Explore every episode of the podcast The Hermetic Hour

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present the the modern yoga ritual version of the Chemical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz. This is the fully developed Rosicrucian version of Hermetic Yoga Beyond the Middle Pillar as presented in volume one of Hermetic Yoga, Beyond the Middle Pillar. This advanced version, draws upon The Naassene Document, the Gospel of Philip, the Gospel of Mary, the Chemical Wedding itself, and the works of Jacob Boehme and Johann Gichtel. This reveals that the Ninth Degree of the O.T.O. and the Great Rite of the Gardnerians are both derived from original Valentinian Gnostic Christian sources. So if you want to experience some R-rated Rosicrucian yoga, tune in and we'll take you into the mirrored chamber of the Sacred Marriage

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the Alchemical Classic "Splendor Solis" by Solomon Trismosin 1582. This magnificently illustrated work is considered to be the most beautiful illuminated manuscript of all the Medieval and Renaissance occult books. It draws on all of the earlier Alchemical classics such as the Turba Philosophorum. Solomon Trismosin was said to have been the mentor of the most famous of all alchemists Paracelsus. The twenty-two beautiful allegorical paintings that illustrate the book are the work of the Renaissance master Lucas van Leiden. The symbolic paintings have been likened to the twenty-two greater arcana of the Tarot.This book has been a great influence on Rosicrucianism and deserves a place in any study of that tradition, so if you want to peek at the Splendor of the Sun, put on your dark glasses and tune in.  

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present the second part of The Chemical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz by Valentin Andreae 1616, followed by an interpretation of the symbolism in relation to internal alchemy, the extended Middle Pillar chakra system and Valentinian Gnostic Christianity. We will describe the Sacred Marriage within the adept him/or/herself as an analog to the operations on the Sixth Day in the Tower of Olympus. We will refer to works by Jacob Boehme, The creation of the Magical Child, Johann Gichtel and the mysteries of the Spiral and the Lightning Flash. And the Homunculus of Paracelsus. This is the lost Key to Rosicrucian Sex Magick and the ultimate secret of the Hieros Gamos. Tune in and be enlightened.

The Hermetic Hour, with host Poke Runyon, will present our interpreted and explained version of The Chemical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz (1614). The Chemical Wedding is the third of the mysterious Rosicrucian documents that appeared in Central Europe in the early 17th century. It is an alchemical fantasy that might even be called "Science Fiction." Occultists have tried to unravel it's secrets for the last four hundred years and we will offer our interpretation tonight as we accompany old Christian Rosenkreutz on his visit to the mysterious castle and his participation in the alchemical operation to resurrect the King and Queen. The solving of its riddles has been just as exciting an adventure as the story itself. So tune in and come with us to the Castle of the Rosicrucians.  

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the life and career of the 18th century magician and alchemical adept who called himself  Count Alessandro Cagliostro. He was perhaps the most colorful and adventurous character in our Hermetic tradition. Vilified as a rogue, a scoundrel, and a charlatan by the academy and the Church in Europe he was loved by the common people for his healing touch and alchemical medicines which he administered freely to the poor, and dearly to the rich. He claimed to be able to create gold to support his charity work and lavish life style. He and his glamorous wife Lorenza founded an androgynous  quasi-Masonic Egyptian rite which allegedly involved nudity and sex magick. Cagliostro was featured as an anti-hero in a series of novels by Alexander Dumas, and depicted on film by Orson Welles in the (1949 ) movie classic BLACK MAGIC. We will consult Sax Rhomer's ROMANCE of SORCERY ( 1914 ) for a more accurate version of the Count's adventures than Dumas' novels and the screenplay offer -- so if you'd like to meet the real Count Cagliostro, tune in and we'll follow him on his journey as he invented himself.  

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the quasi-Masonic Rite of Memphis, sometimes called the Rite of Memphis and Misraim which is highly irregular in orthodox Masonic circles and is usually considered a Clandestine (unrecognized and proscribed) organization to which regular Masons cannot belong. This collection of rites or degrees (96 of them) has a long and colorful history which we will delve into consulting Mackey, Calvin C. Brut, John Yarker and Allen Greenfield. In the 1880's the Rite of Memphis infiltrated the Scottish Rites Northern Jurisdiction and went into competition with Scottish Rite itself to see which system would become an accepted Advanced (Red Lodge) along with York Rite for regular American Masons. Scottish Rite's 33 degree system won the turf war, with Albert Pike's help and the Rite of M&M disappeared into the College of defunct Masonic Rites (yes there is such an institution). The same thing had happened to it in France a hundred years earlier when the Grand Orient absorbed it and locked it up in their archives -- but the M&M is not easily suppressed. Its founder, after signing it over to the Grand Orient, sneaked it into Moldavia (one of Dracula's hang outs) and it briefly rose again. Recently Masonic mavericks Allen Greenfield and Jeff Peace have tried to resurrect it here in the United States. Jeff Peace tried to get a number of regular Masons who were interested in the esoteric involved in M&M, at their peril. So if you would like to explore a delightfully conspiratorial and deliciously controversial secret society that claims to have "All the Secrets of ancient Masonry and certainly enough of its degrees" then tune in and we'll sail up the Nile to the Pyramids.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will review two recent books: "Original Magic" (2017)  by Stephen E. Flowers and "Real Magic" (2018) by Dean Radin. These books don't have much in common. Original Magic deals with the ancient Persian Magi, whereas Real Magic focuses on ESP and those who have special talents and powers. Both books are of interest to Hermetic students for different reasons, The ancient Persian Magi have been largely ignored in the present occult revival and yet their beliefs and practices have had a strong influence on modern Magick. Real Magic champions the natural psychic and clairvoyant and presents the usual arguments and data to validate paranormal experience and suggest that it can be induced by shamanic techniques. Radin also deals with controversial Futurist issues such as the universal mind. Both books are subject to some philosophical and technical criticisms but both are well worth reading.  

