Plutonica.net » Saturday Signal

Commitment, Skynet, tarot and old mysteries

Psyche — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 16:26:01 +0000

Saturday Signal: sifting the signal from the noise of the Internet’s occultural cacophony.

With all the news I post about space, how ’bout our home planet? No, not Pluto this time: Earth. Apparently it’s missing two billion years. Kind of. Well, we are anyway, in that we have no idea what happened for that span of time. Theories abound.

Also, the solar system is about two million years older than we thought.

Science is cool.

In her blog Know Thyself, T. Thorn Coyle reminds us that commitment and consistency are important in any practice, whether mundane or spiritual, in “Let’s Get Engaged“. You really do earn points just for showing up.

Charlie Jane Anders asks, “Could self-aware cities be the first forms of artificial intelligence?” on io9. To which we respond, “the first” might be a stretch (servitors, anyone? or egregores, gods, etc?), but that cities can and do become sentient certainly seems reasonable. Let’s just keep an eye out for Skynet, ok?

US Games, purveyors of the Rider-Waite-Smith Tarot Deck (amongst others), now blogs! Fool Stop Tarot Blog is run by Janet, their social media person, who also maintains their Twitter account and Facebook page. Everyone’s so Web 2.0.

Sannion (H. Jeremiah Lewis) writes in The House of Vines, “Speaking about the unspeakable“, that the old mysteries are dead, and that’s ok. We can’t reconstruct the past as it was, and that’s fine. Learning what was is great, but it’s not where we are now. Live life. Great stuff.

I had tons more links to share, but time intervened, so next week’s Signal will likely be double-sized. You’re welcome.

As always, if you come across anything nifty, please share it in the comments, or if you use delicious tag it “plutonica” and we’ll take a look. Thanks!

Copyright © 2007-2010 the author and Plutonica.net.
For the original source of the content please see Plutonica.net. Also check out our Esoteric Book Club.

Commitment, Skynet, tarot and old mysteries

Secrets, sex, sleep, statues and William Blake

Psyche — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 13:00:43 +0000

Saturday Signal: sifting the signal from the noise of the Internet’s occultural cacophony.

i09 is a fun blog – their tagline is “We come from the future”, which seems to mean they’ll cover anything science, sci-fi, and other geek stuff of that ilk.

A recent post titled “Jupiter became king of the planets by devouring a ‘Super Earth’” caught my eye because, well, it’s a great title, and it seems the planets’ names were more appropriate than the ancients may have realized:

New discoveries suggest Jupiter and Saturn learned a lesson from their mythological namesakes, “eating” any planet that opposed them.

For more on this check their source, NewScientist.

More cool news? Check out “Neptune will soon complete its first orbit around the sun since its discovery in 1846“. And by “soon” they mean yesterday. They come from the future, but Pluto’s far, it takes time for news to reach us. Forget it. Happy (Earth) birthday, Neptune!

With that, here’s your occultural linkage for this week.

Jack Faust has a new blog, still called Dionysian Atavism but now located on its own shiny domain at eldritchinfluence.net. He writes well and with a depth and breadth that’s unusual in occultural blogging. See “The Tradition of Secrecy” for a recent gem.

Christina‘s piece on Enfolding.org titled “Letter to a Young Gay Man on Celebrating Beltane” is excellent. She writes, “Maybe you, like me, have no call to create an internal heterosexual nuclear family with wedding bells, bride and groom” and then sets the record straight: “Beltane is and was the joy of desire of the body fulfilled in sex.” Hear, hear.

Ryan Hurd writes about “Lucid Dreaming as Shamanic Consciousness” for Reality Sandwich. Using films such as Avatar and Inception as a launching point, he discusses our desire to become “Conquistadors of Consciousness”, and what that looks like in different cultures, on drugs, and what it all means.

Johnny Rapture suggests a re-purposing of public space in “Public Statues, Pagan Shrines“, on his blog The Great Tininess offering specific suggestions with some great pictures. Sounds like an excellent idea.

