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UFO: Unidentified Flying Objects.On 17 January 1969, about 7.15 p.m., the speaker at the local Lions Club in Leary, Georgia, USA was standing outdoors with some dozen members when suddenly they were startled by the appearance of a weird aerial phenomenon. A UFO was hovering somewhere between 300 & 1,000 yards distant from them, about 30 degrees above the horizon and as bright as, but a little smaller than, the moon.They watched it for ten minutes, during which it changed colours several times.In October 1973, the club speaker, on that night filed a detailed report on the sitting with the National Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomena (NICAP).He signed Jimmy Carter.Much later, attempting to play down the incident in the face of the Press inquiries, he suggested lightly that it might have been a star beckoning him towards the White House.Nevertheless, President Carter, is on record saying 'I am convinced that UFO's exist because I've seen one'

Most published sources date the UFO phenomenon from 1947 when the civilian pilot Kenneth Arnold reported sighting-nine gleaming objects in the vacinity of Mount Rainier near Washington.But there is, in fact substantial evidence of UFO sightings at much earlier dates. An island in the Hunan Province of China, for example, contains rock carvings not only of UFO', but of stange alien beings who might have been their occupants.The carvings have been dated back to 45,000 BC, an era of prehistory when Neanderthals roamed the chill environment of Ice Age. Europe Flying craft which answer to the description of modern UFO's are also mentioned in the Mahabharata, under the name of 'vimanas' in what appears to be a reference to a prehistoric war in India. In historical times, an Egyptian papyrus from the time of Pharoah Thutmose III (1504-1450) describes the appearance of numerous 'fire circles' in the sky, shining with the brightness of the sun.Several authors have suggested the Biblical vision of Ezekiel sounds more like a description of a UFO landing than a religious experience 'As I looked,behold ,a stormy wind came out of the north, and a great cloud, with brightness round about it,and fire flashing forth continually and in the midst of the fire, as it were gleaming bronze'

Books about UFO's are not new either.Julius Obsequens, a 4th century AD Roman author compiled one called the Prodigorium Liber, which reported sightings like the 'round shield' seen in the sky 180 miles east of Rome in 216 BC and the flying disc witnessed by the Tarquinan consuls Murius and Valerius in 99BC.Even the term 'flying saucer' has an ancient lineage.It was first used by the Japanese to descrive a UFO seen over the Kii Provence in 1180.But if UFO's have been around for much longer than people imagine, it is still not possible to say with any certainty what they are.When small discs, nicknamed 'foo fighters' buzzed Allied aircraft during the Second World War, the assumption was they were some sort of German secret weapon.Papers captured when the war ended, indicated that Lufwaffe pilots also seen foo fighters, and assumed they were Allied secret weapons

As for the American George Adamski, there was no mystery at all, UFO's were spaceships originating on the planet Venus.He knew this because one landed in the desert near Mount Palomar in the early 1950's and its pilot, a handsome golden-haired and white-robed figure, got out to tell him so.Adamski's account of the meeting attractd widespread attention when he published it in a best-selling book 'Flying Saucers Have Landed' But within a few years it became so difficult to reconcile the idea of a high tehnological civilization with the inhospitable conditions on Venus discovered by Soviet probes, that Adamski's co-author Desmond Leslie eventually decided the craft must have originated in the Astral Plane of Venus

Adamski was neither the first nor the last to claim a meeting with UFO aliens from another planet.On the morning of 24 April 1964, and egg-shaped UFO (20 feet long by 15 feet wide) landed in a field at the farm of Gary T.Wilcox of Tioga County,New York.Two 4 feet tall, dwarfs appeared wearing seamless suits and hoods covering their heads. They carried trays containing soil samples.In a 2 hour conversation - carried out in English - the visitors told Wilcox they wanted some fertilizer and mentioned they had come from Mars, a claim almost as unlikely as that made by Adamski' Venusian

One sober UFO investigator,John Keel, along withseveral other authors, has also highlighted a more sinister pointer towards the visitors' desire for secrecy - the notorious men in black.Typically individuals who have witnessed a UFO landing are visited within a few days by men with Oriental features, wearing dark suites and claiming to represent a government agency like the FBI or CIA.The witness told of a classified government policy towards UFO's and warned to keep his own experience secret.The warning is often accompanied by threats and sometimes followed up by phone calls.Although scores of unconnected UFO witnesses have described the 'Men in Black', visits, government agencies in the States and elsewhere have categorically denied that these are actual government agents Investigative jounalists like Keel are quite satisfied that the government protestations are genuine and the 'Men in Black' are actually an integral part of the whole UFO phenomenon, an attempt by the visitors to cover their own tracks.All this, however,still leaves untouched the mystery of the origins of UFO's

There are those engaged in investigating UFO's who argue that the extra-terrestrials may be so alien or so technically advanced that they may have managed faster-than-light travel, that we can have no comprehension of what attractions our planet might hold for them and that they might be able to appear to us in any form they choose, adapting their bodies - if they have bodies,to the prevailing conditions. For those who do not believe in aliens from Outer Space, the multiplicity of UFO contact reports still require an explanation