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will be joined by author Stephen Flowers, Ph.D. to review and discuss the newly revised edition of "The Fraternitas Saturni" (2018). This being the fourth version of the original copyrighted in 1990, and including previously unpublished material making this rendition sensational in occult circles. Flowers traces the FS from its beginning, with Crowley and the O.T.O. inspiring Gregor Gregorius in 1925, through its activities in the Weimar era, its suppression by the Nazis, its revival after WW II and its eventual split into three bodies after Gregorius died in 1964. We are introduced to the "Adonism" of Franz Sattler (Dr. Musallam) a neo-pagan Venus-Adonis cult (!) that included Wilhelm Quaintscher and Franz Bardon who carried it with them into the Frateritas Saturni. We revisit the infamous FOGC black lodge from Frabato, and the Weida Conference in which Crowley attempted to take over organized occultism in Germany. Most importantly Dr. Flowers presents a detailed analysis of the Gnostic and Luciferian philosophies and doctrines behind the Saturnian Gnosis. He outlines their cumbersome 33 degree system and their training program; much of it very similar to Franz Bardon's work. Of course the FS is most noted for its sex magick and we have one of those rituals provided. Quite frankly, this book raises as many questions as it answers, but It is well documented with references to works in German that some of us are going to want translated. So, if you want the answers to questions you had, and more questions you may want to ask about the Fraternitas Saturni then tune in and take notes. 

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion, by guest speaker V.H. Frater SithMeth on the Arbatel of Magic (1575), a grimoire calling up a hierarchy of Olympic spirits which is featured in The Fourth Book of Occult Philosophy attributed to Henry Cornelius Agrippa (1655). This is a very mysterious manuscript which was outlined and summarized in the first installment, but never finished. However there seems to be enough information, sigils and instructions in what was published for some practical application. Frater SithMeth will read his article on the Arbatel and we will explore the possible use in relation to planetary magick. So if quaint and forgotten books of lore fascinate you, join us and we will have a look at one of the most mysterious.  

Hermetic Hour host Poke Runyon will present a lecture on the magick of Franz Bardon, the 20th century European alchemist and magician. Bardon was the author of three books on magick, and one semi-autobiographical novel. His Eastern style methods of training, owing much to raja and tantric yoga, have had a considerable influence on modern Western practice. We will discuss each of his three books in sequence; where his information came from, and what his philosophy was. You will learn about "fluid condensers," "volts," "elementals," magnetic and electric fluids, and magick mirrors. His debt to P. B. Randolph will be mentioned. We will discuss the origins of his myriads of spirits, the way he derived his sigils, his unique concept of Kabbalah. Bardon's background as a professional hypnotist, alchemist and healer will be compared to his mundane life and problems. The Master was an over-weight chain-smoker who died after eating a bacon sandwich---but he was still "The Master," and we should appreciate him all the more for the faults that made him human. Tune in find out why Simon, King of the Witches kept saying "Magnetic-Electric," while having fun with the D.A.'s daughter.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a review of the new book: "The Universal Master Key" alleged to be a newly discovered manuscript by the late Franz Bardon. This book is actually a reconstructed series of lectures by Bardon to his students on mastering and balancing the four Hermetic elements in the personality as set forth in the first section of his book Initiation into Hermetics. The texts of the lectures are rewritten from a collection of class notes by the students and rendered in Bardon's writing style by his publisher and editor Dieter Ruggeberg. The book is published by Faulks Books which mistakenly represents it on the internet as taken from a "newly discovered manuscript by Franz Bardon." However it does not appear to be entirely a hoax. If Dieter wrote the entire book, he has at least mastered Bardon's style and philosophic attitudes. The book is certainly worth a place in a Magician's Bardon collection. It is very moralistic and sermonizing in tone with a strong emphasis on ethics and spiritual integrity. It has its short-comings. It was supposed to be organized according to the qualities of each element but he seems to go off the track into a general discussion on how to live and die well in this and higher worlds -- so if want to revisit the Bardonian internal tetragrammaton process, tune in and we will go to Hermetic Sunday school with Reverand Franz.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the late medieval Dutch surrealist painter Hieronymus Bosch whose remarkable works have not yet become the secret code behind a Dan Brown novel (hint Bro. Dan) but would certainly provide a great background for such a story. His most famous work "The Garden of Earthly Delights" is a phantasmagoria a of bizarre and nightmarish symbolism. Which scholars relate to the Gnostic sect of the Adamites -- a cult of mystic nudists who were trying to recreate the Garden of Eden. Super Catholic Spain had taken over the Netherlands in those days and the Inquisition was burning the Dutch Adamites as fast as Bosch could paint them but the King of Spain was Bosch's biggest fan, which probably kept Bosch alive. So you can look at some great Bosch graphics on your computer while you listen to us recount the tale of the Devil's painter.

The Hermetic Hour's host Poke Runyon will answer your call-in questions on our last show about European magus Franz Bardon. In between calls we will discuss the oldest, most famous (or infamous) of magical grimoires, "The Aim of the Sage", more popularly known as Picatrix" (Picatrix, not pick-up-sticks, and other books of dirty tricks!) This once forbidden tome ( at least in English ) is now available, translated from both the Arabic and the Latin medieval texts. We will discuss the Harranian Sabian contribution, and the Spanish connection--and if this sounds like Greek, it's that too. So tune in and find out how to get scorpions to sting themselves, and how to grow smart plants from human skulls, along with some profound Hermetic philosophy, and astrology that fights back. Greek, it's that too. So tune in and find out how to get scorpions to sting themselves, and how to grow smart plants from human skulls, along with some profound Hermetic philosophy, and astrology that fights back. 

