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A
Abaddon: (The Destroyer) Chief of the demons of the seventh hierarchy. Abaddon is the name given by St. John in the Apocalypse to the king of the grasshoppers. He is sometimes regarded as the destroying angel.
Abominable Snowman: Also known as the Yeti, the Abominable Snowman is a supposed large primate-like creature reported to live in the Himalayas. Most mainstream scientists and experts consider current evidence of the creature's existence to be unpersuasive, and the result of hoaxes, legend, or misidentification of mundane creatures. Still, the Abominable remains one of the most famous creatures in cryptozoology.
Abracadabra: A magical word said to be formed from the letters of the abraxas, and written thus:
Abracadabra
Abracadabr
Abracadab
Abracada
Abracad
Abrac
Abra
Abr
Ab
A
The pronunciation of this word, according to Julius Africanicus, was equally efficacious either way. By Serenus Sammonicus it was used as a spell to cure asthma. Abracalan or aracalan is another form of the word, and is said to have been regarded as the name of god in Syria, and as a magical symbol by the Jews. But it seems doubtful whether the abracadabra, or its synonyms, was really the name of a deity or not.
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Abraham: a spiritual entity channeled by Esther Hicks. Similar to Seth, Abraham teaches about the law of attraction, emphasizing:
- You are a creator; you create with your every thought.
- Anything that you can imagine is yours to be or do or have.
- You are choosing your creations as you are choosing your thoughts.
- You are a Physical Extension of that which is Non-physical.
- You are here in this body because you chose to be here.
- The basis of your life is Freedom; the purpose of your life is Joy.
- The Universe adores you; for it knows your broadest intentions.
- You are a creator of thoughtways on your unique path of joy.
Abraxas: Among the Gnostics, a divine name, embodying magic significance.
Absolute (Theosophist): Of the absolute, the Logos, the Word of God, Theosophists profess to know further than that exists. The universe with their solar systems are but the manifestations of this Being, which man is capable of perceiving, and all of them are instinct with him, but what man can perceive is not the loftier manifestations but the lower. Man himself is an emanation from the Absolute with which he will ultimately be re-united.
[See Theosophy]
Abundance: A term often used by new age teachers to describe a consciously created lifestyle that's abundant with good health, financial wealth, and loving relationships.
A Course in Miracles: is a channeled book allegedly written in the voice of Jesus. It was first published in 1976 as a three volume set and has sold over 1.5 million copies worldwide in 14 different languages. The Course is written in Christian terminology and its subject aims to teach how to attain the direct personal experience of God. On the level of spiritual or religious belief, its stated purpose is to aid the individual in "removing the blocks to the awareness of love's presence." The primary means for this, according to ACIM's teaching, is via improving one's understanding and practice of the spiritual principle of forgiveness. The book goes into great detail to elucidate the exact nature and means for the comprehension and application of this spiritual principle.
[Read the Course Online.]
Acupressure: The application of pressure or localized massage to specific sites on the body to control symptoms such as pain or nausea. It is a type of complementary and alternative medicine.
Acupuncture: ("AK-yoo-pungk-cher") is a method of healing developed in China at least 2,000 years ago. Today, acupuncture describes a family of procedures involving stimulation of anatomical points on the body by a variety of techniques. American practices of acupuncture incorporate medical traditions from China, Japan, Korea, and other countries. The acupuncture technique that has been most studied scientifically involves penetrating the skin with thin, solid, metallic needles that are manipulated by the hands or by electrical stimulation.
Adepts: are men who after stern self-denial and by means of consistent self-development, have fitted themselves to assist in the ruling of the world. The means by which this position is attained is said to be long and arduous, but in the end the successful one has fulfilled the purpose for which he was created and transcends his fellows. The activities of Adepts are multifarious, being concerned with the direction and guidance of the activities of the rest of mankind. Their knowledge, like their powers, say Theosophists, far exceeds that of man, and they can control forces both in the spiritual and the physical realm, and are said to be able to prolong their lives for centuries. They are also known as the Great White Brotherhood, Rishis, Rahats, or Mahatmas. Those who earnestly desire to work for the betterment of the world may become apprentices or chelas to Adepts, in which case the latter are known as " masters," but the apprentice must first have practiced self-denial and self-development in order to become sufficiently worthy. The master imparts teaching and wisdom otherwise unattainable, and helps the apprentice by communion and inspiration. Madame Blavatsky (q.v.) alleged that she was the apprentice of these masters, and claimed that they dwelt in the Tibetan Mountains. The term Adept was also employed by mediaeval magicians and alchemists to denote a master of their sciences.
Aeromancy: Divination by means of atmospheric conditions.
Africa (Occult
in): (See Arabs, Egypt, Semites. The north of
Africa is Mohammedan. This applies also to the
Sudan and the Sahara. For Moorish Magic and
Alchemy see Arabs. Instances of Arabic sorcery
will also be found in the article " Semites." In
West Africa Obeah is practiced, for which see West
Indies.)
Magic in savage Africa is of the lower cultus, and
chiefly of the kind known as " sympathetic." (See
Magic.) But spiritualistic influence shows itself
in fetishism, the cult of the dead, ju-ju or
witchcraft, and the cult of the witchdoctor.
Baatu Tribis. Among the Zulu and other Bantu
tribes the cult ol witchcraft was practiced, but
in secret, fo.- the results of detection were
terrible. For the tracking of the witch, a caste
of witch-finders was instituted, called "
witchdoctors," whose duty it was to " smell out "
the offenders. These were nearly all women...
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Agape: A state of unconditional love for everything. This is considered the ultimate goal of all sentient evolution. (Usually pronounced ah-guh-pay.)
Age of Aquarius: One of the twelve astrological ages.
Agnostic: A word first used by Professor Huxley, to indicate one who believes nothing which cannot be demonstrated by the senses.
Agreement: From the Michael teachings, a plan made between two souls, usually before incarnating, to work together on the physical plane in a particular way. There are many kinds of agreements, including to help one another in a variety of ways or to have a particular kind of relationship, such as that of mate or parent/child.
