Taylor Ellwood is the author of Space/Time Magic, Inner Alchemy, and several books on magic. He is also the Managing Non-Fiction Editor of Immanion Press. To learn more about him and his continuing journeys visit http://magicalexperiments.wordpress.com and http://www.thegreenwolf.com

Sigil Business!

Sigil Business!

Sometime in early 2009, I was approached by a person about creating a sigil to help him get more business. While I’m personally of the belief that if you want something, you should do it yourself, I was also intrigued by his request, partially because I was in the process of working to get more clients for my own business ventures. However, as I thought about it, I realized I wanted to do something magical that worked for more than just one or two businesses, and had more of a positive effect for people in general.

I took this request to a group of other magical practitioners I work with on a regular basis. We started out by asking ourselves what the best method of delivery was. Should we  use a sigil that we could give out to people, or should we work some kind of ceremonial magical working and then share that working with others, or should we work with a deity or daemon of wealth? We discussed all of those possibilities and ended up rejecting all of them for various reasons.

Another concern we discussed what exactly what we’d focus that’d really be representative of economic activism. We didn’t feel that helping corporations to be economically healthier was really benefitting everyone, and also felt that magically prompting people to spend money was both unethical and not a definite solution to the poor economy.

The more time we spent discussing what would be a viable form of economic activism, the more we realized that it was very hard to come to a group consensus about a magical act that all of us could be comfortable with. However one theme that consistently came up was that any magical work we did needed to incorporate the theme of collaboration in it, the idea that people would actively help each other out and work together.

Eventually we decided that we would create a networking entity; specifically an entity which would help people network better. While the stereotypical image of a networker is a person holding a business card in one hand and a drink in the other, the reality is that a networker is someone who is focused on creating quality relationships with the people s/he knows and finding out what each person needs, while matching him/her up with someone who can meet that need. In essence, the very quality of collaboration that we’d agreed on, and an essential ingredient in really building up a community.

The next step was to create an entity. We decided to use a technique where the entity would tell us it’s naming using a pendulum and letters. One of us would use the pendulum and be guided by the entity, while the rest of us put our energy into the creation of the entity. This was a fairly exhausting method for determining the entity’s name, especially for the person using the pendulum, but we also thought it was a useful way of introducing ourselves to the entity, while also creating it. Eventually we did get a name: Zi Fupsekip Vosri. It actually rolls off the tongue fairly well, and the image that came to mind was of some Eastern European person in a suit, with a pleasant smile and an eagerness to help others and collaborate.

Having the name wasn’t enough. We also needed a message from this entity that embodied what it had to offer and a symbol that embodied the concept as well as a method of transmission by which we could share the entity. The method of transmission we decided on was to create a business card format. Because business cards are used as a transmission of a person’s information we thought this might be a successful way to share the entity with other people.

On the front of the card we placed the name of the entity, and a symbol that represented networking, the bringing together of many different connections to form a pattern of success that could be shared to the benefit of everyone. We wanted the concept of networking to focus on success, regardless of whether it was monetary or bargaining or some other form of success, so we came up with a phrase: Mutually Assured Prosperity, Inc(arnated): Wherever people meet to create  abundance. The idea being that if people met to share and collaborate this entity would be there, helping them to do that, as well as encouraging the possibility of other opportunities. On the back of the card we provided further details about what Zi Fupsekip Vosri does and how to feed Zi Fupsekip Vosri (simply pass out the card to other people).

All it takes to activate Zi Fupsekip Vosri is passing out the card. We’ve already put together a small batch of cards, and more will be sent to a professional printer so that we can start passing them out to our local community. The best thing about this card is that it can be a conversation starter, which is the spirit of true networking. Passing the card provides the opportunity to explain what the card is about, but also will provide you the opportunity to find out more about the people you are meeting. Remember to ask the phrase, “What do you need?” It’s a powerful phrase that will allow you to find out what someone else needs and start figuring out who you know that can help this person. And of course, don’t be shy in sharing what you need. You never know who that person is connected to, who could help you!

Below are images of the front of the card and the back of the card. I invite readers to create their own cards and share Zi Fupsekip Vosri with the people they know and don’t know. Network, collaborate and share, and through that create an act of economic activism that helps everyone as opposed to only a few.

