The Book of Disquiet of Fernado Pessoa

Published by Allen Lane, The Penguin Press, edited and translated by Richard Zenith (2001)

Reviewed by Terry Little

'The whole of literature is an attempt to make life real. As everybody knows, even if we act in ignorance, life is totally unreal in its direct reality; fields, cities, ideas are totally fictive things, born of our complex realisation of ourselves. . . To speak! To know how to speak! To know how to exist using the written voice and the intellectial image! Life is worth nothing more; the rest are men and women, imagined loves and false vanities, digestive subterfuges and those of oblivion, poeple who race around like insects when a stone is lifted, under the vast abstract rock of the unfeeling blue sky.' - quoted in Wormwood 2

Many might think they have a bleak, 'life in the head' existence but Fernando's takes the biscuit. He was definately a one off original but then we all are, even when we don't know it. Everyone is slightly different. The Book of Disquiet shows a active participation in life as a heteronym, and was years ahead of Chaos magic. He left his mark. Wormwood, that highly original, idiosyncratic concentration of distilled thought called him 'the man who never was...'

Fernando Pessoa, Portugal's celebrated national poet, is known in UK because of his association with Crowley, with whom he shared an obsession with the God Pan. Initiated into Crowley's AA on a precarous shelf of rock in the Boco di Inferno, a turbulent sea cave yards from Pessoa's house of Portuguese gothic. The beach below is still a site of pilgrimage for many a thelemite and has perhaps the only plaque in existence commemorating the Great Beast (see www. mandrake.uk.net/crowley.htm for photo).

The Book of Disquiet is the sort you can return to again and again for new perspectives. Adam Daly, in his piece for Wormwood 2, mentioned how his horoscope was inscribed onto the white-washed wall of the corridor at the back of his house. There is apparently a three month discrepancy between the dates of this and his actual nativity as recorded on his birth certificate. Was he trying to cover his tracks with a creative error in order to escape his Natal chart's pattern of destiny? Pessoa travelled little, never married or had children, was not gregarious, possibly a virgin, very proper in his manners and liked to conceal the essential mystery of his real inner life. If the foregoing does not indicate astrologically a strong saturnine influence then i'll consume my head gear (but privately).

I have an obvious empathy with Saturnine dreamers like the monkish, mystic, Pessoa. His many masks, evasions and subterfuges to hide his essential self may have been a cosmetic fucus (yes, fucus) that he used, as a vulnerable aesthete, unable to enter or commit to close emotional or sexual relationships. But this compensatory withdrawal enabled him to give free rein, to experiment with 'active' dreaming and nourish a rich inner life. The Book of Disquiet by very definition is restless, uneasy and forever looking for its centre. But ultimately it's a victorious final memorial to a creative fulfillment few others attain. I for one feel unfashionably humble in his literary presence. I can't wait to read his poems.

His legacy of 'Disquiet' is a confessional autobiography of random impressions and dreamy musings in which he unwinds the labyrinthine skein of his tortured self and comes to the conviction that absurdity is divine as well as self entertaining. This is truly a book of revelations seen through an existential mirror without a frame. It's fundamental! It's the genuine prerogative of a true artist who crucified himself on a paper cross. And this book when finally published, was his resurrection (and possible immolation). - Terry Little

R.I.L.K.O

41 Queen's Gate, South Kensington, London SW7 5HR at 7.15 p.m. prompt.
Please note: Doors open at 6.45 p.m. and close at 7.30 p.m.
Members £5.00 - Visitors £7.00

Friday 21st April 2006

R.I.L.K.O. AGM at 6.45 followed at 7.30pm by the Robert Cowley Memorial Lecture which the public are warmly welcomed to attend.

Topic

The Symbolism of the Coronation

Robert Stephenson

This illustrated lecture will discuss the overall symbolism inherent in the coronation ceremony and examine in detail the significance, both religious and otherwise, of its constituent elements. It will thus describe the esoteric implications of the Recognition, the Oath, the Anointing, the Investiture with the Regalia and the Crowning, as performed in this magical and transformative rite, which has been used in the creation of the kings and queens of England (and latterly of a wider sovereignty) virtually unchanged for a thousand years. There will also be a description of the ceremonial layout of Westminster Abbey, a building conceived with this particular ceremony in mind by Edward the Confessor, the patron saint of English monarchs. This will include a discussion of the focal area beneath the crossing called the 'theatre', and its relationship to the Cosmati Pavement and St Edward's Shrine, as well as the placement of the Coronation Chair and other seating used in the ceremony.

Robert Stephenson is a sculptor, mazemaker and teacher on London, death studies and folklore. He is a qualified City of London guide and tour leader at Kensal Green and Brompton Cemeteries. He has contributed to books on legendary London and the paranormal and appeared on television and radio speaking on these subjects. Robert is a RILKO Council member and organises the lecture programme.

Treadwells

Here's a selection of talks at Treadwells. Full descriptions of all events are to be found now on website, http:www.treadwells-london.com

Treadwells, 34 Tavistock Street, Covent Garden, London WC2
Places booked on 0207 240 8906
or by email info@...