Agrippa,
(Henry Cornelius) 1486-1535: A German soldier
and physician, and an adept in alchemy, astrology
and magic. He was born at Cologne on the 14th of
September, 1486, and educated at the University of
Cologne. While still a youth he served under
Maximilian I. of Germany. In 1509 he lectured at
the University of Dole, but a charge of heresy
brought against him by a monk named Catilinet
compelled him to leave Dole, and he resumed his
former occupation of soldier. In the following
year he was sent on a diplomatic mission to
England, and on his return followed Maximilian to
Italy, where he passed seven years, now serving
one noble patron, now another. Thereafter he held
a post at Metz, returned to Cologne, practiced
medicine at Geneva, and was appointed physician to
Louise of Savoy, mother of Francis I.; but, on
being given some task which he found irksome, he
left the service of his patroness and denounced
her bitterly. He then accepted a post offered him
by Margaret, Duchess of Savoy, Regent of the
Netherlands. On her death in 1830, he repaired to
Cologne and Bonn, and thence to France, where he
was arrested for some slighting mention of the
Queen-Mother, Louise of Savoy. He was soon
released, however, and died at Grenoble in 1535.
Agrippa was a man of great talent and varied
attainments. He was acquainted with eight
languages, and was evidently a physician of no
mean ability, as well as a soldier and a
theologian. He had, moreover, many noble patrons.
Yet, notwithstanding these advantages, he never
seemed to be free from misfortune ; persecution
and financial difficulties dogged his footsteps,
and in Brussels he suffered imprisonment for debt.
He himself was in a measure responsible for his
troubles. He was, in fact, an adept in the gentle
art of making enemies, and the persecution of the
monks with whom he frequently came into conflict
was bitter and increasing. His principal works
were a defense of magic, entitled De occulta
philosophia, which was not published until
1531. Though it was written some twenty years
earlier, and a satirical attack on the scientific
pretensions of his day. De incertitndine et
Vanitate Scientianim et Artium atque Excellentia
Verbi Dei Declamatio, also published at
Antwerp in 1531, His other works included a
treatise De Nobilitate et Praecellentia Feminu
Sexus, dedicated to Margaret of Burgundy out
of gratitude for her patronage. His interest in
alchemy and magic dated from an early period of
his life, and gave rise to many tales of his
occult powers. It was said that he was always
accompanied by a familiar in the shape of a large
black dog. On his death he renounced his magical
works and addressed his familiar thus: " Begone,
wretched animal, the entire cause of my
destruction ! " The animal fled from the room and
straightway plunged into the Saom, where it
perished. At the inns where he stayed, Agrippa
paid his bills with money that appeared genuine
enough at the time, but which afterwards turned
to worthless horn or shell, like the fairy money
which turned to earth after sunset. He is said to
have summoned Tully to pronounce his oration for
Roscius, in the presence of John George, elector
of Saxony, the Earl of Surrey, Erasmus, and other
eminent people. Tully duly appeared, delivered his
famous oration, and left his audience deeply
moved. Agrippa had a magic glass, wherein it was
possible to see objects distant in time or place.
On one occasion Surrey saw therein his mistress,
the beautiful Geraldine, lamenting the absence of
her noble lover.
One other story concerning the magician is worthy
of record. Once when about to leave home for a
short time, he entrusted to his wife the key of
his museum, warning her on no account to permit
anyone to enter. But the curiosity of a boarder in
their house prompted him to beg for the key, till
at length the harassed hostess gave it to him. The
first thing that caught the student's attention
was a book of spells, from which he began to read.
A knock sounded on the door. The student took no
notice, but went on reading, and the knock was
repeated. A moment later a demon entered,
demanding to know why he had been summoned. The
student was too terrified to make reply, and the
angry demon seized him by the throat and strangled
him. At the same moment Agrippa entered, having
returned unexpectedly from his journey. Fearing
that he would be charged with the murder of the
youth, he persuaded the demon to restore him to
life for a little while, and walk him up and down
the market place. The demon consented ; the people
saw the student apparently alive and in good
health, and when the demon allowed the semblance
of life to leave the body, they thought the young
man had died a natural death. However, an
examination clearly showed that he had been
strangled. The true state of affairs leaked out,
and Agrippa was forced to flee for his life.
These fabrications of the popular imagination were
probably encouraged rather than suppressed by
Agrippa, who loved to surround his comparatively
harmless pursuits of alchemy and astrology with an
air of mystery calculated to inspire awe and
terror in the minds of the ignorant. It is known
that he had correspondents in all parts of the
world, and that from their letters, which he
received in his retirement, he gleaned the
knowledge which he was popularly believed to
obtain from his familiars.
Ain-Soph: (Heb.) The "Boundless" or "Limitless" Deity emanating and extending. Ain-Soph is also written En-Soph and Ain-Suph, for no one, not even the Rabbis, are quite sure of their vowels. In the religious metaphysics of the old Hebrew philosophers, the One Principle was an abstraction like Parabrahman, though modern Cabalists have succeeded by mere dint of sophistry and paradoxes in making a "Supreme God" of it, and nothing higher. But with the early Chaldean Cabalists Ain-Soph was "without form or being" with "no likeness with anything else." That Ain-Soph has never been considered as the "Creator" is proved conclusively by the fact that such an orthodox Jew as Philo calls "creator" the Logos, who stands next the "Limitless One," and is "the Second God." "The Second God is in its (Ain-Soph's) wisdom," says Philo in Quæst et Solut. Deity is no-thing; it is nameless, and therefore called Ain-Soph-the word Ain meaning nothing.
Air Signs: The mental or intellectual signs: Gemini, Libra, Aquarius. Considered collectively, sometimes termed the Air asterism.
[See Astrology] [Visit Astrology Index]
Akashic plane: The central, neutral plane of creation that interconnects the other six. The distilled knowledge of the universe is recorded there.
Akashic Records: The records generated of everything that happens in the universe as it occurs. The appearance is that all matter and energy have a sort of built-in digital recording device, storing its entire history in a photographic code, but the records are actually windows into the past. The records show events exactly as they were experienced, so the information in them begins raw-it is not clarified, understood, and assimilated until a consciousness takes responsibility for doing so. Once it is fully assimilated, it is stored on the akashic plane.