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rear of card

I would like to thank Innowen, Cobalt, Rowan, MM, and Bill Whitcomb for their help and participation in creating this entity.

Taylor Ellwood

Taylor Ellwood is the author of Space/Time Magic, Inner Alchemy, and several books on magic. He is also the Managing Non-Fiction Editor of Immanion Press. To learn more about him and his continuing journeys visit http://magicalexperiments.wordpress.com and http://www.thegreenwolf.com

In Inner Alchemy, I wrote about my experiments with finding and working with neurotransmitter spirit guides and forms of life (such as bacteria) that exist in the human body. I created an alphabet of desire with each letter representing a distinct entity. The letter could be used to find the entity when doing internal work with the body or it could be used to evoke the entity, when healing someone else. The latter approach of evocation focused on the concept that although the symbol was a personal one for your body, it could still be used to find a resonance with the specific neurotransmitter or other entities in a body. The entities could then be worked with to aid in healing or doing whatever else a person might wish to do.

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My latest work with these concepts has continued to focus on creating better communication with the human body. Most of the communication that the average person seems to have with the body is reactionary, based more on what the body tells the person and less on a conscious choice to communicate. The rest of the communication that seems to occur focuses on cultural attitudes of the body disseminated to it by memetics. At least in the U.S., we live in a fairly body phobic culture, which perceives the body as a dirty, sinful sack of flesh, with impulses and desires that need to be repressed as much as possible, in order to avoid making a scene. A person rips a fart and everyone glares at the offender, the smell of it offending that most delicate of sensibilities that a person should never smell anything unpleasant.

In fact, it is the relationship a person has with the five external senses that tells a lot about how connected a person is with hir body. For many people, the senses of smell and taste are discounted, only coming into play when its time to eat. We are taught to use deodorant to avoid offending someone with the smell of the body. And heaven’s forbid you should happen to actually smell anything associated with human waste. We are taught to crinkle our noses, and avoid such smells. Taste also becomes a victim of the focus on what you’re eating. Don’t ever stick your tongue out in a city. You’ll taste all the pollution that it’s in the air. With sight, touch, and sound, there are various forms of similar aversive reactions, all brought about by cultural engineering. A cultural aversion of what seems unpleasant has overtaken our instincts. We are taught to avert our eyes, not touch, nor listen, and yet this very repression of our senses leads to a rebellion for the body itself, which knows that it must get our attention somehow in order to be taken care of.

When a person complains about how s/he doesn’t like hir body, I tell hir to try listening to hir body more. Choosing not to acknowledge what our external senses tell us only invites the body to respond in more drastic ways. For instance, the smell a person’s body exudes can tell that person if s/he is sick, healthy, even give a sense of what s/he has eaten. But when we choose to deny the information our senses provide us, we ignore the fundamental reality of the body and the fact that without it we could not exist in a meaningful physical manner. Bear in mind as well, that if we’re used to ignoring the external senses, we’ve also probably suppressed the internal senses.

Internal senses deal with an awareness of the actual state of the body. Balance, as an example, is an internal sense. We normally don’t think of balance as a sense, and rarely acknowledge it until we actually lose balance. Another internal sense is the kinesthetic awareness we have of the movement of our bodies. We’re aware of this sense, but it’s probably fair to say that most people take it for granted, or aren’t sure what to make of it when they feel it. There are more internal senses that could be explored, but for now suffice to say that your body has many wonders and mysteries for you to explore.

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When I originally decided to come up with a language to communicate with body, I limited myself, thinking I would create a language to facilitate better communication with the neurotransmitters and bacteria, and other such beings. But shortly into trying to develop such a language, my entity for dopamine told me I already had a language and way of communicating with him and the other entities, i.e. my AOD for the body. Realizing that, I knew I didn’t need a language for interacting with those entities and I puzzled over why I might even need a language at all, until that is my left knee began bothering me with some joint pain. I’d always had a kinesthetic feeling of pain in that knee and I’d never really come to terms with what caused the pain. I could lessen the pain if I popped the knee joint, but eventually it would come back. I knew, when I felt that pain that although I could communicate with my neurotransmitters I hadn’t necessarily communicated with my body as a whole.

