Ep336: The Magick of Abramelin - Duncan Barford 3
Duncan Barford is an occult practitioner, counsellor, and author of “Occult Experiments in the Home”.
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Duncan begins with an analysis of the 2016 film, “A Dark Song”, which he believes is the most accurate depiction of occult practice in cinema. Duncan details the plot, breaks down its depictions of ritual, and shares his own emotional reaction to the film's climax.
Duncan then shifts gear and gives a detailed explanation of the infamous Abramelin ritual, a multi-month ritual considered by many to be the most ambitious working a magician can attempt. Duncan gives a survey of the major written accounts of those who have attempted it including Aleister Crowley, Lionel Snell, and William Bloom; reveals why the ritual has such a high failure rate; and shares what he believes is the key to success.
Duncan also analyses the esoteric structure of Coleridge’s poem “Rime of the Ancient Mariner” and interprets it as a description of the spiritual path, proposes an equivalency between success in the Abramelin and Buddhist stream entry, and reveals why he believes the study of history is an obstacle to magickal success.
00:00 - Intro
01:28 - The Magick of A Dark Song
02:45 - The film
04:41 - The Abramelin Ritual
07:23 - Cinematic depictions of magick
08:04 - Spoiler warnings and the plot
08:24 - Hiring the magician
10:03 - Sophia’s motive for the ritual
11:36 - A deep understanding of how ritual works
14:40 - Describing the magickal working
17:04 - Meeting the Holy Guardian Angel
21:01 - The practitioner’s journey
25:58 - Characer arcs
30:03 - The key of devotion
33:02 - The esoteric structure of Coleridge’s “Rime of the Ancient Mariner”
33:34 - The cycle of insight
38:37 - Crisis, breakthrough, ordeal, union
43:38 - Unsettling themes
44:12 - Interventus Caninus
44:57 - What next after absolution?
45:33 - What is the point of the Abramelin Ritual?
46:46 - Reflecting on the ending of the film
49:39 - Crowley, Snell, Bloom, and Katz - those who attempted the Abramelin
49:54 - Mysterious history of the Abramelin Ritual
52:39 - Recensions of the Abramelin
53:56 - Duncan describes the Abramelin text and ritual
01:00:20 - Why does the Abramelin ritual have such a high failure rate?
01:02:12 - Meeting Lionel Snell
01:04:51 - A tarot reading and why history is an obstacle to real magick
01:06:53 - Daniel Ingram’s revision of traditional fire kasina meditation
01:11:00 - Crowley’s attempts at the Abramelin ritual
01:14:37 - Other accounts
01:16:40 - William Bloom’s attempt
01:20:45 - Secret to success with the Abramelin Ritual
01:24:13 - How to increase the success rate of rituals
01:29:18 - Are you ready to attempt the Abramelin?
01:31:52 - Stream entry and Abramelin
01:34:35 - Duncan reflects on his past claims to attainment
01:37:16 - Questioning pragmatic dharma assumptions and the vogue of stream entry
01:41:00 - Insider vs outsider views
01:42:13 - Does magick really work?
01:43:31 - A story of powerful magickal effects
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