Many thanks to Chas Clifton for forwarding this article to me. Taki's Magazine details the mysterious figure of Del Close and his connection to both the national comedy scene and witchcraft.
"From the late 1960s until his death in 1999, Close taught long form at
Second City Toronto and Chicago and served as SNL’s “house
metaphysician.” No wonder the names of his other devoted disciples read
like a comedy hall of fame: Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi, John Candy, Andy
Dick, Chris Farley, Shelley Long, and Gilda Radner, to name a very few."
Showing posts with label witchcraft. Show all posts
Showing posts with label witchcraft. Show all posts
Thursday, June 20, 2013
Friday, July 13, 2012
Gede Parma ceremonies and workshops this month
I've been contacted regarding these upcoming events. Both have been added to the calendar.
Gede Parma will be returning to Chicago this July! Gede’s new book “Ecstatic Witchcraft: Magick, Philosophy, and Trance in the Shamanic Craft” was just released through Llewellyn publications. The Brotherhood of the Phoenix is proud to present two opportunities to meet and learn from Gede. Both these events are open to the general public.
Friday, July 27th at 7:30pm: Gede will present a ceremony of Ecstatic Witchcraft, which embodies the principles of his newest book.
Cost: Sliding scale $10-$30
Location: 2nd Unitarian Church, 656 Barry Avenue.
http://www.secondunitarian.org/directions-parking/
Saturday, July 28th from 10-4pm: Gede will present his day long intensive workshop “Initiation and the Path of the Shamanic Witch.”
Cost: $90 for the day
Location: Life Force Arts Center, 1609 W. Belmont Avenue.
http://www.lifeforcearts.org/site/location/location-a-directions
In order to attend this workshop you must RVSP to Keith Green at kgreen5@gmail.com. Detailed information about the event will be sent to you with your confirmation e-mail.
More information about the workshop:
Initiation and the Path of the Shamanic Witch (Full-day Intensive)
This workshop explores the etymological origins of the word ‘Witch’ and how, through history, sociology and cultural anthropology we can understand the European phenomenon of Witchcraft to be equivalent to the tribal ‘shamanism’ of many of the world’s indigenous societies.
Since the Pagan renaissance and revival (from the mid-1800s onwards) a high degree of ceremonial magick has been integrated with what once was pure and simple shamanism. Many of the Wiccan traditions tend towards the ceremonial; however Gede Parma (author and initiated Witch) will introduce a practice of Witchcraft that is informed by the definition – ‘ecstasy-driven, Earth-based, mystery tradition’. The Craft, seen and lived through this lens, is also a system for and of personal and communal empowerment, deep paradigm and consciousness shifts (altering consciousness), transformation, healing and initiation.
This full-day intensive will work through the three-tiered shamanic cosmology generally accepted as – the Upperworld, the Middleworld and the Underworld. These realms correspond with our Superconscious Selves, our Conscious Selves, and our Unconscious Selves, respectively. To bring wholeness to all, and to accept and integrate the Shadow/the Unconscious (the Veil separating us from realising our true divinity) we activate the World Tree within, which affirms our eternal connection to all realms, to all times; in the Forever Here and the Eternal Now.
Facebook event Page: https://www.facebook.com/events/430161950347513/
Gede Parma will be returning to Chicago this July! Gede’s new book “Ecstatic Witchcraft: Magick, Philosophy, and Trance in the Shamanic Craft” was just released through Llewellyn publications. The Brotherhood of the Phoenix is proud to present two opportunities to meet and learn from Gede. Both these events are open to the general public.
Friday, July 27th at 7:30pm: Gede will present a ceremony of Ecstatic Witchcraft, which embodies the principles of his newest book.
Cost: Sliding scale $10-$30
Location: 2nd Unitarian Church, 656 Barry Avenue.
http://www.secondunitarian.org/directions-parking/
Saturday, July 28th from 10-4pm: Gede will present his day long intensive workshop “Initiation and the Path of the Shamanic Witch.”
