An irregular hodgepodge of links gathered together … Omnium Gatherum for June 9, 2020

Here’s some things I’ve found that you may be interested in checking out:

• “Bundle for Racial Justice and Equality. A bundle hosted by itch.io with content from 790 creators.” “Buy 1,000 items for $5 Regularly ~$5,294 Save 99%!” “All proceeds will be donated to the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund and Community Bail Fund split 50/50.”
• Mathers’ Abramelin Manuscript—”The Manuscript which Mathers famously found at the Bibliothèque de l’Arsenal and translated into English as The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage, and which was for almost a hundred years thought to be the only manuscript extant – which gave birth to the much over-used and abused phrase “Knowledge and Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel” – is available online. ”
• Magic Naturalized? Negotiating Science and Occult Experience in Aleister Crowley’s Scientific Illuminism / La Magie “naturalisée”? De la négociation entre science et expérience occulte dans l’illuminisme scientifique d’Aleister Crowley by Egil Asprem—”One of the central questions in the study of modern Western Esotericism concerns the continued appeal of magic; how did magic survive “the disenchantment of the world”? An appealing explanation has been that the emergence of “occultist magic”, based on the writings of Eliphas Lévi (1810–1875) and the teachings of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn (est. 1888) in particular, resulted in a “psychologisation” of magic. By interpreting magical practices as psychological techniques, and the trafficking with esoteric entities as manipulation of internal, psychological states rather than externally real spiritual beings it has become possible for well-educated, upper middle class moderners to retain both their belief in magic and their rational integrity. By presenting a case study of one of the most influential modern occultists, Aleister Crowley (1875– 1947), this article seeks to demonstrate that “the psychologisation thesis” is not entirely tenable. Special notice will be given to Crowley’s magical system, presented as “Scientific Illuminism”, and the role and appeal of science in that system. Contrary to the psychologisation thesis, which it will be argued represents a sort of “psychological escapism”, Crowley did not seek to insulate his magical beliefs from his rational beliefs by withdrawing them to the realm of psychology and internal states; instead, influenced by the ideals of scientific naturalism, he sought to devise a naturalistic method by which magical practice could be rationally criticised, tested and refined. In short, it will be argued that Crowley’s system represent a move towards the naturalisation rather than the psychologisation of magic. In addition to presenting a close reading of some of Crowley’s ideas on the relation between science and magic, a historical contextualisation will be provided, in which special notice will be given to Crowley’s relation to prominent intellectual currents with interest in this issue, including the Society for Psychical Research, Sir James Frazer, and naturalist philosophers and psychologists, from T. H. Huxley to Henry Maudsley.”
• The Alchemy of Desire: The Metaphysics of Eros in René Schwaller de Lubicz (A Study of Adam l’homme rouge) by Aaron Cheak—”Best known for his Egyptological writings, which appeared from 1949 onwards, culminating in his three-volume masterpiece, Le Temple de l’homme (The Temple of Man, 1957-8), French Hermetic philosopher René Schwaller de Lubicz (1887–1961) also played a significant role in the Parisian alchemical revival. While he later disparaged his pre-Egyptological works, and did not republish them when they went out of print, one text has continued to hold a strange allure, and is probably the most fascinating piece from this period: a rare but controversial work entitled Adam l’homme rouge (Adam the Red Man, 1926). While in general the early writings of Schwaller have not ripened evenly, they nevertheless provide important windows into the development of his thought. The Adam text, which deals with the metaphysics of sex, is perhaps the most revealing in this regard, not only because of its erotic topos, but also for the alchemical themes that pervade it. The present study explores these themes and elucidates their contexts and subtexts. I argue that the views on gender and sexuality articulated herein are precise correlates of Schwaller’s alchemical views, which are operative as well as speculative, and that they cannot be divorced from this double context.”
