(561)   Sat 4 Mar 89 16:51                              
By: Tony Iannotti
To: Zhahai Stewart
Re: Noses of God (Summary of AC's polytheism)
St: 
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@EID:62d6 1264866c
  Here are the results of the Crowley's Favorite God Poll.
   The numbers represent the number of books, essays, letters, 
rituals, etc. that deal with the God in Question, rather than an 
absolute number of mentions. Offhand, I would say that Egyptian was 
his favorite flavour, and Horus his favorite God, though Ra and 
Mercury would appear to Place and Show. I threw a couple of Norse 
Pantheon types in so as to make the Luciferians feel better. Also, 
strictly speaking, I suppose that Set is part of the Egyptian 
Pantheon too, but the number of works dealing with him would not 
significantly affect the Egyptian Factor anyway.
  
  Odin                          3
 +Freya                         0
 -------------------------------
                                3
  
  Satan                        17
 +Shaitan                       2
 +Set                          18
 +Lucifer                       4
 --------------------------------
                               41
  
  Saturn or Chronos            24
 +Mars or Ares                 38
 +Venus or Aphrodite           14
 +Jupiter or Zeus              31
 +Mercury or Hermes            52
 --------------------------------
                              169
  
  Osiris                       47
 +Horus                        59
 +Ra, etc.                     53
 +Isis                         38
 +Thoth or Tahuti              29
 +Heru etc.                    16
 --------------------------------
                              252
   
   Caveats: I do not represent this to be an exhaustive search. 
Exhausting, yes, but Crowley's writings fill many shelves and 
filing cabinets, and the time involved (not to mention some travel) 
would be prohibitive to getting a complete answer inside of a year. 
This sampling is only from material that has been recorded 
electomagnetically. Luckily, most publishers of current editions 
have done their typesetting on computers, and so we have the 
majority of Crowley's books now in print in the index. It also 
means that his early poetry, now almost completely out of print 
and/or demand, is not represented as well as might be hoped.

   Tony Inter Alia



---
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(562)   Sat 4 Mar 89 16:52                              
By: Tony Iannotti
To: All
Re: Crowley on Eclecticism (Short)
St: 
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@EID:62d6 1264868b
From: _Magick Without Tears_ by Aleister Crowley

[Crowley on Syncretic Religion, and Names of Gods]

   3. Now then to your old Pons Asinorum about the names of the 
Gods!  Stand in the corner for half an hour with your face to the 
wall!  Stay in after school and write Malka be-Tharshishim 
v-Ruachoth b-Schebralim 999 times!
   My dear, dear, dear sister, a name is a formula of power.  How 
can you talk of "anachronism" when the Being is eternal?  For the 
type of energy is eternal.
   Every name is a number: and "Every number is infinite; there is 
no difference." (AL I, 4).  But one Name, or system of Names, may 
be more convenient either (a) to you personally or (b) to the work 
you are at.  E.g. I have very little sympathy with Jewish Theology 
or ritual; but the Qabalah is so handy and congenial that I use it 
more than almost any --- or all the others together --- for daily 
use and work.  The Egyptian Theogony is the noblest, the most truly 
magical, the most bound to me (or rather I to it) by some inmost 
instinct, and by the memory of my incarnation as Ankh-f-n-Khonsu, 
that I use it (with its Graeco-Phoenician child) for all work of 
supreme import.  Why stamp my vitals, madam!  The Abramelin 
Operation itself turned into this form before I could so much as 
set to work on it!  like the Duchess' baby (excuse this enthusiasm; 
but you have aroused the British Lion-Serpent.)
   Note, please, that the equivalents given in 777 are not always 
exact. Tahuti is not quite Thoth, still less Hermes; Mercury is a 
very much more comprehensive idea, but not nearly so exalted: 
Hanuman hardly at all.  Nor is Tetragrammaton IAO, though even 
etymology asserts the identity.
   In these matters you must be catholic, eclectic, even syncretic. 
 And you must consider the nature of your work.  If I wanted to 
evoke Taphthartharath, there would be little help indeed from any 
but the Qabalistic system; for that spirit's precise forms and 
numbers are not to be found in any other.
   The converse, however, is not so true.  The Qabalah, properly 
understood, properly treated, is so universal that one can vamp up 
a ritual to suit almost "any name and form."  But in such a case 
one may expect to have to reinforce it by a certain amount of 
historical, literary, or philosophic study --- and research.
   

---
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1:107/293)

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(563)   Sun 5 Mar 89 15:47                              
By: Tony Iannotti
To: All
Re: Invocation of Isis, Part 1 of 2
St: 
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@EID:62d6 12657df2

   To demonstrate Crowley's worship of entities other than Satan, 
here is a 

nice little invocation of Isis, one of the few divine individuals 
not yet identified as Satan by our resident Satan expert. 
  Three participants are assumed (taking the parts of Nepthys, 
Horus, and 

Harpocrates calling to Isis). Most probably it was written for and 
performed by (respectively) Leah Hirsig, Crowley and Frank Bennett 
-- (Frater Progradior). Note that the Horus part identifies himself 
as the Slayer of Set. 

_INVOCATION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT -- (ISIS)_ 

[From the papers of Frater Progradior 
Ritual used at Cefalu] 

DIALOGUE: 
M.A.: Fraters et Sorores, assist me in making clear the one Mystic 
Ceremony. 
      Brethren - what is the Hour? 
Bro.: It is the Hour when Luna is simulating the MidHeaven. 
      Brethren - what is the place? 
Sis.: It is the summit of the Sacred Mount whereon is the Assembly 
of the 

Gods. Brethren - for what purpose are we gathered together? 
For.: For the purpose of invoking our Lady ISIS, the Holy Spirit, 
that 

being purified in heart and of right aspiration, we may be 
initiated into the Sublime Mysteries of Her nature. 
      Brethren - how do we hope to attain an end so sublime and 
exalted? 
Sis.: By the aid of the Most High, the Lord of the Universe; by the 
Love and 

Devotion which we bear to our Lady ISIS; by the Unity of our 
purpose, the Unity of our aim, the strength of our unconquered 
_Will_, and by our knowledge of the names whereby the Holy Goddess 
may be most readily invoked. 
      Brethren - it is sufficient: Let us now, being of one heart, 
one mind, 

and of one accord, exalt ourselves with fervour, that in very 
truth, our Goddess, the Holy Spirit, may descend upon us from Her 
Throne on High; and may we, being uplifted in ecstasy, comprehend 
the Love, Beauty and Truth that is in Her, who is indeed the very 
Spouse of God. 
     So Mote it be. 


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1:107/293)

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(564)   Sun 5 Mar 89 15:48                              
By: Tony Iannotti
To: All
Re: Invocation of Isis, Part 2 of 3
St: 
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@EID:62d6 12657e06

 [Crowley's Invocation to Isis, Part II] 


_Nepthys_ 

Hail unto Thee, HOLY SPIRIT! Thy Sister Nepthys invokes Thee. 
                            O ISIS, Hear us! 
 "   "    "      "    "    Nepthys, who dost aid Thee in gathering 
                           together the Scattered Members. 
                           O ISIS, Hear us! 
 "   "    "      "    "    Nepthys, who supportest with Thee our 
Lord 
                           Osiris, invokes Thee 
                           O ISIS! 
 "   "    "      "     "   Nepthys, who weepest with Thee at the 
                           resurrection of Osiris, invokes thee. 
                           O ISIS! 
 "   "    "      "      "  Nepthys, who cometh rejoicing with the 
sound of 
                           the drum and the Sistrum, invokes thee. 
                           O ISIS! 
 "   "     "     "      "  I, NEPTHYS, bid Thee come to thy Temple. 
                           O ISIS! 
 "   "     "     "      "  Thou Lady beloved of us all. 
                           O ISIS! 
 "   "     "     "      "  Come without fear; behold thy enemies 
are                             scattered. 
                           O ISIS! 
 "   "     "     "      "  I, NEPTHYS, Thy Sister, love Thee. 
                           O ISIS! Hear us! 
 "   "     "     "      "  Bring thy gladness into the heart of thy 
sister, 
 "   "     "     "      "  O ISIS! 
                           Hasten unto us! delay not! for our 
hearts are 
                           open to receive Thee. 
                           O ISIS! 
 "   "     "      "     "  NEPTHYS, the initiator into the 
Mysteries, 
                           awaits thy coming. 
                           O ISIS! 

_HARPOCRATES_ 
(Standing in the Sign of Silence) 
Hail, O Hail, HOLY SPIRIT! Hoor-pa-kraat, invokes Thee. 
                           O ISIS! Hear us! 
"     "     "    "     Thy son, born maimed from the womb, invokes 
Thee. 
"     "     "    "     Thy son, exalted in glory, invokes 
                         Thee, O ISIS! 
"     "     "    "     Hoor-pa-kraat, Enthroned upon the Lotus, 
invokes Thee 
                           Thee. 
"     "     "    "     O ISIS! the Lord in the Silence invokes 
Thee.                             O ISIS! 

_HORUS_ 
(Standing in the Sign of the Enterer) 
Hail Holy Spirit        Horus thy Son invokes Thee. 
                        O ISIS! We invoke Thee. 
 "   "      "           The Avenger of the Death of Osiris invokes 
Thee. 
 "   "      "           O ISIS! The Slayer of Thy Enemies invokes 
Thee. 
 "   "      "           O ISIS! The Hawk-Headed One invokes Thee. 
 "   "      "           O ISIS! The Slayer of Set invokes Thee. 
 "   "      "           O ISIS! Horus, Lord of the Two Worlds, 
invokes Thee. 








                        O ISIS! 


---
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1:107/293)

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(565)   Sun 5 Mar 89 15:48                              
By: Tony Iannotti
To: All
Re: Invocation of Isis, Part 3 of 3
St: 
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@EID:62d6 12657e1b

 [Crowley's Invocation to Isis, Part III] 


_LITANY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT - (ISIS)_ 
Hail Holy Spirit Hail!  Thou Spouse of God! Hear us, we beseech 
Thee. 
 "     "   "       "    Thou Queen of 
Heaven!......................Hear us! 
 "     "   "        "   Thou Mother of 
Nature!.....................Hear us. 
 "      "   "       "   Thou Bride, Mother and Daughter of the 
Crucified! 
                        
...........................................Hear us! 
 "     "    "       "   Thou Immaculate Virgin of 
Eternity!........Hear us. 
 "     "     "      "   Thou Scarlet Woman who ridest on the Beast! 
Hear us. 
 "     "     "      "   Thou Radiant Queen of 
Beauty!..............Hear us. 
 "     "     "      "   Thou, our Lady of 
Sorrow!..................Hear us. 
 "     "     "      "   Thou, clothed with the 
Sun!................Hear us. 
 "     "     "      "   Thou, who standest on the 
Moon!............Hear us. 
 "     "     "      "   Thou, whose head is the Diadem of the 
Twelve Stars.. 
                        
...........................................Hear us. 
 "    "      "      "   Thou, who art Crowned with the 
Throne......Hear us. 
 "    "      "      "   Thou, who art horned as the 
Moon!..........Hear us. 
 "    "      "      "   Thou, our Lady of the 
Earth!...............Hear us. 
 "    "      "      "   Thou, our Lady of the Amber 
Skin!..........Hear us. 
 "    "      "      "  Thou, whose Countenance is as grass 
refreshed by rain 
                                                       
............Hear us. 
 "    "      "       "  Thou, Lady of Love and 
Victory!............Hear us. 
 "    "      "       "  Thou, Crowned with Light, Life & 
Love......Hear us. 
     (Extended arms) 
 "    "       "      "  Osiris, thy Lord, awaits 
Thee..............Hear us. 
 "    "       "      "  Osiris, Slain and Crucified, awaits 
thee...Hear us. 
       (Cross arms) 
 "    "       "       " Osiris, Risen and justified, awaits thee. 
.Hear us. 
 "    "       "       " Osiris, the Great Bull of Ameritus awaits 
thee. 
                               
....................................Hear us. 
 "    "       "      "  Osiris, bearing the Royal Uraeus upon his 
forehead 
                        awaits 
thee................................Hear us. 
 "    "''     "      "  Lo! The Opener-of-ways, bids thee 
come.....Hear us! 




---
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1:107/293)

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(566)   Sun 5 Mar 89 15:55                              
By: Tony Iannotti
To: All
Re: Crowley on Mary
St: 
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@EID:62d6 12657ee7

 
  And to further demonstrate Crowley's non-reliance on Satan, here 
are three 

poems from his book _Amphora_, privately issued in 1908 or 1909, 
and later published as _Hail Mary_ in 1912. 

                 _Prologue_ 

Mother and maiden! on the natal night 
Embowered in bliss of roses red and white, 
Westward three Magi move to minister 
To Him with gold and frankincense and myrhh. 

Those Pagans gazing on the Heavenly Host 
Were blest of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost; 
And me, though I be as an heathen Mage, 
Thou wilt accept in this my pious page. 

                    _I_ 

The worlds were drunken as with wine 
When shimmering from the throne divine, 
The soul of Mary fixed its ray 
Within that meek and maiden clay 

The stars in mightier music rolled; 
The sun acheived a gladder gold; 
The moon lest pure acclaimed the morn; 
-- Mary Immaculate is born. 

Rejoice, O children of the earth, 
At your salvation brought to birth! 
This is the perfect period. 
Mary is born that shall bear God. 
                                      _Amen_ 



 [And just for it's rhythm:] 


          _Feast of the Nativity_ 

The Virgin lies at Bethlehem. 
   (Bring gold and frankincense and myrrh!) 
The root of David shoots a stem. 
   (O Holy Spirit, shadow her!) 

She lies alone among the kine. 
   (Bring gold and frankincense and myrrh!) 
The straw is fragrant as with wine. 
   (O Holy Spirit, shadow her!) 

There are three Kings upon the road. 
   (Bring gold and frankincense and myrrh!) 
She has thrice blest the Name of God. 
   (O Holy Spirit, shadow her!) 

There stands her star above the sky. 








   (Bring gold and frankincense and myrrh!) 
She hath thrice blest the Trinity. 
   (O Holy Spirit, shadow her!) 

Her joyful ardour hath sufficed 
   (Bring gold and frankincense and myrrh!) 
She is delivered of the Christ 
   (The angels come to worship her!) 
                                     _Amen_ 

---
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1:107/293)

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(567)   Thu 2 Mar 89  2:19                              
By: Teuton .
To: Rowan Moonstone
Re: Re: Halloween, Pt. 2
St: 
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@EID:2a4e 12601262
I'm sorry Rowan, but I'm afraid I have to partialy disagree with 
you on some points. In my studies of Teutonic history I looked in 
for a time into the possibility of Celts and Teutons being of the 
same race. I didn't find anything to establish that, but my 
research did lead me through certain Celtic (or Keltic as some 
prefer) subjects. As for Halloween, I came to understand that it 
arose mainly out of one dark event!! Brought on by the clash and 
joining of Celtic and Christian religion. A night when there were 
HUMAN sacrfices. Anight when Children and animals were sacrificed 
to demons. The clash/joining led to modern Black magic and Satan 
worship. This was not a direct decendant of either Celtic or 
Christan religion but a joining of the rebellious counterparts of 
both!! I came to learn that such thing as dressing up in costumes 
and masks was a way of trying to fool the evil spirits of the night 
by making them think that the person in the costume was one of 
them. While I don't doubt most of what you said or question you at 
all, I do think your taking a rose colored 2nd rate explanation of 
Halloweens origins. It seems to have been born out of a very DARK 
union that both white witches (i assume thats what you are) and 
christians would just as soon forget. It was born out of a massacre 
commited by the worse elements of both beliefs. Well, since I'm not 
the all-knowing or all-seeing What's-It!! If I made any mistakes i 
welcome rebutals!!!! Since I, Like You, am trying to Learn! Nice to 
meet you all!! See you around! :)
TEUTON .
--- TBBS v2.0
 * Origin: *Chrysalis*  Multi-User  (214) 519-0728  Dallas, Tx  
(124/4214)

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(568)   Fri 3 Mar 89 17:56                              
By: David Schaal
To: all
Re: Things Keltic
St: 
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@EID:2a4e 8f0b1263
Here's something I wrote a wile back for Keltria:

The Coming of Lugh
   by Iarwain

Lugh the Il-Dana came to the Tara
Lugh Samildanach came to the palace of the Tutha De
Lugh, master of all arts, came to Eireann

The gate keeper did not recognize Lugh
The gate keeper asked the Il-Dana his name
The gate keeper asked Lugh Samildanach what skill he possesed

Lugh said:

I am Lugh Samildanach
I am Lugh the Il-Dana
I am Lugh, master of battle

The gate keeper said:

We have no need of a battle master
King Nuada de Danann is our battle master
Nuada Airgitlamh is our battle master

Lugh said:

I am Lugh Samildanach
I am Lugh the Il-Dana
I am Lugh, master of healing

The gate keeper said:

We have no need of a master of healing
Diancecht de Danann is our master healer
Diancecht is master of all herbs and healings

Lugh said:

I am Lugh Samildanach
I am Lugh the Il-Dana
I am Lugh, master of knowledge

The gate keeper said:

We have no need of a master of knowledge
Oghma de Danann is master of all learning
Oghma is master of all knowledge

Lugh said:

I am Lugh Samildanach
I am Lugh the Il-Dana
I am Lugh, master of Sailing

The gate keeper said:

We have no need of a master of sailing.
Mananan mac Lyr de Danann is our master of ships.
Mananan mac Lyr, son of the sea, is our master of sailing

Lugh said:

I am Lugh Samildanach
I am Lugh the Il-Dana
I am Lugh, master of sorcery

The gate keeper said:

We have no need of a master of sorcery
The Badb de Danann are mistresses of all sorcery
The three sisters Macha, Nemhain and 
   Morrigan are mistresses of all witchcraft

Lugh said:

I am Lugh Samildanach
I am Lugh the Il-Dana
I am Lugh, master of smithing

The gate keeper said:

We have no need of a master of smithing
Goibniu de Danann is our master of smithing
Goibniu is a master of all crafts

Lugh said:

I am Lugh Samildanach
I am Lugh the Il-Dana
I am Lugh, master of the battle
I am Lugh, master of healing
I am Lugh, master of knowledge
I am Lugh, master of sailing
I am Lugh, master of sorcery
I am Lugh, master of smithing

I bid you, unless you know of another who is master
of all these arts, take me to Nuada Airgitlamh,
take me to Nuada, king of the Tutha de Danann.

The gatekeeper went to Nuada.
When Nuada heard of Lugh's coming he said:
Let him come in, for never has his like entered
this fortress

Lugh the Il-Dana was admitted to the Tara
Lugh Samildanach was admitted to the palace of the Tuatha De
Lugh master of all arts found his place amongst the Tuatha de Denann

-dave

--- Sirius 0.50
* Origin: The Joint Point (1:282/341.12) Minneapolis

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(569)   Wed 8 Mar 89  0:13                              
By: Tony Iannotti
To: All
Re: Fun with Religion
St: Pvt  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:62d6 126801bc

I flung out of chapel and church 
   Temple and hall an meeting-room 
   Venus' Bower and Osiris' Tomb, 
and left the devil in the lurch, 
   While God got lost in the crowd of gods, 
And soul went down in the turbid tide 
Of the metaphysical Lotus-eyed, 
   And I was -- anyhow, what's the odds? 
[...] 
Yet by-and-by I hope to weave 
A song of Anti-Christmas Eve 
And First- and Second-Beast-er Day. 
There's one who loves me dearly (vrai!) 
Who yet believes me sprung from Tophet, 
Either the Beast or the False Prophet; 
And by all sorts of monkey tricks 
Adds up my name to Six Six Six. 
Retire, good Gallup! In such strife her 
Superior skill makes _you_ a cipher! 
Ho! I adopt the number. Look 
At the quaint wrapper of this book! 
I will deserve it if I can: 
It is the number of a Man. 
 
                           Aleister Crowley, 
                            from "Ascension Day" 
                             in _The Sword of Song_   
 
 
I find some folks think me (for one) 
So great a fool that I disclaim 
Indeed Jehovah's hate for shame 
That man to-day should not be weaned 
Of worshipping so foul a fiend 
In presence of the living Sun, 
And yet replace him oiled and clean 
By the Egyptian Pantheon, 
The same thing by another name. 
Thus when of late Egyptian Gods 
Evoked ecstatic periods 
In verse of mine, you thought I praised 
Or worshipped them -- I stand amazed. 
I merely wished to chant in verse 
Some aspects of the Universe, 
Summed up these subtle forces finely, 
And sang of them (I think divinely) 
In name and form; a fault perhaps -- 
Reviewers are such funny chaps! 
I think that ordinary folk, 
Though, understood the things I spoke. 
For Gods, and devils too, I find 
Are merely modes of my own mind!  
 
                                Aleister Crowley, 
                                 from "Pentecost" 
                                  in _The Sword of Song_ 

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1:107/293)

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(570)   Wed 8 Mar 89 23:44                              
By: Staeorra Rokraven
To: All
Re: Hunters Warning pt 1
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:855a bd801268
         HUNTER'S WARNING
                                          -
  I have a tale, all grim forbode
   of one who sought the night.
  He mounted, then in darkness rode
   to work upon the height.
                                          -
  Control and power over all,
   the essence of his quest.
  The people he would hold in thrall.
   Ill omen was his crest.
                                          -
  He found a cliff beside the sea.
   A glowing circle cast,
  with magic burnt the Sacred Tree
   and drawing sword, stood fast.
                                          -
  The ocean swelled, and gale winds cried-
   a storm of ice and chill.
  Bright lightnings slashed and burned the sky
   imposed by dark'ning will.
                                          -
  A gateway through the Other World
   was opened by his hand,
  For from the clouds a funnel swirled
   and Bifrost's road did stand.
                                          -
  A raucous army then came down
   and rode upon that coast.
  Weird hoofbeats rang upon the ground
   from steeds who were as ghosts.
                                          -
  Just from the Hunt they had returned
   to challenge fox, and deer.
  And from the leader, one eye burned
   and sighted down his spear.
                                          -
  'What magus honors not my name?',
    a booming voice then cried.
  'What fool does play this ill wrought game?
    Best answer quick - or die.'
                                          -
    'My title matters not, O Lord.',
      the sly tongued one did speak.
    'We share the spirit of the sword-
      your wisdom I would seek.'
                                          -
  'My secrets will I gladly give
    to all who share my way-
   but test ye must, to die or live-
    one chance to go or stay.'
                                          -
    'Though death is not the thing I crave,
      your questions will I bear.
     And favour lacking, to the grave
      and thralldom will I swear.'
                                          -
    'But I am learn'ed, wise and strong
      so if your test surpassed
     you must then swear before your throng
      your power you will pass.'
                                          -
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: InterVisioN "The ParaNormal Connection" 603-547-6485 HST 
(1:132/123)

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(571)   Wed 8 Mar 89 23:46                              
By: Staeorra Rokraven
To: All
Re: Hunters Warning pt 2
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:855a bdc01268
                                         -
  The Hunt Lord scowled, and it was done,
   then said with frosty breath:
 'Unto me you will answer one-
   what purpose does serve death?'
                                          -
    'My foes have often met their end.
      I glory in the kill.
     My way will use the death to bend
      the people to my will.'
                                          -
  The Goddess Freyja then impart:
  'What say you of the dove?
  What use to you are things of heart?
   Regard ye what of love?'
                                          -
    'I scorn all love, I favour wrath,
      tis best left for the meek.
     And peaceful ways cross not my path,
      tis only for the weak.'
                                          -
 'War is my art, so answer this:',
   spoke grim one handed Tyr.
 'Affairs of state, when go amiss-
   is honor in your sphere?'
                                          -
    'All honor I return to friends
      and other Lords deserved.
     I say again, foes meet their ends
      when wrath has been incurred.'
                                          -
 'Unto us now, one more reply
   before you hear our will.
  of spells and power - magic high,
   of what does this fulfill?
                                          -
    'To honor you, I would enshrine,
      the world then I would take.
     To snare, all shiftless peoples bind
      with forces I would wake.'
                                          -
  All Asgard's dwellers, looking grim,
   then nodded to this king.
  Triumphant mein came over him-
   his darkened soul did ring.
                                          -
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: InterVisioN "The ParaNormal Connection" 603-547-6485 HST 
(1:132/123)

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(572)   Wed 8 Mar 89 23:47                              
By: Staeorra Rokraven
To: All
Re: Hunters Warning pt 3
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:855a bde01268
                                         -
  But Odin set his rage filled face-
   the mages blood ran cold.
 'Ye think that thou hast won our grace
   with naked evil bold?'
                                          -
 'All death is but the way to birth
   and peace is men's desire.
  Our way is to renew the Earth-
   despoiling not in ire.'
                                          -
 'This and the magics meant to heal
   and guide on wisdom's path.
  So this is why the powers wield-
   you have incurred our wrath.'
                                          -
 'But go in sorrow - life we give,
   along with this one curse-
  That ever long as you shall live
   your life now is reversed.'
                                          -
 'Harm with your magic, and you die
   a death forever long.
  Hurt with your guile, and you shall cry-
   your way is twisted, wrong.'
                                          -
  They rode like leaves upon the wind.
   Ensorcelled mage grew mad.
  He wanders - never trust or friends.
   Just woe, dark soul, nomad.
                                          -
  Pay heed, all seekers on the path
   to shadow's knowledge earned.
  To evil go, you gain the wrath
   of Powers great and stern.
                                          -
      - J.A. Bordeaux  8 Mar 89
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: InterVisioN "The ParaNormal Connection" 603-547-6485 HST 
(1:132/123)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(573)   Thu 9 Mar 89 20:46                              
By: Staeorra Rokraven
To: All
Re: Three sonnets
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:855a a5c01269
    THE CLOUD SCULPTORS
     -
  The air finds flight in forms of lofty wind
  As one with nature's children taking part
  And soaring up to go and find a friend
  Then join with water spinning wispy art.
     -
  This nature's process has eternal known
  The way to hang up on the sky these drapes
  But wonder not how these soft clouds have grown
  From fleecy strand filled webs to take their shapes?
     -
  Perhaps the artist's brush a thing unseen
  With living tools the Elder Gods express
  Those firey ones whose scales and talons gleam
  To grace the heavens with their soft caress.
     -
    Now see the strokes of carving wings along
    With falling rain - the strains of Dragon song.
     -----     9 March 1989     -----
--
     A DREAMING DESIRE
     -
  A spark comes coiling to the edge of sleep
  From realms arcane which have become unknown
  And from this psychic well does beauty leap
  A vision cherished for to call my own.
     -
  This wispy strand now takes it's shape in fire
  And fueled by sources boldly to enchant
  Then forming curves from wish of heart's desire
  A Woman's eyes all graced with Elvish slant.
     -
  The shield maid's arms then reach and wanting clasp
  We intertwine within her streaming hair
  Then sighing voices send a heartfelt gasp
  As fragrance heralds tawny skin now bare'd.
     -
    This honored Lady may in shadows walk
    But fate may someday find my heart unlock.
     -----     9 March 1989     -----
----
     TO THE BONFIRES
     -
  A circle gathered round a roaring pit
  All joining hands to bask within it's glow
  And under Moon crowned sky all starry lit
  We sing and praise the Power's shadowed flow.
     -
  For some the flames form dancing Dragon's wing
  And other smoke wrought visions climb the air
  For all a caring closeness will this bring
  And psychic current bonding hearts to share.
     -
  We charge this timeless place between the worlds
  To call the Goddess' love within our hearts
  And join with her our joyous souls unfurled
  Our spirits dance with her by ancient arts.
     -
    This night forever captured in this glade
    To see old souls re-met and friendships made.
     -----     9 March 1989     -----
 ------          -  J.A. Bordeaux  (S.R.)  -
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: InterVisioN "The ParaNormal Connection" 603-547-6485 HST 
(1:132/123)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(574)   Wed 15 Mar 89  2:24                             
By: Mike Nichols
To: All
Re: Watchtowers ( 1 of 5 )
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:19a2 1300126f

      RE-THINKING THE WATCHTOWERS
                   or
 13 Reasons Air should be in the North
=======================================
            by Mike Nichols
    copyright 1989 by Mike Nichols
 (fondly dedicated to Kathy Whitworth)


INTRODUCTION

 It all started 20 years ago.  I was 16 years old then, and a
recent initiate to the religion of Wicca.  Like most neophytes,
I was eager to begin work on my Book of Shadows, the traditional
manuscript liturgical book kept by most practicing Witches.  I
copied down rituals, spells, recipes, poems, and tables of
correspondences from every source I could lay hands on.  Those
generally fell into two broad catagories: published works, such
as the many books available on Witchcraft and magic; and
unpublished works, mainly other Witches' Books of Shadows.