Hermetic Hour host Poke Runyon will present a lecture on the magick of Franz Bardon, the 20th century European alchemist and magician. Bardon was the author of three books on magick, and one semi-autobiographical novel. His Eastern style methods of training, owing much to raja and tantric yoga, have had a considerable influence on modern Western practice. We will discuss each of his three books in sequence; where his information came from, and what his philosophy was. You will learn about "fluid condensers," "volts," "elementals," magnetic and electric fluids, and magick mirrors. His debt to P. B. Randolph will be mentioned. We will discuss the origins of his myriads of spirits, the way he derived his sigils, his unique concept of Kabbalah. Bardon's background as a professional hypnotist, alchemist and healer will be compared to his mundane life and problems. The Master was an over-weight chain-smoker who died after eating a bacon sandwich---but he was still "The Master," and we should appreciate him all the more for the faults that made him human. Tune in find out why Simon, King of the Witches kept saying "Magnetic-Electric," while having fun with the D.A.'s daughter.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the ancient "Sibylline Oracles" created, or re-created, in Greco-Roman Alexandria in the first centuries of the common era. These prophetic verses, attributed to the Sibyls, or prophetic priestesses of ancient Greece were actually a hoax, written by Jewish and Christian Gnostics in an attempt to recast the legendary lost prophetic books of ancient Rome to include the Bible and predict Christianity. They were so successful and popular that the early Christian Church approved of them. They were accepted into the Hermetic tradition, along with The Orphic Hymns and the Chaldean Oracles.They became an influence on western magick and Fairy lore. We will refer to Jake Stratton-Kent's summary of the Oracles in "Geosophia" (2010) and Milton Terry's translation 1899. So, if you want to catch up on this often forgotten aspect of western magical lore, tune in and we'll lift the veil.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon (or Roygnon) will review and discuss the 1982 Bestseller "Holy Blood, Holy Grail" by Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh, and Henry Lincoln. This is the book that generated "The Da Vinci Code" and is the first mainstream modern speculation on Jesus being married to Mary Magdalene and possibly having heirs who become The Grail Family and, according to the author's become the magical, holy bloodline of the Legendary Merovingian dynasty of French Kings in the days of King Arthur. This bloodline is perpetuated and protected by a medieval secret society that still exists in modern France, The Priory of Sion (Zion). The book is a door-stopper and not very well organized. They try to make it read like a detective story rather than a straight forward documentary presentation. Unless you are fascinated by the subject you may get bogged down with all the mystery before you reach the solution -- but if you stick with it the overall effect is convincing. And to devout Christians perhaps shocking. There are some problems, not with the idea of the Grail family. That is very well presented, but with the authenticity of the Priory of Sion itself. Yes there was one back in medieval times -- but is today's fraternity and its family leadership directly connected to the early medieval Merovingians? In any case the book is a great introduction to this fascinating subject. It certainly got me to looking into my old French antecedents. I discovered the Merovingian "golden bees" on the Roygnon family crest and began to wonder if I had a little of this magical blood? I recall Hamlet said: "To bee or not to bee." I wonder if he was Merovingian. Tune in and we'll explore the mystery of the Grail Family.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on The Holy Grail and The Round Table in Magick. To begin this subject we will review the history of the Grail as presented in our poem: The Cult of The Sangreal which we published in our journal The Seventh Ray back in 1975 and which has since become the prologue to our First Degree (Pastophoris) initiation. We trace the Grail from its origin in ancient Phoenicia in the days of Melchizedek around 1500 B.C. It began with the ancient Canaanite God Baal’s yearly death at High Summer followed by his resurrection via the Chalice of heavenly nectar brought by his consort, the Goddess Astarte in the Fall. We trace this event through a series of mythical evolutions until the Grail becomes the cup of resurrection for the last of the dying gods, Jesus the Nazareen, raised by his consort Mary Magdalene. This is the secret of the Grail Tradition which was carried on through the Arthurian Romances. It is a genealogical bloodline and a symbolic ritual implement. One of Four Grail Hallows presented in the Tarot and related to astrology. This symbolism is carried forth in the structure of Arthur’s (or more properly Merlin’s) Round Table. So if you would like to know what qualifies an aspirant to become a knight of the Round Table, tune in and we will start you on your quest.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a reading and commentary on a chapter, by Fraters Thabion and Solomon, from the forthcoming book Hermetic Yoga, Beyond the Middle Pillar, Vol. 2, titled Jesus, Mary Magdalene, and the Holy Grail. This will trace the story from Bethlehem to Camelot with some remarkable surprises, such as Jesus was the grandson of King Herod the Great, Jehovah was not his Father in Heaven, that he believed in equality for women, and tolerance for the Gentiles. That he married a Phoenician princess and sought to unite all Israel under the original Most High God EL That his cousin Herod Antipas bribed Pontius Pilate to have him executed, and that Mary Magdalene barely managed to escape with their son to Southern France where they founded the Cult and the lineage of the Sangreal -- Its all documented with the latest discoveries from ancient archives, so tune in and we'll go beyond The DaVinci Code.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the Hermetic origins of the Holy Grail as presented in Wolfram von Eschenbach’s Medieval romance “Parzival. This is a follow-up on an earlier broadcast from three years ago in which we read Jeanine Rene’s Article on Parzival from The Seventh Ray issue number 19, January 1977. In the introduction to her article I stated that: “Much of the symbolism and the allegory of Kellner’s original O.T.O. derived from Parzival.” This and other fascinating secrets embedded in Wolfram's medieval masterpiece will be the subjects of tonight’s broadcast. So, if you want to find the Grail we have the clues for you. Eschenbach’s Parzival is like Colonna’s Hypnerotomachia. It's one of those old books full of secrets and magick. And our job on the Hermetic Hour is to dig them out for you.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the controversial themes and symbols of the Medieval Holy Grail legend. We will first establish that the entire concept of “Lucifer the Light bringer” is a hoax launched in the Old Testament to cover-up Jehovah’s palace coup (the War in Heaven) and the subsequent exile of Elyon and his Elohim (the Fallen Angels). Next we will examine the Medieval Cathars, their origins and beliefs. We will consider the survival of Valentinian Gnosticism in Southern France and the Troubadour Courts of Love. We will describe the Grail and its Hermetic-Sabian Celestial origin as set forth in von Eschenbach’s Parzival – and we will reveal what the physical Holy Grail really was. So if you want to know what those nasty French knights were hiding in their castle, join us on the quest.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on Princess Salome's Dance of the Seven Veils. which was actually the Phoenician version of Babylonian Ishtar's descent into the underworld to resurrect the Dying God; in her case Tammuz, in our case Ba'al Hadad We have used this obviously fact-based legend to reconstruct Anath's vanquishing the Lord of Death at Autumn Equinox to revive Prince Ba'al the rain and vegetation god of ancient Canaan. If you are wondering about where the head of John the Baptist comes into this, we will solve that mystery also. Our special guest for this program will be Frater Heracles of our Austin, Texas lodge who just presented a spectacular Festival of Seven Gates and will give us his first hand impressions of this revived ancient rite and how it is done in the 21st century. So, if you want to know where the Dance of the Seven Veils started -- and is still going -- tune in and chant: "Down and down the path we go, to the caverns far below!"  

