Other Methods of Psychic Protection

With all psychic and spiritual exercises, if you do what feels right for you, it is more likely to work for you. By our choices, we come to know who we really are. If you have a sudden flash of inspiration, go with it! Be creative and pay attention to what you feel comfortable and safe with. These are additional methods of psychic protection.  

Surrounding yourself in a gold light will provide very high protection as gold is the highest healing colour.  

If you resonate with Angelic energies, you may want to call upon the four Archangels for additional protection. Ask Archangel Michael, Gabriel, Raphiel and Uriel to surround you on all sides and wrap their wings around you protectively. You may find if you do this regularly that they change their positions around you each time, depending on what you are doing and which angel is most suited to assist you in the task that you are doing at the time. You can also call on an additional 2 angels, such as Jophiel and Zadkiel, to protect you above and below (or even a whole host of angels if it helps) Even if you perceive that an Angel isn’t traditionally called upon for protection, but you feel inclined to ask, again go for it –  they are not confined to the traditional roles which they have come to be known by and may be moon-lighting on your behalf.

Especially effective for protection against negativity from other people, such as those who you allow to drain you (the so-called ‘psychic vampires’) is the solar plexus cross which can be drawn over the upper stomach area.     Particularly empowering is the gold solar plexus cross in this area as the colour will also work on healing the solar plexus and our own empowerment, control issues and emotional boundaries. Psychic vampires can only drain us if we let them; it’s a two way process.

If you are attuned to Kundalini Reiki or Ethereal Crystal’s, you may wish to surround yourself in a bubble of diamond reiki or a huge ethereal diamond. An attunement to Gold Reiki can also help you to deal with your own negativity. Crystals such as black tourmaline, tourmalinated quartz, diamond, black obsidian, amethyst, chlorite, rutilated quartz, ruby and aqua aura can all provide protection from psychic attack, especially when they are programmed for this specific use.  A small tumblestone can be bought which can be placed in your pocket, a crystal bracelet, or a pendant containing it worn around the neck.

Traditional protective symbols, such as the cross or the pentagram can be worn as a necklace. Prayers and chanting can provide immediate protection and the Lord’s Prayer is something many of us might automatically associate with providing protection for us. Chanting words such as ”Kadosh Kadosh Kadosh Adonai Sabaoth‘ and those of the Silver Violet Flame mantra can be effective for diverting your mental focus from negativity.

If you suspect psychic attack, i.e. bad vibes coming from another person, you can also surround yourself with mirrors to deflect the energy back to where it has come from. You may also want to visualise yourself in a lead bubble, or visualise a lead shield.  Be aware that you are also responsible for the way that you perceive things and on some level, depending on your beliefs, you may have invited this experience with the other person, into your life, to enable you to learn something. By taking responsibility for the part that we play within each experience, we can begin to take back our own control over situations and learn to begin to master our own emotional reactions, such as anger and bitterness, which may well be felt by the other person on some level.

Protection isn’t always about complete prevention and sitting back and doing nothing, there is an active component to it too.  I am often reminded about acting in the moment upon the fleeting thoughts such as ‘back up my files on the pc’ or ‘don’t go down that road’ or ‘lock the back door right now’, and by taking action on our intuition, on those fleeting thoughts, we can potentially save ourselves so much time, or heartache, at a later date. 

Emma Sims © 2007

Freemasonry: The Witchcraft Connection

by William J. Schnoebelen

[William Schnoebelen was deeply involved in both Witchcraft as a Wiccan high priest and the Masonic order for many years. He was a Mason for nine years and a Witch for sixteen years. In the Lodge, he held offices of Junior Warden in the Blue Lodge, Prelate in the Commandery of the York Rite, Master of the Veil in the Royal Arch degree, and Associate Patron in the Order of the Eastern Star. Additionally, he was a 32° Mason and a Shriner. He is now a Born Again Christian and the author of 5 books, including Masonry: Beyond the Light.]

For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry…—1Samuel 15:23

In understanding the spiritual difficulties of a Born Again Christian being a Mason, it is necessary to realize that there are highly occult elements woven into the very warp and woof of Freemasonry. Thus, the Lodge is not just “another religion” like the Muslims or the Buddhists—although that alone should be enough to keep Christians from involving themselves in it. The nature and character of the Lodge’s deepest theological underpinnings are rooted in Witchcraft and Paganism.

Now that may be an astonishing assertion to some, especially to most Masons. However, it is very easily proven. Few people, within the Craft of Masonry or otherwise, perceive that just because a Bible lies open on the altar and Bible verses and characters play an important part in the ritual of the Lodge, that this does not prevent the Lodge from being of the nature of the occult or Witchcraft.

This can be illustrated by a very simple illustration. Back in the 1970′s, when I first became a Witch, a very popular how-to book on magic was Raymond Buckland’s Popular Candle-Burning.1 In this book were “recipes” for spells for everything from healing, to love spells, to protection spells. On one set of pages of the book would be a spell for healing, complete with instructions on the burning and movement of certain colored candles. The spell would be a full-blown Witchcraft ritual, Pagan to the core!

