Perfect Nature, part 2

Let's continue analyzing the 6th chapter of book 3 of the Latin Picatrix. In part 1 we talked about the elements of the chapter up to and including the actual Ritual of Perfect Nature itself. Now we get into some philosophical territory and a description of one of the keys to working the magic of the Picatrix.

 Aristotle said furthermore that each sage had his proper virtue infused into him by exalted spirits, by whose powers their senses were closed, their intellects opened, and sciences were revealed to them. This virtue was conjoined with the virtue of the planet ruling the radix of the nativity, so that the virtue thus co-created in them strengthened them and gave intelligence to them. These same ancient sages and kings used to do this working and pray this prayer with the four names given above, by which they helped themselves in their knowledge and understanding, and the increase of their business and possessions, and guarded themselves from the plots of their enemies, and did many other things.

So now that we have just completed the Ritual of Perfect Nature, thereby putting our higher selves in order. Now the text goes into talking about the qualities and attributes of Perfect Nature. We are told that the magician has "his proper virtue infused in him by exalted spirits". What is this proper virtue? I contend that it is the magician's connection to their personal inner world, the spiritual realm, and by extension, God. It is through this connection to higher realms that makes a magician a magician. This connection works by closing the senses and opening the intellect. This sounds like a meditation technique in which the magician explores the inner realms.

We are then told that the virtue is "conjoined" and "co-created" by the planet ruling the nativity of the magician. Clearly then, the exalted spirits are independent of the planetary spirits. The exalted spirits are the four Spirits of Perfect Nature. They are strengthened by, and take on the flavor of, one of the seven planets. Does this mean that the planet is the entree to understanding the Spirits of Perfect Nature? How would a Mercurial Perfect Nature be different from a Jovial Perfect Nature? At any rate, it becomes apparent that Perfect Nature, as the unity, is different for each person and takes on the nature of the planet ruling the nativity of the magician.

 Aristotle said that the first who worked with images, and the one to whom spirits first appeared, was Caraphzebiz. He it was who first discovered the magical art, and spirits appeared first to him, performing wonders, and opening Perfect Nature to his knowledge, and made him understand that same secret nature and sciences. His familiar spirit said to him: I will remain with you, but do not reveal me to others or speak of me, and make sacrifices in my name. He became a sage by working with the spirits, and helped himself by their powers and by workings in which they took part.

 Caraphzebiz is presented as the father of the magic of the Picatrix. As of yet I have not been able to find any history or derivation of this name. We also have two clues as to the "maintenance" of a relationship of the magician and his familiar spirit of Perfect Nature: make sacrifices and tell no one. Interestingly elsewhere in the Picatrix we are told that another person's disbelief or derision diminishes the work. The keep silent rule seems a reiteration of this point.  

From that sage Caraphzebiz down to another sage named Amenus (who was the second to work with spirits and magical operations) 1260 years passed by. This sage, when he taught, used to offer this advice, that any sage who wanted to work magic, and preserve himself with the powers of the spirits, ought strictly to give up all cares and all other sciences beside this one, because when all the senses and the mind, and all contemplations about other things, are strictly turned to magic, it may be acquired with ease; and since many assiduous contemplations are appropriate to this science of magic, the magician must wrap himself in these, rather than being wrapped around any other things.

Here we have two ancient magicians named as the first to work with spirits in this way. In terms of evocation and spirit work these two names can be added to the list of entities available to the magician to call upon as teachers and exalted masters.  The interval of time between them seems oddly specific. It is tempting to try and equate this number with the rotation of fixed stars or the speed of Saturn or Jupiter, but I think this is erroneous. 1260 probably is derived from some other source.

Again we are told to concentrate on magic as the way to learn it. And while I am not in a position to be able to quit my day job in favor of magical work, I do devote energy every day to learning magic. From this passage we are told that distraction is anathema to the practice of this magic.

