One of the books I’m reading lately is King, Warrior, Magician, Lover by Robert Moore and Doug Gillette. It’s a fascinating book that explores the archetypes of the mature and sacred masculine. This is currently part of the spiritual work that I’m engaged in as I explore my own relationship with masculinity and heal the ancestoral and contemporary wounds that I’m becoming aware of as it relates to how masculinity is treated and perceived in modern times.
One of the aspects I’m exploring in particular is related to sacred kingship and the land. I am in the process of exploring the new city and surrounding areas that I live in. While I’ve lived here for a year, I didn’t have much opportunity until recently to really begin exploring the area and developing a relationship with the land. I find it fitting and useful that part of the process has also involved cultivating a relationship with the land, particularly on the basis of the relationship has with their home and how that relationship plays out in sacromagical work one does in connecting with the land.
Have you ever wondered what the benefits of working with a given astrological system could be for your magical work? Or have you wanted to do more work with celestial magic but asked how you could do it?
In this episode I share some of my own experiences with Celestial magic, including how I work with astrological currents, as well as the magic of the planets and stars.
I’ve been taking a number of classes lately around men’s work and self-development and in one of the classes, there’s an exercise where you define your code of conduct, as a part of a process of learning how to master yourself and become the man you want to be. I think this exercise is applicable to anyone regardless of how they identify as a gender. What’s fascinating to me however is how the rules a person lives by (or lack thereof) define the magic that the person works, and indeed how the person surveys and experiences the world.
I’ve also been reading a book about this same topic where the author defines some rules to live by, so as to bring order to a chaotic life. The rules he shares are insightful because they aren’t moral rules so much as they are practical rules that define the way people tend to organize themselves, both within themselves, with other people, and with the environment they live in. This illustrates to me that there are chosen rules, i.e. rules where a person says I’m agreeing to live this way because this rule or value resonates with my deepest identity and I want to consciously show up with that way in my live. And then there are systemic rules, rules set by society at large that may favor some people over others and encourage a conformity in order to potentially benefit from your position. And finally there are environmental rules, which are rules that operate outside of human consciousness or control. These are rules all of us deal with and they aren’t easily altered, if they can be altered at all.
A life that operates without rules is a chaotic life, a situational response that always tries to adapt to the moment, but creates little, if any, stability. I have lived that life and I have found it to be an unsatisfying life, because there is little certainty or consistency that comes with it. Over time, with lots of effort, I’ve reoriented my life toward living a more orderly life. And even now I am continuing that process because I find that the more I define my life by rules that make sense and organize my way of being, the more focused I get with creating the life I want to live.
The rules we live by define the magic we work. As you get more and more clear around your life and the rules you live by, it shapes your outlook on your life and it shapes the magic you work. It creates the container in which your life operates, and the expectations you have around that container. Some of those rules are consciously chosen, and many of them are unconsciously chosen. The ones that are unconsciously chosen usually arrive from a combination of ancestral and familial patterns of behavior and societal norms and values. The rules that we consciously choose are ones we pick for ourselves based on an awareness around something we want to change in our lives or a way we want to behave in the world, in order to achieve specific results.
Magic is one process that can make us aware of the rules we’ve unconsciously chosen because it brings us up close and personal with our desires and it allows us to see what’s getting in the way of accomplishing those desires. Many people use magic to bend the rules of reality or find some angle that gets them what they want, but in that process they necessarily ought to take a moment to know themselves and discover what is it within them that is calling for that desire.
Sometimes what we discover is that we create rules for ourselves based around our shadows. For example, if you find yourself in a consistent situation where you are continually getting rejected by people around you, there is likely something within you that craves something about that rejection. You might find that statement odd, but consider that the rejection is a symptom of a homeostatic state of being which is comfortably uncomfortable. You know that state of being. It is familiar to you and there are no surprises to it. It ends with you being rejected, but at least you know to expect that. The problem is that leads you to settling for less.
You can only break this rule when you figure out what you getting from it that satisfies you. And you are getting some kind of satisfaction, even if it is the satisfaction of feeling comfortable with the situation, even though you don’t like it. It becomes a rule of your life, until you break it, and make a new rule, a consciously chosen rule, that you live by. Of course there can also be subtle variations of the former rule and what you’ll need to do is a deep dive into these variations and iron them out and in the process change your relationship with yourself and the agreements you’re making with the universe.
The rules we live be define the magic we work and the results we get. What are the rules you are living by? What are the results you’re getting. If you’re not satisfied with them, it might be time to do some deep work around transforming them so you can also change your life.
I share my latest experiment with divination and discuss the protocols of the experiment.
I discuss how to attune yourself to the spiral of time so you can connect with events in the past and future and bring them into the present in order to shape and manifest your life.