Unctions: The name given by occultists to various annointing oils used in ceremonial magic.In Witchcraft literature the word is used for the flying salve used by witches as a body oil to enable them to fly to the Sabbat.These oils were said to be produced from rotting corpses or the boiled bodies of sacrificed infants

Undine: The beings associated with the Element of Water, normally represented as small creatures with fin-like wings

Universal Energy: A form of energy that comes from your Belief system

Universal Flow: The Energy that is transmitted to and through you by the 'Universe' or Your Belief System (who you believe in)

Universal Mind: The part of your Soul where you enlist the 'Unknown' to give you strength and produce miracles

Upanishads: The central scriptures of India's esoteric spiritual traditions, the Upanishads form a collection of more than 100 essays, extracted from the Vedas and dealing primarily with the nature of God and the practice of Meditation

Uriel (Judeo-Christian - Archangel): Uriel's name means 'God is light/God's light/fire of God' , because he illuminates situations and gives prophetic information and warnings.e.g Uriel warned Noah of the impending folld,helped the prophet Ezra to interpret mystical predictions bout the forthcoming Messiah, and delivered the Cabala to humankind.Uriel has also been credited with bringing the knowledge and practise of alchemy - the ability to turn base metal into precious metal, as well as the ability to manifest from thin air - to humankind

Uriel is regarded as one of the wisest Archangels.He's very much like an old sage whom you can call upon for intellectual information, practical solutions, creative insight. Instead of having to climb a mountain to reach the sage, Uriel will instantly come to you, however Uriel's personality isn't as distinctive as Archangel Michael's for example.You may not realize that Uriel has come to answer your prayers until you notice a brilliant new ieda that's entered you mind .Perhaps because of his connection to Noah, as well as his affinity with the weather elements of thunder and lightning, Uriel is considered to be an archangel who helps us with earthquakes, floods,fires, hurricanes, tornadoes, natural disasters and Earth changes.He helps with Alchemy, Divine magic, Earth changes, Problem solving, Spiritual understanding, Studies, tests and students, Weather & Writing

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Vampire: TIn folklore, a vampire is a malign spirit that refuses to join ranks of the dead,but instead takes possesion of a boyd in order to continue the pleasures of the living .Western notions of the vampire come primarily from Slavic Folklore, especially as it was interpreted by the author Bram Stoker (1847-1912) in his novel 'Dracual(1897).In some isolated regions of eastern Europe, peasants still hang wreaths of garlic over their doors, a preventative measure cited in Dracula, as protection against evil spirits, but many other aspects of Stoker's story may have been his own invention

Vedanta: The dominant philosophy of Hinduism which advocates self-knowledge through the practise of Yoga with the ultimate aim of mystical union with the Godhead and release from the necessity of rebirth.It favours a non-dualist (adviata) interpretion of existence.The term Vendata derives from the four Vedas, scriptures which, with the Bhagavad Gita and the Yoga Sutras contain all its basic teachings

Vedas: A collection of four Hindu sacred texts - The Rig-Veda, Sama-Veda, the Yajur-Veda and the Atharva-Veda, composed somewhere between 1800 and 1200 BC.The term Veda itself is Sanskrit and means 'knowledge'.Collectively, the Vedas deal with rituals, spells,chants, mantras and hymns and form the major canon of the Hindu religion

Vesta (Roman, New Age - Diety): Also known as Hestia, Prisca. Vesta is a sun and fire goddess, who oversees the home and heath. In ancient times, a sacred fire was continuously burned and tended in honor by vestal virgins.Every fire was thought to contain part of Vesta's living spirit

In New Age cirlces, Vesta works with Helios, the Roman sun god, as Solar Logos. This term denotes divinities who light the flame of th lightbody within spiritual aspirants, using the sun rays from one's Solar Plexus (chakra).She's similar to Archangel Haniel, who illuminates us with stardust so that we'll remember our magical properties and qualities.She helps with Divine light-increasing its size, brighness and visibility, Fire conrol, filling the Home with love & warmth, igniting and keeping the Passion, Protection-especially for children, Space clearing

Vispassana: Or Insight meditation. From the Theravadin Buddhist tradition.It is one of the best known, most popular and practical meditation techniques, involving concentrating on breathaing in breathing out, and thus stilling the mind and bringing about insight into reality

Virgo: The 6 sign of the Zodiac. 24 August - 22 September.Origin & Glyph: the Egyptian goddess of grain (Nidaba) was probably the origin, and in old pictures the Virgin is shown bearing an ear of corn and holding a child, the glyph is the female genitalia.Ruling Planet:Mercury, feminine, mutable and earth.Associated colours-Grey,Green,Brown, Flowers-Bright small flowers, eg. buttercup,Gemstones-Sardonyx,a white,brown banded variety of onyx) Trees;nut producing varieties, Food-root vegetables

Vision Quest: A Native American Indian practise which involves seeking to acquire spiritual power by means of a vison of a supernatural being.After preparing, by such practices as fasting or the sweat lodge, the individual retires alone to a place of natural power to pray for a vision.A dream or a vision of a guardian spirit (usually in animal form) follows and a talisman is bestowed as a tangible sign of the power conferred

Visualization: The ability to make pictures in the mind.Lies at the heart of almost all modern magical practice as well as autogenic training, Silva Mind Control pathworking and various positive thinking practices