Tintinz the Greek said the same thing in the beginning of his book, that one who desires to perform this work ought to abandon all intention and contemplation concerning other things, because the root and foundation of all these workings consists of contemplations. Aristotle said that an image is called an image for this reason, that the powers of spirits are conjoined to it, for contemplation goes into anything in which the virtue consists of a hidden spirit. The powers of the spirits are fourfold: that is, the senses, which are said to be joined to the world; the spirit of things, to which spirit is attracted; the spirit of perfect, sane, and unbroken contemplation; and the spirit by which works are done by the hands. These three spirits in matter, which exist in intention and effect, are coadunated in perfect contemplation with the senses, which we have said are joined to the world.

From my perspective this is one of, if not the, most important paragraph in the whole book in terms of understanding the ritual procedure of the Picatrix.
The root and foundation of the work consists of contemplations. 
Contemplations, in this context, means concentration, meditation, visualization, and active imagination. In modern parlance, skrying and working on the Astral Plane. In fact, contemplation "goes into anything in which the virtue consists of a hidden spirit". It is the act of visualization that makes an object magical as opposed to mundane.

In addition to contemplation there are three other elements that make a magical image. Referred to as Spirits, the four are:

1. The Spirit of the Senses. I interpret this to mean the trappings of ceremony; colors, scents, setting, astrological election time, words, libations, and so on.
2.  The Spirit of Things. I interpret this to be the physical material from which the talisman is constructed, the image itself, and other additions used to strengthen the correspondences (stones, herbs, metals, dust, washes)
3. The Spirit of Perfect, Sane, Unbroken Contemplation. In other words meditation, visualization, energy work, intent, belief, and spirit communication.
4. The Spirit by Which Works Are Done With the Hands. This means the actual physical building or finishing of the talisman. 

Effective workings using the Picatrix must consist of all four of these elements.

The senses attract rays and bring them to those things toward which they are directed, like a mirror that is raised up into the light of the Sun, and reflects his rays into the shadows to either side; it receives the Sun's rays from his light, and projects them into shadowy places; and those shadowy places become bright and illuminated, nor is the Sun's light diminished thereby. This is how the three spirits named above work, when the spirits of motion and rest are joined to the superior world while in contact with the senses; they attract the powers of the spirits of the superior world, and pour them out upon matter. This is the foundation of images, and why they are given that name.

This paragraph goes into some detail about the previous one. Essentially it says that Senses, Things, and Work of the Hands all attract the influence of the spiritual world and it is Contemplation that directs it.

As an example, let's say you are working on a Saturn talisman. You have worked with the Spirit of the Senses by figuring out a correct  election time in which to make it, dressing in black wool, lighting black candles, writing out an appropriate invocation, and picking a rough secluded location for the working. You have worked with the Spirit of Things by choosing lead, Saturnine herbs, and Saturnine stones with which to construct the talisman (or perhaps you have chosen a Saturn image to render on paper). These were gathered using Saturn timing. You work with the Spirit of Contemplation by praying, fasting, and visualizing the power of Saturn flowing into your talisman by the smoke of its suffumigation. Finally, at the appropriate time, you are constructing, engraving, drawing, assembling, and/ or finishing the talisman by manipulating it with the hands. As election windows can be somewhat brief much of the talisman can be assembled before the election occurs as long as you save some work for the consecration ritual.

Socrates said that Perfect Nature is the Sun of the wise and its root is light. Certain people inquired of Hermes the sage, asking: "With what are science and philosophy joined?" He answered, "With Perfect Nature." They asked again, saying, "What is the root of science and philosophy?" He said, "Perfect Nature." Then they questioned him more closely: "What is the key by which science and philosophy are opened?" He answered, "Perfect Nature." They then asked of him, "What is Perfect Nature?" He answered, "Perfect Nature is the spirit of the philosopher or sage linked to the planet that governs him. This is that which opens the closed places of knowledge, and by which is understood that which cannot otherwise be understood at all, and from which workings proceed naturally both in sleep and in waking."

