Amulets for Wealth & Happiness - Part 4

Having, as it were, “charged” his body, mind and soul with Angelic and Divine Names, my associate focussed on the intention specific to his current use of this Kame’a, which, as said, pertained to the generation of personal material wealth. He informed me that he mentally scanned the rows of letters comprising the Divine Names in the top column of the Kame’a, briefly pausing on the letters comprising the Hebrew term aligned with his intention, and uttering the appropriate sounds associated with these letters. For example, when he reached the golden letters in the first row, he would pause briefly, look at the letters and say “Hit,” then continue scanning until he reaches the chosen golden in the second row, again pausing momentarily and uttering “Ah.” He would continue tracing along the letters until he reaches the golden in the third row, when he would commence sounding “Sh” whilst continuing to scan to the golden , when he concluded the utterance sounding “Sher.” He told me that he repeated this action three times, since he considered this repetition to be in harmony with the three letters of the word “Osher”—“Wealth.” Afterwards he collectively “flashed,” so to speak, the five golden glyphs comprising his “magic word,” simultaneously vocalizing it (“Hit’asher”). This he felt he needed to do seven times.

In conclusion, my associate sat down comfortably, closed his eyes, and, whilst relaxing into the seat, commenced a “Hagah” (mantra) comprising the first row of Divine Names in the upper right hand column— (Shadai Yachid Shadai Chai). He indicated that he had chosen this specific phrase with the intention of using it continuously, literally round-the-clock, until the achievement of his aim. He specified that whenever he felt the need to do so, he would retrieve his Kame’a and “flash” his “magic word” in the manner described earlier.

My associate has since achieved the sought after result, and is presently using the same Kame’a for a different intention, perhaps one related to the pure delight of aligning ones body, mind, soul and spirit with the “forces” inherent in the Divine and Angelic Names. I am well aware that he had employed it in a most powerful manner, and I am convinced he will continue to repeat this in many ways. However, I believe there is a vital hidden factor to remember regarding his great success.....he did not doubt for a single second that the manner in which he was employing this Kame’a would bring about the sought after result!

In conclusion, it is worth keeping in mind that in the “magical art of joining together what belongs together,” you have to become a “Living Question Mark.” Check and recheck that all “poles are accurately connected,” before “turning on the lights” of Practical Kabbalah!!

Amulets for Wealth & Happiness - Part 3

Having prepared the amulet we are addressing in a most careful manner, my associated next "bound" himself, as it were, to the Kame’a by vocalising and tracing the Divine and Angelic Names in the locales in his own body which correspond to the exact positions indicated in the central framed figure in the amulet.

He intended himself to be the living expression of this image, and he did this in the following manner:

1. Starting under the chin, moving up round the left side and down the right side, he uttered and mentally traced the words

(Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh Shadai Yachid YHVH Tzva’ot) around his head like this:

2. This was followed by verbalizing and tracing the words (Yah) over his right eye and (Tzva’ot) down his right temple and cheek, followed by (Tzva’ot) traced up his left cheek and temple, then again (Yah) over the left eye, and finally concluding with the uttering of the Divine Name (Achatri’el), simultaneously tracing it along his nose downwards to his mouth as shown in the following illustration:

3. Next, he brought his attention to his neck and throat. Focussing on the left side of the neck, he uttered (Hayah Adonai) and mentally traced the first word down the left side of the neck, continuing with the second along the left shoulder. This was followed by shifting his attention to his throat, then uttering and tracing (Hoveh Elah) down the throat and tracing into the upper chest. He concluded this portion of the procedure by mentally tracing and uttering (v’Yiyeh Shadai) down the right side of the neck and along the right shoulder, as indicated below:

4. Continuing the procedure, the name of Archangel (Metatron) was traced and uttered down the right arm, and the procedure repeated with the angelic name (Yotzaf’chiron) traced and uttered up the left arm, as shown in the following illustration:

5. Attention was next brought to the upper torso, directly below the shoulders. Commencing at the top of the torso, the Names of ten Archangels were vocalised and traced in layers on the body in the following manner:

(Micha’el) top right and (Raphael) top left;

(Tzadki'el) next layer right and (Pani’el) left;

(Rachmi’el) ensuing right and (Nuri’el) left;

(Razi’el) following right and (Yofi'el) left.