Vivekananda, Swami: Born in 1863, Vivekananda was the favourite pupil of Ramakrishna, whose ashram he joined at the age of 20.After Ramakrishna's death in 1886, Vivekananda renounced the world and founded the Ramakrishnan Order, which became the Ramakrishna Mission.He became the first in a long line of Indian gurus coming out to the West.In 1893, he represented Hinduism at the World Parliament of Religions in Chicago and in 1895 founded the Vendanta Society.He won the respect of such prominent figures as William James, Leo Tolstoy and Aldous Huxley

Volleying: During a seance a type of Physical Mediumistic Ability when the entities break objects down into astral matter,move them into the seance room,and ,by using the ectoplasm of the medium and the seance participants,reassemble the objects and transfer them to the seance participants

Voodoo: A mythico-religious system with followers predominantly in Haiti in the West Indies and in other countries to which Haitians have immigrated.Develped by African slaves brought to Haiti by the French between teh 17th and 19th centuries, it combines features of Afro-American cults, such as Santeria in Cuba & Macumaba in Brazil.The term voodoo is thought to be derived from the word 'spirit' in the Fon language of Dahomey, now part of Nigeria.The voodoo religion involves belief in a supreme god (le grand maitre or bon dieu) and a host of spirits called loa

Most Voodoo practices involve the loa, which are often identified with Catholic saints.These spirits are closely related to African gods and may represent natural phenomena, such as fire, water or wind or dead persons, including eminent ancestors.American Indians traditions are also incorporated, including a snake cult, and there are elements of Kabbalism an even Freemasonry.The spirits consist of two main groups, the rada, often mild and helping and the petro, which may be dangerous and harmful.Voodoo rites include special ceremonies in which the loa have the power to make their presence known.These are characterised by music and dancing that lead the participants into a trance-like state in which they are possessed by the loa.The spirit temporarily diplaces the astral body of the possessed person, and occupies his or her physical body.The individual thus possessed is said to be mounted by the loa and behaves and acts as the loa directs, usually in a manner characteristic of the loa itself.Priests -called houngans, or priestesses known as mambos preside over these cermonies

Like other forms of occult lore, there is a progression in voodoo from the basic inititiation of a teenage child to full priesthood.But in voodoo there is no clear theory or theology, everything is ritual and practise.Other voodoo practised include anmal sacrifices and pilgrimmages. The focal point of pilgrimmage is usually a Christian church identified with a particular voodoo spirit.The most important of these pilgrimages take place in July and honour Ogou (Saint James) and Ezili Danto (Our Lady of Mount Carmel ).Another aspect of voodoo is called 'work of the left hand' which includes belief in Zombies

Vril: A word coined by Sir Edward Bulwer-Lytton to represent a force of psychic vibrational energy of colossal destructive power, seen by some as a forecast of atomic energy

Vywamus (New Age - Ascended Master): Vywamus is an ascended spiritual teacher and healer who helps lightworkers awaken their inner power and spiritual gifts, and discover their life's purpose.Ne Age teachers say that Vywamus is a holographic higher-self aspect of Sanat Kumara.In this respect, Vywamus and Sanat Kumara function as two seperate individuals even though they are aspects of the same person .A very loving and compassionate guide, Vywamus assists rapidly in all aspects of emotional, mental, physical and spiritual healing.He helps lightworkers face their shadows as a way of illuminating them with light. He helps with direction, Encouragement & Inspiration,Healing, spiritual,emotional & physical, helps with all aspects of life purpose, Motivation & overcoming procrastination,and help with discovering your talents

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Waite, A.E: TOne of the more pompous and tedius of the Victorian magicians associated with the Golden Dawn, Arthur Edward Waite, was an American, born in Brooklyn in 1857, whose mother brought him to England while he was still a baby.Waite's intellectual life was influenced by the Spiritualist movement and the writings of Madame Blavatsky and Eliphas Levi.His first esoteric work was the codification of the latter's teaching.Waite joined the Theosophical Society for a time, but left because he could not accept the doctrine of the Hidden Masters.He entered the Golden dawn and passed through the grades of the First Order, but resigned in protest at what he considered to be legal improperties on the part of his superiors.Oddly enough he rejoined the Order several years later in the aftermath of the Crowley / Yeats split, gained control of the mother lodge and rewrote its body of ceremonial from the viewpoint of Christian mysticism.Later he turned to Freemasonry and attempted to chart a secret tradition underlying various aspects of occulitsm.He produced poetry, now largely forgotten and a variety of books, many of which are still in print, but marred by an overblown 'scholarly' style

Walpurgis Night: The eye of May Day - which also happens to be the feast day of the German Saint Walpurgis (died 779). Long before her time it was like Hallowe'en, a night on which evil spirits were free to roam

Wandering Jew: A Character in Medieval legend who mocked Christ on the day of the Crucifixion and as a result was condemned to roam the world eternally

Watkins, Alfred: The Herefordshire businessman and lover of the countryside who first discovered ley lines, while out horseback riding in the Bredwardine Hills.Watkins published hsi discovery in 1925, in a work called 'The Old Straigth Track' which is still eagerly read by New Age thinkers today