On the following pages would be the same ritual, with the same candles, the same instructions. However, the text of the “spell” would be drawn from the Psalms or other Bible verses. These were provided for readers who were a little too squeamish to actually do a Witchcraft incantation, but still wanted results.

Now the question becomes: Even though those rituals were full of Psalms, were they still Witchcraft? Of course, the answer would have to be yes. In like manner, even though Bible phrases and characters abound in the Masonic ritual work, the presence of those elements cannot somehow “sanctify” what is essentially a Pagan ritual full of Witchcraft overtones.

Defining Terms:

Perhaps it would be helpful to have a few terms defined before we go further. Witchcraft (or Wicca,2 the term for “white” or good Witchcraft) can be broadly defined as a mystery religion based on the ancient fertility cults of Pre-Christian Europe. Many Witches are polytheists—meaning that they believe in more than one god or goddess. Some are monotheists, believing in only one deity. Even most polytheistic Witches today, however, acknowledge that ultimately there is one supreme deity somewhere. The popular saying by 20th century master occultist Dion Fortune (Violet Firth) speaks to this: “All Gods are one God, all Goddesses are one Goddess, and there is but one Initiator.” Pressed, you will find that most knowledgeable Witches will reveal that the “one Initiator” is Lucifer, who is the Light-Bringer, the Illuminator, and the sun-deity. He is not felt to be a devil-figure by Wiccans, but only the consort of the Great Mother Goddess.

Witchcraft, in its religious sense, involves the veneration of the forces of reproduction—both in plant, animal and human life. Thus, human and animal sexuality are revered, the cycle of the seasons celebrated; and rituals do frequently involve the use of ritual tools which symbolize the human reproductive organs (wands, daggers, goblets, cauldrons, etc.) Many Witchcraft groups even have ritual sex, believing that this is an important way to encounter the gods.

The term, “mystery religion” means that it is a religion in which elements are kept hidden from the “profane” (non-members). You can only learn these elements by going through a formal initiation in which you are ceremonially set apart from the masses and sworn formally to secrecy. Only then are you entrusted with the group’s secrets, and then in degrees. In other words, there are things a “third grade” or “third degree” Witch is allowed to know that a first degree Witch is not.

A secondary element in Witchcraft is the belief in magic. However, it is only secondary—contrary to popular belief. A good—though broad—definition of magic which many Witches would accept is that given by magician (and 33° Mason) Aleister Crowley: “the art and science of causing change to occur in conformity with [your] will.” Though this definition is broad enough to include things normally not thought of as magic, like picking up a pencil (you caused a change in the pencil’s position to occur in conformity with your will); most Witches understand it to mainly apply to causing change to occur without a visible, tangible cause in the environment.

Many Witches do not attempt to “work magic” (in the sense of trying to cause change to occur in the forces of nature or human beings) but just enjoy worshipping their gods or goddesses. Thus it is not an absolute requirement that Witch practice magic, or that a magician be a Witch. In fact, the above-mentioned Aleister Crowley would never have called himself a Witch (or warlock).3

Finally, we need to define Paganism. This is basically a belief in the forces of nature as being sacred. Pagans are usually pantheists, in that they belief that a kind of god-force is in everything—trees, animals, rocks, etc. Essentially, a Pagan believes most everything the Witch believes, but is kind of a lay person, whereas a Witch is more of a Priestess or Shaman. The typical Pagan may not have access to some of the deeper “mysteries” of Witchcraft which are not available to the un-initiated.

Getting down to business: ritual resemblances

With these definitions in mind, we can begin to examine the similarities between the Masonic theology and ritual and the workings of a Witchcraft group. One point, however, must be clarified. Modern Wicca is just that—modern. Although it claims mythic descent to groups back in the Stone Age, it is actually a comparatively modern religion. As it is currently constituted, Wicca is barely a century old. This is not to say that it doesn’t draw on elements from the ancient mystery cults. To be certain, it does—to a high degree. However, it is a difficult task to ascertain whether contemporary Wicca so strongly resembles Freemasonry because two of its principle architects (Aleister Crowley and Gerald B. Gardner) were Masons; or whether that similarity is a derivation of more ancient practices.

As interesting an academic point as that might be, it is essentially irrelevant to the broader question. If Masonic rituals were engrafted into Witchcraft in the late 19th and early 20th century, and if that melding was so seamless and effortless—even to the point that in some cases, the Wiccan rites were less bizarre and blasphemous than there Masonic counterpart, then what message does that send about Masonry? As a preacher friend of mine, Jim Spencer, observed, “If the devil can preach my sermons without changing them much, what does that say about my sermons?”

With that point in mind, let us look first at the ritual similarities between contemporary Wicca and Freemasonry:

A) Both are built on a foundational system of three degrees; with a few forms of Wicca offering some higher degrees after the third degree has been achieved.

