remark this text can also be found in pure pdf online, where it is more read able.

this is audio extracts of the book of dion fortune, from nearly 100 years ago.
title was,
PSYCHIC SELFDEFENSE.
of 
Dion Fortune.
 
remark this old book can now be read online as pdf.
and the reading here can be followed via the pdf edition online.
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PREFACE.
IT is with a sense of the seriousness of the issues involved that I set myself 
to the task of writing a book on psychic 
attack and the best methods of defence against it. The undertaking is beset with 
pitfalls. It is hardly possible to give 
practical information on the methods of psychic defence without at the same time 
giving practical information on the 
methods of psychic attack. It is not without reason that initiates have always 
guarded their secret science behind closed 
doors. To disclose sufficient to be adequate without disclosing sufficient to be 
dangerous is my problem. But as so 
much has already been made known concerning the esoteric teachings,  and as the 
circle of students of the occult is 
becoming rapidly wider every day,  it may well be that the time has now come for 
plain speaking. The task is not of my 
seeking,  but as it has come into my hands,  I will do my best to discharge it 
honourably,  making available the 
knowledge which has come to me in the course of many years' experience of the 
strange by, ways of the mind which the 
mystic shares with the lunatic. This knowledge has not been attained without 
cost,  nor,  I suspect,  will the divulging of it 
be altogether free from cost,  either. 
I have endeavoured to avoid,  as far as possible,  the use of second, hand 
material. We all know the person who has a 
friend whose friend saw the ghost with her own eyes. That is not of very much 
use to anybody. What we need is to 
have the eye, witness under cross, examination. For this reason I have not drawn 
upon the vast literature of the subject 
for illustrations of my thesis,  but have preferred to rely upon cases that have 
come within the range of my own 
experience and which I have been able to examine. 
I think I may fairly claim to have practical,  and not merely theoretical,  
qualifications for the task. My attention was first 
turned to psychology,  and subsequently to occultism as the real key to 
psychology,  by the personal experience of a 
psychic attack which left me with shattered health for a considerable period. I 
know for myself the peculiar horror of 
such an experience,  its insidiousness,  its potency,  and its disastrous 
effects on mind and body. 
It is not easy to get people to come forward and bear witness to psychic 
attacks. Firstly,  because they know there is very 
little likelihood of their being believed,  and that they will be more likely to 
earn themselves a reputation for mental 
unbalance than for anything else. Secondly,  because any tampering with the 
foundations of the personality is an 
experience of such peculiar and unique horror that the mind shrinks from the 
contemplation of it and one cannot talk 
about. 
I am of the opinion that psychic attacks are far commoner than is generally 
realised,  even by occultists themselves. 
Certainly the general public has no conception at all of the sort of things that 
are done by people who have a knowledge 
of the powers of the human mind and set to work to exploit them. I am convinced 
that this factor played a large part in 
the witch, cult,  and was the real cause of the universal horror and detestation 
of the witch. These powers have always 
been known to students of occultism,  but nowadays they are known and used by 
people who would be exceedingly 
surprised to find who are their fellow, practitioners. 

Mrs. Eddy,  the founder of Christian Science,  stumbled on to these 
methods empirically without ever acquiring any rational knowledge as to their 
modus operandi. She endeavoured to 
teach them in such a way that they could only be used for good and their power 
for evil should be concealed; but that 
she herself was well aware of their possibilities if abused is witnessed by the 
dread of what she called "Malicious Animal Magnetism, " which shadowed her whole 
life. 


The methods of Christian Science,  without its strict discipline and careful 
organisation,  were developed and exploited 
by the innumerable schools and sects of the New Thought Movement. In many of the 
developments,  the religious aspect 
was lost sight of,  and they simply became a method of mental manipulation for 
purely personal ends,  though not 
necessarily deliberately evil. Their exponents advertised that they would teach 
the art of salesmanship,  of making 
oneself popular and dominant in society,  of attracting the opposite sex,  of 
drawing to oneself money and success. The 
amazing number of these courses advertised shows their popularity; in a recent 
issue of an American magazine I 
counted advertisements for sixty, three different courses in various forms of 
mind, power. They would not be so popular 
if they achieved no results at all. Let us consider some of these advertisements 
and see what they indicate,  reading 
between the lines and drawing our own conclusions. 


Examples of those can say.
"Transfer your thoughts to others. Send for free folder,  Telepathy,  or Mental 
Radio." 
"Troubled,  health,  love,  money? Let me help you. No failures,  instructions 
being followed. Strictly personal and 
professional. Careful as family physician. Five dollars must accompany enquiry. 
Money back if not satisfied." 
"What do you want? Whatever it is,  we can help you to get it. Just give us the 
chance by writing for 'Clouds Dispelled.' 
Absolutely free. You will be delighted." 

"HYPNOTISM. Would you possess that strange mysterious power which charms and 
fascinates men and women,  
influences their thoughts,  controls their desires and makes you supreme master 
of every situation? Life is full of 
alluring possibilities for those who master the secrets of hypnotic influence,  
for those who develop their magnetic 
powers. You can learn at home,  cure diseases and bad habits without drugs,  win 
the friendship and love of others,  
increase your income,  gratify your ambitions,  drive worry and trouble from 
your mind,  improve your memory,  
overcome domestic difficulties,  give the most thrilling entertainment ever 
witnessed and develop a wonderfully 
magnetic will power that will enable you to overcome all obstacles to your 
success. 
"You can hypnotise people instantly,  quick as a flash,  put yourself or anyone 
else to sleep at any hour of the day or 
night,  or banish pain and suffering. Our free book tells you the secrets of 
this wonderful science. It explains exactly 
how you can use this power to better your condition in life. It is 
enthusiastically endorsed by ministers of the gospel,  
lawyers,  doctors,  business men and society women. It benefits everybody. It 
costs nothing. We give it away to advertise 
our institution." 


These are a few specimens chosen from among the sixty,  three similar 
advertisements counted in this single issue of a 
popular weekly magazine. They are given in extenso,  in no way edited save by 
the omission of addresses. 
Let us now consider what such advertisements as these signify from the point of 
view of the persons to whom they are 
not addressed,  the persons over whom the reader is presumed to want to acquire 
power. What will be their position 
should he break the tenth commandment and covet his neighbour's wife,  or his 
ox,  or his ass,  or any of his other 
valuables? Supposing the diligent student of these methods wants something he 
ought not to have? Supposing he is on 
the shady side of the law? Or is nursing a sense of injury and desires to be 
revenged? Or merely loves power for its 
own sake? What is the fate of the cannon,  fodder that supplies the student of 
mind, power with the material for his 
experiments? What does it feel like to be dominated by these methods,  and what 
results may ultimately be obtained by 
a competent experimenter? 
Let me give my own experience,  painful though it is,  for someone has got to be 
the first to come forward and uncover 
these abuses which are only able to flourish because of the general failure to 
realise their significance. 
As a young girl of twenty I entered the employment of a woman who I now know 
must have had a considerable 
knowledge of occultism obtained during a long residence in India,  and 
concerning which she used to drop hints that I 
could make nothing of at the time,  but which,  in the light of later knowledge,  
I have come to understand. It was her 
custom to control her staff by means of her knowledge of mind, power,  and she 
had a steady succession of most 
peculiar breakdowns among the people working under her. 
I had not been with her very long when she wanted me to give evidence in a 
lawsuit. She was a woman of violent 
temper,  and had dismissed an employee without notice and without wages,  and he 
was sueing her for the money due to 

him. She wanted me to say that his behaviour had been such that she was 
justified in thus dismissing him. Her method 
of collecting my evidence was to look into my eyes with a concentrated gaze and 
say,  "Such and such things 
happened." Fortunately for all concerned I had kept a diary and had a day to day 
record of the whole transaction. If it 
had not been for this, I should not have known where I was. At the end of the 
interview, I was dazed and exhausted,  and 
lay down on my bed in my clothes and slept the sleep of utter exhaustion till 
next morning. I suppose I slept for about 
fifteen hours. 
Soon after this she wanted my testimony again. She wished to get rid of my 
immediate superior,  and wanted to find 
sufficient grounds to justify her in doing so. She repeated her previous 
maneuvers,  but this time I had not got a diary 
record to fall back upon,  and to my intense surprise I found myself agreeing 
with her in a series of entirely baseless 
charges against the character of a man I had no reason to believe to be 
otherwise than perfectly straight. The same 
exhaustion and the same dead sleep descended upon me immediately after this 
interview as aft& the preceding one,  but 
an additional symptom now manifested itself. As I walked out of the room at the 
end of the interview I had a curious 
sensation as if my feet were not in the place I expected them to be. Anyone who 
has walked across a carpet that is 
bellying up with the underfloor draught, will know what I mean. Occultists will 
recognise it as having to do with the extrusion of the etheric double. 
The next incident to occur in this curious menage, did not concern myself,  but 
another girl,  an orphan with considerable 
means. My employer kept this girl constantly with her,  and finally persuaded 
her to put the whole of her capital into her 
schemes. However,  trustees descended in wrath,  forced my employer to disgorge,  
and took the girl away with them 
then and there,  leaving all her belongings behind,  to be packed up and sent on 
to her afterwards. 
Another incident followed quick on the heels of this one. There was an elderly 
woman in the establishment who was 
slightly "minus" mentally. A dear old thing,  but childlike and eccentric. My 
employer now turned her attention to her,  
and we watched the same process of domination beginning. In this case there were 
no trustees to interfere,  and the poor 
old lady was being persuaded to take her affairs out of the hands of her 
brother,  who had hitherto managed them,  and 
commit them to the tender mercies of my employer. My suspicions had by now been 
thoroughly aroused. It was more 
than I could bear to see old Auntie rooked,  so I took a hand in the game,  woke 
"Auntie" up to the situation,  pushed 
her belongings into a box,  and got her off to her relatives while my employer 
was away for a brief absence. 
I hoped my complicity in the affair would not become known,  but I was soon 
disillusioned. My employer's secretary 
came to my room one night,  after "lights out, " and warned me that the Warden,  
as we called our employer,  had found 
out who it was that had engineered "Auntie's" escape,  and I had better look out 
for trouble. Knowing her to be of an 
exceedingly revengeful nature,  I knew that my best refuge was flight,  but 
flight was not altogether easy to achieve. The 
institution in which I was employed was an educational one,  and a term's notice 
had to be given before leaving. I did 
not look forward to working out that term under the unchecked control of a 
spiteful woman. So I watched for an 
opportunity that should justify me in walking out. With my employer's 
uncontrolled temper it was not long to seek. I 
was up late the following night packing,  in preparation for my intended flight,  
when there came to my room another 
member of the staff,  a girl who seldom spoke,  had no friends,  and went about 
her work like an automaton. I had never 
had any dealings with her,  and was more than surprised at her visit. 
It was soon explained,  however. 
"You are going to leave?" she said. 
I admitted that it was so. 
"Then go without seeing the Warden. You will not get away if you don't. I have 
tried several times,  and I cannot get 
away." 

However,  I was young and confident in my untried strength,  with no means of 
gauging the forces arrayed against me,  
and next morning,  dressed for the journey and suitcase in hand,  I went down 
and bearded my formidable employer in 
her den,  determined to tell her what I thought of her and her methods,  quite 
unsuspicious that anything save ordinary 
knavery and bullying was afoot. 
I was not allowed to get started with my carefully prepared speech,  however. As 
soon as she learnt that I was leaving, she said: 

"Very well,  if you want to go,  go you shall. But before you go you have got to 
admit that you are incompetent and have 
no selfconfidence." 
To which I replied,  being still full of fight,  that if I were incompetent,  
why did she not dismiss me herself,  and anyway,  
was the product of her own trainingschool. Which remark naturally did not 
improve matters. 
Then commenced a most extraordinary litany. She resumed her old trick of fixing 
me with an intent gaze,  and said: 
"You are incompetent,  and you know it. You have no selfconfidence,  and you 
have got to admit it." 
To which I replied,  "That is not true. I know my work,  and you know I know 
it." 
Now there was no doubt that much could be said concerning my competency in my 
first post at the age of twenty,  with a great deal of responsibility on my 
shoulders,  and newly inducted into a disorganised department; but nothing 
whatever could be said against my selfconfidence,  except that I had too much of 
it. I was quite prepared to rush in where archangels would have hung back in the 
collar. 

My employer did not argue or abuse me. She kept on with these two statements 
repeated like the responses of a litany. I entered her room at ten o'clock,  and 
I left it at two. She must have said these two phrases several hundreds of 
times. I entered it a strong and healthy girl. I left it a mental and physical 
wreck and was ill for three years. 

Some instinct warned me that if I admitted I were incompetent and had no 
selfconfidence, my nerve would be broken,  and I would never be good for 
anything afterwards,  and I recognised that this peculiar manoeuvre on the part 
of my employer was an act of revenge. Why I did not pursue the obvious remedy of 
taking refuge in flight,  I do not know,  but by the time one realises that 
something abnormal is toward on these occasions,  one is more or less glamoured,  
and just as the bird before the snake cannot use its wings,  so one cannot move 
or turn away. 

Gradually everything began to feel unreal. All I knew was that I had to hold on 
at all costs to the integrity of my soul. 
Once I agreed to her suggestions,  I was done for. We went on with our litany. 
But I was getting near the end of my resources. I had a curious sensation as if 
my field of vision were narrowing. This,  I believe,  is a characteristic 
phenomenon of hysteria. Out of the corners of my eyes I could see two walls of 
darkness creeping up behind me on either side,  as if one stood with one's back 
to the angle of a screen,  and it were being slowly closed upon one. I knew that 
when those two walls of darkness met,  I should be broken. 
Then a curious thing happened. I distinctly heard an inner voice say: "Pretend 
you are beaten before you really are. Then she will let up the attack and you 
will be able to get away." What this voice was,  I have never known. 
I immediately followed its advice. With my tongue in my cheek I asked my 
employer's pardon for everything I had ever done or ever should do. I promised 
to remain on in my post and to go softly all the days of my life. I remember I 
went down on my knees to her,  and she purred complacently over me,  well 
satisfied with the morning's work,  as she had every reason to be. 

Then she let me go,  and I went up to my room and lay down on the bed. But I 
could not rest until I had written her a letter. What that letter contained,  I 
do not know. As soon as I had written it and put it where she would get it,  I 
fell into a sort of stupor,  and lay in this state with my mind completely in 
abeyance till the following evening. That is to say,  
from two o'clock one afternoon till about eight o'clock of the following day,  
thirty hours. It was a cold spring day with snow on the ground. A window close 
to the head of the bed was wide open and the room unheated. I had no covering 
over me,  but I felt neither cold nor hunger,  and all the processes of the body 
were in abeyance. I never stirred. 

Heartbeat and respiration were very slow,  and continued so for several days. 
I was found eventually by the housekeeper,  who revived me by the simple 
application of a good shaking and a cold sponge. I was dazed,  and disinclined 
to move or even to eat. I was left to lie in bed,  my work taking care of 
itself,  the housekeeper coming to look at me from time to time,  but making no 
comment on my condition. My employer never showed herself. 

After about three days my especial friend,  who thought I had left the house,  
learnt of my continued presence,  and came along to see me; an act requiring 
some courage,  for our mutual employer was a formidable antagonist. She asked me 
what had happened at my interview with the Warden,  but I could not tell her. My 
mind was a blank and all memory of that interview had gone as if a sponge had 
been passed over a slate. All I knew was that out of the depths of my mind a 
most terrible state of fear was rising up and obsessing me. Not fear of any 
thing or person. Just plain fear without an object,  but none the less terrible 
for that. I lay in bed with all the physical symptoms of intense fear. Dry 
mouth,  sweating palms,  thumping heart and shallow,  hasty breathing. My heart 
was beating so hard that at each beat a loose brass knob on the bedstead 
rattled. Fortunately for me,  my friend saw that something was seriously wrong 
and she sent for my family,  who fetched me away. They were exceedingly 
suspicious. 

The Warden was exceedingly uncomfortable, but no one could prove anything,  so 
nothing was said. My mind was a blank. I was thoroughly cowed and very 
exhausted,  and my one desire was to get away. 
I did not recover,  however,  as had been expected. The intensity of the 
symptoms wore off,  but I continued to be exceedingly easily tired,  as if I had 
been drained of all vitality. I knew that,  somewhere at the back of my mind,  
was hidden the memory of a terrible experience,  and I dared not think of it,  
because if I did,  the shock and strain would be so severe that my mind would 
give way altogether. My chief consolation was an old school arithmetic book,  
and I used to spend hour upon hour doing simple sums to keep my mind from racing 
itself to pieces in wondering what had been done to me and sidling up towards 
the memory,  and then shying away from it like a frightened horse. Finally I 
gained some measure of peace by coming to the conclusion that I had simply had a 
breakdown from overwork,  and that the whole queer transaction was the fruit of 
my imagination. And yet there was a lingering feeling that it was real and this 
feeling would not let me rest. 

About a year after the incident,  my health still being very poor,  I went away 
to the country to recuperate,  and there came across a friend who had been on 
the spot at the time of my breakdown. It had apparently caused a good deal of 
talk,  and I found here one who was not inclined to explain away my experience,  
but asked pertinent questions. Another new friend became interested in my case 
and haled me off to the family doctor,  who bluntly gave it as his opinion that 
I had been hypnotised. It was before the days of psycho therapy,  and his 
ministrations to a mind diseased were limited to patting me on the back and 
giving me a tonic and bromide. The tonic was useful,  but the bromide was not,  
as it lowered my powers of resistance,  and I speedily discarded it,  preferring 
to put up with my discomfort rather than to render myself defenceless. For all 
the time I was obsessed by the fear that this strange force,  which had been 
applied to me so effectually,  would be applied again. But although I feared 
this mysterious power,  which I now realised was abroad in the world,  I cannot 
tell what a relief it was to me to find that the whole transaction was not an 
hallucination,  but an actual fact that one could rise up and cope with. 

I obtained my release from the bondage of this fear by facing the whole 
situation and determining to find out exactly what had been done to me and how I 
could protect myself against a repetition of the experience. It was an 
exceedingly unpleasant process,  in fact the reaction caused by recovering the 
lost memories was only a little less violent than the 
original one; but I finally succeeded in freeing myself from my hag, ridden 
condition of fear,  although it was a very long time before my physical health 
became normal. My body was like an electric battery that has been completely 
discharged. It took a long time to charge up again,  and every time it was used 
before the charging was completed,  it ran down again rapidly. For a long time I 
had no reserves of energy,  and after the least exertion, would fall into a dead 
sleep at any hour of the day. In the language of occultism, the etheric double 
had been damaged,  and leaked prana. 

It did not become normal until I took initiation into the occult order in which 
I subsequently trained. Within an hour of the ceremony I felt a change,  and it 
is only upon the rarest occasions since then,  after some psychic injury,  that 
I have had a temporary return of those depleting attacks of exhaustion. 
I have told this story in detail because it is a useful illustration of the 
manner in which the little, known powers of the mind can be abused by an 
unscrupulous person. First, hand experience is of far more value than any amount 
of illustration from the pages of history,  however well authenticated. 
If such a transaction had taken place during the Middle Ages,  the parish priest 
would have organised a witch, hunt. 

In the light of my own experiences I am not at all surprised that people who had 
acquired a reputation for the practice of witchcraft were lynched,  the methods 
are so terrible and so intangible. We may think the records of the witch, trials 
are ridiculous,  with their tales of wax images melting in front of slow fires,  
or the crucifying of christened toads,  or the reciting of little jingles,  such 
as "Horse,  hattock,  To ride,  to ride." But if we understand the use of mind, 
power we soon realise that these things were simply aids to concentration. There 
is no essential difference between sticking pins into a wax image of an enemy 
and burning candles in front of a wax image of the Virgin. You may think that 
both these practices are gross superstition,  but you can hardly think that one 
is real and potent and deny reality and potency to the other. "The weapons of 
our warfare are not carnal may as truly be said of the practitioners of Black 
Magic as of the Church. 

My own case belongs more to the realm of psychology than to occultism,  the 
method employed being an application of hypnotic power to improper ends; I have 
given it,  however,  because I am convinced that hypnotic methods are very 
largely used in Black Magic,  and that telepathic suggestion is the key to a 
large proportion of its phenomena. I cite my own case,  painful as it is to me 
to do so,  because an ounce of experience is worth a pound of theory. It was 
this experience which led me to take up the study of analytical psychology,  and 
subsequently of occultism. As soon as I touched the deeper aspects of practical 
psychology and watched the dissection of the mind under psycho, analysis,  I 
realised that there was very much more in the mind than was accounted for by the 
accepted psychological theories. I saw that we stood in the centre of a small 
circle of light thrown by accurate scientific knowledge, but around us was a 
vast,  circumambient sphere of darkness,  and in that darkness dim shapes were 
moving. It was in order to understand the hidden aspects of the mind that I 
originally took up the study of occultism. I have had my full share of the 
adventures of the Path; have known men and women who could indubitably be ranked 
as adepts; seen phenomena such as no seance room has ever known,  and borne my 
share in it; taken part in psychic feuds,  and stood my watch on the roster of 
the occult police force which,  under the Masters of the Great White Lodge,  
keeps guard over the nations,  each according to its race; kept the occult vigil 
when one dare not sleep while the sun is below the horizon; and hung on 
desperately,  matching my staying, power against the attack until the moon, 
tides changed and the force of the onslaught blew itself out. 


And through all these experiences I was learning to interpret occultism in the 
light of psychology and psychology in the light of occultism,  the one 
counterchecking and explaining the other. 
Because of my specialised knowledge people came to me when an occult attack was 
suspected,  and their experience reinforces and supplements my own. Moreover,  
there is a considerable literature on the subject to be found in quarters 
where one would least expect it,  in accounts of folk, lore and ethnology,  in 
the State Records of witch, trials,  and even under the guise of fiction. These 
independent records,  by people in no way interested in psychic phenomena,  
confirm the statements made by those who have experienced occult attacks. 
On the other hand,  we have to distinguish very carefully between psychic 
experience and subjective hallucination; we have to be sure that the person who 
complains of a psychic assault is not hearing the reverberation of his own 
dissociated complexes. The differential diagnosis between hysteria,  insanity 
and psychic attack is an exceedingly delicate and difficult operation,  for so 
frequently a case is not clear, cut,  more than one element being present; a 
severe psychic attack causing a mental breakdown,  and a mental breakdown laying 
its victim open to invasion from the Unseen. All these factors have to be borne 
in mind when investigating an alleged occult attack,  and it shall be my task 
in these pages not only to indicate the methods of occult defence,  but also to 
show the methods of differential diagnosis. 

It is very necessary,  with so much occult knowledge about,  that people should 
know an occult attack when they see it. 
These things are much more common than is generally realised. The recent tragedy 
in Iona gives point to this assertion. 

No occultist is under any illusion as to that death being from natural causes. 
In my own experience I have known of similar deaths. 
In my novel,  The Secrets of Dr. Taverner,  there were presented,  under the 
guise of fiction,  a number of cases illustrative of the hypotheses of occult 
science. Some of these stories were built up to show the operation of the 
invisible forces; others were drawn from actual cases; and some of these were 
written down rather than written up in order to render them readable by the 
general public. 
So much firsthand experience,  confirmed by independent evidence,  should not go 
unregarded,  especially since rational explanations are difficult to find save 
in terms of the occult hypotheses. It may be possible to explain away each 
individual case mentioned in these pages by alleging hallucination,  fraud,  
hysteria,  or plain lying,  but it is not possible to explain the sum, total of 
them in this way. There cannot be so much smoke without some fire. It is not 
possible that the prestige of the magician in antiquity and the dread of the 
witch in the Middle Ages could have arisen without some 
basis in experience. The vapourings of the wise woman would be no more heeded 
than those of the village idiot if no painful consequences had ever been found 
to follow upon them. Fear was the motive of these persecutions,  and fear 
founded upon bitter experience; for it was not officialdom which incited the 
witch, burnings,  but whole country, sides that rose up for a lynching. The 
universal horror of the witch must have some cause behind it. 

The labyrinthine windings of the LefthandPath are as extensive as they are 
devious; but while exposing them in something,  at any rate,  of their horror,  
I still maintain that the RighthandPath of initiation and occult knowledge is a 
way to the loftiest mystical experiences and a means of lifting the burden of 
human suffering. Not every student of this knowledge necessarily abuses it; 
there are many, many,  the great majority,  who hold it selflessly in trust for 
mankind, using it to heal and bless and redeem that which is lost. It may well 
be asked,  If this knowledge can be so disastrously 
abused,  why should its veil ever be lifted? What answer is made to this 
question is a matter of temperament. Some will maintain that knowledge of 
whatever kind cannot be without its value. Other may say we had better let 
sleeping dogs lie. The trouble is,  however,  that sleeping dogs have an 
unfortunate knack of waking up spontaneously. 