The first line of this paragraph is a puzzle to me. I have heard some contend that "its root is light" means that the talismans are empowered, in part by literal rays of light from celestial bodies. Doing a Saturn talisman? Make sure the light of Saturn falls upon the surface of your talisman. While this actually may be helpful I don't think that is what is meant in this line. I have also heard others saying that it means the best talismans are somehow shiny or luminescent. I think these two interpretations are a bit too simplistic. But I have no counterpoint. Somehow I suspect that "light" may have a shifting meaning and be more subtle than these other explanations.

The paragraph continues with Hermes answering every question with "Perfect Nature", indicating that Perfect Nature is the root of all science and philosophy and apparently the only way to understand them. Then it is reiterated that Perfect Nature is the spirit of the magician linked to the planet that rules his/ her nativity, as we noted at the beginning of this part 2 essay.

Thus it is clear from the foregoing that Perfect Nature acts in the sage or philosopher as a teacher toward a student, teaching the latter first in simple and easy matters, and then proceeding step by step to greater and more difficult ones, until the student is perfect in knowledge. When Perfect Nature works in this way, according to its own virtue and influence, the intellect of the philosopher is disposed according to his natural inclination. You should understand this, committing it to memory, because from the foregoing it may be concluded that it is impossible for anybody to attain this science except those who are naturally inclined to it, both by their own virtue and by the disposition of the planet ruling in their nativity.

The concluding paragraph of chapter 6 tells us that the ruling planet of the magician's birth chart influences the way in which Perfect Nature teaches the magician what they need to learn. I think it is also helpful to keep in mind the relationship between Perfect Nature and the magician, a teacher toward a student. Perfect Nature is not a spirit to be threatened or commanded but one that has the best interests of the magician at heart.

In conclusion I would like to suggest that this be one of the first things students of the Picatrix tackle. Making contact with the Spirit of Perfect Nature using the four names. By this other avenues are opened.

Happy New Year!!

The ultimte end to all things. 

Four Spirits of Perfect Nature, Daily Practice

As I stated in my last post I have developed an element of my daily practice on Perfect Nature in Book 3, Chapter 6 of the Latin Picatrix.

"Meegius" visualize a light before me.
"Betzahuech" visualize a light behind me.
"Vacdez" visualize a light to my right.
"Nufeneguediz" visualize a light to my left.
Invariably, over course of continuing the invocation 10, 20, or more times, the visualizations will change as I explore the nature of each of the spirits.
Meegius before me. Over time this has developed into an image of a point expanding, often blue, and ossified like bones radiating from a central point. As spirit of the East he is the spirit of things rising into existence.
Betzahuech behind me. Betzahuech appears as a dark and hidden spirit, one that I cannot see, a face behind a veil. He is the universe imploding into a singularity. As spirit of the West he is the spirit of things diminishing into obscurity. Color is black.
Vacdez to my right. A yellow light. Two images I have received for Vacdez are a woman sitting in a straight backed wooden chair and a submerged city. As spirit of the South Vacdez holds one of the axles of heaven.
Nufeneguediz to my left. This spirit has appeared to me as the rim of a ceramic jar, an edge that borders on emptiness. As spirit of the North he holds the other end of the axle of heaven.

Perfect Nature, part 1

I'd like to ramble on a bit about chapter 6 of book 3 of the Picatrix. This is the section that contains the details of a working for making contact with spirits named the Spirits of Perfect Nature. It also describes the actual working method for the entire system of magic in the book. I believe it is one of the most important chapters in terms of working the magic of Picatrix. Let's begin a detailed look at this chapter.

The first notable thing is that this passage, while somewhat different in its elements, appears in both the Latin Picatrix (G&W) and the Arabic Ghayat al Hakim (Atallah). For this discussion I will be drawing from the Latin, Greer and Warnock translation.

Nothing in this science can be perfected unless the virtue and disposition of the planets are inclined toward it by their own nature. This is what Aristotle says, in the Book of Antimaquis where he says: Perfect Nature fortifies those who philosophize, and strengthens their intellect and their wisdom, so that in all their works they may quickly attain fulfillment.

