#goetic atavisms

[coldalbion]

Dis/nomers: On misnomers, magic-metaphors, and life in general

So, here's the thing: a lot of societal and cultural metaphors around magic and occultism are in the so-called West, frankly, bad and a product of the imprecision in the English language about "power", which themselves are inherently modelled on industrial-capitalist frameworks thanks to the Industrial Revolution, and steam power. Think about what you mean when you use the word "power" or "intent" and ask yourself whether you are once again running on 19th Century (colonialist ideas: for example see non-Indigenous misconceptions of mana) that boil down to thinking you're a steam engine or some sort of closed system - because that's what the whole popular idea of energy comes from. Why? Because willpower doesn't really exist. Now something seems to be going on, when we do certain things. But are we hoodwinking ourselves - barking up the wrong tree, being led down the garden path -by the porting in pop-metaphor? Sure, it's easier, but is the apparent ease and clarity obscuring insights? Is it preventing us from taking our place as part of a living world; not clockwork and piston but inter-and-intra-relating, inter-and-intra-being in an 'animist' cosmovision? Consider the metaphors you use, and wonder how they're using you. Because they are - we are thinking-with-and-being-with the ongoing worlding of a daimonic (agential) kosmos. And that All is doing the same-with-us. Remember, changing the metaphors we use can change the way we think, and how we are in the world. This is why I mutter about kenning, as found in Old Norse poetry, but also as a method of indirectly approaching experience by folding in the world. Kenning is, in one sense creating a poetic metaphor, a circomlocution that describes a thing without direct nominalisation. A wheelchair user can be a throne-walker; the sea is not just the sea, it is the whale-road and also Aegir's-cauldron, Poseidon's-stable, etc etc.

"It is no coincidence that a kenning is a poetic term of art, a doubling and metaphoric circumlocution of a singular noun or thing – the sea becoming the “whale-road”, a sword seen as the “icicle of red shields”. A singular referent now exceeds itself, drawing the relationality with the whole world of those present. This indirectness, far from detracting from the referent, deepens the knowing. Each portion of the kenning exceeds itself also, thusly thickening the field of the sword or sea, and, in enhancing its relationality, enlivens each further. Further, this means that the poet acknowledges the excess of the referents, comprehending that kenning may build on kenning, and the full, totalistic mapping of a referent is doomed to fail in terms of completion. This goes even beyond the usual aphorism from astronomer Carl Sagan: “If you wish to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first create the universe.” For each element of the apple pie is capable of being defined by the relationality of all presences, in all forms, positions, and configurations in all possible and impossible universes – and each of these in turn relate to each other as they will. This then, is the joy and horror, the wonder and terror of an animate, fluxing kosmos – there is always more." - Goêtic Atavisms, Frater Acher & Craig 'VI' Slee (See link above: also available on Amazon as well as from the publisher if you need that)

Do we want to live in a world circumscribed by misnomers, grandfathered in with extractive and clunky ways of perceiving the world? Or do we want to embrace the dis/abling wyrd strangenesses of the numinous? The liberatory power of the dis/nomer - the radical proposition that there is always more than can be named, can be contained? That we might ken more if we embraced blurry, uncertain periphalisms which spiral endlessly inward and down into pandaemonic, living, breathing labyrinths? If we immersed ourselves in relational eddies, tides and gyres eternally returning-and-coming-forth-again - dis/membered and re-membered anew? To dive into currents and flows - the multiplicitous assemblage of influences which are the very bodyof the oceanic river which Herakleitos warned us that we could never enter in the same place twice? What might we notice is already happening, already ongoing, that we are amidst, then? Might we spot the plurality of Minotaurs engaging in their diasporic fugitivity, nomads in their myriad labyrinths, far older, wiser, and weirder than we thought we knew? Spaces of monstrously numinous sanctuary, far beyond the ken of the Theseus (their supposed slayer) and his identitarian regime of denial, his heroic ever-intact status quo. Pity the ship-builders in their labour; they work do so under the threat of sword - or is it gun and bomb, these days? But while Theseus abandons Ariadne, Dionysos does not! And while Theseus eschews the sea route to perform his labours in order to gain heroic glory and satisfy ambition, his oceanic ancestry has the last laugh - both mortal father Aegeus (thrown into the sea that bears his name) and he (thrown off an island cliff - presumably into the ocean) were reclaimed; seized by the sea and its thundering white horses. What might it be, to be oceanically possesed as that hero's mother was? To have one's soul-sea stirred by the Earthshaker? We can but dream on the matter - while also slyly noting that Athenians kept the Ship of Theseus preserved, as mark of divine heritage in their feted city ruled by the demos. What matters now, in these days when even politicians talk of the so-called "will of the people", is matters of ancestry and history dismissed; lineages of language and its many influences ignored - no entanglements here, vine or otherwise, we assure you! But thankfully, the ship-builders know the way of wood and net and weave. They know how many planks pass through their hands, how many nails struck, how much pitch is brewed. They know there's more. They're craftsfolk after all - assemblages are their business, whatever the material - they know what mattering is. And isn't it interesting that the Temple of Hephaistos in Athens was once mistakenly called the Thesseion - The Temple of Theseus, before the moderns realised their mistake? Watch the words we use, and how they use us. Be seeing you.