Cost: $90 for the day
Location: Life Force Arts Center, 1609 W. Belmont Avenue.
http://www.lifeforcearts.org/site/location/location-a-directions
In order to attend this workshop you must RVSP to Keith Green at kgreen5@gmail.com. Detailed information about the event will be sent to you with your confirmation e-mail.
More information about the workshop:
Initiation and the Path of the Shamanic Witch (Full-day Intensive)
This workshop explores the etymological origins of the word ‘Witch’ and how, through history, sociology and cultural anthropology we can understand the European phenomenon of Witchcraft to be equivalent to the tribal ‘shamanism’ of many of the world’s indigenous societies.
Since the Pagan renaissance and revival (from the mid-1800s onwards) a high degree of ceremonial magick has been integrated with what once was pure and simple shamanism. Many of the Wiccan traditions tend towards the ceremonial; however Gede Parma (author and initiated Witch) will introduce a practice of Witchcraft that is informed by the definition – ‘ecstasy-driven, Earth-based, mystery tradition’. The Craft, seen and lived through this lens, is also a system for and of personal and communal empowerment, deep paradigm and consciousness shifts (altering consciousness), transformation, healing and initiation.
This full-day intensive will work through the three-tiered shamanic cosmology generally accepted as – the Upperworld, the Middleworld and the Underworld. These realms correspond with our Superconscious Selves, our Conscious Selves, and our Unconscious Selves, respectively. To bring wholeness to all, and to accept and integrate the Shadow/the Unconscious (the Veil separating us from realising our true divinity) we activate the World Tree within, which affirms our eternal connection to all realms, to all times; in the Forever Here and the Eternal Now.
Facebook event Page: https://www.facebook.com/events/430161950347513/
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Art show tonight
Another shameless bit of self promotion as I remind everyone that I have a one night art exhibition tonight.
Please stop by and say hello if you are free.
Facebook event invitation
My art website
Thank you again for following Occult Chicago!
Please stop by and say hello if you are free.
Facebook event invitation
My art website
Thank you again for following Occult Chicago!
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Women's International Terrorist Conspiracy from Hell
A couple of weeks ago I posted this press photograph that came into my possession: Dance of the Witches in Front of Chicago Federal Building, 1969
I loved the photograph, but had been unable to find any background information. Luckily for me, there are some great people who read this blog. Jason Winslade pointed me in the direction of W.I.T.C.H. - Women's International Terrorist Conspiracy from Hell, who were a loose collection of independent feminist groups in 1968 and 1969. W.I.T.C.H. was formed in New York, but the Chicago "coven" seems to have been particularly active, using the imagery and tools of the occult to bring attention to women's issues. They combined guerrilla theater, camp and serious political activism - and apparently created quite a stir.
The Wikipedia entry for W.I.T.C.H. states:
"Their activism mainly took the form of "zaps", a form of guerrilla theater mixing street theatre and protest, where they used attention-catching and humorous public actions to highlight political and economic complaints against companies and government agencies, frequently involving the use of witch costumes and the chanting of hexes. Witches often appeared as stock characters in feminist Left theatre, representing the misogynist crone stereotype."
I loved the photograph, but had been unable to find any background information. Luckily for me, there are some great people who read this blog. Jason Winslade pointed me in the direction of W.I.T.C.H. - Women's International Terrorist Conspiracy from Hell, who were a loose collection of independent feminist groups in 1968 and 1969. W.I.T.C.H. was formed in New York, but the Chicago "coven" seems to have been particularly active, using the imagery and tools of the occult to bring attention to women's issues. They combined guerrilla theater, camp and serious political activism - and apparently created quite a stir.
W.I.T.C.H protest in support of the Chicago Eight 1969, as found on Tumblr
"Their activism mainly took the form of "zaps", a form of guerrilla theater mixing street theatre and protest, where they used attention-catching and humorous public actions to highlight political and economic complaints against companies and government agencies, frequently involving the use of witch costumes and the chanting of hexes. Witches often appeared as stock characters in feminist Left theatre, representing the misogynist crone stereotype."