B) Both are secret societies; in that both membership rolls are secret, and secrets are kept from the general populace (to a greater or lesser degree) by both religions. Both generally meet in secret, except for rare open and public events.

C) Both have highly ceremonial initiations to pass from one degree to another, including sworn oaths.

D) Both have ceremonial purgings and purifications of their ritual space before commencing any ritual work.

E) The precise similarities between the two groups are: Both groups…

1. Cause candidates to strip off all secular clothing

2. Cause the candidate to be divested of all metal

3. Hoodwink (blindfold) the candidate and ceremonially tie ropes around him—though the form of the tying varies.

4. Cause the candidate to stand in the Northeast corner of the “temple”4 in the first degree

5. Challenge the candidate by piercing their naked chest with a sharp instrument (Witches use a sword, Masons, the point of a compass)

6. Challenge the candidate with secret passwords

7. Lead the candidate blindfolded in a circumambulation (walking around) of the temple.

8. Require the candidate to swear solemn oaths of secrecy before being given custody of the secrets of the group.

Interestingly enough, the oaths of a Witch are much milder and less gruesome than the oaths of a Freemason. Here is the text of a first grade oath from the Witchcraft Book of Shadows (ritual work-book):

I, [NAME], in the presence of the Mighty Ones, do of my own free will and accord, most solemnly swear that I will ever keep the secrets of the Arte [Magical Arts—author] and never reveal the secrets of the Arte, except it be to a proper person, properly prepared and within a magic circle such as I am now in.

All this I swear, by all my hopes of a future life, mindful that my measure has been taken; and may my weapons turn against me, if I should break this, my solemn oath.5

This sounds ridiculously mild in comparison to the 1° oath of an Entered Apprentice Mason, which is too long to quote in its entirety, but which ends like this:

All this I most solemnly and sincerely promise and swear, with a firm and steadfast resolution to keep and perform the same…binding myself under no less penalty than that of having my throat cut across, my tongue torn out by its roots, and my body buried in the rough sands of the sea, at low water mark, where the tide ebbs and flows twice in twenty-four hours, should I ever knowingly violate this my Entered Apprentice obligation, so help me God and keep me steadfast in the due performance of the same.6

As all students of Freemasonry know, that grisly oath is but the beginning in a series of ever more horrid oaths which the candidate is required to take. The oaths of the three degrees of Witchcraft are like a Sunday School lesson by comparison! But, let’s return to our list of similarities:

9. Both have a ceremonial un-hoodwinking of the candidate, following the oath, before lighted candles which is intended to bring “illumination.”

10. Both convey to the new initiate the “working tools” pertinent to that degree, and each of their uses are taught to them.

11. In both, the tools have correspondences both in the ceremonial realm, and in similarities to human reproduction.

12. Both, in the higher degrees, take the initiate through a ritual death-and-rebirth experience, in which the initiate acts the part of a hero (heroine) of the Craft.

13. Both cause the candidate to endure (while being blindfolded) being picked up, spun around, carried around, being jostled or struck from person to person. This is supposed to produce an “altered state of consciousness.”

14. Both Wicca and Freemasonry are, by co-incidence or design, both referred to as “The Craft.”

philosophical similarities

Having given almost two dozen precise similarities between the ritual work of Witchcraft and the Lodge, it should not surprise us to see that there is also some doctrinal or philosophical resemblance between the two:

A. Both Witches and Masons revere the powers of human reproduction (albeit most Masons do so unknowingly). The most obvious example of this is the use of the ceremonial Masonic apron, which covers the “Holy of Holies” of Freemasonry, the male groin area. This fact has been adequately documented in many places (elsewhere in this volume?).7

B. The authorities of Freemasonry, most notably Albert Pike, 33° and Manly P. Hall, 33° (both occultists par excellance) write that the essential, underlying philosophy of Freemasonry is Kabbalism and Gnosticism.8 Kabbalism is a system of Jewish mysticism and magic and is the foundational element in modern Witchcraft.

Virtually all of the great Witches and sorcerers of this century were Kabbalists. Gnosticism is an ancient, anti-Christian heresy best summarized by the statement: “One is saved by acquiring secret, unknown knowledge (Greek: gnosis).” Thus, all mystery religions, including Witchcraft and Masonry are, per force, Gnostic in character.

C. Both Witches and Freemasons seek salvation through “illumination” or receiving “The Light.” This is, in a way, a corollary to (B), but it is important, because of the centrality of this symbolism in both sects.

D. Both groups teach a kind of salvation by works, not grace.9 The occult doctrine of reincarnation is explicitly taught in Witchcraft and implicitly taught in the Lodge.

E. Finally, both groups deny the unique character and mission of the Lord Jesus Christ.10 Both deny the resurrection of Christ.11 Most people would have no trouble believing that Witches deny these beliefs, but in this, the Wicca are identical to the theology of the Lodge.

