinct principles and elements. If you are looking for a different approach to magical work that integrates the elements of space and time into magical practice, then this class is for you. You will learn the following:
- How to define space and time and why such definitions can be use for magical work.
- What the Foundational practices and processes unique to space/time magic work are.
- How to work with memory, imagination, movement, and stillness as principles of space/time magic work.
- How to create and work with multiple aspects of yourself.
- What deities and entities are associated with space/time magic
- And much, much more.
Whether you've just started practicing magic or have years of experience, this class will teach you the fundamentals of space/time magic work, and how to access and turn possibilities into reality.
Testimonials
The Space/Time Correspondence Course extends our perception to see Time and Space as essential elements in magical works. It provides us wide variety of practical techniques and ideas, all of them will be great aids for our own experiments. The whole course is like a fascinating tool-box for anyone interested in the Magic of Space and Time. -- Yutaka Furuki
Taylor Ellwood's Space Time Magic course has given me a new perspective on what Space-Time is beyond the fabric of our reality. One of the incredible ways I've been able to utilize this knowledge is in relation to healing while re-writing (in effect) a past circumstance from 7th grade in which I wasn't able to speak my voice and be heard. Through Taylor's practiced ideas of retroactive magic I journeyed back to that time and break the hold that time period had on that part of my life. I also took advantage of his knowledge and work with sigils and how it can transform, flowing from moment to moment. It gave me opportunities to work with my art skills in a new way. Beyond that one portion of the course, Taylor's frequent teleclass opportunities to talk with him provide another beneficial platform to share your experiences and get answers in real time from him. This class is more than worth what you would invest into it. I wholly recommend it! -- Erik Roth
How to Register
The Investment for this class is $100. If you want to understand how to integrate space and time into your magical practice and achieve better results in your magical work, this class is for you.
Space/Time Foundations Round 3 starts on July 8th
Space/Time Magic is the expression of possibility upon reality, the shaping of linear space and time through non-linear means, if you know how to work with space and time as elements of magic.
In this 24 lesson class, we will explore the fundamentals of space/time magic, specifically how space and time can be integrated into your magical process as distinct principles and elements. If you are looking for a different approach to magical work that integrates the elements of space and time into magical practice, then this class is for you. You will learn the following:
- How to define space and time and why such definitions can be use for magical work.
- What the Foundational practices and processes unique to space/time magic work are.
- How to work with memory, imagination, movement, and stillness as principles of space/time magic work.
- How to create and work with multiple aspects of yourself.
- What deities and entities are associated with space/time magic
- And much, much more.
Here's a testimonial from one of the previous students who has taken the class:
Taylor Ellwood's Space Time Magic course has given me a new perspective on what Space-Time is beyond the fabric of our reality. One of the incredible ways I've been able to utilize this knowledge is in relation to healing while re-writing (in effect) a past circumstance from 7th grade in which I wasn't able to speak my voice and be heard. Through Taylor's practiced ideas of retroactive magic I journeyed back to that time and break the hold that time period had on that part of my life. I also took advantage of his knowledge and work with sigils and how it can transform, flowing from moment to moment. It gave me opportunities to work with my art skills in a new way. Beyond that one portion of the course, Taylor's frequent teleclass opportunities to talk with him provide another beneficial platform to share your experiences and get answers in real time from him. This class is more than worth what you would invest into it. I wholly recommend it! -- Erik Roth
To learn more about this class and sign up go here.
The Present is the Point of Power
I'm re-reading The Nature of Personal Reality by Jane Roberts and the spirit of Seth, which she channeled. I don't recall when I read the original book, only that it was sometime back in the 2000s. In reading the book now I'm struck by how much it focuses on two areas of interests I have, working with the body as a magical tool and space/time magic. I'm going to focus on the latter and specifically on a statement made in the book, "The Present is the Point of Power." It's worth spending some time considering that statement as it relates to space/time magic, but also how we conceive of the present.
The present is the moment we are experiencing, in a linear sense, as a sense of "now", but the present is also comprised of all your past experiences, beliefs, attitudes etc., and yet it is also what enables us to change what we gain from the past. Seth points out that what you believe about your past is what you get from it and what contributes to what you make of the present. While this might seem like self-evident advice, I think its a useful point to consider in relationship to retroactive magic and space/time magic in general.