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will review the 1930 classic historical novel "Salome: My First 2000 years of Love", by George Sylvester Viereck and Paul Eldridge. This is the second of a three-decker trilogy by Viereck and may be called a fictional feminist manifesto. Glamorous feminism, because its heroine the immortal Princess Salome used her charm and beauty in a constant battle against male domination symbolized by her immortal lover, and patriarchal nemisis, Cartaphilus, the Wandering Jew. These two sustain a love-hate relationship that spans the ages as each of the two immortals struggle with their self-determined missions: Salome wants female equality and even domination. Salome supported and condoned medieval witchcraft and was considered a witch. She infiltrated the Roman Catholic Church and installed a female Pope. Cartaphilus is determined to destroy Christianity because Jesus cursed him with immortality. The metaphor of the Jewish diaspora is obvious. Further disturbing symbolism is found in Cartaphilus' servant: Kotikokura, an African apeman who is described as "the missing link" between simians and humans. He becomes more and more human through the course of the three volume trilogy. However because he is "African" we will be surprised if the third volume is reprinted. The first two books are available in recent editions and original 1930 copies of Salome are still available. Even with the controversial aspects, these books are well worth reading.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a reprise of the 1977 article in the old Seventh Ray number nineteen by author Janine Renee titled: Parzival and the Hermetic Grail. The author researched and wrote this at our request. It forms an important element in our reconstructed linkage of ancient Phoenician rituals to early Valentinian Christian Gnosticism and to medieval Grail lore. The major source for Janine's article is the 1965 "The Krater and the Grail: Hermetic Sources of the Parzival by Henry and Renee Kahane. Modern neo-pagans have never lost their fascination for the Holy Grail quest. The idea that the Grail was originally pagan (The Hermetic Krater) goes along with the recent revelations of Jesus and Mary Magdalen and the paganizing of Christianity. So if you want to start on your own Grail Quest tune in and we will give you directions to to the Grail Castle Montsalvat.  

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a commentary on and a reading of the Rubaiyat a Sufi poem from medieval Persia by the mystic and astronomer Omar Khayyam translated by Edward Fitzgerald and published in 1859. The Rubaiyat is quintessentially romantic in style and content. It is said to reflect the ancient cyrenaic hedonistic philosophy of Aristippus and extols a libertine lifestyle in preference to piety. When I was a teenager I needed to break away from Christian fundamentalism so I adopted the Rubaiyat as my alternative to the Bible. I memorized the entire poem so that I could quote seductive passages to Baptist virgins while drinking beer on the beach at sunset. Ah! Those were the days! Or as Omar would put it: "Alas that Spring should vanish with the rose, and youth's sweet scented manuscript should close, the nightingale that in the branches sang, ah whence and wither flown again who knows?" And so, if you yearn to know "What Omar's moving finger writ, " then tune in and we will innoculate you against excessive piety.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a review and commentary on the Hypnerotomachia of Poliphili (1499-1999) translated by Joscelyn Godwin. This is one of the most important esoteric books ever published and five hundred years after its debut in Renaissance Italy in 1499, written in stylistic Italian, it finally became available in a readable English translation by Joscelyn Godwin. The Hypnerotomachia of Poliphili, subtitled "The Strife of Life in a Dream" is a romantic fantasy novel which establishes a template for many similar works to emerge in the five centuries following its initial publication: The Chemical Wedding of Christian Rosencreutz (1616) The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1785) The Wizard of Oz (1900) The Club Dumas (1996) filmed as "The Ninth Gate" (1999) and the novel "The Rule of Four" (2004). The real secrets hidden in the book are not cryptic codes but rather allegorical and thematic. Like the one tale in the Arabian Nights that reveals occult and Magical secrets, the Chapter describing the Isle of Venus near the end of the book carries the true meaning and reveals the esoteric secrets. So if you want to learn what is really hidden in this marvelous old book tune in and we will visit Poliphili's magical dream-world.

Host Poke Runyon reviews the Hermetic Hour's 2025 schedule, previewing new essays and dramatic readings including The Jesus Myth (Jan 23), The Quest for Prester John's Tomb (Feb 6), The Laws of Old (Apr 10), Magic and Hypnosis (May 1), Cult of the Sangreal (Jul 3), and The King of Fear (Oct 16 & 23).

