Aegishjalmur
Page 10
The Seventeenth Spell: Sex Appeal and Charisma
"I know a seventeenth, so that scarcely any
young girl will want to shun me."
"I am a virile force,
a man of might and majesty,
charm and cheer are mine to wield,
maidens swoon at my approach."
Comment: Whereas the previous spell worked for an actual seduction and consummation of lust, this one is an invocation of the charismatic qualities which constitute sex appeal. It may thus be turned towards various forms of persuasion and used to sway situations where popularity and charisma are important. The vital and masculine characteristics are enshrined in the uruz and thurisaz runes, but these are anchored in the inspired eloquence and divine persona of ansuz.
The Eighteenth Spell: Secrecy
"I know an eighteenth, which I shall never teach
to any girl or any man's wife --
it's always better when just one person knows,
that follows at the end of the spells --
except that one woman whom my arms embrace,
or who may be my sister."
?
Comment: Not telling.
Dream Recall
At this stage in the Work, the Initiate should begin keeping a record of his dreams. Every night upon retiring, lie back and close your eyes. Address your innermost self, telling yourself that you wish to remember your dreams upon waking. As soon as you wake up the following morning, look within and try to recall what you dreamed about and write it down in a journal you have placed at your bedside for the purpose. Do this immediately. Do not wait until you've got up and had a coffee; do not roll over and have 'just another five minutes' first. The memory of most dreams will evaporate from your conscious recall in seconds. Conversely, if you use those few precious seconds after waking to seize upon a single element of a dream, you will often find that this suffices to pull the entire experience back into memory. Your brain is conditioned to remember only the things that happen around you when awake, and to present only these to your conscious awareness. You will need to retrain it to deliver you your dreams also.
Your success will be patchy at first. If you can't remember anything on a particular morning, record that fact in writing too. This will gradually educate your subconscious that you wish to be kept informed of your dreams. You will be astonished at how well it will learn to deliver the goods until a time will come when you can regularly recall four or five dreams in a single night.
This dream record will be an important reference in the Work of the next chapter, so keep it up to date.
Harnessing Emotional Energy
As well as learning to discipline and control the functions of the mind during the Work of this chapter, we should not neglect the emotions.
The Initiate should take note of his emotions and when they occur and how they arise. You should seek out and identify your own 'hot buttons', those cues that will always provoke an emotional reaction in you. Thus, you may become master of your own choices and responses, not the slave to a programmed reflex.
In doing this, be careful to remember that you are seeking to learn about and understand your emotions, not repress them. They are powerful and essential magical drives whose full utility will be explored in chapter seven.
But at this stage you can already learn how to start harnessing the magical power in your emotions. During the course of a day we experience many emotions which are not ordinarily directly useful. So any time you are feeling frustrated or angry or winsome or sad, or any other feeling that has no direct current use to you, channel it into a bind rune that you have prepared for charging. Put it to useful purpose. Say to yourself, “I sacrifice this emotion of
Remembering
The Initiate should also use this phase of his Work to begin training his memory. The names, order and values of the runestaves ahould all be committed to memory. Then learn the rune poems or sections of the Eddas by heart. This is another thing which improves dramatically with practice: once you train your subconscious to realise that you desire this level of recall, it will begin to make the process easier for you. But regular practice and striving is the only way to make this happen.
Other, related practices of great use are learning other languages. Any Germanic language, ancient or modern, is of value to the runic magician. This discipline will not only be of practical use, it will also develop the mental qualities necessary to this phase of the Work.
CHAPTER FIVE
UNLOCKING THE WORLDS
In the previous two chapters, the Work was focused upon enhancing our senses and our understanding of our place and position in the world, then training our mental faculties to carry out our Will in the world. In this present chapter, now that we are properly grounded and alert, we will begin pushing the boundaries of consciousness into those areas which lie beyond Midgard. We will explore the means of reaching out with the mind to explore the other worlds of the Northern cosmology and the means of divining information through direct apprehension, both by casting the runestaves and by visionary experiences. This chapter encompasses many of the processes normally classified under clairvoyance and psychic phenomena. Anyone who has diligently accomplished the preceding Work will have little difficulty in attaining some degree of success with these more esoteric disciplines.
Basic Principles of Seith
Odin was taught the techniques of seith by Freyja. This method of magic was traditionally used by seeresses and sorceresses and was deemed to be an untrustworthy practice of women, unworthy of men. Well, if it was good enough for Odin, it's bloody well good enough for me!