The chapter begins with an admonition that the magic of the Picatrix can only be learned if the planets are inclined. Then the next sentence tells us that the fortitude of the magician is strengthened by Perfect Nature. In Pingree's Latin edition the name is natura completa. While my Latin is terrible it would appear that in this context "perfect" means complete, full, highest, finished.

Together these sentences are saying that Perfect Nature not only aligns the disposition of the planets toward the magician but also helps the magician in learning and understanding the magic. One of the manifestations of Perfect Nature, as noted in the footnotes of the G&W Picatrix, is a sort of Poimandres figure from the Hermetica, or spiritual assistant figure from the PGM.

Everything belonging to this science, however, the wise concealed according to their degree, so that no one except a philosopher would be able to uncover it. They taught all knowledge and the subtleties of philosophy to their disciples before revealing to them the work of the spirits of Perfect Nature. They gave to the spirits of Perfect Nature these four names: Meegius, Betzahuech, Vacdez, Nufeneguediz, which are the four parts of the spirits of Perfect Nature named above. When those sages wished to speak about Perfect Nature, they called them by these four names, which signify the powers of Perfect Nature.

This paragraph begins with another reminder that the meat and true meaning of things written about magic are concealed and written in riddle and code. The word "however" in the first sentence makes the meaning "even though you may have the assistance of Perfect Nature, everything is well hidden". By extension, it is safe to assume that this includes the material in the Picatrix itself.

Then we are introduced to the Spirits of Perfect Nature themselves; Meegius, Betzahuech, Vacdez, Nufeneguediz. If I am reading this paragraph correctly these four names not only describe the names of the spirits themselves, but also the parts of Perfect Nature and the powers of Perfect Nature. This suggests that Perfect Nature is to be thought of a a unity, a single thing that is composed of four parts and each of those parts has its own name and "assignment".
As an aside, I am still trying to research the derivation or meaning of each of the names but as of yet have found nothing. I have much more to say about these guys a little later.

 Hermes, however, said: When I wished to understand and draw forth the secrets of the workings of the world and of its qualities, I put myself above a certain pit that was very deep and dark, from which a certain impetuous wind blew; nor was I able to see anything in the pit, on account of its obscurity. If 1 put a lit candle in it, straightway it was extinguished by the wind.

This is a very curious passage and strikes me as metaphorical. In this context Hermes is presumably Hermes Trismegestus, apparently one of the sources from which Picatrix was compiled. Standing over a pit of wind seeking answers to the world's mysteries seems like a description of the Oracle at Delphi. For those of you who are unaware, it has been suggested that the Oracle at Delphi was able to attain her prophecies and visions from hallucinogenic gasses which issued from a small chasm in the floor of the chamber, over which she would stand. In this case, instead of being a source of vision, however, the wind is an impediment to knowledge as is the darkness of the pit. Would it be a mistake to imagine that it is the mind of the magician that is being discussed here? This was all written hundreds of years before Jung wrote his theories of the unconscious but it seems that is what is being described. The darkness of the pit is the obscurity of the unconscious or the "other side" of the spirit realm. The candle is the meditating and seeking consciousness of the magician. The impetuous wind could then be understood as the chattering of the conscious mind, always interrupting and disrupting concentration.

            Then there appeared to me in a dream a beautiful man of imperial authority, who spoke to me as follows: "Put that lit candle in a lantern of glass, and the impetuosity of the wind will not extinguish it. You should lower the lantern into the pit, in the middle of which you should dig; thence you may draw forth an image by which, when you have drawn it forth, the wind from the pit will be extinguished, and then you will be able to hold the light there. Then you should dig in the four corners of the pit, and from there you may draw out the secrets of the world and of Perfect Nature, and its qualities, and the generation of all things." 

Presumably this beautiful and imperious man is a manifestation of Perfect Nature who comes in a dream vision to help Hermes to figure out how to extract answers from this pit. As the figure arrives in a dream, is it too much of a stretch to consider the entire episode, the pit, the lantern, the wind, as a dream?

