The Hermetic Hour

The Hermetic Hour for Thursday, March 22nd, 2012 will feature a discussion led by host Poke Runyon, with Ed Fitch, and Rustee Wizzerd, calling in, on the marriage of Paganism, Witchcraft and Ceremonial Magick seen in the revival of the 1970s Order of the Temple of Astarte in the 21st century. We will talk about how this all got started, what our original goals were, and what influenced the O.T.A. to attempt a modern synthesis of Victorian era Gnostic and Rosicrucian magical systems with the more shamanic and earth-oriented Neo-Pagan Movement. This will be an eye-opener to newbies who often have no idea what the real differences between Wicca and Magick are, or how much one owes to the other -- so, tune in and find out what's going on in strange, dark blue rooms in California, Texas, and Georgia. It's Magick!

The Hermetic Hour for Thursday, March 1st, 2012 will highlight our C.H.S. Associate Member's program. It will also be call-in night, so let's hear from you. Our call-in number is: 374-857-1830. We will be previewing our forthcoming video, now in production, "The Pathworkings of Magick." This is going to be the first time that anyone has attempted to actually do traditional inner plane projection operations over a computer or on DVD home theater. We've already shot the live temple footage and we will post stills on our website. These Pathworking DVDs will go out to our Associate Members as part of their instructional program. Tune in an learn how you can take magical journeys at home.

The Hermetic Hour for Thursday the 23rd of February, 2012 will present a report by host Poke Runyon on the recent PantheaCon convention in San Jose, California (from the17th through the 20th of this month). This gathering of NeoPagan tribes, magical lodges and Wiccan covens was attended by 2000 colorful characters with nearly a hundred events, lectures, ritual presentations, and handcrafted treasures for collectors of the exotic. We attended as part of the Feraferian entourage and helped Feraferia's leader Jo Carson to present an enchanted Oimelc rite that featured talented dancers, musicians and an experienced cast of ritualists.  Lady Jo will be calling in discuss this event with us and her upcoming book on Feraferia. We also attended lectures and classes given by our friends Chic and Tabatha Cicero, and Lon Milo DuQuette. We touched base with Ed Fitch who was promoting his forthcoming book Pirate Magic -- or is Pyrate Magick? (Arrgh!) A great time was had by all -- so tune in and we'll share the magick with you.

On February 16th, 2011 the Hermetic Hour, with host Poke Runyon, will present a lively discussion of the great anti-Masonic hoax of the late 19th century, the "Order of the Palladium," allegedly founded by General Albert Pike, 33rd, and conferred, through secret sex magick rites, by the mysterious beauty Diana Vaughan. This French-based tabloid serial was the creation of a self-admitted journalistic "prankster" Leo Taxil, aided by his attractive female secretary Diana Vaughan, and a certain "Dr. Bataille". Working together they concocted the fantastic memories of the high priestess of an international luciferian masonic sex magick cult which sought to secretly initiate the leaders of the Western World in a demonic conspiracy. The repentant Diana Vaughan was said to have converted to Roman Catholicism and to be hiding somewhere in a undisclosed convent. When the Pope asked Taxil if he could visit her and bestow his blessing, Taxil knew that the jig was up. He called a press conference and made an outrageous public confession of the whole affair. The transcript of his confession -- complete with laughter and insults -- has been translated into English and would make a hilarious one-man stage show. Up until recently many anti-masonic conspiracy buffs still believed the Palladians were the real deal (David Icke still does) and there is even a Palladian Skull and Bones chapter at the University of Arkansas. We have a special connection to this mad adventure through our late senior adviser Louis T. Culling, who claimed to be "the Last Palladian." So, tune in and we'll unveil the secrets of the Palladians.

The Hermetic Hour for Thursday February 9th, 2012 will feature a discussion, led by Poke Runyon on the psycho-philosophy of Carl Gustav Jung and its relation to the Hermetic Tradition. We will set forth the basic tenants of Jung's psychology, how it differs from that of Sigmund Freud, and how Jung's theory of the "Collective Unconscious" matches up with the Hermetic theory of the "Universal Mind." We'll also consider how the Jungian "archetypes" and "the shadow" relate to angels, spirits and demons. Jung's interest in Alchemy will be mentioned, along with his notion that UFOs might be the medieval angels returning in modern times. Our reference text will be "Modern Man in Search of a Soul" and "The Red Book," which was Jung's personal diary of his own spiritual quest. So curl up with your anima (or animus) and we'll get analytical.