Alastor: A cruel demon, who, according to Wierius, filled the post of chief executioner to the monarch of Hades. The conception of him somewhat resembles that of Nemesis. Zoroaster is said to have called him "The Executioner." Others confound him with the destroying angel. Evil genies were formerly called Alaslors. Plutarch says that Cicero, who bore a grudge against Augustus, conceived the plan of committing suicide on the emperor's hearth, and thus becoming his Alastor.
Albertus Magnus: No fewer than twenty-one
folio volumes are attributed to this alchemist,
and though it is highly improbable that all of
them are really his, the ascription in several
cases resting on but slender evidence, those
others which are incontestably from his pen, are
sufficiently numerous to constitute him a
surprisingly voluminous writer. It is noteworthy,
moreover, that according to tradition, he was the
inventor of the pistol and the cannon ; but, while
it is unlikely that the credit is due to him for
this, the mere fact that he was thus acknowledged
indicates that his scientific skill was recognized
by a few, if only a few, of the men of his own
time.
Albertus was born at Larvingen, on the Danube, in
the year 1205, and the term Magnus, which is
usually applied to him, is not the result of his
reputation, but is the Latin equivalent of his
family name, de Groot. Like many another man
destined to become famous, he was distinctly
stupid as a boy, but from the outset he showed a
predilection for religion, and so it came about
that one night the blessed Virgin appeared to him,
whereupon his intellect suddenly became
metamorphosed, acquiring extraordinary vitality.
Albertus therefore decided that he must show his
gratitude to the Madonna by espousing holy orders,
and eventually he won eminence in the clerical
profession, and was made Bishop of Ratisbon ; but
he held this office for only a little while,
resigning it that he might give his entire time to
scientific researches. Thenceforth, until his
death, the exact date whereof is uncertain, he
lived chiefly at a pleasant retreat in Cologne ;
and it is reported that here his mental vigor
gradually forsook him, being, replaced by the
dullness which characterized him as a youth.
Albertus was repeatedly charged by some of his
unfriendly contemporaries with holding
communications with the devil, and practicing the
craft of magic; while apropos of his reputed
leanings in this particular, a curious story is
recounted in an early history of the University of
Paris. The alchemist, it seems, had invited some
friends to his house at Cologne, among them being
William, Count of Holland, and when the guests
arrived they were amazed to find that, though the
season was mid-winter and the ground was covered
with snow, they were expected to partake of a
repast outside in the garden. Great chagrin was
manifested by everybody, while some even declared
themselves insulted ; but their host bade them be
seated, assuring them that all would be well. They
continued to be dubious withal, yet they took
their places, and hardly had they began to eat and
drink ere their annoyance vanished, for lo ! the
snow around them melted away, the sun shone
brightly, the birds sang, and summer appeared to
be reigning indeed.
Michael Maier, the author of Museum Chimicum and
numerous other alchemistic works, declares that
Albertus succeeded in evolving the philosopher's
stone, and that ere his death he handed it over to
his distinguished pupil, St. Thomas Aquinas, who
subsequently destroyed the precious article,
suspecting it to be a contrivance of the devil.
The alleged discoverer himself says nothing on
this subject, but, in his De Rebus Metallicis et
Mineralibus. he tells how he had personally tested
some gold which had been manufactured by an
alchemist, and which resisted many searching
fusions. And, be this story true or not, Albertus
was certainly an able scientist, while it is clear
that his learning ultimately gained wide
recognition, for a collected edition of his vast
writings was issued at Leyden so late as 1653.
[See Alchemy]
Alchemy: The science by aid of which the chemical philosophers of mediaeval times attempted to transmute the baser metals into gold and silver. There is considerable divergence of opinion as to the etymology of the word, but it would seem to be derived from the Arabic al=the, and kimya=chemistry, which in turn derives from late Greek chemeia=chemistry, from chumeia a mingling, or cheein "to pour out," or "mix," Aryan root ghu, to pour, whence the word " gush." Mr. A. Wallis Budge in his Egyptian Magic, however, states that it is possible that it may be derived from the Egyptian word khemeia, that is to say "the preparation of the black ore," or "powder," which was regarded as the active principle in the transmutation of metals. To this name the Arabs affixed the article al, thus giving al-khemeia, or alchemy.
History of Alchemy—From an early period the Egyptians possessed the reputation of being skilful workers in metals, and, according to Greek writers, they were conversant with their transmutation, employing quicksilver in the process of separating gold and silver from the native matrix. The resulting oxide was supposed to possess marvelous powers, and it was thought that there resided within it the individualities of the various metals—that in it their various substances were incorporated. This black powder was mystically identified with the underworld form of the god Osiris, and consequently was credited with magical properties. Thus there grew up in Egypt the belief that magical powers existed in fluxes and alloys. Probably such a belief existed throughout Europe in connection with the bronze-working castes of its several races. (See Shells Thari.) It was probably in the Byzantium of the fourth century, however, that alchemical science received embryonic form. There is little doubt that Egyptian tradition, filtering through Alexandrian Hellenic sources was the foundation upon which the infant science was built, and this is borne out by the circumstance that the art was attributed to Hermes Trismegistus (q.v.) and supposed to be contained in its entirety in his works. The Arabs, after their conquest of Egypt in the seventh century, carried on the researches of the Alexandrian school, and through their instrumentality the art was brought to Morocco and thus in the eighth century to Spain, where it flourished exceedingly. Indeed, Spain from the ninth to the eleventh century became the repository of alchemical science, and the colleges of- Seville, Cordova, and Granada were the centers from which this science radiated throughout Europe. The first practical alchemist may be said to have been the Arabian Geber, who flourished 720-750. From his Summa Perfeclionis, we may be justified in assuming that alchemical science was already matured in his day, and that he drew his inspiration from a still older unbroken line of adepts. He was followed by Avicenna, Mesna and Rhasis {q.v.j, and in France by Alain of Lisle, Arnold de Villanova and Jean de Meung (q.v.) the troubadour; in England by Roger Bacon n and in Spain itself by Raymond Luliy. Later, in Preach alchemy the most illustrious names are those of Flamel (b. ca. 1330), and Bernard Trevisan (b. ca. 1406} after which the centre of interest changes to Germany and in some measure to England, in which countries Paracelsus, Khunrath (ca. 1560), Maier (ca. 1568), Bohme, Van Helmont, the Brabantcr (1553). Ripley, Norton, Dalton, Charnock, and Fludd kept the alchemical flame burning brightly. It is surprising how little alteration we find throughout the period between the seventh and the seventeenth centuries, the heyday of alchemy, in the theory and practice of the art. The same sentiments and processes art! found expressed in the later alchemical authorities as in the earliest, and a wonderful unanimity as regards the basic canons of the great art is evinced by the hermetic students of all time. On the introduction of chemistry as a practical art, alchemical science fell into desuetude and disrepute, owing chiefly to the number of charlatans practicing it, and by the beginning of the eighteenth century, as a school, it may be said to have become defunct. Here and there, however, a solitary Student of the art lingered, and the department of this article on " Modern Alchemy " will demonstrate that the science has to a great extent revived during modern times, although it has never been quite extinct...
