Welcome to summer. I imagine many of you are putting together your fire festival and solstice celebrations to Flereous, the Asmodai, and all other relevant Daemonic Fires.
This month we ask our bloggers who are your favorite Demon(s) to work with and why?
I imagine we’ll get some interested answers. Stay tuned for June and I hope you’re all enjoying the weather out there!
Two things from Official Melissa Press!
The first thing is that there are only 21 copies of the standard edition of Infernal Colopatiron left. There were only 200 copies of the standard edition printed. There were only 30 copies of the Deluxe Edition printed and those were sold out over a year ago.
The second thing is that I have up to 25 unbound copies of Infernal Colopatiron available for fine leather binding. I have a bindery ready to go and I am, for sure, having 10 of these copies bound in black leather with copper foil stamping. I will have more than the 10 copies bound (up to 25) if they are pre-ordered.
This very limited, fine leather, hand bound edition is going to cost $300 + shipping per book. Because there is such a limited number available, I’m only going to allow one per customer.
I will take requests for certain numbers as long as it’s not #1 and falls within the number of copies being printed.
I will be signing and consecrating each of these books myself before they ship. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Anyone interested in reserving one of these leather bindings should contact [email protected]. I am asking for 1/2 the cost up front to reserve the edition (with a $25 cancellation fee if the book is at the binder and you change your mind) and the other 1/2 at the end before I ship. I’m not expecting them ready to ship until September (possibly sooner), but trust me – it will be well worth the wait. If you’ve seen the fine leather bound funerary editions of Keys of Ocat, the binding will be similar as it’s being done by the same binder.
I will close pre-ordering on June 15, 2013
If only the 10 are printed and only 5 are pre-ordered from that, I will sell the remaining 5 first come – first serve. However, if 13 are reserved – I’m only printing 13. So it goes.
Here’s what the Keys of Ocat fine binding (done for Nephilim Press) looked like to give you a rough idea of the beautiful work this binder does:
Prayer its a practice of worship, and If recall well Jason Miller’s explanation, the etymology of whorship its “To recognize Worth”, we pray to connect with those entities that are worthy into our lifes, Daemons, Gods, Etc.
Prayer could be much of a conversational act, a show consideration, because the forces we call are living beings and just as any other person they took the time to put something of their energy, wisdom, into our lives, and constantly contribute with it as we contribute back to them, its a two way relationship.
So to be a Demonolater its to Worship (To recognize the worth) of the Daemonic divine, and prayer gives us a way of making comunication besides complex ritual or magical operation and it opens ways to stay in touch even in situations you cant dedicate a lot of time, and I think its one the basics of any spiritual tradition is to pray.
Blessings
Jadean Lazulli
Prayers exist in many religions.
Those of us raised in Christian households (or those of you who have heard “Enter Sandman” by Metallica) probably know the one that goes something to the effect of “Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray the lord my soul to take.”
If you think about it, the meaning is quite beautiful. In a Christian perspective, it is important that one’s soul reaches Heaven. By reciting that prayer before they go to sleep, they’re hoping that if they pass in their sleep their soul will reach Heaven.
Catholic followers will pray on rosaries with different color / shaped beads letting them know how many prayers they’ve said and when it’s time to say a different prayer. My maternal grandfather regret the lives he had to take during World War II and spent the rest of his life praying on his rosary in the front yard of his house every morning. He even groped around on his death bed for his rosary.
Muslims pray five times a day: dawn, noon, afternoon, dusk, and night. They will kneel on a rug, face the direction of Mecca, and pray at specific times. There are even clocks that will remind them to when to pray nowadays.
Buddhists, while I am in no way an expert on the subject, require that monks recite a prayer over a piece of fruit being cut for them by the one offering it as alms so they don’t destroy the seed. They also have beads to count the number of mantras they chant.
Back in middle school I think I happened upon a prayer or spell that had something to do with imagining that you were really warm when you felt cold. I still catch myself using it every now and again because I feel like it works. I hate feeling cold.
I used to think prayer was useless, but the more I think about it the more I’m certain it’s important. Many people around the world pray. If you think about it, it’s a sort of magic that works using one very important ingredient: desire. Like other magics, its purpose is to manifest your will on a situation. The key difference, in my mind, is that as opposed to a full ritual it only requires your sincerest wishes and taking time to recite the prayer(s). Maybe an implement like a rosary or prayer cord is used.