11 April (Tuesday)

Celebrating and Introducing Iamblichus

James Butler and Friends
7.15 for 7.30pm start £5.00

Iamblichus of Chalcis (died 326) was a celebrated agician, pagan theologian of the ancient world, renowned as the author of De Mysteriis (On the Mysteries). This night introduces him, his ideas on the magician, the cosmology four elements, the meaning of mysteries, the importance of theurgy. We look at Iamblichus as the last great pagan philosopher, harmonising the rational element in philosophy with the mysteries. This illustrated talk will have overheads, readings, illustrations and handouts: it introduces and celebrates ideas that are relevant to all with an interest in mystery religions. James Butler is a gifted researcher and writer. His first degree in theology and philosophy (University of London) is supplemented with extensive first-hand knowledge of theurgic and hermetic workings. This will prove to be an engaging, inspring evening. No previous knowledge of Iamblichus is necessary.

Anglo-Saxon magic and Religion: Archaeological Evidence

20 April (Thursday)

Stephen Pollington
7.15 for 7.30 start. £5.00

Steve Pollington is an Anglo-Saxonist who has received acclaim for his recent edition of herbal magical texts in the book Leechcraft. Since then he has turned his attention to archaeological evidence for early English magic and pagan religiosity. A much-loved speaker at Treadwell's, we are delighted that Mr Pollington has agreed to return to share his latest research.

Florence Farr’s London

29 April (Saturday)

A walking tour of the London of Florence Farr, praemonstratix of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn during the 1990s. Tour organized by The London Adventure, and this walk given by Treadwell’s own Christina Oakley Harrington. 3pm – 5 pm. Free. More details soon.

The Grammar Of Witchcraft - Part IV

© David Parry

Entering the overgrown two-acre garden felt like stepping into a haunted forest. The difference being that Caliban was instantly greeted by a drop-dead gorgeous waiter, holding a silver tray with brimming pink-champagne glasses. He must have been about twenty-four years old, with devastatingly handsome Italian looks, an athletic build and an extremely personable manner. His ponytail crowned a natural nobility, which was further diademed by expensive Gucci sunglasses. Caliban knew the boy wanted to talk, and only held himself back because of the black grease paint all over his face: a theatrical touch that strangely threw his pursed, sensuous, lips into an exaggerated, although sculpted, relief. It also seemed to magnify his piercing brown eyes, as oracular as Owls, to make manifest barely repressed bi-sexual sentiments. Aroused, the dwarf decided to break any uneasy ice: "What's your name young man?"

"Emiliano, Emiliano Klossowski", he smiled.

"That doesn't sound very Mediterranean", Caliban smiled back.

"It is useful as a waiter to sound-ah eastern European since political Enlargement".

"Very smart, does it work?"

"Yes usually, forgive me…..they-ah say….. you are a witch!"

"People say all sorts of things, however in this case they are indirectly correct. Actually, I am a physical medium, but why do you ask?" Again, Emiliano smiled, only this time his mouth betrayed a mixture of lust and longing.

"They-ah say…..when you have had a witch, no one else-ah will do".

"Sometimes what they say is right", Caliban replied, cautiously.

"Lets-ah walk together and talk about-ah the trees. Witches know a lot-ah about the verdant coppice and-ah the fertility".

"And you must tell me why the girls wanted their waiting staff dressed like a troupe of Mummers. Follow me to the Holly hedges over there". Caliban could hardly believe what was happening. As they strolled together he began to prove his Craft credentials to the young libertine.

"There are thirteen living consonants and five vital vowels to the Old Goidelic tree alphabet. The first organic letter of the series is the tree of inception, so-called because Birch is the earliest tree (with the macabre exception of the sinister alder) to sprout new leaves each year. It was said that to beat someone with birch twigs would expel the infirm spirits who continually delighted in causing insanity or mayhem: a method intimately connected with the practise of marking village boundaries with birch-rods. Increased clarity is therefore the key to its arcane properties, as well as the power of protection". Caliban pointed to a withered, pallid, Birch. They both took a sip of Champaign.

Still walking, Caliban then pointed to the other uncultivated side of the path, while admiring Emiliano's agility as he placed the tray gracefully down without any glasses falling over. The boy moved with a sinuous skill, like a sophisticated urban Fox on heat. "Wicked willow is the fifth tree to be catalogued by the occult sages of old, and accordingly Culpeper says the moon owns it. By this he seems to suggest that the willow always enjoyed a dread reputation, representing the forces of misery and bleak misfortune. Antiquarians further claim human sacrifices were offered to unclean spirits in baskets made of willow, while for centuries wearing a willow hat signalled the intense hatred of a rejected lover. Even today, the poorest families still hesitate to use it for domestic firewood. Its sap however is its secret, since this disturbing liquid can be used to spread communal discord and physical decay". Emiliano dreamily nodded towards the heavily shaded end of the path and started to unbutton his red, cotton shirt. "But it's the seventh tree", Caliban unflappably continued, " the alphabets royal Heart, whose anthropomorphic qualities constantly unsettle the simple-minded. This is due to the fact Oak shrieks and groans when felled. Midsummer kindling is nevertheless always Oaken, because its intoxicating smoke awakens physical strength as well as spiritual determination. Oak, I should add, has a wide range of potencies: its sap may be used to preserve youth or rejuvenate sexual vigour, and if an oak branch is made into a Will-Projecting Wand, it protects a witch from lightening, detection and exhaustion. Moreover, a bronze nail driven into the correct engrams inscribed on its regal trunk relieve a person of any physical pain, immediately curing minor ailments such as toothache. Oddly, even Farmers remain unaware that eyesight is extended when its powdered bark is brewed with soft poppy seeds and stale, necrotic, saliva, into a nocturnally administered tincture". They were a long way down the garden by now and far from the other guests. Caliban physically felt Emiliano's hot, bare stomach against his shoulders, and pausing briefly, they both savoured the seductive moment.