So much occult knowledge is abroad in the world,  so much of the kind of things 
described in these pages is going on unknown and unsuspected in our midst,  that 
it is very desirable that men of goodwill should investigate the forces which 
men of evil will have perverted to their own ends. These things are the 
pathologies of the mystic life,  and if they were better 
understood,  many tragedies might be averted. 
On the other hand,  it is not well that everybody should indulge in the study of 
textbooks of pathology. A vivid imagination and a weak head are a disastrous 
combination. The readers of that one, time "best seller, " Three Men in a Boat,  
may remember the fate of the individual who spent a wet Sunday afternoon reading 
a medical textbook. At the finish he was firmly convinced he had got every 
single disease described therein with the single exception of house 
maid's knee. 
This book is not intended merely to make the flesh creep,  but is designed as a 
serious contribution to a little, understood 
aspect of abnormal psychology,  perverted,  in some instances,  to the purposes 
of crime. It is a book intended for serious 
students and for those who find themselves confronted by the problems it 
describes,  and who are trying to understand 
them and find a way out. My chief aim in speaking so frankly is to open the eyes 
of men and women to the nature of 
the forces that are at work below the surface of everyday life. It may happen to 
any one of us to break through the thin 
crust of normality and find ourselves face to face with these forces. Reading of 
the cases cited in this book,  we may 
well say that there,  but for the grace of God,  goes any one of us. If I can 
give in these pages the knowledge which 
protects,  I shall have fulfilled my purpose. 




Part 1. 
TYPES OF PSYCHIC ATTACK. 

CHAPTER 1. 
SIGNS OF PSYCHIC ATTACK. 
IF we look at the universe around us we cannot fail to realise that there must 
be some overruling plan co, ordinating 
its infinite complexity. If we take into our hands and examine minutely any 
living thing,  however simple,  equally must 
we realise that the ordered diversity of its parts is built up on a determining 
framework. Science has sought in vain for 
this organising principle; it will never find it on the physical plane,  for it 
is not physical. It is not the inherent nature of 
atoms which causes them to arrange themselves in the complex patterns of living 
tissues. The driving forces of the 
universe,  the framework upon which it is built up in all its parts,  belong to 
another phase of manifestation than our 
physical plane,  having other dimensions than the three to which we are 
habituated,  and perceived by other modes of 
consciousness than those to which we are accustomed. 
We live in the midst of invisible forces whose effects alone we perceive. We 
move among invisible forms whose 
actions we very often do not perceive at all,  though we may be profoundly 
affected by them. 
In this mind, side of nature,  invisible to our senses,  intangible to our 
instruments of precision,  many things can happen 
that are not without their echo on the physical plane. There are beings that 
live in this invisible world as fish live in the 
sea. There are men and women with trained minds,  or special aptitudes,  who can 
enter into this invisible world as a 
diver descends to the ocean, bed. There are also times when,  as happens to a 
land when the sea, dykes break,  the 
invisible forces flow in upon us and swamp our lives. 
Normally this does not occur. We are protected by our very incapacity to 
perceive these invisible forces. There are four 
conditions,  however,  in which the veil may be rent and we may meet the Unseen. 
We may find ourselves in a place 
where these forces are concentrated. We may meet people who are handling these 
forces. We may ourselves go out to 
meet the Unseen,  led by our interest in it,  and get out of our depth before we 
know where we are; or we may fall victim 
to certain pathological conditions which rend the veil. 
The Threshold of the Unseen is a treacherous coast on which to bathe. There are 
potholes and currents and quicksands. 
The strong swimmer,  who knows the coast,  may venture in comparative safety. 
The non, swimmer,  who takes counsel 
of nothing but his own impulses,  may pay for his temerity with his life. But we 
must not make the mistake of thinking 
that these invisible forces are necessarily evil and inimical to humanity. They 
are no more inimical in themselves than 
are water or fire,  but they are potent. If we run counter to them,  the result 
is disastrous for us,  for we have broken a 
natural law; but they are not out to attack us,  any more than we are out to 
attack them. We must face the fact,  however,  
that men and women with knowledge of these things,  have,  both in the past and 
in the present,  used that knowledge 
unscrupulously,  and that we may find our selves involved in the results of 
their actions. It may safely be said that the 
Unseen is only evil and inimical to humanity when it has been corrupted and 
perverted by the activities of these 
unscrupulous men and women,  whom initiates call adepts of the Left, hand Path. 
We must consider the outward and visible signs of psychic attack before we are 
in a position to analyse the nature of 
such attacks and indicate their source of origin. It is a fundamental rule that 
diagnosis must precede treatment. There 
are many different kinds of psychic attacks,  and the methods that will dispose 
of one will be ineffectual against another. 
The commonest form of psychic attack is that which proceeds from the ignorant or 
malignant mind of our fellow 
human beings. We say ignorant as well as malignant,  for all attacks are not 
deliberately motived; the injury may be as 
accidental as that inflicted by a skidding car. This must always be borne in 
mind,  and we should not impute malice or 
wickedness as a matter of course when we feel we are being victimised. Our 
persecutor may himself be a victim. We 
should not accuse a man of malice if we had linked hands with him and he had 
stepped on a live rail. Nevertheless,  we 
should receive at his hands a severe shock. So it may be with many an occult 
attack. The person from whom it 
emanates may not have originated it. Therefore we should never respond to attack 
by attack,  thus bringing ourselves 
down to the moral level of our attackers,  but rely upon more humane methods,  
which are,  in reality,  equally effectual 
and far less dangerous to handle. 
People also come into touch with the Unseen through the influence of places. 
Someone who is not actually psychic,  but 
who is sufficiently sensitive to perceive the invisible forces subconsciously,  
may go to a place where they are 
concentrated at a high tension. Normally,  although we move in the midst of 
these forces (for they sustain our universe),  
we are oblivious of them. Where they are concentrated,  however,  unless we are 
very dense, minded,  we begin to be 
dimly conscious of something that is affecting us and stirring our subliminal 
self. 
It may happen that the barrier between consciousness and subconsciousness is 
dense in some people,  and they are never 
able clearly to realise what is going on. They merely have the sense of 
oppression and general malaise,  which lifts 
when they go away to another place. Consequently,  the condition may never be 
detected,  and lead to years of ill, health 
and misery. 



More commonly,  however,  if there is a definite psychic attack of sufficient 
force to make itself noticeable at all,  there 
will soon begin to appear characteristic dreams. These may include a sense of 
weight upon the chest,  as if someone 
were kneeling on the sleeper. If the sense of weight is present,  it is certain 
that the attack emanates locally,  for the 
weight is due to the concentration of etheric substance or ectoplasm,  and is 
sufficiently tangible to press down the scale 
of a balance when it is possible to capture it for measurement. A great deal of 
research has been done with 
materialising mediums upon the nature of this tangible subtle substance,  and 
the reader is referred to the books on the 
experiments conducted by Crawford with the Goligher Circle at Belfast,  and in 
Paris with Eva C. by other 
experimenters,  for further information and evidence on this subject. It may be 
noted that Crawford eventually 
committed suicide for no known reason. 
A sense of fear and oppression is very characteristic of. occult attack,  and 
one of the surest signs that herald it. It is 
extremely rare for an attack to make itself manifest out of the blue,  as it 
were. We are not in our normal state of mind,  
body and circumstance,  and then find ourselves suddenly in the midst of an 
invisible battle. An approaching occult 
influence casts its shadow on consciousness before it makes itself apparent to 
the non, psychic. The reason for this is 
that we perceive subconsciously before we realise consciously,  and a line of 
creeping shade indicates the penetrating of 
the subconscious censor from below upwards. 
As the attack progresses,  nervous exhaustion becomes increasingly marked,  and 
there may,  under certain conditions,  
which we will consider later,  be such wasting of the tissues that the victim is 
reduced to a mere bloodless shell of skin 
and bones,  lying on the bed,  too weak to move. And yet no definite disease can 
be demonstrated. 
Such a case is an extreme example,  proceeding unchecked to its logical 
conclusion. Other issues are possible,  however. 
The resistance may be good,  in which case the attack is unable to gain a 
foothold on the physical plane,  and is limited 
to that borderland between matter and mind which we perceive upon the threshold 
of sleep. This is a very terrible 
experience,  for the victim is afraid to sleep and cannot keep awake 
indefinitely. Worn out by fear and lack of sleep,  
mental breakdown soon supervenes. 
Nervous exhaustion and mental breakdown are the commoner results of astral 
attack among white people,  for in 
Europe at any rate it is not often that an attacker is able to bring the attack 
to a conclusion in the death of the victim. 
There are,  however,  records of cases where the victim has died of pure fright. 
Kipling's terrible story,  The End of the 
Passage,  gives an account of such an occurrence. 
But in addition to the purely subjective phenomena,  there will also be 
objective ones if the attack has any degree of 
concentration. The phenomenon of repercussion is well known,  the phenomenon 
wherein that which befalls the subtle 
body is reflected in the dense body,  so that after an astral skirmish during 
sleep,  bruises are found on the physical body,  
sometimes bruises of a definite pattern. I have seen the print of a goat's hoof 
and the ace of clubs marked upon the skin 
as well, defined bruises,  passing from blue to yellow and dying away in the 
course of a few days,  as bruises will. 
Evil odours are another manifestation of an astral attack. The characteristic 
smell is of decomposing flesh,  and it comes 
and goes capriciously; but while it is manifesting,  there is no doubt whatever 
about it,  and anyone who is present can 
smell it,  whether they are psychic or not. I have also known a frightful stench 
of drains arise when a ritual belonging to 
the Element of Earth was being incorrectly performed. 
Another curious phenomenon is the precipitation of slime. I have not actually 
seen this myself,  but I have first, hand 
information upon good authority of one such case. The marks are sometimes as if 
an army of slugs had been marching 
in ordered formation; sometimes there is a broad smear of slime,  and at others,  
distinct footprints,  often of gigantic size. 
In the case to which I refer,  of which I heard from an eye, witness,  the marks 
were like the foot prints of an elephant,  
enormous tracks on the floor of the drawing, room of a bungalow situated near 
the sea. 
Odd footprints appearing from nowhere and leading nowhere,  are sometimes 
observed when there is snow about. I 
have seen them on two occasions on the roof of an out building. They alighted 
upon the edge of it,  as if the walker had 
stepped off an aeroplane,  went straight across,  and ended abruptly at the wall 
of the main building upon which the 
lean, to abuts. They did not return. A single line of footprints came from 
nowhere and ended in a lofty wall. 
A similar happening took place on a very extensive scale in Devon some fifty 
years ago,  and an account of it is to be 
found in that very curious book,  Oddities,  by Commander Gould. In this case,  
however,  the prints were not human,  but 


were those of what was apparently the hoof of a donkey,  proceeding in a single 
line and going straight through walls 
and over roofs and covering the best part of a couple of hundred miles in a 
single night on both sides of an unbridged 
estuary. Those who want confirmatory evidence would do well to consult Commander 
Gould's book,  where the incident is given in detail. 
There is a curious phenomenon known to occultists as the astral bell; Sir Arthur 
Conan Doyle makes use of it in one of 
his Sherlock Holmes stories. This sound varies from a dear,  bell, like note to 
a faint click. I have often heard it resemble 
the sound made by striking a cracked wine, glass with a knife, blade. It 
commonly announces the advent of an entity that 
is barely able to manifest,  and need not necessarily be a herald of evil at 
all. It may simply be a knock on the door of the 
physical world to attract the attention of the inhabitants to the presence of 
one who stands without and would speak 
with them. If,  however,  it occurs in the presence of other symptoms of an 
astral attack,  it would give strong evidence in 
confirmation of the diagnosis. 
Inexplicable outbreaks of fire are also sometimes seen in this connection. These 
indicate that elemental forces,  not 
human,  are at work. Poltergeist phenomena also occur,  in which objects are 
flung about,  bells rung and other noisy 
manifestations take place. Of course there may be multiplicity of phenomena,  
more than one type appearing in the same 
case. 
Needless to say,  the possibility of some natural,  material explanation must 
never be ignored,  even in cases where the 
supernatural element appears most obvious. It should always be diligently sought 
in every possible direction before any 
supernormal hypothesis is considered worthy of attention. But on the other hand,  
we should not be so wedded to 
materialistic theories that we refuse to take a psychic theory as a working 
hypothesis if it shows any possibility of being 
fruitful. After all,  the proof of the pudding is in the eating,  and if,  
working on an occult hypothesis,  we are able to clear 
up a case which has resisted all other methods of handling,  we have pretty good 
evidence in support of our contention. 
We must also bear in mind that the element of deliberate fraud may enter into 
the most unexpected places. I have seen a 
drug addict successfully pass himself off for a considerable length of time as 
the victim of an occult attack. A recent 
writer in the British Medical Journal declared that whenever he came across a 
case of bell, ringing,  knocks,  the 
dripping of water and oil from ceilings,  and other untoward happenings,  he 
always looked for the hysterical 
maidservant. Occultists would be very well advised to do likewise before they 
begin to worry about the Devil. But on 
the other hand,  the wise man,  whether occultist or scientist,  will not insist 
upon the hysterical maidservant unless he can 
catch her red, handed,  as he surely will do sooner or later if she is the 
guilty party. 
Forged bank, notes would never gain currency unless there were such a thing as 
genuine bank, notes. It would never 
occur to anyone to produce fraudulent psychic phenomena unless there had been 
some genuine psychic phenomena to 
act as a pattern for the forgery. 
The acceptance of an explanation should rest upon the weight of evidence in its 
favour,  not upon one's dislike of its 
alternatives. I plead that the possibility of a non,  material explanation 
should be investigated in cases where the 
materialistic hypothesis does not yield results. Not in diseases of the brain 
and nervous system,  nor of the ductless 
glands,  nor in repression of the natural instincts,  shall we find the 
explanation in all cases wherein the mind is afflicted. 
There is more to man than mind and body. We shall never find the clue to the 
riddle of life until we realise that man is a 
spiritual being and that mind and body are the garments of his manifestation. 




CHAPTER 2.

ANALYSIS OF THE NATURE OF PSYCHIC ATTACK.
THE essence of a psychic attack is to be found in the principles and operations 
of telepathic suggestion. If we put 
together what we know of telepathy and what we know of suggestion,  we shall 
understand its modus operandi. 
Suggestion is of three kinds: Auto, suggestion,  Conscious Suggestion and 
Hypnotic Suggestion. The distinction,  
however,  is not as fundamental as at first sight appears; for the goal of all 
suggestions in the subconscious mind is the 
same,  and they do not become operative until,  it is reached. Suggestion is 
distinguished from threats and appeals to 
reason by the fact that these aim at a mark in the conscious mind. If they 
succeed,  they owe their success to the 
acquiescence of the conscious personality,  whether coerced or voluntary. But 
suggestion does not make its appeal to 
consciousness,  but aims at laying its hands upon the springs of action in the 
subconsciousness and manipulating them 
from there. 
We might compare these two processes to the operation of pulling at the bell, 
knob outside the front door and taking up 
a floor, board and twitching the bell, wires themselves. The result will be the 
same in both cases,  the bell will ring. 
Threats and argument pull the bell, knob with varying degrees of emphasis,  from 
the persistent tinkling of moral 
suasion to the resounding peal of the blackmailer. Suggestion twitches the wires 
at various points in their course. 
Auto, suggestion is given by one's own conscious mind to one's own subconscious 
mind. Now,  you may ask,  why can I 
not give orders to my subconscious mind direct,  without having to resort to the 
paraphernalia of suggestion? The 
answer to this question is very simple. The subconscious mind belongs to a much 
earlier phase of evolution than the 
conscious mind; belongs,  in fact,  to a phase prior to the development of 
speech. To address it in words,  therefore,  is 
like speaking to a man in a language he does not understand,  In order to deal 
with him we must have resort to sign, 
language. So it is with the subconscious mind. It is no use to say to it,  Do 
this: or,  Don't do that. We must make a 
mental picture of the thing we want done and hold it in consciousness till it 
begins to sink into the subconsciousness. 
The subconscious mind will understand this picture,  and act upon it. 
The actor who wishes to cure himself of stage, fright will fail to do so if he 
says to his subconscious mind,  "Don't be frightened, " for a nod is as good as 
a wink to a blind horse. Equally,  if he makes a mental picture of stage fright 
and says to his subliminal self,  "Now don't do that, " the result will be 
disastrous,  for the subliminal self will see the picture 
and omit the negative,  because the word "not" means nothing to it. In order to 
handle the subconscious mind effectually,  we make a mental picture of the thing 
we want done and hold it in mind by repeated applications until the 
subconsciousness begins to be influenced and takes up the task of its own 
accord. 

This is the end, result of all suggestion,  and the different kinds of 
suggestion are distinguished,  not by the difference in 
end, result,  but by the gate through which they enter the subconscious mind. 
Auto, suggestion originates in our own 
consciousness; waking suggestion originates in the mind of another and is 
conveyed to our mind by the ordinary 
channels of the spoken or written word; hypnotic suggestion enters the 
subconscious mind direct,  without impinging 
upon consciousness at all. 
Hypnotic suggestion (which means,  literally,  suggestion made during sleep,  
and is to some extent a misnomer), is of 
three kinds: firstly,  true hypnotic suggestion,  made when the subject has been 
rendered insensible by magnetic passes 
or fixation of the eyes on a bright object; secondly,  suggestion given during 
normal sleep,  as Coue advises should be 
done with children,  in my opinion a most undesirable proceeding; and,  thirdly,  
telepathic suggestion. All these 
modes of suggestion enter the mind behind the censor; that is to say,  they are 
independent of consciousness,  which is 
neither asked to co, operate,  nor has the power to inhibit them. 
In most cases,  suggestions made in this way are never recognised as coming from 
outside,  but are only discovered after 
they have matured in the subconsciousness and are beginning to take effect. We 
do not see the invisible seed,  that has 
been sown in our mind by the mind of another,  but in due course germination 
takes place and the strong, growing shoot 
appears above the threshold of consciousness as if it were a native growth. The 
skillful suggestionist always aims at 
 

making his suggestions harmonise with the bias of the personality; for if they 
do not,  the established sub, conscious 
complexes will expel them before they have time to strike root. All he can 
really do is to reinforce and stimulate the 
ideas and impulses that are already there,  though perhaps latent. He cannot 
plant an entirely alien seed. He cannot graft 
a rose, shoot on a lilac bush,  for it will merely wither and die. 
For growth of the thought, seeds of suggestion to take place they must find a 
congenial soil. It is herein lies the strength 
of the defence. We may not be able to prevent the minds of others from sending 
us suggestions,  but we may so purify 
the soil of our own natures that no harmful ones can find a congenial seed, bed. 
It is a simple matter to pull up a 
seedling nettle,  but it is quite a different business to eradicate a thickset 
bank of tangled roots and stinging shoots,  many 
years old. 
It has been said,  and not untruly,  that a person cannot be hypnotised into 
doing anything which is contrary to his real 
nature. But what is the real nature of each one of us? Have we all overcome the 
ape and tiger,  or are they merely 
caged? Suggestion can unbar the cage of all our secret temptations and let them 
loose upon us. None but the saint is 
naturally immune. It is possible to reduce anybody to anything provided 
suggestion has unchecked scope for a 
sufficient length of time. The purest woman can be made a harlot,  the noblest 
man a murderer under certain conditions. 
Knowledge is necessary to protect,  and it is that knowledge which I intend to 
give in these pages. 
Let us now consider exactly how a psychic attack operates. In the realms of mind 
there is neither time nor space as we 
understand them. I do not propose to argue this statement philosophically,  but 
state it as a fact of experience which 
anyone who is accustomed to operating on the Inner Planes will have shared. If 
we think of a person,  we are in touch 
with that person. If we picture them clearly,  it is as if we were face to face 
with them. If we picture them vaguely,  it is 
as if we saw them in the distance. Being in the mental vicinity of a person,  we 
can create a thought,  atmosphere by 
dwelling upon certain ideas in connection with him. This is how spiritual 
healing is done. The affirmations of Christian 
Science are used in order to get the mind of the healer into a certain emotional 
state,  and his condition effectually 
influences the mind of the patient with whom he has put himself en rapport. 
This power,  however,  can be used for evil as well as good; the Founder of 
Christian Science was wise enough to put 
her teaching in such a way that her students would not readily discern the 
second edge of the sword. As long as the 
world in general was ignorant of the powers of the mind,  it was better that 
nothing should be said by those who knew,  
because the knowledge,  if spread abroad indiscriminately,  might do more harm 
than good,  giving information to those 
who ought not to have it. But now that so much is generally known and even 
practised concerning the powers of the 
human mind,  it is as well that the real facts should also be known and the 
whole matter brought out into the open,  and 
as far as lies in my power I am prepared to do this. 
Any message to the subconscious mind must be couched in very simple terms,  
because subconscious thought is a 
primitive form of mentation,  developed before spoken language was known to 
mankind. The primary aim of the 
suggestion is to create a mental atmosphere about the soul of the person,  
whether that person is to be attacked or 
healed,  until a sympathetic response or reaction is elicited within the soul 
itself. (I use the term soul to include both the 
mental and emotional processes,  but to exclude the spiritual ones.) Once this 
reaction is achieved,  the battle is half 
over,  for the gate of the city has been opened from within,  and there is free 
ingress. The telepathic suggestion of 
definite ideas can now proceed rapidly. 
It is this point which is the critical one in any occult attack. Up to this 
point,  the defender has the advantage. If he has 
sufficient knowledge,  the knowledge I hope to make available through this book,  
he can without any undue exertion 
retain that advantage indefinitely,  and wear his attackers down,  even if 
unable to meet them on their own ground of 
occult knowledge. There is nothing in this world or the next that a hypnotist 
can do with the person who keeps his 
nerve and won't pay attention. 
There are two gates,  and two only,  by which the attacker can gain entrance to 
the city of Mansoul,  and these are the 
Self, preservation Instinct and the Sex Instinct. The hypnotic appeal must be 
couched in terms of one or both of these if 
it is to be successful. How does the attacker proceed? He has to create an 
atmosphere about the soul of his victim on 
the Inner Planes. He can only do this by creating that atmosphere within his own 
consciousness while he thinks of his 
victim. If he wants to perform a psychic murder,  he must fill his own soul with 
the rage of destruction until it 
overflows. If he wants to perform a psychic rape,  he must fill his soul with 
lust and cruelty. The cold rage of cruelty is 

essential to effectual operations of this nature. Now what happens when he does 
this? He has sounded a ringing 
keynote in the Abyss. It will be answered. All beings who have this keynote for 
the basis of their nature will respond. 
"Dark Uriel and Azrael and Ammon on the wing,  " and will join in the operation. 
But they do not operate direct upon 
the victim,  they work through the operator. It is like the old game of Nuts and 
May,  in which the one who is sent "to 
fetch her away" is gripped round the waist by the leader of a chain of 
supporters. The real pressure comes on his own 
abdominal muscles,  as anyone who has played the game will remember. 
And when the magical operation is over,  what then? Will the operator be left to 
enjoy his victim in peace? Is IT 
LIKELY? 
This is the mystical basis of the story of Faust. The Devil might be not only 
willing but anxious to enable Dr. Faustus to 
win Margarita,  but he came for his soul at the appointed time. We may also 
remember that if Margarita had not 
responded to the lure of the Jewel Song she would not have fallen a victim. The 
weak spot in the defence was after all 
in her own nature. 
We have considered the modus operandi of telepathic suggestion in detail because 
it forms the real basis of every kind 
of occult attack. Whether it be a discarnate entity,  a being of another order 
of evolution,  a demon from the Pit,  or 
merely the panic, stricken soul of a selfish friend,  clinging to the life of 
form regardless of consequences,  in all cases the 
opening gambit is the same. Until the aura is pierced,  there can be no entrance 
to the soul,  and the aura is always 
pierced from within by the response of fear or desire going out towards the 
attacking entity. If we can inhibit that 
instinctive emotional reaction,  the edge of the aura will remain impenetrable,  
and will be as sure a defence against 
psychic invasion as the healthy and unbroken skin is a defence against bacterial 
infection. 
It happens sometimes,  however,  that a rapport has been formed with the 
attacking entity in a previous incarnation,  and 
therefore it holds,  as it were,  the key to the postern. Such a problem is a 
very difficult one,  and external assistance is 
needed for its solution. The difficulty is increased by the fact that the victim 
is often disinclined to allow the break to be 
made,  being bound to the attacking entity,  whether discarnate or incarnate,  
by bonds of fascination,  or even genuine 
affection. 
A case with which I was acquainted throws so much light on various aspects of 
psychic interference by incarnate souls 
operating out of their bodies that it is of value to quote it at length. 
In the summer of 1926 I saw in the papers a short paragraph describing the death 
of a certain man and his wife,  which 
took place within a few hours of each other. A couple of years previously I had 
been consulted by a friend of the wife,  
who was deeply perturbed about the state of affairs,  and suspected psychic 
interference. The wife,  Mrs. C. we will call 
her,  had begun to be troubled by nightmares,  waking up in a state of intense 
fear,  hearing the echoes of menacing 
words ringing in her ears. At about the same time the husband,  Mr. C.,  
developed what at first sight looked like 
epileptic fits. A careful diagnosis by specialists,  however,  determined that 
although epileptiform,  they were not true 
epilepsy. Epilepsy is due either to a congenital tendency,  whose nature is not 
fully understood by medical science,  or to 
some injury or disease of the brain. In congenital epilepsy the disease shows 
itself early in life; in fits due to disease,  
other symptoms are present which can be detected by a physical examination,  
such as changes in the eye that are 
revealed by the opthalmoscope. The diagnosis can therefore be definitely 
established. Moreover,  there is one sure sign 
by means of which an epileptic fit can be distinguished with certainty from a 
hysterical or psychic seizure. In true 
epilepsy the urine is involuntarily voided in the course of the fit. This is a 
sure sign,  and when it is absent we are safe in 
saying that the fit is not epileptic,  whatever else it may be. This is a useful 
point for those who have to deal with the 
pathologies that afflict the psychic temperament,  for they will see plenty of 
seizures,  and a sure method of 
distinguishing those that are of organic origin is very useful. We must not,  
however,  conclude that all cases of such 
incontinence are epileptics,  for there are many other causes,  both organic and 
functional. 
In the case of Mr. C. this cardinal symptom was lacking. The attacks,  moreover,  
always took place in sleep,  and it 
seemed as if they were more of the form of severe nightmare,  verging on 
somnambulism. It was a curious factor in the 
case that Mrs. CS nightmares usually heralded Mr. CS attacks. 
These occurrences showed a certain cyclic regularity,  occurring about once a 
month. In the case of a woman this would 

