The Hermetic Hour

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Gordon White - Star.Ships: A Prehistory of the Spirits May 13, 2016

Show notes

On Thursday May 12th, 2016 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present an interview with British author Gordon White featuring his book "Star.Ships, a Prehistory of the Spirits." Gordon is a journalist, a magician, a scuba diver and a scholar of prehistoric archaeology. He and host Poke Runyon have both explored the lost city of Nan Madol above ground and underwater at different times. In the book Star.Ships Gordon focuses on the accumulating evidence of lost, sunken, and buried ruins from the antediluvian (Ice Age) period such as Gobekli Tepe and others along with genetic evidence of the migrations of early man to develop a remarkable thesis regarding our astrological mythology. He proposes that the spirits of the stars, the zodiac, are antediluvian and that the rise of planetary gods and spirits are post diluvian -- with the end of the Ice Age (15 to 12,000 years ago) being the demarcation point. He will concede some extraterrestrial contact (Temple's Sirius Mystery) but prefers inter dimensional spiritual realms more in line with Jacques Valle and Carl Jung as the source of alien contact. Poke Runyon agrees with Gordon White on almost all of his points and heartily recommends Gordon's book. So if you want meet Gordon and spend an hour with us exploring this fascinating subject, tune in and we'll learn about the prehistory of the Spirits. Special thanks to Frater Isa for arranging this great show.

The Order of 1734 in America (re-broadcast) May 06, 2016

Show notes

The Hermetic Hour will feature a discussion, moderated by host Poke Runyon, on the origins and the establishment of the "1734" Witchcraft tradition in the United States. This was an American version of Roy Bowers' (Robert Cochrane's) "Clan of Tubal Cain" that surfaced in England in the 1960s as a rival to the Gardnerian Craft. Bowers' claimed to belong to a hereditary tradition more indigenous and authentic than Gardner's popular version of "The Craft." While Gardner drew from Margeret Murray's "Witch Cult in Western Europe", Bowers drew from Robert Graves "The White Goddess." Bowers' American correspondent Joseph Wilson received numerous letters from Roy, forming an enigmatic, mystical corpus of material from which the talented Joe Wilson fashioned the American version called "1734" from a cypher included in the manuscripts. Like Johnny Appleseed, Joe Wilson seeded 1734 covens across the nation. Some of these groups still don't know where their Book of Shadows came from. As featured guests we will have Ann and Dave Finnin of the Roebuck, a "Clan of Tubal Cain," who are perhaps the most knowledgeable elders of the tradition. Ann is the author of "The Forge of Tubal Cain." We will cover the strange life and stranger death of Roy Bowers, the mysterious symbolism of the St. Uzec Menhir (1734's Stele of Revealing), the meaning(s) of "1734," the shamanic talents and prankster antics of Joe Wilson, and other tales of high adventure on the inner and outer planes -- so, if you want to know which witch is which, tune in and we'll lift the veil.

Adamson's Quest - Chapter 12, Library of the Ages Apr 29, 2016

Show notes

On Thursday April 28th, 2016 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present the concluding chapterof the first volume of my Inner Plane fantasy novel Adamson's Quest, The Library of the Ages -- in which the Hero Enoch Adamson in his role as the Fool of the Tarot finally reaches his goal the Library of the Ages, which represents the Sphere of Hod at the upward terminis of the 31st Path on the Tree of Life. Here Adamson will meet his mentor and sponsor Hermes Trismegistus and receive the answers to his questions from a council of sages including Jesus and Mary Magdalene and even Nicolo Machievelli at a dinner party which is modeled on Steve Allen's "Meeting of the Minds" format. This novel was begun in 1973 when we first began to develop our Qabalistic Path Working program. So if you want to sit in on an Inner Plane esoteric council meeting join us and be enlightened.

Adamson's Quest - Winding Up Apr 22, 2016

Show notes

On Thursday April 21st, 2016 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will discuss his Magical Inner Plane novel Admson's Quest and offer a dramatic reading of Chapter Eleven. This fictional journey up the paths of the Tree of Life was begun back in 1979 in the old pamphlet style Seventh Ray and has been continued in the new journal version of T7R since 1999. The final installment Chapter Twelve is in the works and should be ready by next week. We did a show on Adamson four years ago that is still available in the archives for those who wish more background on the story. Adamson's experiences reflect the anxieties of the times (late 1970s) he tries to overcome psychosomatic illnesses, psychological neurosis, Freudian complexes, Jungian archetypes and Qabalistic paradoxes, while dressed as the Fool in the Tarot, more recently he deals with contemporary problems: reptilian illuminati, pollution, invasion of privacy, social engineering, virtual reality and military-industrial corruption. So, if you want to join the 2084 Army's virtual reality nano-tank corps and battle giant mole-crickets (Mike Charlies) in the non-whitehouse lawn then tune in and let's roll!

