Well, I myself had merely a brief correspondence through mail with E.E. Rehmus. We exchanged letters for close to a year (perhaps six or seven letters each). That was the extent of my “official” mentorship. What is funny is that he and I discussed actual “magick techniques" v. little, and more simply related to one and other. And I think this is where all the best learning and instruction takes place: when it is simply in the relating and not in the “studying.” I mean, take a look at GM’s portrayal of Dane’s apprenticeship in The Invisibles: Dane basically “hangs out” with his teacher for an extended period of time & there is little actual “instruction.” I see that some of you above have put forward similar sorts of views.
It seems to me that being “magickal” or a “magician” isn’t like a career or profession—it is a way of being a human. Thus, the best way to teach and/or learn is to simply be and be with: in short, to relate. It is through an open and honest relation that we are going to learn and/or instruct others—the rest is all largely superfluous (but in its own way important).
Another thing is, to repeat what I’ve said elsewhere, I came to the realization several years ago that our “guru” does indeed find us, but that is a function of our readiness to “find” our teacher through our everyday interactions and relations with the world. If we continue to believe that we need to find that one right person or that one wise individual, then we are stuck on a hopeless road of a wild goose chase. However, if we take to each of our days (or most of our days, or hell, even a few of our days) the attitude that we are open to learn from whomever and whatever we encounter, then we are going to continue to learn and grow for the duration of our lives. Our guru is all around us, we merely have to be receptive to the teachings that bombard us in every experience. As they say, “live and learn.”
Which means for me as a potential “instructor” of things occult that I must never lose sight of the fact that the “student-teacher” relationship isn’t fixed; that is, whenever we are one, we are also necessarily the other (unless we are simply “bad” teachers). I can’t imagine thinking that I’ve arrived somewhere (well I can, but I needn’t create that reality trap for myself): a journey without destinations, departures or arrivals, ya? Or differently (and quoting the b-boys), “As long as I learn I will make mistakes.” The day I stop making mistakes will be the day that my heart stops beating, or so I hope.
One final comment: I feel quite strongly that taking on an apprentice is tantamount to releasing a copy of yourself into the world. Let me fill that out a little more because it doesn’t mean what it reads as saying. I mean, as people who take a role in “instructing” someone, we become entwined with that person; that is, we become one in the student-teacher relation. This entwining is non spatial-temporal: it keeps us linked throughout the course of at least this life. Thus, we become responsible for not only what we teach and how we teach it, but also, we become involved with the responsibility of how such teaching is put into practice by our students. In different words, we take a share of any karma accumulated via the applications of our instructions. This is another reason why I loathe Pop Magic/k: these authors are obviously hacks if they feel they can put forward such garbage into the world to make a quick buck—because it is trendy—and simply shrug off the use of their instruction. Obviously (at least to me), an individual who doesn’t recognize the importance of sincerity in their free doling out of knowledge also can’t possibly be aware of their share in responsibility for the use of such knowledge. This doesn’t hold for merely teaching occult, but all teachings: if we are teaching someone how to be a carpenter, and then if he or she goes on to build shoddy houses, we are partly to blame. |
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