Tune in for mythic history, Hermetic philosophy, magical practice, and serialized adventure -- and check the archives at magick.podbean.com for any episodes you miss.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will discuss the Mysterious Voynich Manuscript (Beinecke MS. 408) a late medieval herbal, alchemical and astrological book written in an unknown language and illustrated with pictures of plants and astronomical arrangements that are not of this world. Authorship was originally attributed to Roger Bacon (1214 - 1292) but carbon-dating placed the MS. in the early fifteenth century. John Dee and Edward Kelley have been suggested because of their similar Enochian language creation, but there is no proof of their involvement. The mysterious MS has fascinated both scholars and amateur researchers alike with solutions announced every year since 1943 when the U.S. Government code-breakers attempted to decipher it. A new solution was announced just a week before this broadcast and has already been discredited. The main reason most experts fail seems obvious to a Hermetic scholar. The Voynich MS was not written in cipher. It was written in a language and in an alphabet that has no analog on earth or in this earthly dimension. The key to finding the origin of the Voynich material might be found in another mysterious manuscript published in 1670. We will read this revelation as our contribution toward solving the mystery -- so put on your Indiana Jones fedora and listen in.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will review the classic study on Renaissance Magick by Dame Frances Yates (1899 - 1981), "Giordano Bruno and the Hermetic Tradition." (1964) This is a book that should be the cornerstone of any Hermetic student's library. Although the Italian philosopher and magician Giordano Bruno (1548 - 1600) is the main figure on which Yates centers her work, the book is in fact a broad study of Renaissance Hermetic Magick evolving from its Italian origins in the late Middle Ages and on through to Bruno's exposition of its post Copernican version. Hermetic Humanists accepted Copernicus but the Church refused to abandon the geocentric universe. Bruno, a Dominican monk was burned at the stake. Many considered him a Scientific martyr, but Yates contends that his heresies were Hermetic as well as scientific. So if you would like to explore the life and beliefs of Giordano Bruno, join us for a Hermetic Renaissance Faire.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the late Medieval astrologer magician Cecco d' Ascoli who was burned at the stake by the Inquisition in 1327 a.d. for publishing books connecting astrology with magick, necromancy and demonology. In several ways he presaged the sad career of Giordano Bruno who went to the stake 273 years later in 1600 for a similar offense. Cecco expounded his magick on a geocentric universe model, whereas Bruno paganized (or demonized) a later Copernican universe. Cecco d' Ascoli may be considered the father of Solomonic ceremonial mirror magick. One of his most heretical revelations was a description of summoning (evoking) the demon "Floron", in a mirror of polished steel. Floron had fallen from the Order of Cherubim and served under the Goetic king Amaymon. Such a mirror was described in Picatrix and later depictions of it reveal that it was in fact a hand mirror. After Cecco's execution magicians no longer wrote of magick mirrors but their use continued until the present day. We will draw primarily from Lynn Thorndike's "History of Magic and Experimental Science", Volume 2 (1923) with current material from Christopher Warnock. So if you want to find out where this dark mirror magick got started, tune in and we'll pull another Italian magus out of the fire.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the alleged Parallel world or trans-dimensional ariel Queendom of the Sylphs known as "Magonia" that was documented in medieval histories and has recently inspired a fantasy novel of that title "Magonia" by Maria Headley (2015) and was the main theme for UFO authority Jacques Vallee's "Passport to Magonia" (1969-93) which delt with the Magonian "close encounters" from the 9th century and other supernatural visitations recounted in European folklore as early examples of alien sightings, close encounters, and abductions, on through to the mysterious "airship" reports from the American West in the 1890s, comparing them with modern reports and investigations. Vallee contends, and as Hermetic devotees we certainly concur, that most of these events are inter-dimensional rather than extra-terrestrial; that there are parallel worlds co-existing with us as near to us as our furniture. This is also the main theme of our film Beyond Lemuria (2007-14) and, as I mentioned last week, is set forth in the old Hermetic book "Comte d'Gablis" (1760) -- So if you'd like to spend an hour in the absolute elsewhere, tune in and we'll take you down the rabbit hole.  

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a review of William Leonard Pickard’s magisterial novelized biography “The Rose of Paracelsus”(2019). This 650 page masterwork is already considered literature by the academic community. Like Mallory’s “The Morte de Arthur” “The Rose” was entirely written in prison. It recounts Pickard’s academic, scientific, and extra-legal career from the early 1960s until his arrest and subsequent imprisonment in 2000. It is beautifully written, fast paced and well structured. It is subtitled “On Secrets and Sacraments” which aptly describes what it delivers. Pickard was not only a psychedelic alchemist, he was also an intelligence asset (say researcher) for the Ivy League think tanks and indirectly for government agents. So conspiracy theory and even UFO buffs will be pulling quotes from The Rose for the next decade. Pickard connected with an international network of psychedelic alchemists and visited each in a world tour that reads like a James Bond adventure. Returning to the U.S. he visited his mentor the venerable psychedelic sage, Sasha Shulgin, who warned him against a demonic cultist who inhabited an abandoned underground missile base used for an LSD laboratory and an orgiastic temple. But like a character in a Richard Shaver or Sax Rohmer story Leonard Pickard was lured into this hellish underworld where psychedelics were used to enslave and abuse young women. And because this cult had better government connections than Pickard, he was set up to take the rap for their criminal activities. He was given two life sentences in Federal Prison. Fortunately he has just been released and we hope he will be listening to this broadcast. So. Turn on, Tune in, and learn what’s under the rose.  