Mark Vernon, on the Guardian.co.uk, discusses the new etchings on display at Tate Britain in “William Blake’s picture of God“. A fascinating portrait of Blake’s thoughts on gods and religion.

As always, if you come across anything nifty, please share it in the comments, or if you use delicious tag it “plutonica” and we’ll take a look. Thanks!

Copyright © 2007-2010 the author and Plutonica.net.
For the original source of the content please see Plutonica.net. Also check out our Esoteric Book Club.

Secrets, sex, sleep, statues and William Blake

Pamela Colman Smith, Thoth, Faust and hand games

Psyche — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 13:00:00 +0000

Saturday Signal: sifting the signal from the noise of the Internet’s occultural cacophony.

Scheduling posts is a really useful WordPress feature, because by the time you read this I will be in a remote cabin in the woods and have no Internet connectivity whatsoever.

So, using the powers of technology and foresight, I have prepared a list of signals for your education and amusement.

Enjoy:

Mary K. Greer. displays a new photo of Pamela Colman Smith, the artist behind The Rider-Waite-Smith Tarot, occulture’s most popular tarot deck. Photos of Smith are rare, so this is interesting news.

In a similar vein, Erik Davis writes about “The Comic Book of Thoth” for HiLobrow, which gives an overview of this deck and a brief history of tarot divination.

In his blog Dionysian Atavism, Jack Faust talks about the origins of his pseudonymic surname in “The Fortunes of Faust“

Ok, this one could possibly classify as noise, but it seems pretty cool…if you can sort it out:

On Laughing Squid Scott Beale shares a new wonder: Monkey-Pirate-Robot-Ninja-Zombie, an updated version of rock-paper-scissors. Do try this at home.

That’s it for this week, kids. I hope I don’t get eaten by a bear.

As always, if you come across anything nifty, please share it in the comments, or if you use delicious tag it “plutonica” and we’ll take a look. Thanks!

Copyright © 2007-2010 the author and Plutonica.net.
For the original source of the content please see Plutonica.net. Also check out our Esoteric Book Club.

Pamela Colman Smith, Thoth, Faust and hand games

Pagan cemeteries, souls, free-thinking schools, and a sonic screwdriver

Psyche — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 14:02:33 +0000

Saturday Signal: sifting the signal from the noise of the Internet’s occultural cacophony.

Hey! Good news! We may have an extra year!

That’s right, the civilization as we know it won’t end until 2013. Breath that sigh of relief.

NASA predicts that the sun will wake up “from a deep slumber” which will create massive solar storms which will disrupt communication devices and electronics causing major problems around the world.

This could seriously impact my vacation plans on Titan.

Circle Sanctuary Nature Preserve has created Circle Cemetery, which is “America’s first National Pagan natural burial ground and contemporary Green cemetery to be platted and recorded in Wisconsin”, reports Jason Pitzl-Waters on The Wild Hunt. This is something we talked a bit about at the Toronto Pagan Conference a few years ago. I’m glad to see a dedicated space for Pagan burials.

In a recent feature on Reality Sandwich Patrick Harpur reprints “Soul an Daimon“, an excerpt from his book A Complete Guide to the Soul. Angles, personal daemons, ka, muse – a variety of whats and whyfores regarding the soul and its function. Neat stuff.

Nick Spencer at Guardian.co.uk writes that Richard Dawkins would like to set up an atheist free-thinking school. Somewhat ironically, Spencer seems to have his doubts about the viability of such an institution.

Jason Miller, in his blog Strategic Sorcery, describes “How to make a Psionic Wand from a Toy Sonic Screwdriver“. Cool. Doctor Who fans take note.

On a more personal note, thanks for your patience these past few weeks. Things have been hectic as I recently resigned from my job and there were a lot of things to wrap up before my departure. But as of today I am officially a free agent, and a more regular posting schedule will resume.

I’ll keep you up to day on my progress when I have news that relates to occultural subjects. At the moment one of my projects is a book on tarot which has been in progress for a few years. It’ll be nice to finally be able to devote full time hours to finishing this up.

As always, if you come across anything nifty, please share it in the comments, or if you use delicious tag it “plutonica” and we’ll take a look. Thanks!