Robert Graves' "The White Goddess" (re-broadcast) Apr 15, 2016

Show notes

On Thursday The Hermetic Hour, with host Poke Runyon, will present a discussion on one of the books most influential on the revival of Paganism, Witchcraft, and Magick in the post World War Two era: "1948's "The White Goddess" by poet laureate Robert Graves. The book is difficult read even for those well versed in myth-lore, and classical literature. Graves takes a poet's magical, and even whimsical, approach to what at first appears to be anthropology -- even though he warns the reader that he is not dealing with history as it was, but rather as the ancient and medieval bards imagined it to have been -- which is just as important as how it really was. His argument is that behind all true poetry lies the inspiration of a haunting, primordial muse: the prehistoric Moon Goddess of birth, youth, death and the phases of nature. He is a cultural diffusionist, spinning off from Frazer on a wild ride from ancient Greece to the Druids, tying together the whole warp and woof of Western esoteric lore from the Bible to the troubadours. The White Goddess had a major influence on Fred Adams and Svetlana's Feraferia, with the Tree Alphabet being a central element in Feraferian structure. The book was also a very strong influence on Roy Bowers Order of 1734, and the Roebuck of the Finnins. It has also had some influence on the O.T.A., and many other Pagan and Magical groups. So, tune in and plumb the mysteries of the Druid's Handbook, and the thinking Witch's Bible.

Shamanic Drumming and Magick with Frater Heracles Apr 08, 2016

Show notes

On Thursday April 7th, the Hermetic Hour's host Poke Runyon will be joined by V.H. Frater Heracles for a discussion about the application of Traditional shamanic drumming techniques to Hermetic Magick. We will also review and discuss Michael Harner's latest book "Cave and Cosmos" in relation to the O.T.A.'s Qabalah, Solomonic ceremonial evocation, Initiations, pathworkings and Hermetic Yoga. Michael Harner is the founder and leader of The Foundation for Shamanic Studies. He is universally recognized as the foremost authority and most respected teacher on Shamanic philosophy, spirituality, and method. So if you would like to learn how to drum your way into the lower, middle and upper worlds, then tune in and pick up the beat (180-220 per minute).

Astral High Magic: De Imaginibus of Thabit Ibn Qurra Apr 01, 2016

Show notes

On Thursday March 31st, 2016 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a review of John Michael Greer's new translation from the Latin version of "De Imaginibus of Thabit Ibn Qurra" titled "Astral High Magic". This book replaces an earlier publication translated by Christopher Warnock in the Renaissance Astrology list. De Imaginibus is the technical side of Sabian elective astrology. How to make talismans. Thabit Ibn Qurra was the most famous of the Harranian astrological magicians. We will also discuss the Sabian planetary magick and hermetic affiliations. The surviving Mandanean cult claims to be preserving their traditions along with works attributed to John the Baptist. We were first on the scene with Sabian lore in our 1999 Book One, of the Seventh Ray (the Blue Ray) with our translation, from the German version of the Arabic original, of the Sabian planetary rituals from Picatrix. So if you want to know how to keep scorpions out of your house, among other things, tune in and we'll see how the Magi do it.

Magical Cults and NeoPaganism (re-broadcast) Mar 25, 2016

Show notes

On Thursday The Hermetic Hour host Poke Runyon will review his 1980 master's thesis in cultural anthropology at Cal State, Northridge, titled: "A History of Magical Cults and the Rise of NeoPaganism in Southern California." This work has never been published and contains what some might consider "sensitive" material. It briefly reviews the history of the Western Esoteric Tradition starting in first century Alexandria, up through the 19th and 20th century magical groups, concentrating on the modern rise of Magick and "Wicca" in England -- and immigrating to America. Magick first in the 1920s, followed by witchcraft in the 1960s. The rise of nature oriented NeoPaganism in Southern California, through the turbulent psychedelic era, and the new "Coven model" organizations. I saw this phenomenon as a cultural revitalization movement I referred to as "NeoRomanticism." It is a sad fact that most contemporary witches and magicians know very little about the actual history of their "traditions," especially in relation to other earlier traditions, and groups they may not be aware they are related to. We will open a time capsule and go back 35-40 years to the thrilling days of yesteryear. Tune in and we'll ripe the veil of mystery from our history.

Lovecraft and Magick in Colonial America with Frater Phergoph Mar 18, 2016

Show notes

On Thursday March 17th, 2016 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion and book reviews on Magick in Colonial America. Frater Thabion (Poke) will deal with H.P. Lovecraft's "The Case of Charles Dexter Ward" a novel of necromantic alchemy set in Colonial Providence Rhode Island.Lovecraft's occult source material will be Poke's main focus. Our guest Frater Phergoph from The Valley Forge Encampment in Pennsylvania will discuss Daniel Harms "The Long Lost Friend" a new translation of a Pennsylvania Dutch grimoire from the Colonial period. This should be a fun evening for you East Coast witches and warlocks.

Fairy Magick with Feraferia and the Roebuck Mar 11, 2016

Show notes

On Thursday March 10th, 2016 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon and Guests Lady Jo Carson of Feraferia and Lady Ann Finnin of the Roebuck, will have a discussion on "Fairy Magick". We will recall the classics in this field such as "The Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries," Evans-Wentz,(1911) "The Faerie Queen" by Edmund Spencer (1590) and more recently Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Sussana Clarke (2004) Lady Jo will mention other recent books in the field, including one she is working on involving Fred Adams extrapolations from Robert Graves' Celtic "Tree Alphabet" from "The White Goddess" (1946) which should be a veritable Qabalah of fairyland. Lady Ann will mention the Roebuck's connections to Celtic fairy lore. I will delve into "The Book of Oberon" (2015) a translation of an Elizabethan 16th century magical compendium mixing Solomonic and fairy lore in a compendium similar to the Lemegeton - and including Lemegeton material. So let's all spend an hour under the hill with the changelings and the little people -- and remember what the old cunning man said: "Aye! You can see them if they want you to." He also asked: "What is your name? What is your quest? What is your favorite color?"

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