Memories are shaped by belief. If you have a negative belief about yourself, then you'll find memories to justify that belief. Likewise if you have a positive belief, you'll find memories to support that belief. If you want to change memories, part of what you need to change about them is the underlying attitude and belief that you've invested in yourself. Your present sense of self is shaped by your memories and what you tell yourself about who you are. Conversely your present shapes your memories as well, so that if we want to change the sense of self and what we identify with, then we should look toward changing the memories we pick or creating entirely new ones and inserting them into the past as events that have actually happened.
Memory is part of imagination and so it is not impossible to create a memory. We imagine memories all the time. We might call them fantasies or daydreams or whatever else, but they can be memories. Imagine yourself as a younger person doing an activity, or spending time with someone, and in that memory insert the new beliefs and values you wish to have. Then insert that memory into your past among other memories, allowing it to spread the beliefs and values into the other memories, changing what occurred so that the present and your sense of self is also changed.
Our sense of time is static, but the actual experience of time is fluid and if we know this then the present does become the point of power because we aren't constrained by false linearity, but rather recognize that any given moment can become the present through the use of imagination and memory. When we insert a memory into the past or change an existing one, what is being changed is the identity of the person. You may discover new possibilities in the present as a result or look at your experiences with a new perspective about yourself and others that helps you navigate situations you are in. When we take charge of the present and use it to change the past, when we recognize that our experiences aren't set in stone, but can be shaped by what we invest in them, we unlock the potential of imagination and memory to be more than just something that we fantasize or remember. We become what we identify with and use that to discover what we can become.
Space/Time Vibration Magic
In my system of space/time magic, vibration plays an integral role in the manipulation of possibility into reality. I see vibration as an integration of time into space, wherein space is the palette or medium through which time is expressed. In my magical work, I've integrated vibratory work in a lot of what I do, with the idea being that different types of vibrations can be used for specific purposes. For example, when I do my invocation of the element I'm working with, I vibrate a specific sound that is used to channel the element both inward and outward. It vibrates inward through my physical and spiritual being, attuning me to the elemental force, even as it vibrates outward, aligning the environment around me with that same energy to create a field of elemental energy that brings that element into my reality and the experiences I have with it.
I've found a similar practice in Dzogchen, albeit done for a different purpose than my own. In Tibetan Sound Healing, the author explains that vibration practices are used to clear the space of a person of the internal blockages, desire, etc that obscure the person from reaching a state of stillness. In my own experiences with Zhine, which is a stillness practice of Dzogchen, I've noticed how being still initially brings to my awareness the desires, worries, etc. that come up in my life. I've actually used Zhine as a meditation for space/time work by using what's brought up during the stillness practice as a form of possibility exploration, but in the book I mentioned above, the author also includes certain vibratory practices that are used to attune the internal energies of the practitioner to the space of stillness, while clearing out the distractions. The author explains the following:
"You connect to the clear space because the energy and emotion that you brought to consciousness has been released. When the block dissipates, you feel some space. That space is something you want to recognize. You want to recognize and abide or rest in that space without changing anything." As you can see reaching this state of awareness is really about being still and not doing anything...just being. Doing anything brings back the attachment or blockage.
To clear the space, involves the vibration of specific sounds. For example, the sound A is vibrated in order to attune the practitioner to the space and clear out blockages from your inner energy and the environment around you. I've started doing this vibratory work in conjunction with my Zhine practice and what I found is that it brought a clarity of being to the experience of Zhine, a deeper being with stillness, because the sound opened me up to that space of being. When I do the Ahh sound and infuse it with vibration it opens the mind up, deepens the state of stillness and the awareness of possibilities.
Now in my work with space/time magic, a lot of the focus has shifted to identity work. And how all that connects to this vibration work is that by opening yourself up that state of stillness, that space of being, what you also open yourself up to is the experience of possibility. The choice to become a possibility moves you from a state of 0, of being, to a state of 1, of doing, reintegrating into linear time and space with the possibility as the new reality. This approach is admittedly different from the person of abiding in a state of stillness, but if we're serious about space/time magic then I think the exploration of vibration to achieve a state of stillness, where all possibilities are experienced and then choosing one can be quite useful. What this also illustrates is how a given system of practice can be adapted and applied in ways the originators wouldn't have used it. I know that my application of Zhine and the vibratory practices doesn't align with the stated purpose of the practice in Dzogchen, so I wouldn't call what I'm doing Dzogchen, so much as a derivation I've devised that utilizes the practice as a from of space/time magic work. As I continue to learn the vibratory practices, I'll see what else develops, but I already think that the vibrations could not only help you reach a space of altered consciousness, but also use that state to sync yourself to the specific possibility you want to manifest.