     Twenty years ago, most of us were "traditonal" enough to
copy everything by hand.  (Today, photocopying and even computer
modem transfers are becoming de rigueur.)  Always, we were
admonished to copy "every dot and comma", making an exact
transcription of the original, since any variation in the
ceremony might cause major problems for the magician.  Seldom,
if ever, did anyone pause to consider where these rituals came
from in the first place, or who composed them.  Most of us,
alas, did not know and did not care.  It was enough just to
follow the rubrics and do the rituals as prescribed.

     But something brought me to an abrupt halt in my copying
frenzy.  I had dutifully copied rituals from different sources,
and suddenly realized they contained conflicting elements.  I
found myself comparing the two versions, wondering which one was
"right", "correct", "authentic", "original", "older", etc.  This
gave rise to the more general questions about where a ritual
came from in the first place.  Who created it?  Was it created
by one person or many?  Was it ever altered in transmission?  If
so, was it by accident or intent?  Do we know?  Is there ever
any way to find out?  How did a particular ritual get into a
Coven's Book of Shadows?  From another, older, Book of Shadows?
Or from a published source?  If so, where did the author of the
published work get it?

     I had barely scratched the surface, and yet I could already
see that the questions being raised were very complex.  (Now,
all these years later, I am more convinced than ever of the
daunting complexity of Neo-Pagan liturgical history.  And I am
equally convinced of the great importance of this topic for a
thorough understanding of modern Witchcraft.  It may well be a
mare's nest, but imagine the value it will have to future Craft
historians.  And you are unconditionally guaranteed to see me
fly into a passionate tirade whenever I'm confronted with such
banal over-simplifications as "Crowley is the REAL author of the
Third Degree initiation," or "Everyone KNOWS Gardner INVENTED
modern Witchcraft.")


--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: 64th DIMENSION BBS! 'Most Perplexing BBS in Kansas 
City..' (1:280/64)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(575)   Wed 15 Mar 89  2:25                             
By: Mike Nichols
To: All
Re: Watchtowers ( 2 of 5 )
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:19a2 1320126f

CONFLICTING TRADITIONS

     The first time I noticed conflicting ritual elements was
when I was invited as a guest to attend another Coven's esbat
celebration.  When the time came to "invoke the Watchtowers" (a
ritual salutation to the four directions), I was amazed to learn
that this group associated the element of Earth with the North.
My own Coven equated North with Air.  How odd, I thought.
Where'd they get that?  The High Priestess told me it had been
copied out of a number of published sources.  Further, she said
she had never seen it listed any other way.  I raced home and
began tearing books from my own library shelves.  And sure
enough!  Practically every book I consulted gave the following
assoications as standard: North = Earth, East = Air, South =
Fire, West = Water.

     Then where the heck did I get the idea that Air belonged in
the North?  After much thought, I remembered having copied my
own elemental/directional associations from another Witch's Book
of Shadows, her Book representing (so she claimed) an old Welsh
tradition.  Perhaps I'd copied it down wrong?  A quick
long-distance phone call put my mind at ease on that score.
(When I asked her where she'd gotten it, she said she THOUGHT it
was from an even older Book of Shadows, but she wasn't certain.)

     By now, I felt miffed that my own traditon seemed to be at
variance with most published sources.  Still, my own rituals
didn't seem to be adversely affected.  Nor were those of my
fellow Coven members, all of whom put Air in the North.
Further, over the years I had amassed lots of associations and
correspondences that seemed to REQUIRE Air to be in the North.
The very thought of Air in the East offended both my sense of
reason and my gut-level mythic sensibilities.  There are good
REASONS to place Air in the North.  And the whole mythological
superstructure would collapse if Air were in the East, instead.
If this is so, then why do most published sources place Earth in
the North and Air in the East?

RITUAL TAMPERING

     Suddenly, I felt sure I knew the reason!  Somewhere along
the line, someone had deliberately tampered with the
information!  Such tampering is a long and venerable practice
within certain branches of magic.  In Western culture, it is
most typically seen among Hermetic, Cabalistic and "ceremonial"
magic lodges.  It is common among such groups that, when
publishing their rituals for public consumption, they will
publish versions that are INCOMPLETE and/or deliberately ALTERED
in some way from the authentic practice.  This prevents someone
who is NOT a member of the group from simply buying a book, and
performing the rituals, without benefit of formal training.  It
is only when you are initiated into the lodge that you will be
given the COMPLETE and/or CORRECTED versions of their rituals.
This is how such groups guard their secrets.  (And it is a
telling postscript that many scholars now believe modern
Witchcraft to have "borrowed" its directional/elemental
correspondences from ceremonial magic sources!  What a laugh if
this was Crowley's last best joke on his friend Gerald Gardner!)

     I remember the first time I became aware of such deliberate
ritual tampering.  A friend of mine had been making a study of
the so-called "planetary squares", talismans that look like
magic squares consisting of a grid of numbers in some cryptic
order.  There are seven such squares -- one for each of the
"old" planets.  While making this study, he began coloring the
grids (more for his own pleasure than anything else), making
colorful mini-mosaics, using first two colors, then three, then
four, and on up to the total number of squares in the grid.  Six
of the planetary squares yeilded pleasing patterns of color.
Then there was the Sun square!  Against all expectation, the
colors were a random jumble, with no patterns emerging.  Thus,
he began his quest for the CORRECTED Sun square.  And I became
convinced of the reality of ritual tampering.


--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: 64th DIMENSION BBS! 'Most Perplexing BBS in Kansas 
City..' (1:280/64)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(576)   Wed 15 Mar 89  2:26                             
By: Mike Nichols
To: All
Re: Watchtowers ( 4 of 5 )
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:19a2 1340126f


    7. MYTHOLOGICAL: In Celtic mythology, north is invariably
associated with air.  The pre-Christian Irish gods and
goddesses, the Tuatha De Danann, were "airy" faeries (later
versions came equiped with wings, relating them to sylphs).  The
Book of Conquests states their original home was in the north,
"at the back of the north wind".  And when they came to Ireland,
they came in ships, THROUGH THE UPPER AIR (!), settling on the
mountain tops.  (It has always struck me as odd that some modern
writers see mountains as a symbol of earth.  The crucial
symbolism of the mountain is its height, rising into the air,
touching the sky.  Virtually all Eastern traditions associate
mountains, favorite abodes of gurus, with air.  A CAVE would be
a better symbol of earth than a mountain.)  In Welsh mythology,
too, Math the Ancient, chief god of Gwynedd (or NORTH Wales), is
specifically associated with wind, which can carry people's
thoughts to him.

     8. YIN/YANG: Many occultists believe that the four elements
have yin/yang connections.  Both air and fire are seen as
masculine, while earth and water are seen as feminine.  If air
is associated with the north point of the magic circle, and
earth is east, then one achieves a yin/yang alternation as one
circumnambulates the circle.  As one passes the cardinal points
of east, south, west, and north, one passes feminine, masculine,
feminine, masculine energies.  This alternating flux of
plus/minus, push/pull, masculine/feminine, is the very pulse of
the universe, considered of great importance by most occultists.
That it was equally important to our ancestors is evidenced by
standing stones in the British Isles.  At sites like the Kennet
Avenue of Braga, the tall, slender, masculine, phallic stones
alternate precisely with the shorter, diamond-shaped yoni
stones.

     9. GENERATOR: This argument flows out of the previous one.
Practicing magicians often think of the magic circle as a kind
of psychic generator.  Witches in particular like to perform
circle dances to "raise the cone of power".  Hand in hand, and
alternating man and woman, they dance clockwise (deosil) around
the circle, moving faster and faster until the power is
released.  This model has an uncanny resemblance to an
electrical generator, as man and woman alternately pass each of
the four "poles" of the magic circle.  These poles themselves
MUST alternate between plus and minus if power is to be raised.
This means that if the masculine fire is in the south, then the
masculine air MUST be in the north.  If the feminine water is in
the west, then the feminine earth MUST be in the east.  If any
adjacent pair were switched, the generator would stop dead.

     10. MASCULINE/FEMININE AXIS: When you look at a typical
map, north (the cardinal direction) is at the top.  Any
north-south road is a vertical line, and any east-west road is a
horizonatal line.  Likewise, a "map" of a magic circle makes the
vertical north-south axis masculine (with air and fire), while
the horizontal east-west axis is feminine (earth and water).
This makes logical sense.  When we look at the horizon of the
earth, we see a horizontal line.  Water also seeks a horizontal
plane.  Feminine elements, considered "passive", have a natural
tendency to "lay down".  Fire, on the other hand, alway assumes
an erect or vertical position.  Air, too, can rise upward, as
earth and water cannot.  Masculine elements, being "active",
have a natural tendency to "stand up".


--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: 64th DIMENSION BBS! 'Most Perplexing BBS in Kansas 
City..' (1:280/64)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(577)   Mon 27 Mar 89 18:02                             
By: Ben Levy
To: Josh Gordon
Re: Cult awareness
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:3948 127b9053

This whole thing is all the more funny/sad/sick when one considers 
the allegations of Ryan's aids that the whole fiasco was a result 
of a succesful MKULTRA sub-project 68 program. I tended to ignore 
said allegations until I came across sworn testimonies and photos 
that prove to my satisfaction that Mark Lane was a primary 
"functionary" for Jone and Pimples Temple. About a month before the 
masacre he split, disappeared for two years, then turned up in DC 
as Willis Carto's lawyer (Carto runs Liberty Lobby, the neo-nazi 
group that bought 100 shares of AT&T just to get into the stock 
holder's meeting to bitch about AT&T's affirm. action program). 
Lane is a known opperative of several different three letter 
agencies.


---
 * Origin: ThelemaNet - Hail Eris! * (415) 548-0163 (Opus 1:161/93)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(578)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:12                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: Poems
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 39801281
  Well, at the request of some, I will repost some poems here in 
Metaphysical along with some new poems.  Some are too long to put 
in one message, so they may be broken up in two parts.
  Hope you all enjoy...
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(579)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:14                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: Poem1
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 39c01281
                     The Goddess is Alive
Moon shines down upon a sea of Light,
Shifting sands lay singing in the Heart of the Night.
I look upon a scene that grips me to the core,
White-clad maidens are dancing on the shore.
 
Sweet sounds slip from moon-lit throats,
Wind whipped hair abound,
Lit by the light within and without,
The Women circle 'round.
 
As I stand, water engulfs my feet,
My body sways to your Heavenly Heart beat.
Wind and wave and fire light,
Pale in my mind Earthly delight.
 
Time slips by me as you hold your embrace,
And windblown spray covers my face.
Protected deep within your Womb,
I feel the tender pain of Life's bloom.
 
Candles flare high as the Dance progressed,
Deep inside with a healing touch you blessed.
All around, wind, wave and fire shout of your life,
Your light speared deep within, soothing my strife.
 
Divine Mother, Goddess of Light,
To you I come seeking protection from the night.
Come home to shelter within your arm,
Surrounded by Love, hidden from harm.
 
Holy Mother, Queen of Heaven and Earth,
From you we all trace our Birth.
Heavenly Goddess, light from above,
Shine down upon us, we pray for your Love.
 
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(580)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:15                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: poem2
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 39e01281
                            Eagle
 
 
Soaring high above Granite cliff,
Eagle rises on wings of fire,
Wings outreached for winds light lift,
Eyes searching desert for Heart's Desire.
 
Flying free beyond Earth's bounds,
Circling higher, clouds surround,
Wheeling and turning, Eagle in Flight,
Death on the Wing, beauty to sight.
 
Lord of the Air, secure in his Might,
Wings gleaming brightly in the Sun's searing Light.
Spotting the Prey, the Eagle falls,
Faster and faster, the Death calls.
 
Quick is the strike, painless and true,
Talons grip for a moment or two.
Endless circles, life and death in the sky,
Eagle is soaring, his Life's purpose to fly.
 
Soaring high with wings of Golden Light,
Earthbound we watch with mounting delight,
Master of the Air, King of his domain,
And in the end, only Eagle will remain.
 
 
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(581)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:17                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: poem4
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 3a201281
                         The Goddess
 
I go through life dreaming,
Of a mate I never knew,
Love and life pass me by,
And the cold grows through and through.
 
Women I see with eyes grown jaded,
Women I touch with fingers grown hard,
Women I smell covered in perfumes,
Women my heart will love then discard.
 
Promising Love until the end,
Our paths grow separate and finally end,
Where two became one, one becomes two,
And the search goes on once more for You.
 
I see you in the Crescent Moon,
I feel your body as I touch a tree,
I smell your breath when I hold a rose,
You rule my life, my soul, I'm never free.
 
I look for my Goddess in the Women of the World,
But I know within that you are like the Pearl,
Hidden away deep in the shell of Life,
And mortal flesh leads only to strife.
 
Deep in my self I must find the place,
Where at last I will find your smiling face.
Goddess, Lover, Mother Divine,
It is for you that my heart does shine.
 
To merge with you in Bliss Divine,
To hold you, to love you, inseparably entwined,
This is my dream, my heart's desire,
To be with you always, burning in your fire.
 
Mortals love, and mortals tire,
But my Love for you grows higher and higher,
Hold me in your arms lovingly near,
And keep from me all thoughts of fear.
 
Promise me always together we will be,
And in the end your Love will free,
My Love, my Life, my Soul I pledge,
To once more be with you at Chaos' Edge.
 
My Love for Your Love is the balance I need,
My Soul for Your Soul is the Quest I receive,
To Lose you then find you is the Loneliest path,
But Lover Divine, I am coming home at Last.
 
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(582)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:18                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: poem5
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 3a401281
                          Night Wind
 
Night Wind whispers gently through the trees tonight,
Soon, softly, soon they whisper in delight,
Flights of Night Visions take wing in the night,
Off to the slumbers of children to bring Joy and Fright.
 
Over house, street, mountain and meadow,
Night Wind flies swirling, fast and then slow,
To windows of children, it's dreams to bestow,
Dreams of Heros, Dragons, Maidens and more.
 
Little faces move in the night,
Eyes seeing Night Dreams of Horror and Delight,
Innocent faces asleep in the night,
While mighty undertakings go on with Inner Light.
 
Strong do they battle, they play in the night,
While parents lie dreaming of their own fear and delight.
Deep in the Heart of the Night Wind they soar,
No longer Children, but Adventurers and More.
 
Explorers and Travellers, Saints and Devils,
The Children of Day become Night's greatest Messengers,
Carrying word of Great Cities, Underground Oceans and Life,
Back to the day to see the Sun's light.
 
And in the morning as Night Wind retires,
Bright little faces alight with the glow,
Tell Tales of Valour and Strife into he night,
and condescending pats on their Heads is their plight.
 
Off to your play they are told in the Day,
Enough of this dreaming they are told is the way,
That they are growing up and that this is the Real Way,
Dreams are for nighttime, and not for the day.
 
Dreams are for Dreamers, now you go and Play,
And the Mighty Warriors on the Night go into the Day,
Playing with dolls and trucks and clay,
The mighty forget Night's battles along the way.
 
But Deep in the forest, the cave, and the Dark,
Night Wind lies Dreaming and awaiting the Time,
When Night visions once more take to flight,
And Children of Day become Warriors of the Night.
 
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(583)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:19                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: poem6
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 3a601281
                           Passage   There is a pull inside of me, 
That yearns for my Soul to free, A desire to ride upon the light, 
And not on this world to gaze with sight.   Calling me home, I know 
not where, This geas is laid, if only I dare. Calling me forth the 
pull is strong, Is it here or there I truly belong?   Less and less 
is holding me fast, Freedom calls and the die is cast. Enchanted 
song fills my ears, And upon my cheek are a few wet tears.   
Reaching blindly for the Sun, I burn my fingers and am undone. 
Wanting only a little joy in life,
Instead I find only endless strife.
 
Why do I fight when it never ends,
And always seems my Soul to rend.
Hollow Victory stands unmasked,
And my deepest questions die unasked.
 
Listening to the Sounds of Time,
Only discord seems to rhyme.
Here or there only Time will tell,
When finally I depart this shell.
 
Humor hides the pain within,
Never more to let others in.
Icarus unbound I flew too high,
And dared to try to touch the Sky.
 
Foolish thoughts we mortals dream,
Washed away by Time's uncaring stream.
Shining armor fades with rust,
And on my heart grows another crust.
 
Jagged rips in my soul will heal,
But to trust again seems unreal.
Alone my fate for time to come,
Any other way and I am undone.
 
Wandering unseen throughout the land,
Only silence to take my hand.
Harden my heart for one last stand,
Living untouched as I walk through quicksand.
 
Born in strife and then to die,
All the time we wonder why.
Endless circles in Time we weave,
Until the end our souls will grieve.
 
Tears for the Love we thought we had,
Restless Dreams that leave us sad.
Desires drive us until the end,
Self made demons our hearts to rend.
 
What is the answer only time will tell,
Do I stay in this hollow shell?
Is there more in Life for me,
Or is there only agony.
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(584)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:20                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: poem7
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 3a801281
                         The Prophet
 
Hot black coals where eyes should be,
Staring, staring, endlessly.
Into the future, visions to see,
Of Time and Space his mind is Free.
 
Secrets unfold before the sight,
Life and Death unveiled by the Light,
Stern words tumble from his Lips,
Bits of the future given in little sips.
 
Visions shared for all to hear,
But all he receives is people's fear.
"Go Away", they shout and jeer,
And the only response is a compassionate tear.
 
Tears for the Living, Tears for the Dead,
But there is no where that he can lay his head.
Fire in his eyes for all to see,
And in his heat is Agony.
 
Tears for the Living, Tears for the Dead,
And the wilderness has become his bed.
Fire in his Eyes, Agony in his Heart,
But from his fellows he must depart.
 
No man is a Prophet in his own land,
Family and friends they don't understand.
Wandering over the land and sea,
Alone in a Reality only he can see.
 
 
 
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(585)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:21                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: poem8
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 3aa01281
                         Shadow Hawk
 
Deep in Shadow, hidden from sight,
Wandering by, like a thief in the night.
Slipping through cracks in Reality's wall,
Flying alone through Chaos' Hall.
 
Alone in the world, away from the Light,
Except for the company of the Goddess of the Night.
Deep is the Well of Humanity's Soul,
And deeper still the place I must go.
 
Hawk on the Wing, silent in flight,
Hunter unseen, hidden by night.
Lost in the Shadow, beyond mortal sight,
Ascending beyond the Gods' lofty height.
 
Wings of Fire carry me free,
Far from this place I will be.
Left behind the ones I knew,
Fellow travellers there are but few.
 
Chaos spins by unblinking eyes,
Reality splits and reason flys,
None can follow me in this Place,
Lost to the world without a trace.
 
Realities come and Realities fall,
Yet onward I fly heeding the Unknown call.
Farther and faster the message I heed,
Flying alone, spurred on by need.
 
None may go where Chaos hold court,
But there my mind seems to cavort.
Alone and silent I scream in the dark,
While visions and sunbursts tear me apart.
 
Realities flow with plastic speed,
Angels and Demons from me do feed.
The world whirls wildly around the Tree,
But soon, I know, I will be free.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(586)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:23                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: poem9 part 1/2
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 3ae01281
                            Storm
 
Lightning flashing, wind howls through trees,
Storm is rising, Mortals flee.
Like armies marching, clouds parade by,
Thunder shaking, rain hides the sky.
 
Earth trembles under Titan's fist,
As Elementals meet in their violent tryst.
Jagged bolts from Heaven descend,
Earth and Tree their goal to rend.
 
Fierce are the powers of the storm,
Chaos rules and dissolves Reality's form.
Fear walks the Earth in the Lightning's stark Kiss,
While rain hides the Shadows in Unholy mists.
 
But like all things this to must pass,
And after a time, storm ceases to harass,
The wind abates and the thunder mutes,
And Lightning ends it's violent pursuit.
 
Sun peeks shyly from behind Thunderhead,
And a faint rainbow across the sky does thread.
One lone frog begins to sing,
And a few bright birds take to wing.
 
Slowly the mortal creatures crawl forth,
To bask in the Sun's strengthening warmth,
But even as the light returns to day,
Elsewhere Storm will enter the fray.
 
Storm into peace, night into day,
This is the circle, the Divine at play.
First one then the Other is the cycle of Life,
No stagnation, no quiet, just unending strife.
 
 
 
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(587)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:24                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: poem9 2/2 cont.
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 3b001281
                 Storm (cont)
 
 
The Circle of Life is the Game we play,
While upon this Earth our bodies decay,
And when our storm of Life goes by,
Into the Light we must all die.
 
Life into death, dark into light,
This is the Circle, the Divine delight,
To experience death, and be reborn from the night,
To once again behold Divine Starlight.
 
Circling endlessly Eons fly past,
But even this too in the end won't last,
When the last sparrow falls and Life draws to a close,
The last to die is one final rose.
 
When all is merged in Divine Bliss,
And nothing is left the Divine to kiss,
Then up from the wells of Chaos will flow,
New Life, new forms the Divine to know.
 
Cycle upon cycle, Life upon death,
The Eternal cycle, Brahman's breath,
Form into Chaos, Chaos into form,
This is the Rule to which Life will conform.
 
One rule for life, one rule alone,
That nothing is Changeless, and Chaos follows form,
One Rule for Day and One rule for Night,
That Nothing is Eternal in the Eternal's sight.
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(588)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:25                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: poem10
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 3b201281
                            Jewel
 
 
Sparkling like a priceless gem,
Your eyes glisten, a living diadem.
Touched from the past brought forth Today,
And once again my Heart is brought to bay.
 
I remember when we rode the Field,
Banner flying, raised the shield,
And then the time we loved and lost,
As the unforgiving sea claimed a deadly cost.
 
Once in a village, poor and downtrodden,
Once with new birth our life was broken,
Lover I remember you when,
Ages past we wandered a glen.
 
Many lives have come and gone,
But for a while, with you I would be alone.
An oasis in the desert of life,
An island of Joy in an ocean of Strife.
 
It seems so strange the day we met,
Our eyes crossed briefly and our gazes met.
Stars in our eyes we heard them say,
But then you had to turn away.
 
Departing you went with backwards gaze,
My eyes followed you gently and my heart was ablaze.
Visions of the Past and Future days,
And all I could see was the Sun's bright rays.
 
It seems so fateful that you walked in that day,
And to your smile my heart fell prey,
Eyes that dance filled with moonbeams of light,
While under your breast beats a heart filled with Life.
 
Into my arms I call you to me,
Eager our love to set free,
Into the air, like Hawks on the wing,
My love I give to you without any strings.
 
You say that you need time to be sure,
Lover, I tell you, that our love will endure.
This lifetime or next, only time will see,
But sooner or later, our love it will be.
 
Shining like diamonds caught in the sky,
A beacon for others, calling them to fly,
Showing no limits, teaching others to be free,
Visions of Love and Life we will be.
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(589)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:29                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: poem12 1/2
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 3ba01281
                      The Shaman's Call
 
The Night Bird's call draws evening near,
Stars and planets in the Darkening Sky appear,
People of the day to their beds retire,
Except for some Old Souls about a fire.
 
Sounds begin to rule the night,
As the Sun's bright rays fade from sight.
Evening noises begin to grow,
Cricket, Owl, and Wolf's lone howl.
 
Deeper into the Night we go,
The landscape lit by the fire's glow,
One old man begins to sway,
And one lone drum begins to play.
 
Boom goes the drumbeat soft and slow,
Tapping out the Heartbeat of the World Below,
Boom echoes the drumbeat's call to go,
To begin the ride to the World Below.
 
The flames leap high into the night,
And the World around us takes to flight,
Senses shift in the darking light,
And the Darkest Cave draws our sight.
 
Enter the Cavern, down we speed,
Into the Underworld the Drumbeat leads.
Faster than Dragon, than Hawk, than Snake,
Down the path the Shaman's feet race.
 
Deeper and deeper into the Womb of the Night,
Till up ahead appears the Light.
Boom thunders the drum, and the walls seem to shake,
And out of the Cavern I stop by a lake.
 
I look around and I see Land so bright,
That I know mortal eyes have never beheld this sight.
In the Sky wheels Gods and Dragons in Flight,
While bathing in the Lake is the Goddess of the Night.
 
Her eyes see me clearly#and I'm pierced by their Sight,
There is no hiding in the Night of Her Light.
The Animals come to Her call#as she sings,
And drumbeat from above gives me wings.
 
Into the Sky my form changes still,
On Hawk wings I ascend from the hill.
Higher and higher into the Magical Sky,
I soar on Wings lit in Magical Fire.
 