W.I.T.C.H protest in support of the Chicago Eight 1969, as found on Tumblr
From an article by Jo Freeman, posted on her website:
"Slowly,
solemnly, the Witches filed around the Federal Building, faces dead white,
staring straight ahead, flowing black capes swirling around them. "Our
sister justice lies chained and tied," they chanted. "We curse
the ground on which she died."
This was Halloween, the annual religious festival of the druidic witches, and a Chicago "Coven" of WITCH (Women's International Terrorist Conspiracy from Hell) had chosen the day to announce the beginning of a new, militant phase of the Chicago women's liberation movement."
This was Halloween, the annual religious festival of the druidic witches, and a Chicago "Coven" of WITCH (Women's International Terrorist Conspiracy from Hell) had chosen the day to announce the beginning of a new, militant phase of the Chicago women's liberation movement."
University of Chicago WITCH hex.
Photograph by Jo Freeman, taken from her website
Another article on Jo Freeman's website:
"Because WITCH actions could be done with a small group and were both fun
and political, they quickly spread around the country. Boston women
hexed bars. DC women hexed the Presidential inauguration. Chicago
women zapped everything. On January 16, 1969, eight undergraduate women
at the University of Chicago hexed the chairman of the Sociology
Department, which had recently fired a popular woman professor. Dressed
in black with their faces painted white, they told him to "beware of
the curse, the witch's curse.""
University of Chicago WITCH hex.
Photograph by Jo Freeman, taken from her website
Another quote from the same article:
"Another coven soon hexed the Chicago Transit Authority at its
headquarters in the Merchandise Mart to protest a fare hike. They
danced around a caldron while chanting:
Witches round the circle go
to hex the causes of our woe,
We the witches now conspire
To burn CTA in freedoms' fire.
Bankers gall, politicians guile,
Daley's jowl, lackey's smile,
Trustee's toe, bondholder's liar
These we cast into our fire.
Meetings held, messages sealed
When the fare hike is revealed
We, the people, are the prey
Of the demon, CTA...."
University of Chicago WITCH hex.
Photograph by Jo Freeman, taken from her website
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
two art exhibitions featuring Rik Garrett
Yes, that's me. I didn't start this blog with any intention of self-promotion. There have, however, been a few requests for more information about myself. And since I do have two art exhibits in Chicago this month (whose subject matter is pertinent to the subject of the blog), I thought I would let everyone know.
One of the exhibitions is a solo gallery show of my series Earth Magic. This is a set of photographs taken with the wet plate collodion process. These black and white photographs will be on display for one night only, June 21 2012 from 5-9:00 pm at Morpho Gallery's Loop location.
Chris Elmore of music blog Hammer Smashed Sound kindly designed these postcards for me.
With Earth Magic I've envisioned a matristic, nature based world; a female-centric, ritualistic community completely apart from the rest of society. This is a history of "witchcraft" devoid of "witch hunts," a race of women who draw their energy and inspiration from the Earth itself. What if there were a truth to the myths of Amazons and the books like Aradia, Gospel of the Witches? What if the fierce Maenads of Greek mythology still existed today, hidden from view?
What if these truths were presented faithfully?
A Facebook invitation for this event can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/events/338802882858010/
The second exhibition is a group show at the new Leroy Neiman Center. "Act II: Fiction Brings it Closer" will include several images from my Symbiosis series. While this exhibition opens on June 19th, there will not be a reception until the closing event on July 7th. If one was so inclined, they could take a look at these images on their way to the opening reception of Earth Magic - both galleries are around two blocks away from each other.
This series of small mixed media photographic works draw inspiration from a variety of (what I see to be) related themes: Alchemical symbolism including the Rebis, sigil magick, love, desire....
So if you are interested, please consider attending these events. Feel free to come by and introduce yourself.
More information:
http://www.rikgarrett.com
http://www.facebook.com/rikgarrettphotography
One of the exhibitions is a solo gallery show of my series Earth Magic. This is a set of photographs taken with the wet plate collodion process. These black and white photographs will be on display for one night only, June 21 2012 from 5-9:00 pm at Morpho Gallery's Loop location.