Watts, Alan: Holder of a master's degree in theology and a doctorate of divinity, in the 60s Alan Watts became one of America's best-known interpreters of Zen Buddhism and Oriental philosophy in general.It was really Watts who brought Zen,Vedanta and Taoism to the young American masses. He involved himself in the consciousness expansion movement associated with Drs Timothy Leary and Richard Alpert and among his many books is 'The Joyous Cosmology-Randam House-1962) which describes his personal experience of psychedelic drugs and helped make him a hero of the hippie couter-culture.He died in 1973

Wells: Wells and springs have always been invested with occult significance.The apparently inexplicable appearance of water from the ground, and the association of water with life-giving, are among the reason for this.Even today in Celtic countries, wells are visited for wishes to be made, and some tribute to the spirits of the place is left there, usually a piece of cloth.The 'wishing well' has the same origin

Werewolf: In European folklore, a werewolf (old English were 'man') is a man who at night transforms himself or is transformed into a wolf ( a process called lycanthropy) and roams in search of human victims to devour.The werewolf must turn to human form at day break by shedding his wolf's skin and hiding it.If it is found and destroyed, the werewolf dies. A werewolf who is wounded - immediately reverts to his human form and can be detected by the corresponding wound on his body. Similar creatures exist in folklore worldwide: the tiger, boar, hyena and even the cat, are 'were-animals' in areas where wolves are not found

Westcott, William Wynn: There were some odd characters about in Victorian London and none more so than the coroner for north-east London, Dr Wynn Westcott.Westcott had a profound interest in the occult and he was a personal friend of Madame Blavatsky.His associates also included the Christian mystics Anna Kingsford and Edward Maitland and his title included that of 'Supreme Magus of the Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia', indicating his Masonic interests.He was an antiquarian and scholar of distinction, translating the Chaldean Oracles of Zoroaster and the Qabalistic 'Sepher ha Zohar' into English, but his major claim to New Age fame is the fact that he founded, in 1888 - the Hermic Order of the Golden Dawn

Western Esoteric Tradition: A body of occult knowledg, based mainly on the Jewish Qabalah, but incorporating Egyptian, Chaldean, Celtic and mystical Christian elements along with some material from Gnosticism.Catharism and the classical Mystery Religions, notably those of ancient Greece.Modern practitoners often feel free to make use of Yoga disciplines and Theosophical doctrines which properly form part of the parallel, but separate, Eastern Esoteric Tradition

White Eagle: A spirit guide who communicated through the mediumship of Mrs Grace Cook, White Eagle gave out a considerable body of spiritual and philosophical teaching which has found its way into print through the good offices of the White Eagle Publishing Trust established by the Cooke family to disseminate the doctrines.White Eagle teaches, among other things, that humanity lives in bondage to the body, the limitations of materiality and the lower self. But this bondage is not perpetual since, during the course of many incarnations, individuals undergo a series of initiations by means of which they attain mastery over themselves, their circumstances and finally, over the substance of matter itself

White Lady: A ghostly spirit common to many countries, usually as an announcement of a death to come. Her origin is in the Germanic goddess Holda, who received the souls of virgin youth and maidens and children. She is seen not only in buildings but in lonely valleys, by fords & bridges

Wicca: The word 'witch' comes from the Anglo Saxon word 'wicca' and it means 'wise one' . In the modern world witchcraft is a form of nature religion, also called Wicca, that emphasises the healing arts.Witchcraft is different all over the world, and it can take many years to learn the skill. Modern witches use magic from Celtic and other Pagan traditions, promoting spirituality and creativity, and most try to help, rather to harm others

Wilber, Ken: Widely acclaimed for his work, Ken Wilber has been described as 'the foremost writer on consciousness and transpersonal psychology in the world today.With degrees in chemistry and biology, he has also studied widely in the fields of pyschotherapy, phiosophy and religion

According to Wilber, there is a Hierarchy or Specturm of consciousness incorporating multiple consciousness levels like boxes within boxes, each of which is real at its particular level.These range from the highest level of Cosmic Consciousness to the lowest, which is purely egoic consciousness.Wilber's ideas are expressed in his books 'The Spectrum of Consciousness-Theosophical Publishing House 1977)' 'The Atman Project-Theosophical Publishing House-1980) and 'Up from Eden-Routledge and Degan Paul-1983'

Wilhelm, Richard: Translator (into German) of the Chinese I Ching, producing what is still the definitive Western Language text of the oracle.Wilhelm began the work in 1913, in collaboation with one of the foremost Chinese scholars of the period, Lao Nai-hsan.His finished German vesion, prepared after detailed discussion, was retranslated into Chinese in order to determine its accuracy before it was finally released.The outbreak of the First World War interrupted the translation, so that the finished text was only released in 1923. Since then, Wilhelm's version of the 1 Ching has been translated into English by Cary F. Baynes

Witches Sabbath: The Witches' Sabbath was supposed to be a weekly midnight convention of witches, warlocks and demons, a combination of cannibalisitc feast, sexual orgy and blasphemous satan worship