Those who wish to know more about the origins of seith and the way in which it was practised are referred to A Source-Book of Seid, Edited and Translated by James Chisholm and Stephen E. Flowers, published by Runa-Raven Press. In this book are collected all of the ancient references to the practice and its practitioners.
The precise techniques of seith remain somewhat vague, however. These days it is fashionable to describe it as a more 'shamanistic' kind of magic than the well-structured system of galdor, but this description is only of value if you have studied shamanism properly and even then it is only a comparison, not an identification. We may do best to simply define seith in our own terms here.
If galdor is a technique of ordering and manipulating symbols (such as the runes) is order to create effects or to read the patterns of manifestation (in divination), then seith is a technique of entering a trance state and allowing the subconscious to communicate images and impressions directly.
The trance state may be entered through a wide variety of techniques and we will be examining a few of these and trying them out for size in the following section. But it should be apparent to your thought processes, duly sharpened by the Work of the previous chapter, that such subconscious impressions carry a far greater risk of being influenced by subjective fancies and falsehoods. This is why we have put in all the hard work of building up that inner mental structure and runic knowledge first, so that its ingrained pattern may act as a safeguard and keep your visions upon correct paths. To be a good and reliable seithman, you must be a practised galdorman.
The techniques and practices offered in this chapter will assist the Initiate in developing the clairvoyant and visionary skills necessary to effective use of seith magic.
Magical Trance
The major stumbling block that most beginners face when dealing with trance states is actually realising when they have entered such a state. People seem to get all sorts of fanciful notions into their heads. It is assumed that one must enter a somnambulistic state, or see the mists parting in a crystal ball, or sit arou
nd listening to twangy foreign music beforehand.
Entering trance is actually the easiest thing in the world. We all do it all the time. Every time your mind drifts and you daydream, you have entered a trance. Every time you find yourself wondering what's for supper when you should be concentrating on driving home, you have entered a trance. Every time you are caught up in a book or a movie, or close your eyes and listen to a piece of music, you have entered a trance. Entering a trance happens every time you allow the conscious mind to relax its grip and allow the subconscious to lead the way, taking you away in a new direction and turning your mind from what is happening around you.
There are two ways to enter a trance state and each produces a different kind of trance. The first way is to become fixated upon some object or event or thought and to focus upon it exclusively; the other way is for thought to disperse seemingly randomly, following a myriad diverging patterns. Both are useful in their way, each in different circumstances.
Most solo magical or divinatory seith operations will make use of the first type of induced trance, where a specific symbol or question or motivation is focused upon when shifting your phase of consciousness. In this way, the altered mental processes will direct themselves towards a specific, desired result. The other kind of 'open' trance is not very conducive to solo working as it is undirected. It works best within a group Working, or with two Initiates, one the recipient and one the sender. In such a case, the recipient enters a trance state, becoming a blank canvas, and is then directed by the other(s).
There are many techniques for entering a trance state. Some of these are discussed in chapter five of Apophis and include the chanting of mantras, fixed concentration upon a symbol (as mentioned above) or exhaustion induced by sexual or other means (provided it leads to physical relaxation coupled with mental focus, not merely sleep). Alcohol in precisely measured quantities may also help (as explained in chapter three, alcohol was viewed as a source of inspiration in Germanic mysticism).
It will be noted that the practice of the posture and thought control exercises in the previous chapters will already have served to introduce the Initiate to a state of magical trance, so you are merely seeking to formalise and deepen what you already know. Do not be disheartened if your early trances are very light, they will become easier and deeper of their own accord with practice.
The Initiate should familiarise himself with the process of entering and leaving a light trance state before proceeding with the other exercises following in this chapter.
Becoming a Seer
The main thrust of this chapter's Work will be to train the Initiate to use the techniques of seith to become a seer. We are seeking to train the mind to perceive the patterns operating in the world – and not just this world, but flowing through all the worlds of Yggdrasil – so that they can be reliably read and interpreted and ultimately changed by an act of Will.
As the chapter advances, we will begin by practising galdor-based methods of rune divination, involving the rational mind in the process and accustomising the psyche to the interpretation of information that derives from a supra-sensual source. This accomplished, we will begin to extend the consciousness into an awareness – and direct experience – of the worlds beyond this one. We should then be ready to begin operating as a seer by pure trance techniques, without need for the casting of physical runestaves or other props. We will close the chapter by looking at the implications of this expansion of consciousness for the Work that lies still ahead.
The Rune Streams: Inner and Outer
As the Work of this chapter proceeds, you will become increasingly aware that the runes exist both within and without. There are runes that move within your own inner world and are projected forth in the staves you carve, sing and manipulate with your own hands and voice. There are also runes that move in the world outside of your own sphere of influence, shaping the events of the outside world. There is no difference in principle between the raidho that reflects your still half-formed plans for this year's holiday, the raidho that drives you to work in the morning, and the raidho that takes a space shuttle into orbit. All are manifestations of the same rune. All are connected.