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(590)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:30                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: poem12 2/2
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 3bc01281
                   Shaman Call (cont)
 
 
This Bond, this chain, this freedom sublime,
The Shaman's gift, boon, bane, the Drumbeat Divine.
The Dream that brings Visions into the Night,
The Night that is brighter than any Daylight.
 
The sight of a Tree draws me near,
The Great World Tree has brought me here.
The Tree of All Knowledge grows out of sight,
Even Hawk eyes are dimmed by it's light.
 
Form changes swiftly, Snake am I now,
Across the World Tree I wander uncowed.
The Tree of Life, of Knowledge, of Power and Death,
The Tree that for Shaman will give Shaman Breath.
 
The Drum fills my body,
My brain is on fire,
Visions of Forces dance in the Light,
And the drumbeat caresses me, somewhere in the Night.
 
The Tree fades from view,
My Soul takes to flight,
And into the World, Dragon Stalks the Night.
Back to the Cavern the worm passes nigh.
 
Drumbeat calls, caresses, commands,
Back to the Waking World the drumbeat demands.
Up through the cave I ascend in the Night,
Form shifts so slightly in my bemused sight.
 
Dragon claws to Human feet,
And to the fire where the Shaman meet.
Around the fire slowly the Drummer keeps beat,
Drawing home the Voyagers to the fire's night heat.
 
Glazed expressions look into the night,
But in Shaman's eye is still the Light.
Slack faced expressions for others to see,
But in Shaman's eye, is the Fire that Frees.
 
Shaman stares into the fire,
Then quietly into the night he retires.
Off to his rest he fades from sight,
Until the Drum calls once more to Night's Light.
 
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(591)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:31                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: poem11
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 3be01281
                       Tattered Dreams
 
 
A gently cast word was all you said,
An insight I missed, and I was undone.
All my dreams went up in smoke,
And all the hopes have died.
 
Gone is the quest for Mother Divine,
And Reality's cruel light on me does shine.
The armor is rusted and the reasons worn,
And the mighty Quest of it's mystery is shorn.
 
Grand dreams of the Goddess and Love to be found,
When all is revealed dreams fall to the ground.
It is all Oedepus they say with glee,
And with a few long words pass judgement on me.
 
Nothing so simple as to turn on the light,
But did you have to strip me of my Dreams in the night?
What reason now to strive for insight,
When it all means nothing in the Afterlife
 
There is a hole in my chest where my Heart used to be,
And the cold is so deep I am in agony.
Feeling nothing but pain and loss,
Is this the Abyss that I must cross?
 
My footsteps falter and my sight is dim,
And the path seems so less Glorious than it used to be.
Gone is the desire to search for the right,
Lost is the Quest in reality's cruel light.
 
Now I lay me down to sleep,
Is there a Lord my soul to keep?
These are the questions that haunt my mind,
And all my friends try hard to be kind.
 
Feeling betrayed by my own desire,
And now my Love is on the funeral pyre.
Ashes to ashes Love will return,
But is there anything left in my Soul to burn?
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(592)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:32                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: poems13
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 3c001281
                           The Gift
 
 
I offer to you with these my hands,
Gifts of Wonders and far off lands,
Visions of Castles and Fairies by Night,
Flights to the Moon by broad Daylight.
 
In Love I offer these treasures rare,
But all I get is a bemused stare,
Hiding behind your walls so strong,
Do you think I believe that your Love is gone?
 
Fear is the lock that binds the door,
Love is the key that I search for,
Holding you near is what I desire,
To join me in Love's burning Fire.
 
Kindred souls call from the Abyss,
When Love's barbed arrows have flown amiss,
Fortunes change and time flys by,
But remember my Love, my Heart's desire.
 
Time heals all wounds and such they say,
But it causes memories to fade away,
Remember me with outstretched arms,
Gifts of love surrendered to your charms.
 
Time will pass, as time will do,
But always my thoughts will return to you.
Perhaps some day when fortunes change,
And Fate our hands have rearranged.
 
Our paths will cross again some day,
And for your heart these words I say,
Take my hand for my heart beats True,
And Love is the Gift I would give to you.
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(593)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:41                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: poem6 1/2
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 3d201281
                             Pain
 
 
Sitting alone once more in the room,
Noone there to disturb the gloom.
Heavy weighs the hours that pass,
Deep is the hour that holds me fast.
 
Tis better to have Loved and Lost they say,
But it seems this ache will never go away.
Love is fleeting, never standing still,
But in the end of pain we drink our fill.
 
What holds my heart in grasp so cold?
Eager it seems my soul to enfold.
Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter Here,
The Trail of Love has much to fear.
 
Time goes by one second at a time,
Still from this darkness I must climb.
Without love my Life stands still,
And once more I walk on Love's cursed hill.
 
Laughter fills my ears with Life,
And gentleness empties my heart of strife.
Slowly I open, once more to the one,
That all of my cautious ways has undone.
 
Deep into my life she wends her way,
She who has entered my Heart to Play.
Giving my Love the one priceless gift,
Promising always our Love to uplift.
 
(cont)
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(594)   Sat 1 Apr 89  7:42                              
By: Shadow Hawk
To: All
Re: poem6 2/2
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:1029 3d401281
                             Pain (cont)
 
Cold grips my heart and my mind stands still,
Once more I must swallow this bitter pill.
Dreams dashed in the cruel hard light,
Then once more I embrace the night.
 
Cold fills my heart in the Dark of Night,
And to my room I take solitary flight.
Shunning once more the light of Day,
Pain once more is here to stay.
 
Where is the one who's love I'll share,
The lady of my Heart's desire.
One who will love me and never stray,
One who's heart is here to stay.
 
 
Lonely in my room at night,
Looking for my love in Dream's light.
Cold is my life without Love's Fire,
My Heart lies waiting like a Funeral Pyre.
 
Phoenex rising from ashes grown cold,
Heart once more by love sold.
Heart beats quicker as she draws near,
As the heat begins to sear.
 
Once more I open, drawn by Her light,
Like a flower that dies once alone in the night.
Fearing hurt by Love's consuming fire,
All my defenses fall on the pyre.
 
Giving my Love all in Love's name,
I give myself once more in the Game.
Trembling at my Lover's side,
Fearing.
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: Baker Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(595)   Fri 7 Apr 89  3:39                              
By: Tim Maroney
To: Mike Nichols
Re: Awful truths of ritual tampering unveiled! (1 of 3)
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:954a 12871cfb

MN> By now, I felt miffed that my own traditon seemed to be at 
variance 
MN> with most published sources.  [...]  The very thought of Air in 
the 
MN> East offended both my sense of reason and my gut-level mythic 
MN> sensibilities. [...]  Suddenly, I felt sure I knew the reason! 
MN> Somewhere along the line, someone had deliberately tampered 
with  MN> the information! 
 
Lest the reader become breathless with anticipation, we must 
announce 
at this point that it is not Mr. Nichols's tradition that has 
suffered 
this foul inversion, this base perfidy, the altogether dangerous 
rearrangement of the most sacred symbols known to humanity, the 
compass directions and the ancient Greek elements!  Instead, it is 
simply that everyone else is wrong and he is right.   

And banish at once those ideas that such a sacred communion of 
ideas is 
subject to multiple interpretations, that North might be Airy by 
one  reckoning and Earthy to others equally valid.  The Platonic 
ideals of 
the directions and the elements are real and immutable; they live 
on  the Eleventh Astral Plane and I visited them last Wednesday. 
 
The purity of the derivation of Nichol's attribution is obvious 
from the 
mystery of the source itself.  As witness: 

MN> After much thought, I remembered having copied my 
MN> own elemental/directional associations from another Witch's 
Book  MN> of Shadows, her Book representing (so she claimed) an old 
Welsh 
MN> tradition.  Perhaps I'd copied it down wrong?  A quick 
MN> long-distance phone call put my mind at ease on that score. 
MN> (When I asked her where she'd gotten it, she said she THOUGHT 
it  MN> was from an even older Book of Shadows, but she wasn't 
certain.) 
 
Then again, perhaps her Aunt Mary whispered it in in her ear or she 
made 
it up.  The least we can say is that this seems at variance with 
the even 
more tedious section above (not quoted here) about how laborious 
the  process of copying the Book of Shadows once was.  Now, 
apparently, copying 
the main Book of Shadows of one's life is not only the work of a 
moment, 
lightly forgotten, but copying the ONE TRUE UNTAMPERED WELSH 99.9% 
PURE 
BOOK OF SHADOWS is nothing one would be likely to remember having 
done 
with any clarity. 

(more) 

---
 * Origin: ThelemaNet - Hail Eris! * (415) 548-0163 (Opus 1:161/93)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(596)   Fri 7 Apr 89  3:40                              
By: Tim Maroney
To: Mike Nichols
Re: Awful truths of ritual tampering unveiled! (2 of 3)
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:954a 12871d18

MN> It is only when you are initiated into the lodge that you will 
be 
MN> given the COMPLETE and/or CORRECTED versions of their rituals. 
MN> This is how such groups guard their secrets.  (And it is a 
MN> telling postscript that many scholars now believe modern 
MN> Witchcraft to have "borrowed" its directional/elemental 
MN> correspondences from ceremonial magic sources!  What a laugh if 
MN> this was Crowley's last best joke on his friend Gerald 
Gardner!)   
Nichol's boundless sense of wit never fails to fill the reader with 
a 
thrill of delight.  But the joke bears some explanation.  It is 
thoroughly laughable that Neo-Paganism for the most part uses the 
CM direction-element attributions, because obviously .. er ... what 
was it again?  I can find at least three different elemental 
attributions of the directions in six pages of the basic CM 
instruction 
manual Liber O.  What CM reading on this weighty matter is 
"authoritative"?  Why is there any preferred attribution at all, 
rather 
than one of convenience?  Why should I feel any less at ease in a 
workspace banished with one symbol-pairing rather than the other? 

MN> I remember the first time I became aware of such deliberate 
MN> ritual tampering.  A friend of mine had been making a study of 
MN> the so-called "planetary squares", talismans that look like 
MN> magic squares consisting of a grid of numbers in some cryptic 
MN> order.  [...]  he began coloring the grids  [...]   Six 
MN> of the planetary squares yeilded pleasing patterns of color. 
MN> Then there was the Sun square!  Against all expectation, the 
MN> colors were a random jumble, with no patterns emerging.  Thus, 
MN> he began his quest for the CORRECTED Sun square.  And I became 
MN> convinced of the reality of ritual tampering. 
 
Could even the basest skeptic among us deny that this is evidence 
of  the most solid nature?  Pray tell us, what is this corrected 
square, 
so that our minds may be boudlessly filled with the effulgent light 
of the Norsemen. 
 
(more) 

---
 * Origin: ThelemaNet - Hail Eris! * (415) 548-0163 (Opus 1:161/93)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(597)   Fri 7 Apr 89  3:41                              
By: Tim Maroney
To: Mike Nichols
Re: Awful truths of ritual tampering unveiled! (3 of 3)
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:954a 12871d2d

Only messages 1, 2 and 4 of the 5 turned up here, spelling out 
points seven 
to ten.  Without commenting on the other points, these four are 
wonderful 
examples of the kind of mythical synthesis that happens in ritual 
practice. 
Nichols's arrangement sees parallels with the Tuatha De Danaan, the 
Eastern 
symbolism of mountains, the Northern (!) Wales wind god, the fact 
that his 
arrangement is boy-girl-boy-girl using what he assures us are the 
correct 
attributions of the elements to the genders, an analogy to 
electrical 
generators, and something about a "MASCULINE-FEMININE AXIS" meaning 
that 
males must face each other and females must face each other. 
 
He carefully ignores the ideas that perhaps male should face female 
to symbolize their union, that electrical motors switch rapidly 
between 
polarities, that mountains are of Earth (and quite a lot of it 
too), that 
perhaps the Eastern elemental systems are preferable to those of 
Greek 
philosophy, that perhaps he should not use the Eastern mountains 
without 
the Eastern elements, that every god or other came from some 
direction 
or another and that by careful reading one could "prove" any 
attribution 
of the directions by these means, and so on. 
 
Nor indeed does he consider any idea contrary to his attribution.  
And 
why should he?  This is all for effect.  However, I am bothered by 
the 
preposterous and self-serving conclusion that Nichols's arrangement 
has 
a sacred direct line of transmission from the Unseen Ancient Welsh 
Elders 
while everyone else was duped by ritual tampering. 
 
There are senses in which Earth is male and Fire is female.  Water 
may be female to the average American, but it is male to the 
dweller  in the flood-zones and the fisher caught at sea.  And 
history is a 
thing of evidence, not wild-eyed and self-pleasing speculation. 
 
Tim Maroney 

---
 * Origin: ThelemaNet - Hail Eris! * (415) 548-0163 (Opus 1:161/93)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(598)   Fri 21 Apr 89 20:21                             
By: Michelle Hass
To: All
Re: My resignation, Pt. 1
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:c75e 1295a2b7

This originally was posted to EarthLink, and was my formal 
resignation of my moderatorship. Acting moderator at this point is 
Blanche Nonken.
Perhaps I should explain why...
For all on EarthLink: this is why I resigned the moderatorship.
    MK-H
    *
    CHILDHOOD'S END, OR: HOW I LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND REJECT 
THE
    CONCEPT OF GOD
    by Michelle Klein-Hass
    *
        For most of my life, I have been the embodiment of the 
cliche of
    the "seeker". I have been through everything from Hebrew 
Christianity
    to Tibetan Buddhism with stops in Scientology, ritual Magick, 
Native
    American-influenced Neo Paganism, unorthodox Vaishnavite 
Hinduism (I
    never BECAME a Hare Krishna but chanted and meditated in a 
similar
    fashion) and other "new age" (that term goes much farther back 
than the
    contemporary Crystal Weenies) practices.  I began my search in 
1975
    when my father, a wonderful man who was suffering for four 
years with
    Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, finally succumbed to that 
disease. I
    couldn't handle it. I was an intelligent, slightly bookish kid 
with a
    faith in the god of my Jewish ancestors that was founded, in a 
large
    part, by the instruction my father gave me. He was devoutly 
Jewish in
    his own way, although he poo-pooed the Kosher laws and went out 
looking
    at potential candidates for auctions (he was an auctioneer and a
    successful one at that...if it weren't for his illness he 
probably
    would have parlayed his abilities into a small fortune) even on
    Saturday, the Shabbat.  But he loved his god. He was fiercely 
proud to
    be Jewish, and attempted to instill that pride in me.
        When my father took ill, he took it in stride, but fought 
fiercely
    against it. He didn't see the disease as "god's will", not as 
"god's
    punishment", but a challenge to surmount. He loved his life, 
and fought
    for it with every breath he took. He was finally defeated by his
    disease, but he never surrendered. In a way, his concept of a 
deity was
    much like the Deism of the Founding Fathers. There was a great 
design,
    and a great designer, but when it comes to your own life, you 
are the
    architect of your fate. To quote a favorite quotation of his, 
"God
    helps those who help themselves." His politics were of the 
classic
    conservative variety, the conservatism of limited government 
and free
    markets. In the face of the fanaticism of the New Right and 
Reaganism,
    he would've probably disowned his affiliation with the 
Republicans, but
    that's merely conjecture.
        When Dad finally died, I really freaked. God was supposed 
to be
    just, right? Dad was a good man, why didn't the god he was so 
faithful
    to heal him? I resolved to try to find out why.
        The worst situation was when I adopted Messianic Judaism, a
    variation on Born-Again Christianity with a definate overlay of 
Jewish
    traditions. I had to swallow something even worse than the 
concept of
    god being unjust in not healing my father. Since my father didn't
    "accept Christ", but stubbornly stuck to his Judaism, not only 
was he


---
 * Origin: Tahuti-Net / Eagle Rock, CA  (213) 258-5724 (Opus 
1:102/862)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(599)   Fri 21 Apr 89 20:25                             
By: Michelle Hass
To: All
Re: resignation 1a
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:c75e 1295a334

In essence, what the last part of this post was all about was how 
Messianic Judaism was so hurtful to me, and about how Born-Again 
Christianity in general was responsible for the problems that 
Reaganomics caused. Part 2 follows.
MK-H


---
 * Origin: Tahuti-Net / Eagle Rock, CA  (213) 258-5724 (Opus 
1:102/862)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(600)   Fri 21 Apr 89 20:27                             
By: Michelle Hass
To: All
Re: resignation pt.2
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:c75e 1295a37a

 (continued from last post)
        I eventually kind of faded away from my initial "decision for
    Yeshua ha'Moshiach" after becoming entangled in a nasty political
    feud at a local church that I was attending; and being totally
    powerless to do anything because "the Bible says that women 
should
    remain silent in church." I also questioned the Biblical attitude
    about sex. Why was it that god made sex so pleasant if it was so
    damn sinful? My final break came when I fell in love with a young
    man and desired him sexually. When I finally "gave in", I 
realized
    that, no, I wasn't struck dead by lightning. No, I didn't feel 
guilt.
    I just felt GOOD. And apparently, feeling GOOD was a sin if you
    weren't feeling GOOD because of being "spirit filled" or in a 
state
    of religious ecstacy.
        My voyages continued, through Magick and Neo-Paganism, 
until last
    year around this time when I was introduced to the philosophical
    works of Ayn Rand by my friend Laura Rift. Our husbands were 
off on
    tour in Europe with their band (Zoogz Rift and Nonentity, aka 
Zoogz
    Rift and His Amazing Shitheads) and we spent some time together
    hanging out.
        I liked a lot of what I was reading. Here was a person who,
    rather than damning the mind, CELEBRATED it. Here was a person 
that
    believed that humanity, by using reason and logic, was capable of
    fixing their problems. I began to feel like that woman in "So 
Long
    And Thanks For All The Fish" by Douglas Adams who all the sudden
    realized, while having her afternoon tea, that "...[T]he world 
is a
    good and perfect place. It is in fact very easy." Humanity had 
the
    ability, through USING their brains rather than sitting on 
them, to
    solve all their problems. Through freedom of enterprise, nagging
    problems like hunger and unemployment could be solved, and no-one
    would need to sacrifice themselves to do it. There was a 
crystalline
    beauty and simplicity, without being pat about it, to her 
writings.
    And above all, the definate ring of truth.
        One thing was for sure, however. I absolutely could NOT 
handle
    her metaphysics. Sure, organized religion was the root of a 
horrible
    amount of evil. The Reagan Administration, with its ethical 
base in
    the twisted code of Fundamentalist Christianity, had left us 
with a
    very scary budget deficit and an economy wracked by the selective
    deregulation of some industries, the regulatory clampdown of
    others, and the downright governmental coddling of others. Small
    businesses felt the bite of regulation and taxation, while 
certain
    tax incentives given during the Reagan administration allowed
    arbitrageurs to go in and take over companies, gut them, and 
carry
    home the profit. Rather than the examples of Hank Rearden, Dagny
    Taggart, and Francisco d'Anconia of "Atlas Shrugged", the ideal
    tycoon began to resemble Gordon Gekko of the movie "Wall Street"
    and Alexis Carrington-Colby and J.R. Ewing of the TV prime time
    soaps "Dynasty" and "Dallas". It was, at its base, the ends-
    justify-the-means ethic of the Fundies that gave
    us the ruins of the Reagan Administration. But I digress.
    (more next post)


---
 * Origin: Tahuti-Net / Eagle Rock, CA  (213) 258-5724 (Opus 
1:102/862)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(601)   Fri 21 Apr 89 20:29                             
By: Michelle Hass
To: All
Re: resignation, Pt.3
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:c75e 1295a3b6

 (continued from last post)
        Anyhow, I rejected such a horror. But as a Neo Pagan 
Shamanist,
    I could not reject the goddesses and gods that I felt so damn 
close
    to. I had experienced too much that could not be explained by 
"mere"
    materialist means. I felt a deep and abiding love for the Earth
    Mother and the Sky Father, as Chiricahua Apache tradition 
referred
    to the Neo-Pagan concepts of goddess and god, and couldn't let 
them
    go. And besides, through the "shamanic journey", I felt that I
    experienced them and experienced both my "lower", animal,
    instinctive self in the form of the Power Animal, and my 
"higher" self
    in the form of the Inner Shaman during those journeys. The 
journeys
    made me feel good, and gave me a feeling of self-confidence.
        The reading of a remarkable book, "Snapping" and a few other
    scientific studies of religious ecstacy and altered states of
    consciousness, made me realize what caused the experiences. The
    drumming, the chanting and dancing of the ceremonials, the 
drumming
    during the journeying exercises, and the drumming, chanting and
    intense heat of the sweatlodge all worked to plasticise 
perception,
    to make reality seem malleable, and induce hallucinations, 
"visions"
    if you will. It is similar to the effect of the singing, 
chanting,
    rhythmic music and "speaking in tongues" at a Fundie revival, the
    chanting and ecstatic dancing in Sufi and Hindu practice, and 
similar
    practices in in other religions. In a situation where fasting and
    sleep-deprivation are also combined, the "snapping" experience 
and
    subsequent hallucinations are even more intense. When these
    experiences are combined with the persuasion techniques, "love
    bombing" and whatnot used by the mind-controlling cults to cause
    conversion, the effect is the zombie-like state that cult members
    find themselves in, a twisted, endless dreamtime.
        Now, I am not saying that I believe that religion is a bad 
thing
    for all. If you feel comfortable abandoning your reasoning mind 
for
    awhile, that's OK, I guess. Most religious groups whose rituals 
have
    elements of altered states of consciousness, of the ecstatic, 
are NOT
    cults or cultish. If those groups also use methods of mind 
control,
    milieu control and coersion, they are cults. I would say that 
P.E.I.
    Bonewits' "Cult Evaluation Frame" is a good guideline to figure 
out
    whether a religious group is a cult or not. I still firmly 
believe in
    the freedoms of religious expression that the Constitution 
ensures. I
    will not put down anyone who wishes to continue on any 
spiritual path
    they choose. But as for myself, I realize that although I may 
have
    benefitted from the practices I used in my practice of the 
Shamanic
    Neo-Paganism, it has ceased to be beneficial, and in fact an
    impediment to my perception of reality AS IT IS.
    (continued next post)


---
 * Origin: Tahuti-Net / Eagle Rock, CA  (213) 258-5724 (Opus 
1:102/862)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(602)   Fri 21 Apr 89 20:31                             
By: Michelle Hass
To: All
Re: resignation, pt 4
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:c75e 1295a3ef

 (continued from last post)
        In the metaphysical universe of Rand and her philosophical
    heirs, as well as the universe of her predecessors Aristotle, 
John
    Locke, and other neo-Aristotelian philosophers of the Age of 
Reason,
    reality is totally consistent. Existence exists. The world is the
    world. What you see is by and large what you get. Any
    inconsistencies can be blamed on faulty perception or faulty
    conceptualization, rather than reality being illusive. There 
are no
    other worlds, no "true reality" beyond this one. Reality is 
knowable
    through your senses, by the process of conceptualization your 
mind
    uses to interpret the raw data from your senses, and through the
    process of reasoning known commonly as "the scientific method." 
If
    reality is reality, no reality BEYOND reality is possible. Thus,
    extending this logical process, there could be no supreme 
being. A
    supreme being or beings would entail the negation of
    any ability we have to perceive and conceptualize. If the world 
we
    perceive is an illusion, maya, whatever, and that the true 
world is
    unknowable, than ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN at ANY TIME and ANYTHING YOU
    KNOW CAN BE TRUE, FALSE OR TRUE *AND* FALSE AT THE SAME TIME.
        Since a lot of you are hackers, imagine trying to program a
    computer this way. A variable can mean one thing one time, 
another
    contradictory thing another time, or both or neither at the same
    time. The instruction "lprint" (I program in Turbo Basic, so
    naturally all my metaphors would come from this...sorry all you C
    and Pascal hackers!) would mean "print to the printer" in one 
line
    of the code and "randomize a three-digit integer" in another. No
    matter how you beg or cajole the computer, it won't do what you 
say.
    The computer knows, by the logical axioms it uses to interpret 
the
    code, that "lprint" means "print to the printer", and will mean
    "print to the printer" in the foreseeable future. The computer 
will
    either reject a variable that is defined one way in one line and
    another in another, or act on the assumption that "this code 
defined
    A as A and whenever A shows up as a variable it means A" and 
not do
    what you want it to do.
        So it is with reality. Like Zoogz Rift says in one of his 
tunes,
    "Reality is what it is/Regardless of what you would like."* I 
really
    would LIKE to believe in Earth Mother and Sky Father as more than
    idealized representations of things in nature, as divine 
entities.
    But they aren't. Earth and sky are sacred in that they are 
special,
    and important, and they are the only planet and atmosphere we
    have. To despoil them is not just "Ecocide", but suicide qua you
    and murder qua the rest of your fellow human beings. Deifying 
them
    is not the answer to the ecological holocaust, but science and
    rational conservation working hand in hand to help our planet out
    of danger IS.
    (concluded next post)


---
 * Origin: Tahuti-Net / Eagle Rock, CA  (213) 258-5724 (Opus 
1:102/862)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(603)   Fri 21 Apr 89 20:33                             
By: Michelle Hass
To: All
Re: resignation: conclusion
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:c75e 1295a42d

 (continued from last post)
        So, there you have it. I have been through quite a spiritual
    journey. From Reform Judaism to Hinduism to Scientology to 
Tibetan
    Buddhism to Messianic Judaism/Born Again Christianity to White
    Magick to Shamanic Neo Paganism to reason and reality. It's as if
    I'm coming off some kind of Disneyland ride and emerging into
    daylight again, squinting my eyes to adjust to the bright 
sunlight
    of reality. It isn't a bad reality either. It simply lacks a 
deity
    pulling the strings. In the book "The King Of The Swords" by
    Michael Moorcock, the hero, Corum Jhalen Irsei, is walking 
through
    a heaven in ruins with the demigods Rhynn and Pwyll. Rhynn 
explains
    that the two of them have slain all the gods in the realms of 
Chaos
    and Law. Corum is horrified. He objects to the fact that they had
    slain the "good" gods of Law as well as the Lords Of Chaos, which
    he saw as evil. Rhynn tells him to find the good he so admired in
    the Lords of Law in himself, and furthermore told him that "the
    Multiverse is better off without gods." It is a reality where
    one cannot avail themselves of divine intervention, but one also
    where the only authority one has to answer to is one's own
    conscience, and the only law one need concern themselves with 
is to
    not infringe on the natural rights of others while pursuing their
    own goals. Does that sound like "An It Harm None, Do What Thou
    Wilt"? Sure it does. It's not a bad way of summing up Objectivist
    ethics.
        To paraphrase someone whose name escapes me right now,
    religion is an old explanation for the ways of the world that has
    outlived its usefulness, at least where I am concerned. This is 
why
    I am doing the exact opposite of what the Church of All The 
Worlds
    did when faced with the contradiction between Ayn Rand and their
    metaphysics, and resigning from the Neo Pagan movement. I wish 
you
    well. I will continue to fight with all the strength I have to
    protect your right to freedom of worship and freedom of speech. I
    will probably continue to put out the X-Hate anthologies, seeing
    that the Fundies are perhaps the greatest threat to America's
    Constitutional freedom that's out there. And I will continue to
    extend my hand of friendship to all of you. (If you're out
    there, Rowan Moonstone, please get in touch with me through 
Blanche
    Nonken!!! Or write...my address has not changed!) I wish you the
    most joyous and glorious of Beltanes...and who knows, that curly
    haired, pudgy lady with the clear plastic dweeboid glasses 
ahead of
    you as you dance around the maypole may well be me.
    Yours in Reason,
    Michelle Klein-Hass
    19 April 1989
    * From "A=A" by Zoogz Rift (c) 1988 Miss Anne Thrope Music


---
 * Origin: Tahuti-Net / Eagle Rock, CA  (213) 258-5724 (Opus 
1:102/862)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(604)   Fri 28 Apr 89 23:50                             
By: Jack Ofshadows
To: All Magicians
Re: The Dweller On The Threshold
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:3948 129cbe59

The following is from a very good book 
called:DIVINATION BY MAGIC,by Noud van
 den Eerenbeemt. The subtitle is:Secret
 instructions of an Esoteric
 lodge,contained in letters from an
 initiate to a neophyte,...
*****************Quote*****************
     There are powers of memory and   
 powers that lie hidden to the soul.And as
 above(we have quoted this before) so
 below,or shall we say,as below so
 above?
when these powers fall from the
 macrocosm on unprepared,ignorant
 people,they suffer from mental cramp
 and emotional disturbances,which then 
 express themselves in the form of
 megalomania,passion,delusions of
 grandure and
 genius,insanity,possession,spontaneous
 astral projection,ect.This is why in
 the occult systems of India,such
 stress is layed on not attracting such
 powers lightly.
     "Anyone who does not percieve the
 essential character of Saturn,the
 'Dweller on the Threshold',will come
 to regret it.It is fatal to expose
 oneself to the influence of certain
 radiations without having activated
 the corresponding force center in
 one's own personality."
**
To which I might add:
**
     The Dweller On The Threshold  
 refers to  the darkness and opposition within the
 psyche of each magician at the
 beginning of their training.We must
 gain addmittance from this "Guard"
 within.If we choose the Dark over the
 Light,the Guard will eventually judge
 and execute us;if we force the
 doors,the guard will die,and open us
 to ALL passing forces-no matter how
 destructive to us and others.