#goetic atavisms #magick #occult

[echthr0s]

god. lookin at the Goetic Atavisms photos and just struck by the fact that it's pretty. more books should be fkn pretty

#i do read ebooks almost exclusively for several reasons and that might be part of why i'm bored of reading #no book is pretty once it's been ebook-ified (unless it's a pdf but i can't comfortably read pdfs on my phone so they're all epubs) #but that being said none of those books are pretty in print either. books just generally are not pretty most of the time #they might have a nice font every once in a while but there's no pictures. there's no colour. there's no playin with the text #shoutout to house of leaves for bein the most extreme example of messin with format but like! #give me some visual interest for a fucking change is all i'm asking

[walker-journal]

Artifacts and Atavism || Adam and Arthur

When one is breaking up a cult of the dark powers unsettling souvenirs are pretty much inevitable. Adam didn’t usually presume to judge others for their personal beliefs and varieties of kink. However, he felt like napalm and bleach would be the only way to truly cleanse the dilapidated roller rink in which the lurid Goetic gymnastics had transpired. However, the last thing Adam wanted was for the poor blokes at the fire department to have to see all of this. 

The cultists had fled once Adam vivisected their tentacled high priest and it seemed like the Bend would not be buried ass deep in gelatinous squiggle monsters that didn’t know the meaning of safe-words, at least, no more than was considered usual by Bend standards. 

It was while pressure washing the premises that Adam had come across a curious item. Seasoned and brilliant Hunter that he was, Adam theorized that it might be magical, given that it looked old and had creepy writing all over it. The fact that it was levitating and constantly pouring a vicious ichor everywhere were also helpful clues. 

Upon being taken home in a paint bucket the idol had begun to speak into Adam’s head. Seeing that Adam only spoke English and Hebrew, whatever incomprehensible language was being broadcast into his brain just added to the Hunter’s growing feeling of annoyance as the artifact filled up ever more buckets with black blood. 

Adam had run hours upon hours of searches on the idol’s appearance, inscriptions, and the phrases it whispered, testing every variation he could think of. 

Nada. 

You know it’s bad when something is too weird even for the internet. 

Eventually, it occurred to a sleep-deprived Adam that he was living at a place called “a college,” where ostensibly there were many people who actually liked reading old books. Adam soaked the idol in enough salt for it to finally stop weeping black blood everywhere. Seizing this brief respite, Adam set out in the morning with his strange parcel to find someone who might be able to provide insight. 

Thus it was that Adam found himself knocking on an office door with his free-hand. 

“Professor Drake?” 

#arthurjdrake #blood tw

[coldalbion]

Goêtic Atavisms (pre-order)

It's hardback pre-order day, folks! If you want in on one of the 500 fine edition hardbacks, head over to Hadean Press and pre-order here. Now, for non UK folks, I suspect shipping may be pricey but keep an eye on folks like Miskatonic Books or similar if your're in NA. (I'll post here if I spot any) Shipping in July, and I suspect the paperback, which will also be available then may end up available through the Great Horror that is Amazon. Until then, click through the links or enjoy this sneaky peek at the paperback cover, blurb and video!

"Goêtic Atavisms is designed to be an uncompromising and challenging book.

Written in mutual exchange between practitioners Frater Acher and Craig Slee, two radical views and explorations of applied goêteia emerge. This tête-bêche book can be read from both sides; behind one cover containing the chapters by Acher, behind the other those by Craig Slee, and where they meet in the middle a preface by none other than Frater U∴D∴.

