Test Tubes and Cauldrons

Science and mysticism have been intertwined for centuries, but in many ways, science has also been used to perpetuate bogus spiritual experiences by charlatans and grifters within the spiritual and spirit community. Ghost hunters use thermal energies and electro-magnetic devices to decipher spirit interactions and charlatans used a wide variety of tricks to prove their abilities including magnets to show telekinesis among others! In this episode we touch on psychics, the paranormal, and scientific validity of both and the potential issues these can pose for our community.

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Resources:

CIA Reports - please read these with a critical eye!

Certain Problems in Biological Electrodynamics and Psychoenergetics: https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP96-00787R000500090004-6.pdf

Psychic Warfare: Exploring the Mind Frontier: https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP96-00789R001001420001-3.pdf

Summary Analysis of Remote Viewing: https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP96-00788R000900870001-8.pdf

Scientific Articles

Neuroimaging during Trance State: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3500298/

Failure to Replicate Precognition: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0033423

Precognition and Alternate Mind States Ganzfeld Study: https://www.research.ed.ac.uk/en/publications/testing-precognition-and-altered-state-of-consciousness-with-sele

Difficulties of studying psychic ability (Journal of Parapsychology): https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2001-18747-002

Accuracy and neural correlates of blinded mediumship compared to controls on an image classification task: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0278262620302414?via%3Dihub

Electromagnetic Field (EMF) studies:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2490801/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3494709/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2490801/

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/cpr.12142

Blogs/Websites

Science of the Paranormal: Can You Trust Your Own Mind? https://www.livescience.com/52641-science-of-paranormal-ghosts.html

Symbols have an important role in the development of language throughout the centuries from hieroglyphics to the alphabets we know today, but within the occult community they also take on other meanings. Join the hosts as they talk about the science behind words and symbols in the occult. How accurate is the suggestion that a sigil is most effective when you destroy and forget? Is it possible to ever truly forget? Get lost in the murky waters of the unknown with us because its complicated.

Come join our discord! https://discord.gg/kJthJyxTBc

Resources:

Perceptions of perceptual symbols: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/behavioral-and-brain-sciences/article/abs/perceptions-of-perceptual-symbols/3F4B2D65B7685F18BF2C840E77761574

Amodal/modal dichotomy of concepts (Review): https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11097-020-09678-y

Biological abnormality of impaired reading is constrained by culture: https://www.nature.com/articles/nature02865

Brain mechanisms linking language and action: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15959465/

Language in context: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15809000/

Parallel memory systems...: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16828565/

From symbols to sounds: visual symbolic information activates sound representations: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15318877/

Neurochemical and neurological localization of semantic processes: https://www.cell.com/action/showPdf?pii=S1364-6613%2813%2900122-8

Uses, misuses, new uses, and fundamental limitations of resonance imaging in cognitive science: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5003851/

Neuroimaging during trance state: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3500298/

The Demonstration of Short Term Consolidation (a concept similar to the burn and forget sigil activation): https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0010028598906843?via%3Dihub

We are delighted to welcome a close friend of ours to the podcast for this episode! Kapt is a chaote, planetary magician, yoga instructor, and fantastic astrologer who was willing to sit down and talk to us about chaos magic. We discuss its origins, some of the key tenets, ways to go about engaging in this eclectic tradition and common misconceptions about chaos magic in the witchcraft community. Grab a drink and sit for a spell as we discuss philosophy and experimentation within this paradigm!

Come join our discord! https://discord.gg/kJthJyxTBc

Resources:

The Neural Basis of the Dynamic Unconcious: https://www.nyu.edu/gsas/dept/philo/faculty/block/papers/BerlinTreatment.pdf

Are there levels of consciousness? https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S136466131630002X

Book Recommendations:

Hands on Chaos Magic: Reality Manipulation Through the Ovayki Current by Andrieh Vitimus

The Chaos Protocols by Gordon White (full disclosure, I [Astra] am still reading this, but thus far it has been interesting. As always, read with critical thought!)

Our last shower thoughts episode was quite popular (and we had a blast recording it), so we figured we'd do a second one with some thoughts we weren't able to talk about last time. The hosts discuss the possibilities of animals practicing magick, what happens when you eat a binding spell, whether or not you can work with the genius loci of certain architectures or large scale structures like a subways and more! Lots of fun discussion, so pop into the lab and join us!

Come join our discord! https://discord.gg/kJthJyxTBc

First recording during Mercury retrograde and it was a doozy, but thanks to Fel for cleaning it up and producing a great episode! This week the hosts discuss divination, its history, some of our favorite types, and how we use it in our own practice. We also touch upon the scientific validity of divination and astrology by looking into some specific studies. Grab your teacup and join us at the table for an enlightening discussion!