---
 * Origin: ThelemaNet - Hail Eris! * (415) 548-0163 (Opus 1:161/93)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(605)   Fri 28 Apr 89 23:57                             
By: Jack Ofshadows
To: All
Re: Dweller On The Threshold 2
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:3948 129cbf28

****************************************     The Dweller On The 
Threshold is
the ancient name for a part of the
 personality which manifests when
the novice starts using magic.
 It is like a monster-within that
will misuse the Art in some way, and
 must become an ally, or it will act as
 an enemy.
     An example would be the best way
 to explain this. There was a student
 of magic who was one of those
 individuals who did not like anyone,
 and had difficulty getting people to
 like him.  What he did not realize,
 was that his misanthropy was a defence
 against extreamly destructive self
 critisism.
    Instead of using the Art to improve
 his life, he began to use it to
 control the women in his imediate
 domaine. Because
he did not like the women he screwed,
and only used them for his own
gratification, he used Love Spells and
Spells Of Domination instead of Love
and Caring to seduce. What he was told
,over and over, by his teacher, but his Dweller blocked
him from remembering, was that Love
Spells are a two way street; they not
only affect the target, but also the
Magician. One of the women he seduced
was an obveous mistake who twisted his
emotions this way and that, and finally
left him. After the breakup, the
magician could not disengage,and made a
fool of himself publicly several times,
 began drinking heavily, and finally
killed himself in a messy violent way.
    The Dweller On The Threshold, in
this case, consisted of his extream
dislike of other people;which, in
addition to keeping him safe from the
wrong people (teaching magicians and
hookers) also made his sex life a
disaster. Once he was able to use the
Art to overcome the resistance of his sex partners, by implanting 
the suggestion that they loved him, the Art
also allowed him to become enfatuated
with a sociopath. An obsession  was started with someone who was 
better at the endgame of useing those who they like; was imune to his
'charms,' and used him for her own
perposes. It could also be pointed out
that the Hooker was doing to him what
he was doing to himself and the other
women in his life. Karma? The seeds
of one's own distruction? Who knows?
But one thing is for sure, he would
still be alive today if he had made a
friend of his Dweller.   


---
 * Origin: ThelemaNet - Hail Eris! * (415) 548-0163 (Opus 1:161/93)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(606)   Tue 2 May 89  6:26                              
By: Jack Ofshadows
To: Magicians
Re: Magic Force 1of2
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:3948 12a23351

Casting Spells and Working Magic. What
 makes Magic Work.
By Jack Of Shadows.
    Some writers of occult books assert
 that all one has to do, to use magic
 to affect external events, is to
 concentrate. This is a partial error.       Concentration is a
 necessary skill to employ; However, it is not what makes the spell 
work. The magician must assume a state of consciousness, which,
in the tech language of ritual, is
 called
'merging,' if he is to effect EXTERNAL events. A
 Work such as a wisdom spell, which only effects the operator, and 
occasionally the external
world as a secondary effect, only
requires concentration, because it is
 an act of self suggestion. Merging,
 however, is an
altered state of consciousness which
puts the magician in touch with the
Akasha principal, the name for a Etheric substance which the 
objects of the physical world are only a small
part of, the part that is solid
 enough(lower in frequency) to
activate biological receptors, and can
 be
seen in the visible light spectrum.
   Having a backround in physics
 enhances, rather than refutes
an understanding of this principal, as
 long as the existence of metaphysics
 is understood.
    As you know, the model explaining
 why a magnet has permeability is just
that, a model. No one has ever seen all
those atoms line up, pole to pole, to
create magnetism; no one really
understands magnetism,  only how to use
it. The reason for the elusive nature of magnetic force,
 is an illusion caused by our
 limited present knowledge of matter in general. To state the truth 
simply
 is: ( this will blow your
mind off its hinges if you think hard
enough about it), THE MAGNETISM COMES
FROM OUTSIDE THE MAGNET, not inside as
has been postulated by other sources.


---
 * Origin: ThelemaNet - Hail Eris! * (415) 548-0163 (Opus 1:161/93)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(607)   Tue 2 May 89  6:32                              
By: Jack Ofshadows
To: Magicians
Re: Magic Force 2of2
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:3948 12a2340c

The magnet is a
transformer of the force, whose origin
is in the Akasha principal, not the
metal.
    The same principal is true of all
physical plane objects.This is the
reason for all the herbs and stones
used in magic; they are reflections of
force aspects, of the Akasha Principal.
 They are hard representations of more
 rarefied energy. 
This energy is the force,which when
 acted upon, produces work in the form of external manipulation of 
objects and
 what is referred to by the ignorant as
  coincidence. .
    As you know, Nuclear Force comes
 from
the splitting of atoms, or does it?
There is a point in the squiggle
calculation of the propagation of
 Nutrons in a Reactor, where you must
 ASSUME that
the energy is released. No one has an
adequate explaination of WHERE it
comes from, only theoretical models
that SEEM to explain some EFFECTS.
U-235, when subjected to critical mass
conditions,transforms a type of
force,
 which, in keeping with its nature,
splits the atom AFTER it is released.
Take the time for each reaction and
devide it into parts, then devide the
parts, and divide and divide. The point
 where
force is released cannot be
accurately determined with 100 percent
certainty when fission of atoms takes place.
    The Akasha principal, naturally
 passive,when acted upon by
the active principal of the Merged
mind, produces forces: Electrical,
 chemical,
Nuclear,and Magnetic; which, when seen
in the correct light, are all aspects
of the same force. THE SAME FORCE.


---
 * Origin: ThelemaNet - Hail Eris! * (415) 548-0163 (Opus 1:161/93)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(608)   Sun 30 Apr 89 12:21                             
By: Phil Nicholls
To: All
Re: Metaphysics
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:417b 129e61b1
NEW AGE movement and metaphysics, what do they have in common?

Metaphysics is that branch of philosophy that attempts to address 
questions related to ontology, epistemology and cosmology.  Lately, 
advances in particle physics have made the division between physics 
and 
metaphysics less clear.  Nonetheless, metaphysics is a respectible 
intellectual outlet and has been since the days of Aristotle.
 
Now, anyone going into a book store and looking under "metaphysics" 
will 
find-  astrology, astral voyages, psychic powers and various other 
forms 
of paperback pulp.  The New Age movement in this country has, at 
least 
to the uninformed, rendered metaphysics equal to mysticism.

I do not dismiss mystics.  Most of the mystics I know are quiet, 
contemplative people who laugh at the idea of publishing a book on 
their 
insights since, by definition, contemplative knowledge is personal 
and 
not transfered by means of language.  Those who attempt to publish 
books 
on mysticism or about mystical insights are those seeking the quick 
buck.  

Let us reserve this conference, then, for discussions of true 
metaphysics:  not mysticism, but the nature of existence itself.  
Let us 
wield the rational and the empirical into something more powerful 
than 
either can be alone.

--- RBBSMAIL 17.2A
* Origin: THE SKEPTIC'S BOARD (415) 648-8944 (RBBS-PC 8:914/207)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(609)   Wed 17 May 89 13:54                             
By: Magenta Griffith
To: All
Re: Satire
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

@EID:d649 12b16ecd

This is by request - YOU ASKED FOR IT!
         The Lady's Brothel (to the tune "Nonesuch" also used for the
                                    "Lady"s Braisle"
  
For She will bring the bugs in the Spring
And laugh when She's deflowered.
When She's in heat, She'll give you a treat,
But you'll get disemboweled.
She rots the grain and spreads ptomaine,
When fruits of fall displease Her.
The moons and suns all turn their buns
In joint attempts to freeze Her.
                                    - by Steven Posch-Coward (1980)


---
 * Origin: FIRE OPAL - A Gem of an OPUS  [Minneapolis, MN  (612) 
822-4812] (Opus 1:282/8)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(610)   Tue 16 May 89 22:21                             
By: Golden Angel
To: All
Re: Wisdom is needed!!!
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:e868 12b0b2a6

  I think that before people discuss their ingenous facts, & 
infinite wisdom they should learn more about, which they speak of, 
the way one
grows is by proving all things, that's how we obtain wisdom. As far 
as
Mystic's are concerned their are some who are true mystic's & do 
write
what they have learned for those who choose to walk that path may. 
Be-
cause if they did'nt write about it their would only be one of 
them, &
I myself Know a few of them who are beyond most human's 
comperhension,
& no I'm not krazy!!! Some may think that the spiritual world does 
not 
exist, I myself has seen proof & hope that you non-believers do 
someday
wake up & see it also. I just walk in the way of "EYAH, ASHER, EYAH"
>>>MEANING >>> I AM THAT I AM OR I SHALL BE WHAT I SHALL BE >>> I 
LOVE
& ACCEPT ALL FOR THEIR WAY & DO NOT JUDGE OR CONDEM THEM FOR THEIR 
WAY.
                                           "KODOESH, KODOESH, 
KODOESH"
                                              "ADONAI t'SEBAOTH"
             TAKE IT LIGHT,
                           CATCH YOU ON THE NEXT,
                                                 FLIGHT!!!
    BE
       ME
          THE 
              ((( GOLDEN ANGEL ))) I'M OUT!!!


---
 * Origin: The Message Center! - (719)-471-3783 (Opus 1:128/36)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(611)   Tue 30 May 89 16:57                             
By: Warren Stott
To: all
Re: Snakes, what snakes?
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:3fc4 872e12be
A Brief History and Analysis of Saint Patrick and the Myth (Part 1 
of 5)

Much of the history and life of St. Patrick is inextricably
entangled in legend. The legends have been perpetuated and
embellished through the years to the point of mystery. Some of
these legends served in Patrick's time to further his missionary
efforts among the pagans of Ireland. Today, however, they are a
source of great debate. The tales of magic and miracles have been
weighed by historians, both ecclesiastical and agnostic, with the
few authenticated writings of Patrick himself. The resulting
picture is still subject to much interpretation. The information
presented here is intended to be a cursory overview dealing
primarily with the nature of Patrick's missionary effort.

Patrick was probably born in Briton between 385 and 389 CE. Many
accounts hold that his father was and a minor administrator for
the Roman Empire, a deacon of the church and himself the son of a
priest. The rules of celibacy among the clergy were apparently
not strictly adhered to in fourth century Briton. A Roman subject
and Christian by birth, Patrick lived on his fathers estate until
he was sixteen years old. Patrick's own writings say that he was
not devoted to study in his youth and (1)"knew not the True God."

It is clear from other historical evidence that Briton was
subject to periodic attack by Irish raiding parties. Many Britons
were kidnapped and sold as slaves in Ireland. Sometime around 403
CE Patrick himself was carried off by a band of raiders. He was
sold to an irish king who held him as a herdsman for ten years.
During this time Patrick learned Gaelic and an appreciation for
the Irish countryside. This was also when he found his "true
God." Later in his live he wrote that each day of his enslavement
he "said a hundred prayers and nearly as many at night."

Patrick's writings tell of visions that began after years of
enslavement and prayer. The visions came in his sleep, guiding
him toward his escape. "You are soon to return to your native
land." was one message telling him to prepare for escape and
"Your ship is ready." telling him when. Historians presume that
after a decade of working herd animals on the slopes of the Irish
highlands, he was in good health and well able to make good his
escape. Patrick writes that he walked two hundred miles to where
a boat was "waiting" for him. He was refused passage at first but
after a silent prayer, and presumably God's intervention, the
sailors let him aboard.

In the course of returning to Briton, a number of miracles and
tests are attributed to Patrick. He is said to have converted the
sailors after being stranded in an unpopulated area of Gaul.
Legend has it that the party was near starvation when Patrick was
challenged about the nature of his loving God that would let
these men and His disciple starve. Patrick is said to have
testified as to his unshaken faith and only shortly there after
to have miraculously found a herd of wild pigs immediately on the
road ahead. This is one of the many legendary miracles that
historians tend to discount as being exaggeration of mere
coincidence.

(Continued)


--- msged 1.99S ZTC
 * Origin: === Tech Pubs Consulting ===  (1:104/904.7)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(612)   Tue 30 May 89 16:58                             
By: Warren Stott
To: all
Re: Snakes, what snakes?
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:3fc4 874f12be
A Brief History and Analysis of Saint Patrick and the Myth (Part 2 
of 5)

Patrick finally made his way to civilization and indirectly back
to his family in Briton. Here again Patrick was influenced by
visions. This time the visions suggested that he was to bring
Christianity to the pagans of Ireland. "We beseech thee, holy
youth, to come and walk among us again." From this point the
history of Patrick's travels and teachers becomes convoluted. It
is presumed that the self-enlightened youth would have required
formal education and acceptance by the church to continue on to
his calling. His travels and tales of him suggest that he studied
for a number of years in Gaul and Briton, and perhaps even Rome.
During this period his travels brought him into contact with a
number of other men who would become saints themselves. This in
itself created a number of stories and legends leaving unclear
not only where and when Patrick studied but also confusing the
stories surrounding these other one-day saints. Regardless, this
teaching brought him firmly under the influence of Rome and the
church. He, however, was not the one picked by the church to open
Ireland to Christianity.

By this time their were already a small number of Christian
settlements and monasteries in the south and east of Ireland.
Most of these Christians were refugees from strife in Europe and
Briton. They had, of course, had an impact on the natives and
converted some number of Druid and pagan folk. Likewise, some
early clergy practiced a mixture of the old pagan religions and
druidism by night and Christianity by day. Word came to Rome of
this heresy and the charge to convert Ireland and punish the
offending clergy was born. One Deacon Palladius was selected by
Pope Celestine to be the first bishop of Ireland in 431.
Palladius is thought to have been a greek with little knowledge
of the Irish people, language, or culture. It is not surprising
that his missionary efforts were less than wholly successful.

Palladius founded a few churches in the northeast of Ireland
though the known Christian settlements and monasteries were
mostly in the south. He met with tremendous resistance from the
local king, Nathy, and the native pagans. Unwilling to stay in
this hostile environment and away from his homeland, Palladius
soon sailed from Ireland for home. A chance landing in western
Scotland gave him opportunity for a more successful missionary
effort among the Picts which ended with his death the following
year in 432. An Irish saying has it that (2)"The Lord gave
Ireland not to Palladius but to Patrick."

It is not clear who actually raised Patrick to the rank of bishop
and sent him to Ireland. This too is lost in the legends but it
is generally held that St. Germanus and not the Pope was
responsible. Patrick came to Ireland in 432 landing at the sight
of Palladius' failure. 

(Continued)


--- msged 1.99S ZTC
 * Origin: === Tech Pubs Consulting ===  (1:104/904.7)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(613)   Tue 30 May 89 16:59                             
By: Warren Stott
To: all
Re: Snakes, what snakes?
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:3fc4 876212be
A Brief History and Analysis of Saint Patrick and the Myth (Part 3 
of 5)

He realized that the common people would follow in conversion if
he could first convert their leaders. He made great show of his
strength against the chieftains and kings and sought
opportunities to challenge their faith. Legend has it that
Patrick was as willing to raise his left hand in a curse as his
right in a blessing. Stories abound of the miracles Patrick
performed throughout his travels; he turned the fertile lands of
king Nathy into a salt marsh, he changed the dogs of the local
chieftain Dichu into stone, he healed the injured and raised the
sons of one converted chieftain from the dead. There are many
incidents in legend of Patrick performing acts of druidical magic
much to the astonishment of druids and chieftains alike.

Beyond the attributed magic and miracles, there is the more
realistic historical view that Patrick brought more than
Christianity to the pagan masses. Historians have long credited
the spread of Christianity with the spread of literacy and vice-
versa. The missionaries brought with them books, albeit Christian
books, and written language which proved to be the brightest of
offerings to cultures that relied on the oral histories for
recording the past. This was no less true of Ireland.

There was a practice at the time of the high king lighting the
first Beltane fire each year. Fires were extinguished all over
the country to allow the king to bring forth the new fire thus
demonstrating his power and ability to provide for his subjects
through the grace of the Gods. The fire was light on a high
hilltop so people for miles around could see this event. Brands
from this fire were taken through the countryside to light anew
the peoples own fires. This symbolized that all blessings flowed
from the Gods, through the high king and on to the population. It
was held at the time that should any fire be raised before the
king's fire it would mark the end of the these times and the fall
of the king. Patrick's coup de grace was no doubt the lighting of
a Beltane fire on a hilltop near by before the king's fire was
light. Many people saw this a sign that Patrick had indeed
unseated the king and supplanted his new God for the old. Patrick
had made good the prediction and tightened his grip on the ruling
class of Ireland.

Modern non-ecclesiastical historians take exception with the
authenticity of much of the St. Patrick tale. First there is the
question of separating the legends from the man. Though there was
a man named Patrick who served as bishop in Ireland, much of the
legend surrounding him appears more likely to be a composite of
Patrick and a number of other bishops and clergy, some earlier
than Palladius. Secondly, the accomplishments attributed to
Patrick at once reinforce the multiple persona of Patrick as well
as discredit most of the legends as pious wishful thinking or
simple exaggeration. 

(Continued)


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---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(614)   Tue 30 May 89 17:00                             
By: Warren Stott
To: all
Re: Snakes, what snakes?
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:3fc4 880412be
A Brief History and Analysis of Saint Patrick and the Myth (Part 5 
of 5)

There is much about St. Patrick that will never be known for
fact. There is much that might be left to faith among the
Christian or heavily Church indoctrinated. The facts are that
there was a man named Patrick who served as a missionary to
Ireland. He is credited with forming the Church of Ireland and
was canonized for his service. In terms of the snakes of Ireland
and Patrick, the lesson is clear that history and the recording
of history is subject to the predisposition of the historian.
Patrick, it would appear, did little more than any other
missionary of Christianity did for his charge. Patrick, like many
missionaries, is guilty of the destruction of historical
artifacts and at the same time should be credited, in part, with
bringing literacy to Ireland. These are the sins and
accomplishments of a man who followed his faith and the calling
of his "true God." The corruption of his story and his religion
were largely not his doing.

Timeline:
385 Probable birth year
431 Palladius to Ireland
432 Patrick to Ireland, Palladious' death
444 Native clergy and an episcopal see at Armagh
457 Patrick resigned as head of the Church of Ireland
461 Patrick's death

Footnotes:
1 "Confession" Saint Patrick, the date of this document is still
in contest. All quotes used are form Confession unless otherwise
footnoted.
2 Several twentieth century historians have proposed that
Palladius and Patrick were one and the same. They base this
generally on chronology and specific interpretation of the
legends surrounding both men.
3 "The Life and Acts of St. Patrick Jocelyn, Monk of Furness
(date unknown).
4 "The Flowering of Ireland" Katherine Scherman, Little, Brown &
Co. 1981.

Additional Commentary:
    This article was not written to defend Patrick just as it was
not written to be specifically pagan sympathetic. I researched and
wrote this article to answer a question for myself and as such, was
primarily interested in fact of history. I am not justifying or
defending anything that Patrick or the expansion of Christianity or,
specificaly, the church did. I just wanted to know where the nonsense
about the snakes came from.
    In researching the subject I found for every non-ecclesiastical
history there are several by church scholars and more by wanna-be
historians with no credentiuals except "faith."
    I also found that the magickal acts attributed to various saints
including Patrick is really heady stuff. These guys are supposed to
have done stuff that makes the best of the current crop of magick
users look like toddlers. This raises the question of how did the
church differentiate between the magick performed by these ancient
saints and that attributed to witches. Of course the answer is the
Saint called down a miracle and the witch was in league with the
devil. I guess it would be wise then if challanged about an act of
magick to claim it was a miracle. Who knows, it might lead to a new
high paying carrier.

-Warren-


--- msged 1.99S ZTC
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---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(615)   Wed 31 May 89 11:06                             
By: Warren Stott
To: All you folks
Re: More Snakes, what snakes?
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:3fc4 58c512bf
(reposting message)
A Brief History and Analysis of Saint Patrick and the Myth (Part 4 
of 5)

Legend has it that Patrick's deliverance of Ireland to
Christianity took only 15 to 25 years. This appears to be far too
short a time to have accomplished the establishment of the Church
of Ireland and the baptizing of "thousands" of pagans. Further,
there is the question of deliverance. The suggestion is that
Ireland as a whole became a Christian country in this short
period of time. There is significant evidence that widespread
pagan and pagan sympathetic religion was practiced throughout the
fifth and sixth centuries in much of Ireland. Considering that
Patrick appears to have died in 461, his accomplishments are, at
best, chronologically misrepresented and at worst, completely
over stated. 

The story of St. Patrick driving the serpents from Ireland into
the sea is an excellent example of the corruption of fact by the
historians that first attempted to record Patrick's life. This
tale has been interpreted by some as a metaphor for the
conversion or banishing of the Druids and other pagans during
this time. This has been used by both Christians and pagans for
their own purposes and actually serves neither. Many historians
now view the tale as a fabrication of one man in the name of
pious fervor.

The story goes that Patrick spread his missionary zeal throughout
Ireland for a number of years, finally coming to what is now
County Mayo on Clew Bay. Here Patrick fasted and meditated the
forty days of Lent atop the 2500 foot high peak known today as
Croagh Patrick. Observing this peak it is clear this was not a
hospitable place for a old man alone. Even today, the peak is
seldom visible through the clouds and is subject to freezing
temperatures and wet winds off the ocean. When the days of Lent
had passed, Patrick  (3)"gathered together from all parts of
Ireland all the poisonous creatures... By the power of his word
he drove the whole pestilent swarm from the precipice of the
mountain, headlong into the ocean."

Modern historians as well as geologists and anthropologists have
a different story to tell. As Katherine Scherman puts it,
(4)"This legend was invented some seven hundred years after
Patrick lived, to explain the then-unaccountable fact of
Ireland's freedom from snakes. The island actually lost its
reptiles and amphibians fifteen to twenty thousand years earlier.
Most of the plants and animals of the British Isles had been
killed or driven south as the ice cap grew. When the glacial
sheet waned they began to come back. But before they could reach
Ireland the melting ice raised the water level, and the land
bridge that had connected Wales and Ireland during the Ice Age
was broken by the re-creation of the Irish Sea... The only 
animals that got back to Ireland were those that could swim or
fly... Two amphibians and one reptile made it; the natterjack
toad, the smooth newt and the brown lizard, all innocuous little
creatures. Ireland's snakelessness was commented on as early as
the third century A.D. by the grammarian Gaius Julius Solinus:
'In that land there are no snakes, birds are few, and the people
are inhospitable and warlike.'... It was his (Patrick's) twelfth-
century biographer, Jocelyn, credulously reverent, who chose to
explain his country's odd deficiency by tacking yet another
legend to the top-heavy halo surrounding the saint."

(only one more to go)

--- msged 1.99S ZTC
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---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(616)   Sun 4 Jun 89 10:18                              
By: Geoff Gilpin
To: All
Re: Eliade on "Satanic" verses (1)
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:e389 524012c4
I don't know about you, but synchronicity turns up for me mostly
when I'm reading.  I'll be wading through a cookbook, a 19th
century British novel, and a biography of a dead philosopher when
BINGO they all mention the Marquis de Sade at just the right
moment.
 
This psychological trapeze act happened a few months ago as I was
finishing the third volume of Mircea Eliade's A HISTORY OF
RELIGIOUS IDEAS.  I'm not up to a full-blown review, but let me
say that this is one of the finest works of comparative religion
that I've seen.
 
The analogies with Joseph Campbell's THE MASKS OF GOD are
inevitable.  Both authors cover much of the same territory with a
zeal for synthesis.  And both men are born teachers.  Campbell is
probably the better writer; his loose and intimate style makes
friends more easily than Professor Eliade's prose, which is
sometimes stiff and academic.  (I will always imagine Joe
Campbell sitting in the bleachers at Wrigley Field, discussin'
Dionysus with Mack and Jimmy over a Schlitz.)
 
Unfortunately, Campbell's passion for pattern-finding can
distract.  He'll introduce (so to speak) the Tlingit shamans of
British Columbia and, in mid-sentence, jump over to Confucius and
then to the Gnostic heretics.  This is fine when you're getting
started and you need to know that Isis is the same thing as the
Virgin Mary.  But after a while you've learned that lesson and
perhaps you'd like to know more about those Tlingit shamans with
a bit less digression.
 