"As the ninth tree," Caliban said breathily while taking his own black silk shirt off, "hazel is held to be wisdom's emblem, since forked hazel spears (which must be cut on St. John's Eve) are used to look for lost treasure or employed to identify thieves and murderers. Additionally, hazel twigs are wielded by diviners when they are looking for hidden sources of water, metals buried beneath the ground, or dead bodies. There are even recipes for making oneself invisible by applying a magnetised herbal ointment over the body and carrying a Mandrake talisman with green hazel twigs inserted into it at the angle of deception. Folklorists occasionally recounted the phenomenon wherein decaying hazel twigs sometimes drip poisonous milk exuding paralysing vapours capable of killing untold thousands. It is said witches alone can safely approach the hazel during this period". Emiliano physically pulled Caliban into a secluded nook behind the Holly hedges, while rapidly stripping himself naked. He wiped away the grease paint with his vest and untied the rainbow ribbons damming a flood of long black hair. "I am-ah a political activist for-ah the Greens. We need-ah to remember the land and-ah its ways". Forcibly, he undressed Caliban. "We need-ah to honour muscle and-ah the blood in ourselves; to respect-ah the oxygen producing plants-ah and-ah the soil. To recover the-ah economics of Eden is not-ah the function of an impotent-ah body of representatives. All that can-ah be hoped-ah for, from such an-ah artificial organism, is that it-ah will represent the totality of-ah visceral reaction's proclaimed-ah by the people. The bad-ah airs we now-ah breath stink in our own lungs as-ah though we wanted to asphyxiate ourselves-ah with our own filth". Emiliano surveyed him sharply, waiting for a reaction. Under such scrutiny Caliban felt like a salted slug oozing its inadequacy in the dust before this magnificent man: an ugly creature encouraging loathing and disgust in the presence of a resplendent satyr. They were both further excited by this shared, abusive, impression.

Uncharacteristically, the dwarf stammered in response, "the tenth, tenth… shit… esoteric tree is the vine in its vintage season. It embodies joy, exhilaration and righteous wrath. Any, any, any student of Craft is alerted to the sorcerous properties of the vine, because of its traditional link with the devil. This, coupled with the f-f-fact that there is a lusty symbolism …oh!..surrounding the vine, offers valuable clues to its particular gifts: the primitive plea-sure of drunken violence as a means to achieve magical states of consciousness. For this reason Paracelsus writes that rituals worked with sour wine are unusually effective in raising power. Indeed, applied ceremonial contention may…shit… be used…shit boy,… to channel subtle energies in a highly concentrated way, as the well-trained practitioners of any martial art will readily testify". Adrenaline energised Caliban's blood stream. They found themselves naked, embracing, kissing.

Being literally brushed off his feet as they tried to hold each other down on the grass, Caliban pulled Emiliano's hair and mumbled, "Ivy in its flowering season is the eleventh esoteric tree. In ancient Rome Ivy was chewed by soldiers seeking homicidal rage from the toxicity of its leaves. Analogously, ivy-ale was considered one of the potions closely associated with ambrosia, and witches say that immortality may be found by those who work with its leaves". Caliban realised he was falling in love but, then again, he was always falling in love. Yet he darkly suspected it was true love when he saw the circling trees visibly cup together, protecting them both from view. "Mother Mage !", he caught himself chanting in gratitude, "Mother Mage !", sensing her smile in letters, colours and signs through distant Stone Henge teeth. Caliban knew he had mastered his Craft because these glyphs contoured this Organic Muse, mapping and explaining her moods. He felt the earth tremble with laughter until rivulets must have flowed from Britannia's lake district eyes. Caliban grunted some of this to Emiliano while they grappled together. "Look around you, this is the true pentagram. Her five digits are more difficult to read than human fingers, because at the top of this Glorious Star stands the mysterious Silver Fir of life: the tree of cyclical progress, having the gentle light of the moon in its atavistic bark". They bear-hugged each other into a shared guttural comprehension.

Emiliano rolled over, causing Caliban to painfully gasp as the boy half howled, "My brother has-ah Synesthesia, It is a positive-ah… form of Autism whereby-ah the brain awakes, "Stronzo"! to some-ah of its-ah hermetic potentials. Can-ah you imagine, "Figlio di puttana" ! aaah!, centuries… ago living in a remote-ah village with this condition? You-ah would have-ah been burnt-ah at the stake or revered-ah… as a Saint. I used-ah to tell-ah my brother he wasn't handicapped but-ah gifted, like Odin on the Ash tree seeing runes. I used-ah to tell… him about-ah Ramon Lull in Medieval Spain-ah, his calculations, and his-ah visions. "Troia"! What you say has-ah similarities. That is why the word-ah Savant is-ah appropriate for these-ah people, "Cazzo"!, Nearly exhausted, they stopped wrestling and held each other closely for a moment or two, thoughtfully, although uncontrollably agitated by the elements of this spontaneous tantric encounter. Caliban could only finish his sweaty sermon by masturbating with the boy: learning about him through semen and sinew. Their brief romance had become Craft.