Once you truly awaken to this fact, you will become aware of just how interconnected the whole of reality is. The term 'web of wyrd' will never have seemed so appropriate. This continuity of the runic streams, this underlying pattern behind each manifestation of Mystery, is the reason magic works.
You will become aware that there exists one place and one place only where the runes within and the runes without can meet. There is only one gate through which they can possibly pass, a single locus which must – to you – be the axis upon which the whole cosmos turns. This gate is your own centre of consciousness.
Once this is realised, you will be able to open that gate and take the patterns of the runes without into your own consciousness, to tell their tale there and inform you of what is happening in the world and why. They may whisper directly in your ear (seith) or reflect themselves in your own staves as they fall from your fingers upon the casting cloth (galdor). But speak they will. Then you may send your own runes through that same gate, riding and guiding the patterns in the world outside, steering them to suit your desires.
That 'magical link' so often pondered by magicians – that which connects the inner and outer worlds and allows each to influence the other – can only be your own consciousness, for this is the only thing in your Universe which touches both realities and through which each can pass.
Rune-Casting
To begin with we will use the techniques of galdor rather than seith to investigate the process of divination. Since we have already learned the intricacies of galdor, it will make it easier for us to learn the prophetic ropes by using the means most familiar to us. Once you have become used to the ways in which the rune streams inform your consciousness, you will be better able to recognise those promptings in a less structured seith instance. The good magician will learn both skills to the best of his ability.
There are two main ways to carry out divination by runes, by placing a selected number of runes in predetermined patterns of meaning, or by literally casting the runes and seeing which fall where. But in either case, it will first be necessary to establish a pattern whereby the reading may be interpreted.
You will need to decide what factors you will need to consider in order to interpret the answer to your question. The simplest method is to randomly draw forth a single rune. This may well answer your question, but it will necessarily be very sketchy and lacking in detailed advice or background information. The next step up from this is to arrange the selected runes in three places, representing the past, the present situation and the likely future outcome based upon the prevailing conditions. This will still answer your question, but will also provide you with more food for thought. A much more thorough reading can be obtained with yet more complex methods of laying out the selected runes. For example, you might choose one rune for each of the worlds of Yggdrasil, interpreting the influence bearing upon the question from each world in turn; the ultimate manifestation of the answer would be placed in the position of Midgard, of course, but its roots and possible means of changing the outcome could be traced elsewhere in the reading.
When you have established these steads of meaning for your reading, you should mark them on a casting cloth. For example, a simple past / present / future model would involve dividing the cloth into three sections, whilst a 'nine worlds' model would involve drawing the outline of Yggdrasil on the cloth. The cloth may be white, black or red according to preference and the fields may be drawn, painted or embroidered thereon.
When you are ready to commence your reading, take the runes in your hands and mix them thoroughly. You may wish to perform a small ritual to clear your mind and focus your attention upon the matter you are inquiring about. Ask the three Norns – the keepers and shapers of Wyrd (see further in chapter eight concerning this) – Urdhr, Verdhandi and Skuld
– to reveal the patterns of manifestation to you with regard to your inquiry. Then the runes should be selected for placement in the steads of meaning.
This can be done by either mixing the runestaves in your hands, then carefully selecting one (or more) at random to place in each stead. Or it can be done by mixing the staves, then holding them high, closing your eyes and letting them all fall, scattering them upon the casting cloth randomly.
In either case, the runes are now interpreted according to the stead in which they are placed. If a rune falls in a stead which represents the past, it will be interpreted as a factor in the initial shaping and formation of the matter under inquiry, shedding light upon the reason matters now stand as they do, for instance. If using Yggdrasil as a model for a layout, a rune falling in Jotunheim would represent the immovable obstacles that must be circumvented when dealing with a situation; a rune falling in Svartalfheim would indicate the practical skills necessary to achieve a satisfactory conclusion.
If you draw runes to be placed in specific steads, the above process will be relatively simple and will consist of considering the import of the field in which the rune lies, then using your rune knowledge acquired in previous chapters to interpret the meaning of that rune in relation to the position it occupies relative to the question. This mental cross-referencing and balancing act will become easy with practice. You may then need to adjust your interpretation to take into account a given rune's relation to others around it and how they impact upon the question. Use your intuition and the rune lore you have absorbed to accomplish this; divination is more of an art than a science.