Then (YHV—IAO) was uttered and traced five times from right to left at navel level, and this portion of the procedure concluded with (Shamshi’el) being traced on the lower torso right and (Yecho’el) correspondingly left. The entire construct appears:

6. This procedure of vocalizing and tracing of Divine and Angelic Names on his body, was concluded with the utterance of (Agala’a) down the right leg and (Ehyeh) along the right foot, concluding with (Ehyeh) along the left foot and finally tracing (Agala’a) up the left leg, as shown below:

7. The entire procedure was concluded by encircling the body, as it were, with a shield of force generated by the Names of ten Archangels vocalised and traced around the body—five upwards from the left foot around the left side to the top of the head, and five downwards round the right side back to the right foot. These are:

Left Up:

Right Down:

In the Kame'a this, as it were, "Circle of Power" format appears:

(More to follow)

Magical Healing & a Consumer Society - Part 1

The employment of Segulot (Magical techniques or Spiritual Remedies) has generated heated reaction from “mainstream” religionists rejecting its use altogether, whilst the more esoterically minded consider such remedies to be most valuable and effective. Regarding the latter, Shlomo ben Adret, the great Rashba, wrote: “And I say that it was the kindness of the Supreme Being at the start of Creation to create in his world things that would ensure the health of the created beings, that if the existents happen to fall ill or for any other reason deviate from their natural perfection, these [things] are ready to restore them to their realm or to make them healthy. And He placed these forces in the essence of things found in nature, as may be attained by study, such as medications and aids known to scholars of medicine, or in nature based on properties but not attainable by study..... And it is not impossible that such a power should also be in speech, as in the case of amulets and similar things.” [Ben Adret, S.: Responsa, transl. in Schwartz, D.: Studies on Astral Magic in Medieval Jewish Thought, Brill, Leiden & Boston 2005.]

I am a firm believer in Segulot, Refu’ot, Kame’ot, in fact, in all things “magical” and “miraculous,” and I have personally derived great benefit from the use of Segulot for a variety of purposes. After all, my life to date has been all about magic, and long may it continue that way! However, in this regard one is so often faced with the dichotomy of “Divine Will” and “(H)human (W)will,” i.e. that “either or” situation in which those who are of the “man proposes, God disposes” persuasion maintain faith in the absolute imposition of “Divine Will” in the least of our human affairs, usually by a deity whose lofty existence is quite removed from us lowly earthlings, whilst at the other end of the scale there are those who avow with equal faith and fervency their belief in the absoluteness of “Human Will” as far as determining our material existence, i.e. life and destiny, is concerned.

I believe the truth regarding this matter lies somewhere in the “middle,” and that if everything is indeed “God,” as some Kabbalists maintain, the will of an individual must also be “God’s will.” Of course, there are endless problems for those who allow their consciousness to embrace this line of thought, since then they are faced with all the rubbish humans have foisted on their own kind and environment, and having to acknowledge these to be the self inflicted injuries by “God” on “God”! Oyoyoy!.....I can hear the deafening roar of fundamentalist dismay at the other end of this page at such blasphemy!

Be that as it may, the intention here is not to address the religious contentions, but to focus on what is accurately termed “magical” or “miraculous” living factors. Those who consider themselves generally more “respectable,” follow passionate prayer to the Almighty One rather than intensive invocation of His subtle minions. We might note that the mainstream religionists have certainly no qualms in what they might be praying for, hence they will employ prayer for any personally justified purpose whatsoever. Again those who are more esoterically minded do the same with their Segulot, Refu’ot, Kame’ot, etc. Regarding the “ardent prayer” for all purposes approach, we might recall the example of a fundamentalist religious organisation that started a “Pray at the Pump” action, that is “gas pumps” in the U.S. of A., and “petrol pumps” for the majority of humanity living beyond American borders. The intention was to implore Divinity, who has power over everything, to reduce gasoline prices. In this regard, one commentator remarked that “God is first answering the prayers of those who want people to lose weight by forcing them to walk and ride bicycles.”

Being a true believer in the “miraculous,” I am naturally intrigued by such quaint religious antics, and particularly by the keenness of those who pray so as to “twist the arm of the Almighty” into interfering with others in order to favour themselves. I am well aware that there would be arguments that such prayers are never for personal benefits, but that they are meant for the greater good of everyone! Besides, so what if these prayers were uttered for ones’ personal benefit only? After all, anyone praying is still hoping that they might turn “divine decision” into personal favour. I do not have an issue with that at all.