naturally be referred to the twenty, eight day cycle of her nature,  but in the 
case of a man,  no such explanation was 
forthcoming,  and we therefore had to look for another twenty, eight day cycle 
to explain his periodicity. The only other 
cycle of this period is that of the phases of the moon. 
We were then confronted by a correlation of epileptiform attacks,  which had no 
organic basis,  the nightmares of a 
second person,  and the phases of the moon. Some theory had to be found which 
would resume these three and explain 
their inter, relationship. 
A dream is commonly the first way in which psychic manifestations make 
themselves known,  the subconscious 
perceptions being reflected into consciousness in this form. 
It is held by many occultists that congenital epilepsy,  as distinguished from 
that due to tumours of the brain,  has its 
roots in the operations of black magic or witchcraft in which the sufferer 
participated in a past life,  whether as 
practitioner or victim,  the fit being an astral struggle with a discarnate 
entity,  reflected on the physical body by means 
of the well, known phenomenon of repercussion. 
The moon plays a very important part in all occult operations,  different tides 
being available at different phases of her 
cycle. Persephone,  Diana and Hecate,  all aspects of Luna,  are three very 
different persons. 
It therefore appeared probable that as the physical investigation had drawn 
blank,  a psychic investigation might yield 
fruits. One was performed. And with the following results. 
Nothing at all was discerned with regard to Mrs. C. She was merely what lawyers 
call an accessory after the fact. But 
the psychic trail of Mr. C. was soon picked up and followed,  and it appeared 
that in his last incarnation he had been 
associated with two women,  mother and daughter,  who had practised witchcraft 
for his benefit. The younger of the two 
women had been for a short time his mistress. Mother and daughter had paid the 
penalty for their crimes,  but their male 
partner had escaped. 
The diagnosis was as follows: It is the younger witch that is at the bottom of 
the trouble. It is her astral visits which 
cause the seizures of Mr. C. and the nightmares of Mrs. C.,  and they correlate 
with the phases of the moon because 
certain phases are favourable for the operation she performs and she therefore 
takes advantage of them. The question 
now remains,  is this woman in incarnation or not? That is to say,  is the 
midnight visit paid in an astral body projected 
from a living human being,  or by an earth, bound spirit which has succeeded in 
evading the Second Death? 
Mrs. C. had by now been taken into the confidence of the mutual friend who was 
concerned for her welfare,  and lent a 
ready ear to the suggestion that some psychic influence might be at the bottom 
of the trouble,  for this explanation 
coincided with her own intuitions in the matter,  intuitions she had not dared 
to divulge for fear of ridicule. 
When asked if she could identify anyone in the circle of her husband's 
acquaintances who might prove to be the 
younger witch,  she replied immediately that she could with out any difficulty 
identify both the women,  and told the 
following curious story. 
The older witch she identified as her husband's mother,  an aged lady who 
occupied a suite of rooms in their house. For 
this inoffensive old creature Mrs. C. had always had a peculiar horror and 
repulsion,  although admitting there were no 
rational grounds for it,  and honestly endeavouring to do her duty by her. So 
great was her horror of the old lady that she 
would never remain in the house after her husband had left for his office in the 
morning,  but went out herself to her 
club if she had no other engagement. 
Among the frequenters of the house was an intimate friend of the elder Mrs. C.,  
a woman of peculiar psychic 
temperament,  who always called the old lady mother and was singularly attached 
to her,  She was also very attached to 
Mr. C.,  but her feelings never exceeded,  outwardly at any rate,  the bounds of 
propriety,  and Mr. C.,  who was sincerely 
attached to his own wife,  never paid the slightest attention to her,  looking 
upon her as his mother's friend,  and as such 
to be tolerated. 

Mrs. C. unhesitatingly identified Miss X.,  as we will call her,  as the younger 
witch. Enquiries were then made 
regarding her history,  and a very curious story unfolded. 
As a young girl she had become engaged to a man who,  soon after the engagement 
was announced,  had developed 
galloping consumption and died after a short illness with a violent hemorrhage. 
Soon after this,  Miss Xs sister also became engaged,  and by a strange fatality 
her lover shared the same fate,  dying as 
died the other man,  in a flood of his own blood. 
Years went by,  and Miss X. became engaged again. Soon the second lover fell 
ill,  not,  this time,  with galloping 
consumption,  but with a more lingering form of the complaint,  in which 
hemorrhage was the principle symptom. He 
seemed to linger on from hemorrhage to hemorrhage,  and this went on for years. 
Miss X.,  a woman of considerable 
private means,  took a house,  installed an aunt as a chaperone,  and took her 
fiancé to live there and be nursed by her. 
Soon the aunt developed symptoms of illness; she appeared to be drained of all 
vitality and for days at a time would lie 
unconscious,  but no specific cause was ever discovered for her illness. This 
peculiar menage continued for years,  Miss 
X. living in her big house with these two moribund creatures lingering on from 
attack to attack.
She was a constant visitor at the home of the CS,  both during the lifetime of 
Mr. CS first wife and that of his second,  
the friend of my friend. On the death of Mr. CS first wife she had great hopes,  
it was observed,  that his attentions 
would turn towards herself,  but they did not; nevertheless she swallowed her 
chagrin,  and succeeded in maintaining her 
foothold as an intimate friend of the family when the new Mrs. C. came to 
preside over the household. 
Certain methods of protection were suggested to Mrs. C. which helped her 
considerably,  but it was not possible to 
exclude Miss X. from the house owing to her intimacy with the old lady. In due 
course,  however,  old Mrs. C. was 
gathered to her fathers,  and then young Mrs. C. put her foot down and said she 
would have no more to do with Miss X. 
Mr. C. concurred in this,  as he had always had a repulsion for Miss X.,  and 
had only tolerated her for his mother's sake. 
Soon after this Mrs. C. began to feel unwell,  the indisposition slowly 
progressed,  until finally,  although she had no 
definite symptoms,  she was obliged to consult a doctor on account of her 
steadily increasing weakness and sense of 
malaise. A diagnosis of rapidly growing cancer of the womb was made. An 
operation was performed,  which gave 
temporary relief,  it was not expected to do any more,  and she went downhill 
steadily. 
Towards the end she lapsed into unconsciousness,  and at the same time,  Mr. C. 
also became unconscious,  apparently 
having one of his seizures in sleep,  from which he never awakened. They died 
within a few hours of each other. 
Mr. C.'s first wife had also died of cancer of the womb. 
About this time Miss X.'s aunt and fiancé died within a short time of each 
other,  and the last that was heard of Miss X. 
was that she had been removed to a nursing, home in the country with a severe 
mental breakdown. 
Taken separately,  any of the incidents in this strange eventful history can be 
explained away,  but taken together they 
make a curious story,  especially when it is remembered that without any 
previous information a psychic investigation 
had "spotted" the existence of a person with abnormal faculties who was 
interested in Mr. C. 
Cancer is a disease upon which certain occult hypotheses throw a good deal of 
light. It is believed to be a disease of the 
etheric double,  not of the physical body,  and that a "Cancer Elemental" is the 
infective factor. 
To prove or disprove anything concerning the foregoing story is impossible,  but 
the following occult hypothesis may 
explain much. If this hypothesis be not accepted,  readers may find an 
interesting exercise for their ingenuity in 
constructing another that shall explain more satisfactorily the circumstances of 
the case. 
Miss X. retained subconsciously the knowledge and powers that had been hers 
during the previous life when she was 
 

implicated in the witch, cult. She also retained her passion for Mr. C.,  a 
passion which was obviously unrequited,  She 
employed her power of projection of the astral body to visit Mr. C. at night,  
during sleep. In the absence of details it is 
impossible to decide definitely whether the "fit" of Mr. C. was a struggle or an 
embrace. It might be either,  or it might 
be both,  an initial struggle ending in an embrace. The dreams of Mrs. C. 
obviously related to the same astral visitant 
who caused the seizures of Mr. C. There is,  unfortunately,  no record to show 
at what phase of the moon these attacks 
took place,  but presumably at the Hecate phase,  which is the period of evil 
witchcraft. 
The condition of Miss Xs fiancé and aunt and the death of her first lover point 
markedly towards vampirism. It is 
difficult to believe that a consumptive would continue for so many years without 
his disease either being checked or 
making definite progress. It is difficult to say what the connection,  if any,  
might be between Miss X. and the death of 
her sister's lover,  but it is a curious thing that three men,  associated with 
this ill, omened household as prospective 
husbands,  should lose their lives in the same way. This,  together with the 
mysterious illness of the aunt,  are very 
suspicious. As noted before,  any one of these incidents could be explained 
away,  but taken together they call for 
thought. It is also curious that Miss X. should keep her fiancé in her house and 
yet not marry him,  from every normal 
point of view an arrangement with many drawbacks and no advantages. On the other 
hand,  if her feelings were fixed 
upon Mr. C. and were obtaining satisfaction by astral visits,  she would 
naturally not want to break her rapport with the 
man she loved by giving herself to the man she did not love. If she were a 
vampire,  her motive for keeping the aunt and 
lover in her house,  and their condition,  would be readily explained. Also her 
breakdown,  which followed immediately 
upon their deaths. 
The fact that Mr. CS first wife died of cancer of the womb does not in itself 
call for remark,  but it is a curious thing that 
he should lose his second wife from the same disease. Cancer is not as common as 
all that,  and in any case,  there are 
many available sites beside the womb. On the other hand,  Diana,  one of the 
aspects of Luna,  of whom Hecate,  the 
goddess of witches,  was another,  presides over the female reproductive organs. 
The illness of Mrs. C. began to show itself soon after Miss X. was excluded from 
the house. 
Finally,  what shall we say concerning the deaths of the three people most 
intimately associated with Miss X. within a 
short time of each other,  and her immediate break down? In the absence of 
details any conclusion must be guesswork,  
but we have good grounds for supposing that Miss Xs magical operations were 
attended by some mishap. 
It may be said that such a theory is the wildest improbability and does violence 
to all the laws of evidence. Let it,  
however,  be born in mind that two years before these matters eventuated,  the 
work of a witch in connection with Mr. 
CS epileptiform attacks was suspected and the nature of her relationship to him 
was indicated; and subsequent 
enquiries revealed the curious facts in connection with Miss Xs history and 
menage; let it also be noted that the 
happenings which subsequently occurred are such as have been recorded in many 
accounts of witch, trials. It is a 
scientific maxim that the power to foretell the course of phenomena is a good 
indication of the truth of a theory. 
CHAPTER III 
A CASE OF MODERN WITCHCRAFT 
THE part played by the ex, witch in occult attack is very marked. Again and 
again do the investigations of 
independent psychics point to witchcraft in a previous incarnation when trouble 
of this sort is afoot. The motive is 
nearly always vengeance,  but there is also good reason to believe that the 
projection of the astral body takes place 
involuntarily during sleep,  and is not deliberately willed by the offender. 
Very many people who are at present psychics 
 

and sensitives got their training in the covens of medieval witchcraft,  and for 
this reason experienced occultists are very 
wary of the natural psychic,  as distinguished from the initiate with his 
technique of psychism. Where psychism and 
mental unbalance are found conjoined with a malevolent disposition,  there is 
strong presumption that the cult of 
Diabolus is not far to seek. 
A curious set of happenings,  in which I myself was one of the actors,  throws a 
good deal of light on this by no means 
uncommon occurrence. It was in the early days of my interest in occultism,  when 
I was still buying nay experience by 
the expensive but effectual method of running my head into obstacles,  I made 
the acquaintance of a woman who was 
interested in psychic matters. She was a person of the most extreme 
sensitiveness to anything unclean or ugly,  
fastidious to a degree in her personal habits,  living almost exclusively on 
uncooked vegetarian foods,  even refusing 
eggs as too stimulating. Although not an animal lover,  she was morbidly 
humanitarian,  reading with gusto those papers 
which give lurid and detailed descriptions of vivisection experiments. Had I 
been older and wiser I should have 
recognised the significance of her ultra, cleanliness and ultra, sensitiveness 
as marking the ab, reaction of a sadistic 
temperament,  sadism being a pathology of the emotional nature in which the sex 
instinct takes the form of an impulse 
to inflict pain. Not having learnt then many things which I now know,  I looked 
upon her characteristics as indicative of 
an exalted spirituality. 
At the time I knew her she was verging on a breakdown which was alleged to be 
due to overwork,  and she was very 
anxious to get away from cities and back to nature. I was just leaving London to 
take up my residence at an occult 
college which was hidden away in the sandy fastnesses of the Hampshire barrens. 
In the innocence of my heart I 
suggested that she might come down there and help with the domestic duties. The 
suggestion was acted upon,  and a 
few days after my own arrival Miss L. joined us. She seemed quite normal,  made 
herself agreeable,  and was well liked. 
One incident,  however,  in the light of subsequent events,  was significant. On 
getting out of the ancient fly in which she 
had driven from the station,  she immediately went and patted the still more 
ancient horse that drew it. That beast,  
usually sunk in an apathy from which he was with difficulty roused when action 
was required of him,  galvanised into 
life at her touch as if she had stung him. He threw up his head,  backed,  
snorted,  and nearly turned the equipage over in 
the ditch,  to the amazement of his jehu,  who declared he had never been known 
to do such a thing before,  and viewed 
our visitor with disfavour. 
Miss L.,  however,  appeared quite normal,  made herself agreeable,  and was 
given a friendly reception by the humans at 
any rate. 
That night I was awakened by nightmare,  a thing to which I am not usually 
subject. I struggled with a weight on my 
chest,  and even after consciousness had fully returned,  the room seemed full 
of evil. I performed such simple banishing 
formula as I knew,  and peace was restored. 
At breakfast next morning an assembly of blear, eyed people met together,  
complaining of having passed disturbed 
nights. We compared notes,  and found we had all,  some six or seven of us,  had 
similar nightmares,  and proceeded to 
exchange experiences. The effect of this upon Miss L. was curious. She squirmed 
upon her chair as if it had suddenly 
become red, hot and said with much emphasis: 
"These things should not be discussed,  it is most unwholesome." 
Out of deference to her feelings we desisted. But presently up to the open 
window came another member of our 
community,  a woman who slept in an open, air shelter at some little distance 
from the house. We enquired after her 
health,  as usual,  and she replied that she was not feeling very well,  as she 
had slept badly,  and proceeded to recount the 
same nightmare as the rest of us. Later on in the morning,  another lady,  who 
had a house a little way down the road,  
arrived,  and she in her turn told of a similar nightmare. 
These nightmares continued,  on and off for the next few days,  to afflict 
different members of the community. They 
were vague and nebulous,  and there was nothing we could pitch upon for 
diagnostic purposes,  and we put it down to 
indigestion caused by the village baker's version of war bread. 
Then one day I had a quarrel with Miss L. She had conceived a "crush" for me; I 
have a constitutional repulsion for 
crushes and give them scant politeness,  and she complained bitterly of my lack 
of responsiveness. What ever may be 
the rights and wrongs of the case,  I had roused her resentment in good earnest. 
That night I was afflicted with the most 
 

violent nightmare I have ever had in my life,  waking from sleep with the 
terrible sense of oppression on my chest,  as if 
someone were holding me down,  or lying upon me. I saw distinctly the head of 
Miss L.,  reduced to the size of an 
orange,  floating in the air at the foot of my bed,  and snapping its teeth at 
me. It was the most malignant thing I have 
ever seen. 
Still not attaching any psychic significance to my experiences,  and being 
firmly convinced that the local baker was 
responsible,  I told no one of my dream,  thinking it one of those things that 
are better kept to oneself; but when the 
members of the community came to talk matters over in the light of subsequent 
events,  we found that two other people 
had had similar experiences. 
A night or two later,  however,  as it came to bed, time,  I was overcome with a 
sense of impending evil,  as if something 
dangerous were lurking in the bushes around the house threatening attack. So 
strong was this sensation that I came 
down from my room and went all round the house,  testing the catches of the 
windows to make sure that all was secure. 
Miss L. heard me,  and called out to know what I was doing. 
I told her of my feelings. 
"You silly child, " she said,  "it is no use latching the windows,  the danger 
is not outside the house but in it. Go to bed,  
and be sure and lock your door." 
She would give no answer to my questions except to reiterate that I should lock 
my door. This was the first night I had 
slept in that house,  previously having been in a cottage on the opposite side 
of the road. 
I did not lock my door because the night was intolerably hot and the room and 
the window small. I compromised,  
however,  by putting an enamel slop, pail at a strategic spot in the fairway,  
trusting that any intruder would fall over it 
and give the alarm. 
Nothing happened,  and I slept quietly. 
Next morning,  however,  the storm broke. Miss L. and I were peacefully at work 
in the kitchen when she suddenly 
caught up a carving, knife and started after me,  as mad as a March hare. 
Fortunately for me I had in my hands a large 
saucepan full of freshly boiled greens,  and I used this as a weapon of defence,  
and we danced round the kitchen table,  
slopping hot cabbage, water in all directions. 
We neither of us made a sound; I fended her off with the hot and sooty saucepan,  
and she slashed at me with an 
unpleasantly large carving, knife. At a psychological moment in walked the head 
of the community. He took in the 
situation at a glance,  and handled it by the tactful method of scolding us both 
impartially for making so much noise and 
telling us to get on with our work. Miss L. finished whatever she was doing with 
the carver,  I dished up the cabbage,  
and the incident passed off quietly. 
After lunch Miss L. experienced the reaction from her excitement and went to her 
room completely prostrated with 
exhaustion. I was somewhat perturbed. Although used to mental cases,  and 
therefore not as disturbed by the recent 
fracas as anyone else might have been,  I did not relish the prospect of being 
the housemate of a dangerous lunatic who 
was under no sort of control. The head of the community,  however,  said there 
was no cause for alarm,  he would soon 
have the case in hand. He went up to the bath room,  filled a soap, dish with 
water from the tap,  made certain passes 
over it,  and dipping his finger in the water,  proceeded to draw a five, 
pointed star upon the threshold of Miss L.'s room. 
Miss L. made no attempt to leave her room until forty, eight hours later when he 
fetched her out himself. 
As he had promised,  he soon had her in hand. He had several long talks with 
her,  at which I was not present,  and at the 
end of a few days a very chastened Miss L. began to go about her household 
duties again. There were relapses,  and 
there were struggles,  but in the course of a few weeks she became comparatively 
normal,  and when I met her again 
some eighteen months later there had been no relapse. 
Two curious incidents occurred during the period of her treatment at the hands 
of this man,  an adept if ever there was 
 

one. The house in which she had a room was a very old one,  and the front door 
exceedingly massive. It was secured at 
night by two enormous bolts that extended right across it,  a chain that could 
have moored a barge,  and a huge lock with 
a key the size of a trowel. When the door was opened in the morning it acted as 
an alarm clock for the entire village. It 
creaked,  it groaned,  and it clanged. Yet night after night we came down in the 
morning to find this door standing ajar. 
We all slept with our doors open on to the small landing. To go down the 
ancient,  creaking stairs was like walking on 
organ, stops. The back door was a modern affair,  which could have been opened 
easily. The windows were modern 
casements of the most gimcrack description. Who opened the heavy front door,  
and why? 
We exchanged recriminations several mornings at break fast as to who had left 
the door open the night before,  but no 
one could ever be convicted of the blame. Finally the matter came to the 
knowledge of the head of the group. 
"I will soon put a stop to that, " he said,  and each night he re, sealed Miss 
L.'s room with the pentagram. We had no 
more trouble with the front door coming open after that. 
While he was dealing with Miss L. he made a practice of sealing the threshold of 
his own room in the same way,  only 
in this case he drew the pentagram point outwards,  to prevent Miss D. from 
coming in; whereas when he sealed her 
room,  he put its point inwards,  to prevent her coming out. She did not know 
this,  nor was it likely to reach her ears 
indirectly,  for he was very uncommunicative,  I only knew that he was sealing 
his room because I chanced to see him 
doing it. 
Nevertheless,  one day I heard a knock at my door,  and there was Miss L. with 
her arms full of clean linen. She asked 
me if I would be good enough to take it into the room of the head of the 
community,  and put it away. I asked her why 
she did not do so herself,  for I knew he was out,  and it was her work to put 
away the linen. She replied that she had 
been to his room for that purpose,  but there was a psychic barrier across the 
threshold that prevented her entering. 
She also asked me,  on several occasions,  to put inside my frock out of sight a 
little silver cross that I habitually wore,  as 
she said she could not bear the sight of it. This cross I had purchased just 
before coming to this occult college,  and had 
taken it to a priest of my acquaintance to be blessed,  for I had not been 
altogether easy in my mind concerning the 
nature of the group I was joining,  and during the early days of my association 
with it was poised on tiptoe,  as it were,  
ready for instant flight. Naturally I had kept my own council concerning the 
psychic precautions I had taken against my 
new friends,  and no one was aware that the cross had been specially magnetised 
against psychic attack. Nevertheless,  
the woman who would have attacked if she could,  felt its influence and feared 
it. 
Auto, suggestion and imagination play so large a part in so, called psychic 
impressions that one is chary of accepting 
confirmatory testimony from a psychic who knows what is expected of him,  but a 
spontaneous reaction is in my 
opinion evidential. 
When the treatment of Miss L. had progressed some way towards her final 
recovery,  much interesting information was 
elicited. She told us that she had distinct memories of dealings with black 
magic in her previous lives. This,  she said,  
had been confirmed by several independent psychics,  and I would certainly have 
been willing to add my testimony to 
theirs had I been asked. As a child,  she used to day dream that she was a 
witch,  willing the death or misfortune of those 
who annoyed her,  and she also averred,  though whether this was true or not I 
cannot say,  that her wishes were so 
effectual that she was frightened and tried to abandon the practice. She also 
volunteered that she was in the habit of 
visualising herself standing before people she was angry with,  scolding them,  
and projecting malignant force at them. 
This,  of course,  would explain our nightmares. She also said that she had been 
in the habit of attacking her mother and 
sister in this way,  and had made her sister very ill,  so that they now refused 
to have her in the house. This statement was 
later confirmed by the mother. 
She told us that she felt as if she were two distinct persons,  her normal self 
being spiritually, minded,  intensely 
compassionate and idealistic. Her other,  and lower self,  which came to the 
surface when she was crossed,  upset,  or over 
tired,  being intensely malicious and subject to paroxysms of hate and cruelty. 
These characteristics had been particularly marked when she was little. But as 
she grew older she recognised the 
wrongfulness of them,  and her lofty idealism represented her endeavour to rise 
above them. This endeavour was,  I am 
convinced,  an honest one; unfortunately it was not always successful. 
She referred to the incident in which she told me to lock my door,  and said she 
had done so in the hope of affording me 
 

some measure of protection against the astral projection in which she knew she 
was tempted to indulge. 
At first sight her case had looked like one,  of obsession,  and had been so 
diagnosed by one or two members of the 
community,  but wise handling revealed otherwise. 
This case reveals another interesting point in that,  true to the witch, 
tradition,  she had a horror of sacred symbols. She 
would not occupy a room where there was a picture of a religious subject. 
Nothing would induce her to wear any piece 
of jewelry in the form of a cross,  and it was impossible for her to enter a 
church. 
This case has many points of interest,  especially in the fact that what was 
apparently a case of well, marked insanity was 
cleared up by occult methods. 