I could’ve used breathing techniques and guided visualization to try and communicate with my knee. These approaches had worked with getting in touch with the neurotransmitters and even with some of the cell work I did, but I felt that although those techniques could play a role, they might not be the best way to get in touch with the consciousness of my body. And while focusing on the internal senses could be helpful in finding specific problems with the body, I also felt that alone wasn’t enough to address the body. I decided instead to look toward the biphotonic energy that’s within cells. This energy is used in the DNA of cells for communication and other functions. I also looked into a recent science article, which argued that nerves use sound instead of electricity for communication. This is done because the membranes for nerves allow sound to be sustained instead of gradually weakening. I figured that using sound or biphotonic energy I could develop a way to communicate with the body that would allow me to actually have a conversation, albeit in a different medium than language itself.

What I ended up developing looks like a lot of lines and dots on paper. The lines are long signals, while the dots are short signals. In addition, some shapes such as triangles and curved lines were also developed to help with the context of communication. Also it’s important to note that the language isn’t a linear language with one word follow after the other. Instead it might be fair to say it’s more of a pictograph language. As of yet there aren’t many of these pictographs developed, but over time more maybe developed.

My first experiment was to communicate with my knee. I used breathwork to put myself into meditation. I then focused my kinesthetic awareness on the pain in my knee. Once my awareness was fully on that location, I began communicate, imagining a series of sounds going from my consciousness to my knee. It did help me to visualize the sounds as lines and dots, but that was mainly for me, a convenient interface for my human consciousness as it interacted with the cellular consciousness in my knee. I used the sounds and visualization to guide the biophotonic energy in its work with the knee.

When I communicated with my knee in this way, memories of a bike ride down a rocky path and falling and hitting my knee, as well as hurting my leg and belly came to the forefront of my consciousness. Instead of dismissing this memory, I realized that my knee was communicating in return showing the cause of the pain. Long after a memory fades from the conscious mind, it can still reside in the flesh. The body retains the memory and can relive it at any moment and my knee was reliving the cause of its pain, as well as showing me that the issue dealt with more than just the knee. In fact, my left leg has always troubled me a bit, and now I knew what the cause was.

I continued using the dots and lines to communicate with my cells, but also interacted with the memory. The dots and lines instructed the biophotonic energy of my cells to start repairing any damage that might be in my knee and leg. The memory interaction involved comforting the earlier version of myself, while taking a look at the leg and doing some healing to that memory. Over the course of a few days I continued my interaction with my knee, going back to the memory, but also continuing to use the language I’d developed to communicate with my cells. I healed the pain in the knee and in my leg, to the point that I didn’t need to pop it as often. The kinesthetic sense of my knee is that it now feels stronger. I feel as if I can walk with more confidence on my left leg.

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I am still developing the language I use to communicate with my body. I’m doing it not only to have a better awareness of my body, but to also continue advancing the concepts I wrote about in Inner Alchemy. I am certain that just as I’m developing a language to communicate with my body, it’s possible for other people to develop their own language or use the one I create. The reason I mention developing your own language is because your body is your own. You must be willing to speak with it and listen to it, because it has its own forms of consciousness. By acknowledging that consciousness, you can work closely with your body and come to not only a better understanding of it, but also much more comfort with it. Since healing my knee and leg I’ve felt much more comfortable with my body. Another benefit as well is the potential to communicate with the body when ill, in order to coordinate its efforts to heal itself, but that is experimentation for a later time as the language is further developed.

Taylor Ellwood

Taylor Ellwood is the author of Pop Culture Magick, Space/Time Magic, Inner Alchemy, Multi-Media Magic and Kink Magic (co-written with Lupa). Taylor is also the managing non-fiction editor for Immanion Press and a Teacher of experimental magic at the Growing Edge Institute. For more information about Taylor, please visit The Green Wolf or Magical Experiments

The Evolution of Magic

When I get the occasional interview from a podcast or magazine, one misperception I often need to correct is the association people make with my work and chaos magic. I suppose because chaos magic used to be the latest current of magic and one that seemingly represented avant garde magic, people find it easier to lump my work into chaos magic. Admittedly, at one time I briefly identified as a chaote, but in the last five or so years, I came to recognize that Chaos Magic wasn’t quite the apt descriptor of what I do. While some of the practices I utilize are derived from Chaos Magic, I also draw much more extensively on Ceremonial and Hermetic practices as well as Far Eastern techniques. Even more importantly, much of my magical practice is now derived from disciplines that have little if any overt connection to magic, such as semiotics, literacy, linguistics, social practice, cultural studies, psychology, neuroscience, and physics.