Abruptly, the Holly hedges defensively tightened together; someone was approaching. Thankfully, they only heard Emily's clipped voice discreetly saying, " Praise the Mother! It's good to know our guests keep up Pagan Traditions. However, boys, we are about to cut the cake, so it would be neighbourly for everyone to be near the marquis". Caliban kissed Emiliano's penis and they hurriedly got dressed. However, before leaving their enclosure the dwarf gestured a precautionary glamour in order for them to outwardly appear like respectable guests. With this casting firmly in place, they ambled back down the garden, examining leaves and rubbing Forget-me-nots between their fingers. Caliban concluded their sport by politely discoursing, "The second point blossoms with the golden flowers of the Furze. During Spring Equinox, fires made of Furze wood should be lighted on every hillside to honour the re-born, Rational, Sun. Thirdly is Heather, which often surprisingly grows at the angle of delight. This midsummer tree burns scarlet with passion and is associated with love, virtue and inner-resolve". Finally, they reached the tent causing Caliban to exclaim, "Ah, the cake. It looks beautiful". Emiliano found another tray of Champaign glasses and handed one to his lover for the toast: "The happy couple!" The dwarf drank arm in arm with the Italian, although he spilt a little of his own drink on the ground in thanks and praise. After all, there were now two happy couples in attendance. Caliban spent the rest of the afternoon watching his boy work, while building up courage for the coach journey back to London.

Cunning Folk And Familiar Spirits

Shamanistic Visionary Traditions in Early Modern British Witchcraft and Magic by Emma Wilby

The majority of material for this book was compiled as a result of research interests developed whilst the author was working towards a Masters degree in the History and Literature of Witchcraft, undertaken at the University of Exeter. To my knowledge this is the only University in England that actually teaches the history of witchcraft in this specialised manner. Magic and witchcraft have presented our academic historians with many challenges and problems, and there have been only very few researchers with scope wide enough to make much sense of its countless dilemmas. On the whole academics have assumed that witches were either naïve and deluded, suffering from mental illness, pressured into misleading confessions twisted by elite paradigms, or as Professor Owen Davies put it in Cunning Folk, “hard nosed and cynical businessmen” telling deliberately misleading lies. Emma Wilby’s text is the first in academia for a long time, if ever, to suggest that there was something a bit more to it all than that.

Emma Wilby takes as her starting point the ‘encounter narratives’ (confessions of spirit contact) collected from magical practitioners in the early modern period of Britain, usually dismissed by historians as being the results of pressure and interrogation during trial. Many of these confessions contain details of journeys into Elfame, where the traveller might meet spirits of the dead and the King and Queen of Fairy, others tell of journeys to the Sabbat, where the traveller meets the Devil. For purposes of academic convenience she defines those of our culture who communed with fairy kind as ‘cunning folk’ specialising in benevolent magic, and all those who worked with devils and demons as ‘witches’ specialising in malefica. No doubt rightly, Wilby suggests that the second tradition continues many influences of the first and ‘grew out of’ it, yet to my mind these classifications were too arbitrary and muddy to be of much real use. Furthermore, it suggests that the way of the witch developed from the ways of the cunning, which is not so. Rather, the fairy beliefs absorbed and incorporated elements of Christian lore over time, as was inevitable. Thus both cunning folk and witches worked with fairy folk and goetic formulae. Also, many so called ‘imp familiars’ given by Devils gave knowledge of herbs and healing, whilst many fairy folk drank human blood and were extremely spiteful in their natures. The terms ‘cunning’ and ‘witch’ must have been interchangeable in themselves amongst the folk, anyway. By the late nineteenth century in East Anglia we were using the term ‘white witch’ to describe the people Wilby classifies as ‘cunning’. Furthermore one could believe in fairies, Angels, and the Devil all at once even as late as then.

To give Emma Wilby her dues, she does tackle this problem well, however. One thing she points out is that the shamanic cultures also tend to possess within their pantheons some ‘All Creating’ spirit not too dissimilar to the Christian concept of God. Such cosmologies, however, are not based upon ideas of piety and Redemption. Then again, as another writer concerned with ‘cunning’ and ‘witchcraft’, I’m going to have to gripe at something in this book. Although I had problems with these classifications, this did not distract from the overall conclusions and ‘! point’ to this work.

What is important to Emma Wilby’s work is the comparison between the ‘encounter narratives’ of our own culture, such as we find in both fairy and Christian/diabolist traditions, and those of shamanic practices found amongst tribes people studied within the past hundred years or so. In all cases there are tales of transportation to other realms, meetings with spirits of the dead, communication with powerful entities we might choose to call ‘gods’, and the giving to the traveller by these entities a ‘helpful servitor’ often in the form of an animal. Through observation of shamanic ritual we have learnt that such things- or their appearance to have taken place- are made possible through ‘trance journeys’. Wilby draws these parallels, and others, to conclude that the witch or cunning folk provided a similar role in early modern Britain to the role played by the shaman to their tribal community. Thus, she suggests that the witches and cunning folk fully believed in the magical realities to which they confessed during trial. Such events might have taken place as a part of ritual practices or deliberate and trained meditations, yet they might also be brought on by many of the stresses of daily life in Britain at this time. Such a people also had a firm belief in the existence of spirits, a perspective which is of course not acceptable as a paradigm in modern studies, although it might be pointed out that such beliefs have still not entirely died out today amongst the ‘folk’. More than this, Wilby goes on to suggest that not only did such practitioners possess integrity, but that their beliefs and experiences may have been of profound spiritual worth, despite their moral ambiguity.

As such I recommend this book without further reservations to anyone interested in the indigenous magical traditions of Britain, in any way. Perhaps one day such perspectives as this might become more common amongst those academics working towards the study and preservation of our witchcraft history.