CHAPTER 4. 
PROJECTION OF THE ETHERIC BODY. 
BEFORE we can leave the subject of attack by incarnate human beings,  we must 
consider the subject of etheric 
projection. In this case not only is the mind at work,  but also something which 
is pretty nearly physical; sufficiently 
physical,  at any rate,  to leave bruises on the flesh of the victim,  throw the 
furniture about,  or at least make a 
considerable amount of noise. 
Where such manifestations take place,  it is obvious that we are dealing with 
something more substantial than the mind,  
for although mind can influence mind,  and through it the body to an extent to 
which in the present state of our 
knowledge it is difficult to set limits,  mind cannot manipulate matter 
directly: that is to say,  you cannot smash a 
window by means of a thought. There must be some physical vehicle that can be 
manipulated by the mind if effects are 
to be wrought on the physical plane. The living body is such an instrument; it 
is manipulated by the mind every time a 
voluntary movement takes place,  and the operations of spiritual healing are 
simply an extension of this principle to the 
involuntary muscles and physiological processes not ordinarily directed by the 
conscious mind. Occultists maintain that 
mind affects body by means of the etheric double,  as it is called,  the "mortal 
mind" of the Christian Scientists. We may 
not unreasonably conclude that when physical action is produced at a distance by 
occult means,  it is done by employing 
this etheric double. 
The etheric double is primarily a body of magnetic stresses in the framework of 
whose meshes every cell and fibre of 
the physical body is held as in a rack. But intermediate between this and the 
dense physical body as we know it,  there is 
what may be called the raw material out of which dense matter is condensed. This 
was called by the ancients,  Hyle,  or 
First Matter,  and by the moderns,  Ectoplasm. It is this projected ectoplasm 
which produces the phenomena whenever 
physical manifestations are in question. It may be projected as long rods,  
which will operate up to a distance of a dozen 
feet or so; or it may be projected as a nebulous cloud,  connected with the 
medium by a tenuous thread. This cloud can 
be organised into distinct forms,  having the semblance of life and acting as 
vehicles for conscious wills. There is a 
great deal of information available on this subject in the literature of 
spiritualism,  to which reference may be found in 
the bibliography at the end of this book. 
The adept who was head of the occult college to which I have previously 
referred,  and from whom I received my first 
training in occultism,  was able to perform this operation,  and I have many 
times seen him do it. He would go into deep 
trance,  after a few convulsive movements,  somewhat like a slow tetany,  and 
would then lose about two, thirds of his 
 

weight. I have many times helped to lift him,  or even lifted him single, 
handed,  when he was in this state,  and he 
weighed no more than a child. A man can fake many things,  but he cannot fake 
his weight. I have lifted him single 
handed from the floor on to a sofa when in this state. It is quite true that,  
being rigid as a board,  he was much easier to 
handle than the ordinary limp,  unconscious human form; but there is a certain 
ratio between the weight of a grown man 
and the strength of a woman of average physique. 
What became of the missing weight on these occasions I found out one night. He 
had been ill,  with some delirium,  and 
the lion's share of the nursing,  especially the night work,  had fallen to my 
lot. There came a time,  however,  when we 
decided that he was so far recovered that it was unnecessary for anyone to sit 
up with him,  so to bed we all went,  for 
the first time for several days. I shared a room with another member of the 
community. It was a comparatively small 
cottage we were in,  and our two beds were close together,  side by side,  right 
under the uncurtained open window. It 
was the time of the full moon,  and I remember that I had no need to light a 
candle in order to see to undress. 
I fell asleep at once,  for I was very tired. I could not have been asleep very 
long,  however,  when I was awakened by the 
sensation of a weight upon my feet. It was as if a good, sized dog,  say,  a 
collie,  had jumped up and lain down on the 
bed. The room was flooded with moonlight,  and as bright as day,  and I clearly 
saw,  lying apparently asleep across the 
foot of my bed,  the man whom we had left safely tucked up for the night in the 
room below. It was a somewhat 
embarrassing situation,  and I lay still,  taking thought before I did any 
thing. I was wide enough awake by now,  as may 
well be imagined. I concluded that Z.,  as I will call this man,  had either had 
a return of the delirium,  or was 
sleep, walking. In any case I was very anxious to get him safely back to bed 
again without a fuss or a scene. My 
companion had a bad heart,  and I did not want her to get a shock; neither did I 
want him to get a shock in his weak 
state. I was afraid that if I waked my room, mate first,  she might scream,  and 
wake Z. up with a start,  with disastrous 
consequences. I decided therefore to wake him gently,  as being the worse case 
of the two,  and let her take her chance. 
Having cogitated these matters for several moments at least,  I finally took 
action. I sat up in bed and leant quietly 
forward with the intention of touching him gently on the shoulder and so 
arousing him. In order to lean forward,  I had 
to withdraw my feet from under him,  for they were pinned by his weight,  which 
until now had rested upon them,  for I 
had been careful not to stir while thinking out my plan of campaign. 
Z. was plainly visible in the moonlight,  clad apparently in his dressing, gown,  
or so I took the muffling folds of material 
to be that swathed him about. Both his face and wrappings appeared grey and 
colourless in the moonlight,  but there 
was no question in my mind as to his solidarity,  for not only could I see him,  
but I could feel his weight resting upon 
my feet. But the moment I moved,  he vanished,  and I was left staring in 
amazement at the smooth fold of the blankets 
over the end of the little camp, bed on which I lay. It was then,  and then 
only,  that I realised he had appeared all grey 
and colourless,  more like a shaded pencil sketch than a human being of flesh 
and blood. 
I asked him about this incident in the morning,  but he said he had no 
recollection of it; he had been dreaming the 
uneasy,  broken dreams of a sick man,  but could not recall them. 
This,  of course,  was in no way an occult attack,  but rather the visit of a 
friend,  who had come to lean upon me in the 
course of his illness,  and instinctively came to me for consolation when out of 
his body in trance at a time when his 
weakened condition prevented him from retaining his normal control over his 
psychic activities. Nevertheless,  it serves 
to illustrate what could be done if the etheric form that visited me had been 
energised by a malignant will. It may 
explain the nature of the sense of weight that oppresses the victims of a 
certain type of nightmare. 
I have heard of more than one case wherein bruises resembling finger, marks were 
found on the throats of people who 
had been victims of an astral attack. I have never actually seen such bruises 
myself,  but I have been told of them by 
people who have either had them themselves,  or seen them. It is a well, known 
fact that if an occultist,  functioning out 
of the body,  meets with unpleasantness on the astral plane,  or if his subtle 
body is seen,  and struck or shot at,  the 
physical body will show the marks. I myself have many times found curiously 
patterned bruises on my body after an 
astral skirmish. The mechanism of the production of such marks must,  I think,  
be of the same nature as that which 
produces the stigmata of saints and the curious physical marks and swellings 
sometimes seen in hysterics,  the mind,  
powerfully stirred,  affects the etheric double,  and the etheric double acts 
upon the physical molecules held in its 
meshes. I dare to prophesy the next advances in medicine will be bound up with 
the knowledge of the nature and 
function of the etheric double. 
The next type of psychic attack which we must consider is that conducted by 
means of artificial elementals. These are 
distinguished from thought, forms by the fact that,  once formulated by the 
creative mind of the magician,  they possess a 
 

distinct and independent life of their own,  though strictly conditioned as to 
nature by the concept of their creator. The 
life of these creatures is akin to that of an electric battery,  it slowly leaks 
out by means of radiation,  and unless 
recharged periodically,  will finally weaken and die out. The whole question of 
the making,  charging,  recharging,  or 
destruction of these artificial elementals is an important one in practical 
occultism. 
The artificial elemental is constructed by forming a clear,  cut image in the 
imagination of the creature it is intended to 
create,  ensouling it with something of the corresponding aspect of one's own 
being,  and then invoking into it the 
appropriate natural force. This method can be used for good as well as evil,  
and "guardian angels" are formed in this 
way. It is said that dying women,  anxious concerning the welfare of their 
children,  frequently form them unconsciously. 
I myself once had an exceedingly nasty experience in which I formulated a were, 
wolf accidentally. Unpleasant as the 
incident was,  I think it may be just as well to give it publicity,  for it 
shows what may happen when an insufficiently 
disciplined and purified nature is handling occult forces. 
I had received serious injury from someone who,  at considerable cost to myself,  
I had disinterestedly helped,  and I was 
sorely tempted to retaliate. Lying on my bed resting one afternoon,  I was 
brooding over my resentment,  and while so 
brooding,  drifted towards the borders of sleep. There came to my mind the 
thought of casting off all restraints and 
going berserk. The ancient Nordic myths rose before me,  and I thought of 
Fenris,  the Wolf, horror of the North. 
Immediately I felt a curious drawing, out sensation from my solar plexus,  and 
there materialised beside me on the bed a 
large wolf. It was a well, materialised ectoplasmic form. Like Z.,  it was grey 
and colourless,  and like him,  it had weight. 
I could distinctly feel its back pressing against me as it lay beside me on the 
bed as a large dog might. 
I knew nothing about the art of making elementals at that time,  but had 
accidentally stumbled upon the right method the 
brooding highly charged with emotion,  the invocation of the appropriate natural 
force,  and the condition between 
sleeping and waking in which the etheric double readily extrudes. 
I was horrified at what I had done,  and knew I was in a tight corner and that 
everything depended upon my keeping my 
head. I had had enough experience of practical occultism to know that the thing 
I had called into visible manifestation 
could be controlled by my will provided I did not panic; but that if I lost my 
nerve and it got the upper hand,  I had a 
Frankenstein monster to cope with. 
I stirred slightly,  and the creature evidently objected to being disturbed,  
for it turned its long snout towards me over its 
shoulder,  and snarled,  showing its teeth. I had now "got the wind up" 
properly; but I knew that everything depended on 
my getting the upper hand and keeping it,  and that the best thing I could do 
was to fight it out now,  because the longer 
the Thing remained in existence,  the stronger it would get,  and the more 
difficult to disintegrate. So I drove my elbow 
into its hairy ectoplasmic ribs and said to it out loud: 
"If you can't behave yourself,  you will have to go on the floor, " and pushed 
it off the bed. 
Down it went,  meek as a lamb,  and changed from wolf to dog,  to my great 
relief. Then the northern corner of the room 
appeared to fade away,  and the creature went out through the gap. 
I was far from happy,  however,  for I had a feeling that this was not the end 
of it,  and my feeling was confirmed when 
next morning another member of my household reported that her sleep had been 
disturbed by dreams of wolves,  and 
she had awakened in the night to see the eyes of a wild animal shining in the 
darkness in the corner of her room. 
Now thoroughly alarmed,  I went off to seek advice from one whom I have always 
looked upon as my teacher,  and I 
was told that I had made this Thing out of my own substance by revengeful 
thoughts,  and that it was really a part of 
myself extruded,  and that I must at all costs recall it and reabsorb it into 
myself,  at the same time forgoing my desire to 
"settle accounts" with the person who had injured me. Curiously enough,  just at 
this time there came an opportunity 
most effectually to "settle" with my antagonist. 
Fortunately for all concerned,  I had enough sense left to see that I was at the 
dividing of the ways,  and if I were not 
careful would take the first step on to the Left, hand Path. If I availed myself 
of the opportunity to give practical 
expression to my resentment,  the wolf, form would be born into an independent 
existence,  and there would be the devil 
to pay,  literally as well as metaphorically. I received the distinct 
impression,  and impressions are important things in 
 

psychic matters,  for they often represent subconscious knowledge and 
experience,  that once the wolf, impulse had 
found expression in action,  the wolf, form would sever the psychic navel, cord 
that connected it with my solar plexus,  
and it would be no longer possible for me to absorb it. 
The prospect was not a pleasant one. I had to forgo my dearly, loved revenge and 
allow harm to be done to me without 
defending myself,  and I also had to summon and absorb a wolf, form which,  to 
my psychic consciousness at any rate,  
looked unpleasantly tangible. Nor was it a situation in which I could either ask 
for assistance nor expect much 
sympathy. However,  it had to be faced,  and I knew that with every hour of the 
Thing's existence it would be harder to 
deal with,  so I made the resolution to let the opportunity for revenge slip 
through my fingers,  and at first dusk 
summoned the Creature. It came in through the northern corner of the room again 
(subsequently I learnt 
that the north was considered among the ancients as the evil quarter),  and 
presented itself upon the 
hearthrug in quite a mild and domesticated mood. I obtained an excellent 
materialisation in the 
half, light,  and could have sworn that a big Alsatian was standing there 
looking at me. It was tangible,  
even to the dog, like odour. 
From it to me stretched a shadowy line of ectoplasm,  one end was attached to my 
solar plexus,  and the other 
disappeared in the shaggy fur of its belly,  but I could not see the actual 
point of attachment. I began by an effort of the 
will and imagination to draw the life out of it along this silver cord,  as if 
sucking lemonade up a straw. The wolf,  form 
began to fade,  the cord thickened and grew more substantial. A violent 
emotional upheaval started in myself; I felt the 
most furious impulses to go berserk and rend and tear anything and anybody that 
came to hand,  like the Malay running 
amok. I conquered this impulse with an effort,  and the upheaval subsided. The 
wolf, form had now faded into a 
shapeless grey mist. This too absorbed along the silver cord. The tension 
relaxed and I found myself bathed in 
perspiration. That,  as far as I know,  was the end of the incident. 
I had had a sharp lesson,  and a highly instructive one. It may not be 
convincing to other people,  owing to the lack of 
corroborative evidence,  but it was exceedingly evidential to me,  and I put it 
on record for what it is worth to those who,  
having personal knowledge of these things,  can see its significance. 
It is a curious point that,  during the brief twenty, four hours of the Thing's 
life,  the opportunity for an effectual 
vengeance presented itself. 
CHAPTER V 
VAMPIRISM 
THE alleged Vampire has always been a popular character in tales of mystery and 
imagination. There is a 
considerable literature concerning his doings,  from the famous novel Dracula to 
serious studies of the medieval 
witch, trials,  for which the reader is referred to the bibliography at the end 
of the book. In these pages,  however,  I do 
not want to avail myself of second, hand evidence,  nor of incidents which took 
place in other centuries and under 
primitive conditions,  for it might be argued that with the passing of such 
conditions from our midst,  the problem of 
vampirism,  like the problem of typhus,  has gone too,  and need not trouble us. 
From my own experience I am of the 
opinion,  however,  that this is not so,  and that the peculiar condition which 
the ancients called vampirism may account 
for certain forms of mental disturbance and the physical ill, health associated 
therewith. 
When psycho, analysis was first introduced into England I took up the subject,  
and became a student,  and eventually a 
lecturer at a clinic that was founded in London. We students were soon struck by 
the fact that some cases were 
exceedingly exhausting to deal with. It was not that they were troublesome,  but 
simply that they "took it out" of us,  and 
left us feeling like limp rags at the end of a treatment. Someone happened to 
mention this fact to one of the nurses 
 

engaged in the electrical department,  and she told us that the same patients 
equally "took it out of" the electrical 
machines and that they could absorb the most surprising voltages without turning 
a hair. 
At the same place,  in the course of my psycho, analytical work,  I came across 
a number of cases where a morbid 
attachment existed between two people,  most commonly mother and daughter,  or 
two women friends; sometimes also 
between mother and son,  and in one case I met socially,  between a man and a 
woman. It was always the negative one of 
the pair who came for treatment,  and we were able to benefit them considerably 
by psycho, therapeutic means. They 
always showed the same symptom, complex,  a sensitive temperament,  pallid 
complexion,  wasted form and general 
debility,  sense of weakness,  and easy fatiguabilty. They were also invariably 
highly suggestible,  and were therefore 
easy to handle. Consequently we were usually able to get good results pretty 
quickly in such cases. 
The curious point,  however,  was that the breaking of the morbid rapport caused 
a marked disturbance and even 
semi, collapse of the dominant partner in the alliance. We found it necessary to 
insist upon a separation if a cure were to 
be effected,  and the separation invariably disagreed very actively with the 
dominant partner. 
At that time I explained everything in terms of the Freudian psychology,  but 
even so,  I could not help being struck by 
the curious effect a separation had upon the person who was not supposed to be 
ill,  and that as the one went uphill,  the 
other went down. 
I am of the opinion that what Freud calls an Oedipus complex is not altogether a 
one, sided affair,  and that the "soul" of 
the parent is drawing upon the psychic vitality of the child. It is curious how 
aged Oedipus cases always look,  and what 
little old men and women they are as children. They never have a normal 
childhood,  but always are mentally mature for 
their years. I persuaded various patients to show me photographs of themselves 
as children,  and was much struck by the 
elderly,  worried expression of the childish faces,  as if they had known all of 
life's problems and burdens. 
Knowing what we do of telepathy and the magnetic aura,  it appears to me not 
unreasonable to suppose that in some 
way which we do not as yet fully understand,  the negative partner of such a 
rapport is "shorting" on to the positive 
partner. There is a leakage of vitality going on,  and the dominant partner is 
more or less consciously lapping it up,  if 
not actually sucking it out. 
Such cases are by no of means uncommon,  and clear up rapidly when the victim is 
separated from the vampire. 
Whenever there is a record of a close and dominating bond between two people 
with the devitalisation of one of them,  
it is a good plan to recommend a temporary separation and observe the results. 
Such cases as these,  however,  may more justly be described as parasitism than 
vampirism. Such psychic parasitism is 
exceedingly common,  and explains many psychological problems. We will not 
pursue the subject in these pages,  
however,  as it is outside the scope of our present enquiry,  and is merely 
mentioned for illustrative purposes. 
Vampirism,  as generally understood,  is a very different matter,  and we shall 
do well to reserve the term for those cases 
wherein the attack is deliberate,  applying the term parasitism to the cases 
wherein it is unconscious and involuntary. 
In my opinion,  true vampirism cannot take place unless there is power to 
project the etheric double. All the records of 
vampirism that we have give an account of something much more tangible than a 
haunting. In Western Europe the 
occurrence seems to be comparatively rare in modern times,  but in Eastern 
Europe and in primitive countries it appears 
to be by no means uncommon,  and innumerable well, authenticated cases occur in 
books of travel. 
Commander Gould,  in his exceedingly interesting book,  Oddities,  gives an 
account of vampirism among the 
Berberlangs of the Philippine Islands. His account is based on a paper printed 
in the Journal of the Asiatic Society,  Volume from 1896. These unpleasant 
people,  according to Mr. Skertchley,  the author of the article which Commander 
Gould 
quotes,  "are ghouls,  and must eat human flesh occasionally or they would die 
When they feel a craving for a meal 
of human flesh they go away into the grass,  and having carefully hidden their 
bodies,  hold their breaths and fall into a 
trance. Their astral bodies are then liberated. . . They fly away,  and entering 
a house,  make their way into the body of 
one of the occupants and feed on his entrails. 
"The Berberlangs may be heard coming,  as they make a moaning noise,  which is 
loud at a distance and dies away to a 
feeble moan as they approach. When they are near you,  the sound of their wings 
may be heard,  and the flashing lights 
of their eyes can be seen dancing like fire, flies in the dark." 
 

Mr. Skertchley declares that he himself saw and heard a flight of Berberlangs 
pass by,  and visiting next day the house 
he saw them enter,  found the occupant dead without any sign of external 
violence. 
Compare Mr. Skertchley's account of the Berberlangs lying in the long grass and 
throwing themselves into trance with 
Mr. Muldoon's account of "The Projection of the Astral Body, " with which every 
student of occultism ought to be 
familiar,  for it is undoubtedly a classic of occult literature,  being a 
practical account of occult experiences and detailed 
instructions how to go and do likewise. 
But to return nearer home. In the course of my experience of the byways of the 
human mind,  which,  from the nature of 
my work,  has been,  like Sam Weller's knowledge of London,  extensive and 
peculiar,  I have only known one case of 
genuine vampirism,  according to the sense in which I use the term,  and this 
was not one of my own cases,  though I 
knew the persons concerned,  but was handled by my original teacher,  whom I 
have already referred to in connection 
with the case of the good lady who chased me with a carving, knife. I have made 
use of the facts of this case as a 
groundwork for one of the stories in The Secrets of Dr. Taverner,  but the 
actual facts are such that they were unsuitable 
for a work supposedly designed to amuse. 
At that time I was doing the tutorials in abnormal psychology at the clinic I 
have spoken of,  and supervising the work 
of the other students; one of them took counsel with me concerning a case that 
had come to her in private practice,  the 
case of a youth in the late 'teens,  one of those degenerate but intellectual 
and socially presentable types that not 
infrequently crop up in old families whose blood is too blue to be wholesome. 
This lad was taken as boarder in a flat which the student shared with another 
woman,  and they soon began to be 
troubled with curious phenomena. About the same time every evening the dogs in a 
neighbouring mews began a 
furious outcry of barking and howling,  and a few moments later the French 
window leading on to the veranda would 
open. It did not matter how often they got the locksmith to it,  nor how they 
barricaded it,  open it would come at the 
appointed time,  and a cold draught sweep through the flat. 
This phenomenon took place one evening when the adept,  Z.,  was present,  and 
he declared that an unpleasant invisible 
entity had entered. They lowered the lights,  and were able to see a dull glow 
in the corner he indicated,  and when they 
put their hands into this glow,  felt a tingling sensation such as is 
experienced when the hands are put into electrically charged 
water. 
Then began a mighty spook, hunt up and down the flat,  and the presence was 
finally cornered and dispatched in the 
bathroom. I have staged the incident somewhat more picturesquely in my story,  
but the essential facts are the same. The 
result of the dispatching of this entity was a marked improvement in the 
condition of the boy patient,  and the elicitation 
of the following story. 
The boy,  whom we will call D.,  was in the habit of going to sit with a cousin 
who had been invalided home from 
France suffering from alleged shell, shock. This young man was another scion of 
a worn, out stock,  and it transpired that 
he had been caught red, handed in that unpleasant per version called 
necrophilia. According to the story elicited from 
the parents of D.,  this vice was not uncommon on certain sections of the Front,  
as were also attacks on wounded men. 
The authorities were taking drastic steps to put it down. Owing to family 
influence the cousin of D. was able to escape 
incarceration in a military prison,  and was placed in the care of his family as 
a mental case,  and they put him in the 
charge of a male nurse. It was while the male nurse was off duty that the 
unfortunate young D. was misguidedly 
employed to sit with him. It also came out that the relations between D. and his 
cousin were of a vicious nature,  and on 
one occasion he bit the boy on the neck,  just under the ear,  actually drawing 
blood. 
D. had always been under the impression that some "ghost" attacked him during 
his crises,  but had not dared to say so 
for fear of being thought mad. 
What may have been the exact percentages of neurotic taint,  vice,  and psychic 
attack,  it is difficult to say,  nor is it easy 
to decide which was the predisposing cause that opened the door to all the 
trouble,  but one thing stood out clearly to all 
beholders,  that with the dispatch of the psychic visitant,  not only did D.'s 
condition clear up immediately,  but after a 
short,  sharp upheaval the cousin also recovered. The method of dispatch used by 
the adept,  Z.,  was to pin the entity 
inside a magic circle,  so that it could not get away,  and then absorb it into 
himself through compassion. As he 
completed the operation,  he fell over backwards unconscious. It was,  in fact,  
the same method that I was instructed to 
use in dealing with my were, wolf,  but it is a much more formidable task to 
absorb and transmute the projection of 
 

another person than to absorb one's own,  and could only have been accomplished 
by an initiate of a very high grade,  
which Z. indubitably was. 
His opinion concerning the case,  though there was no means of obtaining 
independent confirmation of this,  was that 
some Eastern European troops had been brought to the Western Front,  and among 
these were individuals with the 
traditional knowledge of Black Magic for which South Eastern Europe has always 
enjoyed a sinister reputation among 
occultists. These men,  getting killed,  knew how to avoid going to the Second 
Death,  that is to say,  the disintegration of 
the Astral Body,  and maintained themselves in the etheric double by vampirising 
the wounded. Now vampirism is 
contagious; the person who is vampirised,  being depleted of vitality,  is a 
psychic vacuum,  himself absorbing from 
anyone he comes across in order to refill his depleted resources of vitality. He 
soon learns by experience the tricks of a 
vampire without realising their significance,  and before he knows where he is,  
he is a full, blown vampire himself,  
vampirising others. The earth, bound soul of a vampire sometimes attaches itself 
permanently to one individual if it 
succeeds in making a functioning vampire of him,  systematically drawing its 
etheric nutriment from him,  for,  since he 
in his turn is re, supplying himself from others,  he will not die from 
exhaustion as victims of vampires do in the 
ordinary way. 
Z. was of the opinion that D.'s cousin was not the primary vampire in the case,  
but was himself a victim. Being a youth 
of unstable morale,  he speedily acquired the vampire tricks,  and the earth, 
bound soul of some Magyar magician 
exploited him. Through his act of biting and drawing blood from the neck of his 
cousin,  this entity became transferred 
to young D.,  preferring pastures new to the depleted resources of its previous 
victim. Probably it alternated between the 
two,  for it was not constantly with D. 
Exactly what Z. did we do not know,  for he was exceedingly secretive concerning 
his methods,  but in the light of 
subsequent knowledge I should imagine that he absorbed the etheric energy of the 
earthbound soul,  and thus deprived it 
of its means of resisting the Second Death. Merely to drive the resisting soul 
out to the Judgment Hall of Osiris would 
have involved leaving behind an astral corpse,  which for some time would have 
continued to give trouble. 
It may be interesting to note in connection with this case that during the time 
that Miss L. was at the occult college in 
Hampshire we had some rather curious happenings. There was an outbreak among us 
of exceedingly bad "mosquito 
bites." The bites themselves were not poisonous,  but the stabs were of such a 
nature that they bled freely. I remember 
waking up one morning to find a patch of blood the size of the palm of my hand 
on the pillow; it had apparently come 
from a small puncture just behind the angle of the jaw. Several others had 
similar experiences. I have never seen 
anything like it,  either before or since,  nor did it occur again after Miss L. 
left. 
I did not tell the adept Z. about it at the time,  and later,  when I was 
reminded of the incident and mentioned it,  the 
opportunity for investigation had gone by. He expressed the opinion that it was 
a vampire's work,  and cited similar 
cases which he had met with in the course of his experience. He said he had seen 
cases in Africa where the victim had 
become so bloodless that it was with difficulty that a specimen of blood could 
be obtained for examination,  for it could 
hardly be induced to flow from the debilitated tissues. 
Nothing can be done for such cases by medical science. They are dying by inches,  
and yet no organic disease can be 
demonstrated. Nevertheless,  their appearance is that of a person sinking from 
repeated hemorrhages. 
When vampirism is suspected the thing to do is to go over that person's body 
inch by inch with a powerful magnifying 
glass,  and the search will probably be rewarded by the discovery of numerous 
minute punctures,  so minute that they are 
not discovered by an examination with the naked eye unless they reveal 
themselves by becoming infected and 
suppurating,  when they are usually mistaken for insect bites. They are bites 
right enough,  but not those of an insect. 
The places to look for them are around the neck,  especially under the ears; 
down the inner surface of the forearms; on 
the lobes of the ears; about the tips of the toes and,  in a woman,  upon the 
breasts. 
It is said that a person with vampire tendencies develops abnormally long and 
sharp canine teeth,  and I have myself 
seen one such case,  and a curious sight it was. The two canine teeth,  the pair 
that come between the incisors and the 
double teeth,  were half as long again as the others,  and terminated in points 
of needle, like sharpness. 
True vampirism in Western Europe appears to be rare,  but Z. was of the opinion 
that many obscure cases of tropical 
debility in which anemia played a prominent part,  might be attributed to this 
cause. 
 