Getting to the root

There are also significant historical antecedents which go a long way towards explaining this current “coziness” between Witchcraft and Masonry. It can be readily shown that Freemasonry is rooted in the medieval occult societies of Europe, such as the Templars and the Rosicrucians.12

Indeed, many Masonic writers boast about these connections. Additional associations pop up with the dangerously subversive Illuminati Ordnen of Adam Weishaupt in the 18th century.13

It is vital to understand that this past interchange between Masonry and these various occult groups did not stop in the 18th century. If anything, it has grown more prominent in the past century. There is something about the Lodge that has always attracted sorcerers. The historical list of occultists and Witches in the last century who were Freemasons reads like a Who’s Who of 20th century occultism:

•Arthur Edward Waite—occult writer and Masonic historian

•Dr. Wynn Westcott—member of the Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia and founding member of the occult Order of the Golden Dawn—the most influential magical society of the 19th – early 20th century.

•S. L. MacGregor Mathers—co-founder of the Golden Dawn.

•Aleister Crowley—master Satanist of this century and founder of the anti-christ religion of Thelema—claimed to be “The Great Beast 666″.

•Dr. Gerard Encaussé—(Papus) masterful author, teacher of the Tarot and leader of the occult Martiniste society.

•Dr. Theodore Reuss—head of the O.T.O., a German occult/satanic society which made Crowley its head for the British Isles.

•George Pickingill—the Grand Master Witch of 19th century England, leader of the “Pickingill covens.”

•Annie Besant—leader of the occult Theosophical society and Co-Masonic hierarch (Yes, there are female Masons!)14

•Alice Bailey—founder of the proto-New Age organization, Lucis (formerly Lucifer) Trust.

•Bishop Charles W. Leadbetter—Theosophist, mentor to the failed New Age “Christ”, Krishnamurti, and prelate in the occult Liberal Catholic Church

•Manly P. Hall—Rosicrucian adept, author, founder of the Philosophical Research Society.

•Gerald B. Gardner—founder of the modern Wiccan (white Witchcraft) revival.

•Alex Sanders—self-styled “King of the Witches” in London and one of the most influential leaders of Wicca after Gardner.

Would you really wish to belong to an organization which welcomed these powerful sorcerers into its midst with open arms? This is not to mention the many minor occultists (as I was), who are in the lodge—drawn by its mysterious power. At least three or four of my male Witch friends were in the Masons, and all of my leaders were! There is a real reason for this strong affinity between Masonry and Witchcraft. It is because the Lodge is plugged into an international network of Witchcraft—a hierarchy of evil.

The “All-Seeing Eye” of the Masons is, of course, an occult symbol.15 Its use on the Great Seal of the United States is not without significance either (see the back of any dollar bill). You will note that the “Eye” is there perched atop an incomplete pyramid with the date (in Roman numerals) of 1776 A.D. at the bottom.

The year 1776 is also the year that Adam Weishaupt founded the Illuminati! Then realize that the trapezoid (what the unfinished pyramid really is) is a most significant symbol in Satanism.16 The symbol on that seal is actually a metaphor for the oppressive hierarchy which reigns over the Masonic lodge, and by extension, over much of U.S. government; and the “Eye” symbolizes Lucifer’s dominion over it.

Being a Mason (of whatever degree) is like going through your life with all that spiritual garbage weighing down on you. It is like having a King Kong-sized monkey on your back! While all levels of Masonry have their share of Witches; the Palladium, the Illuminati, the Ancient rites and the Supreme Council are especially likely to have them, in one form or another.

The Mason is “unequally yoked” together with all these unbelievers and Witches in rebellion to the word of God (2 Corinthians 6:14-18) and that alone is enough to knock the spiritual stuffing out of any man, even supposedly “good, solid Christians”!

You see, in an occult sense, Freemasonry is much like the fabled “pyramid scheme.” It is a hierarchy in which the highest levels leech off the lower levels. Just as in the marketing schemes, the person at the top of the pyramid draws in most of the revenues because of the efforts of hundreds or thousands of people under him, so the same element works within the lodge, even as it does—to a much smaller degree—in a Witchcraft coven!

First of all, it is a financial pyramid. We have already mentioned that a Mason must spend hundreds of dollars, perhaps close to a thousand, to go through the degrees. Additionally, they must pay dues every year to each and every body they have joined. This could amount, depending on the level of involvement, to several hundred dollars a year.

While some of that money goes into necessities, and some of it goes into charity, some of it also ends up in places of which Lodge members have no knowledge. Of course, our local leaders were obviously not getting rich, but there was a lot of free-floating cash somewhere up in the ranks.

“Psychic Vampires” IN THE LEADERSHIP?

In the occult, we used to talk about psychic vampires—people who just seemed to suck the life out of a person. Of course, black magicians excel in this. They leave people feeling drained. What most people don’t realize is that an organization can function in much the same way.

The Lodge functions like a spiritual sponge in many ways. Think of all the millions of man hours Masons put into their lodge work: memorizing the degree material, attendance at meetings, extracurricular lodge activities (dinners, banquets, funerals, picnics). Those Masons who are Christians pour hours of time and energy into the lodge, and it just laps it up and begs for more.