• Virtual Solstice Bonfire: A Celebration for Starhawk’s 69th Birthday. June 17th | 5-7 pm Pacific Time | BY DONATION
• “America’s Moorish Hold Moroccan Flags in Black Lives Matter Protests. The Moorish appearance renewed talks about the group on social media, who often appear carrying the Moroccan flag.”
• 16 Of The Most Influential Leaders In Nation Of Islam History—”Noble Drew Ali, originally Timothy Drew, founded the Moorish Science Temple of America in Newark, New Jersey, in 1913 and tied the movement’s Muslim teachings to Black nationalism. Among those associated with the Moorish Science Temple was Wallace D. Fard (or Wali Fard Muhammad). In 1930, claiming that he was Noble Drew Ali reincarnated, Fard founded the Nation of Islam in Detroit, Michigan. He put his assistant, Elijah Muhammad, in charge of the Nation’s second center in Chicago.”
• “When Things Fall Apart: To Mend Our Social Fabric, These Are the Principles That Must Guide Us. From lockdowns, to police brutality, to riots, only a principled approach can make things better.”
• “Fixer-upper Gothic castle to call your own for €2.75m. The restoration plan is good to go. A roof and very deep pockets are all that is needed now.”
• Poetry as Prophecy—’“If it feels especially potent now, perhaps it is because we have become painfully accustomed to the idea that progress is fragile and it is all too easy to fall back,” writes Lynskey. “The only consolation the poem offers is the knowledge that, for one reason or another, every generation has felt the same apocalyptic shudder that Yeats did 100 years ago.”’
• “Scientists Uncovered a Hidden Pattern in a Mysterious Signal from Space. The repeating burst is coming to us in an unexplained 157-day cycle, astronomers discovered, and its active phase should be starting now.”
• “2,500 rare texts from Islamic world to go online for free. National Library of Israel is digitising collection of manuscripts and books dating back to ninth century”
• Moon Phases Print – Pre-Order and Planets & Stars Print – Pre-Order at Art of Islamic Illumination.
• “After ESPN’s Bruce Lee doc, you’ll see Enter the Dragon through a whole new lens. The legend of Bruce Lee can speak to an entirely different era without raising a fist.”—”But this week, ESPN debuts Be Water, a feature-length look at the life of martial arts icon Bruce Lee. And if you think Lee kicked ass on-screen (which, duh), you may leave this 95-minute exploration even more impressed.”
• “Archaeologists find a way to look for ancient beer. In the process, they discovered the oldest evidence of malted drinks in central Europe.”
• “Astronomers have found a planet like Earth orbiting a star like the sun. The discovery of the exoplanet KOI-456.04 orbiting the star Kepler-160 suggests we should more aggressively look for habitable planets around sun-like stars.”
• Secret of squid invisibility used to turn human cells transparent
• New synthetic red blood cells are even better than the real thing
• Apparently “attack and dethrone god” was trending on Twitter because there was a F@X News graphic claiming that was a rung on “The Weather Undergound’s Strategy”. See this Twitter search on Attack and Dethrone God. It’s perhaps the new “spirit cooking” moral panic, I suppose, but it’s also the plot of a lot of video games, including JRPGs and the recent God of War franchise. Also check out this Attack and Dethrone God (comic)
• “America’s Cities Were Designed to Oppress. Architects and planners have an obligation to protect health, safety and welfare through the spaces we design. As the George Floyd protests reveal, we’ve failed.”
• SHIRLEY Trailer – Available Everywhere June 5; staring Elizabeth Moss as Shirley Jackson. Grab it at Amazon, find it on Hulu, or elsewhere. Based on Shirley: A Novel by Susan Scarf Merrel. “Renowned horror writer Shirley Jackson is on the precipice of writing her masterpiece when the arrival of newlyweds upends her meticulous routine and heightens tensions in her already tempestuous relationship with her philandering husband. The middle-aged couple, prone to ruthless barbs and copious afternoon cocktails, begins to toy mercilessly with the naïve young couple at their door.”