Come join our discord! https://discord.gg/kJthJyxTBc

References and Resources

Divination

M. Fortes Thesis on Divination used by the Tallensi people: https://www-jstor-org.proxy.lib.ohio-state.edu/stable/pdf/2416753.pdf?refreqid=excelsior%3Af3f04f65d9c804a7889cc0beb6062c0c

Theories of the Evolution of Divination: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/338593433

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methodsofdivination

Divination and Scientific Prediction: https://citationsy.com/archives/q?doi=10.1163/15733823-0186P0002

Pythagoreanism and Number Symbology (an overview): https://www.britannica.com/topic/number-symbolism/Pythagoreanism

Theory of Motor Control in Conscious and Unconcious Movement: https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.3758/BF03333809.pdf

Relationship between Scientific Knowledge and Fortune Telling: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/260561710

Astrology

A Double-blind Test of Astrology: https://www.nature.com/articles/318419a0

Personality Differences between Twins as Predicted by Astrology?: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0191886996001122

Astrology Predictions on Marriage and Divorce: https://genus.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s41118-020-00103-5

The terms frequency and vibration are thrown around a lot in the witchcraft community, especially amongst New Age practitioners, to describe people in certain states, explain the magical properties of crystals, and suggest that by controlling these frequencies we can reach our highest self. The hosts take on this topic and attempt to explain what these terms actually are, how we empirically measure them, and address their misconceptions in magic. This is going to be a fun one, so grab a wine glass and bring it to the lab where we'll try to break it with the resonant frequency! ;)

Come join our discord!: https://discord.gg/kJthJyxTBc

Resources/Additional Material:

Basic Understanding of Frequencies and Vibrations: http://w3.ric.edu/faculty/PSCI103/waves/waves_notes.pdf

https://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/waves (this is a really good introduction to this topic from a physics point of view)

History of FRET: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0898656820302461

Binaural Beat: A Failure to Enhance EEG Power and Emotional Arousal: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5694826/

Efficacy of binaural auditory beats in cognition, anxiety, and pain perception: a meta-analysis: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00426-018-1066-8

Musica Universalis image: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musica_universalis#/media/File:The_music_of_the_spheres.jpg

Musical Modes and their mystical meanings: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mode_(music)#Use

Books:

The Black Arts by Richard Cavendish (mentions pneuma, a concept historically related to this discussion)

Early Music Songs that Make Felicity Cry:

Fortuna Desperata https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCS9I8NLvuA

Stella Splendens https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x25mD35ZDm0

Miserere mei: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3v9unphfi0

A chantar m'er: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiv3_nW-2M8

Dido's Lament: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOIAi2XwuWo (song that makes Astra cry)

In this episode, the hosts discuss the New Age Movement, its origins, history, and evolution over time in addition to common practices within that are scientifically unsound. The definition of "new age" is incredibly hard to pin down, but hopefully this provides some useful insights!

Come join our discord! https://discord.gg/kJthJyxTBc

Resources from the episode:

Perspectives on the New Age: https://archive.org/details/perspectivesonne0000unse_m6u6/page/n5/mode/2up

Category Formation and History of the New Age: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01438300302814

The Victorian Supernatural: https://www.bl.uk/romantics-and-victorians/articles/the-victorian-supernatural

The Fashionable Science of Parlour Magic https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/the-fashionable-science-of-parlour-magic

Drawing Down the Moon by Margot Adler

A Close Look at Therapeutic Touch: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/187390

We are delighted to welcome our first guest to the podcast - Ruby is a Scottish folk practitioner and solitary Wiccan pursuing a career in occupational therapy. Ruby joins the hosts to talk about epistemology, ontology, and the different ways of knowing and how this relates to the occult. We discuss different paradigms and how they fit into different traditions and discuss our own thoughts from our personal practices! Grab those spectacles and some coffee because its time to get philosophical!

Come join our discord! https://discord.gg/kJthJyxTBc

Humanity and divinity go back centuries and it leads to the classic philosophical debate of which came first - humans or the divine? Do we have an innate lure and connection to the divine and is there a biological basis for the strong beliefs people have? Religions have been created, destroyed, and transformed through the ages as integral parts of our society all with the desire to connect to something larger than ourselves. Join the hosts as they discuss this from a scientific point of view and ponder if such a connection is quantifiable!

Come join our discord! https://discord.gg/kJthJyxTBc

Resources:

Scales developed relating to magical or religious experience

Magical Ideation Scale: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/6841765/

Religious Experience Scale: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6197485/

Intensity of Religious Experience Scale: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10943-020-01084-7

Neurological papers related to the brain and spirituality

Post-traumatic Growth and Spirituality after Brain Injury: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/brain-impairment/article/abs/posttraumatic-growth-and-spirituality-after-brain-injury/A871DC2434004F24F8CDDBB671DC4A21

Biological and Cognitive Underpinnings of Religious Fundamentalism: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5500821/

Right Parietal Lobe "Self-lessness" as the Neuropsychological Basis of Spirituality: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10508619.2012.657524?journalCode=hjpr20#preview

Commentary on the "God Spot" in the Right Parietal Lobe: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/god-spot-in-brain-is-not-n1440518

Mystical Experience from Psilcybin: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3050654/

Mechanisms of Psychedelic Visionary Experiences: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5625021/

The God Gene

The God Gene Experiment: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2262126/

Original Book: The God Gene: How Faith Is Hardwired into Our Genes by Dean Hammer

One of the best parts about spirituality is being able to make your practice your own and people are incredibly creative when it comes to spellwork! In this episode, the hosts discuss some wacky spiritual shower thoughts like whether bacteria have spirits., can you do plant necromancy on your furniture, or whether spirits evolve over time. It's going to be a great time - so grab a drink from our bubbling cauldron and join us for a wild ride!

Come join our discord! https://discord.gg/kJthJyxTBc