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Alectrymancy: Divination by means of a cock that pecked grain placed on letters of the alphabet. There is a vivid description of this practice in The Ides of March by Thornton Wilder.
Aleuromancy: Divination from flour. Messages enclosed in balls of dough and prophetic of the future.
Alexander Technique: is an educational discipline practiced to prevent the physical decline caused by habituated mannerisms. It takes its name from F. Matthias Alexander (1869–1955), a former Shakespearean recitalist, who first observed and formulated its principles during 1890 – 1900. F.M. Alexander trained teachers of his Technique from 1931 until 1955. The Technique is often considered to be the "grandfather" of many later somatic methods, such as Feldenkrais, Rolfing, Hellerwork, etc..
Properly applied the technique can lead the way to improved awareness of body, mind and the connection between the two, along with ease of movement, improved functioning and reduced physical tension. Additionally, practitioners often report that it gives them an enhanced ability to clarify their thinking. It is widely used in the areas of performing arts and sports. The medium of study is one's own sense of kinesthesia or proprioception, which is the sense used to internally calibrate one's own bodily location, weight and to judge the effort necessary for moving. The founder's original intent was to apply the scientific method to more completely carry intention into action. His objective was to make experimentation and training deliberately repeatable, and to facilitate learning in a way that would allow continuing improvement.
[See Alexander Technique]
Alexandria Library: was once the largest library in the world. Founded at the beginning of the 3rd century BC, during the reign of Ptolemy II of Egypt, it was thought to contain the entirety of knowledge in the ancient world until it was mysteriously destroyed.
Alexandrian Philosophers: This famous school arose in Alexandria, Egypt, which city was for long ages the seat of learning and philosophy. It was famous for its library, founded by Ptolemy Soter at the very beginning of his reign-a library which once boasted 700,000 rolls, or volumes (Aulus Gellius), for its museum, the first real Academy of Sciences and Arts, for its world-renowned scholars, such as Euclid, the father of scientific geometry; Apollonius of Perga, the author of the still-extant work on conic sections; Nicomachus, the arithmetician: for astronomers, natural philosophers, anatomists such as Herophilus and Erasistratus; physicians, musicians, artists, etc. But it became still more famous for its eclectic, or new Platonic school, founded by Ammonius Saccas in 173 ad, whose disciples were Origen, Plotinus, and many other men now famous in history. The most celebrated schools of the Gnostics had their origin in Alexandria. Philo-Judaeus, Josephus, Iamblichus, Porphyry, Clement of Alexandria, Eratosthenes the astronomer, Hypatia, the virgin philosopher, and numberless other stars of second magnitude, all belonged at various times to these great schools, and helped to make of Alexandria one of the most justly renowned seats of learning that the world has ever produced.
Alexandrian School: See Alexandrian Philosophers.
Alien: an alien being or extraterrestrial from outer space. Allegedly there are different races of aliens that visit the earth: some are classified as either small or large grays, and some appear to be a reptilian species.
Alien Abductions: There are
several well-known cases where people have reported being
abducted by alien beings and taken aboard a space craft.
Although it's often claimed that conscious memory of the event
is erased by the aliens, a typical abduction scenario involves:
a terrifying feeling of paralysis and the subsequent
transportation to an alien craft on a beam of light; the
presence of gray alien beings; a frightening experience in a
medical examination room where aliens probe the body with
various instruments and take samples of hair, bodily fluid, and
so forth; and finally, the insertion of an alien implant device
under the skin.
Alien Autopsy:
Considered by most authorities to be an elaborate hoax, this
film depicts what appears to be an autopsy being conducted on an
alien cadaver. The film was shown on the Fox channel in a 1995
documentary.
Alien Implants: An alien
device that's been inserted under the skin, usually during an
abduction episode.
Aloe Vera: Popular with herbalists, they are succulent
plants belonging to the Lily family, with perennial, strong and fibrous roots
and numerous, persistent, fleshy leaves, proceeding from the upper part of the
root, narrow, tapering, thick and fleshy, usually beset at the edges with spiney
teeth. Many of the species are woody and branching. In the remote districts of
S.W. Africa and in Natal, Aloes have been discovered 30 to 60 feet in height,
with stems as much as 1O feet in circumference. The flowers are produced in erect, terminal spikes. There is no calyx, the
corolla is tubular, divided into six narrow segments at the mouth and of a red,
yellow or purplish color. The capsules contain numerous angular seeds.
[See Herbs]
Alomancy: Divination by means of salt.
Altered States: refers to a state that's beyond our five physical senses. A variety of these states are being seriously studied by scientists, including near-death or out-of-body experiences, lucid dreams, channeling, "alien" encounters, and so forth.
Altruism: from Alter, other. A quality opposed to Egoism. Actions tending to do good to others, regardless of self.
Amduscias: Grand Duke of Hades. He has, according to Wierius, the form of a unicorn, but when evoked, appears in human shape. He gives concerts, at the command of men, where one hears the sound of all the musical instruments but can see nothing. It is said that the trees themselves incline to his voice. He commands twenty-nine legions.