What interests me greatly are the actual mechanics of “prayer” and how a “god” can hear us. Having discovered the “gateway to magic and miracles” inside myself, rather than in the actual prayer and external ritual, I attempted to address this in “The Book of Self Creation,” stating that the manner in which “God” hears us is “through ourselves, and to the extent that we are in contact with ‘God.’ On this planet WE are the ears, eyes and agents whereby He (She or It) knows man.” My fifty plus years of “praying” have brought me to the full realisation that Kabbalah was right all along in stating that all is God. In this regard, the late Israel Regardie related a delightful saga regarding a “chela” whose “master” had taught him that he was “God.” Mr Disciple was wandering absentmindedly down a road reiterating to himself “I am God......I am God......” Approaching him from the opposite end was a huge elephant, yet he was paying no attention and continued to recite “I am God.....I am God.....” Eventually, virtually at the instant of serious impact between man and beast, the master wrenched the wretch out of the way of the larger mammal, exclaiming “You idiot! Didn’t you see the elephant?” “But master” retorted the startled disciple, “I am God!” “So is the elephant!” returned the master. So you see, it is all a matter of perspective! I am “God,” you are “God,” the pump is “God,” the fuel is “God,” everything IS “God.” Never all of “God,” but still part of “God.” Everything is God but God is not a “thing”.....and neither are you!

Now, regarding the employment of “magical tools” in ones daily life, e.g. Segulot and Refu’ot, I would like to point out that my personal domicile is in Africa, a continent in which our normal three dimensional existence is comfortably shared with the multiple degrees of the “realm of the ancestral spirits.” The traditional African healer called a “Sangoma” or “Inyanga,” functions in what could be termed an “in-between” condition of consciousness, one in which he or she mediates between the world of physical matter and the subtle realms of spirit. Like other practitioners of “sympathetic magic” around the globe, the African medicine man, or woman for that matter, attempts to alleviate all manner of disease, whether of the physical, psychological or spiritual kind, employing unique remedies which they, under the guidance of the spirits of their ancestors, glean from their physical surroundings. These include special herbs, a variety of tree barks, skins, bones, teeth, and other bodily parts of various animals and birds, some rocks, insects, etc.[Ademuwagun, Z.A.: African Therapeutic Systems, Crossroads Press, Los Angeles 1979; Cumes, D.: Africa in My Bones: A Surgeon’s Odyssey into the Spirit World of African Healing, New Africa Books (Pty) Ltd, Claremont 2004.]

Whilst the average Westerner today might frown at such practices, it is worth considering that similar magical practices are to be found in the tribal medicinal traditions of our own ancestors, and much of these ancient folk customs have come down to us. It might be generally believed that the Hebrew Bible proscribed all forms of sorcery. This view is not quite accurate, since many distinctly magical activities abound in its sacred pages. In this regard, we have been informed that “to say that the Bible prohibits magic is to make no statements about primordial realms. The ancient Hebrews shared with their contemporaries the belief that certain rituals were approved by the gods and that others were disapproved.” [Green, A.: Jewish Spirituality: From the Bible, through the Middle Ages, Routledge & Kegan Paul, London 1986.]

We have also been reminded that “the interpenetration of religion and magic was even more pronounced in Jewish communities where.....the problem of removing magic from religion was hardly an issue.” [Sharot, S.: Messianism, Mysticism, and Magic: A Sociological Analysis of Jewish Religious Movements, University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill 1982.] However, it should be noted that throughout Jewish history, the higher rabbinical authorities attempted to rid post-biblical Judaism of that which those who claimed to be “enlightened” called the gross, ungodly superstitious customs of their kinsfolk. Some of the mediaeval magical customs were indeed extremely crude, and many of these can be traced in the protection and healing recipes listed in the Talmud, not to mention in the primary literature of Practical Kabbalah.

In this regard, it should be noted that we have “come a long way,” and have indeed transcended crude mediaeval customs.....or have we? Judging by the popularity of the coarsest favoured “magic recipe” texts, these being mainly “for the millions” presentations in which the most tasteless magical practices are freely pandered without blinking an eyelid, it is quite clear that those very crude customs of our ancient forebears, are in fact being “idealised” rather than “transcended” in our day. Considering this, it would seem that the “magical apothecary” of the modern magician would still have to include items like the teeth of dogs and foxes, horns of she goats, and other assorted oddities.