Witchcraft: Kramer & Sprengler, the 15th century Dominican authors of the 'Malleus Maleficarum' had no doubs at all about the nature of witchcraft.They considered it the visible expression of satan's work in the world. In the modern world witchcraft is a form of nature religion, also called Wicca, that emphasises the healing arts.The term is also applied to various kins of Magic practised inf Asia, Africa and Latin American communities.What little is known about the history of witchcraft in Europe comes from hostile sources.In traditionala European society witchcraft was associated with the worship of satan, a doctrine formulated in the Middle Ages.Just how many of the beliefs about witches were based on reality and how many on delusion will never be known.The punishment of supposed witches by the death penelty did not become common until the 15th century.The first major witch-hunt occured in Switzerland in 1427, and the first important book on the subject, the Malleus Maleficarum appeared in Germanay in 1486 two years after the papal Bull Summis Desiderantes of 1484, which authorised death for witches.The persecution of witches reached its height between 1580 & 1660, when witch trials became almost universal throughout western Europe.Geographically the centre of witch-burning lay in Germany, Austria & Switzerland, but few areas were left untouched by it. No one knows the total number of victims, but informed estimates run into millions.In southwestern Germany alone, more than 3,000 witches were executed between 1560 & 1680l.Not all witch trials ended in deaths.In England, where torture was prohibited, onlyu about 20% of accused witches were executed - by hanging, in Scotland, where torture was used, nearly half of all those put on trial, were burned at the stake, and almost three tiems as many withches (1,350) were killed

Margaret Murray, the distinguished 20th century, anthropologist, was not so sure. In her influential 'The Witch-Cult in Western Europe-Oxford University Press-1921', she argued that it was actually a survival of a pre-Christian religion dating back, literally, to prehistoric times. For a while, Murray's thesis received academic support (she contributed the article on witchcraft to early editions of the Encyclopaedia Britannica) but scholars eventually decided her case was not proven.One man who disagreed was Gerald Gardner, who claimed to be the appointed publicity officer of a New Forest coven and insisted Margaret Murray had been right in almost everything she said. Whether or not Gardner was correct was largely irrelevant to the New Age expression of witchcraft. His books 'Witchcraft Today' and 'The Meaning of Witchcraft' aided by intense and largely hostile interest from the Press, sparked a revival of the Craft which shows no sign of diminishing toady

At major festivals of modern witchcraft are seasonal.The mark the Vernal Equinox onf 21 March, Beltane on 30 April and Mummer Solstice on 22 June, Lammastide on 1 August, the Autumnal Equinox on 21 September, Hallowe'en on 31 October, the Winter Solstice on 1 December and Candlemas on 2 February. Additional sabbats, as these meetings are known, are held at each full moon and esbats, as the less formal meetings are known, might be held weekly

The working unit of witchcraft is the coven - ideally but not necessarily, a group of 13 (The number is chosen as the optimum for dancing within the nine-foot circle used in many wiccan ceremonies). Some covens work robed, some 'sky-clad i.e. naked, and some both, depending on the weather.Despite the fertility aspects of the cult, there seems to be little sexual element in the nudity, which is adopted because of the witch belief that clothes can interfere with the emanation of personal power

Ceremonial differs from coven to coven, although there are obvious similarities and common elements.The average meet, which might be held outdoors on a Saturday, would typically involve the drawing of a circle and the lighting of four candles to mark the cardinal points.Coven members stand just within the circle with the High Priestess kneeling before a central altar on which might be a number of ritual implements, including almost certainly a 'Book of Shadows' containing details of ceremonials and spells.The High Priest, possibly wearing a horned helmet stands facing South

A saline solution is used as a sort of wiccan equivalent of 'Holy Water' to purify the circle, the participants the High Priestess and the High Priest.The Priestess then moves to each of the cardinal points, usually holding a ceremonial sword, and evokes the 'Mighty Ones' the elemental rulers of Earth, Air, Fire and Water

One of the most interesting ceremonies of modern witchcraft is that known as the 'Drawing Down of the Moon'.This is carried out by the High Priest, but its goal is to create a temporary incarnation of the Goddess in the High Priestess, a result which has obvious similarities to the trance possession rites of many 'shamanic' religions. Another ceremony, known as the 'Great Rite' recalls the cult's fertility foundations in an act of sexual intercourse - either actual or symbolic, between priest & priestess

Witchfinders: During the Witchcraft trials in Europe it was established legal procedures for specially appointed (or self-appointed individuals) to find or discover witches and bring them to trial. As fees were usually paid for such discoveries, the role of witchfinders was often highly lucrative.The most famous English witchfinder, the so-called Witchfinder General, was Matthew Hopkins, who in forteen months (from 1645) had several hundred witches hanged - over a hundred at Bury St Edmunds alone.His equally notorius pricker was John Stearns

Women's Spirituality: A growing movement which is a vital part of the New Age.It has developed out of the feminist movement and has been helped by psychoanalysis and ecology.Women's spirituality is concerned with the way of the Goddess.The way is one of natural law and natural wisdom and is still a living tradition in some parts of the world.Not so in the West, where patriarchy and the monotheistic religions of Judaism, Islam and Christianity denied access to the Goddess

In the beginning, according to Merlin Stone, author of the ground-breaking 'When God was a Woman-1976' - the prehistoric peoples worshipped a female deity, who was the source of both creativity and destruction.The ancient Goddess cultures were woman-centred, peaceful and egalitarian