CHAPTER 6, HAUNTINGS. 
THERE are two forms of "haunting" which have to be considered,  the one which is 
due to a discarnate soul who 
interferes with a particular person,  and the one which is due to the conditions 
prevailing in a particular place,  and which 
affects any person sufficiently sensitive who happens to go there. Except in 
cases where the influence is exceptionally 
strong,  the insensitive person is immune. To perceive a "haunting" one needs,  
as a general rule,  to be slightly psychic; it is for this reason that children,  
Celts and the coloured races suffer severely from such interferences,  and the 
stolid Nordic type is comparatively immune,  and,  to a lesser extent,  the 
lively,  materialistic and sceptical Latin. 

Let us consider first of all the question of interference by a discarnate soul,  
It will be noted that I use the term 
"interference" and not "attack." The disturbance need not necessarily be an 
attack,  any more than the drowning man 
who clings to his rescuer and drags him under is motived by malice. The entity 
that is causing the trouble may be a soul 
that is itself in distress on the Inner Planes,  and is too ignorant of post, 
mortem conditions to know the harm it is doing 
by clinging so desperately to the living. It is for this reason that the wide 
dissemination of Spiritualistic teachings is of 
value,  for it helps to relieve the tension between this world and the next. 
As far as my experience goes,  I am inclined to think that deliberate 
malevolence is rare; but this panic, stricken clinging 
is not uncommon,  and explains why the survivor of a pair sometimes goes through 
very unpleasant experiences after 
the death of the partner. There are also cases,  though rarer,  wherein a soul 
who has some occult knowledge but is 
bound strongly to earth by sensual desires,  uses a curious form of rapport in 
order to gratify those desires through the 
physical body of another. 
There are innumerable instances of both these types of astral interference in 
occult and spiritualistic literature,  but as I 
am confining myself to cases within my own experience,  I will not cite them,  
but limit myself to listing the literature of 
the subject in the bibliography. 
Someone of my acquaintance lost,  after a long illness,  her husband to whom she 
was much attached,  but whom most 
people would have thought she was well rid of,  as for many years he had been 
addicted to drink,  and died finally after a 
long illness during which he was kept under morphia for prolonged periods,  
taking enormous quantities. He was a man 
of intensely malignant and selfish disposition,  and died unrepentant. She,  
however,  during the course of his last illness,  
when,  being bedridden,  he could do no more harm,  elected to idolise him,  and 
as soon as he was safely dead,  canonised 
him into the family saint. She was interested in occultism and in the habit of 
practising meditation and invoking the 
Masters. In spite of all counsel to the contrary,  she began to try and get into 
psychic touch with her husband,  invoking 
him as her guide. Like many other men of a sensual disposition,  he had clung 
desperately to life,  remaining in articulo 
mortis for days. Fortunately for all concerned,  it had been possible to 
persuade her to have his remains cremated,  but 
despite all persuasion she brought all his belongings from the nursing, home 
where he had died and kept them in her 
bedroom,  and made a little altar around his photograph and used it as the focus 
of her meditations. 
The last illness had been a long and trying one,  and she had been living at the 
end of a telephone wire,  in a state of 
constant anxiety for weeks,  but had had no physical strain,  so there was 
nothing physical to account for the serious 
illness which ensued after the strain was over. It soon became noticeable that 
she,  who had previously had a very 
lovable and gentle disposition,  was gradually changing,  so that not only in 
temperament,  but in facial expression,  she 
was growing like her late husband. Next a curious thing ensued. Her husband had 
died of an inflammatory spinal lesion 
which caused no pain at the site of the trouble,  but intense pain in the nerves 
that issued from the spine at that point,  so 
that the pain was referred to a particular distribution in the hands and arms,  
more upon one side than the other. This 
lady developed a severe neuritis that exactly corresponded in its distribution 
to her late husband's symptoms. 


Another illustrative case is that of Miss E.,  whose fiancé was killed during 
the War. She says in a letter written to the 
person whom she consulted with regard to her problem: 
"I was able to rise above the loss and separation at the time,  but six months 
later I suffered nervous breakdown,  from 
this time I have been troubled with weak nerves. For the last two months I have 
been having very extraordinary 
experiences which are causing me much perplexity and rendering me unfit for 
work. It is a night experience and has not 
once occurred during the day. After I have composed myself for sleep I find that 
gradually my body is losing all 
sensation; it feels as if I was being slowly frozen stiff. (I don't know how 
else to describe it.) At this stage I can 
sometimes rouse myself and overcome it,  but I cannot always do this. My efforts 
to rouse myself are in vain,  and 
although fully conscious I feel unable to move or call. Usually after this I 
sink into some kind of sleep. I have all kinds 
of experiences. Sometimes I visit strange places and talk with people I don't 
know. Sometimes my experiences are 
beautiful beyond description; sometimes I am threatened with danger of drowning 
or falling,  but in these cases I always 
rise in the air and travel for miles,  it seems to me. Sometimes I feel that I 
am just floating in the air. How long the 
dream lasts I cannot tell. When I wakeup,  however,  I have great difficulty in 
moving for some time; but gradually I 
regain the power to move about,  and after a lot of stinging sensation in the 
limbs I get up,  usually feeling very tired and 
unrefreshed,  but sometimes I feel none the worse for the strange experience. 
But it is under mining my health and 
happiness,  and it cannot be good." 
In conversation she amplified the statements in her letter,  and said that 
during the experiences described,  someone,  she 
thought it was her fiancé,  was trying to prevent her from getting back into her 
body again after these nocturnal 
expeditions. 
The case was entirely cleared up in one week by means of telepathic treatment. 
The notes on the manner in which the 
work was done are of considerable interest. 
"The treatment was given to the entity that was causing the trouble,  not merely 
to the patient,  and it was the release of 
the obsessor from his plane of work and helping him Heavenward that gave freedom 
to his victim." 
In the other type of haunting,  that in which it is the place which is the focus 
of manifestation,  not a special person,  we 
must distinguish between the earth, bound entity which remains attached to a 
particular spot,  and the thought atmosphere 
which is left behind after violent emotions have been experienced there. 
Let us consider first the question of thought, atmosphere,  of which I can give 
a very illuminating example. A friend of 
mine who was a student at a school of dramatic art consulted me concerning an 
attack of stage fright she had had,  
which left her rather nervous as to its recurrence. She was an experienced 
student,  in fact a pupil teacher,  and she was 
having some extra tuition from the head of the school. Going for her lesson one 
afternoon,  she found that her teacher 
had just finished taking the junior students for their end, of, the, term 
examination in elocution. She went on to the stage 
and stood beside the small table which had been placed there for the convenience 
of the examiner,  and commenced to 
recite the piece on which she was to have her lesson. She herself had no 
occasion for nervousness; as had already been 
noted,  she was an experienced speaker and teacher; moreover,  nothing of 
importance hung upon this lesson,  it was 
merely one of a series. Nor was she usually nervous or self, conscious. But as 
soon as she tried to start,  she experienced 
a complete "dry, up, " and stood paralysed,  unable to utter a word. A little 
prompting soon started her off,  however,  but 
she had experienced a nasty attack of stage fright,  and it shook her nerve. 
From the psychic point of view,  the explanation was not far to seek. She was 
standing in the mental atmosphere created 
by a series of girls who had gone on to that platform for an examination upon 
which a good deal depended for them,  
and who had all been correspondingly nervous. She herself,  being sensitive,  
had been affected by this atmosphere,  
which induced in her a similar mental state by means of which is called 
"sympathetic induction, " a phenomenon well 
known in electricity and in acoustics,  but equally valid in psychology. 
No doubt the unfortunate examinees themselves were infecting each other. It may 
well be that the "microphone panic, " 
so well known to broadcasters,  is caused by the thought, atmosphere generated 
by a succession of nervous people who 
have stood upon the same spot. 
An experience of my own may be of interest in this connection. I took a bed, 
sitting, room in a hostel,  and as soon as I 
came there,  I found myself afflicted with the most intense depression. I am not 
usually subject to the blues,  being 



normally a cheerful soul,  but as soon as I entered this room,  which was a 
sunny and pleasant one,  the cloud descended 
upon me,  but lifted again as soon as I went out of it,  whether into the 
dining, room of the hostel,  or out of doors. I soon 
recognised that here was something that needed to be dealt with,  and enquired 
as to the history of the room. I was told 
that it had previously been the bed room of the last owner of the house,  who 
had been addicted to drink and had gone 
bankrupt. It is a curious fact that drunkards and drug addicts make very evil 
psychic atmospheres,  whereas a person 
who is a common criminal,  however bad,  is not nearly so noxious and his 
atmosphere fades rapidly. 
In these two cases there was no question of an entity,  discarnate or incarnate,  
being concerned in the matter; there was 
merely an unpleasant mental atmosphere generated by some powerful and painful 
emotion that had been experienced 
over a considerable period at that spot. 
Such a concentration,  if very strong,  will linger almost indefinitely. The 
structures that saw the concentration may have 
been pulled down and new ones built,  nevertheless the forces remain,  like a 
previous exposure on a photographic plate,  
and sensitive people are affected by them. The insensitive may escape 
comparatively scathe less. 
It is not altogether an easy matter to determine whether the disturbance is due 
to atmosphere alone,  or whether an 
earth, bound entity complicates the situation. Where an entity is present,  it 
will usually be seen sooner or later. 
Moreover,  it will usually be heard as well as felt. This latter sign,  however,  
does not invariably indicate the presence of 
an organised entity,  for I know of a case wherein a room that had been used as 
a lodge of ritual initiation was 
subsequently partitioned into an office and two bedrooms after the lodge was 
moved elsewhere,  and the bedrooms were 
practically uninhabitable owing to the din of cracks,  bangs and thumpings that 
went on at night. In such a case there 
was no reason to suspect the presence of any entity,  for the rituals had not 
been of an evocative type,  nor was the 
influence evil. It was merely force in a state of tension. It was sheer physical 
noise that made the disturbance,  as I can 
testify,  for I have slept,  or rather,  tried to sleep,  there. 
Where a ghost is seen,  it is usually also heard because for a form to be 
sufficiently substantial to be visible there must 
be a modicum at least of ectoplasm in its composition,  and ectoplasm is capable 
of exercising force on the physical 
plane,  in some degree at least. Where a ghost is both seen and heard,  we may 
be sure there is an actual haunting. Where 
it is seen,  but not heard,  it may possibly be that a person with psychic 
tendencies is perceiving the images in the 
reflecting ether,  the photographic plate of Nature,  and there may be no actual 
entity present. Where the disturbance is 
heard,  but not seen,  it may be due to astral forces set in motion by ritual 
magic,  and which continue for a while after the 
original impulse is withdrawn. These may be perfectly harmless,  save that they 
disturb the sleep in the same way that a 
rattling window would do. On the other hand,  if powerful evocative rituals have 
been performed,  and the clearing of 
the sphere has not been properly done,  profound disturbances may result and the 
whole situation be exceedingly 
unpleasant. 
Examples will again help to make the problem clear. As an instance of a non, 
ritual haunting,  I may cite the case of a 
friend of mine who went to live in a block of modern mansions. From the first 
she was not happy there,  and as time 
went by the oppression and distress strengthened. Coming into her drawing, room 
one evening at dusk,  she saw in the 
half, light a man standing with his back to the room,  gazing intently out of 
the window. She switched on the light,  and 
found that there was no one there. On several occasions her maid saw someone 
walk down the passage leading to this 
room. Moreover,  the hall door had a knack of coming open of its own accord. 
My friend's depression deepened until finally,  when standing herself at the 
drawing, room window one day,  she had a 
sudden impulse to fling herself out. Then she realised that things were serious 
and that liver, pills and a week, end at the 
seaside would not put them right. Being an occultist,  she understood the 
significance of the happenings that had been 
going on in her flat,  and she made enquiries concerning the history of the 
square in which this block of modern 
mansions had been built. She learnt that it was the site of an old madhouse of 
sinister reputation. The form that she and 
her maid had seen was probably that of some unfortunate patient of suicidal 
tendencies who had succeeded in giving 
effect to his impulses on a spot corresponding to the situation of her room. The 
terrific emotional forces generated by 
his brooding and last desperate act were photographed on the atmosphere,  as it 
were,  and suggested to her mind 
thoughts of self, destruction just as the ill, temper or depression of a 
companion will induce a similar mood in ourselves 
without any word spoken. 
Another example within the sphere of my experience,  although it was not 
actually my case,  is of much interest in that it 
combines an example of a very definite poltergeist haunting with vampirism. 


I was once consulted by a mental healer to whom a very curious case had been 
brought. Some charitably disposed 
people had raised funds to found a home for unwanted babies,  and a suitable 
house had been purchased on the outskirts 
of a village not far from London. The house had been a conspicuous bargain and 
they were very pleased with it. 
Soon,  however,  they began to be disturbed by some very curious phenomena,  and 
also by inexplicable illness and 
seizures among the babies. One child,  in fact,  actually died,  and its death 
was not satisfactorily accounted for. Then one 
of the nurses,  an Irish girl,  began to be affected also. Celts are notoriously 
susceptible to psychic influences,  and are 
always the first to be affected by them. It will be observed that the babies 
went down first under the attack,  their 
resistance being low compared to that of an adult; and then the most sensitive 
of the adults was affected,  the Irish Celt. 
On several occasions the sound was heard of a cart and horse coming up the 
drive,  but when the maid went to the door 
to open it,  there was nothing to be seen. Soon the ghost became even more 
energetic,  and took to shovelling the coal 
from side to side of an outhouse. It would shift several tons of coal in this 
way in a night,  the occupants of the house 
lying shivering in their beds while lumps of coal thudded and rumbled' against 
the sides of the bunkers. As to why or 
wherefore this particular manifestation should take place,  I can offer no 
suggestion. 
On several occasions different people saw a strange man crossing the hall,  and 
immediately afterwards children were 
taken ill. 
Finally,  in addition to all other troubles,  mysterious fires began to break 
out all over the house. A basket of clean linen 
in an empty room was found to be on fire. Curtains were found to be smouldering. 
Meanwhile the unfortunate Irish 
nurse went from bad to worse,  lying in bed too weak to stand up,  and rapidly 
going off her head. 
It will probably be suggested that some mischievous or demented person was at 
the bottom of the trouble,  but it is 
difficult to know what human agency either could or would shovel a truck, load 
of coal across a shed single, handed 
during the night. 
The superintendent of the home was interested in mental healing and knew enough 
of the mind side of things to realise 
that something abnormal was happening in the house under her charge. She 
consulted a mental healer,  who in her turn 
consulted me. 
I made a psychic diagnosis of the case,  and reported that in my opinion the 
house had at some time been occupied by 
someone who had a knowledge of occultism,  and who,  being upon the Left, hand 
Path,  objected strongly to going to 
face his portion of Purgatory after the death of the physical body,  and that he 
was maintaining himself in an 
intermediate state as an earth, bound spirit by drawing upon the vitality of the 
unfortunate children,  and had accidentally 
drawn too much from one,  thus killing it outright. 
Working on this hypothesis,  the healer undertook to give the case "absent 
treatment." Needless to say,  the officials of 
the home were not taken into our confidence. 
The result of this treatment was that the manifestations immediately ceased. No 
more children had seizures and the 
Irish nurse rapidly recovered. The superintendent was then told the hypothesis 
upon which we had worked. She was 
greatly interested,  and made enquiries in the village as to the history of the 
house,  and learned that it was notoriously 
haunted,  which was the reason they had obtained it so cheaply. It appeared that 
no tenant could stop there long,  and that 
there was a constant record of these exhausting and mysterious illnesses. It 
also transpired that about sixty years 
previously the house had been occupied for a long period by a man who was viewed 
askance by his neighbours as an 
eccentric and mysterious personage,  and was reported to be engaged in some sort 
of research which necessitated the 
use of a laboratory into which no one was ever allowed to go,  and in which he 
worked by night. 
It is interesting to note that neither the mental healer or myself ever visited 
the house or were within twenty miles of it; 
for it shows in what way these unseen forces can be manipulated from a distance. 
A final example,  taken from The Confessions of Aleister Crowley,  will serve to 
show the nature of a haunting produced 
by ceremonial magic in which the forces invoked are not adequately dispersed. 
"The demons connected with Abramelin do not wait to be invoked,  they come 
unsought. One night Jones and I went 



out to dinner. I noticed on leaving the White Temple that the latch of its Yale 
lock had not caught. Accordingly I pulled 
the door to,  and tested it. As we went out,  we noticed semi, solid shadows on 
the stairs; the whole atmosphere was 
vibrating with the forces we had been using. (We were trying to condense them 
into sensible images.) When we came 
back,  nothing had been disturbed in the flat; but the Temple door was wide 
open,  the furniture disarranged,  and some 
of the symbols flung about the room. We restored order,  and then observed that 
semi, materialised beings were 
marching round the main room in almost unending procession. 
"When I finally left the flat for Scotland,  it was found that the mirrors were 
too big to take out save by the way of the 
Black Temple. This had,  of course,  been completely dismantled before the 
workmen arrived. But the atmosphere 
remained,  and two of them were put out of action for several hours. It was 
almost a weekly experience,  by the way,  to 
hear of casual callers fainting,  or being seized with dizziness,  cramp or 
apoplexy on the staircase. It was a long time 
before these rooms were re, let. People felt instinctively the presence of 
something uncanny." 
It is well known to all psychics that the sites of ancient temples where 
mystery, rituals have been worked,  are always 
potently charged with psychic force. This force need not necessarily be evil,  
but it has a powerfully stimulating effect 
upon the psychic centres and stirs up the subconscious forces; and as the 
majority of civilized people suffer in a greater 
or lesser degree from what Freud calls " repression, " such a stirring of the 
subliminal mind produces a feeling of 
profound disturbance. We should not unquestioningly attribute evil influences to 
a place or a person that causes us 
discomfort; it may merely be that psychic force at a greater tension than we are 
accustomed to is disturbing our 
equilibrium. 


The sites of monasteries that were disbanded with persecution at the time of the 
Reformation are also frequently badly 
"haunted" by psychic forces. The group, mind of a religious community is a very 
potent thing,  and when it is disturbed 
by the corporate emotion of its members,  the forces thus let loose are not 
readily dispersed. Moreover,  the monks,  
initiates of the Mysteries of Jesus,  would not be likely to hand over their 
sacred places to the despoilers with any good 
will. It has been reported again and again that a curse rests on those who 
profited by the spoliation of Church lands. 
This is too well known to require discussion in these pages. 
There is another fact in connection with Church property,  however,  which may 
not be so well known,  and that is the 
frequency with which psychic happenings are reported in connection with 
vicarages. In enquiring among friends and 
fellow, workers for data in connection with the research that has gone to the 
making of this book,  I have been 
astonished how frequently a vicarage has been mentioned in connection with the 
phenomena of which I have been told. 
The rituals of the Church are,  of course,  ceremonial magic,  as is admitted by 
even such an orthodox authority as Evelyn 
Underhill. The average clergyman is not conversant with the technique of 
occultism,  and has therefore little or no 
understanding of what he is doing. What influences he brings to the altar,  and 
what forces he takes away there from,  
must therefore be an open question in each individual case. A man whose 
consciousness has been exalted by ritual,  and 
who does not know how to seal his aura and return to normal,  is liable to 
psychic invasion. 
Objects associated with any form of ceremonial operations are invariably highly 
charged with magnetism and 
intimately linked with the force whose uses they have served. I remember,  many 
years ago,  when I had but little know 
ledge of occultism and no pretensions at all to psychism,  that two friends and 
myself were amusing ourselves by turning 
over each other's trinket, boxes. I picked up a handsome amethyst cross from one 
of them,  and immediately exclaimed: 
"There is something extraordinary about this cross. It feels as if it were 
alive." 
"That was the cross that was given me at my first communion, " replied my 
friend, " and it was originally a bishop's 
pectoral cross." 
Her sister was greatly interested,  and immediately brought her own jewel, case 
to me and asked me if I could pick out 
her first communion cross also,  for,  like her sister,  she was a Roman 
Catholic,  and these crosses that were given them 
as presents on the occasion of their first communion had been specially blessed 
by the priest. I was greatly interested to 
observe that from three or four ornamental crosses I was able to pick one which 
felt warm and living and electric to the 
hand,  and pass it across to her,  saying,  "This is your communion cross, " and 
it was. 
I remember once,  as a small child,  picking up a dying rook; the creature lay 
motionless on my knee for a few minutes,  
and then gave a flutter and died. I had never seen death before,  but I needed 
no one to tell me that I saw it now. The 



"feel" of the creature,  before and after that flutter,  was different. I can 
only compare the feel of the magnetised and the 
unmagnetised crosses to the difference between the living and the dead bird. 
But the Christian is not the only religion that can magnetise its ceremonial 
instruments. There are other ritualistic 
religions,  and some of these are debased. We ought to use much caution before 
we place about our rooms as ornaments 
objects which may have been associated with cults whose nature we do not 
understand. Many of them,  of course,  
belong to the Brummagem cult,  and are dedicated to no more desperate deity than 
Mammon; but the genuine curio is a 
different matter. 
I had an example of this once in the British Museum. I was visiting the room in 
the basement which contains a 
collection of plaster casts of the famous statues of antiquity,  the originals 
being elsewhere. Suddenly I became aware of 
a sense of magnetic power. I turned towards it,  and saw a small altar. Reading 
the label,  I found that this was not a cast 
but the original. It is a very interesting test of psychism to sample the 
atmosphere of the different rooms of the British 
Museum. The benign and brooding peace of the Buddhist Room is a thing to be 
remembered. The flavour of the long 
Ethnological Room is a thing to be got out of the mouth as quickly as possible. 
To me,  at any rate,  the Egyptian Room 
is disappointing; the mummies all seem neither malignant or benignant,  but 
merely cynical. Perhaps I should feel 
differently,  however,  if I spent a night with them. Magnetism,  which is 
dispersed during the day,  charges up again 
during the silence and darkness of the night. I remember visiting Stonehenge 
amid a crowd of trippers and 
charabancs,  and thinking that the glory had departed; but it was a very 
different affair when I visited it in the 
desolation of a bleak spring day after its long winter solitude. It had charged 
up again,  and was as formidable as anyone 
could wish. 
I should hesitate,  therefore,  to say that because the mummies and I have never 
struck sparks when we met in the British 
Museum,  that their reputation is groundless. At the time that Tut ankh amen's 
tomb was being opened I said to myself,  
If the mummy's curse does not work in this case,  I shall lose my faith in 
occultism. We all know how it has worked,  
even unto the third and fourth generation. No novelist,  deriving his ideas of 
ancient Egypt from an encyclopedia article 
on Egyptology and some photographs,  would have dared stretch the long arm of 
coincidence anything like as far. 
The Egyptians attached great importance to the preservation of the physical 
body. The tombs of great men,  as is well 
known,  were protected by means of what are popularly called spells,  and the 
power and scope of Egyptian magic are 
things that very few people realise. The modern student of occultism who reads 
Iamblichos on the Egyptian Mysteries,  
will have a surprise. 
In most cases,  however,  the purchaser of Egyptian curios has nothing to fear; 
the worst that they will yield to psychic 
investigation is a vision of labour disputes in a mass,  production factory. I 
have,  however,  heard of a very wonderful 
psychometric reading which was obtained from a mummy which,  when subsequently 
unrolled,  was found to consist 
entirely of French newspapers of recent date! 
I have always been greatly amused by the indignation of Egyptologists against 
tomb robbers. After all,  is there any 
distinction between the earlier and later visitors to a tomb save that one lot 
work by day and the other by night? In the 
view of the people who made the tomb,  and spared nothing to render it inviolate 
and preserve the peace of their dead,  
the workers by night would probably be preferred,  for they merely robbed,  and 
did not strip and expose the nude bodies 
to the public gaze. There was a terrible outcry recently when some bodies were 
moved in a village church yard to make 
room for the monument chosen to decorate the grave of a famous public man. Even 
the people whose religious feelings 
were not outraged by this act of sacrilege regarded it as in shocking bad taste. 
Yet nobody proposed to strip the 
graveclothes from the body of someone's wife or mother and photograph it stark 
naked. When it comes to the question 
of a mummy's curse,  I am afraid that my sympathies are entirely with the mummy. 
The initiate is strictly counselled that he should never blaspheme the name by 
which another knoweth his God,  for it is 
the same force that he himself worships represented by another symbol. "The ways 
to God are as many as the breaths of 
the sons of men, " says the old Arab proverb. We should have enough sympathy 
with the struggles of another soul 
towards the light not to desecrate the things that are sanctified by his hopes 
and endeavours,  even if by nothing else. 
The Father of us all may understand their significance better than we do,  and 
by His acceptance consecrate them for 
ever. 
There are many Europeans who have a great affection for the Buddha,  and have 
His statue in their rooms (though 
sometimes they confuse it with Chenresi,  the stout and beaming god of good, 
luck). That the influence of that great 