I know, I used to be heavily involved in lodge work. I was out of the house at least two week nights! Then, because I was a lodge officer, I had to spend additional hours working on memorizing the ritual work. I had to be there before the lodge opened and after it closed. I had to attend all lodge functions and funerals.

Think of the lodge meeting itself—it is opened in solemn fashion, with a ritual which may take fifteen to twenty minutes. If there is an initiation, the meeting can run to hours, sometimes three or four hours for third degree. All that energy is going somewhere, friends, and it isn’t to God!

I can only speak from Witchcraft experience, but quite often our leaders would just suck the energy right out of us. They were accomplished psychic vampires, whether they realized it or not. Someone, somewhere, is getting an awful lot of energy out of these thousands of lodge meetings. Ultimately, of course, it is Lucifer, who is delighted to receive it as worship!

This is energy not being expended in Godly church activities. These men could be teaching Bible studies, running youth groups, visiting the sick or doing neighborhood witnessing. But no, they are sitting in a lodge room watching ancient and dusty mummery being performed while the light of the Holy Spirit within them flickers out.

Over and over, we see vital Christians who join the lodge, don’t see the trap, and then gradually it sucks all the life out of their walk with Jesus. It banks their fires of zeal and turns them, ultimately, into dead backsliders. Some stop going to church. Now this may not happen to all Christian Masons, but if it hasn’t, it is only because of God’s mercy. The Holy Spirit will not continue to bless a man who continually sups at the devil’s table. (1 Corinthians 10:21, Genesis 6:3) Sooner or later, something will give. Sadly, it is often the church activity.

The Image of Jealousy!

The Masonic temple is a temple of Witchcraft! There can be little doubt about that. Veiled within its symbols are the deities and even the working tools of Witchcraft! As has been shown, the square and compasses are representations of the generative organs—the “sacred altar” of Witchcraft! The blazing star at the center of the lodge is the Witch’s pentagram, symbol of the god of Satanism, Set! The Letter “G” stands for generativity, sexual potency.

The resemblances between Freemasonry and Witchcraft are manifold and striking and should chill the bones of any Mason. If Freemasonry is so Godly, how could it possibly be interchanged by both Witches and Satanists so freely?

Beyond that, the point needs to be made that virtually all of the above mentioned resemblances are part of the ancient practices of pagan antiquity as well. Witches 2,000 years ago were doing the same things that Masons are doing today. Masonic writers boast of this (although they don’t use the word “Witch,” they talk about “mystery religions,” but it is the same thing).

Let’s face it, the Masonic tie tacks and rings which so many Masons wear proudly to their churches on Sunday are sexual idols. The true God of the Bible is not a sex organ! That may seem a ridiculously obvious statement to make, but the Mason needs to be reminded of it. This is the very “image of jealousy, which provoketh to jealousy” (Ezekiel 8:3).

The gods of all the pagan nations around Israel like Ba’al were all sexual idols! This is precisely what God does not want in His church, and yet all these Masons are flaunting both their idols and their membership.

It is a testimony to the graciousness and loving-kindness of Father God that these churches are not flattened by the breath of His nostrils—that they are not “vomited out” of His mouth (Revelation 3:16). However, both they and their individual members may well be paying a horrible price for their continued winking at the sin of Freemasonry in their camp!

Endnotes:

1 Llewellyn Publications, St. Paul, MN. 1972.

2 For a complete examination of this religion from a Christian perspective, see WICCA: SATAN’S LITTLE WHITE LIE, by the author, Chick Publications, Chino, CA. 1990.

3 Contrary to popular belief, most male witches do not wish to be called warlocks. The term actually is a derivation of an old English word, meaning “traitor.” Today, the word warlock is mostly used by male Satanist witches in application to themselves. Few Wiccans would wish to use the term.

4 In Witchcraft, the “temple” is frequently not a building, but rather a sacred “Magic Circle” laid down on the floor of a room with great ceremony. It is the sacred space of the Wicca, and serves the same function as a temple does to the Mason.

5 Taken from a private copy of the Book of Shadows in the author’s possession. Copies of this oath, however, can be found in Stewart Farrar’s WHAT WITCHES DO, THE GRIMOIRE OF LADY SHEBA, and June Johns’ KING OF THE WITCHES, as well as other writings.

6 Malcolm C. Duncan, DUNCAN’S RITUAL MONITOR, David McKay Co., Inc., New York, n.d., p.34-35.

7 Schnoebelen, MASONRY: BEYOND THE LIGHT, Chick, Chino, CA. 1991, p.146, 155-160, 214-215.

8 See Albert Pike, MORALS AND DOGMA, p.839, 22, 744-45, etc.; Manly P. Hall, THE LOST KEYS OF FREEMASONRY, p. 48.

9 Duncan, op. cit., p.129, and TENNESSEE CRAFTSMEN OR MASONIC TEXTBOOK, Grand Lodge of Tennessee, 1983, p. 17.

10 R. S. Clymer, THE MYSTICISM OF MASONRY, 1900, p. 47; J.D. Buck, SYMBOLISM OR MYSTIC MASONRY, 1925, p. 57.

11 Pike, p.539, and Henry C. Clausen, PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE FOR THE SCOTTISH RITE, Supreme Council, 33°, Washington, DC, 1981, pp. 75-77.

