Zero Equals Two is a blog on magical news and culture sponsored by U.S. Grand Lodge, O.T.O. A diverse collective of contributors comb the worlds of magick, art, science, history, philosophy, and more every day for articles and events of interest to Thelemites and other modern free-thinkers and explorers, collecting them on this blog for your enjoyment.
Recent posts
- Lifting the Veil 3-day Esoteric and Occult Arts Festival in Philadelphia
2018/10/17Thelesis Oasis, OTO, in the Valley of Philadelphia will be playing host to Lifting the Veil, a 3-day interactive Esoteric and Occult Arts Festival. The events FB page states:
As the moon waxes New to Full
We draw those heart centered
On the matrix web we pull
Closer and closer and yet closer still
Connection through time we allow our space to fillYour presence is desired…
You are formally invited to Lifting the Veil. Lifting the Veil is a 3-day interactive Esoteric and Occult Arts Festival. The term “Lifting the Veil” refers to the pagan tradition speaking of the time where seasons transition into shorter days, longer nights, and colder times both physically, spiritually, and mentally. Traditionally celebrated at Samhain (Halloween), This metaphor tells us that the veil between worlds is lifted, lines blurred, and what burrows beneath the surface of our conscious awareness flows a bit more freely. Join us as we explore Sex, Death and Transformation. Unveil and Unravel.
A weekend of Ritual, Art, Performance, and the Occult.
Film and Visual Artists
Monika Estrella Negra (Audres Revenge Film)
Juliet Farina
Eppchez
Malachi Lily
MARS OBSIDIAN
Devyn Farries
Wit López
Gem Tha Jawn
3rd Eye Chakra
Autumn Veggiemon
Phobymo
Third Eye Legacy
David Thrower
Kat Nzingha
Allegra Yvonne Gia
Tellis Dee
Zandras L. Spivey Jr. ( Creator of the web series “Divination”)
and MorePerformances
Essa Terrick
Mercury
Ann Artist
Kitana Karnage
Bad Idea
Porcelain
Mova Kween
Mia Secreto
Pilar Salt
Ren Enix
Aiani Mars
WORDZ The Poet Emcee
deadb0y
Nicole Phoenix
Malachi Lily
Icon Ebony Fierce
and moreVendors and Speakers
Rebel Rocks
Strange Omens
Aubrey Phoenix
Earf
Blaksyn
Tinkers
Hoodoo Hussy
Tellis Dee
Eyrie Twilight
and moreInteractive lectures, Rituals, Tarot Readings and Live Painting
6pm – Feast (First come)
7pm- Opening RitualPotion Bar all night (donations)
Accessibility: This event is on the 2nd floor, there is a elevator available, please contact us in advance so that we can make arrangements for our usher to bring you upstairs
Sponsored by:
The Leeway Foundation
Passional Boutique
Flaming Idols
- Brooklyn Wiccans Planning on Public Hexing of Kavanaugh
2018/10/16The good folks at Catland in Brooklyn are planning casting a hex on Supreme Court Justice nominee Brett Kavanaugh this Saturday, October 20. The ritual starts at 7PM and is held at Catland HQ at 987 Flushing Ave, Brooklyn, New York 11206. Their FB event page says:
“Please join us for a public hex on Brett Kavanaugh, upon all rapists and the patriarchy at large which emboldens, rewards and protects them. We are embracing witchcraft’s true roots as the magik of the poor, the downtrodden and disenfranchised and it’s history as often the only weapon, the only means of exacting justice available to those of us who have been wronged by men just like him.
“He will be the focal point, but by no means the only target, so bring your rage and and all of the axes you’ve got to grind. There will also be a second ritual afterward – “The Rites of the Scorned One” which seeks to validate, affirm, uphold and support those of us who have been wronged and who refuse to be silent any longer.
“50% of the event proceeds will be donated to charity:
“25% to the Ali Forney Center and 25% to Planned Parenthood.“Please note that no one will be turned away for lack of funds.”
https://www.facebook.com/events/179836286297165/?active_tab=about.
The HuffingtonPost ran a feature on this working, stating, in part:
“Dakota Bracciale, a Brooklyn-based witch who is organizing the Oct. 20 event, said the witches see the hex as a radical act of resistance that continues witchcraft’s long history as a refuge and weapon for the ‘oppressed, downtrodden and marginalized.’
“’Witchcraft has been used throughout history as a tool and ally for people on the fringes of society who will not ever really get justice through the powers that be,’ Bracciale told HuffPost. “So they have to exact their own justice.”
Bracciale, who organized three hexes against President Donald Trump last year, said the ritual is meant to be cathartic for victims of sexual assault. Kavanaugh will apparently be a focal point for the hex, but not the only target. ”
Read full article here: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/witches-ritual-hex-brett-kavanaugh_us_5bc0efaae4b0bd9ed559feff.