In their own unique voices, the authors draw the reader in and call on them to bring goêteia to life in their own flesh. Over twelve chapters, packed with historic detail and practical experimentations, the reader is guided to take a fresh look at such diverse bodies of goêtic work as Zosimos of Panopolis, Germanic and Old Iranian folklore, Goethe’s Faust and the Earth Spirit, Austin Osman Spare's œuvre, as well as modern forms of corporeality such as pornography, tattoo culture, and bodily disability. Goêtic Atavisms was written not only to be a sensual experience, but to facilitate magical touch."

#goetic atavisms #goetia #magick #frater acher #occult #books I wrote #Youtube

[coldalbion]

GOÊTIC ATAVISMS update

So the book of essays I wrote with Frater Acher inches towards publication at Hadean Press, with a Foreword by the one and only Frater U∴D∴.and fantastic art. Look at that. I told you it was going to have pretty art, didn't I? Reader, I was *not *wrong.

José Sabogal has outdone himself. I'm so honoured that my writings are amongst such august company - a back and forth between Acher and myself. I hope you might enjoy, even in the bits where we disagree. More details from Acher:

I am delighted to give you an update on Craig 'VI’ Slee, José Sabogal and my new book GOÊTIC ATAVISMS. As a small but dedicated goêtic horde, we have been secretly working on this material for 18 months now, and soon it is time to share it with all of you.

The launch of this project will take place in three phases: On April 30th, a brand new online presence will launch at www.goeteia.com. It offers free education, guidance, and input on all things ‘chthonic sorcery,’ as well as the upcoming book. (Check it out to see the countdown... :-)). Then, in early May, the very limited edition of GOÊTIC ATAVISMS will be available. Keep your eyes peeled at our friends at Miskatonic and Courtyard Books for the first 33 copies. And finally, we can all pre-order the standard edition of the book from our great partners at Hadean Press starting May 30th.

Then, at the bindery today I saw the first prototype of the limited fine edition. To be honest, it will be the most radical binding I've seen in a time: You will be able to open the book from both sides and read either my essays or Craig’s. In the centre of the book, where our texts meet, you will find an Overture by none other than Frater U∴D∴. The book is lavishly illustrated with original artworks by José, and with the typesetting and the design of each individual pages, I have worked my heart out during this long winter...

Just like the book, the website is a labour of love and a quite intimate place to share videos and photos of my own goêtic operations. And, of course, lots of useful resources and material for further study.

I am aware that it is rare to undertake projects as uncompromising and radical as this one. So I am grateful to everyone who made this work possible – from the spirits in the caves and on the mountain tops to all the human friends involved. Here's to a goêtic summer ahead of us!

www.goeteia.com

#goetic atavisms #frater acher #frater ud #magick #goetia #occult #books wot i wrote

[coldalbion]

WELP.

#goetic atavisms

[coldalbion]

GOETIC ATAVISMS On the Hadean Press Podcast!

Podcast about our Book! First of the couple of podcasts I guested on this weekend with Frater Acher and Jose Gabriel. The inaugural Hadean Press podcast, - and the book should be available for pre-order from Hadean at the end of the month!.

#goetic atavisms #frater acher #magick #occult #goetia #goeteia

[coldalbion]

Second GOETIC ATAVISMS podcast, Glitch Bottle

So, here's the second of two podcasts on GOETIC ATAVISMS Frater Acher and I recorded in one day - this time with Alexander Eth on Glitch Bottle.

It's a long one, but we hope there's more to get you thinking and moving outside your usual frames!

As previously noted, there'll be a paperback out in July

#goetic atavisms #frater acher #magick #witchcraft #glitch bottle #goeteia #goetia #occult

[coldalbion]

GA and the perils of Amazon

So the paperback of GOETIC ATAVISMS has shown up on Amazon ahead of the official publisher's release. Which is A Thing That Happens, because the publisher ships stock to the Bezos Borg. Non UK folks, you may very well be able to find an importer on Amazon. UK folks, Amazon has it on Prime. I'm not going to link it - you can search for it, because I want to be in accord with the publisher's official release. But, at the same time, it'd be stupid not to note it. So, do as you will. And if you pick it up ahead of time, or if you wait, I hope you enjoy and find it fruitful.