There are so many different reasons why people pray.
The desire to see someone’s loved one cured of a serious ailment.
The desire to overcome life’s turmoils.
The desire to get a promotion at work.
No matter what the reason I find the act to be fascinating and beautiful. It’s a very personal act and you can really write your own prayer for any purpose. Or you could use an existing prayer that has significance to you. There’s even a book of Demonolatry prayers called Ater Votum that can be found on this website. Go to the tab Library & Archives, wait for it to cascade, then follow it to the Files & E-Books (Downloads) section. The name of the link you’re looking for is Ater Votum Demonolatry Prayer. Click on the word PDF.
It contains many practical prayers that a modern practitioner may find useful. I implore you to check it out, and maybe you’ll find something that strikes your fancy when you’re in need. Somewhere in recent years I’ve fallen out of the practice of prayer, but there was once I time where I would pray in the morning, when I had ample free time to think (on the bus, for example), and in the evening before bed. I actually made a prayer last night before trying to do an elemental balancing meditation. I was in quite a bit of pain and haven’t been able to find a remedy for it. (Feel free to laugh, but I’m serious! It’s gotten so bad that I’ve been brought to tears and taken to the ER before. When doctors looked at me they tried to maim me instead of help!)
I held my hands against the spot that ached and said the following:
Leviathan please take this pain.
Lucifer please take this pain.
Belial please take this pain.
Flereous please take this pain.
Satan please take this pain.
Verrine, I implore you to hear my plea. I wake with this pain and then I can’t sleep. I don’t know what’s wrong with me and modern medicine hasn’t worked. Please help me heal and take this pain from me tonight.
The order of the Demons I invoked is sort of wonky, I know, but at the time it was 2AM and I was in a lot of pain. Anyway, after I said my prayer I started to do an elemental balancing meditation and fell asleep in the middle of it. I woke up feeling great, albeit I ended up sleeping in. And a different problem I’ve been experiencing was healed as well…but that problem was probably remedied by a medicine I started taking. There’s definitely something to prayer and I know I’ll never take it for granted again.
I admit it – prayer is one of those aspects of spirituality that I haven’t always been comfortable with. In my younger years, before I really understood what it meant to “pray”, I always envisioned those who prayed as groveling servants hoping deity would throw them a bone for being subservient and obedient.
As I got older I realized that prayer, while often seen as a plea for help from the weak, could actually be both invocation and evocation.
Wikipedia (yes, biggest bathroom wall on the Internet), defines prayer as “an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with a deity, an object of worship, or a spiritual entity through deliberate communication.”
I rather like this definition because it doesn’t judge what that communication entails necessarily. Some use prayer as a magickal genii, hoping to get something whether it be favor, wisdom, material goods, or even emotional relief. Others use prayer as a method to evoke certain things from within the divine self or to invoke certain things from the divine external.
All of that said, I tend to use prayer most as a method of honoring the Daemonic, as a method to evoke and invoke wisdom, strength, and opportunity, and I leave the misnomer of prayer = groveling to the people who really think gods are magick genii in a bottle ready to grant them three wishes.
Yes, prayer does have a place in my practice. Yes, it’s a very personal thing. No, I don’t think you can really do it wrong. Do what’s right for you.
Hope you all had a Happy First Rite of Leviathan. I’ve been slacking on my beginning of the month posts. Today, S. Connolly called me on it and told me to get on the ball. She was right to do so.
Some things you may want to know. I am behind in doing A LOT of uploads. If there is a file that is supposed to be uploaded here and you need it right away, please let me know and I’ll get it to you.
Second, copies of the Melissa Press title Infernal Colopatiron are going to be scarce really soon, so if you’ve been wanting a copy, order one soon! If you are looking for a discounted copy, contact me at [email protected] , We do have a few lightly used or slightly damaged copies available. Those usually go for half price, which is nice. They all look to be in relatively decent condition.
This month’s topic is Prayer! We ask the bloggers: Where does prayer fit into your practice. Enjoy the blogs and participate in the discussion!