Nathaniel (author of Witcha- A Book of Cunning, Mandrake of Oxford).

John Power's Nu Tantras of the Uttarakaulas

Well now the long silence is broken with the appearance of a new website. It has even prompted one of the first generation of Naths, Lalita Mataji to 'break cover' offer support. (You can view her own ideas at nathsociety.org) She writes:

The unpublished book by John Powers is one of the first attempts I have seen to write a critical analysis of some of Mahendranath's writings. John Powers was entrusted with the Uttarkaula tantric aspect of our world and he has obviously nurtured and worked with his specialty for as he says 21 years. At the end of his analytical work he includes an original and very creative and fascinating ritual that possibly is a summation of his experience. It is quirky and personal and that adds greatly to its value. I have often gotten swamped by Mahendranaths large output of written words. To see a few of his major tantras reworded, discussed, analyzed and emotionally digested is so helpful. I recommend that those who are interested in the works of Mahendranath give this work more that a quick cursory glance. Discussion of his work will certainly help him to make some small changes in wording and emphasis so that when he does publish this book it will have the advantage of the input of those who are most deeply interested in the subject. Thank you John Powers....very good work! - Lal

To view the first version visit: http://mysite.wanadoo-members.co.uk/johnpowers

Mogg Morgan

How To Make Your Own McOTO CD

Actually the entire contents is rather interesting - as indeed is the much improved (optional) soundtrack by Pink floyd - 'Shine on Crazy Diamond' which seems appropriate somehow.

The eponymous 'How To Make Your Own McOTO' also known as The OTO Phenomenon Part I by well known researcher of European quasi-masonic cults, P.R.Konig. Back in the 1980s I published several fascicules of Konig's work in Nuit Isis Magazine - some being translated from the German by Shantidevi. I believe that these, along with a lot more did eventually find there way into a published volume which has since disappeared from the bookshop - either because of complaints or more likely just sold out. So it's probably quite handy to have this PDF version available. I remember at the time not being as keen as some on the material - which was well researched but to my eye seemed to be 310 pages of footnote fodder.

This new CD has facsimiles of Theodor Reuss' transcripts of the rituals plus Aleister Crowley's handwritten O.T.O. rituals. Also: Crowley's handwritten Golden Dawn and A.'. A.'. rituals, plus his handwritten ritual for the "Order of Thelema".

But don't worry - if you're not particularly interested in the minutia of OTO history from the pen of one of its most devoted critics, there is a lot of other really handy stuff on this CD including The Blue Equinox.

First published in Detroit in 1919, the legendary Blue Equinox was Crowley's first attempt to publicize the principles and aims of the magical secret society Ordo Templi Orientis (O.T.O.) and its allied order the A.A. In it, Crowley laid out the esoteric, social, ethical, and philosophical ideas that he believed provided the framework for a new ethics and the liberated morality of the future. Upon publication, the book was threatened with suppression by the authorities of the day. Many of the papers in the Blue Equinox anticipated social liberties we tend to take for granted today.

PDF Presentation of: Miscellaneous. A collection of documents relating to Aleister Crowley, O.T.O., and Sex Magick. Includes: OTO Rituals Sex Magick: Parts I, II and III. Francis King's 'Secret Rituals of the OTO'. LIBER AL., 777., SEPHER SEPHIROTH. and The Scented Garden.

There is also a fine collection of tasteful pictures - many that are quite rare and seldom seen in books. As before, because the producers are not without humour, several, if not all, have been modified rather in the manner of those 'What the Butler Saw' machines of the past. What's that perched on Leah Hersig's shoulder - surely it can be - yes it is - AC's helmet! I know these photos have given pleasure to millions - but at the risk of sounding a moaning mini, I'd repeat what I said before in that once you start airbrushing, you do tend to undermine the credibility of the whole series. I was also disappointed that the print function seems to have been disabled - which is a tad inconvenient. But these are mere quibles - for the price its an incredible bargain and will considerable lighten the workload of the academic audience for which this product is destined. If you really want a copy go to http://www.tobew.com/SR.

BTW the first and massive first printrun of the special edition postcard set has already sold out - hardly a surprize as they only did two! The editors promise to do more next time. - Mogg Morgan

THE TREGERTHEN HORROR

Obtainable from Lulu.com http://www.lulu.com/lord-crashingbore

Summary
An offbeat investigation into the unexpected death of Katherine Arnold-Forster that took place in May 1938, in the remote hamlet of Tregerthen, near Zennor. The material is unusual and dramatic, covering magic, spying, the Walton murder and centreing on the exploits Aleister Crowley, D.H. Lawrence, Cecil Gray and Peter Warlock, but also including Dylan Thomas, Mary Butts and many well-known writers, mystics and painters. The result of a long and difficult investigation by the author, it is culturally fascinating and will appeal to a very wide readership, showing what lay behind the feverish speculation and introducing a host of outrageous, talented personalities who dropped in on the Cornish scene. It will tell you many things you didn't know and quite a few others that defy the imagination

Outline
Prior to the World War 2, West Cornwall generated a number of stories of a sinister occult nature. Foremost among them was that the Great Beast, Aleister Crowley, stayed at Zennor and founded a mainly female cult who danced naked around stone circles, took powerful narcotics and held orgies up on the moor. This was spread by word of mouth and by numerous 'horror' fictions penned by writers like A.L. Rowse, Denys Val Baker, Mary Williams and Frank Baker (who wrote a bizarre roman à clef on the subject). Some maintained this decadent coven was directly or indirectly responsible for the death of Katherine Arnold Forster, the former sweetheart of the poet, Rupert Brooke, who died in mysterious circumstances at an allegedly 'haunted' cottage near Zennor Carn in 1938.