America (Occult in the United States): The occult history of the European races which occupy the territory now known as the United States of America does not commence until some little time after their entrance into the North American continent. It is probable that the early English and Dutch settlers carried with them the germs of the practice of witchcraft, but it is certain that they brought with them an active belief in witchcraft and sorcery. It is significant, however, that no outbreak of fanaticism occurred in connection with this belief until nearly the end of the seventeenth century, in 1692, when an alarm of witchcraft was raised in the family of the Minister of Salem, and several black servants were charged with the supposed crime. It is quite likely that these negroes practiced voodoo or obeah, but, however this may be, the charges did not stop at them. The alarm spread rapidly, and in a brief space numerous persons fell under suspicion on the most frivolous pretexts. The new Governor of the Colony, Sir William Phipps, appears to have been carried away with the excitement, and authorized judicial prosecutions. The first person tried, a woman named Bridget Bishop, was hanged, and the Governor feeling himself embarrassed among the extraordinary number of charges made after this, called in the assistance of the clergy of Boston. As events proved, this was a fatal thing to do. Boston, at this time, possessed a distinguished family of puritanical ministers of the name of Mather. The original Mather had settled in Dorchester in 1636, and three years later had a son born to him, whom he called Increase Mather. He became a clergyman, as did his son, Cotton Mather, born in 1663. Increase was President of Harvard College, and his son occupied a distinguished position therein, and also preached at Boston. The fanaticism and diabolical cruelty of these two men has probably never been equaled in the history of human persecution. Relying implicitly upon the scriptural injunction: " Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live," and blinded by their fanatic zeal, they cost the colony many precious lives. Indeed, beside their regime, the rigors of Sprenger (q.v.) and Bodin (q.v.), pale into insignificance. That ministers professing to preach a gospel of charity and love could have so far descended as to torture and condemn thousands of human beings to the gallows and the stake, can only be regarded as astounding. In 1688 an Irish washer woman, named Glover, was employed by a mason of Boston, one Goodwin, to look after his children, and these shortly afterwards displayed symptoms which Cotton Mather, on examination, stated were those of diabolical possession. The wretched washerwoman was brought to trial, found guilty, and hanged; and Cotton Mather launched into print upon the case under the title of Late Memorable Providences Relating to Witchcraft and Possession which displayed an extraordinary amount of ingenuity and an equally great lack of anything like sound judgment. As was the case with the works of the European writers on witchcraft and sorcery, this book fanned the flame of credulity, and thousands of the ignorant throughout the colony began to cast about for similar examples of witchcraft. Five other persons were brought to trial and executed, and a similar number shortly met the same fate, among them a minister of the Gospel, by name George Borroughs, who disbelieved in witchcraft. This was sufficient, and he was executed forthwith. Popular sentiment was on his side, but the fiendish Cotton Mather appeared at the place of execution on horseback, denounced Borroughs as an impostor, and upheld the action of his judges. Another man, called Willard, who had been employed to arrest suspected witches, refused to continue in his office, and was himself arrested. He attempted to save himself by flight, but was pursued and overtaken, and duly executed. Even dogs accused of witchcraft were put to death...
Ammonius Saccas: A great and good philosopher who lived in Alexandria between the second and third centuries of our Era, the founder of the Neo-Platonic School of the Philaletheians or "lovers of truth." He was of poor birth and born of Christian parents, but endowed with such prominent, almost divine goodness as to be called Theodidaktos, the "God-taught." He honored that which was good in Christianity, but broke with it and the Churches at an early age, being unable to find in Christianity any superiority over the old religions.
Amulets:
The charm, amulet, or mascot, is, of course,
directly derived from the conception of the fetish, which was believed by people to contain a
spirit. Amulets may be said to be of two classes:
those which are worn as (i) fetishes, that is the
dwelling-place of spiritual entities, who are
active on behalf of the wearer; or (2), mascots to
ward off bad luck or such influences as the evil
eye.
That charms were worn by prehistoric man there is
little room for doubt, as objects which in many
cases partake of the appearance and general
description of amulets are discovered in Neolithic
tombs. The ancient Egyptians possessed a
bewildering variety of amulets, which were worn
both by the living and the dead. Indeed, among the
latter, every part of the body had an amulet
sacred to itself. These were, as a rule, evolved
from various organs of the gods: as, for example,
the eye of Isis, the backbone of Osiris, and so
forth. Among the savage and semi-civilized
peoples, the amulet usually takes the form of a
necklace, bracelets, or anklets, and where belief
in witchcraft and the evil eye is strong, the
faith in these, and in charms, is always most
intense. Among civilized races it has been
observed that it is usually the ignorant classes
who adopt the use of amulets: such as sailors,
miners, beggars, Gypsies, and criminals. But
amulets are also to be found in use among educated
persons, although, of course, the superstitious
part of the practice has in these cases often
disappeared. Universally speaking, stones, teeth,
claws, shells, coral and symbolic emblems, are
favored amulets. The reason for the wearing of
these is exceedingly difficult to arrive at, but a
kind of doctrine of correspondences may be*at the
root of the belief—the idea that like produces
like, or that an effect resembles its
cause, or that things which have once been in
contact but have ceased to be so, continue to act
on each other by magical means. For example, the
desert goat is a sure* footed animal; accordingly,
its tongue is carried as a powerful amulet against
falling by certain Malay tribes. Beads resembling
teeth are often hung round the necks of Kaffir
children in-Africa to assist them in teething, and
the incisor teeth of the beaver are frequently
placed round the necks of little American-Indian
girls to render them industrious, like that
animal. Again, certain plants and minerals
indicate by their external character the diseases
for which nature intended them as remedies. Thus
the euphrasia, or eyebright, was supposed to be
good for the eyes because it contains a black
pupil-like spot; and the blood-stone was employed
for stopping the flow of blood from a wound.
It is strange that wherever prehistoric
implements, such as arrowheads and Celts, are
discovered, they are thought by the peasantry of
the locality in which they are found to be of
great virtue as amulets. Some light is cast on
this custom by the fact that stone arrowheads were
certainly in use among mediaeval British witches.
But in most countries they are thought to descend
from the sky, and are therefore kept to preserve
people and cattle from lightning. This does not,
however, explain away the reason why water poured
over a prehistoric arrowhead is given to cure cows
in Ireland. Certain roots, which have the shape
of snakes, are kept by the Malays to ensure them
against snake-bite; and instances of this
description of correspondence, known as the
doctrine of signatures, could be multiplied ad infinitum.