The Hermetic Hour for Thursday February 2nd, 2012 with host Poke Runyon, will present a discussion on the life and times of America's most famous and notorious ceremonial magician John (Marvel) Whiteside Parsons. You don't have to be "a rocket scientist" to understand the secrets of magick -- but Jack Parsons actually was a rocket scientist, and he not only established the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (NASA's JPL) in Pasadena, but also ran the Agape Lodge of the O.T.O. from a mansion on Orange Grove that members called "The Ghastly Gables." Parsons has a lunar crater named after him -- on the dark side, of course. We will trace Jack's fantastic career from the depression years through WW II, and the the post war era. Our references will be John Carter's (Warlord of Mars?) book "Sex and Rockets" (1999), our own conversations with Lou Culling and Cameron Parsons, our own 1976 Seventh Ray publication of Parson's "Freedom is a Two-Edged Sword." We'll discuss the "Babalon Working," and the Cal Tech drama department's recent stage play "Pasadena Babalon." Launch time: 8:00 p.m. Thursday -- five, four, three, two, one...Blast Off ! (Io Pan !)

The Hermetic Hour for Thursday, January 26th, 2012 with host Poke Runyon, will feature a discussion on the mystical science fiction of Philip K. Dick. For those unfamiliar with his writings this will hopefully serve to introduce you to a writer now considered to be in a class with Jorge Louis Borges, Kurt Vonnegut and, in my opinion, James Joyce. Several of Dick's novels have been made into films, such as "Blade Runner", "Minority Report", "Total Recall" and "The Adjustment Bureau." He transcended the 1960s' drug culture with concepts and themes that went deeper and more universal than the temporary insights of flower-power. He rides a pale horse through the night of a thousand brains in a race against sanity that will keep you confused and enlightened at the same time---and time itself may run backwards if necessary. So get out your Perky Pat layout, take some Can-D and  settle in for an hour of Divine Madness -- especially if VALIS calls in....

This Thursday, January 18th, 2012, at 8:00 p.m. Pacific Time, the Hermetic Hour, with host Poke Runyon, will present an in-depth interview with the distinguished author and researcher Joseph P. Farrell. We will focus on his 2007 book "The Philosopher's Stone, Alchemy and the Secret Research for Exotic Matter" from Feral House. In this work, Dr. Farrell traces the course of Alchemy from possible antediluvian secret science, through classical NeoPlatonist-Hermetic concepts, exotic medieval formulas, to modern quantum mechanics functioning on different model than Einstein's Relativity. We'll discuss the American Alchemical gold, the mysterious Russian "Red Mercury", the Nazi atomic bomb -- which they may have had before we did -- and the Tortion theory of quantum physics behind the awesome Nazi "Bell" project. This is a show that will bend your mind, and set you to wondering about the real history of history... Don't miss it.

The Hermetic Hour for this Thursday, January 12th, 2012 will feature a discussion, led by host Poke Runyon, on magical films and films of interest to magicians and pagans. We will start with the silent classics, and work our way through to the latest offering from HPLHS (the Lovecraft Historical Society) which is Whisperer in the Darkness. This will not be a detailed history of weird films, but rather a selection of what we consider the best, such as Cocteau's Orpheus, Orson Welles Black Magic, Bergman's The Seventh Seal, and others we consider artful and provocative. Please call in and offer your selections. So, tune in and we'll review "weird cinema."

This Thursday, January 5th, 2012 the Hermetic Hour, with host Poke Runyon, will feature a show on our new year, 2012 and the predictions, ancient and modern, concerning the end of our cycle, and, hopefully, a new beginning. We'll discuss the Mayan calendar, its relation to other cyclic predictions, and the whole range of prophetic predictions --  from he return of  Planet X to the alignment with the center of the galaxy and what that portends. We will try to balance the negative and positive aspects of all this, telling you what we think you ought to have in your survival kit, along with what spiritual resources we think you should try to cultivate. On the cynical side we'll review the history of Millenarian doom's day cults and have a chuckle over our "Doom-of-the-Month-Club." You get a free extra doom when you join. Currently we are offering the "Chinese Duck Poop Doom" as a freebie when you sign up. The Yellowstone Caldera Doom is this month's offering. And you should take the "Zombie Apocalypse" seriously because Homeland Security is using it as a training film. So, tune in and get ready for the last year you may ever enjoy!