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will revisit the 1908 occult classic "The Kybalion" by Three Initiates and reveal just who those three initiates were. In 2008 Philip Deslippe issued the "Definitive Edition of the Kybalion" which he claimed was entirely the work of William Walter Atkinson (1862 - 1932)In the next few years Golden Dawn scholar Mary Greer did more research and discovered that Anna Kingsford and Edward Maitland had written a version of the Hermetic corpus that presented the same seven principles as the Kybalion. Both Kingsford and Maitland had passed away by 1908 and Richard Smoley edited yet another Kybalion in 2018 (the centenary edition) returning the byline to the Three Initiates, declaring the authors to have been: William Walter Atkinson, Anna Kingsford and Edward Maitland. We might also mention that Golden Dawn scholar Robert A. Gilbert discovered that Anna Kingsford was actually the mysterious Fraulein Sprengle who helped create the Golden Dawn. Her connection is revealed in our book: "Secrets of the Golden Dawn Cypher Manuscript" which is available from < pokerunyon.com > So let's take another closer look at the Kybalion and its recent editions.  

The Hermetic Hour with your host Poke Runyon will lead a discussion of one of the most influential modern occult classics, the mysterious, mystical "Kybalion" by "Three Initiates." This little blue book has been treasured by students of the Western Mysteries since its first publication back in 1912. Our very special guest will be Rev. Paul Clark, Steward of the Fraternity of Hidden Light (and the Master Jesus from "Beyond Lemuria") who is perhaps the best qualified scholar-teacher to explain who the original authors were, where their philosophy came from, and why the book is still very important and meaningful. I will try to explain the connections to actual Greek and Greco-Egyptian (Hermetic) philosophy in this modern classic. This is going to be an enlightening hour unveiling the secrets of an obscure and mysterious work. Tune in and get inspired and demystified.

Also discussed: the need for a scholarly, annotated reissue, the book's historical context in Alexandria and Theosophy, and how these ideas surface in contemporary fiction such as The Dark Brotherhood.

The Hermetic Hour with Host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the secret meaning behind Abraham Merritt's classic Fantasy novel “The Moon Pool.” (1919). This Lost Race fantasy adventure story, similar to Rider Haggard's “She”was very influential on other fantasy writers, movie makers and comic book writers and artists. It was one of the major sources of the 1940s “Shaver Mystery”. Moon Pool is based on the idea that the Moon was pulled out of the Earth half a billion years ago when our young world was in a molten state, leaving a huge cavity in the area of the Central Pacific, which sealed itself over and eventually became a vast air filled cavern under the ocean. A subterranean world with its own flora, fauna and people. Its only connection to the surface world is the ancient ruined stone city of Nan Modal on Pohnpei Island in the Central Pacific Ocean. In these haunted ruins is a mysterious doorway that only opens when the Moon is full, revealing The Moon Pool from which rises a fantastic alien being that resembles an animated and illuminated kabbalistic Tree of Life. It is called “The Dweller” or “The Shining One” – a beautiful, alluring vampiric creature that stalks human prey, harvesting and feeding on their souls. The Dweller or Shining One is worshiped as a god by a faction of the Murians, who are as evil as their diety and are plotting to conquer the surface world. Into this setting come a group of adventurers from our world – so we can have a hero and a heroine to save both worlds ( love conquers all) -- and someone to tell the story. That, as the Irish say, is the gist of it. But there is a lot more behind the scenes in Moon Pool than just a good story. So If you want to learn the horrible secret of the Shining One then tune in and listen as we open the door to The Moon Pool.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on recent reports of an alleged underground war being waged by American special forces soldiers against a coalition of traitors and demonic aliens in a subterranean network of DUMBs (deep underground military bases ) connected to a tunnel network excavated and still inhabited by ancient Satanic humanoids usually described as “demons.” This vast underground network is said to extend worldwide. It was first revealed to the public in 1886 by French writer Alexandre St. Yves d, Alvedre, who claimed it was a subterranean kingdom under Tibet with tunnels that reached everywhere in the world. It was forgotten until 1922 when Ferdinand Ossendowski exposed it again in his best-seller “Beasts, Men and Gods.” Although he may have gotten the story from the Mad Baron of Mongolia who probably got it from St. Yves book, or perhaps from the drunken High-Lama of Mongolia who probably got it from the Mad Baron. In any case a Science-fiction writer (who was also mad) Richard S. Shaver re-ran it as series of truth-based fictional adventures in Amazing Stories right after the end of W.W. II. Shaver gathered a fan base of true-believers, including this reporter at age 16. This evil underworld was peopled by satanic mutants armed with ancient ray machines which could be used for mind-control, sadistic torture or seduction. It made great pulp fiction. Even after I outgrew Shaver, I couldn’t resist making a movie based on his Mystery. In 2007 we released BEYOND LEMURIA which includes all of the elements the present Underground War Reports are featuring: Government and military involvement, Satanic depravity, child-trafficking, and UFO super-science. Tonight we will focus on these current reports and the actual evidence of these underground facilities. So if you want to know what’s really down there stay tuned and we’ll go down the rabbit hole. 

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the first Ancient Astronaut Theorists, before Van Daniken, Sitchen, and the rest there was Richard Shaver and Ray Palmer and the Shaver Mystery. In recent years more and more of their fantastic 1940s revelations about Ancient extra-terrestrial Aliens and their high technology and their continued influence on, and interfearence in, earthly affairs (mind control and child trafficking and madness) has been confirmed and exploited by later whistle-blowers such as Tom Delonge, Corey Good, David Wilcock and others. It seems that Shaver and Palmer wrote their History Channel documentary scripts but are never credited as the source. Are these Ancient Aliens still with us? "Our original Ancient Astronaut theorists say yes!" So tune in and let's return to the thrilling days of yesteryear and revisit The Shaver Mystery.  