Copyright © 2007-2010 the author and Plutonica.net.
For the original source of the content please see Plutonica.net. Also check out our Esoteric Book Club.

Pagan cemeteries, souls, free-thinking schools, and a sonic screwdriver

Mythos travel, Spare’s psychogeography and the eschaton

Psyche — Sat, 12 Jun 2010 15:30:53 +0000

Saturday Signal: sifting the signal from the noise of the Internet’s occultural cacophony.

Big news of a personal nature: last Friday I quit my job. I gave notice until the 25th, but after that I’m a free agent. Very exciting.

In the last Saturday Signal, I noted that Titan might make a nice vacation spot someday. It turns out visitors may find themselves interacting with the locals, alien methane-based lifeforms. There’s still that little problem of it being utterly uninhabitable by humans, of course, but still: neat-o.

On to the linkage, also largely travel-themed:

The Lovecraft News Network posted in “Lovecraft and National Geographic” advises that the National Geographic has created a travel guide of places featured in Lovecraft’s stories, written by Edoardo Molinelli. Check out places featured in “The Shadow over Innsmouth”, Miskatonic University, and other relevant New England sites. Travel information, photos of historical sites and weather information available. What a cool idea.

“Spare Places“, a video uploaded by squareye, is a psychogeographical guide to Austin Osman Spare’s London. The camera is shaky and kind of washed out, but it gives an idea of Spare’s London, with context and quotes from other writers. Video found in the comments section to a post on Rune Soup by V.V.F. Click here for Part Two.

Khephra offers thoughts on the eschaton, in “What is the eschaton and why does it need hastening?” on Sophrosyne Radical. Dude may not always respect chaotes, but I still think he’s secretly one on the inside.

I read my first Hermann Hesse in December, and I’ve been dipping in to his other works over the past few months. I haven’t yet picked up Siddhartha or Steppenwolf, the two for which he is perhaps most famous. I’m saving them.

He’s one of those authors I read and think where have you been all my life? I would have adored them more had I read them as a teenager I think, but they’re still great now.

At the moment I’m reading The Journey to the East, in which the narrator describes a remarkable ’round the world trip with an unnamed secret society called here the League. Each member has a specific goal in joining the League, each different, but united in a search for beauty, truth and meaning. Regarding their destination the narrator explains:

…our goal was not only the East, or rather the East was not only a country and something geographical, but it was the home and youth of the soul, it was everywhere and nowhere, it was the union of all times.

Now that’s magick.

As always, if you come across anything nifty, please share it in the comments, or if you use delicious tag it “plutonica” and we’ll take a look. Thanks!

Copyright © 2007-2010 the author and Plutonica.net.
For the original source of the content please see Plutonica.net. Also check out our Esoteric Book Club.

Mythos travel, Spare’s psychogeography and the eschaton

Sleep paralysis, the (non-)existence of god, and Technoccult dossiers

Psyche — Sat, 22 May 2010 13:00:48 +0000

Saturday Signal: sifting the signal from the noise of the Internet’s occultural cacophony.

I’m writing this a few days before I leave for Paris, so I’m going to assume that I’m happily sitting in a cafe somewhere sipping cafe sans lait, eating a croissant and conversing with the locals in perfect Ontarian franglais.

C’est magnifique, I’m sure.

Next vacation spot: Titan? Right now its surface has the texture of creme brulee, but give it time.

I’ve prepared this Signal especially for your clicking pleasure. Just you. Enjoy.

Ryan Hurd offers an excerpt from his eBook on Reality Sandwich with “Sleep Paralysis Visions: Demons, Succubi, and the Archetypal Mind“. I suffer from this more often than I like, and it’s always frightening as hell when it occurs. Hurd discusses a variety of commonly experienced apparitions and the theories surrounding them.

Duncan writes “God Does Not Exist: Some Thoughts on Anselm’s Ontological Proof ” on Open Enlightenment. Weird (a)theistic mindplays to “prove” non-existence. Kind of. (Atheism’s so much more straightforward.)