As per usual, tonight when I came home from work, Princess was waiting for me, sitting on top of the television, jumping down and running over to me to say hello, and Rufus (who I only adopted at Christmas – was going to have a computer, ended up with a cat), comes down stairs from his duvet to say hi and have some cuddles. Thinking about it I find pets quite amazing. I beleive that many people who read this have pets, and I would have though that your pets come to welcome you, ask you for things, come to you when you are not well to offer ‘healing’. Is this not some type of magic ?
Over the weekend, my wife gave herself food poisoning. She was quite ill. Rufus never left her side, with the other three coming up quite often to say hello, and nuzzle. I friend of mine was murdered a number of years ago now. I was very depressed. My cat Loki stayed with me for fives days solid. Would not leave my side.
Animals are very good judges of human character. Those who have dogs may notice that their dog can be come ‘nasty’ with certain people, even though those people haven’t actually done anything. What have they picked up ? Recently, we had to have a new roof. We phoned around and had several companies around for quotes. It was the cats who decided who got the job. Some of the people who came around were instantly liked by the cats, with the cats not leaving them alone. Up on their laps, pawing them for attention. Then, again the same cats, when approached by some of the other people who came around hissed and ran out of the room when the people tried to be friendly. Those people certainly didn’t do anything to get hissed at, so what dove the cats to behave in this manner ? It was interesting that one of the people who got hissed at eventually tried to pressure sell at 500% the cost of the other firms ? How did the cats know ?
I would say I have a close relationship with my cats, Rufus especially. He’s my boy as I would say, almost a familiar. I never chose him at the animal shelter. He chose me, and became a trusted friend and confident almost immediately. How does this trust build ? Why did he choose me at the shelter ? How many people out there ended up with a pet that chose them rather than them choosing the pet ? How many people feel their pet understands them when they speak to them assuming you do talk to your pets – I always talk to mine, even discussing problems at work with them. Why would I talk to my pet about work problems ? They can’t discuss it with me, or understand me ? But yet, after talking to them, I feel more relaxed with an answer to the problem. How is this so ?
I think magic is a lot closer to home than people otherwise might think, and the wonder of pets is a prime example.
You know, Kasdeya came up in a conversation I was having with my best friend the other day. She and I were looking back from where we had come from to where we are now since we first met. We’ve been friends for over eight years now. Everything has changed in that amount of time. We were barely teenagers then and now she’s a new mother and I’m about to graduate college. We’re in a place where we can finally acknowledge that things aren’t perfect but we’re, for the most part, satisfied.
Eight years. In that time we’ve made a lot of questionable choices as teens and young adults. I said that teenagers were horrible and I couldn’t believe we were recently teenagers ourselves. We were still up to no good at nineteen. I made a comment about sometimes wishing I could do things over.
She said “But would you really, if given the chance?”
We talked about the different things we would want to alter, I went on a paranoid rant about the butterfly effect, and she said if it were as simple as picking and choosing what would remain the same she’d do it in a heartbeat. Her newborn daughter is beautiful and an obvious choice to want to keep, for example. She came to a conclusion that she would rather make amends for her regrets, seek closure, and move on with her life.
I thought of Kasdeya and told her my very basic understanding of the rite. The Kasdeya Rite of Ba’al is an adept ritual that takes massive amounts of dedication and prep-work. I’m going to quote one of S. Connolly’s YouTube videos on this so I don’t screw it up and say its purpose is “to help one commune with the Demonic Divine; to learn a lot about the Self; and to take one’s physical, material plane life and remove some of the things that are holding you back.” To me, that goes hand in hand with what my friend and I were talking about.
While the Kasdeya rite won’t turn you into an immortal jellyfish with your sentience and memories intact, it strips away the things that are negatively influencing your life. Some people need a little more Demonic help than others so the ramifications of this ritual can turn your world completely upside down. You can’t pick and choose the parts you want to do (or the barriers to your spiritual growth that will be shattered) and you can’t go back to the day before you started the ritual if you decide you don’t want to do it or experience the changes it’s bringing after all.