The emerging women's spirituality movement acknowledges the sacred dimension of women's experience and empowers women to transform their lives.Women's spirituality sees humanity as part of the whole, part of the Cosmos and part of Nature.There is now a burgeoning literature in this field with women's spirituality sections in many bookshops.In addition to Merlin Stone's book, some seminal works include - The Goddesses and Gods of Old Europe-Marija Gimbutas-1982 / Woman's Mysteries by Esther Harding-1971 / Hallie Iglehart's Womanspirit, A Guide to Woman's Wisdom-1983 / Return to the Goddess-Edward Whitmont-1983 / The Woman's Dictionary of Symbols and Sacred Objects-Barbara Walker-1983 / The Once & Future Goddess-Elinor Gadon-1990) etc

Wraith: The phantom, or ghostlike manifestation, of a still-living person, which is usually taken as a sign of impending death.Wraiths of persons about to die have been seen by close relatives who live far away from the source

Wyrd: From an Old Germanic word meaning fate or destiny as in Old English 'weird' a force that is betyond human control manipulated by divine spirits

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Xenoglossy: The ability to speak in an unlearned foreign language. It is associated with past-life recall, states of trance of hypnosis and mediumship.The phenomenon is very rare.Many so-called instances turn out to be cases where the foreign language has been learned at some stage and then forgotten.When it does occur, cases where individuals recite foreign words and phrases without understanding their meaning are far more common than cases where an individual can actually converse intelligently in the supposedly unknown language

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Yates, Elizabeth: Dame Frances Yates taught at the Warburg Institute of the University of London from 1941-1981, achieving a world-wide reputation as a historian.She wrote several books, including 'The Occult Philosophy in the Elizabethan Age, Astraea and 'The Art of Memory'.Her importance to New Age thought - perhaps lies mainly in her, achievement in unearthing details of the 'Memory Theatre' the esoteric memory training system of Renaissance occultists.This system still in use today, makes use of an imaginary locus (or place) - often a monumental public building, into which items to be remembered are placed by an act of visualization.When the locus is recalled at a later date, the items are remembered too

Yeats, William Butler (1865-1939): While working on the poetry of William Blake in the reading room of the British Museum, William Butler Yeats first noticed an individual who impressed him greatly.This was S.L. MacGregor Masters, who was busily copying old magical manuscripts and rituals.Mathers was to become the co-founder of the Golden Dawn and Yeats very willingly followed him into that magical organizaton.He was initiated in the early summer of 1887, taking the secret name Diabolus est Deus Inversus ( The devil is God reversed).Yeats helped Mathers write the various Golden Dawn rituals, drawing on the Egyptian Book of the Dead, the Chaldean Oracles and the visionary works of Blake If Yeats officiated at the birth of the Golden Dawn, he also in a very real sense, officiated at the death.He was leader of the movement to expel the notorius Aleister Crowly, an action which generated a fragmentation of the Order from which it never really recovered.Yeats himself resigned in 1905

The Golden Dawn was not Yeats' only esoteric interest.Born the son of Anglo-Irish parents in 1865, he deveolped a boyhood interst in fairies which carried though into his adult life.He was a close friend of the Irish mysic George Russel - pseudonym A.E. He took a sober and remarkably, critical interest in Spiritualism.He studied comparative religion and Theosophy and seems rather to have liked Madame Blavatsky

Esoteric symbolism found its way into his poetry which his contemporaries considered surprisingly good, considering the nonsense Willie took seriously.By the time of his death in 1939, history had already adjudged him a great poet, although still with a distinct tendency to ignore the occult elements of his philosophy and career

Yidam: While strictly speaking no more than one among many of lamaist Tibet's tutelary deities, the Yidam was central to a ceremony of profound interest to anyone committed to New Age thought. A chela bound to one of Tibet's hermit gurus, would often be instructed to meditate on the Yidam and study pictures of this fearsome deity, reading everything the scriptures had to say about it.When the student was thoroughly saturated in Yidam lore, the (and in the Tradition, students were almost always male) would be advised to find a remote cave and there draw a kylkhor or magic cirlce - using coloured chalk powders for the purpose of evoking the Yidam to visible appearances

The evocation did not follow a set magical ceremony, as might have been the case in, for example the ritual magical practise of the West. Rather the chela was instructed strongly to visualize the Yidam within the circle, rather in the manner of a tulpa creation.Over a period of weeks, or even months, the pupil would be strongly encouraged to keep at the exercise until a full scale hallucination resulted and the Yidam appeared within the circle

At this point, the pupil would be told he had been remarkably successful in evoking the Yidam and was obviously favoured by the god.For his next step, he would have to persuade it to leave the circle.This might have taken several more weeks or months, but eventually the cheal woudl report that the god had indeed stepped out of the kylkhor.He would be congratulated, then told to see if he could manage to get the Yidam to leave the cave altogether and accompany him wherever he went

Typically the pupil would redouble his visualizaton efforts until he succeeded .The guru would then tell him he had succeeded beyond his wildest expectations: he had evoked and commanded one of the most powerful gods in the entire pantheon of Tibet.His studies were ended and so was his relationship with the guru, since je now had a teacher far wiser and more powerful than the guru could ever be