12 Schnoebelen, MASONRY, pp.161-178.

13 ibid., p.179-190.

14 The author and his wife were members of a Co-Masonic Lodge. These are more openly occult and are under the rite of L’Droit Humaine (Human Rights Lodge). They admit men and women as equals. Co-Masonry is affiliated with the Theosophical Society and today finds its headquarters in Larkspur, CO.

15 William Schnoebelen & James R. Spencer, WHITED SEPULCHERS, Triple J Publications, Boise, ID, 1990, p.20

16 ibid., p. 44-50, citing material found in master Satanist Anton LaVey’s newsletter, “The Cloven Hoof”, vol. VIII, #6.

http://www.jesus-is-lord.com/masonry.htm

Each of us has encountered Soul Vampires.  They are those folks who leave you emotionally drained.  They leave your presence, you have a headache.  They leave and you are emotionally exhausted.  They leave and you feel depressed.  They are sucking your energy and feeding off your positive vibes.  Those are all indicators of a soul vampire.  We have soul vampires in our families, in our workplace, and among our friends.  Two out of three are pretty difficult to manage or control.  However you can work towards minimizing your contact with any soul vampire who wanders into your energy field. 

Use this as a tool to determine the effect a person has on you. Imagine a thermometer that shows a scale of 1 to 10.  It is important for you to understand your personal Emotional IQ.  5 is average for how you typically feel. 

1 =   I’m seriously depressed, sad, down;

5 =   I’m average, content with life and just coasting;

10 = I’m joyful, exuberant.

I truly believe that most mild to moderate depression occurs because our emotional well has run dry.  We have let too many soul vampires in.  We need to retreat and find out why we gave away our emotional power without filling up our well.  I believe the depression of sleeping helps us to do that.  It slows down the outside stimulation.  It has the effect of making us cocoon until our emotional well is refilled. 

If you are depressed or feel down after someone leaves your energy field, ask yourself the following:

1.  is there a physical reason for my having low energy?

If so, then start eating and exercising properly.  Perhaps it’s sleep you need!

2.  Is there an emotional reason for my having low energy and feeling down? If so, then deal with the issue rather than running away from it.

3.  Is there a spiritual reason for my having low energy and feeling depressed?  If so, have a chat with God and work on faith, self respect, hope and love.

4.  Is there an intellectual reason for my having low energy and feeling depressed?  If so, determine why you are choosing not to challenge yourself to learn something new or to surround yourself with smart friends.

Empower yourself!  Promise yourself that you will minimize your contact with soul vampires on your spiritual journey!

Life isn’t about how to survive the storm,

but how to dance in the rain!

I love my journey into myself.  Do you love your journey?  If not, then do the work to empower yourself!  If you found this helpful, then visit my website www.moonwomenspirituality.com.  If your want information on how the daily Moon and Sun energy emotionally affects you, your love and your relationships, visit my astrology blog at www.astromoon.wordpress.com

I had a craving for popcorn today, so I went to Aldi and got a massive bag and some other essentials I needed, when I got back, I opened the communal door and the lock fell off, so I’ve had to secure it with a spoon. Anyway I found out the emergency number for the council, yet another 0845 number, and more quids added to my T-Mobile bill, but anyway I told them the problem, they phoned me back a couple of minutes later to say because I was an ex-tenant they couldn’t take my query and another tenant on our block would have to ring up. I wasn’t taking that, I kindly informed her that I pay my service charges and I have a right to report the fault. She said she’d phone me back and she did and said that Locksmiths don’t do emergency repairs at the weekend, charming eh! Fancy being told that though, just because I am a leaseholder I can’t report a fault, where do they get their information from? If I didn’t have a right, then I certainly wouldn’t pay my service charges, what would be the point?

I wish they’d bring some decent comedy back onto TV, I miss Only Fools and Horses, Bo Selecta, Phoenix Nights, Bottom, Max and Paddy, but I have half of them on DVD anyway lol so might wack some on later to make me smile.

I had a craving for popcorn today, so I went to Aldi and got a massive bag and some other essentials I needed, when I got back, I opened the communal door and the lock fell off, so I’ve had to secure it with a spoon. Anyway I found out the emergency number for the council, yet another 0845 number, and more quids added to my T-Mobile bill, but anyway I told them the problem, they phoned me back a couple of minutes later to say because I was an ex-tenant they couldn’t take my query and another tenant on our block would have to ring up. I wasn’t taking that, I kindly informed her that I pay my service charges and I have a right to report the fault. She said she’d phone me back and she did and said that Locksmiths don’t do emergency repairs at the weekend, charming eh! Fancy being told that though, just because I am a leaseholder I can’t report a fault, where do they get their information from? If I didn’t have a right, then I certainly wouldn’t pay my service charges, what would be the point?