While it is somewhat fashionable in certain Chaos Magic circles to utilize physics (Peter Carroll comes to mind) in magical practice, for the most part these other disciplines haven’t really been integrated into magical practices, beyond the occasional magical alphabet that springs up. Patrick Dunn, Wes Unruh, Edward Wilson, and to a lesser extent Bill Whitcomb have written about semiotics, memetics, and magic. Phil Farber has written a work about blending NLP, neuroscience, and magic together. Then there is my own writing, which has also focused on blending non-occult disciplines into occult practices. Beyond that there isn’t much literature that shows how to integrate practices from other disciplines into magical work.

Some might argue that drawing on disciplines outside of traditional occultism is not relevant to what they do. They could even be right, but I think such an attitude signals something of the stagnation I’ve long felt is part of the occulture. For all that we might view ourselves as a radical counter-culture (with the associated meaning of experiments and progress), the question that I find myself asking is, “What is the relevance of counter culture to magical practices?” The answer is that any relevance is arbitrary. The counter culture status of occultism is really just a cherished image some hold on to show how cool and radical they are. However such an image doesn’t guarantee any real progress in occult thinking or experimentation and this is fairly evident by the lack of genuine progress in the occult literature we have available to us. The majority of books currently published are mostly focused on rehashing what has already been written. We see this in the profusion of 101 books that range from Wicca to Ceremonial Magic to energy work, to Neoshamanism to Chaos Magic. Where is the innovation, experimentation, or evolution of magic in merely rehashing what has already been written? For that matter where is the experimentation in replicating what someone else has done?

I usually identify my approach to magic as Experimental Magic. My approach doesn’t draw on Chaos Magic beyond particular sigil and entity techniques (and even those have been modified extensively), and the use of paradigmal piracy in my pop culture workings. I don’t perceive my blending of non-occult disciplines as paradigmal piracy, because a lot more is involved than just swapping different religious beliefs for each day of the week. Experimental Magic is the rigorous creation and application of new and modernized systems of magic that also utilize principles and practices from other disciplines. The experimentation aspect arises out of the creation of new systems of magical practice, with little being derived from traditional occult correspondences and practices beyond the bare bones of techniques which can be adapted to these new systems. Instead of relying on traditional deities, rituals, or meditations, the magician seeks to create new practices based on concepts from multi-media, semiotics, linguistics, neuroscience, and other disciplines. The magician then tests these new practices to determine if they can work or if they need refinement.

In chaos magic, the focus is primarily on obtaining results, and it is sometimes argued that we don’t need to know how magic works, so long as it does work. In experimental magic the emphasis is not on obtaining results. Instead the focus is on developing, understanding, and refining the process by which a result occurs. Results are considered to be signs which indicate if you are going in the right direction or if you need to go back to the drawing board.

Experimental Magic is the next step in the evolution of magic. The focus has moved away from ceremony and ritual, and from an open-handed approach to magical practice and instead focuses on looking at how magical practice can be defined and refined as a process. However spirituality and working with deities and demons is not left out of that equation, nor are the practices of the past denied. Working with deities and demons and spirituality in general is an influence that is readily acknowledged in experimental magic, as opposed to being written off as a psychological phenomenon as occurs in chaos magic. The traditions and practices of the past are acknowledged as influences that can help refine the process by how magic is worked. Indeed, sometimes the most innovative practice of magic is found by experimenting with what others did and improving upon it. But just as importantly, experimental magic emphasizes using the techniques derived in other disciplines as a way of further refining and understanding how magic works.