Picture copyright Taylor Ellwood 2023
I was recently asked a question about the memory box tool, which I’ve shared in my book Magical Identity, and how it’s created and can be worked with. This prompted me to follow through on a decision I had made a while back: Namely to offer the Memory Box as a magical Tool for sale. To get a memory box from me, click the button below. I’m also going to describe how it can be worked with below.
I created the memory box to be a physical representation and aide for working with the web of space and time. The web of space and time is an intersection of nodal space points and trajectories of time which bring possibilities through those nodal space points. The memory box serves as an interface for accessing the web of space and time, but it also has a few other functions that may be of interest to someone who wants to work space/time magic with it.
To access the web of space and time, place your hands on the sides of the box, with the thumbs touching the interior of the box. The lid needs to be open. You can stare at the web glyph I’ve created on the lid or in the box itself and use it as a visual guide to access the web. You may also wish to call on whatever spirits you work with that are space/time spirits to help you navigate the web of space and time. I can also provide a list of said spirits when I send you the box.
Nodal space points are people, places, things, events…nouns. The trajectories of time are the lines of time that go through the nodal space points. When you work with the web you occupy a given nodal space point and if you want to change your identity or move to another nodal space point you use the lines of time to move you to a different nodal point.
I’ve used the web of space and time to help me shift my identity from one point of identity to another identity. This has been a helpful practice at different moments of my life, where I really wanted to shift to a new point of space and time and leave the one that was no longer working for me behind. For example I used the web of space/time to help me with the process of moving to a new city. More recently, in conjunction with my self-love practice I’ve been using the web of space and time to help me manifest opportunities that move me toward creating the life I truly want to live. This is helping me making changes in my career, life, relationships, etc.
One of the other ways I use the memory box is to store physical items to saturate them with chronal energy. I place the items in the memory box and allow it to take in the energies of the web of space and time. These items could be photographs, or small jewelry or whatever else and you can then use them in your space/time magic workings.
I also have stored memories in the box, like in Harry Potter, the Pensieve, using the memory box as a battery for those memories, but also as a way to clear out whatever I don’t need or to store raw information away for when I want to draw on it. In one sense the memory box can become a physical representation of your mansion of memory.
I’ve also used the memory box to cultivate closer relationships with spirits by storing their sigils in the box. You can use the memory box for a variety of different purposes. It’s only limitation is your imagination and what purpose you apply it for. If you’re interested in getting one for yourself, click the button below.
I have used Essentialism to help me transform the way I live my life. I share some of the ways I’ve been applying essentialism to my life and how this is translating over to my spiritual and magical practices. I also share why essentialism has really empowered me to let go of needless complexity in my life.
I share why your imagination is one of the most powerful means for connecting with spirits and also explore the cultural baggage around the imagination and how this keeps you from connecting with spirits. I also discuss how to determine if a spirit has connected with you.
In Walking with Elemental Spirits I share the modern system I’ve developed for working with elemental spirits that gets you consistent results while helping you build collaborative relationships with the elemental spirits.
The elemental spirits can be potent allies to work with and in this book you’ll learn how the practical magic skills that you can use to forge strong relationships with the elemental spirits that allow you to work with them as allies. In this book you will also learn the following:
The classic Hermetic and Taoist systems of the 5 elements, and my modernized system of elemental magic.
How to connect with elemental spirits using evocation portals and experiential embodiment
How to do internal work and health magic with the elemental spirits.
How to work with the elemental spirits to get practical results
and much more!
If you’re ready to learn a new approach to elemental magic, this book will teach you how to work with the elemental spirits and use elemental magic to get results that transform your life.
Sara Mastros and I talk about her magical path and past as well as her books The Big Book of Incense and The Orphic Hymns. We discuss how to work with incense and how the sense of smell can play an important role in magical work as well as discussing how to modify and experiment with existing magic rituals and why some customization of such rituals can be helpful.
Sara Mastros, author of Orphic Hymns Grimoire and Big Book of Magical Incense, is Pittsburgh's leading Witch for Hire. In addition, she teaches tarot, witchcraft, Greek and Near Eastern mythology, Pan-Levantine folk magic, and practical sorcery online and at festivals all over the east coast. You can check in on her courses and lessons at www.WitchLessons.com, sign up for her newsletter at www.MastrosZealot.com, or follow all her witchy shenanigans on facebook at Facebook.com/Sara.Mastros
I’m currently writing Walking with Elemental Spirits, which is a book that explores my system for elemental magic. One of the central arguments of that book is that the 5 element model of earth, water, fire, air, and quintessence is a bit outdated. It has worked well as a model, but its evident that there are more elements than just the aforementioned elements. Why are we holding onto an outmoded model that was used to describe reality a long time ago, as a taxonomic means of categorizing the experiences of the world? I’ll be bold and just say we hold on to such models because we are taught that something which is old is typically considered better and if it works why change it.