Among the Celts a great many kinds of amulets were
used: such as the symbolic wheel of the sun god,
found so numerously in France and Great Britain;
pebbles, amulets of the teeth of the wild boar,
and pieces of amber. The well-known serpent's egg
of the Druids was also in all probability an
amulet of the priestly class. Indian amulets are
numerous, and in Buddhist countries their use is
universal, especially where that religion has
become degraded, or has in any way degenerated. In
Northern Buddhist countries almost everyone
constantly wears an amulet round the neck. These
generally represent the leaf of the sacred
fig-tree, and are made in the form of a box which
contains a scrap of sacred writing, prayer, or a
little picture. Women of position in Tibet wear a
chatelaine containing a charm or charms, and the
universal amulet of the Buddhist priests in that
country is the thunderbolt, supposed to have
fallen direct from Indra's heaven. This is usually
imitated in bronze or other metal, and is used for
exorcising evil spirits. Amulet types are for the
most part very ancient, and present much the same
characteristics in all parts of the world.
[See Magic]
Analogeticists: The disciples of Ammonius Saccas (see above) so called because of their practice of interpreting all sacred legends, myths, and mysteries by a principle of analogy and correspondence, which rule is now found in the Cabalistic system, and preeminently so in the schools of Esoteric philosophy in the East.
Anaxagoras: A famous Ionian philosopher, who lived 500 BC, studied philosophy under Anaximenes of Miletus, and settled in the days of Pericles, at Athens. Socrates, Euripides, Archelaus, and other distinguished men and philosophers were among his disciples and pupils. He was a most learned astronomer, and was one of the first to explain openly that which was taught by Pythagoras secretly-viz., the movements of the planets, the eclipses of the sun and moon, etc. It was he who taught the theory of chaos, on the principle that "nothing comes from nothing," ex nihilo nihil fit-and of atoms, as the underlying essence and substance of all bodies, "of the same nature as the bodies which they formed." These atoms, he taught, were primarily put in motion by nous (universal intelligence, the Mahat of the Hindus), which nous is an immaterial, eternal, spiritual entity; by this combination the world was formed, the material gross bodies sinking down, and the ethereal atoms (or fiery ether) rising and spreading in the upper celestial regions. Antedating modern science by over 2,000 years, he taught that the stars were of the same material as our earth, and the sun a glowing mass; that the moon was a dark uninhabitable body, receiving its light from the sun; and beyond the aforesaid science he confessed himself thoroughly convinced that the real existence of things, perceived by our senses, could not be demonstrably proved. He died in exile at Lampsacus, at the age of seventy-two.
Ancient Astronauts: a term used to describe the theories of ancient extraterrestrial contact being involved in some way with the origin or development of human culture. Most notably popularized by authors such as Erich von Däniken and Zecharia Sitchin, this theory is an expansion or elaboration of the more basic Paleocontact theory.
These theories often claim that human beings are either the descendants or creations of aliens who landed on Earth millennia ago — ideas that are commonly dismissed by the scientific community.
Ancient
astronaut theories have been advanced by
authors such as Charles Fort (1919), Peter
Kolosimo (in his 1957 book, Il pianeta
sconosciuto), Henri Lhote (1958)
Matest M. Agrest (1959), Erich von Däniken
(1968), Dr. S. Lunskaya (1970) Robert K.
G. Temple (1976), Zecharia Sitchin (1978)
and Richard Hoagland.
Andrews, (Lynn): jjjjjjjj
Angels :
The word angel, "angelos" in Greek, " malak " in
Hebrew, literally signifies a " person sent" or a
" messenger." An angel
is an ethereal being found in many
religions, whose duties are to assist
and serve
God or the gods.
[Read
Complete Article]
Anima Mundi: (Lat.) The "Soul of the World," the same as Alaya of the Northern Buddhists; the divine Essence which pervades, permeates, animates, and informs all things, from the smallest atom of matter to man and god. It is in a sense "the seven-skinned Mother" of the stanzas in The Secret Doctrine; the essence of seven planes of sentience, consciousness, and differentiation, both moral and physical. In its highest aspect it is Nirvana; in its lowest, the Astral Light. It was feminine with the Gnostics, the early Christians, and the Nazarenes; bisexual with other sects, who considered it only in its four lower planes, of igneous and ethereal nature in the objective world of forms, and divine and spiritual in its three higher planes. When it is said that every human soul was born by detaching itself from the Anima Mundi, it is meant, esoterically, that our higher Egos are of an essence identical with It, and Mahat is a radiation of the ever unknown Universal Absolute.
Animism: The doctrine of spiritual beings, or the concept that a great part, if not the whole, of inanimate nature, as well as of animate beings, are endowed with reason and volition identical with that of man. It is difficult to distinguish this conception from that of personalization, but the difference exists. The savage hears the wind whistle past him, and thinks that in it he can distinguish voices. He sees movement in streams, trees, and other objects, which he believes to be inhabited by spirits. The idea of a soul probably arose through dreams, apparitions, or clairvoyance, hallucinations and shadows, and perhaps through the return to life after periods of unconsciousness. Movement, therefore, argued life. The cult of fetishism well instances the belief in animism, for it posits the entrance into an inanimate body of a separate spiritual entity deliberately come to inhabit it. There is no necessity in this place to go into the question whether or not animism is at the basis of religious belief; but it is distinctly at the root of magical belief and practice.
Anka, (Darryl): [See Bashar]
Ankh: The Egyptian symbol of life, perhaps the life which remains to one after death. It is conjectured that it symbolizes the union of the male and female principles, the origins of life, and that like the American cross it typifies the four winds, the rain-bringers and fertilizers. It has been found manufactured in every description of material, and is sometimes encountered in combination with the dad or tat symbol (q.v.) It is usually carried in the right hand by divinities.
Anthropomancy: Divination by means of consultation of the intestines of sacrificed children. This appaling method is said to have been used by the Emperor Julian the Apostate, who practiced necromancy.
