Book of the Hidden Name - Magick of the Shem HaMephorash Angels - Caitus X 2020
Tracing the Origins of Angel Magick
The first man knew it not perfectly, neither will the last search it thoroughly; for its understanding is wider than the sea and its counsel deeper than the abyss.
-BEN SIRA
Angel magick has a great deal of controversy behind it as it has been a point of a taboo within modern society, and as a result, the details get blurred. Some aspects of angel magick are indeed ancient. Some elements can be dated to ancient Chaldea1 in approximately 3000 B.C. The area was later recorded by carvings found in stone tablets.
Ancient magickal practices developed over the years and those in power recognized the potential disruption that could be caused by practicing magicians. The ancient laws of Mesopotamia known as The Code of Hammurabi were enacted into law in approximately 1754 B.C., and with it, the first law stands against the practice of magick:
“If a man charges a man with sorcery, and cannot prove it, he who is charged with sorcery shall go to the river, into the river he shall throw himself, and if the river overcomes him, his accuser shall take himself his house. If the river show that man to be innocent and he comes forth unharmed, he who charged him with sorcery shall be put to death. He who threw himself into the river shall take himself the house of his accuser.”
While Hammurabi2 and his kingdom have long been part of history, their impact is found in the law of the Hebrew people in the Torah, as well as in the laws of Rome. As an example from ancient Rome The Laws of the Twelve Tables call for the death penalty on sorcerers:
“Whoever enchants by singing an evil incantation ... If anyone sings or composes an incantation that can cause dishonor or disgrace to another ... he shall suffer a capital penalty.”
Hebraic traditions carried on the manner of the Chaldeans and Egyptians onto systems of Kabbalah. As the Roman Empire continued to spread, knowledge was gained of these practices and the laws that had been passed throughout ancient society. By the year 82 B.C., the Romans, under the direction of Lucius Cornelius Sulla3, passed the Cornelian Laws. All magick-users were to be condemned to death by “wild beasts, burning, or crucifixion”. Earlier legal restriction created a distinction between magick that was perceived to be helpful or harmful. Under the Cornelian Laws, all magick was considered unlawful, and even the study of the magickal arts was considered a high crime. It is safe to say that the Roman Empire had a significant influence in all of the modern West, and with these restrictions in place, thus begins the taboo of magick. When Emperor Augustus also took the office of pontifex maximus4 in 12 B.C., he ordered the destruction of over two thousand books on magick and the occult sciences. Many important texts were lost, and the knowledge of magickal arts remained in great jeopardy.
In early Christian documents, many continued similarities to the ancient laws were carried on. The obscurity and hidden practice of magick for fear of condemnation remained for centuries. It was not until the thirteenth century that a resurgence in the study and belief in magick amongst academics became prominent. One of the most significant changes that occurred within this period was the invention of the printing press by Johannes Gutenberg. He took a personal loan from Johannes Fust to fund the project, and in 1452, Fust decided to join Gutenberg to use the machine to print books. This helped to increase Europe’s literacy rate and access to important documents that were previously reserved for the massive libraries of monasteries and universities.
Entering the fourteenth century and the intellectual shift that took place with the Renaissance period, the public attitude toward magic and the church’s authority began to change dramatically. Now, with academics studying the magickal arts and a machine capable of producing multiple copies of a magickal text, information began to spread more readily among those who took an interest in the occult.
A vital publication known as the Oration on the Dignity of Man, authored by Giovanni Pico De Mirandola, was published in 1496, which discussed various topics centered around the possibilities of human achievement. An excerpt of this text which bears interest to the topic at hand is Pico’s description that ancient man understood and accepted two differing types of magick, known as “mageia”, which he describes as “lofty and noble” and “goëteia” described as “base and profane.”
Another text of Pico’s published in the same year, “900 Theses” states, “Nothing certifies us of the divinity of Christ more than magic and Kabbalah.” Thus begins the link between the magickal practice of the Renaissance period and their fascination with the texts of the ancients. Although many documents were destroyed over several hundred years of oppression from various authorities, practices did manage to survive through secrecy and oral tradition.
The Malleus Maleficarum, the legendary witch-hunting manual, concluded that there is lawful magic within the church’s eyes. The manual lists that charms and exorcisms did in the Divine Name should be considered legal. With these small steps, the gates opened for new beginnings in magickal practice and study. Many authors built upon Pico’s concepts and developed techniques through their research and gnosis.
More modern texts of the twentieth century continued to work around these principals, and the church navigated its position further as things progressed. The Catholic Encyclopedia5, which was published in under Pope Pius X defines magic as producing “supernatural effects with the aid of powers other than the divine” and the 1965 edition of the Maryknoll Catholic Dictionary states plainly that “white magic(k) is perfectly lawful.”
Through this journey of over two millennia, magick has come full circle to the place that it is now. The modern world has enabled information to be shared globally, allowing new ideas to be disseminated to a broad audience more rapidly than achieved ever before.
While there are specifics to the attributes found in either path of “good” or “bad” magick, what can be said is that the magick itself goes beyond such a simplistic dichotomy, and each type of magick can be viewed through either lens. It is to say that some things that may be viewed as evil could just as readily be considered as justice, or acts of charity and compassion could be considered to be a selfish act. It is left to you as the magician to wield these powers with the responsibility of ethical decisions.
The ascendant magician recognizes the dogmatic nature of assigning characteristics of energy in a limiting manner. Good and evil are not relevant in this sense and do not have a place in advanced practice. All is right by definition, and through developing thoughts around your desired outcomes, one can achieve far more than by trying to come up with a solution more broadly. We gain true power by using all resources and navigating each step of the path to reach an ultimate goal.
Through the use of the mind and the hermetic concept of mentalism6, magick is created and applies significantly in understanding the power of our consciousness. The aspects of this energetic focus allow changes in our reality to achieve our goals. Everything you experience is a fragment of your total consciousness; Understand that all things in the universe are connected and a part of you. Similarly, you are a part of everything in the universe. Meditate on the connection between you and all that exists. Understand that the beauty of nature is an extension of your being. All aspects of the world we live in hold significance to your existence on this plane.
Once you understand this connection, you can move into the next step of manifesting your desires. The keys to success are removing doubt from your mind in the practice itself and the faith that magick works. As you continue to grow in power spiritually, the more obstacles you may face along the way. The universe always responds to create new challenges that force us to learn and develop along our journey; heed this as a warning that nothing comes for free. With any request you make of any entity, you will have the necessary work to learn essential lessons.