Many pupils would grow angry and demand to know if the Yidam did not look as solid as the mountains.The pupil, who might by this stage have spent years finetuning his visualizations, would admit that it was.The guru would ask if the pupil had not touched the god and found it solid as the rocks.Again the cela would be forced to admit this was the case.He was then instructed to go away and meditate alone for several more months to try to banish his doubt.A very few among the pupils would find that their doubts survived despite every effort they made to resolve them.When they admitted as much to the guru, he would tell them they were favoured above all others, for they had realized that however real and solid the Yidam looked and felt, it was no more than a creation of their mind, as was the remainder of the world around them

Yin / Yang: According to traditional Chinese thought, Yin & Yang are the two great complementary principles on whose interaction the whole of the manifest Universe depends.Yin is defined as dark,negative and passive and Yang as light,positive and active. The Yin/Yang concept is by no means purely academic.It is an intensely practical aspect both in the divination system of the I Ching and the medical system of Chinese acupuncture.In the latter, diseases are often classified and treated in relation to the over-or under abundance of Yin or Yang in a particular meridian

Yoga: Westerners tend to think of Yoga largely as a system of non-violent calisthenics.There are in fact 10 different yogas traditionally recognized as valid paths to the goal of spiritual attainment.Bhakti Yoga,Dhyana,Hatha,Jnana,Karma,Kriya,Kandalini,Laya,Mantra & Raja

BHAKTI YOGA: is defined as the way of love,devotion and faith.These elements are usually directed towards God, but practitioners believe that love and devotion towards humanity or any living creature will achieve the same results

DHYANA YOGA: comes from close to the Western Religious practices of contemplation and meditation, a purely mental discipline often involving trance states

HATHA YOGA: is the only form of yoga widely practised in the West.It emphasizes the development and control of the physical body to such a degree that it no longer interferes in any way with the mind's search for enlightenment

JNANA YOGA: is the yoga of knowledge and calls for an understanding of the sacred Vedas of Hinduism, notabley the Upanishads, which contain a great number of esoteric doctrines

KARMA YOGA: is the way of good deeds, usually expressed as charitable acts and work for the needy

KRIYA YOGA: is concerned with religious observance and the proper carrying through ritual acts

KUNDALINI YOGA: is specifically concerned with arousing the serpent power of kundalini at the base of the spine so that it may climb upwards and illuminate the brain

LAYA YOGA: is a system specifically concerned with the activation of the Chakras and like certain Western magical systems, uses specific sounds (or mantras) to awaken them

MANTRA YOGA: although sometimes inaccurately described as a yoga of spells, is actually a yoga of ouns, using chants and mantras in order to drive the mind towards a higher state

RAJA YOGA: is knonw as the King of Yogas (sometimes even the King of Kings of Yoga) and exclusively charts a system of mental and psychical development leading towards enlightenment

Yogananda (India, North America - Ascended Master): Paramahansa Yogananda was an Indian yogi, born in 1893.In 1920, at his teacher Babaji's request, Yogananda traveled to America to introduce the Western World to the practice of Kriya yoga.He wrote the popular book (Autobiogrphy of a Yogi' - an eyewitness account of the lives and powers of modern Hindu saints - a book about Yogis by a Yogi) -and opened Self-Realization Fellowship (SRF) centers worldwide.Yogananda's centers, books and teachings blend Eastern and Western spirituality and many of his writings quote Jesus Christ as an example of love, compassion and forgiveness. (In fact Jesus Christ is one of the 6 gurus of SRF, the other five being Yogananda, Krishna, Babaji, Lahiri Mahasaya and Sri Yukteswar). Yogananda , like Babaji, teaches that all religions have an underlying unity

Yogananda's legacy includes bringing yoga to North America and introducing Westerners to meditations and chanting.All of his teachings focused upon developing loving connections and communications with God, and living a happy, healthy life. Yogananda passed physically from theworld in 1952, but he continues to teach, heal and guide people as one of the newer ascended masters.He helps with communication with God, Divine Love, spiritual,emotional & physical Healing, personal & global peace, Unity of religious belief, Yoga practice

Yuga: Both Hindu & Buddhist doctrines teach that the history of the world consists of a repeating series of Four Ages, or Yugas, each of which is of enormous length. The Yugas are named, in order of their occurence - as Krita Yuga, Treta Yuga, Dvapara Yuga, and Kali Yuga. It is beleived that each age marks a progressive decline in morals, righteousness and piety, a gradual degeneration from the original Golden Age of the Krita Yuga

Z

Zadkiel (Judian - Archangel): Also known as Satqiel, Tzadkiel, Zadakiel, Zidekiel.Zadkiel's name means 'the righteousness of God' He's considered to be the archangel of mercy and benevolence,perhaps because of his role in stopping Abraham from sacrificing his son, Isaac, as an offering to God.Zadkiel can help you feel mercy and compassion toward yourself and others, and let go of judgement and unforgiveness.In this way, he's a healing angel who workds beside Archangel Michael to replace negative energies with faith & compassion.Zadkiel helps us see the Divine Light within ourselves and others, instead of focusing on the surface personality, behavioral mistakes, or the ego If you're having difficutly forgiving yourself, or someone else, if asked Zadkiel will intervene and act like a chimney sweep who cleans your body,mind & heart of unforgiveness.This doesn't mean that you're sanctioning someone's abusive behaviour.It just means that you're no longer willing to cart around the emotional residue of old situations