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the lost and forgotten magical fantasy novel by the infamous science fiction hoaxer Richard S. Shaver. Actually Shaver's editor Ray Palmer was the hoaxer; Shaver believed he was writing "the truth' about the survivors of ancient extraterrestrials still living in caverns below and plaguing surface people with mind-control ray machines. This dubious expose was called "The Shaver Mystery" and dominated the pages of AMAZING STORIES, America's most popular sci-fi mag in the 1940s. Shaver's weird tales of the subterranean "Dero World" are enjoying a modest revival in reprinted editions. We were among the first 21st century Shaver revivalists with our 2007 film BEYOND LEMURIA. In our new version of "The Shaver Mystery" we placed the Cavern World of the Deros in another dimension, a parallel world very close to our own. However Shaver himself always insisted that his underground Deros were in this physical dimension --whereas his editor Palmer insisted they were "disembodied spirits." Shaver was an empathic receiver, a rue mystic. He revealed what might be the real secret of his Cavern World in a marvelously crafted fantasy novel that never has had a title of its own. It appeared in three separate issues of AMAZING and FANTASTIC from 1947 through 1949. The first part was "The Tale of The Red Dwarf," next came the third part "Daughter of the Night," followed by the second part two years later called "Erdis Cliff." Shaver precedes Moorcock's fictional Multiverse, and even M-Theory by decades. -- So, if you want to discover a new dimension, tune in and we'll slide down the worm hole.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present the second half of his screen story "The King of Fear," a Narrative Treatment for a Motion Picture. This is the story on which the movie is based. It is written first person present tense. The Camera is telling the story and in this case the author is the camera. The story begins in ancient times with Alexander the Great trying to find a secret pass through the Himalayas into India, and jumps ahead to the 1880s when archaeologists uncover the remains of one his Macedonian soldiers. A discovery that launches an intrigue and conflict between British and Russian intelligence agents. Chief of which is the sinister immortal Mongolian Lama known as "The King of Fear." A pawn in this chess game is the beautiful Russian psychic Lana Varushka and the dashing hero is a Sufi yoga master Hajji Mahmoud Hassan (actually Captain Alan Vaughan of British army intelligence.)This is Great Game story in the manner of Kipling's Kim, and The Man who would be King. The story and the characters are all based on real events and real people. Although greatly fictionalized. Lana Varushka is to this story what Monty Python's "Brian" is to the New Testament. She's not the Avatrix of the New Age; she's just a very naughty girl. When this tale is complete we will offer it as an E-book on PokeRunyon.com.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present the first half of his screen story "The King of Fear," a Narrative Treatment for a Motion Picture. This is the story on which the movie is based. It is written first person present tense. The Camera is telling the story and in this case the author is the camera. The story begins in ancient times with Alexander the Great trying to find a secret pass through the Himalayas into India, and jumps ahead to the 1880s when archaeologists uncover the remains of one his Macedonian soldiers. A discovery that launches an intrigue and conflict between British and Russian intelligence agents. Chief of which is the sinister immortal Mongolian Lama known as "The King of Fear." A pawn in this chess game is the beautiful Russian psychic Lana Varushka and the dashing hero is a Sufi yoga master Hajji Mahmoud Hassan (actually Captain Alan Vaughan of British army intelligence.)This is Great Game story in the manner of Kipling's Kim, and The Man who would be King. The story and the characters are all based on real events and real people. Although greatly fictionalized. Lana Varushka is to this story what Monty Python's "Brian" is to the New Testament. She's not the Avatrix of the New Age; she's just a very naughty girl. When this tale is complete we will offer it as an E-book on PokeRunyon.com.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present the final discussion on the Tree of Life -- Kether and the Supernals. In our series on the Tree we have worked from the bottom up, and now we will have to shift into reverse and start down from above. We will outline the theory of four dimensions on the tree and how each dimension contains its own Tree. Kether of Malkuth being the heaven with God on his throne (if that's what you want) We will also deal with the two higher dimensions Atziluth and Briah and the Chokmah-Binah yin-yang effect, Our main text will be Dion Fortune's Mystical Qabalah which is the main source for both Gareth Knight and John Michael Greer's works on the the subject. There will be some surprises in store, so tune in and we will take heaven by storm.  

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the Fourth Sphere of the Qabalistic Tree of Life Chesed or Gedulah the sphere attributed to Jupiter the King of the planets, and the physical locus of the Third Eye. We consider Chesed the home of Dagon, Capricorn, the amphibian god of ancient Canaan, who is related to Poseidon the patron deity of ancient Atlantis which we also place in the Jovian sphere. Once again our texts will be Dion Fortune, Gareth Knight, Michael Greer, and our own Hermetic Yoga, Volume One. So if you want to visit the sphere of prosperity (and we could all use some of that) join us for an eye opener (Third eye that is).And those of you here in Southern California don't forget our Halloween Party Saturday night, with the infamous Mot Mass honoring the dead.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present another discussion in our on-going series on the Spheres or Sephiroth of the Tree of Life. Sphere number five Geburah, the Sphere of Mars. We will cover different concepts and attributes of this sphere. It is traditionally ruled by Samael, the Hebrew counterpart of Satan, but the G.D. changed the angelic attribution to Kamael, connoting a less evil character to Geburah --or making it a "necessary evil" if you will. This is reflected in the planetary spirits. The intelligence of Mars is protective whereas the spirit is aggressive. We place the Canaanite War-Goddess Anath in Geburah. Again we will refer to our texts Dion Fortune, Gareth Knight, John Greer and our Hermetic Yoga. So, if you want to get tough with Hermetic Qabalah, tune in and find out how to sharpen your magical sword.  

