Accelerated Thinking

This month I have mostly been thinking about the ghosts of friendships past. Unlike some who had happier initiations into the realms of the weird I have never really bothered with groups or covens, nor did I learn from the knee of some ascended master. There were no social clubs for grungy teens afflicted by an all consuming need to know every paranormal event in the local area during the early 1990’s, nor did the Technopagan bulletin boards that I would later fixate upon become a thing in my life until the Millennium lurched gaudily into view. By then, much of that information was woefully out of date, just as this newsletter will someday be. I was not completely alone of course, occasionally hanging out with those who were dancing down their own outcast path. People I would ultimately be unable to save. And much like everyone’s favourite Christmas Eve miser, their shades return to haunt me still.

Empowered Words

“But it was much earlier even than that when most people forgot that the very oldest stories are, sooner or later, about blood. Later on they took the blood out to make the stories more acceptable to children, or at least to the people who had to read them to children rather than the children themselves (who, on the whole, are quite keen on blood provided it’s being shed by the deserving), and then wondered where the stories went.”
— Terry Pratchett , Hogfather

Occult Almanac

We start December with the Third Quarter on the 5th and the New Moon on the 12th, before the First Quarter arrives on the 19th. The Long Nights or Elder Moon 27th brings with it a cold winter energy that focusses the mind on both hearth and home. Mercury reaches its greatest elongation East on the 4th, while the Taurids meteor shower runs through early December before finally ending around the 10th. The Geminids can be seen from the 6th to the 20th and the Ursids from the 17th to the 26th, while the Quadrantids begin on the 28th. All four of these exciting meteor showers are based in the Northern hemisphere, and visible as long as there is a break in the freezing clouds. For observances, The winter solstice occurs on the 22nd, and Pagans celebrate Yule at this time. For those who prefer to follow along with modern culture, Christmas Day is on the 25th, though I personally choose to observe Sol Invictus on that date instead. And of course New Year’s Eve is on the 31st, with 2024 now being only a black cat’s whisker away.

Necronomicon Mortui

A list of notable members of the occult, paranormal and Fortean community, ordered by date of death as opposed to birth. Aleister Crowley, Magickian, born 12th October 1875, died 1st December 1947. Alexis-Vincent-Charles Berbiguier, Demonologist, born 1765, died 3rd December 1831. Friedrich Bernhard Marby, Occultist, born 10th May 1882, died 3rd December 1966. Charles Robert Richet, Parapsychologist, born 25th August 1850, died 4th December 1935. Colin Henry Wilson, Author, born 26 June 1931, died 5th December 2013. Victoria Helen McCrae Duncan, Medium, born 25th November 1897, died 6th December 1956. Henry James Edwards, Healer, born 29th May 1893, died 7th December 1976. Ademar José Gevaerd, UFOlogist, born 19th March 1962, died 9th December 2022. Algernon Blackwood, Mystic, born 14th March 1869, died 10th December 1951. Johannes Trithemius, Occultist, born 1st February 1462, died 13th December 1516. Arthur Machen, Mystic, born 3rd March 1863, died 15th December 1947. Stanislas de Guaita, Rosicrucian, born 6th April 1861, died 19th December 1897. Riley Lee Martin, UFOlogist, born 9th May 1946, died 22nd December 2015. Hereward Carrington, Parapsychologist, born 17th October 1880, died 26th December 1958. Grigori Rasputin, Mystic, born 22nd January 1869, died around 30th December 1916. Philip Coppens, Folklorist, born 25th January 1971, died 30th December 2012.

Memento Magus

Likely most recognisable for his association with History Channel’s ever controversial Ancient Aliens, Philip Coppens (born 25th January 1971, died 30th December 2012) started out as a more mainstream investigative journalist before moving towards researching Earth mysteries and lost civilisations. With essays featured in magazines such as Nexus and Atlantis Rising, as well as Frontier 2000 which he co-founded, his output could rightly be described as frenetic. Grail conspiracies, a hot topic in New Age circles around that time, featured heavily in his articles, though this was far from his only fringe interest. Now sadly somewhat forgotten, during his lifetime Coppens brought the same Fortean wit to both his writing and media appearances. Had this Belgian author, researcher and radio host not died when he did it can be assumed that his work would have continued to find an ever wider audience.

Grimoire Guides

While not new, A Brief History Of Secret Societies by David V. Barrett still offers an easily accessible grounding in the worldview of numerous esoteric and exoteric groups. Balanced and at times exhaustive, Barrett’s work is typified by an even tone and respect for historical context which instantly sets it apart from the usual works within its field. Divided into six broad chapters in a roughly chronological order, and covering such notable organisations as the Freemasons, Rosicrucians and Templars to name but a few, David’s book looks long and hard at the philosophies which underpin the modern occult revival, as well as shading into territory usually reserved for true crime exposé with its coverage of such groups as Propaganda Due and the Ku Klux Klan. To finish it presents an exceptionally well researched timeline of the actions of those brotherhoods, which is worth the cover price alone.

End Notes

And there we have it, the latest Vulpine Occulture ready to go. No real portfolio announcements to make this month, as everything behind the scenes is up to date and working as intended. There was no need to add any new sections to this post either, which means that the format is finally fit for purpose, with the only item in rotation being occult media reviews depending on what I have consumed over the last thirty days. So one of either Grimoire Guides, Media Magick or Audio Sorcery will be included in each newsletter from now on. I am thinking of producing special entries for the major observances that straddle the Pagan Wheel of the Year in addition to my normal publishing schedule, and if that goes ahead then the first will likely be sometime in December. Of course that will all depend on whether I really have anything of worth to say, but until then watch this space.