In THE TREGERTHEN HORROR, these so-far unsubstantiated rumours are the subject of meticulous investigation by Paul Newman. Initially alerted by an anecdote (preserved in literature and living memory) of Crowley's influence tragically affecting the lives of a young couple who were living at Zennor, he starts out asking sceptically, "Why has no biographer ever taken this seriously?" But then he meets people who retain a living memory of the incident and is surprised to discover the association with Aleister Crowley and magical activities in Zennor date back to 1917 and the entourage of D.H. Lawrence which included the brilliant yet highly volatile musician, Philip Heseltine, and the babbling psychotherapist and ex-Crowley disciple, Meredith Starr, and his black wife, Lady Mary Stamford, both of whom fasted and undertook occult experiments in mines. Also present was the composer, Cecil Gray, who thought the region a 'spiritual black country'. Yet he managed to lure the poetess HD away from her husband and into the large house he rented there, resulting in the birth of a child, Perdita, who Gray quickly disowned. Both Gray and Heseltine later became involved with Crowley's drug-set and performed rituals to ensure the music they composed should attain the immortality they thought it deserved.

THE TREGERTHEN HORROR traces their personal histories, their occult and spiritualist obsessions, in and out of Cornwall, along with those of another group who gathered around Mousehole prior to World War 2 - literary notables like Dylan Thomas, Oswell Blakeston, Frank Baker and artists like Greta Sequeira and the bohemian hostess, Wyn Henderson. Tracing their pre-war and post-war lives, it lays bare a series of fantastic incidents involving a society scandal, a haunted cottage, a tragic death, a chronic case of insanity, wartime skulduggery and the sensational Walton Murder that was investigated by Fabian of the Yard.

Over all this intrigue looms the shadow of the 20th century Faust, Aleister Crowley whose magnetic malevolence sprawls and dominates the scene. Initially drawn to the Duchy by his young mistress and illegitimate son, Ataturk, his presence provokes gossip and unease amid the locals. Yet, oddly enough, after his death, his magical impedimenta finds its way back to Cornwall by way of the former spymaster, Cecil Williamson, who opened a Museum of Witchcraft at Boscastle.

Author
Editor of the literary magazine ‘Abraxas’ and author of a definitive ‘History of Terror’ and many other titles, Paul Newman’s writings have received much acclaim. His recent novel Galahad (2004) won the Peninsula Prize.

Book
The Tregerthen Horror is printed as a large (8.5 by 11 inches) soft back and is nearly 200 pages long, with many black and white photographs, printed for the first time. Presently it is a small exclusive edition available from the Lulu website and nowhere else. Price $25 or around £12.50

Legend of the Witches (Review)

• Written and Directed by Malcolm Leigh
• Produced by Negus-Fancey
• Edited by Judith Smith
• Lighting Cameraman: Robert Webb
• Border Film Production (London) Ltd
• Year: 1969
• Featuring: Alex and Maxine Sanders and their beautiful coven.
• Format: DVD

‘In the beginning was the Moon, Diana. Her lover was the Dawn, Lucifer - God of Light. They created man, and built the monuments, which tracked their paths across the skies. Now man could predict the movements of the Gods, he sought to control them, through priests and ritual…’

Originally X-rated, this newly released DVD, is a real period piece this, documenting the beliefs and practices of Alex Sanders and the circle of witches, which under his leadership, electrified the popular imagination and attracted many into the Wiccan path.

The film's leisurely pace requires the modern viewer to make some adjustment to their viewing habits. Nevertheless this is a minor masterpiece and really manages to tell one of witchcraft's many 'stories'. We've perhaps become a little too knowing to accept all of the certainties of 1960s Wicca - but nevertheless we can all agree, that this 'warts and all' view, really does capture the spirit of the time. It's a beautiful film, shot I think in 16mm black and white, which lends it a very artistic feel, reminding me most of the experimental films of Maya Deren or indeed UK classics of 'socialist realism' such as 'Night Mail', the 1936 movie by John Grierson, with music by Benjamin Britten.

The documentary begins with lovely sweeping shots of seascapes and ancient, elemental landscapes over which the film's narrator begins his tale of the ancient witch mythology, of the Goddess Diana and her consort Lucifer, the sun. Now whether or not one buys into this spirited mythology, we have strayed into controversy almost immediately. Who amongst the current glut of media witches even dares to mention that name - Lucifer?

Almost half the film explores these ideas, covering issues such the mysteries of earth energy, altered states, the pagan traces that survive in pre-reformation churches, the persecutions and the rebirth of the old religion. It's foundation myth, easy to sneer at, but strangely wonderful just the same.

Seamlessly, the film now deliverers us into the hands of a modern coven. We see them perform a variety of rites. First, an outdoor initiation. The candidate, referred to throughout as Michael, not because that's his real name but presumably because of the ancient folk myth of 'crazy man Michael', Britain's very own 'holy fool'. The priestess repeatedly calls 'Michael' to various encounters with elemental forces, the whole rite done at Alderley Edge in Cheshire, itself a place of power, just a stone's thrown from Lindow Moss, where in Iron Age times, other, darker rites were done by our pagan ancestors.