This is where Professor Eliade shows his stuff.  The HISTORY
begins with the earliest humans and walks a stately path through
the ages, one religion at a time.  We end up around the
Reformation, when Christianity, Islam, and Buddhism have pretty
much taken on their modern forms.  (It's sad that Professor
Eliade died before he could complete volume four, which would
have covered African and Native American beliefs.)
 
It is a wonder to see a man so at home with the world, so close
to the earth's most obscure cultures and faiths.  When he lingers
in a particular era, he speaks in the present tense, as if he
himself were a shaman feasting on charred mastodon and summoning
the tribal spirits to the campfire.  And he speaks of the things
to come (the orthodoxies and heresies that are ancient history to
the rest of us) in the future tense as natural outgrowths of
whatever culture he is currently inhabiting.  This is one book
that can be labelled a "timeless classic" without resorting to
cliche.
 
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: APPLEGATE (1:139/630)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(617)   Sun 4 Jun 89 10:20                              
By: Geoff Gilpin
To: All
Re: Eliade on "Satanic" verses (2)
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:e389 528012c4
But we were talking of Synchronicity.
 
There I was, safely enthralled in a work of comparative religion,
when the Ayatollah stunned the world with his cowardice by
sentencing Salman Rushdie to death for writing a novel called THE
SATANIC VERSES.
 
By now, anybody who cares has read SATANIC VERSES, and we've all
learned what Fundamentalists do to people who write books.  But
maybe you didn't know what Mircea Eliade had to say about the
central event of Rushdie's novel.  I don't mean the plane crash,
but the "blasphemous" sequence in which Mohammad (or "Mahound")
trance-channels the Quran to the Archangel Gabriel, who proceeds
to feed it right back to him.  Or two versions of the Quran,
actually, one of which seems to acknowledge polytheism in the
form of three Arabic goddesses.  
 
Sure enough, just as I got to this "blasphemous" part, I come
across the following in Eliade:
 
"Ibn Ishak affirms that when the Prophet, on the order of Allah,
proclaimed the true religion (Islam, 'submission'), his fellow
citizens did not oppose it for such time as he did not speak evil
of their gods.  The tradition tells us that after verse 20 of
sura 53, which concerns the goddesses Allat, Al'Uzza, and Manat,
there followed three verses: 'They are sublime goddesses and
their intercession is certainly desirable.'  But later Muhammad
took the stance that these words were inspired in him by Satan. 
He thus replaced them as follows: 'They are naught but names
yourselves have named, and your fathers... And yet guidance has
come to them from their Lord.'"
 
"This incident is instructive for two reasons.  First of all, it
shows the sincerity of the Prophet: he recognized that, in
reciting the words dictated by divine inspiration, he had been
deceived by Satan.  In the second place, he justifies the
annulment of the two verses by the omnipotence and absolute
freedom of God.  In effect, the Quran is the only Holy Book which
knows the freedom to annul certain passages of Revelation."
 
A footnote adds:
 
"Most probably Mohammad considered the three goddesses to be
intercessory angels; in fact, the belief in angels was accepted
by Islam and, later, angelology would play an important role in
Shi'ism.  But taking into account the risk which the intercession
of the goddesses (= angels) would represent for his strictly
monotheistic theology, Muhammad abrogated the two verses."
 
Eliade, like Rushdie, acknowledges that the original "Satanic"
verses were born of political expediency.  The two differ
somewhat on the "abrogation" of the verses.  Where Rushdie sees
the turn-around as the product of a confused mind spinning
different versions of scripture to suit circumstances, Eliade
finds evidence of divine freedom.  Maybe it's a little of both.
 
In any case, regardless of who those goddesses were, it's nice to
know that the deceased Eliade and the buried-alive Rushdie could
have their rendezvous at just the time appointed by
synchronicity. 
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: APPLEGATE (1:139/630)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(618)   Tue 30 May 89 10:14                             
By: David Rice
To: All
Re: Ghosts?
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:9a7b 12be51ce
   06-Aug-88 06:39 MST
Sb: APn  08/05 0731  Forrestal Ghost

 Copyright, 1988. The Associated Press. All rights reserved. 


   MAYPORT NAVAL STATION, Fla. (AP) -- Ghosts are fine, traditional 
things to
have around ancient English castles, but the Navy says rumors of 
one stalking
the depths of the aircraft carrier USS Forrestal have spooked a few 
sailors. 
   Flickering lights. Bumps in the night. Locked doors opening. 
Voices on
disconnected telephones. And a vanishing figure in a khaki uniform. 
The
figure's even got a nickname: George. 
   At least that's what some of the men say aboard the Forrestal, 
in its fourth
month of a six-month deployment in the Indian Ocean and the North 
Arabian Sea. 
   They were interviewed by Lt. James E. Brooks, who detailed the 
story of the
ghost in a 12-page news release issued last month. 
   The report about George hasn't ruffled any Navy feathers, 
Mayport Navy
spokesman Lt. Park Balevre said Thursday. "I thought it was cute. I 
think most
people did." 
   "What Lt. Brooks had in mind was a fluff piece to show the 
lighter side of
the Navy," said Balevre. 
   But according to Brooks, some sailors don't think the ghost 
story is at all
cute. 
   George lurks in two of the ship's below-the-waterline storage 
areas, one of
them a former morgue, spooked sailors claim. 
   "I've got one guy working for me now who refuses to go down 
there alone. Our
last chief petty officer in charge, who has since transferred, 
refused to go
down there at all," says Petty Officer Daniel Balboa, in charge of 
the
officers' mess. 
   "I've never seen any ghosts but you can hear weird things down 
there," said
Balboa. 
   "I was taking inventory one night and heard a noise like deck 
grating being
picked up and dropped," he recalled. "I'd turn around and look but 
didn't see
anything. When I turned around to begin my work again, the noise 
started
again." 
   One night, Balboa said, he was checking temperatures in 
food-storage
freezers and kept finding open doors he had shut behind him. 
   "It is impossible for anyone to open the reefer (refrigerator) 
doors from
the outside, behind me. To open them from the outside requires a 
key since the
doors lock automatically. 
   "I had the only key with me. That incident puts me on the verge of
believing," he said. 
   Some say the ghost is a chief killed during a 1967 flight deck 
fire that
killed 137 sailors in the Gulf of Tonkin off the coast of North 
Vietnam, Brooks
wrote. Others guess he's a pilot whose body was once stored on the 
ship. 
   Petty Officer James Hillard hasn't ventured into the haunted 
areas since he
saw George last year while checking out odd footsteps. 
   "He was wearing a khaki uniform, like an officer or chief would 
wear," he
says. He followed the apparition into a compartment but "there was 
nobody in
there, and I swear that is where he went," Hillard said. 
   Mess Specialist 2nd Class Gary Weiss saw a khaki-clad ghost go 
down a ladder
to pump room No. 1. Whoever went down into the pump room never came 
out and the
ladder is the only access, he said. 
   Hillard said he once was helping move supplies when a telephone 
that was
reportedly disconnected kept ringing. 
   "The phone rang and I answered it. This time there was a faint 
voice
calling, `Help! Help! I'm on the sixth deck!' Rumor had it that a 
crew member
was killed down there. I'm very scared to go down there alone. If I 
do, I get
out of there as fast as I can," Hillard said. 
   Others are dubious. 
   "I think it's the guys' imagination," said Senior Chief Petty 
Officer James
Williams. "I'm not superstitious but when I go down there by 
myself, I find it
uneasy. When that happens, your imagination is going to play tricks 
on you." 
   



---
 * Origin: The Astro-Net. 714-662-2294 (Opus 1:103/503)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(619)   Wed 7 Jun 89 13:52                              
By: Joey Swails
To: David Rice
Re: Navy Ghost?
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

@EID:417b 12c7699b
I don't think that a large group of 18 to 24 year men in a 
potentially 
life-threatening situation, isolated at sea and drowning in 
boredom, could be a more likely bunch of candidates for such 
mass-hysterical 
nonsense as this. I don't think I would feel very comfortable 
hanging 
around a morgue in the guts of an old ship, myself! Sailors have 
been 
under a lot of stress lately - i bet they get nervous every time 
someone 
strikes a match these days - and this is exactly the time when 
reports 
of this type are likely to crop up. The Navy has some pretty 
sophisticated photo-imaging hardware; perhaps a bit of 
investigation could put the question to rest. Probably, though, the 
Navy does not want 
to encourage such things aboard their vessels.

--- RBBSMAIL 17.2A
* Origin: THE SKEPTIC'S BOARD (415) 648-8944 (RBBS-PC 8:914/207)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(620)   Fri 16 Jun 89 23:19                             
By: Chuck Haynes
To: All
Re: Meditation
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

@EID:e919 ba6012d0
                     WORLD HEALING MEDITATION
                       By John Randolph Price
In the beginning
In the beginning God
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
And God said Let there be light; and there was light.
Now is the time of the new beginning.
I am a co-creator with God, and it is a new Heaven that comes.
as the God Will of God is expressed on Earth through me.
It the Kingdom of Light, Love, Peace, and Understanding.
And I am doing my part to reveal its Reality.
I begin with me.
I am a living Soul and the Spirit of God dwells in me, as me.
I and the Father are one, and all that the Father has is mine.
In Truth, I am the Christ in God.
What is true of me is true of everyone, for God is all and all is 
God.
I see only the Spirit of God in every Soul.
And to every man woman and child on Earth I say:
I love you, for you are me. You are my Holy Self!
I now open my heart.
and let the pure essence of Unconditional Love pour out.
I see it as a Golden Light radiating from the center of my being.
and I feel its Divine Vibration in and through me, above and below 
me.
I am one with the Light.
I am filled with the Light.
I am illumined by the Light.
I am the Light of the world.
With purpose of mind, I sends forth the Light.
I let the radiance go before me to join the other Lights.
I know this is happening all over the world at this moment.
I see the merging Lights.
There is now one Light. We are the Light of the world.
The one Light of Love, Peace, and Understanding is moving.
It flows across the face of the Earth,
touching and illuminating every soul in the shadow of the illusion.
And where there was darkness, there is now the Light of Reality.
And the Radiance grows, permeating, saturating every form of life.
There is only the vibration of one Perfect Life now.
All the kingdoms of the Earth respond, and the Planet is alive with
 Light and Love.
There is total Oneness, and in this Oneness we speak the Word.
Let the sense of separation be dissolved.
Let mankind be returned to Godkind.
Let peace come forth in every mind.
Let Love flow forth from every heart.
Let forgiveness reign in every soul.
Let understanding be the common bond.
And now from the Light of the world.
the One Presence and Power of the Universe responds.
The Activity of God is healing and harmonizing Planet Earth.
Omnipotence is made manifest.
I am seeing the salvation of the planet before my very eyes.
as all false beliefs and error patterns are dissolved.
The sense of separation is no more; the healing has taken place,
and the world is restored to sanity.
This is the beginning of Peace on Earth and Good Will toward all,
as Love flows forth from every heart, forgiveness reigns in every 
soul,
and all hearts and minds are one in perfect understanding.
It is done. And it is so.

--- FD 2.00
 * Origin: Casa de La Luz-Alamogordo, NM, (505) 434-3937  10PM-6AM 
MDT (1:308/1001)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(621)   Sun 18 Jun 89 19:25                             
By: Paul Seymour
To: All
Re: Threefold Law
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:d65 9b2012d2
                 Karma, The Three Fold Law, & Grace
 
     "As you sew, so shall ye reap". "What goes around, comes 
around".
"Whatever you send out returns three times".  These are all sayings
very familiar to all of us, all of them examples of a supposedly
Universal Law of cause and effect, action and reaction.  Of course 
many
of the religious systems try to furnish us with some sort of "escape
clause" that will allow man to either alleviate suffering fo past
misdeeds, or to escape responsibility totally.  Let us take a little
closer look at these three ideas and ther inter-reationship.
     It seems that, on one level, we do live in a mechanistic 
universe,
one pretty much ruled by cause-and-efect.  This Newtonian universe
seems to react in a very mechanical fashion, i.e. every action
"produces an equal and opposite reaction".  A good analogy for this 
is
the example of one billiard ball striking another.  The energy from 
the
striking billiard ball is transfered to the one struck and is used to
push against the first, imparting motion in the same direction.  This
brings the second law into play, i.e. an object in motion tends to 
stay
in motion untill acted upon by an outside force.
     The principle of Karma basically says the same thing; i.e. any
negative or positive action or thought remains that way, until it
expends its energy by acting upon the originator.  Of course this 
also
makes implicit the idea that thoughts or mental energy have a reality
of their own, one that interacts with the physical universe.  If this
idea is accepted, it then implies the existence of at least one more
"world" or order of the universe, one with a non physical "reality",
and one where the basic fundamental rules of physics (as we know 
them)
may not truly apply.
     The magician can be described as one who "walks between" these 
two
worlds.  "Walking between two worlds" implies that an individal is
connected with both and can move between them at will.  The purpose 
of
magic is to manipulate one world for the benefit of the other, i.e. 
to
manipulate the unseen world for the express purpose of influencing
events in the physical.  Unfortunately there does not seem to be a
"free ride" anywhere in the universe, and when an individual acquires
the power to do this, they also aquire a great deal of 
responsibility! 
By accepting the power to exert "leverage" in the unseen world, an
individual seems to also accept a multiplied succeptibility to
influences initiated in that world.  This is why negative workings 
are
so dangerous!  This may also be the reasoning behind the "law of 
three
fold return".
     Now comes the hard part!  If all of this cause and effect 
stuff is
absolute, how can any individual ever hope to "pay off" the debts for
all of the "stupid" things they have done not only in this lifetime,
but in many others?  Must we "pay off" all past transgressions on a 
one
for one basis?  Is there no ecape clause in this "contract" we seem 
to
have for living in the universe?
     This "escape clause" is called Grace by the Christians and by
other names in other systems, but it does exist in all.  Basically, 
the
idea is this:  "Once a lesson is completely learned and one grows
beyond a need for this lesson, it need not be repeated, even if the
'books' are not balanced".  This is the "Enlightenment" sought by the
Buddhist that allows the "breaking" of the wheel.  This is also the
core principle behind the idea of "Divine" forgiveness, but that is a
topic for another essay.       Paul G. Seynour, SYSOP 1:301/9
 
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: The Mountain Oracle "Witches & Pagans & Druids.....Oh 
My!" (1:301/9)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(622)   Wed 14 Jun 89 19:06                             
By: Eric Marsh
To: Joey Swails
Re: Re:magic Vs. The New Real
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:417b 12ce98c3
Your point about provability is well taken.  It is possible that 
these 
two realms (science and metaphysics) may never find common ground.  
Then 
again, who knows.  Yes, a couple of years ago I did read the Tau of 
Physics, and have read a number of other such since then.  The most 
recent was a book called Beyond the Quantum, and since I loaned to 
to a 
friend I don't have the writer's name.  It refers to something 
called 
the "Aspect" experiment that supposedly demonstrates that either 
the universe is completely non-deterministic or that it is possible 
to pass 
a message backwards in time.  Ever hear about it?  Unfortinetly the 
details of the experiment were not properly documented.  As for my 
belief in magic, it is simply that I have seen more than my share 
of what I consider to be highly unlikely events occur as a seeming 
result 
of some sort of an altered mental state.  A good example is a 
friend who 
recently won a white and gold Ninja 500 three days after doing a 
working 
for a new white motorcycle.  You mentioned your experience with the 
Crowley-ites.  I have also observed that sort of thing seems to be 
pretty commonplace when one attempts to use scientific means to 
validate 
or invalidate this sort of thing.  My current thinking is that we 
each 
create or alter our realities to some degree as a result of our 
world 
view, and that there is some overlap when different "realities" 
meet.  
Thus, one who believes in a largely inflexable mechanical universe 
will 
tend to cast that reality to some extent on those who have 
different perspectives.  Just an idea anyhow...  
    Eric

--- RBBSMAIL 17.2A
* Origin: THE SKEPTIC'S BOARD (415) 648-8944 (RBBS-PC 8:914/207)
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(623)   Sat 24 Jun 89 11:07                             
By: Paul Seymour
To: All
Re: Circle Ritual - Part 1
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

@EID:d65 58e012d8
                       CIRCLE CEREMONY
WATER
        Blessings upon thee, O creature of water, I cast out from
thee all impurities and uncleanness of the spirits  of phantasm,
confusion, or any other influence not for the free will of all.
SALT
        Blessings be upon this creature of salt; let all malignity
and hindrance be cast forth thencefrom, and let all good enter
therein.  Wherefore I bless thee and invoke thee, that thou
mayest aid me.
MIXING
        I take this salt of the Earth, Blessed with the will of
        Fire; I take this water of spirit,Exorcised with mind of 
merit;
 
        I mix them with words of power,
        Dedicated to every Tower.
 
        By the power of moon and sun,        
        By the power of Spirit,earth and sea,
        God and Goddess are part of One,
        As I Will, so mote it be!
 
                        CASTING OF THE CIRCLE
 
        I conjure thee, O circle of power,
        As thou encircle every Tower.
        That thou beest a place of Truth, Joy and love,
        Encircling Flight of Eagle, Hawk and Dove.
         Mighty Aegis of the Lady and Lord,
        Rampart of thought, action and word.
        To work in Peace, Powerful and Free,
        Who walk between two worlds conjure thee;
        A boundary to Protect, Concentrate and Contain,
        That Power raised here be not in vain.
        
 Wherefore do I bless thee and consecrate thee, in the names of
Cernunnos and Aradia.
 
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: The Mountain Oracle "Witches & Pagans & Druids.....Oh 
My!" (1:301/9)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(624)   Sat 24 Jun 89 11:08                             
By: Paul Seymour
To: All
Re: Circle Ritual - Part 2
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:d65 590012d8
                       SEALING OF THE CIRCLE
(seal with water/salt mixture)
 
With potion of earth and water, I seal the sacred circle,
Linking air and fire!
With potion of earth and air, I seal the sacred circle,
Linking fire with water!
With potion of earth,air,and fire, I seal the sacred circle,
Linking water with the Earth!
 
As the four directions are brought to merge,
Let influence of the mighty ones converge!
 
(Seal with Censer)
 
        With Incense and air of Mind,
        East to South,I do Bind!
 
        With Incense and air of mind,
        South to West, I do Bind!
 
        With Incense and air of Mind,
        West to North, I do Bind!
 
        With Incense and air of Mind,
        North to East Completion Find!
 
(Seal with Candle)
 
        With the Fire of emotion and will
        East to South, our dedication fulfill!
 
        With the Fire of veneration and Will,
        South to West, our allegiance fulfill!
 
        With the Fire of Devotion and Will,
        West to North, our consecration  fulfill!
        
        With the Fire of Commitment and will,
        From  North to East, This inscription fulfill!
 
        Within the circle All wills be free,
        The circle is sealed, So Mote it Be!
 
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: The Mountain Oracle "Witches & Pagans & Druids.....Oh 
My!" (1:301/9)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(625)   Sat 24 Jun 89 11:10                             
By: Paul Seymour
To: All
Re: Circle Ritual - Part 3
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:d65 594012d8
                       SETTING THE WATCHTOWERS
 
        Ye Lords of the Eastern Tower,
        Airy Lords of Spirit;
        Let your influence of Power,
        Aid our minds with merit!
I do summon, stir and call you up, to witness these rites and to
guard the circle.
 
        Ye Lords of Southern Power
        Fiery Lords of Will.
        Pray do grace your Tower,
        Your Powers to fulfill!
I do summon, stir and call you up, to witness these rites and to
guard the circle.
 
        Ye Lordsœ of the Watchtowers of the West, 
        Watery Lords of Death and Initiation; 
I do summon, stir and call you up, to witness these rites and to
guard the Circleœ.
 
        Ye Northern Lords of the Earth,
        Though we be yet but Mortals;
        Bless our work with worth,
        Boreas, guardian of Northern portals.
I do summon, stir and call you up, to witness these rites and to
guard the Circle.
 
        Goddess and God, I would know,
        As 'tis above, so 'tis below
        Blessings on this work, please bestow!
 
        This be my will, true and free,
        I do so will, so mote it be
 
                INVOCATION OF THE ELEMENTS
 
        Air, Fire, Water, Earth,
        Elements of astral birth,
        I call you now; attend to me!
        In the Circle, rightly cast,
        Safe from curse or blast,
        I call you now, attend to me!
 
        From cave and desert,sea and hill,
        By wand, blade,and pentacle,
        I call you now, attend to me!
 
        This Is my will, so mote it be!
 
--- QuickBBS v2.03
 * Origin: The Mountain Oracle "Witches & Pagans & Druids.....Oh 
My!" (1:301/9)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(626)   Mon 29 May 89 22:34                             
By: the Bard
To: All
Re: for your consideration:
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:8b4a 12bdb447


           Just a few observations from my quotes file: 



Political power emanates from the barrel of a gun. 
                                   -Mao Tse-Tung 


A generation which ignores History has no past....and no future. 
                                                 -Lazarus Long 


Beware of altruisim. It is based on self-deception, the root of all 
evil. 
                                                          -Lazarus 
Long 


Never underestimate the entertainment value of a Spode in a public 
arena. 
                                                   - Sir Elric ap 
Moray 


You can have peace, or you can have freedom. Don't EVER count on 
having both  of them at once. 
                                                              
-Lazarus Long 


Register Mongols, not Crossbows! 
           -Ioseph of Locksley 


A .45 beats 5 aces....every time. 
                     -anonymous 

"If my Government does not trust me with a gun, then I DARE NOT 
TRUST my  

Government!" 
                                                        -Bumper 
sticker 


It is better to die on your feet, than to live on your knees. 
                                          -Delores Ibarruri 


Among other evils which being unarmed brings you, it causes you to 
be  despised. 
                                                     -N. 
Machiavelli  

Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. 
                                           -George Santayana 


When the smoke cleared away, it was the man with the sword, or the 
crossbow, or the rifle, who settled the final issue on the field. 
                                                       -George C. 
Marshall 


Before you steal that, consider whether you can run faster than 
1100 feet per  second...... 
                                                         -Ioseph of 
Locksley 


This is a very vicious animal: when attacked, he defends himself. 
              -Notice said to have been posted in the Paris Zoo 


Stupidity cannot be cured with money, or through education, or by 
legislation.  Stupidity is not a sin; the victim can't help being 
stupid. BUT: Stupidity is  the only universal capital crime; the 
sentence is DEATH...there is no appeal,  and execution is carried 
out automatically and without pity. 
                                                               
-Lazarus Long 


The two highest achievements of the human mind are the twin 
concepts of  
"loyalty" and "duty." Whenever these twin concepts fall into 
disrepute, 

GET OUT OF THERE FAST! You may possibly save yourself, but there is 
no way to  save that Society...it is doomed. 
                                                               
-Lazarus Long 



---
 * Origin: <<<Deus ex Machina-BBS Free Atenveldt!>>>  (Opus 1:114/29)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(627)   Fri 2 Jun 89  7:12                              
By: the Bard
To: All
Re: Poem
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:8b4a 12c23990

*********************************************************************
******* 

                        MY HARP AND LUTE 

                                copyright 1989 W.J.Bethancourt III 


              My Harp and Lute are wood and wire, 
                 crafted lovingly and slow 
              Their music brings me from the pain 
                 of this frail World here below 
              and takes me to the Doors of Heav'n; 
                 whither upward I would go. 

              My Drum's a heartbeat, keeping time, 
                 Marks the measure of the tune 
              Counts the moments of the Dance 
                 Sets the sygil of the Rune. 
              On that rock I build my Song 
                 Singing to the rising Moon. 

              Harp and Lute, and Drum....and Words; 
                 Words to sweep, and twist, and roll, 
              Words the weft to weave the web 
                 Woven with a single goal: 
              A Web to catch My Lady's heart; 
                 A Web to touch My Lady's Soul. 

 
*********************************************************************
****** 

---
 * Origin: <<<Deus ex Machina-BBS Free Atenveldt!>>>  (Opus 1:114/29)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(628)   Wed 28 Jun 89  2:23                             
By: David Schaal
To: all
Re: tree meditation
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:0 24a9d8ad@
FMPT 12
Since it came up, I thought I would post an outline for a tree 
meditation.

Tree Meditation Outline

1.  Relaxation

   Use any type of relaxation method you feel like.  Often will
   get combined with control of breath.

2.  Controlled Breath
  
   Gets the person concentrating.

3.  Awareness of Physical Body

   May include breath, heart beat, etc.

4.  Visualization of becoming a tree.
   
   This can become quite involved.  You may start by visualizing a 
   walk in the forest, working with all senses, smell, hearing, 
   taste, touch as well as sight.  You can either visualize becoming
   a tree or entering a tree that already exists in the forest.
   Note that you should ask the trees permission first!

5.  Send roots into the earth from feet.
   
   Send the roots down into the earth, down farther and farther 
into     the earth.  (Trance induction--as you go futher down in the
   ground, you may add that you are going into deeper meditation.)
   (We usually stand, if you sit, you may want to visualize the 
roots    coming from the bottom of your spine instead of the feet.)

   a. Feeling the dirt.

   b. Sending roots to meet water.

   c. Sensing the pulse of the Mother Earth.

6.  Sending branches into the sky from crown of head.

   Similar to 5.

   a. Feeling the breeze through the branches.
   b. Sending branches up to meet sunlight.
   c. Sensing the pulse of the sun's energy.

7.  Drawing the water and earth energy from root into trunk.

8.  Drawing the sky energy from leaves into trunk.

7+8 can be done as a part of 5+6.
Note: We stress Water, Earth and Sky as they represent the Keltic 
     triad. You can add Fire to correspond to the four Wiccan 
     quarters if you wish.

9.  Allowing energies to mix and grow (combination of three worlds).

10. Feeling self as conduit for energies.
   a. Sending earth and water energies out through branches.
   b. Sending sky energy through roots into ground.
   
11. Sensing the presence of other trees.
   a. Feeling roots mingling beneath the earth.
   b. Feeling branches mingling in the sky (holding hands)
   c. Sending energy around circle through clasped hands.

12. Establishment of group mind/affirmation of the Grove.

13. Reversal of above 12 steps to return to human form.

   Reversal is done after the meeting/ritual is finished.  Just 
   follow the steps backwards.  It usually is quite a bit shorter 
   than the original.

The above is an outline (duh!).  I have added a few comments which I
hope will be of some explanation.  If you feel the need to write out
a full meditation for your first use, that's ok, but after your 
firstfew attempts, try doing it ad lib.  You will find that certain
portions will receive more effort while others may be shortened as
your needs change.  Allow others to lead the tree meditation at
different meetings.

