ⲧⲉⲃⲣⲟⲛⲧⲏ: ⲛⲟⲩⲥ ⲛ̄ⲧⲉⲗⲉⲓⲟ

Leave the locking in, monk modes, or whatever other miserable thing is being pushed on you in the gutters! Enjoy the pleasures of this life, and feel the ecstasy in your heart at seeing tiny little things, like a flower you like, or a cloud that just makes you smile because... it does! You're allowed to do this, and it is divine!

This is a meditative practice that I personally adore, so I wanted to share it with all of you! In this post, I'll go through a brief history of this practice in different cultures and relate it back to paganism/occultism, and then give you a little tutorial on how to do it.

History

Copying texts is one of the oldest devotional actions in the world and can be traced back to the beginning of writing itself. The oldest known devotional text comes from the 23rd century BCE and was dedicated to Innana.

The idea of there being a certain reward for doing this action, however, first occurs in Buddhism, where various sutras, dharani incantations and even names of deities themselves are described as granting merits to those who write them. The oldest printed text in the world itself came into being as a result of this very devotional act) that being the Hyakumantō Darani found in a miniature pagoda in Japan). Here is a quote describing the rewards for such acts found in the Aparimitāyurjñāna Sūtra:

"those beings who will write out or cause to be written out this Dharma discourse called ‘Uttering the Praise of the Qualities of the Tathāgata Aparimitāyus,’ and even those who hear or recite its title only, up to those who write a copy, keep it at home, and offer flowers, perfume, incense, and garlands to it, will, when their lifespan is ending, still be able to live to a hundred years."

With the spread of Christianity, which in a lot of ways defined scripture as we know it today, the copying of the Bible became an integral practice of meditation in monasteries, and the copies of the Bible made in this context were for a long time the only available ones at all. Their manuscripts would often be illustrated with various images, geometric patterns, and other decorations that made the texts come to life. The best example of this is the famous Book of Kells.

In Islam, writing itself ceased being a mere way to propagate scripture but became a divine mandated act. The Qur'an itself contains many metaphors and references to pens, writing, and physical books, likely reflecting the rich crossroads of Jewish and Christian literary traditions it sprung up in. One of the narrations from the hadiths even describes the act of creation as having been caused by writing:

"The first thing Allah created was the pen. He told it to write, so it wrote what was to take place till Doomsday. This is with Allah on His Throne."

In the late 19th and 20th century, occult circles, a new category of psychic phenomenon, became all the rage: automatic writing. This was a practice utilised by spiritists, theosophists, and neo-hermeticists alike, and it often involved attempts at writing without utilising the conscious mind or alternatively channeling spirits and spiritual beings.

Within pagan religions, this practice, too, isn't without precedent. In various philosophical traditions of late antiquity, written texts in physical form were integral for the transmission of information, rituals and doctrines across the increasingly interconnected Mediterranean basin. In the Discourse on the Eights and Ninth, a Hermetic text found in the Nag Hammadi library, we find this extortion at the end of the text:

"My <son>, write the language of the book on steles of turquoise. My son, it is proper to write this book on steles of turquoise, in hieroglyphic characters. For Mind himself has become overseer of these. Therefore, I command that this teaching be carved on stone, and that you place it in my sanctuary. Eight guardians guard it with [...] of the Sun. The males on the right are frog-faced, and the females on the left are cat-faced. And put a square milk-stone at the base of the turquoise tablets, and write the name on the azure stone tablet in hieroglyphic characters. My son, you will do this when I am in Virgo, and the sun is in the first half of the day, and fifteen degrees have passed by me."

How to do it?

The good news is that this is one of the most accessible devotional practices available to everyone, from beginners to more advanced practitioners. To begin, simply find a text that you wish to put into writing, whether it be an ancient hymn, philosophical discourse, take out your pen, and begin copying!

As you write, focus on the text, on each word therein, contemplate them, and take it slowly. Focus on honouring the words themselves with good and deliberate handwriting, and don't be shy! Use colours, draw illustrations, add little serrifs and swirls, and make it a little work of art.

I like having a little pocket-sized notebook in which I write passages that I find particularly inspiring, comforting, or beautiful, and I like to flip through when out and about and I find myself needing something to ground me.

If you want an actual introduction, though, the original texts already provided us with one! Corpus Hermeticum, book III is a 4-5 paragraph (depending on the edition) summary of complete Hermetic thought. It touches on all major topics, from the role of God and humans to the role of the seven astrological planets and the creation of the world.

A prayer for visiting the Panteon of Rome

This is a prayer I wrote, inspired by the Persian genre of ziyaratnamah prayers, which are used during pilgramage to various tombs and places. In it, all 12 major gods are invoked, usually with an architectural feature associated with them [insert microcosm/macrocosm symbolism here]. I hope you enjoy it!

_________________________________________________

Lauded be the Gods, unto them do I send my praise!

Jove! You who hold up the dome of the heavens, father of old, the Best, the Greatest, begetter of gods and men, greatest among benefics, be benevolent and propitious to us, may your name be oft called upon!

Juno! You who unite the pillars of female and male, great proteress, mother of old, be benevolent and propitious to us, may your name be oft called upon!

Minerva! Spear bearer, helmet adorned, well beloved Wisdom! Be benevolent and propitious to us, may your name be oft called upon!

Vesta! Sacrificial flame, protectress of the hearth, receiver of offerings, be benevolent and propitious to us, may your name be oft called upon!