In this passage we also have another presentation of the number 4. The Picatrix is replete with the concept of correspondences. In another section of the book it explicitly states that natural groups of four (elements, seasons, moon phases, directions, humors, etc.) are related and correspondences can be drawn between the various groups. For example earth, winter, black bile, melancholy, the New Moon, and the southern direction can all be said to draw upon the same qualities.

So now we have 4 spirit names and 4 corners of the pit. This is the first indication that the names of Perfect Nature correspond to the compass directions.  There are more explicit examples later.

From the four corners of the pit are drawn the secrets of the world (macrocosm, above) and of Perfect Nature (microcosm, below). Also "its qualities" with "it" being somewhat ambiguous and perhaps referring to both the world and Perfect Nature as one "it".

I asked him who he was, and he replied: "I am Perfect Nature if you wish to speak to me, call me by my proper name, and I will answer you." I asked him them by what name he was called, and he answered me, saying, "By the four names mentioned above I am named and called." I asked him next at what times I should call him, and how I should make the invocation.

Here again we are reminded that Perfect Nature is a unity of four parts. Here it is made clear that the Spirits of Perfect Nature are invoked using the names Meegius, Betzahuech, Vacdez, Nufeneguediz. Because of this and because of the importance I put on this chapter I have developed a practice of invoking the names as part of a daily practice.

He said: "When the Moon is in the first degree of Aries, be it by day or by night, whenever you wish, go into a house that is clean and splendid, in one corner of which you should put a raised table on the floor, toward the eastern side. Take four pitchers (each of which should have a capacity around one pint). Into one of them put cow's butter, into the second nut oil, into the third almond oil, and into the fourth sesame oil. Then take four more pitchers of the same size, and pour wine into them. Then make a composition of nut oil, butter, honey, and sugar. Take the eight pitchers and the mixture you have made, and a glass vessel; put this latter in the center of the table, and put the composition you have made into it.

"Next put the four pitchers full of wine at the four quarters of the table, arranging them in the following way: the first pitcher in the east, the second in the west, the third in the south, and the fourth in the north. Then take the other four pitchers; first put the one full of almond oil to the east, then the one full of nut oil to the west; the one full of butter goes to the south, and the one full of sesame oil to the north. Then take a burning candle and put it in the midst of the table. Then take two thuribles full of burning charcoal, into one of which you shall put frankincense and mastic, and into the other aloes wood.

"When all this is done, stand upright on your feet facing the east, and invoke the four aforementioned names seven times. When you have invoked them seven times, speak as follows:

"T call to you, O strong, potent, and exalted spirit, because from you proceed the knowledge of the wise and the understanding of the intellect, and by your virtue the desires of the wise are accomplished, that you may respond to me, and be present with me, and unite with me your powers and the virtues that accompany you, and strengthen me with your knowledge so that I may understand that which I do not understand, and know that of which I am ignorant, and see that which 1 do not see; and remove from me all blindness, turpitude, forgetfulness and infirmity; and lift me up to the degree of the ancient sages (those, indeed, whose hearts were filled with knowledge, wisdom, understanding, and cognition), and affix the aforesaid things in my heart, so that my heart may be made like the hearts of the ancient sages.'" He then said: "And when you have done the foregoing working in the aforesaid way, you will see me."

This working is described in the Book of Antimaquis. The ancient sages used to perform this working every year for the sake of their spirits, so that they might put in order their Perfect Natures. When this was done, they used to feast together with their friends on whatever on the table was nearest to them.

In this part of the chapter we have the actual Ritual of Perfect Nature itself. The ritual not only tells how to call upon the spirits and what they enjoy as offerings it also gives us a structure of correspondences.