Being,  the Light of Asia,  is noble and benignant,  I would be the last to 
deny; but the statues of the Buddha are a 
different matter,  and need to be approached with caution if genuine. Some of 
the worst black magic in the world is a 
debased form of Buddhism. To say this is not to insult that venerable faith,  
for it is only lack of opportunity that 
prevents the Black Mass from occupying that dubious eminence. In the Thibetan 
monasteries of the Dugpa sect there 
are temples each one of which contained literally thousands of statues of the 
Buddha. On various occasions one or 
another of these monasteries has been raided,  either by rival religionists or 
Chinese troops,  and its curios scattered. To 
be the possessor of one of these Buddhas,  magnetised by Dugpa rites,  is not a 
very pleasant thing. 
I had a curious experience with a Buddha upon one occasion. It was an archaic 
soap, stone statuette,  some nine inches 
high,  and its owner had dug it up herself on the site of a Burmese city that 
had fallen in ruin and been swallowed by the 
jungle. It was placed on the floor in an angle of the stairs,  and served as a 
doorstop upon occasion. I had a flat on the 
top floor,  and had to pass the melancholy little Buddha each time I came in or 
went out,  and to me it seemed a 
desecration to see the sacred symbol of another faith treated thus. I tried to 
point this out to her,  and asked her how she 
would feel if she saw a crucifix thus utilised,  but without result. Meanwhile 
the little Buddha sat there patiently,  getting 
the carpet, sweeper pushed in his face and receiving libations of slops. 
One day,  passing upstairs bearing a bunch of flowers,  I was prompted to throw 
before him one of the traditional 
marigolds of Indian devotion. Immediately I was conscious that a link had been 
formed between myself and the little 
statue,  and that it was sinister. A night or two afterwards I was returning 
home rather late,  and as I passed the Buddha I 
had a feeling that there was something behind me,  and looking over my shoulder,  
saw a ball of pale golden light about 
the size of a football separate itself from the Buddha and come rolling up the 
stairs after me. Thoroughly alarmed,  and 
disliking this manifestation very much indeed,  I immediately made a banishing 
gesture and the ball of light returned 
down the stairs and was reabsorbed into the Buddha,  who,  needless to say,  got 
no more marigolds from me,  and 
received a very wide berth until I left the flat shortly after. The experience 
was a singularly unpleasant one,  and was a 
sharp lesson to me not to meddle with the sacred objects of another system 
unless I knew exactly what I was about. I 
learnt subsequently that some of these statues are consecrated with the blood of 
a human sacrifice. 
I do not mean to imply by this that all Buddhist statues have been so treated; 
such consecrations are,  I should imagine,  
comparatively rare; but I think no one who has a knowledge of the facts will 
deny that they occur,  even as one might 
occasionally come across a Crucifix which had been used upside down at a Black 
Mass. 
It is not every case of psychic disturbance,  however,  which originates 
externally. It is a well, known cosmic law that 
everything moves in circles,  and whatever forces we send out,  and whatever 
thought, forms we extrude from our auras,  
unless absorbed by the object to which they are directed,  will return to us in 
due course. One of the most effective,  and 
also one of the most widely practised methods of occult defence is to refuse to 
react to an attack,  neither accepting nor 
neutralising the forces projected against one,  and thus turning them back on 
their sender. We must never overlook the 
fact that a so, called occult attack may be evil thought, forms returning home 
to roost. 
There are certain types of insanity in which the lunatic believes himself to be 
the victim of an attack by invisible beings,  
who threaten and abuse him and offer base or dangerous insinuations. He will 
describe his tormentors,  or point to their 
position in the room. A psychic who investigates such a case can very often see 
the alleged entities just where the 
lunatic says they are. Nevertheless,  the psychologist can come forward and 
prove beyond any reasonable doubt that the 
so, called "hallucinations" are due to repressed instincts giving rise to 
dissociated complexes of ideas in the patient's 
own subconscious mind. Does this mean that the psychic is mistaken in thinking 
he perceives an astral entity? In my 
opinion both psychic and psychologist are right,  and their findings are 
mutually explanatory. What the psychic sees is 
the dissociated complex extruded from the aura as a thought, form. A great deal 
of relief can be given to lunatics by 
breaking up the thought, forms that are surrounding them,  but unfortunately the 
relief is short, lived; for unless the cause 
of the illness can be dealt with,  a fresh batch of thought, forms is built up 
as soon as the original ones are destroyed. 





CHAPTER 7. 

THE PATHOLOGY OF NON, HUMAN CONTACTS.
 
THERE are other forms of life as well as ours whose sphere of evolution impinges 
upon the earth. In the realm of 
folk, lore we constantly meet with the idea of intercourse between the human and 
the fairy kingdoms; of the marriage of 
a human being with a fairy spouse,  or the theft of a child by the fairies,  an 
impish changeling being left in its place. We 
shall be rash if we assume that an extensive body of folk, belief is entirely 
without foundation in fact. Let us therefore 
examine these old and crude beliefs and see whether we can find any grounds for 
them,  and if so,  what the real nature 
of the facts may be,  and whether they throw any light upon modem psychic 
phenomena of the kind we are considering 
in these pages. 
There are many of us who have met people who might well be described as non, 
human,  soulless,  in that the ordinary 
human motives are not operative with them,  nor do the ordinary human feelings 
prompt or inhibit them. We cannot but 
love them,  for they have great charm,  but we cannot but dread them as well,  
for they spread an infinitude of suffering 
around them. Although seldom deliberately evil,  they are singularly detrimental 
to all with whom they come in contact. 
They,  for their part,  are unhappy and lonely in our midst. They feel 
themselves to be alien and uncompanioned; every 
man's hand is against them,  and in consequence it all too often happens that 
their hand is against everyone and they 
develop a puckish malevolence,  though there is seldom calculated evil, doing. 
Gratitude,  compassion,  good faith,  
morality and common honesty are utterly foreign to their natures,  as far beyond 
their conception as the 
differential calculus. They are not immoral,  however,  but simply non, moral. 
On the other hand,  they 
possess the virtues of absolute sincerity and great courage. In terms of human 
ethics they are 
"undesirables, " but they have an ethic of their own to which they are loyal,  
and that is the beauty which 
is truth,  and this is all they know,  and,  as far as their life is concerned,  
all they need to know. In 
appearance they are usually small and slight, possessing unusual physical 
strength and endurance but 
very liable to nervous exhaustion and brain, storms. In social relations they 
take violent likes and 
dislikes; they show a facile and demonstrative affection towards those they 
like, but quickly forget them. 
Gratitude and pity are unknown to their nature. Towards those they dislike they 
are pettily malicious, and 
in all relations of life they are utterly irresponsible. One cannot describe 
them better than to say that they 
resemble nothing so much as a blend of Persian kitten and pet monkey. They have 
the beauty and 
aloofness and charm of the cat, and the amusing, mischievous destructiveness of 
the monkey. Many 
human beings hate them at sight; others are fascinated by them because they 
bring with them a sense of 
unearthly beauty and a quickening of the life-forces. I have been able to 
investigate the history of two 
such beings, and it is interesting to note that both of them were conceived 
while their mothers were 
under the influence of drink. There is a very great deal of information 
available concerning the occult 
aspect of the incarnation of souls, but not much of the knowledge concerning the 
actual facts of 
conception has ever found its way into print. I have given a little in my book, 
The Esoteric Philosophy of 
Love and Marriage. I cannot enter into the subject deeply in these pages, for it 
would be too much of a 
digression. Some points, however, it is essential to touch upon for a 
comprehensive survey of our 
subject. 
At the moment of sexual union a psychic vortex is formed resembling a 
waterspout,  a funnel, shaped swirling that 
towers up into other dimension. As body after body engages,  the vortex goes up 
the planes. In all cases the physical,  
etheric and astral bodies are involved; the vortex therefore always reaches as 
far as the astral plane; a soul upon the 
astral plane may be drawn into this vortex if it is ripe for incarnation,  and 
thus enter the sphere of the parents. If the 
vortex extends higher than the astral plane,  souls of a different type may 
enter this sphere,  but such extension is rare,  
and therefore it is said that man is born of desire,  for few are born of 
anything else. 
But this vortex may not only extend vertically up the planes (speaking 
metaphorically),  but it may also,  under certain 
conditions,  be deflected,  as it were,  out of the normal human line of 
evolution,  so that its open end extends into the 
sphere of evolution of another type of life. Under such circumstances it is 
theoretically possible for a being of a parallel 
evolution to be drawn into incarnation in a human body. Occultists hold that 
this occasionally occurs,  and explains 
certain types of non, pathological abnormality which are occasionally met with. 



These non, humans are either adored or hated by their human associates. They 
have a peculiar fascination for certain 
types of temperament,  the types that psychologists call the unstable. In these 
types the subconscious comes very near to 
the surface,  deep calls to deep,  and they are instinctively drawn towards the 
elemental kingdoms. 
There is nothing more disastrous than marriage with a non, human,  for they have 
nothing in their nature that can satisfy 
the normal human yearnings for affection and sympathy. The one saving feature in 
such a union is that grounds for 
divorce are invariably readily available,  for the morals of the non, human are 
those of the barnyard. 
The power of non, humans to injure their enemies is comparatively small,  for 
they are aliens in a strange land when 
incarnated in human form,  and cannot avail themselves of any of the ordinary 
human resources of mischief. They are,  
in fact,  singularly defenceless and helpless,  and themselves suffer acutely at 
the hands of society. It is otherwise,  
however,  in their relations with their friends. They seem to have an infinite 
capacity for inflicting hurt on those who 
love them. Not deliberately or maliciously,  but like a child pulling flies to 
pieces out of idleness,  not realising what it is 
doing. Obeying the laws of their own nature,  they are destructive to beings of 
the human evolution. Yet what other laws 
can they obey? For them to submit to our standards is to deny their deepest 
instincts. 
The effect they have upon those who love them constitutes such a well, marked 
syndrome among the psychic 
pathologies that we must consider it in detail. The person who forms a rapport 
with a non, human becomes deeply 
stirred by the elemental forces that find ingress to our sphere through the 
channel of this wandering and alien soul. He 
becomes,  as it were,  drawn away from normal human things and set wandering 
upon the confines of the fairy kingdom,  
and yet he can find there no rest for his foot and no sustenance for his soul. 
The story of the handsome fisher, lad and 
the mermaid is indicative of this condition. She loves him,  draws him to her 
and he drowns,  for he cannot live in the 
element of water. 
The explanation of the curious power,  both of fascination and destruction,  
which is exercised by non, humans may lie in 
the fact that they belong to one element only,  whereas in man all four are 
combined. Any elemental contact is 
stimulating to us,  because elemental beings pour forth in abundance the 
vitality of their own particular sphere,  and this 
vitalises the corresponding element in ourselves. But if a four, element 
creature is drawn into the sphere of a single 
element he is poisoned by an overdose of the one element in which he finds 
himself,  and starved of the other three. It is 
for this reason that mortals in the fairy kingdom are always said to be 
enchanted or asleep. They are never living 
normally in full possession of their faculties. 
An equally difficult problem is set to the non, human who is drawn into our 
midst. A single, element creature is bidden 
to control and assimilate an additional three elements for which it has no 
equipment or experience,  and the result is 
disastrous. 
But it is not enough that we should merely describe the conditions and state the 
problem in these pages. Our aim is 
essentially practical. What then can be done when a non, human has to be faced 
and dealt with? It must be clearly 
realised that any mating between a human and a non, human is a hopeless 
proposition. In the first place,  it can only be 
the preamble to a divorce,  because non, humans are promiscuous in their sexual 
habits; and,  secondly,  there is nothing 
in the nature of a non, human that can satisfy the higher aspirations of the 
human. We must not allow the human form to 
mislead us as to the existence of a human soul. A non, human is a pet animal,  
not a fellow, creature. That,  frankly,  is the 
only possible ground upon which they can be approached. If we expect no more of 
them than we should of a pet bird,  if 
we manage them as we should manage a kitten,  we have got as near to the 
solution of the problem as we are ever likely 
to get until the Dark Angel mercifully restores them to their own kingdom; a 
mercy seldom long delayed,  for 
non, humans do not make old bones. 
Human beings may also come into touch with elemental beings by themselves 
venturing into the spheres of elemental 
life. Such contacts need not necessarily be harmful to either kingdom provided 
those who enter into them know what 
they are about. In fact,  such associations are frequently entered into by 
occultists in the course of their work and 
researches,  but it is an undertaking for the advanced initiate only,  not for 
neophytes. 
There are cases,  however,  where such an association may lead to harm. The 
human partner in the association may be 
ill, equipped or ill, adapted for the undertaking. He may have ventured out 
beyond his depth,  having picked up a formula 
from some more experienced occultist and used it without proper preparation. Or 
again,  it is not uncommon to find 
people who have brought through from previous incarnations a natural aptitude 
for getting into touch with the 




elemental kingdoms. In such cases it may occur that an elemental who has had 
experience of relations with human 
beings may deliberately get into touch with them. This is in every way 
undesirable,  for the elemental has not got the 
knowledge of human conditions necessary to enable it to avoid injuring its new 
friend. In any case,  elementals have got 
a one, way intelligence,  and it is not well that they should be senior partners 
in any alliance with human beings. The 
whole question of elemental contacts,  an exceedingly fascinating one,  is too 
extensive and intricate to be entered upon 
in these pages. It has been necessary to refer to it,  however,  for certain 
cases of psychic difficulty may be due to 
inexpert operations on both sides of the Veil. 
These elementals,  or nature spirits,  are quite different to the controls with 
whom Spiritualistic circles come into touch. 
The Spiritualistic movement is highly organised on the Inner Planes,  and 
promiscuous controlling is not permitted. 
Controls have,  in fact,  to "sit" for development in just the same way that 
mediums do,  and there is invariably some 
experienced entity within call who can come to the assistance of the circle if 
all is not going well. Western Occultism 
was thoroughly disorganised and broken up by centuries of persecution; its Inner 
Plane conditions,  consequently,  
present many tangles and gaps even to this day. It is nothing like as well 
organised as the Spiritualistic sphere. The 
great Orders have their definite contacts and work strictly within them,  
keeping a firm hand on neophytes; outside the 
Orders there is a good deal of chaos and banditry,  and it is unwise to venture 
far save in the company of an experienced 
occultist who understands the technique of the methods employed. 
There are many people for whom the Deva Kingdom,  as the sphere which the 
elementals share with the Nature Spirits 
is sometimes called,  has a great fascination,  and they try by meditation and 
ritual to get into touch with it. In my 
opinion it is decidedly risky for a person who is not an initiate to attempt 
this work. It is exceedingly apt to lead to 
mental unbalance,  if not to actual obsession. Not that the nature contacts are 
evil,  but they are profoundly disturbing to 
the human consciousness because they stir those atavistic depths which the 
psycho, analyst aims at laying bare by 
means of his technique. Anyone who is acquainted with the literature or practice 
of psycho, analysis knows that the 
ab, reaction is an important factor in this system; it is a crisis,  and can,  
for the time being at any rate,  upset the patient 
pretty thoroughly and exacerbate all his symptoms. When we touch the elemental 
contacts we get the same reaction that 
is caused by psycho, analysis when the censor is being penetrated. 
Persons in whom the subconscious mind is near the surface,  such as the artist,  
the crank,  the unstable,  and,  for the 
matter of that,  the genius in any walk of life,  love the elemental contacts 
because they stimulate the elemental forces in 
their own nature which are to them the springs of their power and inspiration. 
But the average citizen,  whose mental 
content is organised largely in a basis of repression and compromise in order 
that he may be a citizen at all and take his 
place in organised society,  is upset by the elemental contacts according to the 
proportion of repression to compromise 
in his make, up. Compromise is the normal lot of humanity; repression is the 
pathology of compromise. The person who 
has managed to effect a working compromise between the different elements of his 
nature can afford to allow himself a 
holiday with the Devas without doing any body any harm; but the person who is 
repressed will find that they disagree 
with him actively because they are having the same effect upon him that a 
drastic psycho, analysis would have. We hear 
sometimes of the tragedy that results from taking the last dose in a bottle of 
tonic of which arsenic is one of the 
ingredients. This is due to the fact that the bottle has not been thoroughly 
shaken up each time a dose has been taken,  so 
that the arsenical sediment has all collected in the last dose and reached a 
poisonous concentration. So it is with the 
elemental contacts; they are a potent tonic,  but they can reach a poisonous 
concentration under unsuitable 
circumstances. 


I have never come across or heard of a case of pathology due to the fascination 
of the Element of Earth; it is not an 
element that usually attracts the amateur experimenter,  though the initiate 
appreciates its value and importance. I have 
come across cases,  however,  of sensitive people dwelling in a mountainous 
country,  especially in narrow gulches 
where there is a paucity of sunlight,  who have become obsessed with the fear of 
the mountains. They do not fear so 
much that the mountains will fall upon them as that they will close over them,  
as the cave closed upon the children who 
followed the Pied Piper of Hamelin. The psychiatrist will,  of course,  
recognise this symptom as belonging to the 
well, known psycho, neurosis of claustrophobia. This,  however,  does not 
invalidate my statement; for in my opinion we 
may find that in a more intimate knowledge of the elemental kingdoms we shall 
come upon the clue to both 
claustrophobia and agarophobia. 
Mountaineers also know this peculiar terror with which the great hills can 
obsess mankind. It is neither giddiness nor 
mountain sickness,  but a curious oppression of the spirits by the overwhelming 
grandeur of nature. The same force,  
when not at a poisonous concentration,  inspires the passion ate love of the 
hills or of the sea that Kipling has celebrated 
so gloriously in one of his poems. 



The pathologies of the Element of Water may be a fascination so great that a man 
will walk out into the sea until he 
drowns. Swinburne had this peculiarity,  and has immortalised it in several of 
his poems,  "Strike out as the heart in us 
bids and beseeches,  athirst for the foam." On one occasion he was picked up in 
the open sea by a Breton fishing, smack,  
swimming tirelessly,  many miles from land,  borne on the sea by currents,  but 
oblivious of his danger. Being rescued,  he 
sat upon the deck with his mane of red hair drying in the wind,  chanting sea, 
poems to his rescuers,  a spectacle that one 
would have given much to witness. 
Another curious case of water, pathology I knew person ally. A very level, 
headed woman,  a school teacher,  was 
obsessed by a horror of rough waves. She always declared that if she went on the 
sea, front to watch a storm,  the waves 
made a "dead set" at her. She lived at a seaside place,  but so great was her 
dislike of the waves that she did not care to 
walk on the promenade when the tide was in. She was cured of her fear in a 
curious way. She took initiation into 
Co, Masonry,  and found to her surprise that from that day forth she was free 
from her fear of the sea. I am not a 
Co, Mason,  and speak subject to correction,  but I believe I am right in saying 
that Co, Masonry differs from other forms 
of Masonry in that Elemental Invocations have been introduced into it. 
The Element of Air,  as all occultists know,  is a very tricky element to deal 
with. More initiates turn off the Path in the 
Grade of Air than in any other,  and it is rare to see a Ritual of Air worked 
without something being dropped or knocked 
over. It is a quarrelsome element; when it is being worked,  the operators are 
apt to bicker and squabble. It is also 
intimately associated with sex,  as is revealed by its symbolism. If an 
occultist is making a magic circle,  and for any 
reason wishes to seal it with the Kerubim of the Elements instead of the 
Archangels,  as is more commonly done,  and 
feels himself unequal to the task of drawing a presentable eagle,  the symbolic 
form of the Kerub of Air,  he will use the 
Zodiacal sign for Scorpio. The evolutionary connection between the snake and the 
bird is well known to biologists; but 
long ages before Darwin,  initiates used the Serpent and the Eagle to represent 
the unsublimated and sublimated aspects 
of the life, force. The Scorpion connects with the Serpent through the Dragon. 
I had a very curious experience myself in connection with the Element of Air. I 
am betraying no secrets if I say that 
certain grades of initiation refer to the elements,  for the fact is too 
generally known,  and too obvious,  for it to be any 
more mysterious than the Queen of Spain's legs. 
To begin with,  I have an exceptionally bad head for heights,  and as the Abyss 
of Height belongs to the Element of Air,  
I obviously have no natural affinity with it. The ceremony went exceptionally 
badly even for an Air Ritual. Two of the 
principal officers,  husband and wife,  helped to maintain its reputation as a 
contentious element by having a family jar in 
the middle of the proceedings,  and the usual upsets and smashings occurred on a 
generous scale. 
For the next fortnight I lived in the midst of a cataclysm of crockery. I 
smashed my way through two entire tea, sets and 
all the mantelpiece ornaments. The ornaments just fell off the mantelpiece one 
by one of their own accord. I actually 
saw two of them do it. I did not know at the time that the Element of Air had 
this sinister reputation. I realised that 
something queer was afoot,  however,  and asked my teacher about it. She was 
much amused,  but I was not,  because it 
was my crockery that was supplying the raw material for the phenomena. She 
advised me to get into sympathetic touch 
with the Sylphs,  as the initiation had evidently not been altogether 
successful. I tried to do this,  but I was in London at 
the time and met with no success,  for the elemental contacts,  with the 
exception of Fire,  cannot be worked successfully 
in a city. The smashing went on,  and I was reduced to a tin mug and a tooth, 
glass,  for I saw it was useless to get any 
more china until things had settled down. 
Then I went away for my summer holiday and found myself on the summit of a high 
and isolated hill on a day of bright 
sun and high wind. I was very conscious of the nearness of the elemental 
kingdoms. The air seemed full of silver 
sparkles,  which is always a sign that the veil is thin. There was no one 
present save some friends who were 
sympathetic. I faced into the wind and raised my arms in Invocation. Suddenly we 
saw below us a figure bursting 
through hedges and leaping ditches and running wildly towards it. We presently 
recognised it as another of our friends,  
and when he joined us he told us that he had felt the sudden rush of power while 
in the valley and on an over powering 
impulse started for the hill, top. Then all of us,  without any suggestion of 
leadership,  began the Dance of the Elements,  
whirling like dancing dervishes upon that hill, top. Fortunately nobody was 
about,  but I do not know that it would have 
made very much difference if they had been,  for we were caught up out of 
ourselves and the air seemed full of rushing 
golden flames,  lying level in the wind. For days afterwards we seemed charged 
with elemental energy by that 
extraordinary dance. 
page 39 of 103. 