-dave

--- Sirius 1.0m
* Origin: The Joint Point in Minneapolis (1:282/341.12)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(629)   Fri 30 Jun 89  3:29                             
By: David Schaal
To: all
Re: Keltria--Druidism and Keltic Magick
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:0 24ac7bb4@
FMPT 12
Ye Gods, another neopagan organization!
I thought I would post this since someone expressed interest.
-dave

What is The Henge of Keltria?

The Henge of Keltria is a positive path Druidic tradition
dedicated to protecting the Earth, honoring our ancestors,
revering the spirits of nature and worshipping the Keltic
Dieties.  Our focus is on spiritual development achieved through
the study and practice of the Druidic Arts and Keltic Magick.
Through training, networking, resources, ritual and
communications we strive to provide a religious and spiritual
framework through which each individual can reach his of her own
full potential.

What does the Henge offer?

Currently the Henge of Keltria Publishes "Keltria: A Journal of
Druidism and Keltic Magick" on a quarterly basis, and an
introductory 31 page booklet "The Henge: An Introduction to
Keltrian Druidism."  Classes in neo-pagan Druidism are offered
in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area on an ongoing basis.
Campouts and workshops are held on an irregular basis in
Northwestern Wisconsin.  Future plans include a book of ritual,
bardic songbook, correspondence courses, theological journal and
membership directory.

For more info, send a business sized SASE to:
The Henge of Keltria
P.O. Box 33284
Coon Rapids, MN 55433


--- Sirius 1.0m
* Origin: The Joint Point in Minneapolis (1:282/341.12)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(630)   Fri 30 Jun 89 17:45                             
By: Magenta Griffith
To: All
Re:     The Charge of Ma Bell
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:d7e0 12de8da3

Listen to the words of the Phone Goddess, who in days of old was
called Mama Cass, Ma Barker, Moms Mabley, the last of the Red Hot
Mamas, and by many other names not mentionable in mixed company.
Whenever you have need to make a call, preferably long distance,
and better it be when the rates are high, then shall ye assemble your
funds in some convenient place to pay me, who am Queen of all Highway
Robbery. These ye shall assemble, ye who are fain to bankruptcy yet
have not sent me all your earnings. To these shall I send bills as 
are
yet unheard of. Ye shall be free from bank accounts, as as a sign 
that
ye be truly free ye shall be naked from my rates. And ye shall sing,
talk, shout, trade gossip and love, all at your own expense. Let your
fingers do the walking through my yellow pages. Let none stop you or
turn you aside, just call information. For mine is the dial tone that
opens upon the busy signal of life, which is the princess phone of
immorality. Mine is the poverty of the masses, and call now, pay
later. For my law is profit before people. Today I give knowlege of
facts you do not wish to have, and tommorrow calls that will sell you
things you do not wish to own. For behold, I demand everything in
sacrifice. I am the next best thing to being there, and my bills are
sent out upon the earth.   (- Magenta G. and Steve P-C, 1982)


---
 * Origin: The Terraboard, Minneapolis, MN (Opus 1:282/341)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(631)   Sun 2 Jul 89  1:12                              
By: Jack Ofshadows
To: All
Re: Religion and Civil Rights 1of4
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:32c7 12e2098e

GUIDELINES ON DISCRIMINATION BECAUSE OF RELIGION.---
---------- -- -------------- ------- -- --------
(effective June 15, 1966; amended July 13,1967; November 1,1980)
(PART 1605)
Section                           Table of Contents
-------                           ----- 1605.1    "Religious" 
nature of a practice or belief.............
1605.2     Reasonable accommodation without undue hardship as
           required by Section 701(J) (paragraph 950) of Title VII
           of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ......................
1605.3     Selection Practices...................................
Appendix A to Sections 1605.2 and 1605.3 --- Background Information
*
*
Sec. 1605.1 "Religious" nature of a Practice or Belief. --- In most 
cases
whether or not a practice or belief is religious is not at issue.
However, in those cases in which the issue does exist, the Commission
will define religious practices to include moral or ethical beliefs 
as to
what is right and wrong which are sincerely held with the strength of
traditional religious views. This standard was developed in UNITED 
STATES
VS. SEEGER, 380 U.S. 163 (1965) and WELSH VS. UNITED STATES, 398 
U.S. 333
(1970). The Commission has consistently applied this standard in its
decisions. The fact that no religious group espouses such beliefs 
or the
fact that the religious group to which the individual professes to 
belong
may not accept such belief will not determine whether the belief is a
religious belief of the employee or prospective employee. The phrase
"religious practice" as used in these Guidelines includes both 
religious
observances and practices, as stated in Section 701(j) (paragraph 
9500,
42 U.S.C. 2000e(j).
*
Sec. 1605.2 Reasonable Accommodation without Undue Hardship as 
Required
by Section 701(j) (paragraph 9500 of Title VII of the Civil Rights 
Act of
1964. --- (a) PURPOSE OF THIS SECTION.
*
    This Section clarifies the obligation imposed by Title VII of the
Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, (sections 701 (j) (paragraph 
950),
703 (paragraph 954) 717, (paragraph 982)) to accommodate the 
religious
practices of employees and prospective employees. This section does 
not
address other obligations under Title VII not to discriminate on 
grounds
of religion, nor other provisions of Title VII. This section is not
intended to limit any additional obligations to accommodate religious
practices which may exist pursuant to constitutional, or other 
statutory
provisions; neither is it intended to provide guidance for statutes 
which
require accommodation on bases other than religion such as Sec. 503 
of
the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (paragraph 999.6C). The legal 
principles
which have been developed with respect to discrimination prohibited 
by
Title VII on the bases of race, color, sex, and national origin also
apply to religious discrimination in all circumstances other than 
where
an accommodation is required.
*
            (b)  DUTY TO ACCOMMODATE.
            (1)  Section 701(j) (paragraph 950) makes it an unlawful
unemployment practice under Sec. 703(a) (1) (paragraph 954) for an
employer to fail to reasonably accommodate the religious practices 
of an
employee or prospective, unless the


---
 * Origin: ThelemaNet San Francisco * (415) 751-9308 (Opus 1:161/93)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(632)   Sun 2 Jul 89  1:17                              
By: Jack Ofshadows
To: All
Re: Civil Rights 2 of 4
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:32c7 12e20a39

employer demonstrates that
accommodation would result in undue hardship on the conduct of its
business.
            (2)  Section 701(j) (paragraph 954) in conjunction with 
Sec.
703(c), imposes an obligation to reasonably accommodate the religious
practices of an employee or prospective employee, unless the labor
organization demonstrates that accommodation would result in undue
hardship.
            (3)  Section 1605.2 is primarily directed to 
obligations of
employers or labor organizations, which are the entities covered by 
Title
VII that will most often be required to make an accommodation. 
however,
the principles of Section 1605.2 also apply when an accommodation 
can be
required of other entities covered by Title VII, such as employment
agencies (Sec. 703(b) (paragraph 954) or joint labor-management
committees controlling apprenticeship or other training or retraining
(Sec. 703(d) (paragraph 954)).
*
            (c)  REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION.
            (1)  After an employee or prospective employee notifies 
the
employer or labor organization of his or her need for a religious
accommodation, the employer or labor organization has an obligation 
to
reasonably accommodate the individual's religious practices. A 
refusal to
accommodate is justified only when an employer or labor 
organization can
demonstrate that an undue hardship would in fact result from each
available alternative method of accommodation. A mere assumption that
many more people, with the same religious practices as the person 
being
accommodated, may also need accommodation is not evidence of undue
hardship.
*
             (2) When there is more than one method of accommodation
available which would not cause undue hardship, the Commission will
determine whether the accommodation offerred is reasonable by 
examining:
             (i) The alternatives for accommodation considered by the
employer or labor organization; and
             (ii) The alternative for accommodation, if any, actually
offerred to the individual requiring accommodation. Some 
alternatives for
accommodating religious practices might disadvantage the individual 
with
respect to his or her employment opportunities, such as compensation,
terms, conditions, or privilieges of employment. Therefore, when 
there is
more than one means of accommodation which would not cause undue
hardship, the employer or labor organization must offer the 
alternative
which least disadvantages the individual with respect to his or her
employment opportunities.
*
            (d) ALTERNATIVES FOR ACCOMMODATING RELIGIOUS PRACTICES.
*
            (1) Employees and prospective employees most frquently
request an accommodation because their religious practices conflict 
with
their work schedules. The following subsections are some means of
accommodating the conflict between work schedules and religious 
practices
which the Commission believes that employers and labor organizations
should consider as part of the obligation to accommodate and which 
the
Commission will consider in investigating a charge. These are not
intended to be all-inclusive. there are often other alternatives 
which
would reasonably accommodate an individuals religious practices 
when they
conflict with a work schedule. There are also employment practices
besides work scheduling which may conflict with religious practices 
and
cause an individual to request an accommodation.


---
 * Origin: ThelemaNet San Francisco * (415) 751-9308 (Opus 1:161/93)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(633)   Sun 2 Jul 89  1:22                              
By: Jack Ofshadows
To: All
Re: Religion Civil Rights 3 of 3
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:32c7 12e20ad6

*
            (i) VOLUNTARY SUBSTITUTES AND "SWAPS,"
            Reasonable accommodation without undue hardship is 
generally
possible where a voluntary substitute with substantially similar
qualifications is available. One means of substitution is the 
voluntary
swap. In a number of cases, the securing of a substitute has been 
left
entirely up to the individual seeking the accommodation. The 
Commission
believes that the obligation to accommodate requires that employers 
and
labor organizations facilitate the securing of a voluntary substitute
with substantially similar qualififcations. Some means of doing this
which employers and labor organizations should consider are: to 
publicize
policies regarding accommodation and voluntary substitution; to 
promote
an atmosphere in which such substitutions are favorably regarded; to
provide a central file, bulletin board or other means for matching
voluntary substitutes with positions for which substitutes are 
needed.
*
             (ii) FLEXIBLE SCHEDULING.
             One means of providing reasonable accommodation for the
religious practices of employees or prospective employees which 
employers
and labor organizations should consider is the creation of a flexible
work schedule for individuals requesting accommodation.
             The following list is an example of areas in which
flexibility might be introduced: flexible arrival and departure 
times;
floating or optional holidays; flexible work breaks; use of 
lunchtime in
exchange for early departure; staggered work hours; and permitting an
employee to make up time lost due to the observance of religious
practices.
*
            (ii) LATERAL TRANSFER AND CHANGE OF JOB ASSIGNMENTS.
            When an employee cannot be accommodated either as to 
his or
her entire job or an assignment within the job, employers and labor
organizations should consider whether or not it is possible to 
change the
job assignment or give the employee a lateral transfer.
under the HARDISON decision.
*
2. The religious practices of some individuals and some groups of
individuals are not being accommodated.
*
3. Some of those practices which are not being accommodated are:
---Observance of a Sabbath or religious holidays;
---Need for prayer break during working hours;
---Practice of following certain dietary requirements;
---Practice of not working during a mourning period for a deceased
relative;
---Prohibition against medical examinations
---Prohibition against membership in labor and other organizations; 
and
---Practices concerning dress and other personal grooming habits.
*
4. Many of the employers who testified had developed alternative
employment practices which accommodate the religious practices of
employees and prospective employees and which meet the employer's
business needs.*
5. Little evidence was submitted by employers which showed actual
attempts to accommodate religious practices with resultant 
unfavorable
consequences to the employer's business. Employers appeared to have
substantial anticipatory concerns, but no, or very little, actual
experience with the problems they theorized would emerge by providing
reasonable accommodation for religious practices.
*
                                  END


---
 * Origin: ThelemaNet San Francisco * (415) 751-9308 (Opus 1:161/93)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(634)   Wed 28 Jun 89  0:14                             
By: the Bard
To: All
Re: A small song...again....
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:bbba 12dc01d1


       FROM THE BLACK BOOK OF LOCKSLEY: 

                                   * 

                           THE CHILDISH EDDA 
                               -Bela of Eastmarch, KSCA 
                                Ron Ellik 
                               -tune: "Tramp, Tramp, Tramp" 


       Yggdrasil, where Nine Worlds clash is a noble piece of ash 
       That shelters Norns and Gods and all that crew 
       There, a Dragon gnaws the base of an Eagle's resting place, 
       And four Harts, a Goat and Squirrel are there too! 

       Frigga took a year, or so, and, except for mistletoe 
       Got from everything an Oath for Balder's good 
       Evil Loki wished him harm, so he hired Hodr's arm 
       And the staff the Blind God threw was kissing-wood! 

       Tyr vowed Fenris-Wolf his hand if he couldn't break the Band 
       That All-Father's wisdom made both light and hefty 
       Lupine muscles strained away, but the magic held its' sway - 
       And from then on, till The Time, they called Tyr "Lefty!" 

       When Thor went out to fish, he quickly got his wish, 
       and he hauled a Jormangandr from the Bay 
       But Hymr cut the cable, and Thor was only able 
       To brag about the "one that got away..." 

       When Thor called upon the Giants, they didn't show defiance, 
       But they soon got rid of him, and of his Hammer 
       For the sea he could not swallow, and old Grandmaw beat him 
hollow, 
       And the House-Pet caused an awful katzenjammer! 

       Asa-Thor became a "her" for to repossess Mjollnir 
       And unto a frosty brute his troth did plight 
       But the vittles that he ate would an army more than sate 
       And the chefs at Utgard always rued that night! 

       Each God's Apple every day, kept the doctor far away 
       'Til a Giant captured Ydun from their Halls 
       Loki fetched home Bragi's Bride with Her health-food store 
beside 
       Plus a char-broiled eagle underneath the Walls! 

       Odin said to Mim: "I think I would sort of like a drink." 
       Answered Mim: "That will cost you your left eye!    
       For you've come up very late to the Well at Wisdom's Gate 
       And the set-up prices, after hours, are high!" 

       Oh, the Giants brought their War up to Bifrost's very Door 
       And the battling wrecked Asgards perfect clime 
       Jromungandr, Hel and Fenris dealt out Death in doses 
generous         And, in fighting, did the Aesir pass The Time! 

                                   * 



                                                                    
                
                

---
 * Origin: <<<Deus ex Machina-BBS Free Atenveldt! 114/29>>>  (Opus 
1:114/29)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(635)   Wed 28 Jun 89 14:39                             
By: the Bard
To: All
Re: Song.....
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:bbba 12dc74f9

                                 * 

                        LORD OF THE DANCE 
                               -Anonymous 
                               recorded by Joe Bethancourt  
                                           "Celtic Circle Dance" 

       She danced on the water, and the wind was Her horn 
       The Lady laughed, and everything was born 
       And when She lit the sun and its' light gave Him birth 
       The Lord of the Dance first appeared on the Earth 

     (Chorus): Dance, dance, where ever you may be 
               I am the Lord of the Dance, you see! 
               I live in you, and you live in Me 
               And I lead you all in the Dance, said He! 

     * I danced in the morning when the World was begun 
       I danced in the Moon and the Stars and the Sun 
       I was called from the Darkness by the Song of the Earth 
       I joined in the Song, and She gave Me the Birth! 

       I dance in the Circle when the flames leap up high 
       I dance in the Fire, and I never, ever, die 
       I dance in the waves of the bright summer sea 
       For I am the Lord of the wave's mystery 

       I sleep in the kernel, and I dance in the rain 
       I dance in the wind, and thru the waving grain 
       And when you cut me down, I care nothing for the pain; 
       In the Spring I'm the Lord of the Dance once again! 

     * I dance at the Sabbat when you dance out the Spell 
       I dance and sing that everyone be well 
       And when the dancing's over do not think that I am gone 
       To live is to Dance! So I dance on, and on! 

     * I see the Maidens laughing as they dance in the Sun 
       And I count the fruits of the Harvest, one by one 
       I know the Storm is coming, but the Grain is all stored 
       So I sing of the Dance of the Lady, and Her Lord: 

                          * more * 


---
 * Origin: <<<Deus ex Machina-BBS Free Atenveldt! 114/29>>>  (Opus 
1:114/29)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(636)   Wed 28 Jun 89 14:40                             
By: the Bard
To: All
Re: song.....(end)
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:bbba 12dc7514

       Lord of the Dance (cont.): 

       The Horn of the Lady cast its' sound 'cross the Plain 
       The birds took the notes, and gave them back again 
       Till the sound of Her music was a Song in the sky 
       And to that Song there is only one reply: 

       The moon in her phases, and the tides of the sea 
       The movement of the Earth, and the Seasons that will be 
       Are the rhythm for the dancing, and a promise thru the years 
       That the Dance goes on thru all our joy, and tears 

     * We dance ever slower as the leaves fall and spin 
       And the sound of the Horn is the wailing of the wind 
       The Earth is wrapped in stillness, and we move in a trance, 
       But we hold on fast to our faith in the Dance! 

     * The Sun is in the Southland and the days lengthen fast 
       And soon we will sing for the Winter that is past 
       Now we light the candles and rejoice as they burn 
       And we dance the Dance of the Sun's return! 

       They danced in the darkness and they danced in the night 
       They danced on the Earth, and everything was light 
       They danced out the Darkness and they danced in the Dawn 
       And the Day of that Dancing is still going on! 

       I gaze on the Heavens and I gaze on the Earth 
       And I feel the pain of dying, and re-birth 
       And I lift my head in gladness, and in praise  
       For the Dance of the Lord, and His Lady gay 

       (repeat verse 1) 

   Does anyone out there in cyberland have any verses to this that 
I may 

have missed? BTW: verses marked with (*) were NOT recorded on the 
"Celtic Circle Dance" album. 
                    -the Bard 

                                 * 

one 
       I know the Storm is coming, 

---
 * Origin: <<<Deus ex Machina-BBS Free Atenveldt! 114/29>>>  (Opus 
1:114/29)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(637)   Sat 15 Jul 89 10:49                             
By: Warren Stott
To: All
Re: Prefect love and anti-trust
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:3fc4 563912ef
"Do as thou will shall be the whole of the anti-trust law."

And it came to pass that on the last day of the reign of king
Lyndon, the Attorney General was called before his majesty.
There he was charged with the first of the great acts of
defiance; to restrain the Lords of Blue. "Restrain them" said
Lyndon, "that they shall not compete freely in the Games of
Commerce from their city of Armonk. Restrain them that others may
run the race unfettered even as the Blues are bound." The words
poured like ice and fire upon the brow of the humble servant of
the bench and the badge. "Restrain them that you shall set the
holiest of precedence. Bind them as is the law." With no recourse
but to comply in the face of majesty, he took up this mark upon
history and his name and went forth to do Lyndon's bidding.

He delved into the science and craft, at first with apprehension, 
and planned war against the mysteries hidden in the realm of
Monopoly. To him he called many a man willing to witness and
testify of repression and tyranny. So fervent were they that they
provided him with the most secret, oath and patent bound,
materials of the realm. From this he did gain a confidence that 
knew no bounds. Soon, he massed the troops of the legal clan. He 
lead them into battle in the righteousness that comes of certainty 
and fear, armed with
brief and pad, against the Lords of Blue. And the day did dawn
that the Lords of Blue did fall before the bench. The readers of
the sooth foretold that this was the unleashing of the terrors of
the realm previously held in check by those same Lord's that now
bowed down low. The terrors, it was foretold, would lift the fog 
from the realm of Monopoly and set upon the world a
market so diverse that if defied the reckoning of mortals and the
Giants of Industry alike. The fog lifted as this, they said,
shall not settle again. The veil be pierced for all time.

Ah, now the times of Lyndon have been long past and this tale
reduced to mere myth. But the sooth be said and the fog it be
lifted. It was a mere generation before the Lady of Bell, too,
was drawn from the realm with jeers and banter. She came raising
a fuss and stink beyond even that of the Lords of Blue. She
invoked Rates and Service in her own name to the terror of all
mortal life. But alas, she did fall before the bench, no less. 
It was only then that we came to realize that she was gravid and
heavy with Baby Bells which she did birth in great gory show
before the bench. And as their mother, they were of nature to the
old realm of Monopoly, only smaller.

Yet, in those days, still shrouded in the mists and as yet, even 
beyond the most profound readers of bone and card, came again a 
vision 
of terrors released by the words of Lyndon. For behind the mist there
came others. The Sprint and the unpronounceable one, Mci, at the head
of a host of alternative carriers. Just as the Titans did usurp the 
Gods 
of old, they came forth from the mists and ranged freely and with 
malice 
over the whole of the western world. And the Lady Bell laughed in 
fiendish glee, for the sooth of old was in full flower. For now, 
where there was once the tyranny of the One, now there was the 
horror of the Many.

--- msged 1.99S ZTC
 * Origin: === Tech Pubs Consulting ===  (1:104/904.7)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(638)   Sun 16 Jul 89 12:56                             
By: the Bard
To: All
Re: Humor
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:bbba 12f06701

                          DETERIORATA PT. 2 
                     (The Dark Horde version!) 

Go nastily amid the Peace and Tranquility, and remember what 
satisfaction  
there may be in Genocide. As far as possible, without surrender, 
move into  
other people's space. Lie often, and loudly, and listen to the lies 
of others,  
even the slow and incompetent - examples can be made of them later. 
* Seek out  
meek and inoffensive persons: they are annoying, but fun to kill. 
Do not  
bother comparing yourself to others: Those greater than you will 
eventually be  
eliminated, and those lesser then you are dead already. Fart in 
Grand  
Processionals. *  Keep your swords and knives sharp, for all around 
you are  
cha'gua, and looking for an excuse to kill you. *  Rape first, then 
pillage, 
and then burn. *  Exercize caution around Vikings and Celts. They 
are  
crazier than we are: a Celtic Mongol is an awesome thing indeed. 
Make him or  
her your Friend. *  But let Life not blind you to the happier side 
of things:  
many Hats are swaggering, tinplated dictators with delusions of 
adequacy, and  
everywhere Life is full of Incompetence. Advance yourself. 
Especially do not  
feign meanness, neither be cynical about Hate: you are not likely 
to run out 
of either. *  Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully 
surrendering  
the joys of defenestration and evisceration for more mature 
pleasures. Nurture  
a deep-seated suspicion of chag'ua women with big boobs: you never 
can  
tell. File your teeth regularly. Discipline is important: practice 
holding it  
in between events. *  You are a Scourge of the World, no less than 
Atilla or  
the Great Ghengis Himself: you have a right to be here. And whether 
or not it  
is clear to you, no doubt the Known Worlde is going to pieces in a 
most  
laudable manner. *  Therefore, do your utmost to annoy the 
Powers-that Be, 
however you may conceive of Them: BoD, King, or the People's Will; 
and, 
whatever your plans of conquest, as you wade thru the morasses of 
Peace with 
fire and sword, annoy your Soul. *  With all it's Truth, High 
Resolve, and 
Courage, the Known World still has it's Ugly Spots and 
Fubba-Wubbas. Be 
thoughtless. Strive to be miserable. 

-found carved into the back of a MidRealm fighter at Pennsic, AS 
23. No damn 
 Copyright. Post no Bills. This means YOU! 

Courtesy of Ardjukk Afraid-of-His-Cats and the Western Irgun of the 
Dark Horde. 

                              *end* 


---
 * Origin: <<<Deus ex Machina-BBS Free Atenveldt! 114/29>>>  (Opus 
1:114/29)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(639)   Sun 16 Jul 89 12:11                             
By: Magenta Griffith
To: All
Re: The Origin of Music
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:d649 12f06179

One of the stories of Creation is that the Goddess and the God
turned into different animals, and mated in each form, and that is 
how
all the kinds of creatures came to exist. She turned into a ewe, and
He turned into a ram, so there were sheep, and so there still are. 
She
turned into a hen, and He turned into rooster, and so we have
chickens. Well, turning into all the animals and mating as each was
very tiring, even for the Goddess and the God. Consequently when They
were finished, They rested a good long time.
After a while, though, the Goddess started feeling frisky again.
And as it is, so it was, the God was still tired, and not yet ready 
to
begin the games again. So the Goddess stood up, and started teasing
Him. She shook Her hips, and threw back Her head, and waved Her arms.
She shouted and wailed, like She was a cat in heat, and She stomped
Her feet and thrust Her belly out. Pretty soon, Her movements 
became a
dance, and Her noises became a song. She danced faster and faster, 
and
sang louder and louder. 
After a while, the God got up, and joined Her in the dance. But
He was still very tired, and She danced faster and faster, and so did
He, until finally, He danced too fast, even for Him, and dropped down
dead at Her feet. She was so entranced by Her own dancing, and so
enchanted by Her own singing, that She didn't realized what had
happened. She picked up the body of Her consort and danced with it.
As She danced, Her hands moved of their own accord. She made the
first drum by stretching His skin over His two largest ribs, and the
drum began to beat. She put His teeth, and the smallest bones of His
body into His skull, and that was the first rattle, and it began to
shake. She drilled holes in His thighbone, and wind whistled through
it, and that was the first flute. She drew His hair across two of His
smaller ribs and that was the first lyre. She turned all of His skin,
His bones, His hair and His whole body into music.
Last thing, lying on the ground, was His penis. She picked that
up, and popped it in Her mouth. And when She did, She stopped 
singing,
and Her feet stopped dancing, and She realised was She had done. She
spat out the penis. She took it, and gathered all the rest of the 
body
of Her consort. She lovingly buried Him, and She planted an ash tree
on the spot.
But, She had created music, and invented the musical instruments,
and what She had done She could not undo. When we play music, when we
sing, when we dance, we are the Goddess, consorting with the God in
yet another way. And since the God became the Tree, so we make our
instruments from wood, rather than bone. That is how music came to be
loose in the world, and music is with us to this day. *M*


---
 * Origin: FIRE OPAL - A Gem of an OPUS  [Minneapolis, MN  (612) 
822-4812] (Opus 1:282/8)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(640)   Mon 17 Jul 89 22:12                             
By: Kihe Blackeagle
To: All
Re: The Birth Of Writing
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:fa0a 12f1b180
(a paraphrase of old tales)
 
When the world was young and young indeed, the Eldest Dragon had a 
marvelous cout of glossy scales. Irridescent colors played across 
them, never staying the same for any length of time, shifting with 
the light of Sun and Moon and Stars; dancing under the whispering 
breeze and scattering joyous sight wherever he went. The aeons 
passed. The Earth changed. The Eldest became known as "Yang", and 
he listened long and respectfully to the First-Born that he met, 
and his memory was honed by the sharpness of the Satyr's wit -- his 
ears were blessed by the first Nightingale -- his heart was 
purified by the wisdom of the Celestial Counselor (known later as 
the Ki-Rin) -- and his blood was stirred by the trumpetings of the 
Stag. And these were but a few of those with whom Yang spoke in the 
Time of the Dawning.
 
