Whether they are at a misa or just doing some personal “information gathering”, everyone else seems to have such ‘chatty’ muertos.

Not me.

Mine seem to be the strong silent type. lol

Lucius might not be much for gossip, but he is good at bringing things to my attention. Specifically, things related to spirituality, witchcraft, etc.

I’ve definitely learned quite a lot about the occult while trying to get a better understanding of him, but it’s still not quite my thing.

Still, a lot of it seems fairly easy to relate back to pretty much any spiritual practice.

So what have I learned?

Well, let’s see…

1. A lot of the stuff out there is B.S. — either intentionally done as a way of deceiving others or done unintentionally because, well, people are dumb
2. The stuff that’s legit gets veiled in archaic language, obscure ingredients, and silly ceremonial requirements meant to distract and frustrate those who take it too literally.
3. A lot of the physical/verbal stuff makes things easier on the practitioner but could be done mentally instead.
4. Visualization and belief are the two most important ingredients with any practice.
5. There’s no “magic bullet”. By exposing yourself to different practices, beliefs, etc., you can find what does/doesn’t work for you.

There’s a lot of false information out there. Largely, I think it’s to help discourage those with only superficial interest. If you recite portions of The Necronomicon out loud and there aren’t any thunderstorms or books flying off shelves, that doesn’t mean there’s no such thing as “magic”. It just means you need to adjust how you go about things — especially when it comes to managing your expectations… Also, consider the source. The Necronomicon was fiction. First by H.P. Lovecraft and later expanded upon by another author, taking Lovecraft’s characters/plot, applying a psuedo-Sumarian mythology, and adding in a good dose of traditional ceremonial magic techniques to add credibility.

The legitimate information that you might gleam is often obfuscated. In alchemy, the stated goal often involved the transmutation of base metals (like lead) to higher metals (such as gold). If taken literally, you can spend years (as many did) trying in vain to accomplish this goal. If you read between the lines, however, its goal becomes one of personal transformation — changing your old self into something better. Rather than focusing on the nitty-gritty details, a lot of times the “gist” works much better. That way, if you run across something asking for something obscure like graveyard dirt, an african bullfrog, or something whacky like that, you can understand what it’s really looking for and, thus, can make the appropriate substitution. Plus, since you’re using your own insight and knowledge, it would probably be more useful than something you’d buy online or at a botanica.

Especially in occult/ceremonial magic, there’s a lot of stuff involving drawing circles in chalk, saying things in Latin (or other foreign/dead languages), etc. It’s mostly about getting the person in a certain state of mind. The circle, for instance, is often used to keep things out (or in). It’s not that these spirits/forces/etc. have a dislike for chalk or poorly drawn symbols on someone’s living room carpet. It’s actually more for the person doing the work. Why? Because, otherwise, you’re stuck trying to visualize/trust that the protection is there.

With real estate, the slogan is “Location, location, location.” With spiritual/magical practices, the slogan is “Visualization, visualization, visualization.” It’s not just about seeing, though. It could also involve other senses (like hearing). It’s a way of making things feel more real. And that, in turn, helps solidify your belief in what is happening. Many people have heard stories of the power of belief — whether allowing believers to walk on hot coals, be unharmed by snake bites, etc. While you can probably accomplish things without completely believing in what you’re doing, it probably doesn’t hurt

Last but not least, it all comes down to what works for you. In my case, I had trouble following the traditional methods of connecting with my spiritual side. But I eventually came up with something that worked for me. It ended up not being nearly as far-fetched as I originally thought. It helped me get to where I needed to be in order to have an experience of my own. I even found a book that uses almost the exact same theory to create an entity, which I later found referred to as a Fetch. Will any of this have a direct effect on my religious/spiritual practices? *shrug* Who knows. Definitely has given me quite a lot of info to draw upon, I guess.

So there you go.

Maybe not anything too earth-shattering or revolutionary, but — hey — what did you expect? I’m new

Someone requested I delve a bit more into “Mr. Warlock.” lol.

First off, I should point out that the term Warlock has some negative connotations. Apparently, it means “oath breaker”. Huh. Learn something new every day, I guess

So what to call him…

Don’t like ‘witch’, since it’s still typically associated with females. I guess ‘wizard’ would be ok, but even that sounds a bit too flashy. So, fine… Until I can come up with something better, I guess I’ll stick with ‘warlock’…

For his appearance, it’s tough to say… Maybe an old man, all dark and brooding, like Barnabas Collins on Dark Shadows. Or maybe someone a bit younger and less menacing (but still dark and brooding), like Harry Dresden from The Dresden Files. Hard to say. Definitely European, though.

When asked his name, I was told Lucius. This name was familiar to me, because it was the first name of my great-great-grandfather. Upon looking up more info, it originates from Latin and means ‘light’. Interesting.