It may be interesting to note that we danced with a circular movement,  each 
revolving on our own axis at the same 
time,  and that we both danced and revolved deosil,  that is,  with the sun. All 
this occurred spontaneously,  the tide of the 
elements catching us up and away. I have never known a more glorious experience. 
It was indeed the divine inebriation 
of the Mysteries. 
After this there were no more smashings of crockery. 
I have already noted my exceptionally bad head for heights. I have found that it 
is considerably mitigated,  temporarily 
at any rate,  by the Invocation of Air. I am of the opinion that the curious 
impulse which causes people for no reason 
whatsoever to commit suicide by throwing themselves from heights may be due to 
the same impulse that causes people 
who are obsessed by the Element of Water to swim out to sea,  as I have recorded 
of Swinburne. 
These apparently causeless suicides by Water and Air are,  in my opinion,  a 
form of union with the god which is one of 
the ideas underlying human sacrifice. There are two types of human sacrifice,  
the willing and the unwilling. The 
unwilling sacrifice,  the prisoner struggling or drugged into passivity,  is 
used,  not to propitiate the god,  as is usually 
thought,  but in order that his vital forces may serve as a basis of 
manifestation. The willing sacrifice,  in which the 
victim will be either a priest or a devotee of the god,  has for its motive the 
idea of divine union,  not altogether unknown 
to Christian mystics,  who seek its achievement by a living death,  whereas the 
adherents of Juggernaut escape with one 
brief pang. 
The European belief of one man,  one life,  has imbued us with the idea of death 
as the supreme evil. Therefore the 
European very often does not go to his death when he unites with the elements,  
but his higher self withdraws from 
incarnation,  leaving his body ensouled by a curious kind of intelligent 
automaton,  which deteriorates rapidly. What ever 
may be the status of the soul that withdraws,  that which is left behind is not 
nice. I feel,  therefore,  that it must seriously 
delay and distort the evolution of the human Monad if it turns aside into the 
sphere of the Deva evolution. It may well 
be that some of the creatures whom at first sight we might classify as non, 
humans are really humans who have had a 
Deva phase in their Karmic record. There is a very interesting field of research 
awaiting the person who systematically 
investigates the past lives of the weak,  minded and the mentally deranged. 
The pathologies of the Element of Fire are also rare,  though it may be that the 
aimless incendiary and pyromaniac 
belong to this class. I have never personally had any opportunity of 
investigating this type of case. Algernon 
Blackwood writes of one in his very interesting story,  "The Regeneration of 
Lord Ernie, " which is published in his 
volume of short stories entitled Incredible Adventures. 
Indeed,  this author is exceedingly fond of drawing his inspiration from the 
Deva kingdom,  and has some most 
interesting studies of the subject scattered through his books. 
Any organic geographical unit develops something of an oversoul,  and where the 
differentiation is marked,  the over 
soul may become a very definite entity. If there are among the inhabitants of 
the district any who are sensitive to the 
Unseen,  they may form either an affinity or a repulsion for this oversoul. A 
great forest has a very marked personality,  
and there are few white men who can resist its influence,  becoming markedly 
changed and de, humanised if exposed to 
it for long periods without the companionship of others of their race. Natives,  
on the other hand,  seem to enter into it 
and be part of it. 
It is well known how often trees are objects of worship in all parts of the 
world. They have very marked personalities 
and strong magnetic fields. In the spring,  when the sap is rising,  even non, 
psychics can often see the aura of a tree. It 
can best be seen by getting at a distance of a couple of hundred yards and 
looking at the sky beyond the top of the tree. 
The aura will then be perceived as a whitish cloud,  like a patch of lighter, 
coloured sky,  surrounding the top of the tree,  
and usually swaying gently from side to side. 
There is a curious antagonism between elms and humanity,  and about orchids all 
sensitive persons agree there is some 
thing sinister. Tropical vegetation,  as a whole,  is over, powerful for 
humanity. Under the tremendous stimulation of the 
solar fire the elemental forces are concentrated to a poisonous strength. I am 
not personally acquainted with the West 
Coast of Africa,  but from what I can gather I am of the opinion that the 
elemental forces and the atmosphere made by 
Juju rites are between them more responsible than the climate for earning that 
part of the world its sinister reputation as 
the White Man's Grave. There are other spots where the climate is equally hot 
and humid,  Burmah,  for instance,  but 



there is no other spot that produces the same loosening of moral fibre. The only 
place that is at all comparable to it is 
the Carribbean Sea,  which produces,  not so much a demoralisation,  as a 
fierceness and violence quite alien to the racial 
characteristics of the people who go there. 




CHAPTER 8. 
THE RISKS INCIDENTAL TO CEREMONIAL MAGIC. 
If the problem of psychic self, defence is to be adequately dealt with,  we must 
have an understanding of a subject 
upon which very little has been written,  the nature of the forces of 
intelligent and organised evil. 
The great faiths of the ancient world all had their evil gods as well as their 
beneficent deities,  and they did not call these 
evil gods devils. In Hinduism we have Shiva and Kali; in the Egyptian system we 
have Set and Besz and Typhon; in the 
Grecian pantheon there are Pluto and Hecate. 
All the other faiths,  also,  have their angelic choirs,  their Archons,  or 
builders,  and all the hierarchy of heaven. 
Protestant Christianity alone has forgotten its angiology,  the Creator has to 
be both Architect of the Universe and 
Bricklayer,  forming man from the dust of the ground without assistance. 
If we refer to Paradise Lost,  however,  we shall find that Milton was familiar 
with both divine and infernal hierarchies,  
and that these were graded and charted according to a definite system. Anyone 
who is acquainted with the Qabalah will 
recognise that in Milton he meets a fellow Qabalist. 
In the Qabalah we find the esotericism of the Old Testament. I propose to use 
the Qabalistic terminology to explain the 
esoteric theory of evil because,  firstly,  it is the one I am most familiar 
with; secondly,  it forms the basis of Western 
occult thought and all medieval magic is based upon it,  together with much 
modern magic; thirdly,  it is,  in my opinion,  
singularly lucid,  coherent and comprehensive; and being a system consecrated by 
antiquity,  I cannot be accused of 
romancing,  or fabricating my own system. 
In order to render my concepts clear,  a brief explanation of Qabalistic 
doctrine must be given. As it is not possible to 
enter into an exposition of this vast system,  I will state certain axioms 
dogmatically,  and explain them by illustration 
instead of argument,  thus obtaining the maximum clarity for the minimum 
expenditure of space. 
The initiate recognises two kinds of evil,  Negative Evil and Positive Evil. 
Negative Evil is the polarising opposite of 
good. 
Let us try and make this clear by an illustration. Every action gives rise to a 
reaction. The forward drive of the bullet is 
equated by the recoil of the gun. Everything which moves has to have the 
equivalent of a thrust, block against which to 
push,  something firm under its feet from which to take off. It is difficult to 
walk on a slippery surface because it offers 
no resistance. We must have something for the foot to grip,  to push against,  
and give us the forward impulse at each 
step. 
41 of 103.

Negative Evil is the thrust, block of Good; the principle of resistance,  of 
inertia,  that enables Good to "get a purchase." 
But Negative Evil is more than this. We might call the principle of resistance 
the "negative~~ aspect of Negative Evil. 
For it has also a "positives' aspect,  the Principle of Destruction. 
We can best explain the cosmic function of the Principle of Destruction by 
calling it by its esoteric name of the 
Scavenger of the Gods. Its function is to clear up behind the advancing tide of 
evolution,  removing that which has 
become effete so that it may not choke and clog evolving life. 
We now find the answer to the eternal riddle as to why God tolerates the Devil. 
The Devil is the cosmic thrust, block 
and Scavenger of the Gods. It is this aspect of evil which is given a more 
detailed symbolism in the pantheons of other 
faiths,  having its Shiva and Kali,  or its Pluto and Hecate aspects. We can now 
see why these resistive and destructive 
forces are classed as gods and not as demons,  for they are reactions according 
to cosmic law,  not anarchical and chaotic 
forces. 
We now come to the consideration of Positive Evil. This again has a "negative's 
and "positive's aspect. Its "negative's 
aspect is pure chaos,  unformed substance and unco, ordinated force. It has been 
aptly called the Cosmic Abortion. To 
drift into the sphere of "negative" Positive Evil is like being caught in a 
psychic quicksand. 
We are now ready to consider the sphere of "positive" Positive Evil,  the demons 
themselves,  or the Qlippoth,  as they 
are called in the Qabalah. In order to understand their significance we must 
make a further excursion into Qabalistic 
philosophy. 
The Creator is conceived of as bringing the universe into manifestation through 
a series of Divine Emanations,  ten in 
number. These are called the Ten Holy Sephiroth,  and are represented in a 
diagram as arranged in a particular pattern. 
This is the famous Tree of Life,  the key to all symbolism. 
The Sephiroth were not emanated independently,  each from the Divine Source; but 
overflowed,  the one from the other. 
As soon as one Sephira has emanated another,  these two are said to be in 
equilibrium,  compensating each other. But 
there is a period during the emanation of a Sephira when the force is not yet in 
equilibrium,  but is pushing out 
unsupported,  like an incomplete arch. It is the uncompensated force emanated 
during this epoch of unbalance,  and 
never subsequently absorbed after the establishment of the new sphere,  which 
constitutes Positive Evil. There are,  
therefore,  ten kinds of Positive Evil,  just as there are ten Divine 
Emanations. 
To these spheres go,  according to their kind,  all the evil imaginings of the 
heart of man that are not neutralised by 
repentance or compensated by the overplus of good in other members of the same 
group, soul. There is a deep occult 
doctrine here which we cannot enter upon now; it must suffice to state it 
dogmatically in explanation of the Qabalistic 
conception of the Qlippoth. When we consider all that must have been poured into 
these ten sinks of iniquity since the 
days of Atlantean Magic,  through the decadence of Babylon and Rome,  down to 
the Great War,  we can guess what 
rises up from them when their seals are broken. 
Not only do influences emanate from them which tempt and corrupt souls,  each 
according to its susceptibility,  but time 
has served for the formulation of evil intelligences. These probably originated 
through the workings of Black Magic,  
which took the essential evil essence and organised it for purposes of its own. 
The beings thus formulated assumed an 
independent existence,  developed,  and multiplied their kind. They appear as 
dreams and hallucinations,  and may 
produce a considerable degree of objective phenomena,  such as noise,  deposit 
of slime or blood,  balls of light,  and,  
above all,  stenches of an amazing pungency. 
The Ten Divine Emanations are personified as Archangels,  and the Ten Infernal 
Emanations are personified as Archdemons. 
It is these which are the Names of Power in Magic. Each Sephira,  then,  has its 
obverse side in the 
corresponding Qlippottic demon. The initiated adept always gains control over 
the demonic force before he attempts to 
utilise the angelic force which,  by the appropriated means,  can be contacted 
in each Sephira. If he does not do so,  he 
contacts them both simultaneously. Moreover,  the planets,  the elements and the 
Signs of the Zodiac are all intimately 
connected with the Sephiroth,  being arranged upon the Tree of Life in a pattern 
known only to initiates. 



The initiated adept is exceedingly careful what he does when he is working with 
these potencies because he knows that 
he has always got the Qlippoth in the background. The uninitiated occultist goes 
ahead gaily,  juggling with such Names 
of Power as he has picked up from the innumerable books on the subject now 
available for the general reader,  thinking 
that if he does not invoke the demons he will not get them. He forgets that 
every planet is a Jekyll and Hyde. 
Consequently,  ceremonial magic has got a bad name owing to the unpleasant 
frequency of untoward results,  just as 
surgery got a bad name before the days of Lister. It is the imperfect technique 
that is the trouble. 
I was once doing some experimental work with geomancy,  which is a method of 
divination belonging to the Element of 
Earth. Now all divinations,  when performed according to their esoteric 
formulae,  always begin with an evocation of the 
genius that presides over that particular operation. The genii of geomancy are 
not of a very high type. I was imperfectly 
familiar with the method,  and was trying to set up my prick, figure on a piece 
of paper instead of using a tray of wet 
sand as I should have done. Things began to go wrong,  and the room was filled 
with the most terrible stench of drains. 
The appropriate banishing ritual was immediately performed,  and the air 
cleared; but there was not much doubt about 
the objectivity of this phenomenon while it lasted. 
A very interesting case is given in the Occult Review for December,  1929. in a 
letter to the editor,  signed H. Campell. 
"Desiring some information which I could not get in any ordinary way,  I 
resorted to the System of Abra Melin,  and to 
this end prepared a copy of the necessary Talisman,  perfecting it to the best 
of my ability with my little stock of 
knowledge. The ritual performed,  I proceeded to clear my 'place of working.' A 
little knowledge is a dangerous thing; 
my ritual was imperfect and I only rendered the Talisman useless without in any 
way impairing the activities of the 
entity invoked. This looks like nothing else than gross carelessness on my part; 
and to a certain extent this is true,  but 
the point I wish to make is this,  that my knowledge of this particular system,  
and therefore my ritual,  were imperfect; 
and in any case,  I had been shown no method of combating this particular entity 
when once aroused. Now note the 
results. 
"Unfortunately I have no account of the date when these occurrences began,  but 
the first hint of trouble must have 
come on or about March 3,  1927. I can guess the date with fair accuracy 
because,  as I was to learn,  the manifestations 
were always strongest about the new moon,  and after I had gone to sleep. Upon 
this occasion I can remember waking 
up suddenly with a vague feeling of terror oppressing me; yet it was no ordinary 
nightmare terror,  but an imposed 
emotion that could be thrown off by an effort of the will. This passed almost as 
soon as I stood up,  and I thought no 
more about it. 
"Again on April 2,  or thereabouts,  I was troubled by the same feeling,  but 
regarded it as nothing more than a severe 
nightmare,  though the fact that my sleep was distorted towards the time of the 
new moon had occurred to me; while as 
full moon drew on,  the nights were peaceful again. 
"The new moon of May I brought a recurrence of the trouble. This time very much 
more powerful,  and necessitating an 
almost intolerable effort of will to cast if off. Also it was about this time 
that I first saw the entity which was rapidly 
obsessing me. It was not altogether unlovely to look at. Its eyes were closed 
and it was bearded,  with long flowing hair. 
It seemed a blind force slowly waking to activity. 
"Now there are three points which I must make quite clear before I proceed. In 
the first place,  I was never attacked 
twice in the same night. Secondly,  when I speak of physical happenings,  the 
smashing of glass and voices,  they were 
never,  with one absolutely inexplicable exception,  actual,  but pure 
obsessions; and this leads to the third point. Not one 
of these incidents happened while I was asleep. Always I found myself awake with 
the terror upon me and struggling 
violently to cast off the spell. I have had nightmares before,  but no nightmare 
that I have ever had could hold my mind 
in its grip for minutes at a time as this thing did,  or send me plunging 
through a ten, foot, high window to the ground 
below. 
"The first indication I had that these visitations were absolutely out of the 
ordinary course of events came on May 30. 
About midnight I was suddenly awakened by a voice calling loudly,  'Look out, ' 
and at once I became aware of a red 
serpent coiling and uncoiling itself under my bed,  and reaching out onto the 
floor with its head. Just as it was about to 



attack me I jumped through my window,  and came to earth among the rose bushes 
below,  fortunately with no more 
damage done than a badly bruised arm. 
"After this there was absolute peace until June 30,  when the real climax came. 
I had seen the thing again on the night of 
the new moon,  and had noticed considerable changes in its appearance. 
Especially it seemed far more active,  while its 
long hair had changed into serpent heads. The night after I was awakened by a 
violent noise and jumped out of bed. I 
then saw the noise was caused by a great red obelisk which crashed through the 
west wall of my room and leaned 
against the wall at the east end,  smashing both that and the window to pieces 
but missing my bed,  which was in an 
alcove to the left of its path. In its transit it had smashed all the mirrors,  
and the floor and top of my bed were strewn 
with broken glass and fragments of wood. This time the obsession must have 
lasted some minutes,  I dared not move for 
fear of cutting myself,  and to reach the matches,  wherein,  I knew,  lay 
safety,  I had to lean across the bed and again 
risk the glass. Yet in my heart I knew that all this was false,  but had no 
power to move. I could only stand there,  
incapable,  looking at the shattered room in a state of hopeless terror. 
"And now comes the most extraordinary part of the whole business. When I had 
finally mastered the obsession,  I went 
to bed again dead tired,  and I know that the only sound I made that night was 
jumping to the floor,  also my room is at 
least a hundred yards from the rest of my family,  yet next morning at breakfast 
I was asked what was the terrible noise 
in my room during the night. 
"After that I realised that the game was up. I had not taken these occurrences 
lying down,  but I knew that it was 
impossible for me to try and control the force which I had set in motion. In 
desperation I turned to a good friend,  who,  I 
was aware,  knew much of these things. She did not hesitate,  but came at once 
to my assistance,  and from that day to the 
present the trouble has absolutely gone from me. 
"Such is the case; and I only hope it may warn those who are contemplating my 
folly to treat with the greatest of care 
any printed systems of magic,  and not to use them at all unless they have the 
fullest control over the entities invoked." 
Among the general public,  who do not dabble in occultism,  the results of a 
magical mishap are never seen,  and the only 
doctors who ever see them are fellow, initiates who happen to be medical men,  
and they,  naturally,  keep silence. The 
catastrophes are of varying degrees of severity,  ranging from a bad fright to a 
fatality. 

I cannot say much upon these subjects,  for they are among the most secret paths 
of occult lore. Enough must be hinted,  
however,  to reveal what,  under certain circumstances,  may be experienced. I 
do not think it in the least likely,  however,  
that the Qlippotic demons will be encountered save through the use of ceremonial 
magic. They are as rare as anthrax in 
England,  but it is as well to know the manner of their manifestation so that,  
when encountered,  they may be recognised. 
The great majority of dabblers in occultism are protected by their own 
ineptitude. They fail to get results,  and 
consequently come to no harm; but if they should succeed in getting results they 
would find that they had their hands 
full. The serious student,  unless he is working under skilled guidance,  may 
also find himself in difficulties,  and for 
various reasons. 
He may be insufficiently experienced in the operation he has undertaken,  for in 
magic theory is one thing and practice 
is another. A student of occult science will often take a formula out of a book 
and try to use it. He ~night just as well 
study the instructions in a book on surgery and try to operate. Most formula are 
incomplete,  there is always unwritten 
work. Some of the "barbarous names of evocation" which the uninitiated use as 
Words of Power,  are really the initial 
letters of a mantric sentence or formula. I came across an invocation once in 
which the Word of Power was Tegatoo. 
On investigation this turned out to be the battered remains of The Great 
Architect Of The Universe. 
Even an experienced occultist may get into difficulties if he attempts magical 
work when he is in bad health,  over, tired,  
or has had even a moderate amount of alcohol,  for very little is too much when 
the Invisible Forces are being handled. 
Equally does this apply to each of his assistants. A chain is no stronger than 
its weakest link,  and if one of the team 
cannot handle the forces,  everybody is going to suffer. A ritual lodge is no 
place for the well,  meaning ineffectual. 
There is an immense amount of dabbling in occultism going on today. Most of it 
is innocuous because it is totally 



ineffective; but there is never any knowing when one is going to strike a live 
wire. Take,  for instance,  the advertisers in 
various occult papers who offer to supply "charms that work." One of two things 
is certain. Either they do not work at 
all,  in which case one is wasting one's money on them; or they work by means of 
some power with which they have 
been charged. What is the nature of that power,  and did the persons who made 
the charm or talisman really know what 
they were about? Did they take the precaution to bind the baser aspect before 
magnetising with the higher aspect? 
These are the elementary precautions of the practical occultist who has been 
properly trained. Did the maker of the 
talisman know them? 
Again,  one buys second, hand books on magic. Who was the previous owner and for 
what purposes were these books 
used? Or one buys a new book which has been brought out by some occult school 
for propaganda purposes. These 
books are often magnetised before they are sent out,  and so form a magnetic 
link between the purchaser and the Order 
which caused them to be issued. 
Or someone may join a group who has previously been associated with another 
occult group whose contacts were 
debased. Unless the proper precautions are taken,  that person will bring the 
psychic contagion in with him,  and his 
fellow, members may have unpleasant experiences. 
I well remember it being said to me by an occultist of great experience that two 
things are necessary for safety in 
occultism,  right motives and right associates. We lull ourselves into a false 
security if we believe that good intentions 
are sufficient protection. My advice to the would, be student is to invoke the 
Master to send him an initiator,  and to 
refuse to attempt any practical work until he is fully satisfied that the 
initiator has been found. 
I cannot here enter into either the precautions to be taken against untoward 
happenings in practical occult work,  nor the 
remedies to apply if they take place; I will merely indicate the signs by which 
such an eventuality may be recognised. 
This is all that can be done,  and all that is necessary in a book of this type; 
the initiate knows what to do without need 
of guidance from me; the non, initiate cannot do anything,  and must seek 
assistance. It is enough for him if he knows 
when such assistance is needed. 
If things go wrong in the course of a magical ceremonial,  the power "shorts, " 
and someone,  it may be the operator,  or it 
may be the weakest person in the team,  gets " knocked out " as if he had 
received a punch from an invisible pugilist. 
When picked up,  he will be very dazed and badly shaken,  and will certainly be 
some days,  possibly weeks,  before he 
gets over it. He will be in a state of complete prostration and considerable 
mental confusion,  which will gradually wear 
off. Unless there is some organic defect,  such as hereditary mental 
instability,  a bad heart,  or hardened arteries,  there 
will be a complete recovery,  given time; but naturally it is a bad outlook 
should one of these conditions be present,  and 
those who have them should not take part in occult experiments. Personally,  I 
do not believe that the invisible forces 
alone will ever actually cause the loss of life or permanent disability in the 
absence of any physical lesion. The person 
who goes out of his mind as the result of a psychic shock would have gone out of 
his mind if he had been in a railway 
disaster or any other drastic emotional experience. 
Unless the psychic atmosphere indicates otherwise,  it is not necessary to do 
any banishings,  or take precautions against 
obsession,  because the power has dispersed itself in the very act of inflicting 
the shock. 
During my early days of occultism I developed my powers very rapidly because I 
recovered the memories of previous 
incarnations en bloc,  and with them the capacities acquired in previous lives,  
and I shook myself up severely on 
numerous occasions before I learnt the technique of handling the invisible 
forces. I never experienced any permanent 
ill, effects from my mishaps,  though I admit that upon occasion I have been 
extricated by my friends from a 
considerable amount of debris. 
During the early days of my occult career a girl was brought to me by a mutual 
friend,  who told me that the mother of 
this girl,  an ardent student of occultism,  seemed to have a terrible effect 
upon her daughter. The mother was a widow,  
and mother and daughter lived together under very comfortable material 
circumstances; but whenever the girl made a 
friend,  or showed any desire to leave home,  the mother performed extraordinary 
antics,  coming to the daughter's room 
at night and drawing signs in the air about her bed. The effect of all this upon 
the girl was most peculiar. She felt 
unable to free herself from the mental domination the mother had obtained over 
her,  and she was wasting away in a 



most curious fashion. When I saw her,  although able to get about,  she looked 
like nothing I have ever seen save a 
famine victim. 
I made a psychic investigation,  and formed the opinion that the mother was 
working by means of an entity of which she 
had obtained possession. How this had been accomplished in the present instance,  
I do not know,  but such things are 
common in occultism. I determined to take on the case,  and to chase and,  if 
possible,  break up this artificial elemental. I 
was away from the group I was accustomed to work with,  but among people keenly 
interested in occultism of every 
sort,  size and description,  and I had no difficulty in picking up a team to 
help me with the undertaking. 
I had no qualms about the undertaking. A second, hand elemental,  directed by a 
woman with only a rule, of, thumb 
knowledge of magic,  did not appear to me to be a formidable opponent. I had 
seen a good deal of practical occultism,  
had lent a hand at similar operations,  and possessed the necessary formulae. So 
I went round the town,  asked certain 
friends to lend a hand,  and others to come and see the fun. To be frank,  our 
attitude was that of a party of small boys 
going ratting. 
We met at the appointed time and place. Formed our circle,  and went to work. 
The method I meant to use made it 
necessary for me to leave my body,  and the group were really there to look 
after it while I was out of it,  and see it came 
to no harm. I got out on to the astral readily enough,  did my job,  and 
returned,  feeling very pleased with myself,  for it 
was the first time I had operated entirely on my own,  without the supervision 
by my teacher. 
As I began to recover physical consciousness,  which is just like coming round 
from an anaesthetic,  I had a sensation as 
of machinery running,  and felt as if I were lying on something very lumpy. I 
opened my eyes,  and saw some thing 
brown towering above me to an enormous height. As I gathered my senses together,  
I discovered that I was lying on the 
floor,  close to the skirting,  across the feet of an unfortunate man,  who was 
thus securely pinned against the wall,  and it 
was he,  shaking in his shoes,  that had felt to me like the vibration of 
machinery. Various other members of the circle 
slowly and reluctantly reappeared from behind the piano and sofa and other heavy 
articles of furniture. They had seen 
some practical occultism for once in their lives,  but they did not appear to 
like it. 
It appears that,  after I had gone out and left them with my unconscious body,  
they got a good deal of phenomena in the 
way of bells and voices outside the circle. If they had kept quiet,  it would 
have been quite all right,  but they lost their 
heads and scattered. Then,  the circle being broken,  I began to perform antics,  
arching up on my head and my heels and,  
in some way that has never been explained,  arriving at the far side of the room 
at the feet of one of the circle,  which,  of 
course,  did not improve matters. 
Then an extraordinary thing happened. We were just gathering ourselves together,  
thinking that everything was over,  
when a force of what nature I have never known suddenly rushed round the circle,  
and one member seemed to take the 
brunt of it. He went flying across the room and landed,  fortunately for him,  
face downwards in an arm, chair,  and was ill 
in bed for three weeks. 
While all this was going on,  the father of one of the people taking part became 
uneasy about her,  and walked across 
from where he lived at the far side of the little town,  to see what was 
happening. Like most little country towns,  this 
one usually went to bed early,  but he told us that as he came along he saw that 
innumerable windows were lit up,  and 
he heard the sounds of children crying all down the street. 
When I think of the risks I took and the conditions under which I worked in 
those early days,  I wonder that I or any of 
my friends are alive to tell the tale. It is said that there is a special 
Providence to look after fools,  drunkards and little 
children. I think there must be another that looks after inexperienced 
occultists and their friends. 
It may be interesting to note that as a result of this operation which I so 
rashly undertook,  the girl was entirely freed 
from the domination of her mother,  and began forth with to put on flesh and 
rapidly became normal. That end of it,  at 
least,  was entirely successful. 
Another very curious case is that referred to in the Occult Review of January,  
1930. 