Now the action moves into the temple, after some exploration of the many cursing exhibits, still to be seen at the Boscastle's Witchcraft Museum, we are prepared for the notion that witches sometimes curse. The coven, prepare such a curse, using the traditional and extremely ancient technique, in which a poppet is given life through the agency of Alex and Maxine's act of sexual magick - fascinating stuff.

We even get to see something seldom alluded to these days - the so-called 'Black Mass.' completed with a very lifelike 'sign of Osiris slain' - . These witches, known these days as Alexandrians, do not see such as mass as any form of inversion of Christian principles. They knew something that we have all perhaps forgotten - there is no impervable barrier between primitive Christianity and classical paganism. It was around this time that Professor Morton Smith wrote his groundbreaking book Jesus the Magician. The 'Black Mass' is only 'black to the blind' - it is in fact a celebration of life in all is bounty.

The film concludes with a nod to the future, when the special powers of the witch will be understood more in terms of the newish science of ESP and indeed the 1960s first forays into the psychedelic, encounter groups and other techniques of obsession and transcendence. Of course some in the new millennial will find this all too embarrassing and bad for business - but what do they know? Who are then the true successors to Alex Sanders and the witches of the 1960s? If they were still here I'd say Thee Temple ov Psychic Youth would be a likely contender. The film will outrage some but inspire others to take up where they left off after a generation or more of stoney sleep. Buy this and be refreshed. - Mogg Morgan

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SPIRITED AWAY!

Presents: THE 3rd ANNUAL SUMMER SOLSTICE CELEBRATION IN PENDLE PENDLE WITCH CAMP
SUMMER SOLSTICE 2006 From Noon on FRIDAY 23rd JUNE ­ Noon on MONDAY 26th JUNE

SPECIAL GUEST from U.S.A. ­ Lady Passion
Author of ŒTHE GOODLY SPELLBOOK : Olde Spells For Modern Problems¹

Summer Solstice Ritual conducted by Runic John (Shaman¹s Apothecary)
TALKS WORKSHOPS
RUNIC JOHN ­ Seidr: Northern European Shamanism
SUZANNE WHITE ­ Trusting the Tarot / Making Magical Candles
SCREECH OWL ­ Pagan Death: Dying With Honour
OLIVER ROBINSON ­ Sacred Brigantia Trust
TREB0R ­ PaGaianism
MARTIN HAZEL ­ Ritual and Visualisation
LEL HOYLE ­ Shamanic Power Animals
PAUL WATSON ­ Cults Freewill
ANGELA SOUTHAM ­ Paganism the Family
DERYN ASHBY ­ The Theatrics of Ritual
MIKKA THE PAGAN ­ The Divine Goddess
MARTIN EVANS ­ Wand/Staff Making Workshop
MIKE CADMAN ­ Drumming Workshop
JACKUS ­ Dream Healing
MEL ­ Chakra Workshop
DEREK PLEWS ­ Sentry Circle Project
ACTIV8 ­ Wandering Poetry
JOANNA KATE ­ Yoghurt Weaving Workshop
MARK HUGHES ­ Our Changing Environment
SAMANTHA LYCETT ­ Fairy Craft

FIRESIDE ACOUSTIC MUSIC
Josh, Dawn, Southend Bill, Mabel Blue,
The Hootenannies, Marcus James, Mrs Cakehead

STALLS
Murgens Keep, Shaman¹s Apothecary, Widdershines
Weirdigans Café Fireshow Sweat Lodge
ADULT TICKETS (18 and over @ £25 each)
YOUTH TICKET (11 to 17 years old @ £17.50 each)
CHILD TICKET (10 and under @ No Charge for 1st two, then £10.00
each) DAY TICKETS AVAILABLE @ £15.00 per day
Tickets available via website
www.penwitchcamp.co.uk
--------------------------------------------------------

BELTANIA

You are cordially invited to A celebration of the ancient celtic fire festival of Beltane in the heartlands of Brigantia.

Dill Zogg and Orange Source of Karma Sound System will be playing a chilled set on Saturday 29th April at Lenthor Farm, Northallerton; to get you relaxed, and in the mood for a full-on party, on the night of Sunday 30th April ; dancing away until Mayday morn.

There will be no music played during the day on Sunday, as we¹re off to join in the Beltane Ceremony, being held at the Central Henge, Thornborough at 2pm. Which we hope you will also come along to.

There is no entrance charge to the party, however should you wish to camp, the farmer will be charging £5 per person per night. The money raised from camping, will be used to buy more standing stones, for the Sentry Circle, being constructed at Lenthor Farm.

For more information and directions email ade@...

2006 SFC CONFERENCE ANNOUNCEMENT

Dr Tuppy Owens and the Sex Cadettes present
SEXUAL FREEDOM CONFERENCE 2006
Sexual Freedom Coalition
in conjunction with
The Night of the Senses
The Erotic Awards and Outsiders

Riotous Pleasures
Saturday 6th May 2006
2pm-5.30pm
Toynbee Hall
28 Commercial Street
London E1 6LS
opposite Aldgate East Tube
£10/£5 concs (tickets on the door)
High Teas served all afternoon

Our sexual freedoms are continuously being threatened. The government claims to promote social inclusion and freedom of expression until it comes to sexual expression

Speakers include:
Alison Lapper MBE
Dr Petra Boynton • Dr Lucy Robinson
Demolition Red• Dr Tuppy Owens • Eirwen
Jerry Barnett • Dr Linda Cusick • UK Rudegirl
The Pleasure Project • Sunny SnakeBoy • Gypsy Charms

The title of the conference is taken from the Disorderly Houses Act of 1751 which refers to the “lower sort of people engaging in riotous pleasures” - to highlight how we seem to be subjected to more laws to restrict our sexual freedoms rather being liberated by the repeal of the old ones.