You really need to look at yourself honestly and determine if it’s something you can accomplish. I’m going to use myself as a quick example of someone who shouldn’t perform the Kasdeya rite:
1. The longest ritual you’ve done was only about two weeks long.
2. The longest goal you’ve completed period had the duration of a month.
3. You don’t have a physical space to perform the ritual in its entirety.
4. You procrastinate and half-ass things frequently.
5. You have trouble completing tasks you start.
If you read any of these and thought “Wow, that sounds like me”– especially if it was just a little whisper at the back of your head secretly admitting it to yourself but openly denying it to others — then the Kasdeya rite certainly isn’t for you (or me, for that matter).
It’s not something to be taken lightly. Do it for the right reasons. Admit to yourself if you aren’t ready. If you realize you aren’t and it disappoints you, feel free to look back to this article and know you’re not the only one who isn’t ready. There’s no rush to do Kasdeya so there’s no shame in going at your own pace.
If you’re interested in watching S. Connolly’s Youtube video on the topic, you can find it here
I’m not sure what happened to Frank’s introductory post for the month of April. It’s my understanding that this month’s posts are supposed to be about Kasdeya. To do or not to do Kasdeya – that is the question.
I suppose this is something you should question before embarking on any extended ritual work whether it be Kasdeya, Abramelin, or other type of path work. While my own interpretation of the rite, including considerations and warnings, are currently in print for all the read, I will give the following advice about embarking on ANY extended ritual work.
1. Make sure you are used to doing daily rituals. Oftentimes, missing a day of ritual in rites like this can be akin (for women anyway) to missing a day of taking your birth-control pill. It just opens you up for an “accident”. There’s a reason extended ritual work often calls for daily ritual.
2. Make sure you have the time for it, or you may find yourself missing a ritual. See number one. You NEVER, if you can help it, want to stop extended ritual work half way through. It can, especially in the case of Kasdeya, throw your life into extreme chaos that won’t subside until you get back on track and finish it.
3. Don’t skip on the prep. I don’t care how big and bad ass you think you are. Prep exists for a reason and if you don’t see the value in careful consideration and taking your time in preparation, you probably ought not be doing the ritual. Remember that the bigger the ego, the more likely you are to get your ass stomped.
4. Make sure you are really ready for any and all possible outcomes of such a ritual. This really is an extension of number three. A lot of these types of rituals are like personal path work boot camp. They deconstruct your life, oftentimes throwing it into extreme chaos, and then they rebuild a stronger you. Of course this may not be true of everyone who performs the ritual. Some people need bigger life changes than others. Whereas some people may lose jobs, friends or family members, others may simply lose their sense of security or their emotional security for a time (even if it’s all just mental and nothing happens in the physical world). These losses often happen to make apparent what our weaknesses really are.
5. Don’t take short cuts. The only person you cheat when you do that is yourself. Basically I’m saying don’t be lazy. If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing it right the first time. If you’re serious about wanting to affect change and to change your life, you’ll do it right.
In summary I suppose I’m just basically saying don’t be a half-assed, lazy magician who expects laurels and results just for *thinking* about the magickal operation, or performing it at breakneck speeds with little consideration. Of course as a student of the Daemons of magick, perhaps I’ve become accustomed to being taught by taskmasters who demand excellence, and that, in turn, has turned me into a taskmaster with regard to my own learning. I only expect from others (if they want me to take them seriously) what I expect from myself. Take it as you will.
Spring beckons. The equinox has passed, but where is spring I ask ? I sit here in my part of the UK. It is 32 degrees F (zero degrees C). This time last year I was basking in 68-70 degrees, with sunshine !
I am now thinking about the future. Is global warming to blame for this weather, and what is in store ? Is it man made ? Are we to blame ? I think of the tarot card – the wheel of fortune, and the medicine wheel of the shaman. Both use the wheel, giving the idea of rotation and cyclicity. Is this weather and the global warming simply part of a cycle ? Just because we have never seen it before doesn’t mean it isn’t cyclic – It may just be part of a long cycle.
The idea of cycles is well documented in occult literature. Enochian Physics relies on the great breath (see earlier editions of the Black Serpent) as a foundation of its basis, but again we see that breathing is a cycle. It is sadly only science, where unless there is documented evidence of previous happenings of cyclic activity, science will refute it. There is plenty of evidence to support ideas of cyclic mass extinctions, ice ages, but science refutes much of this since a driving force cannot be found.
So, the question is, do we believe science or the idea of cycles as indicated by occult literature and past civilisations ?