Klint Findley‘s been hard at work at Technoccult creating groovy dossiers on leading contemporary occultural figures. So far he’s done Hakim Bey, Genesis Breyer P-Orridge, William S Burroughs, Alejandro Jodorowsky, Timothy Leary, Dennis and Terrence McKenna, Alan Moore, Grant Morrison, Robert Anton Wilson. There may be more by now, but I haven’t found a page yet where they’re all collected to link to. It’s a neat resource.

As always, if you come across anything nifty, please share it in the comments, or if you use delicious tag it “plutonica” and we’ll take a look. Thanks!

Be a Happy Panda.

Copyright © 2007-2010 the author and Plutonica.net.
For the original source of the content please see Plutonica.net. Also check out our Esoteric Book Club.

Sleep paralysis, the (non-)existence of god, and Technoccult dossiers

More poetry, hacking retrogrades, initiation and…Lost tarot cards?

Psyche — Sat, 15 May 2010 19:37:39 +0000

Saturday Signal: sifting the signal from the noise of the Internet’s occultural cacophony.

As I prepare for my rapidly approaching vacation in Paris I’m thinking about what to pack. The most items under consideration are which books should I take?

This is a topic recently broached by Gordon White in “Travel Reading: The Eternal Question“, where he took along a book I recommended on this blog, along with some other neat stuff.

Fiction is easy, I’m going with two French Canadian authors and two French authors, and of course the guidebooks, but which non-fiction to take is proving more challenging. I’m thinking Levi. I still haven’t read The History of Magic which is bound to be fancifully romantic and therefore quite appropriate.

Any other recommendations?

Oh, all right. Enough about me. Linkage:

Continuing the theme from the second half of this week: a poem by Sian Thomas posted on the Museum of Witchcraft‘s blog, titled “Spirit Bottle“.

On his blog Rune Soup, Gordon White wrote a post titled “How To Hack The Retrogrades” with brief notes on their influences and hacks to circumvent the effects. (Sidenote: I dig the breakdown for Pluto. Getting off on the wrong foot with people pretty much defines my life. I cancelled cable in the last millennium, but it hasn’t helped any. Friends have described me as “an acquired taste”. I’ve decided to take it as a compliment.)

Reality Sandwich plays host in-progress excerpts from the upcoming Immanence of Myth anthology by James Curcio: “Initiation, Part 1: The Masks of Identity“, “Initiation, Part 2: A Long Road Out Of Hell” and “Initiation, Part 3: Making Do Without A Guide“.

Klint Finley posted a link to tarot cards based Lost created by Alex Griendling on Technoccult. They’re not actually tarot cards, as they don’t depict images derived from tarocchi, instead using their own oracular scheme, but they look really neat all the same.

If you come across anything particularly awesome, please share it in the comments, or if you use delicious tag it “plutonica” and we’ll take a look. Thanks!

More poetry, hacking retrogrades, initiation and…Lost tarot cards?

Diabolical stuff and models

Psyche — Sat, 08 May 2010 13:00:05 +0000

Saturday Signal: sifting the signal from the noise of the Internet’s occultural cacophony.

Six days out of seven this site really depresses me, but today it’s golden: http://isitsaturday.net/.

Lots of new blogs popping up lately. Is anyone keeping track? I’ve linked to a couple here, but if I’ve missed anything cool let me know.

I feel guilty when I miss these posts, but worse still I’ve been told you miss these posts too, that I’m making some of you into Sad Pandas. I don’t want you to be a Sad Panda, so here’s today’s Saturday Signal:

Diabolical Discourse is a new blog which announces “events, lectures, and talks in the north of England featuring prominent members of the magical, mystical, and occult communities”. It just began life on April 1st (no joke), and looks like it could become an excellent resource.

Cheerfully ripping off the wildly successful blog Stuff White People Like, Glaux, Laurelei and temperance have created Stuff Pagan Culture Likes. Samples: ” Herbal Remedies“, “Indiscriminate Blessings“, and “Mead“. (Doesn’t everyone like mead?) No updates since March, but hopefully this is a blog which will continue. There’s a lot of stuff to be made fun of here, folks.