Ceres! Earth of the foundations, giver of grain, queen of fruitages, be benevolent and propitious to us, may your name be oft called upon!

Diana! Bearer of the bow (arch), mighty huntress, crescent of the night sky, be benevolent and propitious to us, may your name be oft called upon!

Apollo! Patron of the arts, author of songs, provider of light, forger of prophecy, be benevolent and propitious to us, may your name be oft called upon!

Venus! Gate to the One, queen of beauty, authoress of love, be benevolent and propitious to us, may your name be oft called upon!

Mars! Disciplined father, leader of hosts, guardian of Rome, be benevolent and propitious to us, may your name be oft called upon!

Mercury! Fast heeled, mover of roads, messenger of gods and men, guide of the dead, be benevolent and propitious to us, may your name be oft called upon!

Neptune! King of the waters, cleanser and nourisher, be benevolent and propitious to us, may your name be oft called upon!

Vulcan! Forger of bronze, master of fire, establisher of comfort, be benevolent and propitious to us, may your name be oft called upon!

In recent years, we've seen a trend against various occult forms of mysticism, mostly in abrahamic traditions, but also in various dharmic spaces.

One of their common complaints is that using talismans, sigils, and other related things (such as those which may be found in the Keys of Solomon or the Shams-al-Ma'arif) somehow constituted idolatry, or is otherwise morally wrong because it is related to causing material change. In this post, I'll discuss how they actually bring us closer to intimacy with the divine and why result oriented workings or prayers shouldn't be viewed as a sharp contrast to more mystical/internal ones.

Seeking refuge

When making a talisman, especially one related to a mundane situation, what we essentially do is turn to God for help. We put our trust in God, and often also in divine revalation (most talismans utilise versicles from holy books, most often the Torah, Tanakh and the Qur'an). It provides the users of such occult sciences with a more tangible form of prayer, which results in an end product that can serve as a reminder of divine providence and the trust they have placed in the divine.

The results speak for themselves

After the magician has places his trust in God, created a talisman, and eventually recieved results, that serves to deepen the relationship to the divine. "Ask and ye shall recieve" is seen by the magician not only in theory, but also in practice, and through this, even a person who might not have immediately been mystically inclined, can be drawn in towards the divine mysteries.

A testament to divine power

We again return to what talismans are often composed of, that is, divine names, angelic names, verses from scripture, powerful letters, symbols of particular forces, etc. It logically follows that, if these names themselves reflect such power that they might influence the world of creation, the One who posesses these names must also be a pretty powerful and mighty guy. If the name of one of the angels, who are according to the divine hierarchy subservient to Him can cause change and influence our situation, he can assuredly do so much more himself. In this way, talismans point towards divine power and providence in their own right.

I want to make a talisman, how do I do it?

I would reccommend anyone interested in crafting or using talismans to look into the Picatrix (Ghayat al Hakim), the Key of Solomon (not the lesser one!), the Shams al Ma'arif, the Sixth and Seventh books of Moses, Sefer Raziel and the Greek Magical Papyri

______________________________________________________________

doesn't have to be specific rituals or prayers! I'm particularly curious of some forms of witchcraft, I'm starting on hedge and death witchcraft and how to incorporate it in my beliefs since I'm not wiccan and it feels like lots of witchcraft assumes you to be.

if you have anything in mind I'd love to read that! sorry if it's a hard question. have a nice day 🌟

Hi! I am no expert on celtic practices in particular, but I am aware that historical/reliable sources on those are quite difficult to come across, but I would definitely reccomend you to look into what some celtic reconstructionist groups have put out, since that will probably give you the best basis for your own further experimentation and a good ground to gain some of your own insights/UPG.

As for germanic oriented stuff, I sincerely reccommend the Galdrabók. It does contain some later christian influences, but it is so heavily based in paganism that those can be very, very easily circumvented and altered (one might even dare say, restored) to suit a more pagan practice. The spells inside are also really beginner friendly, with lots of them being groupings of symbols that simply require you to write them out and carry them on you.

Lots of modern witchcraft is heavily indebted to Wicca, I'd even dare and say that the vast majority of modern practices popular on Tumblr/Tiktok can be traced back to neo-Wicca. If you aren't the most comfortable with that, I'd reccommend you also simply just look into witchcraft and folk magic practices that are local to you, as those might be easier to connect with, and also locate sources for. It would also help to preserve your local traditions.

Many beginners start out with rituals of cleansing, protection and banishing. This seems to be the case in most traditions, whether it be the Buddhist Vajrasattva practice often reccomended in the Tibetan school, or the LBRP in the Western esoteric tradition. As beginners, many people find these rituals pointless or tedious, but, they are essentially the entire mystical journey in small.

"When one looks at the basic framework of mysticism, one sees that it is essentially about purifying the self of obscurations, delusions and veils in order to accomplish mystical union. Banishing rituals are exactly about accomplishing this, and are much less about simply removing negative energies/spirits out of your space. Aleister Crowley put it beautifully in the following quote:

"Those who regard this ritual as a mere device to invoke or banish spirits, are unworthy to possess it. Properly understood, it is the Medicine of Metals and the Stone of the Wise."

Veritable mystical traditions almost always describe the world as being divine here and now. The goal of the mystic is not working towards some goal outside of yourself, but instead on removing the obscurations that cause such dichotomies to even appear in the first place.

Some of the things dealt with in more traditional systems are everyday, tangible things, such as finding lost things, the physical appearance of certain people in your life, prophecies related to more "mundane" things, etc.