The Name of the Spider Queen
When I started doing research for Magical Identity, specifically for the space/time magical work, and I read Oryelle's book, a Brief Hirstory of Time, I encountered the Spider as an aspect of time magic, and considered the entity to be the spider queen of time. I never really asked her for a name and she seemed pretty content not to share one, but recently I felt an urge to ask her if there was a name I could use. I feel that this sudden urge was an indicator that the relationship was ready to progress further, so I decided to follow through on that urge and see what would happen.
One thing I wanted to be aware of as I decided to follow through on this urge was making sure that I was receptive to the name. I didn't want the mythologies around spiders to confuse the issue and have me think the name was something it might not be. This was a challenge for me because I am aware of several mythologies and for that matter fantasy books, where there are spider entities with names. That awareness created its own challenge, in that I knew I needed to be really present with the spider queen, while also being aware of preconceptions I could bring into the encounter.
When I did the meditation, I used the painting included in this post as the focus. The painting was inspired by my contact with the spider queen and so I knew it would help me in being present with her. I first did some stillness work, to clear my mind, still my emotions and center myself. Then I focused on the painting and called to her, asking her if I could have an audience. She responded and agreed I could.
I asked her if there was a name I could call her. "Isn't the Spider Queen of Time sufficient?" she asked. I explained the urge I'd felt and a recognition as well that if I was going to be teaching classes that involved her, it might make it easier for the people to have a name. She mulled this over and and asked, "What do you think my name is?" Immediately I started thinking of the names of the mythological beings, but they didn't feel right. She wasn't those beings and as she felt my thought she added her own 2 cents and told me that those names didn't feel right to her either. So instead of thinking of names, I meditated on her and on the web of space and time and what came to me through the vibrations of the web was a sense of Tempo, of pacing, which made sense, because she creates the web and sets the pace, but Tempo wasn't quite right either, so as I listened further what I heard was Tempora.
It felt right. She responded to it, liked it...said that fits me, describes me, is me. Naming is power. Naming is magic, and so she let me name her Tempora. The Spider Queen of time is Tempora. And now I call her that in my daily devotions and there is a deeper sense of connection as a result. Tempora.
My Work with Vine
Recently I worked with Vine (pronounced Vinea - long a). He's another of the goetia that focuses on space/time magic. In the Goetia, the description of him is that he appears in the from of lion, riding a black horse, beating a viper. His functions include discovering things hidden, witches, wizards, and things in the past, present, and to come. He is also apparently a builder and can cause sea storms. You can see his seal, above, which I recently painted, as part of the work I did with him.
When I first contacted Vine, I did an invocation, where I memorized his sigil and then chanted his name. The chant was set up where I'd mentally say his name thrice, then whisper it thrice, then say it louder thrice, and so on and so forth. I did about three iterations where I mentally said his name and brought it up to a shot and then back again to mentally saying the name and building up to the shout. On the third time, the sigil disappeared and in its place he appeared in the classic form ascribed to him in the Goetia. I asked him how he could work with me, especially as related to space/time magic.
Vine discovers and aligns hidden possibilities in other people with the magician he works with. In other words, He draws other people to the magician by aligning their probabilities with the magician so that they are more likely to encounter the magician. It's an interesting and unusual approach to time magic because it's not directly focused on the magician, but rather is indirect and focuses more on setting up opportunities for the magician through the people s/he meets.
I started working with Vine in mid March and so I've had some time to work with him and see if this particular take on time magic works. It appears like it is working because I've had a higher number of people show up in my life with opportunities that were beneficial for all involved. When I work with Vine, I make it very clear that I want to connect with people, where the connection will be beneficial for all involved. I prefer such interactions because everyone wins and because it allows for the cultivation of long term relationships. In my particular case, I've noticed that a number of business opportunities came into fruition involving people I just met, and I also noticed I was able to make some good connections in the occult community, both in terms of magical practice and publishing. What stands out to me in both cases, is that the numbers have been higher than usual and the connections have sought me out as opposed to me needing to do anything. In my system of space/time magic, Vine fits in as a guardian of time as it relates making temporal connections between people.