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Hi,
i'm new here and i have wanted to post but it takes forever to be included in the system. at any rate - i have done some invocation/evocation (i'm new still haven't worked out the difference) and this was all done about a year - yr and a half ago. i called a variety of spirits from the goetia because my visualization skills are next to nothing (i was desperate for help at the time so didn't stop to consider these shortcomings in my work) but was surprisingly successful for one so new - maybe it was the smell of a newbie that drew such success at any rate i don't feel that i would want to continue with any workings with the goetia. i am disinclined to the use of the system because i feel that slavery whether it be a spirit or another human is wrong. At any rate, my goal at the time at the evocations was not to exert control but solicit aid. in my negotians however - i know that i was lacking - but by the same token i would not take the time to ask questions here if i did not feel that such questions were warranted. Forgive me if i seem to be rambling a bit - but you must understand the circumstances from which i am posting in order to be able to answer the questions that follow. i read on here that some of you more seasoned practitioners have not had any spirits manifest themselves through the smoke of the incense that you burned - i have. possibly for the simple reason that my visualization skills are lacking - but perhaps there are other reasons that i could only fathom to guess? any ideas as to why they would choose to show themselves to an inherent newbie such as myself would be very interesting to know. the second thing is that one of the spirits that i called also manifested by voice... now he has since made his presence known - in fact more recently - but i am curious as to why he would choose to make his presence known after so long - and especially assuming that he was disinclined to give me a straight answer when i made my request. another thing that is very puzzling to me is that last night another spirit that i had called upon (but had forgotten about until last night) chose to make his presence known and now i'm not sure of his intent. have any of you encountered something similar to this? i'm sure that most of you weren't as new to this when you first started as i was - nor does it seem that you would undertake an endeaver which you don't fully understand. mine was simply an act of desperation in a private matter which has yet to be resolved - yet seems like it could swing one way or the other as far as those called upon to help me. tho i have been told that if it's been a while (like a yr) they're answer was more likely to be negative. Anyone with further information regarding this - or even willing to wage a guess would be most appreciated.
thanks
Sera

(Meet the zombies.)

I don't consider the grimoires any more valid than Harry Potter, the ingredients in a Snickers bar, or a hand drawn picture of an elephant giving a haircut to a mouse.

Humans seem to desperately want to place their beliefs in the tradition of something ancient. If something has an old age, for some gaddamn reason it gives people a false confidence of validity. It probably has to do with insecurity and identifying with something larger than oneself. For instance, in ancient China certain scrolls were improperly dated or else attributed to the Yellow Emperor, Laozi or some other mythical figure. All of a sudden this otherwise innocuous document is now of imminent importance. This is a scam quite popular in Western occult history and even today.

It doesn't matter how foolish, unscientific, or ahistorical aspects of the Old or New Testament are people often defer to the side of ancient history. If "billions" of people believe it, there must be something to it, right? No, in actuality "billions" of people believing in the Judeo Christian God and its line up of angels is more of a sad look at cultural imperialism over the last 1500 years than anything else. Biblical history is a lot more useful for studying Western art and literature (which any educated person should be doing) than for the occult, unless this is a paradigm you enjoy working with and are inspired by (I feel sorry for you if it is.)

This is not to say that you can't recycle the symbolism of the Goetia or any other musty old magickal text and make use of it. You can. But this is dangerous, unnecessary, and ultimately a prison. The most impressive magick comes from your heart. It comes from your creativity, your soul, your God, your subconscious, or whatever it is you have. Magick is the ultimate artistic interaction with your reality. There's no faking it and when you experience it you'll feel empathy for those stuck chasing the ghosts of others rather than trusting in themselves. Maybe the Goetia can be your training wheels but know that the paradigms of others are TRAPS and most people never escape from them. They parrot the rituals and beliefs of others in hopes of attaining what those others did without ever thinking that the reason these ever worked (that is IF they ever worked) is because they were deeply personal.

Good day.