The Hermetic Hour

The Hermetic Hour for July 5th, 2012 will feature a discussion by host Poke Runyon on the "Magick of the Arabian Nights" or Alf Laya wa Laya as Crowley liked to call it, referring to Richard Burton's annotated translation. Actually the magick in Burton's version is mostly in the footnotes, but there is one specific tale which outlines the whole scheme of Muslim magical "Abjad," which is a Western term for Arab Qabalah. We will discuss that tale -- you'll have to listen to learn which story has the mystic juice -- and we will then move on to the King Solomon (Suliman) legends, the nature and hierarchy of the Jinn, the Turkish version of the Masonic third degree, the North Sabian (Harranian) contribution, Sufi methods and teachings, and the legacy of Picatrix -- so, if you want to get the gen on the Jinn, tune in and we'll open sesame for you.

The Hermetic Hour for Thursday June 28th, 2012 will feature a discussion by host Poke Runyon of the life and work of Dr. Wilhelm Reich, his psychology, methods of therapy, and his development of free energy technology for medical treatment. We will frankly discuss the incredible suppression of Reich's discoveries, and his persecution by the FDA, the American Medical Association and the U.S. Government, resulting in his imprisonment and untimely death. Dr. Francis Regardie employed Reich's methods in his chiropractic practice and had a full scale Orgone Accumulator in his home. We have constructed Orgone pads and found them quite effective. This technology and methodology is now "legal" to practice and employ, but "The Powers that Be," will never admit that it works -- so, if you're a-Freud Jung was Reich, tune in and we'll confirm it.

The Hermetic Hour for Thursday June 21st, 2012 will feature a discussion by host Poke Runyon on the controversial subject of Nazi Occultism, its origins and predecessors, and its present day revival in "The Cult of the Black Sun". We will explore the early influence from the Theosophy of H.P. Blavatsky, the development of the "Ariosophy" movement in Germany between the world wars, the Thule Society of Sebottendorff, Himmler and his Runemiester Wisethor, the fascination with Central Asia, and The Polar Myth. We will debunk the "Spear of Destiny" and other Nazi spook books that were more fiction than fact. We will also de-establish the connection an opportunistic European-American magician is trying to make between the G.D. and Nazism. This is a hot topic and an alarming subject. No matter what your views on it may be, if you are involved in occultism you need to know about it -- so, tune in and we will spend an hour on the dark side.

The Hermetic Hour for Thursday June 14th, 2012 will feature a discussion by host Poke Runyon on the influence of Helena Blavatsky and Theosophy on western occultism and magick. This a broad subject because Blavatsky's impact on all areas of western esoteric theory and practiced is vast and pervasive. We will begin with her Egyptian connection with The Brotherhood of Luxor, and French Masonry, her mid-19th century connection with American Spiritualism, her first opus "Isis Unveiled," which was essentially Hermetic. The meeting in England with her future Eastern Master "Mahatma Morya" (Ranbir Singh). Moving her Theosophical Society to India under the secret sponsorship of her "Mahatmas." Her professed Buddhist philosophy and the development of her universal religion featuring spiritual Darwinism and Aryan Solarism. "The Secret Doctrine" and "The Stanzas of Dyzan." Her anti-Biblical, anti-Christian bias. The German offshoots of Theosophy: Rudolph Steiner's Christian Anthroposophy, and the proto-Nazi Ariosophy. The American cults: the Ballard's "I AM," Elizabeth Claire Prophet, The "New Age Movement," and Richard Shaver's "Mystery." We will also discuss the Hermetic reaction to her successes which resulted in Anna Kingsford's Hermetic Society, and The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. So, if you want to glimpse Blavatsky unveiled, tune in and get Theosophized.

The Hermetic Hour for Thursday June 7th, 2012 will feature a discussion by host Poke Runyon on the life and work of Hermetic philosopher Manly Palmer Hall. We will trace his life through the early years on the east coast where he became interested with the esoteric at very early age, his remarkable capacity for learning and teaching, his 1920s-1930s Southern California success, his steadfast adherence to the principals of ancient and classical philosophy in contrast to the New Thought Movement so popular in esoteric circles at the time. His support of Theosophy and the esoteric Freemasonry of Albert Pike. We will look at some of his stranger adventures with friends such as Houdini, Bela Lugosi, and others. Like Houdini, Hall was a crusader against occult fraud and helped bring down a very powerful cult, even at the risk of his own life. And yet, in later years he was apparently the victim of a sinister plot by a trusted business manager. He died a horrible death which the LAPD investigated as a homicide. Our reference book for this report is "Master of the Mysteries" by Louis Sahagun, and my own Masonic association with Ill. Bro.Manly P.Hall, 33 -- Tune in and we will review the life of "The Maestro."