#goetic atavisms #occult #goetia #magick #witchcraft

[coldalbion]

A little snippet

A little snippet from my essay 'Disability Leaks' from the forthcoming GOETIC ATAVISMS, in the last moments of a day full of State-cult ritual, here in the UK:

"[T]he numinous is vaster than the human. It does not remain in shrine and temple, but may also show its face and forms in open sewers and wounds; writhing in composting of blood-soaked earth and generational traumas. The polis, the city, the state, the political discourse – these have their shrines and boundary markers. Yet in many cases, those same thresholds are shot through with multi-faced gods of magic and trickery, ambivalent in their journeying; shadowed, helmed and hooded as they go about their wandering ways as psychopomps, as stirrers and leaders of souls.

The queer incompleteness of disability renders brokenness as generative by presence alone. Wound-as-well, the autoimmune a cacophonous, raucous, unwieldy smashing and breaking – a dionysiac, wodenic frenzy with wine and blood and mead spreading intoxicant, poisonous pharmakon everywhere in waves, lapping, seeping, secreting in golden-scarlet libation.

Poison-as-remedy. Sheer presence, doubled, tripled down on in all its immensity as post-activist practice. This is not to sit, to move, but to lean-into and down-with the strange, crooked apparent, inescapable immobilities."

#goetic atavisms #black bird magic

[coldalbion]

GOETIC ATAVISMS: An upcoming book by Frater Acher and myself

A veritable horde has come together to help us manifest some of mine and Frater Acher's words, via Hadean Press in may 2023. Below is Acher's original announcement post:

Here is a sneak peak of what we are currently preparing for you: GOÊTIC ATAVISMS, Hadean Press, May 2023.

A whole motley crew of us is incoming together to bring this book to life: My partner in crime, Craig Slee and I wrote the content, Frater U∴D∴ is contributing a preface, Gianpaolo Tucci and his AI engine created the cover title based upon my design suggestion (draft below), and my long time magical companion José Gabriel Alegria Sabogal is currently sharpening his pencils to add his own iconographic visions of our joint Goêtic Atavisms.

Stay tuned via the Hadean Press webpage for further news in 2023.

Until then, have a magical winter solstice and a great break before we embark into the new year.

#frater acher #goetia #goetic atavisms #hadean press #occult #magick

[coldalbion]

Instagram fuckery

So my co-author Frater Acher has a lovely Instagram Reel of the First Copy of the Fine Edition of GOETIC ATAVISMS and I am buggered if I can get it to share properly here. Link Here Any ideas? Hardback-Standard and paperback available for preorder at the end of the month at Hadean Press I believe

#goetic atavisms #goetia #frater acher #goeteia #black bird magic

[coldalbion]

GOETIC ATAVISMS is officially out.

Finally, I can say the book I co-wrote with Frater Acher is officially out. Find copies at your usual sources, in paaperback: hardbacks may still be available from Hadean's Shop or other shops too!

#goetic stavisms #magick #occult #pagan #witchcraft

[coldalbion]

This arrived today!

So, of course this arrived in Hanging Town on a Wednesday. No. 22 of 72 of the limited Fine Editions of GOETIC ATAVISMS has arrived in my grubby little hands and look, both Standard Hardback and Paperback will contain the words of Frater's Acher & UD & I and the art of Jose Sabogal, so while folks won't get the slipcase, or binding, one can see how awesome the art is.

#goetic stavisms #books i wrote #hedkult #magick #occult #goeteia

[coldalbion]

Goetic atavism stuff

Seeing mockups of the layout for the book I co-wrote with Frater Acher is a weid feeling, Il'll be honest, we will probably piss some folks off, or rub them up the wrong way. Some folks will invariably say iots bad, or we're full of shit. This is To Be Expected With Ocultits (not a misspelling). Still, kind words have been said over it by people I respect, so...

Fortunately our ethos is that we do what we do, and write what we write. Which, to borrow an idiom, is very punk rock of us.

#I need a tag for this #hmm #atavisticgoes #that'll do

[coldalbion]

GOETIC ATAVISMS Fine Editions have arrived with Frater Acher. Pre-order for the Standard Hardback is still open at

Paperback, as previously stated, coming next month. Gorgeous work by the binder. Can't believe I cowrote such a thing.

#goetic stavisms #books i wrote #occult #magick #book porn #black bird magic #Instagram