For magic to continue to be a viable discipline, it must continue to evolve with the times and situations that inform its use. It must also continue to evolve as the other disciplines in the humanities, arts, and sciences continue to evolve. The practice of magic should not be static, because magic is not a religious practice, even if it is sometimes affiliated with religions (Religions can change, but they tend to change much more slowly due to dogma). Indeed, when practitioners find themselves relying overly much on how magic was defined in the past, they should be wary of such reliance, for it signals a dogmatic adherence to the past, and can lead to less questioning and experimentation.

The Experimental Magician does not believe in the efficacy of dogma. Even when a magical process seems to have been refined as far as it can be taken, we are still left with the questions, “How could I experiment with this process further?”, and “Is there another method I can use to obtain this result?” For the Experimental Magician, the question is the answer, because the question generates the demand to experiment, to test, and to refine how magic is worked. The evolution of magic stops when there are no more questions to be asked, and no more answers to be found.

Experimental Magic, as a current all its own, is concerned ultimately with how to evolve the practice of magic through fostering a better understanding of how magic works as well as how the processes of magic can be melded with the contemporary practices of other disciplines. As such, I would like to announce the formation of the Guild of Experimental Magicians, which is focused primarily on defining and experimenting with the processes of magic. Interested parties should contact me at taylor@spiralnature.com for more information.

Taking the Path of Least Resistance in Magic

If there is one challenge that magicians face when it comes to determining the effectiveness of magic, it is figuring out if the magic you performed aligned with your internal values. Sometimes, even if we think we want a particular result, we actually don’t want that result. Speaking from personal experience, I always found it odd when I would do a successful act of magic and get the result I desired, but then have the impact of that result not really count for handling my situation. It was only much later that I would recognize that the magic I did at that time was going counter to my internal values. I’ve also noted this type of occurrence with other magicians: they would get results, but when those results were not in alignment with their internal values an essential part of them rejected the results.

Recently I read a passage that I would like to share, which speaks to this issue, “Magick defines suffering as the result of straying from one’s natural path of ‘least resistance’” (Schueler 1988, p. 222). Suffering arises from straying from one’s natural path of least resistance. This is an interesting statement, because it speaks to several questions. Is a degree of suffering necessary, and if so, how much? When we are on our path of least resistance, which some might call true Will and others would name a calling, are we then aligned with our internal values?

Considering these questions is important when considering the effectiveness of magic, when magic should be employed, and more importantly why it should be employed. If a magician gets a result, but finds that the result is wasted, then the magical work has also been wasted. Internal work is needed to determine the problem in the process, and if the problem is a conflict with internal values, then the magician needs to determine if what s/he is doing is causing hir to deviate from the path of hir Will. If that’s the case, there’s still the consideration of suffering and how much is needed in order to learn from a situation.

While I don’t advocate suffering for its own sake, I do recognize that it has a valid place in the continuum of personal experience. I don’t subscribe to a karmic notion of it, but I do believe that a person will have the experiences s/he needs to have. Over time one can learn to realize hir will, calling, or internal values; this knowledge is necessary to engage in the path of least resistance. People, by nature, are usually not equipped with the skills to recognize what they truly want. Martha Beck explains this in terms of a conflict that is created by the social self focusing on cultural-social approval while ignoring the values of the essential self (2001). The social self is the aspect of your personality that wants to fit-in in every situation and have people like it. It’s concerned with external environment. The essential self is aspect of your identity connected to your internal values, to what you really want, as opposed to what your friends, family, and society think you should want. The social self can be so focused on what someone else believes that the magician should want that s/he forgets about what is truly desired, what truly aligns with hir internal values.

This happens with everyone, including magicians. Even if a magician is involved in a counterculture, there are still social expectations that determine expected behavior. Regardless of how you consider yourself socially, the social self is involved with allowing you to fit into those circumstances, even if they run counter to what your essential self wants. Consequently, the social self can put us into situations where we suffer. We end up in unsatisfying relationships, in jobs we hate, or in social situations where we don’t like the people. The suffering we encounter is not intrinsically due to the social self, but rather to the conflict between the essential self’s desires and the social self’s drive to ‘fit in’. The essential self will sabotage your social situation, in an effort to get you back on track with your internal values. I can personally point to this in my life; even though my social self said I should get a tenured position in a university because it’s as secure a job as you can get, my essential self found that to be unbearable and consequently derailed that effort. I looked back later, after I had left my Ph.D program, and could see how I had sabotaged myself because my essential self and my internal values were at odds with my social self and what I felt I should be doing.