But then the world began to change, and Yang awoke one autumn 
morning before the time of Man's empires to realize that many of 
his first acquaintances were no longer to be found where once they 
had dwelt. A sudden pang rushed through him, for the Old One 
realized that these new-come creatures called "men" would never 
hear the wisdom or know the joy of the sights the other Elders 
could have brought to them. 
 
It was the second rush of fear that chilled Yang even more. He 
realized of a sudden that even he who had been there could not 
remember the *second* song of the Nightingale (no one would EVER 
forget the first -- or could they?).... The Satyr's last jest with 
him was also grown dim behind the veil of even the dragon's 
stupendous memory. As the Sun came from behind a cloud, he looked 
down at his own glittering scales and realized he, too, was not the 
same as he had been. The Past was being lost -- how could he save 
it for Man?
 
The Eldest moped around his remote mountain lair through the rest 
of that year, and most of the next, before he came upon the answer. 
Musing one day, he looked down at the floor of his nest-cave and 
saw several scales that he had shed recently. Each was marked by a 
peculiar yet differing pattern of color, fixed in time by the last 
shift before coming free of his skin. And on one or two he noted 
that the veinings resembled -- PICTURES! There, that one was a 
house, and here was a well, and over there: turn it upright, and 
the head and limbs of a Man could be guessed.
 
Another year passed, or maybe ten -- Yang never was good at keeping 
track of time -- before the Eldest Dragon invited the First Emperor 
and his Court into the mountain retreat. And there he presented 
them with the first scrolls, upon which were recorded all the 
wisdom and every tale which the Dragon Yang had been able to 
remember (and felt to be worthwhile in recording). The Emperor 
became greatly agitated as he saw the importance of this, for by 
this time the Man was far advanced in years and terrified that his 
people would forget what he had taught them. Reverently, he asked 
the dragon to join his court and record yet a little while longer, 
and teach the ministers and learned folk this new thing, this 
writing.
 
And it came to pass in the fullness of time that the Emperor died 
in bed, and Yang wept to see the gentleness of his spirit go. One 
last thing the dragon wrote, and that upon a tortoise's shell using 
his own blood for an ink and his own talon for a brush: the first 
written eulogy.
 
***************
Pax ... Kihe
--- TBBS v2.0
 * Origin: *Chrysalis*  Multi-User  (214) 519-0728  Dallas, Tx  
(124/4214)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(641)   Sat 22 Jul 89 20:24                             
By: Paul Seymour
To: All
Re: Summoning, by Jack of Shadows
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:d65 a30012f6

     Recently,I was doing a Work of Magic to promote healing; at a
certain point, I felt it would be right, and I summoned the
"Intelligence" of Jupiter. A LARGE presence showed up and "taught" me
about the natu and labor relations. HE also gave me insight to the
problems of a friend of mine-advice that ultimately saved my friend's
life.
      I suspect that there are three sources for intelligence in the 
realm of life forms. One is from the assending of life forms in the 
material plane, evolution; from the Elemental kingdom as a paralell 
evolution, this includes the Spirit of other kindoms such as mineral 
and vegetable; and the third was born when the great sun of potent-
iality first reached forth, and Life came forth, the Spirit and 
Intelligences of the planets and fixed stars.   In time, because of
the decisions made reality of such beings, the power and force of
Gods was felt by men/women, and those who worked became great; The
race of mankind rose, and great people created/became great Gods, and
those who knew such things became the writers of the Ancient Books.
Can you see the power of the infinite, and its inevitable unfolding?
Is it possible to undo what is mere thought, the ultimate unleashing
of potentiality?
     I think we all benefit from the limitless expanse of current 
thought.  If thoughts are indeed things, we have created, as a race, 
the solution to all the problems of our time, such solutions are 
stored by the universe into the Intelligences.  Just think, and 
realize you create. Bring forth life in all its potential. Be not 
small in thy creation O Lord and Lady. Be not limiting in thy subs-
tance.   Know thee the entity Satan? He is but a recent birth, with 
pretentions of grandure.
       Let us look to our spiritual elders for validation.  The 
greatness of total potentiation surrounds you and presents the pos-
sibility of change and muchness.
     I perfer to relate to the planets as the physical manifestation 
to an object that exists on many planes at the same time. In this 
case, the planet Jupiter is a Planet, Spirit, and Intell<Pth 
various aspects that can be summoned and used tp create a form of 
instant understanding.
       Instant Understanding: It has occured to me that we go 
through the ordeal of a formal education as, not an accumulation of 
knowledge, but, as a deliberate shaping of our state of conscious 
thought. Five years after compleating 4 years of college, how much of
that vaunted   knowledge is left?  Very little; but, the attitudes 
and changes in perception are more lasting.
        That modification in outward looking, which is one of the 
changes of going through a prolonged period of education, can be 
aquired by contact with certain Celestial Intellegence, as well as 
Terrestrial depositories of the power and occult knowledge of past 
races.  The old Grimoreas speak of beings who come and "teach all 
maner of science, gives good familiars." Such beings, do not stand 
there at the edge of the Circle and discource on the structure of 
stainless steel for two hours; instead, it imparts the essence, by 
powerfull modifying PSI energy. The experience is simmilar to a Self
DeARCing file which is transmitted, then unpax itself into a huge 
grasp of a subject. it is like realigning your brain to an alternate 
state, or for dealing with a subject,  like the real nature of Money 
in this society.
     I have just begun getting into the meat of this practice, which 
I and  others call "Summoning."   
 
                               by Jack of Shadows
--- QuickBBS v2.04
 * Origin: The Mountain Oracle "Witches & Pagans & Druids.....Oh 
My!" (1:301/9)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(642)   Fri 11 Aug 89 16:20                             
By: Ammond Shadowcraft
To: All
Re: Flag Cremation
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:210a 130b8286

Dearly Beloved Americans, 
         
We are gathered here today to mourn the present passing of the 
greatest Republic this planet has known. The Republic of the United 
States of America is "sick unto death". Our politicians act in 
others behalf. Our financial leaders line their own pockets first 
and foremost. Our religious leaders depart from the ways of their 
Lord and seek after their true God; Mammon. Hence we offer the Last 
Rites for the United States of America. 
         
Many good men and women have fought and died for our beloved 
Republic. History may assign to them great honor. Their sacrifices 
will not go unheeded should political revisionists let them lie in 
peace. 
         
Presently the government through its various agencies desecrates 
and maligns the principles for which our fathers, brothers and 
loved ones sacrificed so much. The Government lies to the People, 
steals from the People and carries out another's will daily. 
         
Hence we respectfully, dutifully and mournfully cremate the 
American flag in acknowledgment of a page in history being rent 
from the great historical book of life. We do hereby ignite and 
cremate this symbol of American freedom with the tool of tyranny, 
an Internal Revenue Service 1040 form. 
         
May the New Republic learn to serve the will of the People in peace 
and happiness. 

All Hail the New Republic. 
         
This was the short speech I was going to give on July 5th, 1989 in 
Denver, Colorado for a brief, yet public flag cremation. 
         
Arriving in Denver at about six with a friend we spent a few 
minutes discussing the ceremony with the host of the flag burning, 
Bill. Originally we had planned to ride to the park accompanied by 
the media. That didn't happen though because as soon as I got there 
a group of 8 bikers from the Vietnam Veterans Motorcycle Club 
parked their Harleys across the street. Reporters from The Denver 
Post, KOA, and a NPR station in Boulder walked over to the bikers 
with us to discuss the situation. Bill had previously told the 
papers he was going to burn the flag on the 5th of July but had not 
specified a place. Perhaps the bikers got his address out of the 
phone book. They arrived shortly after work. 
         
The President of the Club called himself Gunner. Gunner told us he 
and his friends were just congregating on the street. I said I knew 
why he was there, to intimidate the individuals out of burning the 
flag. News reporters flocked around us with cameras and recorders. 
Gunner said to me "You don't know how many Gooks I killed for the 
Flag." Being a little busy I failed to ask him what a Gook was. 
Calmly I responded saying that I was sorry his friends died but I 
couldn't do anything about his problem. Being on the scene to 

---
 * Origin: SMARTNet - Silly Origin Lines 'R' Us (Opus 1:128/23)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(643)   Fri 11 Aug 89 16:21                             
By: Ammond Shadowcraft
To: All
Re: Flag Cremation
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:210a 130b82b3

kills thousands of innocent people in secret foreign campaigns in 
El Salvador, Nicaragua and elsewhere. I feel much the same as he 
does. The hypocrisy of our elected and unelected leaders is 
unapproachable. 

Further this author feels that our established social system 
programs the individual to feel and think in previously approved 
ways. A tool used is the American flag. Many feel that as long as 
Old Glory flies free things can't be too bad. Things are bad, in 
fact, horrible. All that is required to see clearly is a 
disassociative step away from our usual non-thinking, 
preprogrammed, entertain-me mode of existence. It's time to break 
the program before it breaks us. 

I invite the reader to burn a flag as an act of will; to start on 
the path of intellectual and emotional freedom. Or in the 
alternative to fly the flag with pride and awareness, knowing the 
system is sick and taking part in the great struggle for beneficial 
change in our corner of the universe, to benefit our fellow 
travelers of all species and all nations. 

Janus Sundance, copyright July 1989 


---
 * Origin: SMARTNet - Silly Origin Lines 'R' Us (Opus 1:128/23)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(644)   Tue 15 Aug 89 17:34                             
By: Brad Hicks
To: All
Re: AMER Press Release #1
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:7c84 8c4e130f
Contact: J. Brad Hicks
        11220 West Florissant, Suite #288
        Florissant, Missouri  63032

                     FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MAGICAL RELIGIOUS GROUPS UNITE
TO COUNTER "LIES AND PROPAGANDA"

(St. Louis) -- Representatives of various St. Louis-area Witchcraft 
covens and other religious groups which practice magic or which 
worship the Earth recently formed a group called the Alliance for 
Magical and Earth Religions, or AMER.  Sunday's meeting was the 
product of several months of meetings, and resulted in the 
formation of the group, a Statement of Purpose, and plans for 
future projects.  The group's Statement of Purpose stresses the 
importance of standing up for religiousfreedom and countering 
negative propaganda about magical religions.

Galena Price, who organized the committee which formed AMER, said 
that she saw the need for such a group while she was negotiating to 
use a meeting room in an area hotel for a seminar on magical 
religion.  She was informed that a county official had given the 
hotel staff a pamphlet entitled "America's Best Kept Secret."  That 
pamphlet falsely accuses all Witches and Satanists of being part of 
a vast, nation-wide conspiracyto commit mass murder.  Ms. Price 
compared the document to the slanderous anti-Semitic literature 
early in this century which accused Jews of similar crimes, and 
ultimately lead to the Holocaust.

Alliance member Brad Hicks claims that the comparison to 
anti-Semitic literature is particularly apt.  "These accusations 
are as false as the Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion.  The 
people who are writing and distributing this trash have never 
presented any hard evidence at all to back up such claims.  But 
we've found that if we don't challenge them to produce evidence, 
people will believe their lies and propaganda."

The Alliance for Magical and Earth Religion's official Statement of 
Purpose commits them to stand up for "the right of every American 
to practice his or her own religion, insofar as the religion's 
practices directly harm no one.  In particular, AMER will actively 
campaign for tolerance for magical and Earth-centered religions."  
It also says that they will work to promote a positive image for 
such religious groups and to counter negative propaganda.

In October, Ms. Price and AMER are planning to hold a public 
seminar at which Frank Medina will speak.  Mr. Medina is a 
Wisconsin parole officer and nationally-recognized expert on 
accusations of occult-related crime.

-30-

For more information, contact:

J. Brad Hicks
11220 West Florissant, Suite #288
Florissant, Missouri  63032



                  ALLIANCE FOR MAGICAL AND EARTH RELIGIONS

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

1. AMER will defend the right of every American to practice his or 
her own religion, insofar as that religion's practices do not 
directly harm anyone.  In particular, AMER will actively campaign 
for tolerance for magical and Earth-centered religions.

2. AMER will work to promote a positive image for magical and 
Earth-centered religions, and to counter negative propaganda about 
such groups.

3. AMER will promote cooperation among the various magical and 
Earth-centered religious groups in the eastern Missouri area.

4. AMER will serve as a source of accurate information on magical 
and Earth-centered religions and practices.

--- Sirius 0.50

--- ConfMail V4.00
 * Origin: WeirdBase * St. Louis, MO * 1-314-741-2231 * (1:100/523)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(645)   Sat 19 Aug 89 16:53                             
By: grass
To: all
Re: Magick Echo Net Topology
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:bb6e 86a51313
    as some of you know, i've been trying to update the diagram 
seen in MAG-POL.TXT showing the flow of messages along the Magick 
echo trio -- which systems pick the echoes up from which others, 
and wither they pass it along.  based on the messages i've received 
so far, and on PATH lines of messages received here at WKC, this is 
the topology know to me:

100/523---+---301/9----------308/1001
   |      |
   |      +---103/602--------103/507--------103/501--------8/0
   |      |                                                 |
   |      +---104/610---+----104/904                       914/201
   |      |             |                                   |
   |      |             +----Net 104                       914/207
   |      |             |
   |      |             +----128/23----+----Net 128
   |      |             |              |
   |      |             |              +----128/45
   |      |             |              |
   |      |             |              +----128/50
   |      |             |
   |      |             
+----104/801--------104/62---------104/422--------304/1    |      |
   |      +---109/114--------109/120*
   |      |
   |      +---133/205
   |      |
   |      +---322/1
   |      |
   |      +---325/106
   |
161/93--------107/666*---+---266/72
   |                     |
   |                     +---107/597
   |
282/341---+---108/185
          |
          +---124/1109
          |
          +---139/630
          |
          +---147/54
          |
          +---282/8
          |
          +---363/9------+---363/29----+----363/69
                         |             |
                         |             +----363/363
                         |
                         +---363/17


382/7---------103/903*-------103/333*-------103/322*

     please note that * after the node number identifies that node 
as PC Pursuit-able.

     this diagram is far from complete; note for example the node 
382/7, the feed to which is unknown.  also, i've endeavoured to 
keep net/node numbers which identify points out of the diagram, but 
may have missed some.

     if you system is not listed on here; if you know of feeds i've 
left out; if you know of errors or omissions of any kind, PLEASE 
let me know!  the final version will include system names and so 
forth, and will look much like the one seen in MAG-POL.

     thanks!

                                        grass



--- msged 1.99L MSC
 * Origin: The White Knight Cafe -- Am I having ideas yet? 
(1:109/114.310)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(646)   Sat 19 Aug 89 20:41                             
By: Paul Seymour
To: All
Re: Ritual Dedications
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:d65 a5201313
                DEDICATION OF RITUAL TOOLS
 
     ALTAR
 
          This Altar in the circle's center,
          A focal point that only good may enter.
 
          Erected to God and Goddess in strength,
          Circular, it has neither breadth nor length.
 
          Focal point in A Circle of Power,
          A mighty lense for every Tower!
 
          Sacred to Lord, Maiden, Lady, and Crone,
          The foundation of many a powerful Cone!
 
          Resting Place of Magick and its implements,
          Let veneration and Love be our only sentiments!
 
          A tool of will, powerful and free,
          As it is willed, So Mote it Be!
 
     ATHAME
 
          Mighty Deities, Gracious Lady and Mighty Lord,
          As I perform this ritual, Pray hearken to my word.
 
          This tool, conceived in Mind of Air, (Point East)
          Forged and formed in Fire of the South, (Point South)
          Power tool for those who dare,
          I CLAIM thee with my mouth! (Kiss blade)
 
          Tempered with Water for Strength, (Point West)
          Also dedicated to the Earth,in Power. (Point North)
          Blessed be, entire in length, (Kiss Pommel)
          As it partakes of every Tower! 
 
          By the Power of Cosmos, As above, (Point Up)
          The Expression of Cosmos, is below. (Point Down)
          Upon this instrument of Will and Love,
          My Sacred Tie I bestow! (1 drop of blood on each side
                                   and hilt)
 
          This tool is dedicated to my service of Lady and Lord,
          Please find this work beneficial and good.
          Bound to thee by homage, decication, effort and word,
          Bound to me by words, will, and blood.
 
          By the powers of earth, sky, star, and sea;
          Such is my will, So mote it be!
--- QuickBBS v2.04
 * Origin: The Mountain Oracle "Witches & Pagans & Druids.....Oh 
My!" (1:301/9)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(647)   Wed 23 Aug 89  6:42                             
By: Russ Anderson
To: all
Re: The Tools of the Wise
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:d466 35471317
Ladies and Gentlemen (and other lurkers), 
 The following rhyme came from Dolores Ashcroft-Nowicki's recent 
talk on the Village. It is copyright and is posted to the net with 
permission. If any sysops feel they need to see a copy of the 
permission, send me netmail at 1:104/904.5 with a post office 
address and I'll mail you a photocopy.
 B*B
 Dragonfriend (Russ)

---------------------------------------------------------------------
----

 "The Tools of the Wise"
Copyright 1989 (c) by Dolores Ashcroft-Nowicki and The Elders.
All Rights reserved. No reproduction without written permission.

Now count ye the tools of the Wise Ones.
Now make them and master them well.
But remember that tools are but symbols
Of Powers that deeply indwell.

The Rod is the symbol of Kingship
To guide and to guard and to Rule.
But its Ruler must also be humble
For the Wisest of Kings is the Fool.

The Sword is the bringer of Power.
Its edges are sharp and are two.
One edge is to combat the darkness.
The other, the darkness in you.

The Cup is the giver of Vision
And opens the eye to the light.
To drink is to see what is hidden
For the Gift of the Seer is Sight.

Its wine is the giver of Sorrow,
Of sweetness and Love and of Life.
Who drinks to the dregs will be blessed.
Who passes may come to know strife.

The Horn is the giver of Plenty
Both in things of above and below
But it also holds death in its giving
For the wisest must reap where they sow.

The Staff is the guider of footsteps
For a wise one must venture afar.
He looks for the way that is hidden
For the doorway whose key is a star.

The Knife is the holder of Balance.
It is used both by man and by maid
It pointeth the way to the Goddess
And holds death on the length of its blade.

The Cord it doth bind us together
By the Cord we are welded like one.
Its strength is the strength of the many.
It has to be all or be none.
   ---       ---       ----

So these are the tools of the Wise Ones
Ancient in time and in Love
From a source that has long been forgotten
Laid out on the Dancing Floor.

--- ConfMail V3.31
 * Origin: Dragonfriend's Point (1:104/904.5)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(648)   Thu 31 Aug 89 21:30                             
By: Kihe Blackeagle
To: Rowan Moonstone
Re: Promised Upload
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:d634 131fabc0
         DEFEND THE NEW DAY
.
 Striding outward from the darkness
 Did the mage-born traveler come
 With no rushing sound of fanfare
 Nor any roll of tight-skinned drum.
.
 As the late-night stars unfolded
 So too did the tale he told
 And as I listened and responded
 Deeply struck the chilling cold:
.
 From the darkness all alone, friend
 Had the traveler shielded self
 With the aid of but one other
 Who lives near the cloud's home shelf.
.
 So we learn of other wanderers
 As we pass down through the years
 Thus we learn of others' troubles
 And we face yet other fears.
.
 Outside, the darkness gathers
 While within we hoard the light
 Every step must be completed
 Ere we dare unveil our Sight.
.
 It is now we must ingather
 All the strength that we may hold
 For the future rushes on us
 And we can't be less than bold.
.
 Soon shall we hear the trump of challenge
 From the towers darkling gray
 It is then that we must answer
 So defending the new day....
.
 M'Chib the Singer 2/12/79
--- TBBS v2.0
 * Origin: *Chrysalis*  Multi-User  (214) 519-0728  Dallas, Tx  
(124/4214)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(649)   Tue 29 Aug 89 19:50                             
By: Gerald Bliss
To: All
Re: Origins Of Halloween, Updated
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:9e2e 9e40131d
                     THE ORIGINS OF HALLOWEEN
                 (c) copyright 1989, Rowan Moonstone

In recent years,  there have been a number of  pamphlets and books 
put
out  be various  Christian organizations  dealing with  the origins 
of
modern- day Halloween customs.

Being a Witch myself, and a student  of the ancient Celts from whom 
we
get this holiday, I have found these pamphlets woefully inaccurate 
and
poorly researched. A typical example  of this information is 
contained
in the following  quote from the pamphlet entitled  "What's Wrong 
with
Halloween?" by Russell K. Tardo.  "The Druids believed that on 
October
31st, the  last day of  the year by  the ancient Celtic  calendar, 
the
lord of  death gathered together  the souls of  the dead who  had 
been
made to  enter bodies of animals,  and decided what forms  they 
should
take the following year. Cats were held sacred because it was 
believed
that they were once human beings ...  We see that this holiday has 
its
origin, basis and root in the  occultic Druid celebration of the 
dead.
Only they  called it 'Samhain',  who was the  lord of the  dead (a 
big
demon)".1  When these  books and  pamphlets cite  sources at all, 
they
usually  list the  Encyclopaedia Brittannica,  Encyclopedia 
Americana,
and  the World  Book Encyclopedia.  The Brittannica  and the 
Americana
make no  mention of cats, but  do, indeed list Samhain  as the Lord 
of
Death, contrary to Celtic scholars,  and list no references. The 
World
Book mentions the cats, and calls Samhain the Lord of Death, and 
lists
as  its  sources  several  children's  books  (hardly  what  one 
could
consider  scholarly  texts,  and,  of  course,  themselves  citing  
no
references).

In an  effort to correct  some of this  erroneous information, I  
have
researched the  religious life of  the ancient Celtic  peoples and 
the
survivals  of that  religious life  in modern  times. Listed below 
are
some of the  most commonly asked questions concerning  the origins 
and
customs   of  Halloween.   Following  the   questions  is   a  
lengthy
bibliography where the curious reader can  go to learn more about 
this
holiday than space in this small pamphlet permits.

1.      Where does Halloween come from?

        Our  modern celebration  of Halloween  is a  descendent of 
the
        ancient  Celtic   festival  called  "Samhain".   The  word  
is
        pronounced "sow-in", with "sow" rhyming with "cow".  
 
--- QuickBBS v2.04
 * Origin: WELCOME TO THE CRYSTAL CAVE.  "the lady  made me do it" 
:>) (1:128/5

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(650)   Tue 29 Aug 89 19:52                             
By: Gerald Bliss
To: All
Re: Origins Of Halloween, Pt. 2
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:9e2e 9e80131d
2.      What does "Samhain" mean?

        The  Irish-English  Dictionary  published  by  the Irish 
Texts
        Society defines the word as follows: "Samhain, All 
Hallowtide,
        the feast of the dead  in Pagan and Christian times, 
signaling
        the close of harvest and  the initiation of the winter 
season,
        lasting till May, during  which troops were quartered. 
Fairies
        were imagined as particularly active  at this season. From 
it,
        the half-year is reckoned.  Also called Feile Moingfinne 
(Snow
        Goddess).2  The  Scottish  Gaelic  Dictionary  defines  it  
as
        "Hallowtide.  The Feast  of All  Souls. Sam  + Fuin  = end  
of
        summer."3  Contrary  to  the  information  published  by  
many
        organizations, there is no archaeological or literary 
evidence
        to indicate that Samhain was a deity. Eliade's Encyclopedia 
of
        Religion states as  follows: "The Eve and day  of Samhain 
were
        characterized as  a time when  the barriers between  the 
human
        and supernatural worlds were broken... Not a festival 
honoring
        any particular  Celtic deity, Samhain  acknowledged the 
entire
        spectrum of nonhuman forces that  roamed the earth during 
that
        period."4 The Celtic  Gods of the dead were  Gwynn ap Nudd 
for
        the British and Arawn for the  Welsh. The Irish did not 
have a
        "lord of death" as such.

3.      Why was the end of summer of significance to the Celts?

        The Celts were a pastoral people as opposed to an 
agricultural
        people. The end  of summer was significant to  them because 
it
        meant  the time  of year   when the  structure of  their 
lives
        changed  radically.  The  cattle  were  brought  down from 
the
        summer pastures in the hills and the people were gathered 
into
        the houses  for the long  winter nights of  story- telling 
and
        handicrafts .

4.      What does it have to do with a festival of the dead?

        The Celts believed that when people  died, they went to a 
land
        of eternal youth and happiness called Tir nan Og. They did 
not
        have the concept of heaven  and hell that the Christian 
church
        later brought into the land.  The dead were sometimes 
believed
        to be dwelling with the Fairy  Folk, who lived in the 
numerous
        mounds, or sidhe, (pronounced "shee" or "sh-thee") that 
dotted
        the Irish  and Scottish countryside. Samhain  was the new 
year
        to  the Celts.  In the  Celtic belief  system, turning 
points,
        such as the time between one  day and the next, the meeting 
of
        sea and shore,  or the turning of one year  into the next 
were
        seen as magickal  times. The turning of the  year was the 
most
        potent  of  these  times.  This  was  the  time when the 
"veil
        between the worlds" was at  its thinnest, and the living 
could
        communicate with their beloved dead in Tir nan Og.
  
 
--- QuickBBS v2.04
 * Origin: WELCOME TO THE CRYSTAL CAVE.  "the lady  made me do it" 
:>) (1:128/5

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(651)   Tue 29 Aug 89 19:54                             
By: Gerald Bliss
To: All
Re: Origins Of Halloween, Pt. 3
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:9e2e 9ec0131d
5.      What about  the aspects of "evil'  that we  associate with 
the
        night today?

        The  Celts did  not have   demons and  devils in  their 
belief
        system.  The fairies,  however, were  often considered 
hostile
        and  dangerous  to  humans  because  they  were  seen as 
being
        resentful of man  taking over their land. On  this night, 
they
        would sometimes  trick humans into becoming  lost in the 
fairy
        mounds, where they would be  trapped forever. After the 
coming
        of the Christians to the Celtic lands, certain of the folk 
saw
        the fairies as those angels who  had sided neither with God 
or
        with Lucifer in their dispute, and thus were condemned to 
walk
        the earth until judgment day.5

        In addition  to the fairies,  many humans were  abroad on 
this
        night, causing mischief. Since  this night belonged neither 
to
        one  year  or  the  other,  Celtic  folk  believed  that 
chaos
        reigned,  and  the  people  would  engage  in  "horseplay  
and
        practical jokes".6 This also served as a final outlet for 
high
        spirits before the gloom of winter set in.