Now, I seem to recall that Trump and the GOP were shockingly ineffectual in promoting their agenda in 2017, and it appeared that perhaps the monthly Dark Moon binding spells that a group of Wiccans had announced might have been work. Then “BAM” suddenly things shifted and Trump and comp were firing on all fours. It’ll be interesting to see the results of this working.
Kavanaugh, of course, identifies as a Roman Catholic, but considering GOP antipathy towards Pope Francis due to his very public stances on social and economic inequality and enviromental issues… don’t expect Frank to be sending a team of exorcists to help him out.
PS I note from their website that the expressly welcome Thelemites.
- Lon Milo Duquette Publishing Son of Chicken Qabalah Next Month
2018/10/16Deputy National Grand Master of United States Grand Lodge of Ordo Templi Orientis, Lon Milo Duquette will be publishing his latest book in a few weeks, Son of Chicken Qabalah. The Amazon description says:
“This simultaneously funny and serious book provides the easiest, fastest way for readers to painlessly attune themselves to the mysteries of the Hebrew alphabet and immerse themselves in the fundamentals of practical Qabalah. It is a road map from the Godhead to your head–a clear and lucid guide to an extremely complex, mystical topic. By performing the exercises and rituals in the book, the reader can complete the self-initiatory process comprising the three main degrees of Rabbi Lamed Ben Clifford’s Practical Qabalah course.”
https://www.amazon.com/Son-Chicken-Qabalah-Cliffords-Practical/dp/1578636159.
- ΘΕΛΗΜΑ Now Available Via KeepSilence.org
2018/10/15Brother Scott Wilde shared this good news with us!
As part of my Crowley First edition scanning project, I’d like to announce that ΘΕΛΗΜΑ is available at https://keepsilence.org/the-equinox/ A print version of this will eventually be made available as part of a limited run as a fundraiser for Horizon Lodge.
A huge thanks to Tony Iannotti, who scanned in several examples of this work. Because of its rarity I really wouldn’t have been able to do this without his generous help. The sets that Tony scanned originally belonged to Wilfred Talbot Smith, CF Russell, Frank Bennett, and Kenneth Anger, containing their motto signatures, lamen stamps, marginalia notes, and pencilled in corrections. These raw scans will be made available soon.
Be advised that this is a photographic copy of a first edition and thus maintains any errors. Especially, this version of L vel Legis should be avoided for any serious non-scholarly work, as it contains a large number of errors.
First printed in 1909 as three separate volumes, the contents of this work consist of just six texts: LIBER LXI VEL CAVSÆ, LIBER CORDI SCINCTI SERPENTE VEL LXV (65), LIBER LIBERI VEL LAPIDIS LAZVLI (7), LIBER L VEL LEGIS (220), LIBER TRIGRAMMATON (27), LIBER DCCCXIII VEL ARARITA (570). In the first of these, LXI, Crowley describes the others as “Sacred Writings”:
“29. Also one V. V. V. V. V. arose, an exalted adept of the rank of Master of the Temple (or this much He disclosed to the Exempt Adepts) and His utterance is enshrined in the Sacred Writings.
30. Such are Liber Legis, Liber Cordis Cincti Serpente, Liber Liberi vel Lapidis Lazuli and such others whose existence may one day be divulged unto you. Beware lest you interpret them either in the Light or in the darkness, for only in L. V. X. may they be understood.”
Crowley would sometimes use “Thelema” or “ΘΕΛΗΜΑ” to refer specifically to these books, as opposed to using it to describe Thelema as a concept, school of thought, or religion. The term “holy books” (sometimes capitalized as “Holy Books”) was often used in conjunction to describe the contents of “Thelema”, both uses are seen in ASTARTÉ VEL LIBER BERYLLI. The Equinox 1.7 (1912):
“Let the Philosophus read solely in his copies of the holy books of Thelema, during the whole period of his devotion. But if he weary, then let him read books which have no part whatever in love, as for recreation.
But let him copy out each verse of Thelema which bears upon this matter, and ponder them, and comment thereupon. For therein is a wisdom and a magic too deep to utter in any other wise.”
The context of these texts is also important to consider. Liber Liberi, Trigrammaton, and Ararita were the only Class A texts never published in The Equinox, and were not available for purchase by the general public until 1919 when they were advertised in the back of The Equinox 3.1. Instead they were given out only to worthy aspirants of the A∴A∴ as was required for the task particular to their grade. As such they were printed in three seperate volumes: LXI & LXV (65) in the first, given to Probationers (both later published in The Equinox 3.1); Liberi (7) in the second, given to Neophytes; and L vel Legis, Trigrammaton, and Ararita in the third, given to Zelators. This process is in part described in the back of Book IV (1912) parts I & 2 as part of an advert and order form for certain books required to be a student of the A∴A∴:
“Study of these books will give a thorough grounding in the intellectual side of Their [the A∴A∴’s] system.