• learn what SFC and other political activists have been doing in the past year

• listen to some of the people who create the Night of the Senses

• hear what the most interesting finalists in the Erotic Awards get up to

• discover much more about sex and disability, via the Outsiders.

Arcadia After-party details: kim@...

http://www.sfc.org.uk/news-conference2006.html

A Celebration of the life of Austin Osman Spare

On the eve of the 50th anniversary of his passing

Sunday May 14th 2006.
In Holborn, Central London 6pm - 9.30pm,

The event is a fundraiser for the RSPCA (supported by Spare) Includes

A small exhibition
Items for auction
The auction of a unique book
presentations by Clive Harper, Michael Staley, Caroline Wise and others, (some illustrated with slides) of his art, his philosophy, magic and more.
A 'rolling' PowerPoint 'exhibition' showing many of his pictures

Ticket price includes an illustrated Memorial publication, with several contributors, including Alan Moore, Carl McCoy, Tony Naylor, Phil Hine, and Michael Staley. Only available to those who attend the Celebration, the quantity printed will equal those attending, and each will be numbered and named. It will not be available elsewhere. As a collector's item it will be worth more than the ticket price alone so please feel free to make extra donations for the RSPCA when ordering!

The aim is to have a good time, but also to raise as much money as possible for the RSPCA. All printing costs and venue cost have been donated. Refreshments will be available on the night. Details and directions of venue will be sent with tickets.

Payment by paypal to starfire.books@....
Details and directions to venue will be issued with tickets.
All inquiries to spare50@... only. Places limited, tickets in advance only.

Esoteric Conference occult book fair

The Esoteric Conference occult book fair is at the Assembly Rooms Ludlow Shropshire Uk on sat 10 June 2006 10.30am-6pm. Tickets £10 pay Verdelet PO Box 58 Craven Arms Shropshire SY7 8WG see also www.theapothecaries.com

Speakers are Nigel Pennick on 'East Anglian Witchcraft' David Rankine ... 'John Dee and the Enochian System' Geraldine Beskin ...'Spare his Occult Art' Guy Ogilvy ...'The Alchemical Artes' Prof Rotherham... 'Arthur the Matter of Britain'

There will be several 2nd hand occult book dealers present and as customary there will be a no dolphin/new age policy. Interest is running high and early booking is advisable. Please do not hesitate if you require more infomation.

5th Annual Witchcraft Seminar 2005 (review)

Last year it was 'Faulty Towers' this time 'Little Chef'. The Witchcraft Seminar brought to you in this, its fifth year, (from Jerry Cottle's Wookey Hole.) Even without the glittering cast of speakers, to be able to perform a Hekate fire ritual in the caves, was in itself a bit of a breakthrough. The new owners, well known circus impresarios, with brands such as The Circus of Horrors (soon to be seen at Witchfest), are keen to open the place up and indeed develop it as the spooky/wookey theme park.

First up was Cassandra Eason, her topic, the power of nature, may not have been rocket science (for that you need Jack Parsons), but she was a good sport, warming the audience with a homely style. She finished with an invitation for members of the audience to charge her crystal ball!

Things really begin to loosen up when cunning and mild man of the woods 'Jack Daw' treated us to an urbane journey through the ins and outs of traditional witchcraft - question: 'does a spell return on the sender'; answer: 'only if you regret it'.

More musick to end that days formal session. Evocative lirics drifting our way, glimpsed through the door, as a 'Robert Plant' lookalike, Damn the Bard, strutted his stuff on the mandolin. The musick followed us into the cave. Mesmorised by the cave's resonance, I sang and chanted - only pausing to wind my horn, when as Nemty, the ferryman, I summoned those hardy souls to the invocation of Hekate.

That nite the ritual - 'nuff said - see the pictures, then fish chip supper, and a New Orleans blues band (Hollow Bones) - well Glastonbury actually - but really good - especially the PVC clad gogo dancers. Some were less than impressed by the missmatch between the Legba veve and the Ghede cabaret - others said that it was the spirit that mattered - and there was plenty of that.

I had to drag myself away from the breakfast table gossip just in time to see my old friend, Chaoist and now born ag'in runester Ian Read - looking as dapper as ever - he apologised to me before laying into one of our published theories on Seidr and Seething. His highly engaging talk was on Galdr - (spell casting) - although he admited Seething (Seidr) was a dynamite technique - although some of the 'old guard' have still to bite the bullet, swallow their pride and admit, despite what some supposed 'academics' say, that Jan Fries is right about it afterall. It's a recurring theme these last few years - kind of special pleading some feel they need to make before the altar of academe. Goes like this - 'RH might not agree with this, but I'm going to say it anyway.'

And now the end is near - and to round off, is Cornish wise woman Cassandra Latham. I'd never heard her before and although she might not make it to the cover of the latest Witches and Witchcraft (come to think of it neither would I) - what she said would knock most of those teen witches into the top hat she happened to be wearing. She certainly won me over.

All in all, a fantastic weekend. And that even without that ritual - but there again - you had to be there. Well done to Adrian and Ann (www.witchcraftseminar.com) for another roaring success. Next year it's Waterloo - I mean The Wellington in Boscastle - be there - or else I'll review your event! - mogg