I wish they’d bring some decent comedy back onto TV, I miss Only Fools and Horses, Bo Selecta, Phoenix Nights, Bottom, Max and Paddy, but I have half of them on DVD anyway lol so might wack some on later to make me smile.

Did you know that we all have psychic abilities?  It’s true.  Every one of us is psychic.  Only a few of us, however, have bothered to tap into and  develop those abilities.  All Pagans are psychic.   Some of them can remember being psychic as children, while others realized their psychic powers soon after embarking on their personal spiritual journey.

Being in touch with your psychic abilities isn’t only a wonderful way to impress your friends, it’s also a great way to gain respect in the eyes of your Pagan peers.  Many of them will be much more powerful than you, however, so be prepared for people to look down their noses at you and call your powers “cute”.   Don’t be afraid to embellish your accomplishments slightly, but only slightly.  They can read your mind, you know…

Being psychic has some disadvantages.  For one thing, a lot of psychics were tortured and murdered during The Burning Times, or so many people believe.   Also, there is a chance that some of your friends will be jealous and start to resent your gift(not that you would use it to show off, of course!). But, most important is the chance that one day you will come under PSYCHIC ATTACK.   The very name strikes terror into your heart, doesn’t it?   Attack in a form that you cannot see or hear, attack that can happen at any time.

A psychic attack is defined as the manipulation of supernatural energies and forces. These energies are sent from one individual to another, creating disturbances in the energy fields and physical body of the person who is being attacked.  This energy is sometimes called a spirit, demon, entity, or negative thought form.

Psychic attack is often the mark of a new Pagan.  Many new Pagans are constantly under psychic attack, especially by people with whom they are arguing.  During the attack, the victim is usually able to catch a glimpse into the mind of the attack and see just how evil s/he really is.  This is especially helpful if said person has a higher position or is more important in the coven than you. It is also a really great way to get attention, and some people seem to relish the idea of being under psychic attack.  In fact, it’s all they can talk about.

Some Pagans, however, are on the other side of the fence.  They firmly believe  that they are capable of summoning entities and  sending them out to psychically attack (or counter-attack) their enemies.  It is amazing how many people have the ability to send out demons or animals or some other entity to their enemies.

The internet is full of websites made by people who claim to have summoned demons and sent them forth to attack those who pissed them off. Aleister Crowley was one who claimed to send demons and the like to attack enemies.  He was later believe to be full of shit.

So, if you experience what you believe to be more than your fair share of flat tires, broken heels, snagged stockings, or if you lose your keys or the cleaners can’t get the Frappuccino stain out of your jacket, are you under psychic attack?   No.  If your house burns down, your spouse leaves you, someone steals your identity,  and your cat develops chronic diarrhea, are you under psychic attack?  Well, maybe if all that shit happens to you…but probably not.   But chances are you aren’t.  Even if people can send enough negative, hateful energy to someone to actually effect them, most people don’t have that kind of time or motivation.

So if you are extremely desperate for attention, you can chalk things up to psychic attack.  Just be sure you accuse the right person.  Also, if you  you still insist that you are under psychic attack, I suggest you find some information on shielding, unless of course you’re the aforementioned person.   The internet is full of websites that contain information on shielding.  Just remember that the internet is also full of people who want to sell you crystals, charms, candles, oils and various other bits and pieces, not because they want to help you, but because they need to make money, but that’s another entry.  Whatever you find, your belief in it is what is going to make it succeed or fail.

I mean how much of a coincidence can it be that I’d meet Gus (names changed to protect the guilty) Gus is someone I really like. He’s smart and funny and he wears berets. How cool is that?

Well, one day Gus and I get to talking and it turns out that Gus and I were raised in the same damn obscure little religious sect. The fundamentalist fundamentalists. Not only that but out of the blue one lovely spring day Gus tells me of his own abusive home life.
WTF, do I have “confess your worst possible horror story here” written on my forehead? I have never indicated I came from such a background. I am known as Ms Sunshine around here to most people. A happy person. I am very careful about who I tell what. I do not want to become a one woman support group because in the past, that is the way my life has gone.

I made up my mind when I moved here that I was not going to let that happen. I was not going to invite unhealthy people into my inner circle. That’s why I avoid most of the women here. They aren’t healthy. They have too many problems they aren’t dealing with. They are Psychic vampires. I’m very careful about who I spend time with.

And here Gus was pouring his heart out to me about his ISSUES. I listened because I thought men were different. They told you what the deal was and then they got on with other things. But nooooo, that’s all Gus wanted to talk about, the church and the abuse. Eventually I did share because I finally told him I thought he needed professional help. He declined and continued to use me as his sounding board. Then I got firm. I told him I was not a therapist and I didn’t want to be. I thought he was going to cry that night.