East- Meegius, almond oil, front (standing facing East)

West- Betzahuech, nut oil, back

South- Vecdez, butter, right

North- Nufeneguediz, sesame oil, left

What we do not have, however, is the elemental correspondences that fit this structure. It is tempting to use the compass directions to facilitate that line of thinking but I am prevented from doing so for two reasons. First, I have yet to find evidence in the pages of the Picatrix for such. It can, however, be inferred using the Zodiacal wheel. Each of the first actions happens toward the East and the rite is to be performed when the Moon is in the first degree of Aries. Therefore it is not too much of a stretch to suggest that Fire is in the East and attributed to Meegius. This would make Betzahuech and the West attributed to Air (Libra), Vacdez and the South as Earth (Capricorn), and Nufeneguediz as North and Water (Cancer). But so far this is simply a theory until I gather more evidence.
The Second reason I am cautious to set elemental attributions to the directions is because there are various schools that all suggest theirs is the correct way and all differently.
In my favor, however, both Jake Stratton-Kent and Henry Cornelius Agrippa attribute the elements to the directions as I have suggested here.

This is a good place to break our discussion into smaller bits. This first section has much valuable information. There is an equal, if not more, valuable information in the second half.

Why I Like the Picatrix

For this article I assume you know what the Picatrix is, but for those of you who do not I will give a very brief description. Those in the 200 level class can skip ahead.

  
The Picatrix is a book thought to be first compiled in the 9th Century CE in Arabic under the title Ghayat al-Hakim, The Goal of the Wise (or Aim of the Sage depending on your translation) from, the text claims, over 200 other books. It remained in Arabic until 1256 when it was translated into Latin and Spanish by scholars in the court of Alfonso, King of Castile. The Latin version bears the title Picatrix and is essentially a book of astrological magic, working with spirits associated with the planets and stars, through the use of talismanic objects called "images". The word Picatrix shows up in the book itself as the name of a contributor, the name of the author, and the name of the book. The copy and version I refer to the most is the translation of the Latin Picatrix by John Michael Greer and Christopher Warnock (2010).

My well loved copy of the Latin Picatrix

The Picatrix was a book that came to me a little over three years ago. I first heard about it on a podcast by Poke Runyon, The Hermetic Hour, and picked it up soon after. I was initially intrigued because it was described as a manual for talisman making and using images in magic. As an artist this really piqued my curiosity. I was (and still am) excited to make pieces of art with a magical dimension to them.
Also at the time I was floundering a bit magically. I was looking for an alternative to the traditions of the Victorian Era; Thelema, The Golden Dawn, Gardenarian Witchcraft. In terms of practice, none of those have ever sat quite right with me for various reasons. Most of the material I could find that purported to teach magic were based on these foundations. And, being a hermit, I definitely wanted to be solitary which meant figuring out everything on my own. The Picatrix was the first book I had found that had Hermetic style magic without heavy influence of Christianity or Hebrew Qabalah.
The Picatrix was the book that got me off the proverbial Armchair.
I like the Picatrix because it is different; different from almost all contemporary books on magic (or magick) and a different way of thinking about cosmology. I generally glaze over when discussion of the Tree of Life comes up.
I like the Picatrix because it is complex and cryptic. After three years I am just now feeling like I am getting a grip on the material. Part of the attraction is that it is deliberately written cryptically in riddles and illusions. The text, in fact, explicitly states this fact. There are blinds and fake-outs that may or may not be accurate. There are vague descriptions, code words and phrases, and beautifully written imagery. Things are not necessarily what they seem.
I like the Picatrix because it is not dogmatic. There is a lot of room for the magician to use his or her own imagination. There is also no set morality and workings for manipulation and destruction are next to workings for prosperity and good will.
I like the Picatrix because it is spirit based. I am of the school of thought that magic works through the agency of spirits (as opposed to the two other camps, that magic works by the agency of the magician's will or through the ability to move "energy" in the universe). I don't do magic to get stuff or, as it is stated elsewhere, to get paid and laid. I do magic to explore subtle realms and communicate with spirits. Picatrix fits this attitude well, at least for me.
Lastly, I like the Picatrix because it is not a beginner text. It is a book that I'm sure I will continue to explore for years.

