Draugen wrote:First off, Hello all! I'm new here, and I pretend to stay and learn about the occult, not just created this account and will stop using it, anyways, I started studying magick, gathered a couple of books and I'm currently reading some of them, but with time some questions grew inside me, I know they are too advanced and I just want to clarify that I'm not trying to summon anything yet, I know it take years of practice and inner development, it's not something I want to do soon, anyway, to the questions!
My doubts are related to the whole summoning system:
1)When I see a sigil or a summoning ritual, where did it come from? who or what invented that sigil and why a sigil can communicate with it's related entity?
2) How do we know we are summoning something that the book is refering to? could be a wrong information on purpose so you can be screwed, how we know that when we are summoning an angel, that it's really an angel?
3) When you ask for a favor, you are in debt right? what kind of things you have to do to pay for your wish to be granted? I don't think they would do awesome favors for free
4) When you summon a spirit why it's constantly testing your protection and trying to break it? they don't like to be summoned?
And here we go again. It is, so to say, very dependent on the stage of “theory perspective”, where you are standing. I will go again with the classical perspectives of general spiritism and animism, but note that there are plenty of other perspectives, I will just try to give an impulse on how one can look onto this topic so that you may get your own picture (which is the most important part).
Also, doubt and paranoia are one of the most annoying enemies you will encounter during your practice. Be prepared to face them as it is you who you are fighting as they both are emotions also based inside you.
In short, what are spiritism and animism?
Very bluntly spoken spiritism treats the entities and forces as external factors originating from the surrounding world or whatever plain while animism basically assumes their origin inside yourself and is the more psychological perspectives. Most common points of views are somewhat a hybrid form of those two mixed with specific cultural backgrounds of the individuals.
Now I will try to answer your questions considering both directions and how we would theoretically approach the matter:
1) When I see a sigil or a summoning ritual, where did it come from? who or what invented that sigil and why a sigil can communicate with it's related entity?
Spiritism: Some time ago the one who wrote it down might have got it from an external entity or had a moment of inspiration where he got to draw it. Or he simply came up with it. Symbols (and sigils are no exception) often undergo a change of meaning during the ages, best example is the sun wheel, meaning that it meaning today might not be the same as it was 2000 years ago.
Animistic view: It was a human like you.
Summary: However you see it, from the point of the spiritism or the animism if he received it from an “external force” or as a shortly result of inspiration or just a joke, it is always a human who writes it down.
2) How do we know we are summoning something that the book is refering to? could be a wrong information on purpose so you can be screwed, how we know that when we are summoning an angel, that it's really an angel?
Hmm, this one is very difficult to answer simply based on the two paradigms, but I will try:
Spiritistic view: Simply when the “thing” you call upon stands before you or makes you feel that it is here you know that it is here. Many synonyms for that type of awareness are going around, “astral senses”, “third eye”, “intuition”, etc. It is not uncommon to ask the summoned entity a question to verify its identity or using a special symbol which acts as sort of “filter” like the mentioned sigils.
Animistic view: Here you don’t really have the problem with the identity of the summoned thing as it will always be a projected part of yourself which you summoned. Ritual equipment and stuff therefore works as anchor so that the right “aspect” comes to the surface.
In regards to the wrong information, there is no real “correct” information, nobody can give you a 100% how it is perfect-assurance. Though there is always a kind of rough way in systems how to approach things and certain “teachers” tend to test their future students with wrong information or simply don’t give a fuck.
3) When you ask for a favor, you are in debt right? what kind of things you have to do to pay for your wish to be granted? I don't think they would do awesome favors for free
Sprititism: It depends a lot on the system and its entities, in many paradigms it is not uncommon to give some sort of sacrifice or offer beforehand or honor the entity you call upon regularly (like shinto). Even some sort of “partnership” might form. Bonds are also a form of sacrifice, don’t forget that!
Animism: You don’t have to “pay” in a sense to make up for something, it also only serves as mental focus and depends on the paradigm and is also excluded in some systems (the commanding the spirit and drive it away then-way of desecrated would be an example for that)
4) When you summon a spirit why it's constantly testing your protection and trying to break it? they don't like to be summoned?
Spiritism: Again it depends a lot on the system and the nature of the entity. Dragging a devil up from hell to do your bidding without a thank you or something like that might not bring them into a good mood. On the other hand, those constructs/entities are so abstract, so different that it is difficult to graps that we tend to project some things like anger or so upon them. And then there is this always present paranoia that you are tested even if you are not…
Animism: You are dealing with plains of your own nature which are very very deep down and when coming up without control they are even responsible for serious mental problems. Therefore a grounded mental state is required to deal with them to withstand what might be dragged up like emotions or traumata which you thought you buried long ago.
I hope this gives some thought impulses for your own picture. Don’t forget it is you who wants to shape his surrounding, himself and maybe the world if it is now with doing some strange symbols, calling upon unspeakable names or whatever you prefer.