Sneaking in one of my own, my essay “Differing Models” is up on Rending the Veil in the Beltane issue. It discusses Frater U.: D.:’s “Models of Magic” and what it can mean for your practice.

I’ll also work on Saturday Signals for the weeks I’m in Paris. Hopefully this will make for Happy Pandas.

As always, if you come across anything nifty, please share it in the comments, or if you use delicious tag it “plutonica” and we’ll take a look. Thanks!

Diabolical stuff and models

Protestants, Freemasons and invisibility

Psyche — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 18:31:00 +0000

Saturday Signal: sifting the signal from the noise of the Internet’s occultural cacophony.

Last this week we had a guest post by Beth Winegarner – author, journalist and sociologist who is working on a guidebook for parents about teen culture, and a longtime Internet friend of mine – on the subject of occult profiling, and the harm it can cause.

Profiling is something we may not consciously reflect on, but it impacts how we live and what we do. For instance, I (rather obviously) use a pseudonym for most of my writing on esoteric subjects because I’m concerned about the impact it may have on my career in the world of finance. I don’t want that to be the case, but I understand that when I write about things like demons, Satanism, magick, and whatnot the average person isn’t going to be sympathetic to these subjects, and will likely have a negative view of them and, consequently, of me.

This is on the flip side, but if you didn’t get a chance to read it last week, check out “Occult Profiling: Where it comes from and why it’s worth fighting” now and please do share your thoughts and experiences.

Expanding our reception outside the confines of the blog, we find the following signals:

Mercurius Politicus shows off a 1641 pamphlet with a handy “Protestant identification chart” illustrating several different types. Seems reasonably appropriate as the Christians are celebrating death at Spring, and I always get confused by which branch does which. They all worship Jesus, don’t they?

Gyllene Gryningen has a post on “The Freemasonic origins of the Golden Dawn” with photographs and illustrations to elucidate various points.

Dean Wilson writes about “Magical Literalism” in his blog Mishkan ha-Echad, specifically in regards to claims of invisibility. One might argue that the whole lot could be argued poetically, rather than absolutely. Where are the lines drawn, and why?

That’s it for this week, kids.

Found something fab? Please share it in the comments, or if you use delicious tag it “plutonica” and we’ll take a look. Thanks!

Protestants, Freemasons and invisibility

Hypersigils, hypersigils reconsidered, and Grant Morrison ten years ago

Psyche — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 22:03:48 +0000

Saturday Signal: sifting the signal from the noise of the Internet’s occultural cacophony.

I’ve been crazy busy the past few weeks with work and trying to finish a few pieces of writing to submit to various publications, but I think I’m back on track now, so we’ll try to resume our regular schedule.

There’s still quite a bit I want to discuss in regards to sex and gender and what it means spiritually and magickally, but for now, let’s take a look at symbols in a more generic sense:

Sor. Ceilede 789, in her blog Beautiful Pyre, re-posts “Golden Fiction“, which originally appeared on Key23.net. In it she examines the concept of hypersigils, noting the differences between these and graphic or mantric sigils, and discusses practical applications.

Technoccult has started posting more in-depth pieces, and in “Hypersigils reconsidered” Klintron, with references to Grant Morrison (of course), discusses this in context of forming alternate identity-narratives and cybernetics.

Grant Morrison at Disinfo.con in 2000 discussing…just about everything: aliens, drugs, Aleister Crowley, drugs, the fifth dimension, drugs, hypersigils, drugs, Robert Anton Wilson, drugs, and magick. Click here for part one of five, follow the links on YouTube’s sidebar for the rest. It’s very entertaining.

One of my favourite essays on sigils remains Marik’s Sigils, Servitors and Godforms, Part I and Part II. It’s a great resource. (Marik also makes excellent jewellery.)

Found something fab? Please share it in the comments, or if you use delicious tag it “plutonica” and we’ll take a look. Thanks!

Hypersigils, hypersigils reconsidered, and Grant Morrison ten years ago