After three months the Student is examined in these books, and if his knowledge of them is found satisfactory, he may become a Probationer, receiving Liber LXI and the secret holy book, Liber LXV. The principal point of this grade is that the Probationer has a master appointed, whose experience can guide him in his work.
He may select any practices that he prefers, but in any case must keep an exact record, so that he may discover the relation of cause and effect in his working, and so that the A∴A∴ may judge of his progress, and direct his further studies.
After a year of probation he may be admitted a Neophyte of the A∴A∴, and receive the secret holy book Liber VII.”
This is further described in the description of LXV in “CURRICULUM OF A∴A∴” The Equinox 3.1 (1919):
“LIBER LXV. LIBER CORDIS CINCTI SERPENTE. An account of the relations of the Aspirant with his Holy Guardian Angel. This book is given to Probationers, as the attainment of the Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel is the Crown of the Outer College. Similarly Liber VII. is given to Neophytes, as the grade of Master of the Temple is the next resting-place, and Liber CCXX. to Zelator, since that carries him to the highest of all possible grades. Liber XXVII. is given to the Practicus, as in this book is the ultimate foundation of the highest theoretical Qabalah, and Liber [DCCXIII]. to the Philosophus, as it is the foundation of the highest practical Qabalah.”
The rest of the texts are also described in this text:
“LIBER VII. LIBER LIBERI VEL LAPIDIS LAZULI, ADVMBRATIO KABBALÆ AEGYPTIORVM Sub Figura VII., being the Voluntary Emancipation of a certain Exempt Adept from his Adeptship. These are the Birth Words of a Master of the Temple.
The nature of this book is sufficiently explained by its title. Its seven chapters are referred to the seven planets in the following order: Mars, Saturn, Jupiter, Sol, Mercury, Luna, Venus.
LIBER CCXX. (LIBER L VEL LEGIS.) The Book of the Law. This book is the foundation Of the New Æon, and thus of the whole of our Work.
LIBER XXVII. LIBER TRIGRAMMATON, being a book of Trigrams of the Mutations of the Tao with the Yin and the Yang. An account of the cosmic process: corresponding to the Stanzas of Dzyan in another system.
LIBER DCCCXIII. VEL ARARITA Sub Figura DLXX. This book is an account οf the Hexagram and the method of reducing it to the Unity, and Beyond.
LIBER LXI. LIBER CAUSE. The Preliminary Lection, including the History Lection. Explains the actual history of the origin of the present movement. Its statements are accurate in the ordinary sense of the word. The object of the book is to discount Mythopœia.”
- New Picatrix translation announced by Penn State University Press
2018/10/15
While there have been two English translations of the Picatrix in recent years—the two-volume set from Ouroboros Press (2002-2008) and various Lulu permutations by Christopher Warnock and John Michael Greer (2011-2018)—this edition from PSU’s excellent “Magic in History” series is the first from an academic publisher. As Professor Charles Burnett of the Warburg Institute points out, this translation by Dan Attrell and David Porreca is of the Latin version used by Marsilio Ficino, Pico della Mirandola, and Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa. Whatever may have been lost between the original Arabic and its Latin edition, the latter text was an important influence in the evolution of Western magic and the grimoire tradition. At $39.95 for an academic hardcover, the price is a bargain!
According to the publisher’s website:
A guide for constructing talismans, mixing magical compounds, summoning planetary spirits, and determining astrological conditions, Picatrix is a cornerstone of Western esotericism. It offers important insights not only into occult practices and beliefs, but also into the transmission of magical ideas from antiquity to the present. Dan Attrell and David Porreca’s indispensable English translation opens the world of this vital medieval treatise to modern-day scholars and lay readers.
The original text, Ghāyat al-ḥakīm, compiled in Arabic from over two hundred sources in the latter half of the tenth century, was translated into Castilian Spanish in the mid-thirteenth century, and shortly thereafter into Latin. Based on David Pingree’s edition of the Latin text, this translation captures the spirit of Picatrix’s role in the European tradition. In the world of Picatrix, we see a seamless integration of practical magic, earnest piety, and traditional philosophy. The detailed introduction considers the text’s reception through multiple iterations and includes an enlightening statistical breakdown of the spells and ingredients described in the book.
Framed by extensive research on the ancient and medieval context that gave rise to the Latin version, this translation of Picatrix will be an indispensable volume for students and scholars of the history of science, magic, and religion and will fascinate anyone interested in the occult.
Weighing in at 384 pages with 31 black and white illustrations, this hardcover book is listed with a February 8, 2019, release date on Amazon.
