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Energy Raising/Dispelling

  
 
Perfect Tommy
06:48 / 02.04.04
I was talking with a friend about a witch she used to know. She saw him casting a spell one time, and said that the energy coming off him was palpable, and similar to that of people coming out of intense meditation sessions (the friend in question was in an Indian monastery for a year).

It got me to thinking: chaotes talk about 'gnosis' all the time. I have always associated this state with moments when the mind's eye blinks: orgasms, sudden surprises, and so forth. But I don't hear a lot about powering up beforehand, and I'd like to hear about any techniques you've got, for a few reasons. First, if you're doing magick improvisationally, it may not be convenient to bungee-jump to do a bit of sleight of mind, so a more consciously directed method of firing your SoI might be called for. Second, it does irk me how occasionally one comes across a reference in a text to 'next, enter gnosis, and then...' as though you can slip in and out of this state like platform shoes. Finally, any exercises for raising and lowering your energy level would seem good for your magickal rigor; we've had a few threads lately which have more or less been about magickal laziness, so here's your chance to expound on your favorite years-of-practice method.

('Course, I could just be talking crap and what I need is a good sigil-wank...)
 
 
illmatic
07:44 / 02.04.04
I can relate to the point about "energy" - I'v been in a couple of rituals where I've felt the atmosphere change palpably. As if there were something in the air. I also pick up on this in Churches, especially round the altar, normally. This is something that both me and my girlfriend (not a practioner) have picked up on. It always amazes me that people don't "get" the atomsophere of the sacred in Churches, I find it so arresting normally I can't see how people are blinded to it. I'd be interested to hear if people have felt this in the sacred spaces of other relgions.

My point re. gnosis would be, do we need it at all? I just find the sigil-gnosis-wanking thing a bit dull really, this is partly because I'm I've been reading/practicing stuff for about a decade now so I'm a bit jaded, but I do find that it's one of those ideas that passes from book to book with no intervening thought". As I understand Pete, he seems to trying to create fomula that explain occult effects and one element of his formula is gnosis - my point would be though, that plenty of occult/odd effects are generated that fall outside of this model ie they occur without onepointedness ie. divination, synchronicity. So who says we need it at all?

Lots of magical traditons don't have the "gnostic sneeze" as part of their rituals - they might make use of prayer for instance, or other kind of devotions. This big kind of gnostic release isn't always the key point of every kind of ritual. (This was something that confused me when I started reading stuff other than Chaos Magick texts).

In terms of warming up before working, I've variously fasted for the day, eating afterwards, feels like you're really earthing things, practiced meditation for 20 minutes or so to still myself. Also, well recommended - a bout of Chris Hyatt's "energised Meditation" or Reichan breathwork before puja. I don't so much think of this as "raising energy" though as getting rid of tension and re-connecting with my body. I'd add also that practising this stuff regularly has it's own rewards.
 
 
gravitybitch
14:28 / 02.04.04
Illmatic - thanks so much for the phrase gnostic sneeze - I think that needs to be added to everybody's vocabulary! (Is it redundant to say "Bless you!" to someone after their gnostic sneeze?)

Anyway, my favorite way of "charging up" for any sort of ritual is a modified form of the Middle Pillar & Fountain of Light sequence of exercises. Pulling in all that lovely energy and moving it around seems to automatically generate a lot more...
 
  
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