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Subscribe to this list via RSS Blog posts tagged in occult history

Posted by on in Studies Blogs
Picatrix

I'm delighted that a long-anticipated book is out at last! The Picatrix: A Medieval Treatise on Astral Magic has been long in production for the Penn State Magic in History line. As a member of Societas Magica I have seen bits of the work in progress which tantalised. From the blurb:

A manual for constructing talismans, mixing magical compounds, summoning planetary spirits, and determining astrological conditions, Picatrix is a cornerstone of Western esotericism. It offers important insights not only into occult practices and beliefs but also into the transmission of magical ideas from antiquity to the present. Dan Attrell and David Porreca’s English translation opens the world of this vital medieval treatise to modern-day scholars and lay readers.

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Recent Comments - Show all comments
  • Anthony Gresham
    Anthony Gresham says #
    What other titles are in tis series?
  • Kate Laity
    Kate Laity says #
    Click the link to the publisher to see them all.

Posted by on in Studies Blogs
Charms A-Plenty

There's a wonderful new book out that I have just barely had time to crack open, but if you're interested in the history of magic you will doubtless want to look into it as well:

Traditional Magic Spells for Protection and Healing
By Claude Lecouteux. 2016. Rochester: Inner Traditions. 328 pages.
ISBN: 978-1-62055-621-4 

There's a comprehensive review over at the Journal of Folklore Research, which is why I picked it up at once. Yelena Francis points out the strengths of Lecouteax's background and the accessibility of the format. There are also some great additional and often rare resources in the appendices. And because it's from Inner Traditions rather than a big academic press, it's actually an affordable volume (though you should be able to get it via interlibrary loan as well). 

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Posted by on in Studies Blogs
Dangerous Fairy Women

Anyone acquainted with the long history of fairy encounters from the most ancient to Thomas of Erceldoune to now knows, as Graham Joyce would tell you, to be wary of the EDFF (extremely dangerous fairy folk). You wouldn't call them fairies either, if you had any sense. Be polite to the Gentry.

Yet in the past there were many men foolish enough to try to summon them as lovers.

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Recent comment in this post - Show all comments
  • Thesseli
    Thesseli says #
    "This mix of misogyny and lechery" -- doesn't that phrase exactly describe most modern men's attitudes towards women? Which is wh

Posted by on in Studies Blogs
The Great Conflation

I am looking forward to the final episode of Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell on Sunday (I think it's begun in the States more recently). It's been fun seeing an 'alternate' history of magic, though I will be sad to see it end. It got me thinking about a period in history that leads to a lot of confusion. When people say 'witch hunts' most people still seem to think of the Middle Ages, though the worst years were part of the Early Modern era, sometimes known as the Renaissance (a much disputed term for a variety of reasons). While many see the dividing line as the Reformation, the roots of that change can be see in Wycliffe and the Lollards in the 14th century. I tend to see Gutenberg's innovation as a technological change, though even there printing existed before his moveable type -- but the speed of the technology has all kinds of impacts as we know in the internet age.

We may not think of magic as technology, but all knowledge is technology. A revolution in technology may be regarded as good or bad or something in between, but it usually hard to deny once it happens. A big change happened in the history of magic that had a huge impact that leads to the widespread witch hunts of the Early Modern era (and on into the so-called Age of Enlightenment). For background, I highly recommend you get Michael D. Bailey's Battling Demons: Witchcraft, Heresy, and Reform in the Late Middle Ages. Perhaps easier to obtain is his briefer essay, 'The Feminization of Magic and the Emerging Idea of the Female Witch in the Late Middle Ages' (available via Project Muse in many libraries).

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PaganNewBeagle Faithful Friday August 15

Happy Friday! Today, the Pagan News Beagle concentrates on news of (mostly Pagan) religion in the modern world. Lots of questions today: why worship fierce goddesses (from a Hindu perspective), why should Pagans care about Mormon feminism, why are there so few nurturing goddesses in devotional polytheism? Plus a 20th century occultist, Buddhist thoughts on depression and a song dedicated to Hecate.

An amazing 20th century occultist Marjorie Cameron (and upcoming an art show in her honor) is the subject of this fascinating story on the HuffingtonPost.

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PaganNewsBeagle Faithful Friday August 8

Today's Faithful Friday from the Pagan News Beagle includes the pre-Christian religion at risk in Iraq; powerful traditions of women's equality in Cherokee culture; female occultists highlighted in Los Angeles; the Freakonomics of religion and what makes us self-righteous.

The magical religion of the Yizidis -- a minority group in Iraq that the US is bombing the radical Islamist army to save -- includes many elements modern Pagans would recognize, and for which they have been persecuted for millennia.

This wonderful essay from Indian Country details the powerful place of women in traditional (pre-Columbian contact) Cherokee society.

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PaganNewsBeagle Faithful Friday July 11

Lots of amazing Pagan news for today's Faith-Filled Friday.

Central European Paganism is a growing movement -- in Poland! http://www.krakowpost.com/article/6956

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