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present the second in our series of discussions on the Sephiroth of the Tree of Life, Yesod, the Foundation, the treasury of Images, the ninth sphere. Yesod is considered the transition point from the Yetzirah to the Ashia dimensions, from the etheric to the astral. It is related to the Moon and is called the sphere of the emotions, of memories and dreams. It is the sexual center both physically and spiritually. It is essential to the art of magick. Again our texts will be John Michael Greer's Paths of Wisdom, Gareth Knight's A Practical Guide to Qabalistic Symbolism and Dion Fortune's Mystical Qabalah. So tune in and come along with us as we delve into the mysteries of Yesod and Levanah.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the Sphere of Tiphareth, the sixth sephiroth on the Tree of Life. Tiphareth is called the Sphere of Beauty and is the center of the Tree just as the Sun is the center of the Solar System. It is the hub from which all the paths radiate and the downward reflection of the light from Kether. Mythologically it is the sphere of the dying gods, Osiris, Ba'al and Jesus, and thus the point of mystic transformation and enlightenment. Raphael is the presiding archangel and an agent of healing. Again our texts will be Dion Fortune, Gareth Knight and John Michael Greer. So join us for for an hour of inspiration as well get to the heart of old Adam Kadmon. Exam question: "How many kabbalists does it take to screw in a light bulb?" Tune in for the answer.  

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present the third in our series of lectures on the Spheres of the Tree of Life, The Seventh Sphere, Netsach, the sphere of nature attributed to Venus and the home of the Goddess Astarte. Netsach has been called "The Sphere of the Mysteries" and the womb of the creative process. The Goddess Herself is the Seventh Sphere in that She contains all the spheres of the Tree within Herself and is thus the supreme Initiator. Once again we will refer to texts by Gareth Knight, Dion Fortune, John Michael Greer. and our own Hermetic Yoga, Volume One. Come join us for some deep meditations and reflections on the most intimate aspects of occultism.  

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present the third in our series of discussions on the Sephiroth of the Qabalistic Tree of Life, the eighth sephira Hod which is called Splendor and the sphere of the intellect. Hod is considered the sphere of Magick because it is the workshop in which astral preforms are created and sent to Yesod for eventual manifestation in Malkuth. It is presided over by the archangel Michael (some say Raphael) and operated by the craftsman-alchemist gods of various traditions: Thoth, Hephaestus, Vulcan, Tubal Cain and in our Canaanite pantheon Kusor. It is also the sphere of the Elohim (the Gods) and the Beni Elohim sons of the Gods and Goddesses who are also the angels of the shemhamephorash, the 72 positive counterparts of the 72 spirits of the Goetia; certainly Pagan. We consider it Kusor's library, laboratory and workshop. Once again we will cite Dion Fortune, John Michael Greer, and Gareth Knight and our Hermetic Yoga book. You'll find the Beni Elohim in Bardon's 2nd Volume. So, if you want to get something done magically we will visit the place where creativity flourishes. 

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the Qabalistic Sphere of Malkuth and its significance in Hermetic Magick. This will be the first of a series of lectures starting at the bottom of the Tree of Life and working upwards following the path of the Serpent of Wisdom. These lectures will actually be lessons in the Associate Member Program which we will later collect in one package. They will be interspersed with current topics, such as significant new books, important guest interviews, and such, but you can expect at least one or two Otz Chiim lectures per month. --- Malkuth is not just the physical world of Ashiah below the Yetzirah astral, it is a most important magical-mystical realm in which a significant visions are received -- especially the Holy Guardian Angel experience, which is done entirely in Malkuth (each Sphere contains an entire Tree). Our texts will be Dion Fortune's Mystical Qabalah and Gareth Knight's A Practical Guide to Qabalistic Symbolism. Tune in and start the long climb upward.  

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a special program discussing the O.T.A.'s Pathworkings beyond the Sphere of Chesed. These Paths lead to the re-manifested Sphere of Da'ath, which in the Eleven Sphere Tree becomes Saturn, the beginning of the physical universe and the gateway to the Abyss. This concept and its practical applications are covered in "New Tarot Trumps for an Eleven Sphere Tree of Life" in THE SEVENTH RAY, Book III, "The Red Ray." We will also discuss the Golden Dawn's eleven sphere tree and the idea of the Tree before and after "The Fall." This is a Key lecture and lesson in our study program. So tune in and we will journey to Mot's Back-o'-Beyond.

The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the Pagan Hermetic origins of the Sepher Yetzirah. This ancient book is the Philosophical and mystical foundation of the Medieval Hebrew Kabbalah. And eventually the Hermetic Qabalah which seems to recover its actual origins. It is traditionally attributed, by the Hebrews, to Father Abraham and was said to have been written by him in Harran where he is said to have “Made Souls” The Harranians were star-worshipers who preserved the star lore of ancient Babylon and eventually joined the Pythgorean - Hermetic magical tradition. The Sepher Yetzirah or Book of Creation describes how the Universe was created by the Word of God, using the proto-Hebrew Phoenician alphabet, the first alpha-numeric letter system. Which acquired twenty-four letters to accommodate the entire celestial sphere and the elements, and then became the origin of ancient Greek—which passed on its alpha-numeric heritage to Medieval Hebrew and Arabic. It has even been suggested that the second century Valentinian Magician Marcus wrote the earliest version of the Sepher Yetzirah. Even Gershom Scholem admits that the philosophy of the Sepher Yetzirah is Pythagorean. So, if you want to delve in to the depths of the mysteries join us for an hour of speculation on the origins of The Book of Creation. 

We have had a photocopy of a 300 year old magical manuscript in our archives for fifty years and have used it or research, study, rituals, and publications but until we began a serious study of Valentinian Gnosticism we had no idea what secrets were hidden in this Elizabethan era manuscript that we had been using for years. The structure of the Celestial and Terrestrial versions of the Tetragrammaton was set forth in the First Conjuration of the Goetia. Elizabethan magicians were NeoPlatonists and Hermetics. They were partial to Christian Gnosticism and venerated the most high God, honoring Jehovah as the God of the Earth Sphere. I now wonder if Sloane 2731 influenced us to realize the two Tetragrammatons years before we discovered them in the text of the First Conjuration.