• Breakthrough psilocybin study uncovers neurochemical origins of human ego
• Slow-mo video captures motion of single molecules at 1,600 fps
• “Hell Architect is a game about building and managing your own hell. You take on a role of a hell manager and are tasked with developing the underworld in a way that would make Lucifer himself fall off his chair.”
• I Am Jesus Christ—”Become Jesus Christ, the famous man on Earth – in this highly realistic simulation game. Pray like Him for getting superpower, perform famous miracles like Him from Bible like casting out demons, healing and feeding people, resurrection and more in “I am Jesus Christ”.”
• “A maritime mystery: What has been causing ships to sail in circles? Strange things can happen at sea, as the crew of Liberian-flagged oil tanker Willowy confronted a mysterious incident on Sunday.”—”In the early hours of Sunday 31 May, senior officers aboard the oil tanker Willowy were called to the bridge to be told that their ship and four others in its vicinity were mysteriously sailing in circles, unable to steer, and on course to converge.”
• “Kepler College is pleased to announce Robert Glasscock[‘s] continuation (in its 3rd year!) of analyzing & forecasting using “astrology’s most successful predictive system”, 5 Weeks – $100, Begins Wednesday June 17, 2020, 5:30-7:30 pm PST (8:30 -10:30 pm EST)”
• Free Study Guide in PDF: From #BlackLivesMatter to Black Liberation from Haymarket Books—”For those looking for a primer about the history of anti-Black racism in the United States and context for the ongoing uprising against police violence and the carceral system, there is no better place to start than Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor’s landmark From #BlackLivesMatter to Black Liberation. We’ve put together a study and discussion guide to support activists and organizers interested in utilizing this crucial book in their work.”
• Free eBook: Who Do You Serve, Who Do You Protect? Police Violence and Resistance in the United States, edited by Joe Macaré, Maya Schenwar, and Alana Yu-lan Price, foreword by Alicia Garza
• Tweet—”We’ve taken down the paywall on as many of these titles as we can, so even if you aren’t a subscriber you can watch them for free.” See Criterion Channel.
• Ibram X. Kendi’s Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America currently a free audiobook on Spotify. Tweet, April 19: “I’m imagining what would be happening if it were Black people across the nation defying stay-at-home orders and demonstrating in large groups against the law. Riot units would be breaking up rallies. Tear gas would be flying. Jails would be filling up. Trump would be raging.” Also see this Tweet thread.
• “The Real Origins of the Religious Right. They’ll tell you it was abortion. Sorry, the historical record’s clear: It was segregation.”
• ‘The “boogaloo” “movement,” explained. “It’s essentially a joke that people wrapped a bunch of different stuff in.”’
• The Tiny Media Collective That Is Delivering Some of the Most Vital Reporting from Minneapolis
  
• Literacy Narrative: The Dis-located Imagination

• Research suggests we can “hear” hand gestures even when we can’t see them
• “Archaeologists discover the largest—and oldest—Maya monument ever The huge earthen platform discovered in Tabasco, Mexico, dates back 3,000 years.”
• “How Capitalism Created Sexual Dysfunction. On the Commodification of Good Sex.” About What We Don’t Talk About When We Talk About #MeToo. Essays on Sex, Authority and the Mess of Life by JoAnn Wypijewski
• Explaining the Pandemic to my Past Self
• Explaining the Pandemic to my Past Self Part 2
• Mystic Michael shows 2019 Michael a far-fetched future
• “1993 Harrison Ford and 2020 Harrison Ford were quarantined together and it did NOT go well”
• “‘Did I Miss Anything?’: A Man Emerges From a 75-Day Silent Retreat. Daniel Thorson went into a silent retreat in mid-March, meditating through 75 coronavirus news cycles, Boris Johnson’s hospitalization, social distancing and sourdough starter. Now he’s catching up.”

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