6.      What about "trick or treat"?

        During the course  of these hijinks, many of  the people 
would
        imitate  the fairies  and go  from house  to house begging 
for
        treats. Failure  to supply the treats  would usually result 
in
        practical jokes being visited on the owner of the house. 
Since
        the fairies were abroad on this  night, an offering of food 
or
        milk was frequently  left for them on the  steps of the 
house,
        so the  homeowner could gain  the blessing of  the "good 
folk"
        for the coming  year. Many of the households  would also 
leave
        out  a "dumb  supper" for  the spirits  of the  departed.9 
The
        folks who were abroad in the night imitating the fairies 
would
        sometimes carry turnips carved to represent faces. This is 
the
        origin of our modern Jack-o-lantern.

7.      Was there any special significance of cats to the Celts?

        According  to   Katherine  Briggs  in  Nine   Lives:  Cats  
in
        Folklore,, the Celts associated cats with the Cailleach 
Bheur,
        or Blue Hag  of Winter. "She was a  nature goddess, who 
herded
        the  deer as  her cattle.  The touch  of her  staff drove  
the
        leaves off the trees and brought snow and harsh weather."7

        Dr. Anne Ross addresses the use  of divine animals in her 
book
        Pagan Celtic Britain  and has this to day  about cats."Cats 
do
        not play a large role in Celtic mythology ... the evidence 
for
        the  cat as  an important  cult animal  in Celtic mythology 
is
        slight"8  She  cites  as  supporting  evidence,  the  lack  
of
        archaeological artifacts and  literary references in 
surviving
        works of mythology.  
 
--- QuickBBS v2.04
 * Origin: WELCOME TO THE CRYSTAL CAVE.  "the lady  made me do it" 
:>) (1:128/5

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(652)   Tue 29 Aug 89 19:56                             
By: Gerald Bliss
To: All
Re: Origins Of Halloween, Pt. 4
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:9e2e 9f00131d
8.      Was this also a religious festival?

        Yes. Celtic religion was very closely tied to the Earth. 
Their
        great  legends are  concerned with  momentous happenings 
which
        took  place around  the time   of Samhain.  Many of  the 
great
        battles and legends of kings  and heroes center on this 
night.
        Many of the legends concern  the promotion of fertility of 
the
        earth and the insurance of the continuance of the lives of 
the
        people through the dark winter season.

9.      How was the religious festival observed?

        Unfortunately,   we  know   very  little   about  that.   
W.G.
        Wood-Martin,  in  his  book,  Traces  of  the  Elder Faiths 
of
        Ireland, states,  "There is comparatively little  trace of 
the
        religion of the Druids now  discoverable, save in the 
folklore
        of the peasantry, and the references relative to it that 
occur
        in  ancient and  authentic Irish  manuscripts are,  as far  
as
        present  appearances go,  meager and  insufficient to  
support
        anything  like  a  sound  theory  for  full development of 
the
        ancient religion."10

        The Druids were the priests of the Celtic peoples. They 
passed
        on  their teachings  by oral  tradition instead  of 
committing
        them  to  writing,  so  when  they  perished,  most  of  
their
        religious teachings  were lost. We do  know that this 
festival
        was characterized as one of the four great "Fire Festivals" 
of
        the Celts. Legends tell us that  on this night, all the 
hearth
        fires in  Ireland were extinguished, and  then re-lit from 
the
        central  fire of  the Druids  at Tlachtga,  12 miles  from 
the
        royal  hill of  Tara. This  fire was  kindled from "need 
fire"
        which had been generated by the friction of rubbing two 
sticks
        together, as opposed to more conventional methods (such as 
the
        flint-   and-steel  method)   common  in   those  days.11  
The
        extinguishing of  the fires symbolized the  "dark half" of 
the
        year, and the re-kindling from  the Druidic fires was 
symbolic
        of the returning life hoped for, and brought about through 
the
        ministrations of the priesthood.

10.     What about sacrifices?

        Animals were certainly  killed at this time of  year. This 
was
        the time to "cull" from the herds those animals which were 
not
        desired  for  breeding  purposes   for  the  next  year.  
Most
        certainly,  some of  these would  have been  done in  a 
ritual
        manner for the use of the priesthood.  
 
--- QuickBBS v2.04
 * Origin: WELCOME TO THE CRYSTAL CAVE.  "the lady  made me do it" 
:>) (1:128/5

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(653)   Tue 29 Aug 89 19:58                             
By: Gerald Bliss
To: All
Re: Origins Of Halloween, Pt. 5
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:9e2e 9f40131d
11.     Were humans sacrificed?

        Scholars are sharply divided on  this account, with about 
half
        believing that  it took place and  half doubting its 
veracity.
        Caesar  and   Tacitus  certainly  tell  tales   of  the  
human
        sacrifices of the  Celts, but Nora Chadwick points  out in 
her
        book  The Celts  that "it   is not  without interest  that 
the
        Romans  themselves  had  abolished  human  sacrifice  not 
long
        before  Caesar's time,  and references  to the  practice 
among
        various   barbarian   peoples   have   certain   overtones  
of
        self-righteousness.  There  is  little  direct  
archaeological
        evidence  relevant to  Celtic sacrifice."12  Indeed, there  
is
        little reference  to this practice  in Celtic literature.  
The
        only surviving story echoes the  tale of the Minotaur in 
Greek
        legend: the Fomorians,  a race of evil giants  said to 
inhabit
        portions of Ireland before the  coming of the Tuatha de 
Danaan
        (or "people  of the Goddess Danu"),  demanded the sacrifice 
of
        2/3  of the  corn, milk,  and first  born children  of the 
Fir
        Bolg,  or human  inhabitants of  Ireland. The  de Danaan 
ended
        this  practice  in  the  second  battle  of  Moy  Tura,  
which
        incidentally,  took  place  on  Samhain.  It  should be 
noted,
        however,  that  this  story  appears  in  only one 
(relatively
        modern) manuscript from Irish literature, and that 
manuscript,
        the  "Dinnsenchus", is  known to  be a  collection of  
fables.
        According to  P.W. Joyce in  Vol. 2 of  his Social History  
of
        Ancient  Ireland,  "Scattered  everywhere  through our 
ancient
        literature, both secular and  ecclesiastical, we find 
abundant
        descriptions and details of the rites and superstitions of 
the
        pagan Irish; and in no place - with this single exception - 
do
        we find  a word or hint  pointing to human sacrifice  to 
pagan
        gods or idols."13

12.     What other practices were associated with this season?

        Folk   tradition  tells   us  of   many  divination  
practices
        associated   with  Samhain.   Among  the   most  common   
were
        divinations  dealing with  marriage, weather,  and the  
coming
        fortunes for  the year. These were  performed via such 
methods
        as ducking  for apples and  apple peeling. Ducking  for 
apples
        was a marriage  divination. The first person to  bite an 
apple
        would be the first to marry  in the coming year. Apple 
peeling
        was  a divination  to see  how long  your life  would be.  
The
        longer  the  unbroken  apple  peel,  the  longer your life 
was
        destined to  be.14 In Scotland,  people would place  stones 
in
        the ashes of the hearth  before retiring for the night. 
Anyone
        whose stone had been disturbed during the night was said to 
be
        destined to die during the coming year.  
 
--- QuickBBS v2.04
 * Origin: WELCOME TO THE CRYSTAL CAVE.  "the lady  made me do it" 
:>) (1:128/5

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(654)   Tue 29 Aug 89 20:00                             
By: Gerald Bliss
To: All
Re: Origins Of Halloween, Pt. 6
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:9e2e a000131d
13.     How did these ancient Celtic practices come to America?

        When  the potato  crop in  Ireland failed,  many of  the 
Irish
        people,  modern  descendants  of   the  Celts,  immigrated  
to
        America, bringing  with them their folk  practices, which 
were
        remnants of the Celtic festival observances.

14.     We in America view this as a harvest festival.  Did the  
Celts
        also view it as such?

        Yes. The Celts had 3 harvests. Aug 1, or Lammas, was the 
first
        harvest,  when the  first fruits  were offered  to the Gods 
in
        thanks. The Fall  equinox was the true harvest.  This was 
when
        the bulk  of the crops  would be brought  in. Samhain was  
the
        final harvest  of the year. Anything  left on the vines  or 
in
        the  fields  after  this  date  was  considered blasted by 
the
        fairies ("pu'ka") and unfit for human consumption.

15.     Does anyone today celebrate Samhain as a religious 
observance?

        Yes.  many  followers  of  various  pagan  religions,  such 
as
        Druidism and Wicca, observe this  day as a religious 
festival.
        They  view it  as a  memorial day  for their  dead friends 
and
        family,  much  as  the  world  does  the national Memorial 
Day
        holiday in May. It is still  a night to practice various 
forms
        of divination concerning future  events. It is also 
considered
        a time to wrap up old  projects, take stock of one's life, 
and
        initiate  new  projects  for  the  coming  year. As the 
winter
        season is  approaching, it is  a good time  to do studying  
on
        research  projects, and  also a  good time  to begin hand 
work
        such as  sewing, leather working, woodworking,  etc., for 
Yule
        gifts later in the year.  And while "satanists" are using 
this
        holiday as their  own, this is certainly not  the only 
example
        of a holiday (or even religious symbols) being "borrowed" 
from
        an older religion by a newer one.

16.     Does this involve human or animal sacrifice?

        Absolutely NOT! Hollywood to  the contrary, blood sacrifice 
is
        not practiced by modern followers  of Wicca or Druidism. 
There
        may  be some  people who  THINK they  are practicing  Wicca 
by
        performing  blood sacrificing,  but  this  is NOT  condoned 
by
        reputable practitioners of today's neo-Pagan religions.  
 
--- QuickBBS v2.04
 * Origin: WELCOME TO THE CRYSTAL CAVE.  "the lady  made me do it" 
:>) (1:128/5

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(655)   Tue 29 Aug 89 20:02                             
By: Gerald Bliss
To: All
Re: Origins Of Halloween, Pt. 7
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:9e2e a040131d
FOOTNOTES:

1       Tardo, Russell K., What's Wrong with Halloween?, Faithful 
Word
        Publishers, (Arabi, LA, undated), p. 2

2       Rev.  Patrick Dinneen,  An Irish  English Dictionary, 
(Dublin,
        1927), p. 937

3       Malcolm MacLennan,  A Pronouncing and  Etymological 
Dictionary
        of the Gaelic Language, (Aberdeen, 1979), p. 279

4       The Encyclopedia  of Religion, ed.  Mircea Eliade, 
"Halloween"
        by Primiano, (New York, 1987) pp. 176-177

5       Katherine Briggs, Nine Lives: Cats in Folklore, 
(London,1980),
        p.5

6       Dr. Anne Ross, Pagan Celtic Britain, (London,1967), p. 
301-302

7       W.G. Wood-Martin, Traces of the  Elder Faiths of Ireland, 
Vol.
        II, (Port Washington, NY, 1902), p. 5

8       Kevin Danaher, The Year in Ireland, (Cork, 1972), p. 214

9       Alwyn & Brinley Rees, Celtic Heritage, (New York, 1961), p. 
90

10      Wood-Martin, op. cit., p. 249

11      Rees & Rees, op. cit., p. 90

12      Nora Chadwick, The Celts, (Harmondsworth, 1982), p. 151

13      P.W. Joyce,  A Social History of  Ancient Ireland, Vol.2, 
(New
        York, 1968), pp. 282-283

14      Madeleine Pelner Cosman, Medieval Holidays and Festivals, 
(New
        York, 1981), p. 81  
 
--- QuickBBS v2.04
 * Origin: WELCOME TO THE CRYSTAL CAVE.  "the lady  made me do it" 
:>) (1:128/5

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(656)   Tue 29 Aug 89 20:03                             
By: Gerald Bliss
To: All
Re: Origins Of Halloween, Pt. 8
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:9e2e a060131d
BIBLIOGRAPHY:

*Bord,  Janet &  Colin, The  Secret Country,  (London: Paladin  
Books,
        1978)
*Briggs, Katherine, Nine Lives, Cats in Folklore, (London: 
Routledge &
        Kegan Paul, 1980)
*Chadwick,  Nora, The  Celts, (Harmondsworth,  England: Penguin 
Books,
        1982)
*Coglan, Ronan, A Dictionary of Irish Myth and Legend, (Dublin: 1979)
*Cosman, Madeleine Pelner, Medieval Holidays and Festivals, (New 
York:
        Charles Scribner's Sons, 1981)
*Danaher,  Kevin, The  Year in  Ireland, (Cork,  Ireland: The  
Mercier
        Press, 1972)
*Dinneen, Rev. Patrick S., M.A., An Irish-English Dictionary, 
(Dublin:
        The Irish Texts Society, 1927)
*Joyce, P.W., A Social History of Ancient Ireland, (New York: 
Benjamin
        Blom, 1968)
*MacCana, Proinsias, Celtic Mythology,  (London: The Hamlyn 
Publishing
        Group Limited, 1970)
*MacLennan, Malcolm, A pronouncing  and Etymological Dictionary of 
the
        Gaelic  Language,  (Aberdeen:  Acair  and  Aberdeen 
University
        Press, 1979)
*MacNeill,  Maire',  The  Festival  of  Lughnasa,  (Dublin:  
Comhairle
        Bhealoideas Eireann, 1982)
*Powell, T.G.E., The Celts, (New York: Thames & Hudson, 1980)
*Primiano,  Leonard  Norman,  "Halloween"  from  The  Encyclopedia  
of
        Religion,  ed. Mircea  Eliade, (New  York, McMillan 
Publiching
        Co., 1987)
*Rees,  Alwyn  and  Brinley,  Celtic  Heritage,  Ancient  Tradition 
in
        Ireland and Wales, (New York: Thames & Hudson, 1961)
*Ross, Dr.  Anne, Pagan Celtic  Britain, (London: Routledge  and 
Kegan
        Paul, 1967)
*Sharkey, John, Celtic Mysteries, (New York: Thames & Hudson, 1975)
*Spence,  Lewis,  British  Fairy  Origins,  (Wellingborough:  
Aquarian
        Press, 1946)
*Squire, Charles, Celtic  Myth & Legend, Poetry &  Romance, (New 
York:
        Newcastle Publishing Co., Inc., 1975)
*Toulson,  Shirley,  The  Winter  Solstice,  (London:  Jill  Norman 
 &
        Hobhouse, Ltd., 1981)
*Wood-Martin, W.G., Traces  of the Elder Faiths of  Ireland, Vols. 
I &
        II, (Port Washington, NY: Kennikat Press, 1902)

Published by CultWatch Response, Inc., P O Box 1842, Colorado 
Springs,
CO  80901-1842.  This  article  may  be  reprinted  only  if it is 
not
excerpted  or  abridged  in  any   way  except  for  review  
purposes.
Permission to republish  must be requested in writing  from the 
author
at the above address.

Price:  $1.00 each,  10/$8.00,  over  100/$0.65 ea.,  other 
quantities
available. All prices are postpaid.  
 
--- QuickBBS v2.04
 * Origin: WELCOME TO THE CRYSTAL CAVE.  "the lady  made me do it" 
:>) (1:128/5

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(657)   Fri 8 Sep 89 21:51                              
By: grass
To: all
Re: The Environmental Sabbath (Intro)
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:8e53 ae631328
    (this is the first part of the United Nations Environment 
Programme Environmental Sabbath/Earth Rest Day information.  
further parts will appear as i have time to type them in.)

-------------------------

THE ENVIRONMENTAL SABBATH:
CREATION OF A NEW DAY

Imagine an infant nursing at his mother's breast.  His mother grows 
weak.  But the infant continues suckling, allowing her no rest, 
until she is dead.

Then the infant must die, too.

Humankind is such an infant.

Blessed with abundance, with a mother (the earth) of inestimable 
beauty and
goodness, humankind has become a taker.  A careless taker.  An 
exploiter.

Because of our greed, we are poisoning the air with noxious gases, 
fouling the
water with toxic wastes, stripmining the seas, denuding the 
forests.  Everyday,we are responsible for the extinction of another 
living species.  Every year, we burn 100,000 square kilometres of 
primary tropical rain forest.

Because of our wanton disregard of nature's bounties we seem unable 
to grasp the consequences of our actions:  depletion of natural 
resources; the 'Greenhouse Effect; deadly ruptures in our 
atmosphere's ozone layer; unsafe air and water; flooding; 
desertification; and the simple yet profoundly tragic loss of a 
bird's song, a flower's scent, a tree's majesty.

STOP!  We at the United Nations Environment Programme are sending 
out a call tothe spiritual leaders of this earth to help STOP the 
sacrilege.  Help us reach the centre of change:  the human heart.  
Lead your congregations in a day of prayer, reflection, reverence 
and commitment to action.  The Environmental Sabbath.

On this day, we restore the Earth.

We must remember that we are not God's only child.  If we are 
indeed the steward of divine purpose, we must act on earth as 
angels of mercy, not angels of
destruction.  We must consecrate the great accumulated wisdom of 
Science -- so
often the servant of greed -- to the service of Life.

We must find within ourselves the spiritual centre which is 
observant, gentle, patient and desirous of harmony.

We must say, do and be everything possible to realize the goal of 
the Environmental Sabbath:  an ecological society, one in which 
people live responsibly and co-operatively within and with the rest 
of Creation.  We cannot let our mother die.  We must love and 
replenish her.

There is much to be done.  It can and should begin in the shrines 
of the spirit, in the mosques, temples and churches of the world.  
Help us create a new future.  Help us create a new day.  The 
Environmental Sabbath.

ON THIS DAY WE RESTORE THE EARTH!


--- msged 1.99L MSC
 * Origin: The White Knight Cafe (1:109/114.310)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(658)   Fri 8 Sep 89 21:51                              
By: grass
To: all
Re: The Environmental Sabbath (Pt. 1)
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:8e53 ae771328
ACTION

WE CALL FOR YOU TO:

Make the Environmental Sabbath a special day for your congregation.

To help you to organize the day, we have included in this package, 
prayers fromBuddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism and Islam, as 
well,\ as from the Native American tradition, the Society of 
Friends, and the Baha'i faith.  We have also included useful 
quotes, suggestions for rituals, appropriate music and music 
sources, and an extensive bibliography.

There are two ways to ensure that the Environmental Sabbath has 
lasting impact.One is to act by creating the Sabbath itself.  The 
other is to encourage action which goes beyond the Sabbath, into 
every area and every day of your congregation's lives.

Included in this Environmental Sabbath folio is a personal action 
guide.  If you would like additional copies for your congregation, 
please contact us.


SUGGESTIONS FOR THE CELEBRATION

THE SERMON

Describe the crisis.  Use scientific data.  Highlight the urgency 
of the situation.

Speak of the essential earth-human relationship.  What is it?  What 
is our
responsibility.

Tell your congregation that this is a special day; a day on which 
we make our
commitment to restore Earth.

Point to various sources of inspiration:  to scripture; to wisdom 
and spirituality; and to the Earth itself.  Show how they are all 
important, and tied together.

Draw from the holy words of your religion.  (Excerpts follow on the 
pages marked THE ASSISI DECLARATIONS and WORDS.)

Mention some initiatives at the global and local levels, (Assisi, 
North American Conference on Christianity and Ecology, etc.), to 
show that the work is going forward, globally and regionally.

Direct your congregation toward action:  not only in church, but in 
the home, at school, in the political process.  Be specific, 
mentioning local issues if possible.


THE SERVICE

See the attached PRAYERS and MUSIC.  Incorporate them or others 
like them into
your service.

Decorate your sanctuary with photographs of the Earth as seen from 
outer space,and with other Earth images.

Invite guest speakers or 'representatives' from other species, i.e. 
plants and animals.


GO FURTHER

In regular services, insert a portion that focuses on reverence and 
care for the Earth.

Organize an interfaith ceremony.

Organize an Environmental Sabbath concert or festival, clean up 
day(s), or tree-planting retreats.

Follow up with an environmental study group; a community 
environment-watch;
collaborations with local environmental groups.

Write letters to the national and regional leaders of your faith, 
encouraging them to take action.


ENCOURAGE YOUR CONGREGATION TO ACT

A day is only one day unless it affects change in our everyday lives.

To this end, please urge your congregation to take the following 
steps:

Follow environmental stories in newspapers, magazines and on TV.

Plant trees.  This is essential to combatting the high level of CO2 
built up inthe atmosphere.

Fight pollution wherever and whenever you find it.  Write to your 
elected
representatives.  Join your local environmental group.

Enjoy nature and be kind to living things.

Recycle cans, bottles and paper whenever possible.

Try not to waste.

Cut down on energy consumption.

Refer to the enclosed Personal Action Guide for the Earth.

Individuals can make a difference.  Please encourage your 
congregation to re-
examine their lifestyles:  Are they wasteful?  Excessive?  
Thoughtless?  If theEarth is to survive, temperance, balance and 
compassion will be necessary components of the good life.


--- msged 1.99L MSC
 * Origin: The White Knight Cafe (1:109/114.310)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
(659)   Thu 31 Aug 89 23:57                             
By: the Bard 
To: All
Re: News article
St: 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
@EID:e6d5 131fbf2b

     From Desert Winds BBS: Phoenix AZ

 
     Her Royal Mystery: Circles crop up, confound British
     An article from The Arizona Rebublic 8/31/89
     By Craig Forman of the Wall Street Journal

     CHEESEFOOT HEAD, England - For 83 years John Scull's family
has grown wheat on the rolling farmlands near here. Now, his
wheat fields have holes.
     Well, not exactly holes. They are large, near perfect
circles of flattened wheat , swirled to the ground in a precise
spiral pattern. They appear overnight in the middle of the
otherwise ordinary-looking fields. And nobody knows what's
causing them.
     "It's the most unusual thing to happen on this patch, that's
for sure," says the lanky Scull, tugging reflectively on his
short beard.
     What's happenening in Scull's wheat field is happening all
over southern England this summer, and it's creating an uproar
throughout the country.
     Investigators and scientists are slogging through fields,
lugging video cameras, fancy infared scopes and other high-tech
detection devices. Curious tourists and reporters from around the
globe are descending upon the peaceful villages, sometimes
wreaking more havoc than the circles themselves. They trample the
ripening wheat. They set up ladders in the fields to take
pictures. They get into auto accidents. Pastoral Cheesefoot Head
(population: six) now has traffic jams.
     "Loads of people are looking for the circles," says a woman
selling strawberries at a roadside stand near another circle
prone field. Is her location a good one? "It is now," she says.
     British agriculture and defense officials want to know more.
So does Queen Elizabeth, who is said to have sharply questioned
the Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher about the circles recently.
While those talks are kept secret, a Buckingham Palace spokesman
says the queen took a hurriedly published book about the circles
to her summer place in Scotland this month; as Britain's biggest
landowner she has ever reason not to be amused.
     The largest circles are about 100 feet in diameter.
Sometimes groups of circles seem to resemble giant crucifixes and
Celtic crosses stretching across the undulating hills. Inside the
circles the wheat is leveled completely. But the crops are
undamaged and continue to grow. Horizontally.
     At first, many thought the whole thing a hoax, in the proud
tradition of such well known British oddities as the Loch Ness
monster and the Piltdown man. (Indeed, the bones of the Piltdown
Man were found in the early 1900's in a field only a few dozen
miles east of here. For decades he was thought to be a
prehistoric forebear of man, only to be exposed as a complete
fake in 1953.)
     But the circles' precision and number - they weren't
widespread intil recently, with more than 250 recorded this year
- have dispelled most talk of hoaxes. Whatever makes the circle
leaves no tracks. Many of the circles can't easily be seen unless
you are in the middle of a wheat field, which more or less
undercuts the point of faking them in the first place.
     Nor is it the first time unexplained phenomena have been
found around here. One of the greatest concentrations of circles
is near the mysterious standing stone formations at Stonehenge
and Avebury. No one has fully explained them either.
     Still, farmers and scientists are abuzz with theories. One
of them is that the circles are caused by hedgehogs gone mad, or
by buck deer in rut. Another blames mysterious whirlwinds never
before encountered here. Other theories include bizarre insect
infestations or a new strain of virus. or over-fertilization. Or
under-fertilization.
     Then there are high-tech explanations. Some people believe
the circles are caused by helicopters. Aviation officials point
out , however, that helicopters would have to fly upside down to
carve such flawless circles. Others contend that the circles are
made by a mysterious magnetic force or by a Star Wars space-
defnse beam run amok. And, of course, there's the inevitable
flying-saucer theory: Alien ships flatten the crops when they
touch down to visit Earth. Indeed, a mysterious white substance
that laboratories haven't identified has been found near some
circles.
     "I reckon it's one of them UFOs," says Edley Ware, a
weathered farmhand. "you never know what is going on in this
world." He pauses for a moment, as though a new thought strikes
him. "You know, it could be the bloody Yanks. They always have
something up their sleeves."
     One of the biggest circular formations is near a Stone Age
burial ground in Silbury Hill. Seven circles stretch across
hundreds of feet of prime British farmland, rolling golden fields
of wheat gently baking in this summer's unusually warm sun. Near
a distant farm house, a wisp of smoke rises from burning stubble.
A harvester drones at the bottom of the field, methodically
scooping up the ripe crop. Wind blows, gently rustling the wheat
still standing.
     Carved with almost surgical precision, the largest circle in
the formation is a 100-foot-wide ring of flattened wheat stalks.
The still-growing grain is darker than the surrounding crop
because it has gotten less sunlight. Outside the circle, the
stalks of wheat stand straight, about three feet tall.
     At the center of the circle, the wheat has been spun
together to form a thatched mound a few inches high. From this
point, the stalks are spun out clockwise, as if a giant fist has
powerfully, but gently, twisted them to the ground.
     Colin Andrews, an electrical engineer who is one of the two
authors of _Circular Evidence_, the book the queen is reading,
argues that a rotating field of high energy is creating the
circles. "It may well be some form of intelligence," he says. Pat
Delgado, his co-author, thinks there may be a message in the
circles. "It could be a cry for help," he says. "It could mean,
'If you destroy this food, your planet is finished.'"
     "That's bunkum," says Terence Meaden, a local meteorologist.
"The idea that there is some intelligence operating is pure
fantasy." Whirlwinds, he contends, are the only explanation. Cool
sea breezes mixing with hot air above the fields are forming
spinning wind vortexes that touch down and twist the wheat. Many
other scientists and government officials also subscribe to this
view.
     But not the farmers. "It's a load of rubbish. I don't
believe a whirlwind could do that," says Simon Brown, who has had
several circles on his farm. They are carved too neatly, and the
fields bear no traces of moving winds. One of the formations, a
large circle ringed by four smaller ones, could fit the imprint
of an alien spaceship with four pods for feet,some say - though
Brown has no truck with the UFO theory, either.
     But Brown believes the appearance of the circles does prove
one thing: "It means we have absolutly no bloody idea of what
goes on around us. It's one of those eternal mysteries. Long may
they continue."


---
 * Origin: <<<Deus ex Machina-BBS Free Atenveldt! 602-439-8070>>>  
(Opus 1:114/29)