I don’t agree with this sentiment. While I think the 5 element model is a great foundational tool, I also think that when we hold onto an old model and never question it we’re missing out on an opportunity to evolve magically, as well as to evolve the overall discipline of magic. I’ve been practicing elemental magic since I first started practicing magic, and for many years I did rely upon the 5 element model because it was what was available. Yet being the magical experimenter that I am, I inevitably ended up questioning it.
In this interview Harper Feist shares her experiences with skrying and spirit work. We discuss the different types of skrying people can do and why skrying can be a viable alternative to invocation/evocation, as well as leading up to those practices. We also discuss the nature of spirits.
Harper has a class coming up on Skrying
Harper Feist is a member of the OTO, a past master of Leaping Laughter Lodge, an ordained priestess of Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica and the current interviewer of U.S. Grand Lodge’s official podcast, “Thelema Now.”
When you have performed lots of magical workings and created specific types of outcomes, it can helpful to revisit that work. I share a few reasons for revisiting old work and also explain why it can be helpful to revise older workings, or shut them down, if they are still working in the background.
In this interview Giulia Turolla shares her work and research with Italian witchcraft and discusses how to integrate ancient spiritual practices into modern times. We also discuss how to work with spirits and whether or not spirits modernize with the times.
Giulia is an Italian witch, High Priestess and teacher in the Tempio di Ara tradition. She graduated with honors in Archaeology and Ancient World Cultures from Alma Mater Studiorum – University of Bologna and her field of specialization is ancient magical/religious technology and culture. Giulia’s personal path focuses on the practice of witchcraft as an indigenous form of shamanism and aims to rediscover and rebuild the Sacred Net that binds us to the Spirits and the Gods of the place we live in.
She has been leading circles for the Temple of Ara since 2008 and actively teaching study groups and advanced workshops since 2012. On her website http://www.boscodiartemisia.com she offers online courses, private mentoring sessions and hand-made shamanic and magical tools focused on European magical traditions.
I was recently asked what its like to work with a magical partner. In this video I share my thoughts and perspectives about working with a magical partner and the lessons I’ve learned along the way as a result of doing this work. I also discuss different types of magical partnerships and share why its important to have a good understanding of what the partnership is and what the purpose of the work is.
This week I interview Byron Ballard about Appalchian Folk Magic. We discuss how folk magic works and how to create a spiritual lineage of your own. We also discuss the importance of research and why folk magic can be done anywhere. Byron Ballard is a rootworker and energy consultant; a freelance writer and an urban farmer; a weaver of words and webs, and the author of Roots, Branches, and Spirits, Staubs and Ditchwater, Asfidity and Madstones, Earth Works: Ceremonies in Tower Time, and Seasons of a Magical Life. Links to her books are below and are affiliate links.
You can Learn more about Byron and her work at https://www.myvillagewitch.com/
I think the conventional image that people must have of a magical experimenter is someone running around with crazy hair, doing all kinds of off the wall magical workings, which may or may not be grounded in conventional magical theory and practice. I can understand if that’s the image that comes to mind, but the reality of magical experimentation is that it is a careful process, grounded in the experiences of the magician and the work they have done up to the point of experimentation.
In this episode of Magical Experiments Podcast, I interview Helena Domenic about her work as a magical artist. We discuss how she's created books with illuminated art and explore the intersection between creativity, art and magic. Helena Domenic is an accomplished artist, writer, witch, and professor of art history and studio art. Helena maintains a studio in Phoenixville, PA under the name, The Artistic Mystic, where she offers classes, workshops, and readings. Helena spent thirty years as a member of the Assembly of the Sacred Wheel and was also an Elder in that tradition. She left to carve out her own path, both as an artist and a witch. Currently, she leads the Exton Pagan Meetup and the Brandywine Kindred, a newly formed coven in Chester County.
Helena has a forthcoming book called An Illuminated Guide to Wicca, available from Schiffer Publishing (available for pre-order now) in January 2022.
Helena has also created a Tarot deck and book, The Fellowship of the Fool Tarot, as well as a Runic Oracle deck and a Lenormand deck.
Helena’s work may also be seen on her website: http:www.artofhelenadomenic.com
For the second episode of Magical Experiments Podcast, I have the great pleasure of hosting Ivo Dominguez Jr and we discuss elemental magic and how to incorporate it in your life. We also discuss the problem with categorizations and Ivo shares a couple exercises you can do with elemental magic.
Watch the video on Patreon (Note this interview will be available to the public for a week and then after that only available to people who subscribe to the podcast Tier or above on my patreon.
I share some thoughts on the role of madness in magic and my own experiences around divine madness and how it shapes my spiritual work and path.
I share my experiences with my Saturn work and how it is effecting my understanding and work with the elements of truth and connection as well as where boundaries fits into all of this.