Larry said that men told women their issues because that was a way to get close to them. Sort of here is my weakest most vulnerable self, now you will feel sorry for me and hug me and then fuck me. UGH… To that kind of come on I say “I am not a therapist and I don’t want to be even if you think I would be a good one and solve all your problems and give you great sex in the bargain.”

He didn’t talk to me for a long time. Fine with me. He’s a Psychic Vampire. Then he started talking to me again. Saying hello at least. Then one day we had a conversation that lasted awhile. Gus is lonely. It got around to the church. I can joke about the church. I think they are funny.

Gus said “You know what gripes me about you? You aren’t bitter enough. You don’t hold a grudge against the church and I don’t understand that. You are too damn happy with your Earth Mother persona. Why are you happy?”

I told him I chose to be. I told him I fought for my happiness and it was hard won through therapy. I told him I thought he was depressed and medication might help. I offered to give him the name of an agency. Once again he spurned that advice.

This was after I swerved away from talking about the abuse. Mine and his. My question is how do I tell a man who has been so damaged by people who were jsut as warped by religion as my mother was that I will not be his personal therapist without being a bitch and feeling guilty. Harry said to do it just like I did it last time and refuse to feel guilty. Right.

I’m fine all the way up to guilt. I was programmed to feel guilty about almost everything.

This week someone told me not to worry about the gossip that I was a nice person and it didn’t matter what the gossips said about me. What gossip? What the hell have I done now that everyone is buzzing about? I don’t have a clue but instant guilt. Add water and I will obsess and be a basket case.

Of course I will behave as if I don’t give a damn because if I sit and analyze everything, rationally, I don’t give a damn and I am not going to let emotions that were drilled into me by crazy people rule my life. Furthermore I am not going to let the Gossip Mavens in this place decide how I am going to live my life.  I told the person who was trying to start this trouble (why else say this shit to me) that I did not worry about the gossip in this crazy building because the way I look at it the people who are gossipping don’t have a life except for the gossip and I do so I am doing them a service by giving them something to gossip about.

I am a rational person. I take pride in operating from my rational mind rather than getting hooked into my emotional childhood and staying there.  That just leads to getting emotional in the here and now about things I can’t do anything about.  If only those hooks could be surgically removed.  But they can’t so I will always wonder what in hell the Gossip Mavens were gossiping about (IF they were and the person who wanted to gossip about the Gossip Mavesn wasn’t full of it and just trying to start trouble) but mostly I ain’t going to let it stop me from being me.  right?  right.
I hope Gus doesn’t try to dump on me anytime soon. I am going to have to practice saying I am not a therapist and I don’t want to be in my head every time I see him until I don’t feel guilty. And to say it sweetly with a loving smile so I don’t have any worries about coming off as a bitch. Oh yeah, and have Harry’s card ready. <heh>

B

This may or may not have been linked to the fact that I had ended up on the psych ward and was being treated for depression in 1978 and had partially confessed the family dirty linen to “The Pink Shrink” (everyone who is anyone will remember HER. She always wore pink and she was our circuit rider counselor affectionately referred to as the pink shrink. I wonder if she knew that?) I think it was.

She really upped the ante after I had moved to Wisconsin and been living there for a couple of years and started digging around in my psyche with a little more enthusiasm and with more experienced therapists in the early 80s. Plus I had written a term paper about incest that I had given her to read that talked about the complicity of the mothers. Every time I went to Nebraska to visit we spent most of our alone time talking about how miserably my father had treated her and abused me and how Iola was to blame for the fact that my Mother did not respond appropriately when I disclosed the incest.

All the misery in the world was Bill and Iola’s fault. oh sigh… what can we do? woe and sorrow…

I finally told her I did not want to play that game anymore. She said it wasn’t a game. I said whatever, I didn’t want to do it anymore, that I had worked through my shit with my father and that if she was still needing to work through stuff she needed to go back to therapy. She was miffed and she did try to play the game but I was firm.

So what has that got to do with sparing the rod? Well, in the course of blaming my father for everything my mother told me this anecdote:

I got my first spanking when I was six weeks old. The reason? I would not quit crying in church so my father took me out and bared my little bottom and spanked me.

SIX WEEKS OLD. I weighed 8lbs and 2oz when I was born so probably weighed right around 9 pounds. My father was a big man. 6’2″ probably over 200lbs even then and certainly strong because he lifted weights when he was in the service.

If this wasn’t a testimony to his insanity and the fact that he should have never been left alone with a child again, I do NOT know what was. But did my mother take me and leave? Did she even consider it? No she did not.

She was upset but it never occurred to her that she should protect her child and get the hell out of dodge. In fact, she went on to have three more children with this maniac.

She married a man, a boy really, that her mother disapproved of who came from a family she herself disapproved of who had recently been discharged from the military because of mental health problems. By this time she had no doubt been the victim of his temper herself on more than one occasion. In fact, I’m sure of it. She told me so. And he beat her only child in public when that child was six weeks old.

What kept her from running home to Mama who would have been more than happy to help her and had the means? Want my opinion? Of course you do. PRIDE. Insufferable pride.