The Hermetic Hour for Thursday May 31st, 2012 will feature a discussion by host Poke Runyon on the current mystery behind the U.S. failure of the major film "John Carter." This film was a resounding success in Russia, Europe and Latin America. Why did it flop in the U.S.A.? To understand this we must also ask why the U.S. space program has been virtually shut down, and why the rest of the world knows more about the planet Mars than Americans do. We will review the work of Richard Hoagland, and Andrew Basiago, and the current article on "True Mars" in the latest Atlantis Rising. Mars has water, vegetation, atmosphere, life, and ancient ruins. Concepts of time travel and teleportation will be explored in relation to the John Carter screenplay. The John Carter DVD will be released June 5th. Keeping our speculations in mind, you can have another look and wonder why this excellent and provocative motion picture was poorly edited, ineffectively advertised, and badly reviewed. So, tune in and we'll voyage to the real Barsoom.

The Hermetic Hour for Thursday, May 24th, 2012 will feature a discussion by host Poke Runyon on the life and works of Israel Regardie. We will focus on Regardie's contributions to the modern occult revival starting with his early book "The Tree of Life," his experiences acting as personal secretary to Aleister Crowley, his membership in the Stella Matutina (Golden Dawn) his subsequent publication of their material, his support for the revival of the O.T.O. in the 1970s, and the G.D. in the 1980s. Having known Regardie personally, and having a long association with Regardie's chosen successors, host Poke Runyon is able to resolve the question uppermost in minds of many who seek to fathom the enigma of Regardie's personal philosophy: was he a Thelemite, or was he a Rosicrucian? The answer is he was one or the other, depending on what he thought you needed -- but he never recommended mixing the two systems. So, if you want to meet the real Israel Regardie, tune in be enlightened.

This Thursday, May 17th, 2012, at 8:00 p.m. The Hermetic Hour will present a book review by host Poke Runyon of the newly released "Inside the Solar Lodge, Behind the Veil" by Frater Shiva. The Solar Lodge was the legendary psychedelic era magical group in the Los Angeles area that flourished from the mid-1960s until it was driven underground by a anti-occult witch hunt following a tragic fire at its desert commune near Blythe in 1969. Regardless of whatever criticisms could be made about The Solar Lodge -- and most were grossly exaggerated -- it was the most magically powerful, focused and cohesive magical organization since the early days of The Golden Dawn. The true story of its fascinating origin, development and eventual decline is finally told by the man who was the Solar Lodge's chief executive officer under the command of Thelemic Avatrix Jean Brayton. And who better to tell the story. Frater Shiva and his lady will call in during the second half of the show, and give us their personal views on the subject. -- So, if you really want to know about the magical revival in California, tune in and we'll lift the veil.

The Hermetic Hour for Thursday May 10th, 2012 will feature a discussion, moderated by host Poke Runyon, on the origins and the establishment of the "1734" Witchcraft tradition in the United States. This was an American version of Roy Bowers' (Robert Cochrane's) "Clan of Tubal Cain" that surfaced in England in the 1960s as a rival to the Gardnerian Craft. Bowers' claimed to belong to a hereditary tradition more indigenous and authentic than Gardner's popular version of "The Craft." While Gardner drew from Margeret Murray's "Witch Cult in Western Europe", Bowers drew from Robert Graves "The White Goddess." Bowers' American correspondent Joseph Wilson received numerous letters from Roy, forming an enigmatic, mystical corpus of material from which the talented Joe Wilson fashioned the American version called "1734" from a cypher included in the manuscripts. Like Johnny Appleseed, Joe Wilson seeded 1734 covens across the nation. Some of these groups still don't know where their Book of Shadows came from. As featured guests we will have Ann and Dave Finnin of the Roebuck, a "Clan of Tubal Cain," who are perhaps the most knowledgeable elders of the tradition. Ann is the author of "The Forge of Tubal Cain." We will cover the strange life and stranger death of Roy Bowers, the mysterious symbolism of the St. Uzec Menhir (1734's Stele of Revealing), the meaning(s) of "1734," the shamanic talents and prankster antics of Joe Wilson, and other tales of high adventure on the inner and outer planes -- so, if you want to know which witch is which, tune in and we'll lift the veil.

On Thursday, May 3rd, 2012, The Hermetic Hour, with host Poke Runyon, will present a discussion on one of the books most influential on the revival of Paganism, Witchcraft, and Magick in the post World War Two era: "1948's "The White Goddess" by poet laureate Robert Graves. The book is difficult read even for those well versed in myth-lore, and classical literature. Graves takes a poet's magical, and even whimsical, approach to what at first appears to be anthropology -- even though he warns the reader that he is not dealing with history as it was, but rather as the ancient and medieval bards imagined it to have been -- which is just as important as how it really was. His argument is that behind all true poetry lies the inspiration of a haunting, primordial muse: the prehistoric Moon Goddess of birth, youth, death and the phases of nature. He is a cultural diffusionist, spinning off from Frazer on a wild ride from ancient Greece to the Druids, tying together the whole warp and woof of Western esoteric lore from the Bible to the troubadours. The White Goddess had a major influence on Fred Adams and Svetlana's Feraferia, with the Tree Alphabet being a central element in Feraferian structure. The book was also a very strong influence on Roy Bowers Order of 1734, and the Roebuck of the Finnins. It has also had some influence on the O.T.A., and many other Pagan and Magical groups. So, tune in and plumb the mysteries of the Druid's Handbook, and the thinking Witch's Bible.