Anti-Christ:
The universal enemy of mankind, who
will in the latter days be sent to scourge the
world for its wickedness. According to the Abbot Bergier,
Antichrist is regarded as a tyrant, impious and
excessively cruel, the arch enemy of Christ, and
the last ruler of the earth.
It is claimed by some that the reign of
Antichrist will last fifty years: the opinion of
the majority is that his reign will last but
three-and-a-half years, after which the angels
will sound the trumpets of the day of judgment,
and Christ will come and judge the world.
Anunnaki: Zecharia Sitchin claims this extraterrestrial species came to earth around 450,000 years ago and genetically altered the primitive hominid species, creating the homo sapiens. He presents the ancient world as evidence of the Anunnaki's influence, citing the Sumerian culture, the Great Pyramids, the Sphinx, Stonehenge, and others.
Aphatomancy: Divination by observation of objects that appear haphazardly.
Apollonius of Tyana: A Greek philosopher of the first century A.D. who traveled widely, as far as India, in search of esoteric knowledge. Born in Cappadocia about the beginning of the first century; an ardent Pythagorean, who studied the Phoenician sciences under Euthydemus, and Pythagorean philosophy and other subjects under Euxenus of Heraclea. According to the tenets of the Pythagorean school he remained a vegetarian the whole of his long life, ate only fruit and herbs, drank no wine, wore vestments made only of plant fibers, walked barefooted and let his hair grow to the full length, as all the Initiates have done before and after him. He was initiated by the priests of the temple of Aesculapius (Asclepios) at Aegae, and learnt many of the "miracles" for healing the sick wrought by the God of medicine. Having prepared himself for a higher initiation by a silence of five years, and by travel-visiting Antioch, Ephesus, and Pamphylia and other parts-he repaired via Babylon to India, alone, all his disciples having abandoned him as they feared to go to the "land of enchantments." A casual disciple, Damis, whom he met on his way, accompanied him, however, on his travels. At Babylon he got initiated by the Chaldeans and Magi, according to Damis, whose narrative was copied by one named Philostratus one hundred years later. After his return from India, he showed himself a true Initiate in that the pestilence, earthquakes, deaths of kings, and other events, which he prophesied, duly happened.
At Lesbos, the priests of Orpheus got jealous of him, and refused to initiate him into their peculiar mysteries, though they did so several years later. He preached to the people of Athens and other States the purest and noblest ethics, and the phenomena he produced were as wonderful as they were numerous, and well authenticated.
In the course of his wanderings, however, he lectured to his disciples, relating his experiences with goblins, spirits, vampires, and other occult phenomena. He thus acquired a formidable reputation as a thaumaturgist. In Asia Minor, in fact, temples were dedicated to him as to a deity. Brought to Rome, Apollonius was tried on a charge of practicing divination from the entrails of a boy sacrificed for the purpose. The latter years of his life are obscure.
In the Middle Ages the name of Apollonius was associated with endless legends and stories on magic themes, and Apollonius himself was considered the Archmagician.
Apparitions:
An apparition
(from Latin apparert, to appear) is in its
literal sense merely an appearance, that is, a
sense-percept of any kind, but in every-day
usage the word has a more restricted meaning and
is used only to denote an abnormal or
supernormal appearance or percept, which cannot
be referred to any natural objective cause.
Taken in this sense the word covers all
visionary appearances, hallucinations,
clairvoyance, and similar unusual perceptions. "
Apparition " and " ghost" are frequently used as
synonymous terms, though the former is, of
course, of much wider significance. A ghost is a
visual apparition of a deceased human being, and
the term implies that it is the spirit of the
person it represents Apparitions of animals and
of inanimate objects are also sufficiently
frequent. All apparitions do not take the form
of visual images; auditory and tactile false
perceptions, though less common, are not
unknown, and there is record of a house that was
" haunted " with the perpetual odor of violets.
[Read
Complete Article]
[See
Paranormal,
Spiritualism]
Apports:
The name given to various objects, such as
flowers, jewelry, and even live animals,
materialized in the presence of a medium. The
production of these apports have always been, and
still are, one of the most prominent and effective
features of spiritualistic stances. Sometimes they
fly through the air and strike the faces of the
sitters; sometimes they appear on the table, or
in the laps of those present. A favorite form is
the scattering of perfume on the company. Recent
systematic experiments conducted in a purely
scientific spirit have exposed fraud in numerous
instances where ordinary precautions would not
have sufficed for its detection. Frequently it has
been found that the medium had skillfully concealed
the apports in the room or about her person.
Nevertheless, though the result is often produced
by obviously unscrupulous means, it does not
follow that all materializations are performed
with fraudulent intent. In cases where, so far as
can be judged, the character of the medium is
beyond reproach, as in the case of H&ene Smith,
the idea has been advanced that any preparations
made beforehand, such as the secreting of flowers,
etc., must result from a process of activity of
the subliminal consciousness. Other explanations
are, that the apports are actually conveyed to the
séance by spirits, or that they are drawn thither
by magnetic power. Branches of trees, armfuls of
fruit and flowers, money, jewels, and live
lobsters are among the more extraordinary apports...
[Read
Complete Article]
Aquinas,
(Thomas): who has been under the imputation of
magic, was one of the profoundest scholars and
subtlest logicians of his day. He was a youth of
illustrious birth, and received the rudiments of
his education under the monks of Monte Cassiono,
and in the University of Naples. But, not
contented with these advantages, he secretly
entered himself in the Society of Preaching
Friars, or Dominicans, at seventeen years of age.
His mother, being indignant that he should thus
take the vow of poverty, and sequester himself
from the world for life, employed every means in
her power to induce him to alter his purpose, but
all in vain. The friars, to deliver him from her
importunities, removed him from Naples to
Terracina, from Terracina to Anagnia, and from
Anagnia to Rome. His mother followed him in all
these changes of residence, but was not permitted
so much as to see him. At length she induced his
two elder brothers to seize him by force. They
waylaid him on his road to Paris, whether he was
sent to complete his course of instruction, and
carried him off to the castle of Aquino, where he
had been born. Here he was confined for two years,
but he found a way to correspond with the
superiors of his order, and finally escaped from a
window in the castle. St. Thomas Aquinas (for he
was canonized after his death) exceeded perhaps
all men that ever existed in the severity and
strictness of his metaphysical disquisitions, and
thus acquired the name of the Seraphic Doctor.