As a spirit, Lucius doesn’t really concern himself with minor little things like ethics… but that’s not all that different from when he was alive. Not quite the hedonist as Oscar Wilde’s character, Dorian Gray, but certainly no saint. The focus was always knowledge… and power through it. Maybe that’s why he was described as being somewhat of a ‘dark’ spirit…

His answers are always soft-spoken and somewhat drawn out. Seems good for answering questions related to witchcraft, spirits, etc. but not exactly someone for casual chats

Ok, so remember how earlier I was talking about just making stuff up and that the process would either be led by the spirit guide or would attract a spirit? Not sure which happened, but I think I may be on to something. lol. Just not quite what I originally envisioned.

Before, I had this idea of it being a conscious effort. Tonight (technically this morning), though, it was way different.

It was very early morning, so you’ll have to forgive my somewhat draft-style notes.

1. Somewhere around 2:00am-2:10am
2. Was aware of someone/something
3. Cold air felt on hand, but seemed to have movement/pressure
4. In my mind, a saw a cat but it seemed nearly-translucent or made of air
5. Made a conscious effort to see myself reaching out and stroking the cat’s fur
6. Began verbal (mental) communication
7. Questions were answered either immediately after the thought or sometimes before I could finish
8. The “air” part and the cat qualities (agile/creative/intelligent) came to mind and reminded me of “Sylph“
9. When I asked its name, it responded with “Sylvia”
10. Either the name was a play on Sylph (as in “Sylph-ia”?), it’s a coincidence, it was nudging me towards the name by my thinking of a Sylph, or it was just a joke. Unsure.
11. When I asked why it was here, it said, “You called me.”
12. When I asked whether the cat shape was its true form, it said “No”
13. For both the questions of how I can contact it again and whether it is my spirit guide (as opposed to just a passing spirit), its response was simply “You will know”
14. At the very end of our talk, I got the image of the cat pushing its head up against mine. Not in an aggressive way, but in an endearing sort of way.
15. Possibly related? Full Moon (almost – today is 11th, full moon on 13th)

Now… I’ll admit… all of the ingredients for this have been made readily available to my mind beforehand.

• Cats: I’ve been really interested in them lately. I have been looking for one as a pet. I also know that some consider cats to be related to the spirit world. That’s why they were prized heavily by the Egyptians and might be why they are often considered familiars of those involved in witchcraft.
• Sylphs: I read about them and other Elementals as part of research while trying to learn how others have contacted spirits (guide or otherwise). Recently, it was part of an occult-style book that I’ve had for many years. Though I think the overall rituals described in a lot of those books are quite silly, the underlying emphasis of the book seemed to be about understanding the nature, personality, and overall characteristics of the spirit. I also might have had an earlier exposure to the concept from when I was into alchemy for a year or so. Though I joked with friends about turning lead into gold, I learned pretty early into it that the majority of alchemy is actually about a transformation of mind and spirit. Like I said before, I have a pretty diverse background
• “Sylvia”: The name is somewhat familiar to me -at least for the past week or so now. I had downloaded a couple audio files that were lectures about contacting spirit guides. They were by Sylvia Brown. I had heard of her before, but — oddly enough — thought she was some romance novelist or something. lol. Some of what she said was entertaining, but it was all a bit too Christian-oriented for me. Still, I try to keep an open mind in hopes of learning stuff I can utilize for myself.

So could it have been just a trick of the mind? Sure. Do I think it was? It didn’t feel like it.

I’m used to my own inner-monologue and thoughts. This wasn’t like that. It was more like an inner-discussion. lol. Kind of surreal, now that I’m thinking back on it. I felt like I was in control of my thoughts but not “controlling” my thoughts, if that makes sense.

Hopefully I’ll be able to explore this a bit more later on. Definitely some interesting stuff.

Update (4am):

Annoyingly. I think my mind is playing tricks with me now. I can’t seem to shut the darn thing up. lol.

Some random stuff I’ve noticed… Answers are typically three words or less. Not sure why or if that’s normal/relevant. It kind of seems like a bit of a smart-ass, too, which is why I think now it’s just my mind playing tricks on me.

I still get responses nearly instantly, but it seems like how serious I am about the question, whether I know the answer already, etc. has an effect on the answer I get. To “stump” it, I tried asking when I’ll die. Immediately, the answer was “June 12th, 2011″ What an optimist, huh? I’d be how old, then, like thirty? Gee, thanks. lol. So, yeah… Like I said… Whether spirit or my own mind, I’m probably getting teased a bit.

Assuming I can fall back asleep, things will hopefully be normal again when I wake up. Wonder if it’s like when someone points out a noise that you hadn’t noticed before. But now that you know it’s there, you can’t ignore it. That would be kind of annoying.

[UPDATE: From talking with my padrino, he agreed I shouldn't take the date I'd die too seriously... He thought it was more likely that it represented a change in my life or whatever. Personally, I just think my muerto is just easily-amused. Hehe]