A Gnostic’s Progress – Magic and the Path of Awakening
Steve Dee
The Universe Machine. ISBN 978-0-9954904-1-3
A Gnostic’s Progress can be found on Amazon, British sales
A Kindle edition is also available, with some illustrations in colour. To order, and more information.
When I was reviewing “Chaos Craft”, co-authored with Julian Vayne, I asked Julian for a little more information about Steve and this is what he wrote…
“A little bit about Steve Dee; he is a chaos magician, AMOOKOS initiate and gnostic explorer who lives in Devon. He likes cats, drums, body surfing and very loud music. NB AMOOKOS Arcane Magick Order of the Knights of Shambhala.”
Little did I know that only two months later I would be sitting in Julian’s kitchen interviewing him and Steve 🙂
See the interview elsewhere in this edition of WR Online, Lammas 2016.
It was also whilst I was there that Steve gave me a copy of his new book “A Gnostic’s Progress… Magic and the Path of Awakening”.
I was already used to the way in which Steve wrote, which is a pleasure to read. Delightfully informative, without being pedantic, he writes from his own experiences and self-exploration. He introduces himself as “both an aspiring Process theologian and a creative magical practitioner” He continues: “Process Theology is deeply interested in what the emergence of religious myth reveals about the shape and concerns of human consciousness”.
Including several exercises and practical advice Steve navigates us through a Gnostic landscape. “Sculpting your system” is one of the exercises he describes, whereby “internal processes, such as feelings, experiences, or perceptions…” are externalised either with objects, or physical gestures/body sculpts. This reminded me of my own discovery of the importance of “muscle memory”. Only when we integrate an emotion or experience fully, that we can actually recall the physical sensations, can we truly talk of assimilation. Anyone who works magically knows how important this is.
This is what Steve is describing as “Magic and the Path of Awakening”. Awareness, consciousness, alertness leading to inspiration and being creative.
“Writing your own gospel…” is the title he gives to Exercise 4. From stage 1 of Reading/lectio to stage 5 Creation/creatio.
He gives us a couple of examples of how to stimulate this process of awakening ones’ magical self, including the “Mindful Mass to Sophia, Divine Wisdom”.
Steve writes at the end of this exercise – and perhaps a message to all of us now:
“When inspiration takes hold it may be that your approach will be less linear! Your acts of creation may be in making collage, cooking a great meal for friends or having a proper dance around your kitchen. So much of the stuckness that we experience comes from our need to get it right, but like many things in life most of us do better when we are allowed to relax a bit, to be curious and the explore things playfully.
I hope you have fun playing with this approach and allow yourself the space to explore how the things you love can inspire the creation of your own art. Peace, love and freedom to those willing to respond to their inner Muse!”
Wonderful stuff!
(Steve Dee with his book 🙂 courtesy of the Blog of Baphomet)
Also included in this edition, an interview with Dr. Lloyd Keane, “Conversations with a Cosmonaut”. Some of his artwork is also included in this volume. FFI: www.lloydkeane.com