With Earth Magic I've envisioned a matristic, nature based world; a female-centric, ritualistic community completely apart from the rest of society. This is a history of "witchcraft" devoid of "witch hunts," a race of women who draw their energy and inspiration from the Earth itself. What if there were a truth to the myths of Amazons and the books like Aradia, Gospel of the Witches? What if the fierce Maenads of Greek mythology still existed today, hidden from view?
What if these truths were presented faithfully?
A Facebook invitation for this event can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/events/338802882858010/
The second exhibition is a group show at the new Leroy Neiman Center. "Act II: Fiction Brings it Closer" will include several images from my Symbiosis series. While this exhibition opens on June 19th, there will not be a reception until the closing event on July 7th. If one was so inclined, they could take a look at these images on their way to the opening reception of Earth Magic - both galleries are around two blocks away from each other.
So if you are interested, please consider attending these events. Feel free to come by and introduce yourself.
More information:
http://www.rikgarrett.com
http://www.facebook.com/rikgarrettphotography
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Sabaean Religious Order
One of the main reasons why I started this blog in the first place is my desire to learn more. Not only is this motivation for me to document the things that I've learned about the city (and share them with others), but by being public people might contact me so that we can share knowledge. This has started to happen, and I can't be happier.
A reader by the name of John Christensen wrote last week, asking if I knew much about the Sabaean Religious Order, which he remembered from quite a few years ago. I'd heard of them, having a couple of older addresses and a few kernels of information, but not much more. John did some research of his own and sent it my way. So we have him to thank for the majority of the information which follows.
The Sabaean Religious Order was started by Frederic "Odun" De Arechaga, whose family originated in Spain. He took over his mother's occult supply shop, El Sabarum. I've found 3 different addresses for either El Sabarum or Arechaga's Sabaean Order of Amn over the years:
At some point the Sabaean Order was located at 3221 Sheffield.
Sabarum Occult Store
2553 N Halsted
This location was documented in 1974
I don't know what the building on this location used to look like. This eyesore of a hardware store was put in its place in 1990.
Sabaean Order of Amn and El-Sabarum Occult Store
2447 N Halsted
Both operated in this location, documented in both 1970 and 1976
This is now the location of the Tonic Room. I wonder if they know the history of the building that they are located in.
Arechaga's beliefs appear to draw largely from Egyptian beliefs and symbolism, amalgamated with Babylonian, Sumerian and African schools of thought. He used the word "Sabaean" rather than "Pagan," which he saw as having negative connotations.
Arechega is interviewed as a part of this article from the Chicago Tribune, July 26 1970.
From the "Sunday's Best" television listings in the Chicago Tribune. Sunday June 17, 1972. Chicago had a television program called "News of the Psychic World?"
The Sabaean website is no longer operational, though you can access some archived pages through Archive.org. Here is one example.
A bit of Arechaga's history can be gleaned from this 1961 article, which mentions his designing of a cafe, the Alhambra, for the jazz musician Ahmad Jamal.
This article from 1974 discusses the occult revival of the time, interviewing Arechaga. Unfortunately I had an issue saving the rest of the article. I will post it soon, as it involves an interview with Terry Taylor, who was behind a couple of local theistic Satanic organizations and occult stores in the 1970s. I doubt that Arechaga appreciated the connection.
This article in the "Walking Tour" section of the Chicago Tribune from 1969 discussed the El Sabarum shop in context with the neighborhood and shows an image of the front of the store.
In 2009, Marassa / Alafia started a SABAEA blog. In this post they discuss much of the history and philosophy of the group. In the comments on this post, it is revealed that Odun passed away on January 13, 2011.
I'm sure that there are some readers here who remember Arechaga and this organization, if they weren't a part of it themselves. Please feel free to make contact and help fill in the blanks!
A reader by the name of John Christensen wrote last week, asking if I knew much about the Sabaean Religious Order, which he remembered from quite a few years ago. I'd heard of them, having a couple of older addresses and a few kernels of information, but not much more. John did some research of his own and sent it my way. So we have him to thank for the majority of the information which follows.