In the present, I find that my life has gotten easier because I’m learning how to figure out what my internal values are. I still listen to the social self, but I balance it with an awareness of following my true calling. The amount of suffering in my life continues to decrease. This isn’t to say it’s automatically easy, but I can face challenges with mindful presence and awareness of my needs and internal desires. That makes a big difference when I choose to apply magic to a situation.

Magic is often treated as a quick way to deal with a situation, but rarely is it examined as a process for focused change. Used mindfully, with awareness of intent and impact, one can steer the direction of one’s life towards the path of least resistance. In my case that it is only in the last few years that I have begun to work magic as an ongoing process, as opposed to just getting results to quickly fix a situation. It has involved stepping back and examining the direction of my life and how magic can be applied to it. I’ve asked myself if I’m really listening to my internal values, true Will, or whatever term one chooses for being in touch with the essential self or Holy Guardian Angel. Magic, used as a process, has helped me ask if I need to use it in any particular situation or if I need to handle that situation differently. I’ve come to recognize the impact of my magical intent and used that to determine if the magical action I’ve taken is really in alignment with my internal values. If it isn’t, chances are the result will manifest, but the situation will still not be resolved in quite the way I wanted.

Taking the path of least resistance is learning to take the path where your internal values shine forth and guide you through the challenges you face. Magic, used mindfully, is a process and a tool that is helpful for directing you on your path. Listening to your essential self will let you know how and when to use magic so that you get more than just a momentary result.  You can manifest change that lasts a lifetime and helps you achieve your goals; working in alignment with your internal values will reveal your path of least resistance.

Taylor Ellwood

Bibliography

Beck, Martha. (2001). Finding your own north star: Claiming the life you were meant to live. New York: Three Rivers Press. ISBN: 978-0812932188.

Schueler, Gerald J. (1988). Enochian physics: The structure of the magical universe. St. Paul: Llewellyn Publications. ISBN: 978-0875427126.

Taylor Ellwood is the author of Pop Culture Magick, Space/Time Magic, Inner Alchemy, and Multi-Media Magic, and co-author of Kink Magic (With Lupa). He is also the managing Non-Fiction Editor of Immanion Press. More information about him can be found at http://www.thegreenwolf.com or http://magicalexperiments.wordpress.com and can be emailed at taylor@spiralnature.com

Podcast: Download

This week we cosy-up with our new pal, occult author Taylor Ellwood, to discuss the many and varied ways to approach magic/magick/chaos Magick…arrrrgh my head is exploding!! Taylor has authored many books on the subject of new and experimental approaches to magic, as well as being a professional life-coach…though, like us, he has still yet to figure out how to make fireballs come out of his hands!

Featured music this week is a cool live recording of the amazing Ma Meeshka Mow Skwoz by Mr Bungle.

Taylor Ellwood Biog:

Taylor Ellwood lives in Portland with his beautiful mate Lupa, and two cats. He’s a co-author of Creating Magickal Entities (with David Cunninghman and Amanda Wagener), and Kink Magic (with Lupa. He is the author of Pop Culture Magick, Space/Time Magic, Inner Alchemy, Multi-Media Magic and the editor of the Magick on the Edge Anthology, Manifesting Prosperity Anthology, and the Pop Culture Grimoire. When Taylor isn’t editing Non-fiction books for Immanion Press, or working on his latest work, he can be found gaming, reading, and enjoying the company of his lovely wife. For more information about Taylor, please go to The Green Wolf or visit Magical Experiments.

Yay! We are back tomorrow after a brief summer-sabatical with the amazing Dr Bob Curran. Bob has written many books on strange topics, but tomorrow we will be grilling him about Vampires!

Following this episode will be an interview with the writer Taylor Ellwood, returning the show to the realms of the occult.

We’d all like to thank you guys for your kind emails and support, we really do appreciate it and as long as you keep listening, we’ll keep releasing!