Archangel Zadkiel is also widely known for his help with memory functions.If you need to memorize important information or refresh your memory in where your keys are, you can ask Zadkiel to help.He helps with Compassion, Finding lost objects, Forgiveness of self and others,Healing, emotionally and physically, Memory enhancement,Remembering important information, Studies, students and test

Zazen: A meditation posture of Zen Buddhism found in two forms corresponding with the lotus posture and the perfect posture of Hatha Yoga

Zen: When Buddhism spread from India, it followed a pattern common to many other religions in that it adapted to the conditions & needs of the countries in which it took root.All adaptation requires change and nowhere was the change in Buddhism so marked as in Japan where Zen,while still ostensibly a branch of the parent growth,might almost be a completely different religio-philosophical system Culturally, Japan has for centuries held to the rigid codifications of behaviour necessary for survival in an overcrowded society where privacy has long been at a premium.THese codifications range from the elaboarate ritual of the tea cermony through stylized artforms like painting, calligraphy and flower arranging, all the way up to a Samuria tradition which today manifests in industrial stoicism and corporate loyalties

Whatever the social and economic benefits of the Japanese way, Zen philosophers acts as a barrier against enlightenment.Consequently, the thrust of Zen Budhism is the shattering of the mindset, the breaking down of ritualized patterns of thought so that a more direct perception of reality may become possible.The methods used to achieve this results are both bizarre and interesting

Almost all are designed either to shock or to drive the mind into such a paradoxical state that it can no longer support itself. An example of the former approach is the Zen Master's well-known habit of answering a disciple's most profound religous or philosophical question by hitting him with a stick. An example of the latter Zen's famous koans, briefly stated puzzles which defy logical solution

Zodiac: The arc of the sky from horizon to horizon, along which the Sun travels, making 360-degrees, is divided into twelve sectors of thirty degrees each, each sector corresponding to an astrological sign and while a specific occult character and significance of its own.The word is from Greek zodiakos, pertaining to animals

Zodiacal Ages: The equinoxes are those (two) periods of the year at which day and night are of equal lenght.The mark the crossover of the sun from northern to southern hemisphere and back again and since the second century BC the position of the sun in relation to the constellations has been known to regress, i.e. it moves through the constellations in a direction contrary to that of the planets.The phenomenon is known as the precession of the equinoces.This precession has led to the concept of Zodiacal Ages, each lasting app 2,100 years.About 4000 BC for example, the sun appreared in the constellationTaurus at the time of the spring equinox.This was followed by the Ages of Aries (approx 2000-0BC).The Age of Pisces is still with us, with the Aquarian Age is not far off

Zone Therapy: *see reflexology*

Zombies: TIn Haitian and West African folk belief, a soulless corpse reanimated by a Voodoo priest, known as a bocor.A zombies moves listessly in a trancelike state and does the bidding of the bocor.The term is apparently derived from Nzambi, a West African snake deity.Most cultural antrhopologist working in Haiti discount strories about zombies.Some researcher, however claim that the stories are true and that a bocor's victims are admininster a powder containing a powerful neurotoxin derived from the puffer fish.The powder is alleged to paralyse the victim into a deathlike state. The bocor later revives the victim.Pharmacologists who have tested samples of the alledged powder found little or no poison in them

Zoroaster (c.628-551BC): A Persian philophoser who founded a religion that became the national faith of ancient Persia and is embodied in the Avesta.A feature of this religion was a belief in a good and an evil power or deity perpetually striving against each other.The good deity is Ahura Mazda, also known as Ormuzd and the bad diety Ahriman

Zoroastrianism: The Iranian prophet Zoroaster, called Zarathustra in the holy book of the religion he founded, was born sometime in the 7th century BC probably in an area that now corresponds to the Turkmen Republic of Soviet Central Asia. He fled from his native land on account of the antagonism he raised in his fellow-countrymen by preaching a revelation they could not accept and found refuge in eastern Iran.The king of the area, Vishtaspa, eventually accepted his teachings

The teachings themselves referred to Ahura Mazda, the Wise Lord who had revealed himself to Zoroaster as the true God.The messenger of Zoroastrianism was eerily reminiscent of the Judaeo-Christian tradition in that it stated in essence that God was One, holy, righteous and the Creator of the Universe.But Ahura Mazda's unity manifested in diversity, a series of aspects referred to as the Bounteous Immortals, personifying Truth, Holy Spirit, Sovereignty, Wholeness and so on

In His aspects of Truth and Holy Spirit, He was opposed by the personification of lies and destruction, the friend Ahriman. Zoroastrianim has gone through many modifications and extensions in the years since its foundation.The Islamic conquest all but drove it out of its native Persia (there are probably fewer than 10,000 followers of the faith in the whole of Iran today) but it survives among the Parsees of India who are the philosophical and in some cases the physical descendants of 100,000.Persian emigrants centuries ago

Main info sources

The Aquarian Guide to the New Age - Eileen Campbell & J.H.Brennan

Dictionary of the Occult - Geddes & Grosset

Archangels & Ascended Masters - Doreen Virtue,Ph.D