It was to be expected that a man, who thus
immersed himself in the depths of thought, should
be an enemy to noise and interruption. He dashed
to pieces an artificial man of brass that Albertus
Magnus, who was his tutor, had spent thirty years
in bringing to perfection, being impelled to this
violence by its perpetual and unceasing garrulity.
It is further said, that his study being placed in
a great thoroughfare, where the grooms were all
day long exercising their horses, he found it
necessary to apply a remedy to this nuisance. He
made by the laws of magic a small horse of brass,
which he buried two or three feet under ground in
the midst of this highway, and, having done so, no
horse would any longer pass along the road. It was
in vain that the grooms with whip and spur sought
to conquer the animals' repugnance. They were
finally compelled to give up the attempt, and to
choose another place for their daily exercises.
It has further been sought to fix the imputation
of magic upon Thomas Aquinas by referring to him
certain books written on that science; but these
are now acknowledged to be spurious.
Arabia
(Occult in): The heyday of occultism among the
Arab race was reached at the epoch when that
division of them known as the Moors' established
their empire in the Spanish peninsula.
We first emerge from cloud and shadow into a
precise and definite region in the eighth century,
when an Arabian mystic revived the dreams and
speculations of the alchemists, and discovered
some important secrets. Geber, who
flourished about 720-750, is reputed to have
written upwards of five hundred works upon the
Philosophers' Stone and elixir vita. His
researches after these desiderata proved
fruitless, but if he did not bestow upon mankind
immortal life and boundless wealth, he gave them
nitrate of silver, corrosive sublimate, red oxide
of mercury, and nitric acid.
Among his tenets were a belief that a preparation
of gold would heal all diseases in animals and
plants, as well as in human beings; that the
metals were affected with maladies, except the
pure, supreme, and precious one of gold; and that
the Philosophers' Stone had often been discovered,
but that its fortunate discoverers would not
reveal the secret to blind, incredulous, and
unworthy man.
His Sumnxi Perfections—a manual for the alchemical
student—has been frequently translated. A curious
English version, of which there is a copy in the
British Museum, was published by an English
enthusiast, one Richard Russell, at " the Star, in
New Market, in Wapping,
near the Dock," in 1686. Geber's true name was
Abou Moussah Djafar, to which was added Al Soft,
or " The Wise," and he was a native of Houran, in
Mesopotamia.
He was followed by Avicenna (q.v.), Averroes
(q.v.) and others equally gifted and fortunate.
According to Geber and his successors the metals
were not only compound creatures, but they were
also all composed of the same two substances. Both
Prout and Davy lent their names to ideas not
unlike this. " The improvements," says the latter,
" taking place in the methods of examining bodies,
are constantly changing the opinions of chemists
with respect to their nature, and there is no
reason to suppose that any real indestructible
principle has yet been discovered. Matter may
ultimately be found to be the same in essence,
differing only in the arrangement of its particles
; or two or three simple substances may produce
all the varieties of compound bodies." The ancient
ideas, therefore, of Demetrius the Greek
physicist, and of Geber, the Arabian polypharmist,
are, still hovering about the horizon of
chemistry.
The Arabians taught, in the third place, that the
metals are composed of mercury and sulphur in
different proportions. They toiled away at the art
of making many medicines out of the various
mixtures and reactions of the few chemicals at
their command. They believed in transmutation, but
they did not strive to effect it. It belonged to
their creed rather than to their practice. They
were a race of hard-working, scientific artisans,
with their pestles and mortars, their crucibles
and furnaces, their alembics and aludels, their
vessels for infusion, for decoction, for
cohobation, sublimation, fixation, lixiviation,
filtration and coagulation. They believed in
transmutation, in the first matter, and in the
correspondence of the metals with the planets, to
say nothing of potable gold.
Whence the Arabians derived the sublimer articles
of their scientific faith, is not known to any
European historian. Perhaps they were the
conjectures of their ancestors according to the
faith. Perhaps they had them from the Fatimites of
Northern Africa, among whose local predecessors it
has been seen that it is just possible the
doctrine of the four elements and their mutual
convertibility may have arisen. Perhaps they drew
them from Greece, modifying and adapting them to
their own specific forms of matter, mercury,
sulphur and arsenic.
Astrology.—Astrology was also employed by the
oracles of Spain. Albatgni was celebrated for his
astronomical science, as were many others ; and in
geometry, arithmetic, algebraical calculations and
the theory of music, we have a long list, Asiatic
and Spanish, but only known by their lives and
principal writings. The works of Ptolemy also
exercised the ingenuity of the Arabians; while
Alchindi, as far as we may be allowed to judge
from his multifarious volumes, traversed the whole
circle of the sublimer sciences. But judicial
astrology, or the art of foretelling future events
from the position and influences of the stars, was
with them a favorite pursuit; and many of their
philosophers, incited by various motives,
dedicated all their labors to this futile but
lucrative inquiry. They often speak with high
commendation of the astro-mathematical
discipline, which could control the disorders to %which
man was subject, and regulate the events of life.
The tenets of Islamism, which inculcate an
unreserved submission to the over-ruling destinies
of heaven, are evidently adverse to the lessons of
astrology ; but this by no means hindered the
practitioners of old Spain and Arabia from
attaining a high standard of perfection in the
art, which they perhaps first learned from the
peoples of Chaldaa, the past masters of the
ancient world in astronomical science, in
divination, and the secrets of prophecy. But in
Arab Spain, where the tenets of Islam, were per-
Archangel: Highest, supreme angel. From the two Greek words, arch, "first," and angelos, "messenger."
Archetypes: An archetype is a generic, idealized model of a person, object or concept from which similar instances are derived, copied, patterned or emulated.
Area 51: a remote tract of land in southern Nevada, owned by the federal government of the United States, containing an airfield apparently used for the secret development and testing of new military aircraft. It is famed as the subject of many UFO conspiracy theories, spawning numerous films, books, computer games, and occasional media attention.
Ariel: A spirit.