These items are basically no different from the “magical inventory” of South African “traditional healers,” which may include the tooth of a hyena or of a lion; or suggestions that you apply to a wound some hair taken from the dog that bit you in order to prevent infection and rabies; or the dung of an elephant; the skin of a puffadder; or the horn of a kudu; all very unhygienic yet remarkably effective and successful remedies amongst local inhabitants. This must appear quite revolting to moderns with their remedies “clinically distilled,” as it were, from plants, placentas, or from the genes of “the fowls of the air and beasts of the fields,” or perhaps “generically” manufactured and sold at lower prices, etc. The difference appears to be but the mindset of the “end-user,” and, of course, the quality of the product, albeit without the dried heart of a dove or “forefinger of a mummy”! However, as in the case of the greedy chemical companies controlling modern medicine, you will get from your local “Sangoma” or “Inyanga” the best service for the best price.....we hope!

What I am really trying to say is, that it seems to me there is little difference between our local African “Sangoma” with his or her herbs, bones, stones, assorted potions and ancestral spirits, and the medieval Kabbalist (including some moderns like myself) with his or her herbs, bones, stones, assorted potions, and unique “spirit intelligences.” It is but a question of angle of approach, semantics for lunatics, or simply that “sweet rose by any other name would smell like.....fish!”

(More to follow)

The Name Elohim in Practical Kabbalah - Part 4

Whilst not really employed singularly on its own in “Practical Kabbalah,” it should be noted that the Name Elohim, has been used for magical purposes in conjunction with other Divine Names, such as the Tetragrammaton, Ehyeh, Adonai, etc., and Elohim as well as the singular El and Eloha, feature fairly prominently in a variety of Kame’ot (Hebrew Amulets). In this regard, one commentator offered us a “magic square” constructed entirely of the Divine Name in question, but he gave no indication as to what its purpose might be:

Now, the singular of the Name Elohim, i.e. Eloah (), as well as its “root” Name El (), are both related to Chesed (— “Kindness” or “Mercy”) on the kabbalistic Tree of Life. Since the Name Eloha is understood to act as a covering for the Neshamah, the Higher Self, it is called (gushpanka d’nishmata), i.e. “Seal of the Higher Soul,” as indicated in Job 3:23 which reads (va-yasech Eloha ba’ado— “and whom Eloha hath hedged in”).

Of course, conjunctions of Names like (El Chai), (El Shadai), etc. relate to different spheres on the sefirotic Tree. Both mentioned combinations pertain to Yesod (— “Foundation”). There are others still of the “El” Divine Name combinations, like (El Elyon) which relate to the sphere of Binah (Understanding) on the Kabbalistic Tree; the very lofty (El YHVH) termed (ha-me’ir ba’olam ha-yetzirah), the “Luminosity of the World of Formation”; (El Adonai) which applies to our physical realm of existence, and is called (ha-me’ir ba’olam ha-Asiyah), the “Luminosity of the World of Action.”

As it is, the Name El Chai is part of an interesting magical procedure involving the procurement of protection against all kinds of demons which beset an individual at night. However, I believe it is most important to consider exactly what such “Demons of the Night” are really all about. Whilst there might indeed be “infernal denizens” who will pester a defenseless individual during sleep, we need to also understand that many “night demons” are the personifications of personal fears.

All of us, at some time or another, have encountered foibles of such a distressing nature, that their impact has later resulted in what is known as “anxiety attacks.” In many instances we may no longer be able to recall the initial causes of such “panic attacks,” yet we might continue to suffer night after night from such self-created “demons.” Whilst many will resort to the most drastic medication to control body, mind and soul, others will use magical resources, like the following amulet, to control all “night demons.”

To construct the Kame’a (amulet), one has to write on a piece of parchment, or clean white paper, the combination ; then seven times the term (Chai—“life”); followed by the name of the angel Pani’el (), also seven times; and concluding with the combination (Ehyeh asher Ehyeh), as well as a set of magical “seals,” like this:

The entire construct is then worn around the neck of the individual who seeks protection against afflictions from “night demons.”