More Thoughts on the Elemental and Celestial

Being a hermit has advantages and disadvantages. On the one hand it protects me somewhat from the dogmas of traditions according to a guru. But, on the other hand, I have to work out many things myself. This reconciliation of astrological spirits with elemental/chthonic spirits feels like one of those situations in which I struggle to figure it out but feel that others are already way ahead. Ultimately it doesn't matter. I know myself well enough to know that I would instantly distrust an answer I obtained easily. I subscribe to the concept that all of this magic stuff is strongly subjective and personal and I am almost never satisfied with someone else's answers.

At any rate, I have a few more thoughts on a unified cosmology that includes the astrological spirits and the demons of the grimoires.

1. The universe exists with both of these groups of spirits in it and so a practice can be developed involving both groups. One does not need to replace the other. (I have struggled a bit with this concept, thinking I had to choose and work with either one or the other.)
2. Astrological timing figures heavily in Verum and so exists as a tool to the practice. It is not replaced or diminished.
3. The spirits of the grimoires are essentially elemental. This is an argument presented by Jake Stratton-Kent in his Encyclopedia Goetica series that I feel he has expressed sufficient evidence to support. 
4. Being elemental the grimoire spirits are therefore sublunary and subject to astrological weather as humanity is. A question about this, however, is: are the sublunary grimoire spirits subject to "generation and corruption" as other things in the world or are they not part of the material world and therefore exempt? Perhaps by virtue of being elemental?

As I see it there are three basic choices. First, I could see the two hierarchies as distinct systems, ignoring one for the other. I have already discounted this idea. Second, I can work two systems and practice them simultaneously; each with its own rules and practices. I tried this for months and it is cumbersome to maintain. What wound up happening was that one supplanted the other and I began to stagnate with indecision until I just dropped everything. For me, kept separately they kind of canceled each other out.

Or there is the third choice which is to combine the two systems into a melded whole. This is the path I am already headed down. There are a few avenues for this line of thinking. The first, again from Jake Stratton-Kent's Encyclopedia Goetica, is a pretty exhaustive listing of possible astrological correspondences to the demons of the Grimorium Verum. Or I could do as Jack Faust describes in his blog, ascribing chthonic manifestations to the seven planets. This, however, may be a less than ideal example and strikes me as simply putting skull masks on characters.

Obviously I still have a lot of work to do on the subject. And work as opposed to theorizing. Combining the Picatrix and the Grimorium Verum into a cohesive working whole seems to be the task set before me. Time to get to work. Past time.

Be Careful What You Wish For

I made a classic mistake and now it has me thinking about the nature of making requests of spirits. The incident has a good side and a not-so-good side. The good side is that I made the request as a part of the Astrachios Prayer and it was granted. The not-so-good side is that the realization of this request set me back in my magical practice a bit.
I asked the spirits for safe, reliable access to a certain illegal substance of which I am quite fond. A few weeks later I had that access in what I am sure is direct intervention by the spirits. I was elated. Not only was it cheap, it was home delivered! It also indicated to me a certain amount of success in my very slow exploration of the Verum material. The problem turned out to be that, since I am so fond of this substance, I frequently indulged in it. Predictably (in hindsight) my focus and priorities changed and I slowly did less and less magical work and what I did do was erratic, weak, and infrequent. And now, months later I feel as though I've lost ground.
Part of my mistake was justifying thinking "the spirits wouldn't give me anything that would impair my magical development". Surely if I am able to use magic to get what I want, then it is appropriate for me to get it. And further, that since it came at least partly from spiritual efforts it must in itself be spiritual. I took it as encouragement from the spirits that this substance was what I needed for the next steps of my spiritual development. I can work high, right?
It turns out the answer is "not really". But perhaps that was the answer I needed. Making requests is no small thing and asking for a gun to shoot yourself in the foot is just as valid as any other request. The spirits are not here to coddle you.
Be careful what you wish for, you might get it.