The Sabaean Religious Order was started by Frederic "Odun" De Arechaga, whose family originated in Spain. He took over his mother's occult supply shop, El Sabarum. I've found 3 different addresses for either El Sabarum or Arechaga's Sabaean Order of Amn over the years:
At some point the Sabaean Order was located at 3221 Sheffield.
Sabarum Occult Store
2553 N Halsted
This location was documented in 1974
Sabaean Order of Amn and El-Sabarum Occult Store
2447 N Halsted
Both operated in this location, documented in both 1970 and 1976
Arechaga's beliefs appear to draw largely from Egyptian beliefs and symbolism, amalgamated with Babylonian, Sumerian and African schools of thought. He used the word "Sabaean" rather than "Pagan," which he saw as having negative connotations.
Arechega is interviewed as a part of this article from the Chicago Tribune, July 26 1970.
From the "Sunday's Best" television listings in the Chicago Tribune. Sunday June 17, 1972. Chicago had a television program called "News of the Psychic World?"
The Sabaean website is no longer operational, though you can access some archived pages through Archive.org. Here is one example.
A bit of Arechaga's history can be gleaned from this 1961 article, which mentions his designing of a cafe, the Alhambra, for the jazz musician Ahmad Jamal.
This article from 1974 discusses the occult revival of the time, interviewing Arechaga. Unfortunately I had an issue saving the rest of the article. I will post it soon, as it involves an interview with Terry Taylor, who was behind a couple of local theistic Satanic organizations and occult stores in the 1970s. I doubt that Arechaga appreciated the connection.
This article in the "Walking Tour" section of the Chicago Tribune from 1969 discussed the El Sabarum shop in context with the neighborhood and shows an image of the front of the store.
I'm sure that there are some readers here who remember Arechaga and this organization, if they weren't a part of it themselves. Please feel free to make contact and help fill in the blanks!
Dance of the Witches in front of Chicago federal building, 1969
I've been looking through various archives to try to find more information about this image. Do any of my amazing readers have any thoughts??
UPDATE: It is now known that this image is of the Women's International Terrorist Conspiracy from Hell.
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Women to Rule the World AGAIN
While it may not be entirely related to Chicago, this article from the Chicago Examiner, August 22, 1915, is too amazing not to include here.
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Newberry Library - bibliophiles take note!
Until a few months ago, I had only been to the Newberry Library for their yearly book sale every July (this year from the 26th to 29th - mark your calendars). I had no idea what I was missing out on. This is one of the best resources in the city.
Located at 60 West Walton street, The Newberry is a free public library non-circulating library with mind blowing archives. I finally browsed their catalog online after wondering if they might have an antique copy of the witchcraft treaty Malleus Maleficarum. It turned out that they had at least SIX, the earliest dating from 1484.
They have a ton of information relating to local history, Medieval studies and consequently quite a lot of items of interest regarding witchcraft, magic and the occult. Take a look at bound volumes of Austin Osman Spare's publication The Golden Hind.
For more information, visit:
http://www.newberry.org/
The direct link to their catalog:
http://www.newberry.org/catalogs-and-guides
Show up, sign up for their library card and bring your camera. They allow photographs to be taken as long as you vow not to publish them in any way (otherwise I would definitely be posting some of my own here).
Also, dating from 1887, the building is beautiful.
Located at 60 West Walton street, The Newberry is a free public library non-circulating library with mind blowing archives. I finally browsed their catalog online after wondering if they might have an antique copy of the witchcraft treaty Malleus Maleficarum. It turned out that they had at least SIX, the earliest dating from 1484.
They have a ton of information relating to local history, Medieval studies and consequently quite a lot of items of interest regarding witchcraft, magic and the occult. Take a look at bound volumes of Austin Osman Spare's publication The Golden Hind.
For more information, visit:
http://www.newberry.org/
The direct link to their catalog:
http://www.newberry.org/catalogs-and-guides
Show up, sign up for their library card and bring your camera. They allow photographs to be taken as long as you vow not to publish them in any way (otherwise I would definitely be posting some of my own here).
Also, dating from 1887, the building is beautiful.
Photograph taken from the Newberry's Plan Your Visit page
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