"The mysterious death of a student of occultism,  Miss N. Fornario,  is 
receiving the attention of the authorities at the 
present time. Miss Fornario was found lying nude on the bleak hill, side in the 
lonely island of Iona Round her neck was 
a cross secured by a silver chain,  and near at hand lay a large knife which had 
been used to cut a large cross in the turf. 
On this cross her body was lying. A resident of London,  Miss Fornario seems to 
have made her way to lona for some 
purpose connected with occultism. One of the servants at her house in London 
stating that a letter had been received 
saying she had a 'terrible case of healing on.' One newspaper report alludes to 
'mysterious stories on the island about 
blue lights having been seen in the vicinity of where her body was found,  and 
there is also a story of a cloaked man.' 
Occultists no less than the general public will await with interest any 
disclosures that may be forth coming concerning 
this occurrence." 
No disclosures ever were forthcoming,  however,  and conjecture alone can work 
upon the case. One detail only can I 
add to the brief but comprehensive report of the Occult Review. The body bore 
marks of scratches. 
I knew Miss Fornario intimately,  and at one time we did a good deal of work 
together,  but some three years before her 
death we went our separate ways and lost sight of each other. She was half 
Italian and half English,  of unusual 
intellectual calibre,  and was especially interested in the Green Ray elemental 
contacts; too much interested in them for 
my peace of mind,  and I became nervous and refused to co, operate with her. I 
do not object to reasonable risks,  in fact 
one cannot expect to achieve anything worth while in life if one will not take 
risks,  but it appeared to me that "Mac, " as 
we called her,  was going into very deep waters,  even when I knew her,  and 
that there was certain to be trouble sooner 
or later. 
She had evidently been on an astral expedition from which she never returned. 
She was not a good subject for such 
experiments,  for she suffered from some defect of the pituitary body. Whether 
she was the victim of a psychic attack,  
whether she merely stopped out on the astral too long and her body,  of poor 
vitality in any case,  became chilled lying 
thus exposed in mid, winter,  or whether she slipped into one of the elemental 
kingdoms that she loved,  even as 
Swinburne swam out to sea,  who shall say? The information at our disposal is 
insufficient for an opinion to be formed. 
The facts,  however,  cannot be questioned,  and remain to give sceptics food 
for thought. 
It may be as well to say in concluding this chapter,  that when I speak of the 
experiments of ceremonial magic,  I do not 
mean ritual initiation. Now a ritual initiation is of course ceremonial magic,  
and so,  for the matter of that,  are the 
sacraments of the Church. But the occultist,  using his terms perhaps somewhat 
loosely,  does not include the initiatory 
rituals when he speaks of ceremonial magic. 
There are many varieties of initiatory ceremonies,  but these are all designed 
to work upon the soul of the candidate 
only. Ceremonial magic,  on the other hand,  in the technical sense of the term,  
is designed to work upon the soul of 
nature. The two operations,  although there are innumerable forms of each,  are 
entirely different in type,  and aim at,  and 
achieve,  entirely different results. 
There is a strong prejudice against ritual magic among those interested in 
popular occultism owing to the strictures 
passed upon it by Mme Blavatsky. Now Mine Blavatsky was trained in the Eastern 
School and had very little,  if any,  
practical acquaintance with the inner aspect of Western Occultism,  nor was she 
a master of its methods. She spoke 
from an Eastern standpoint and judged Western esoteric conditions by those she 
had seen in the East,  where Tantric 
magic has become depraved in the hands of Dugpas and similar sects. 
In the dense and materialistic atmosphere of the West it is exceedingly 
difficult to get any results worth mentioning 
without the use of some form of ceremonial. Even the Theosophical Society,  of 
which she was the foundress,  has 
unconsciously drifted into Western methods,  adopting the Catholic ceremonial 
and the Masonic initiations as side 
chapels to its main temple,  and the mixture is giving trouble. The "Back to 
Blavatsky" movement within its ranks may 
be able to produce a much purer ethical and metaphysical teaching,  but I think 
we may safely prophesy it will produce 
no practical results,  in Europe at any rate. 
Ought we to eschew ceremonial methods because occasionally,  in inexpert hands 
or under unsuitable conditions,  they 
lead to disastrous results? Ought we to eschew motor racing,  or mountaineering,  
or flying,  or research into the nature of 



radio, active substances? All these take their toll of life each year. There is 
an unjustifiable risk which no level, headed 
person will run if they can help it,  and there is a justifiable risk which 
everybody must be prepared to take who wants to 
come out of the ruck. It is not every follower of the Inner Way who is suitable 
for ceremonial work,  just as it is not 
every individual who is fitted to handle the controls of an aeroplane; but there 
are some people,  both men and women,  
to whom a spice of danger is a spur which brings out the mettle of their 
pasture,  and these will always be found in the 
van of great adventure. 





PART 2. 
DIFFERENTIAL DIAGNOSIS. 
CHAPTER 9. 
DISTINCTION BETWEEN OBJECTIVE PSYCHIC ATTACK AND SUBJECTIVE PSYCHIC DISTURBANCE.
 
PSYCHISM,  however genuine,  is a fruitful cause of self, delusion. A psychic is 
invariably highly sensitive and 
suggestible. This is the basis of his gifts. Psychism not being a normal 
development,  among Europeans at any rate,  the 
psychic is,  in the language of nautical engineers,  "over, engined for his 
hull." He is consequently unstable,  liable to 
violent emotional reactions,  and in general exhibits those aberrations of 
conduct we are accustomed to associate with 
artistic genius. Unless a psychic is trained,  disciplined,  protected and 
watched over by those who understand his 
condition,  his psychism is never reliable because he is blown about by every 
wind of influence. The psychic and the 
neurotic are closely akin in their reactions to life,  but the neurotic differs 
from the psychic in that,  instead of being 
over, engined for his hull,  he is under, hulled for his engines. The result is 
the same,  however,  a discrepancy between 
the force and form with the consequent inability to maintain a central,  
reasoned,  directing control. The technique of the 
occult discipline is largely directed towards maintaining control of the 
disparate forces,  compensating the 
sensitiveness of the psychic,  and protecting him from unwanted impressions. It 
is never well to learn 
how to open the door of the Unseen unless at the same time one learns how to 
close and latch it. 
As was noted in the Introduction,  it is comparatively seldom that the Unseen 
comes in search of human beings. As the 
Caterpillar told Alice concerning the Puppy, dog,  "You let it alone,  and it 
will let you alone." But if we begin to study 
occultism,  or even to dabble in it,  sooner or later we are liable to obtain 
results,  provided,  of course,  that the system we 
are using contains the germs of efficacy. 
In the case of a person who is coming on to the Path for the first time,  
progress is necessarily slow and laborious; but a 
soul that has taken initiation in previous incarnations may reopen the latent 
psychic faculties so rapidly that the problem 
of maintaining the harmonised co, ordination of the personality becomes a 
serious one. It is exceedingly common for a 
person who is making his first contact with the occult movement to experience 
psychic disturbance. This is sometimes 
attributed to evil influences,  sometimes to evil entities. Neither of these 
inferences may be just. There is a third 
possibility,  which is responsible for by far the greater percentage of victims,  
the mere fact that consciousness is being 
disturbed by an unaccustomed force. How common a thing it is to see a child 
feverish and fretful during the first few 
days of a seaside holiday. It is not necessarily sickening for an illness. The 
strong air and unaccustomed food and the 
excitement of its new surroundings are disturbing its sensitive physical 
equilibrium. So it is when the neophyte is 
disturbed at the outset of his occult career. The unaccustomed vibrations are 
upsetting him,  and he is having an attack 
of occult indigestion. In both cases the treatment is the same,  temporary 
restriction of the diet which has caused the 
disturbance. 
48 of 103.


 

Another cause of psychic upset may lie in the partial recovery of the memories 
of past incarnations if these include any 
painful episodes,  especially such as are connected with esoteric studies. The 
entry of occult concepts into the conscious 
mind tends to awaken the subconscious memory of similar experiences in past 
lives. The emotion surrounding a 
memory is invariably recovered before the actual image of the incident. (This is 
one of the best tests for the accuracy of 
memories of past lives.) This foreshadowing emotion may hang about for a long 
time on the threshold of consciousness 
before the images clarify sufficiently to became tangible. If the emotion that 
is rising over the horizon is of a painful 
nature it may cause considerable disturbance,  and in the absence of an 
experienced adviser may be attributed to an 
occult attack,  or to the psychic perception of evil influences in the occult 
group to which the neophyte is affiliated. It is 
necessary to use very great caution in drawing conclusions from the psychic 
impressions of an inexperienced student,  
who is apt to be as full of alarms as a two, year, old thorough bred. 
On the other hand,  the instinctive reactions of a pure and sensitive soul are 
not to be ignored. There are such things as 
Black Lodges and evil entities. We must not allow the cry of "Wolf! Wolf!" to 
make us either callous or careless. In 
any case,  the victim is suffering remediable discomfort. 
It is an exceedingly difficult thing to determine psychic ally whether the 
complainant has reasonable grounds for his 
feelings,  for his own imagination will have filled his atmosphere with menacing 
thought, forms. It is no simple matter to 
decide whether these thought, forms are subjective or objective. The wisest way 
is to rely 'on such evidence as is 
capable of objective examination,  and enquire into the record of the particular 
group or occultist against whom the 
charges are being brought. But it is equally necessary to enquire into the 
record of the person who is bringing the 
charges. That that person is filled with the loftiest ideals is no proof that he 
has a level head,  a clear and unbiassed 
judgment,  or appreciation of the nature of evidence. A person need not be a 
deliberate liar to make statements that are 
very far from the truth. 
Another factor which has to be reckoned with is the vagaries of the sex instinct 
in a person in whom that instinct is 
repressed. Consider the case of a woman,  perhaps no longer young,  whose 
circumstances for the first time permit her to 
follow her own inclinations; a very common case with home, keeping women,  who 
have to wait for dead men's shoes 
before they can set out on life's journey. She takes up occultism,  towards 
which she may always have had a leaning,  
and joins some circle for study and possibly ritual initiation. The leader of 
that circle will in all probability be a person 
of strong individuality. The inexperienced,  love, starved new, comer is 
glamoured. Ritual is a very stimulating thing,  as 
Anglo, Catholic clergy have found to their cost. The woman,  possibly quite 
ignorant of the facts of life,  finds herself 
strangely stirred. She is frightened,  she senses that something of the Kingdom 
of Pan is approaching. Her instincts will 
usually guide her truly enough in divining the source from which the disturbing 
influence proceeds. She will point an 
unerring finger at the magnetic male. She will seldom take into account the 
reactions of the female in the presence of 
the male. 
If she is a woman ignorant of the facts of life,  the charge she brings will 
usually take the form of an accusation of 
hypnotic influence. She does not realise that nature is the hypnotist. If she is 
a woman who knows something of the 
world,  the charge may be of improper advances. One glance at the woman is 
usually enough to tell us whether there is 
likely to be any foundation in this charge or not. It is seldom the young and 
pretty girl,  who might reasonably be 
apprehensive,  who is the teller of these stories. It is a curious fact that it 
never seems to occur to the complainants either 
to take refuge in flight or put the matter in the hands of a solicitor. If at 
the end of a long tale,  full of dark hints and 
unspeakable innuendos,  the question is asked,  "What exactly did he do? "the 
answer usually is,  "He looked at me in a 
meaning way." 
When one of these stories is being told we should be wise to give more attention 
to the bearing of the person who is 
telling it than to the facts alleged. This will usually yield the more valuable 
information. It is the most difficult thing in 
the world to get a genuine victim to speak. A woman who is broadcasting the tale 
of her own shame is usually a woman 
scorned,  and the reliability of her testimony in the matter is in inverse ratio 
to her loquacity. Do not let us forget that it 
takes two to make a scandal as well as a quarrel,  and the person who admits a 
mistake and asks for help to retrace 
wandering footsteps is much more likely to be worth helping than the one who 
claims to be even as the angels in 
heaven,  where there is neither marrying nor giving in marriage. 
So great is the need for caution in assessing the facts in a charge of 
immorality that the law courts will not accept the 
evidence of the victim,  even on oath and under cross, examination,  unless it 
is supported by additional testimony. 
Equally well does the doctor know the same type of mentality,  and a common form 
of mental derangement is called 




Old Maid's Insanity,  even in the textbooks. 
I could cite cases by the dozen in exemplification of the preceding statements,  
but they have not sufficient occult 
interest to justify their inclusion in these pages. 
If the leader of the group is a woman,  a different set of reactions comes into 
play though the same causes are at work. It 
is not generally realised that the fixation,  or "crush" of one woman for 
another is really a substitute love affair,  as is 
proved by the fact that the girl who has plenty of admirers,  or the woman who 
is happily married is never given to 
them. In this case,  just as much as in the normal,  heterosexual attraction,  
"hell knows no fury like a woman scorned"; it 
is not,  for obvious reasons,  possible to bring charges of improper behaviour. 
(Though in one accusation this was 
alleged against me,  and I was accused of being a man in disguise and attempting 
to seduce the complainant,  and the 
charge found believers.) The charge brought in such cases usually takes one of 
two forms,  the mechanism being either,  
"You don't love me,  therefore you are cruel. I have been badly treated"; and 
the most far, fetched instances are raked up 
in support of this charge. Or,  "You don't love me,  therefore I hate you. The 
attraction you have for me is hypnotic." 
It must be borne in mind in assessing these charges that a trained occultist,  
especially if of high grade,  has an 
exceedingly magnetic personality,  and this is apt to prove disturbing to those 
who are unaccustomed to high, tension 
psychic forces. For whereas the person who is ripe for development will unfold 
the higher consciousness rapidly in the 
atmosphere of a high, grade initiate,  the person who is not ready may find 
these influences profoundly disturbing. An 
adept who allows unsuitable persons to enter his magnetic field is blameworthy 
for his lack of discrimination and 
discretion,  but he cannot justly be charged with abuse of occult powers. He 
emanates force involuntarily and cannot 
help himself. The greater adepts always live in seclusion,  for not only do they 
need solitude for their work,  but their 
influence upon unprepared souls produces too violent a reaction,  and it ends in 
the Cross or the hemlock cup. 
We must not be unmindful of the fact that the person who comes to us with a long 
tale of occult attack and asks for 
assistance,  especially financial assistance,  may simply be "pitching a yarn, " 
and should use the same discrimination that 
we would in listening to any other "hard, luck story, " trying to differentiate 
between the deserving and the undeserving. 
I knew a man who allowed an alleged adept who was undergoing an alleged occult 
attack to take refuge in his studio,  
and returned after a short absence to find that the alleged one had been selling 
the furniture to buy drink; and there was 
every reason to believe that the only spirits who were in any way concerned with 
his troubles had entered the studio in 
bottles. 
The complaints of occult attack may have their source in nothing more or less 
than the delusions of the insane,  and it 
does not necessarily invalidate this fact that a second person can be found to 
give supporting evidence. There is a 
curious form of insanity known to alienists called folie des deux,  in which two 
people intimately associated together 
share the same delusions. It is usually found in such cases that one is 
definitely insane,  and that the other is of a 
hysterical type and has become imbued with the delusions of her associate by 
means of suggestion. I use the feminine 
pronoun because this form of insanity is rare with males. It usually occurs with 
two sisters,  or with two women living 
together. 
There is another pitfall for which the inexperienced do well to watch out in 
their dealings with the person who 
complains of an occult attack. Insanity may be periodic in its manifestation,  
outbreaks of acute mania alternating with 
periods of complete sanity. This periodic aspect should always be watched for in 
the case of women,  in whom any 
temperamental instability becomes greatly exaggerated during the times of the 
monthly periods,  at the change of life,  
during pregnancy,  and,  in fact,  at any period when the sex life is stirred to 
activity,  whether emotionally or physically. It 
is also well to bear in mind that in pathological cases the periodicity of a 
woman's function may be greatly disturbed. 
I had a sharp lesson in this respect upon one occasion,  which exemplifies the 
need of caution. We had,  at the 
introduction of one of our members,  received into one of our community houses a 
woman whose husband,  a 
well, known man in public life,  refused to live with her,  so I was told,  and 
had made several attempts to do away with 
her,  and threatened to have her certified insane if she in any way resisted 
him. These facts were vouched for by a circle 
of friends to whom both husband and wife were known. I kept this lady under 
observation for a month in order to see 
whether there was anything to justify the charge of insanity,  and seeing 
nothing,  took up her case,  At the seventh week,  
however,  trouble ensued. She got into a great state of excitement,  declared 
that she was being starved,  and ill, treated by 
the person who,  in my absence,  was responsible for the house. Seven weeks 
later we had another bout,  in which she 
said that evil influences were proceeding from a certain cupboard in her room,  
wandered about the house in 
exceedingly inadequate apparel,  and lost all self, control. This attack also 
passed off in a few days. It came out in the 



end that she suffered from chronic appendicitis which involved the right ovary,  
and whenever her exceedingly irregular 
menstruation occurred,  she went right off her head for a few days. The position 
was greatly complicated by the fact that 
in the interregnum she was to all outward appearances perfectly sane. After she 
left our community house she told 
exactly the same stories about us that she had previously been telling about her 
husband. The out, and, out lunatic is a 
much less serious problem to society than these border line cases. They need 
dealing with extremely cautiously,  for 
they can cause an immense amount of trouble. 
When an insanity has once become well developed anyone who has had experience of 
lunatics has little difficulty in 
recognising it. Each type of insanity has its characteristic facial expression 
and even gait. But it is not so simple a 
matter for even the expert to recognise an insanity in its incipient stages. 
Lunatics are exceedingly plausible,  and if they 
have picked up something of the jargon of the occultist or spiritualist,  can 
make out an extraordinarily good case for 
themselves. Even the experienced alienist often has to keep a case under 
observation in order to ascertain whether it is 
an actual insanity or not. 



In a field where experts are frequently in doubt,  what is the layman to do who 
finds himself confronted by a case which 
rouses his suspicions? He cannot be expected to recognise insanity when he sees 
it,  but his own common sense ought 
to be sufficient to enable him to recognise sanity. In other words,  let him 
suspend judgment upon the alleged facts and 
concentrate upon the question of motive. It is here he will find his best 
indication. If a person can offer no valid 
explanation as to the reasons for the attack that is being made upon him,  nor 
as to its cause or origin,  we can probably 
rest assured that it originates in his own imagination. 
In one case which came into my hands for help,  the victim declared that he was 
being persecuted by telepathic 
suggestion. I enquired as to the origin of this persecution,  and he said that 
some people who lived in the next flat used 
to sit in a circle and concentrate upon him. I asked him why they did this. He 
did not know. I asked him how he knew 
they did it,  and he could not tell me. He merely reiterated that they did it,  
although he admitted that he had never been 
inside their flat,  never,  in fact,  even spoken to them except to exchange a 
good morning on the stairs. It was 
immediately apparent that there was no conceivable motive that could cause these 
people to go to the trouble of 
persecuting him. If anyone has ever tried any experiments with telepathic 
suggestion,  they will know what intense 
concentration it requires,  and,  in fact,  what hard work it is,  and one 
cannot possibly imagine anybody putting them 
selves to the trouble of doing it over long periods of time without a very 
definite motive. I have,  however,  heard of a 
well, authenticated case of a woman who had a liaison with a married man 
attacking his wife in this way. I have also 
myself known of two cases in which a certain individual,  at one time prominent 
in transcendental circles,  in connection 
with what the newspapers impolitely called his "Prayer Shop, " and equally well 
known in the City in connection with 
his efforts to obtain gold from sea, water,  used telepathic suggestion in order 
to induce the signing of cheques and 
documents. Before a visitor was expected for an interview,  he would sit down 
and concentrate upon him. So strong was 
the influence thus exerted that a man of my acquaintance threw up a post he held 
under him because of the undue 
mental influence he felt was being exerted over himself,  and another resigned 
off the board of one of his companies for 
the same reason. 
In both these cases an adequate motive for the mental attack is not far to seek. 
Compare these two cases with the 
previous one,  and the difference can readily be perceived. We should,  however,  
be just as cautious in deciding there is 
nothing wrong as in accepting at their face value any statements that may be 
made to us. Moreover,  we should always 
bear in mind when dealing with a person who is obviously mentally unbalanced and 
who alleges a psychic attack,  that 
the mental unbalance may have been induced by the psychic attack. Life is a 
strange thing at best,  and many things that 
are stranger than usual can happen to those who move in occult circles. 







CHAPTER 10.  


NON, OCCULT DANGERS OF THE BLACK LODGE. 
THE facts considered in the previous chapter,  though they should make us 
exceedingly careful in weighing 
evidence,  must not blind us to the fact that there are black sheep in every 
fold and that a fraternity which 
started out with the best of intentions may quite inadvertently,  through the 
ignorance or imperfections of 
its leaders,  begin to drift on to the Left, hand Path. Perfectly innocent 
people enter it when it is in process 
of drifting but not yet avowedly black,  and may find themselves in waters that 
are unpleasantly dirty,  
even if not actually dangerous. 
The esoteric dangers will be studied in detail in the next chapter,  but we may 
very well consider in this place the 
exoteric dangers which may occur behind the Veil of the Temple,  for human 
nature is much the same wherever we 
meet it,  and shows little originality in choosing its road to the Pit. It might 
be thought that in such a book as this there 
were no need to touch upon these matters,  but if this book is to serve the 
purpose for which it is intended,  it is 
necessary to do so for three reasons; firstly,  because the greater proportion 
of the students of esotericism are women,  
and even in these enlightened days they are usually ignorant of the life of the 
underworld,  and a Black Lodge leads by a 
straight and narrow way into the land of apaches and demimondaines,  quite apart 
from its other drawbacks. Secondly,  a 
knowledge of these facts is essential for differential diagnosis. Thirdly,  
occult powers are not infrequently used to 
obtain purely mundane ends,  therefore when the question of ordinary criminality 
occurs in connection with an occult 
organisation,  the issue may be complicated by an admixture of methods that 
belong to another plane. 
We must always remember that a lodge may not necessarily have been formed for 
the express purpose of evading the 
law; it may have started with a perfectly legitimate end in view,  and have been 
exploited by evil, doers for their own 
purposes,  for,  owing to the secretive nature of its proceedings,  the 
fraternity form of organisation lends itself to various 
forms of law, breaking. 
One occult organisation is well known to have been involved in the drug traffic,  
another is riddled with unnatural vice. 
A third degenerated into what was little better than a house of ill, fame,  and 
its head was an expert abortionist. Others 
have been involved in subversive politics. Those who join fraternities without 
properly investigating them and the 
credentials of those who are running them may find themselves involved in any or 
all of these things. 
Behind the veil of secrecy,  guarded by impressive oaths,  many things may 
happen,  and it is therefore essential to 
inform oneself most carefully concerning the character,  credentials and record 
of the leaders of an organisation. 
If these are not readily accessible,  something is wrong. The Mysterious 
Stranger,  who has just arrived from the East or 
the Continent,  both rather vague addresses,  is probably a fraud. 
If difficulty is experienced in discovering the antecedents of an alleged adept,  
enquiries could be made of the wellknown 
periodical,  Truth,  of Carteret Street,  S.W.I. Truth was originally founded to 
expose abuses in financial and 
public life,  and for this purpose keeps a "Black List" of individuals who are 
better avoided. It is fair and fearless in its 
methods,  neither a persecutor nor a respecter of persons. It keeps a watchful 
eye upon the occult field and pillories 
charlatans,  a task for which it should have the gratitude and support of all 
who have the cause of the Wisdom Religion 
at heart. 
The commonest danger to which a person who gets into the company of undesirables 
is exposed,  is to be induced to 
part with more money than is convenient by the time,  honoured expedients of 
either swindling or blackmailing,  the 
latter being by far the commonest form of unpleasantness in Black Lodges. The 
one and only remedy in all such cases 
is to place the matter in the hands of the police. Firstly,  it is your duty as 
a citizen in order that others may not be 
victimised as you have been. Secondly,  if you don't,  your persecutors will not 
leave you until they have sucked you 
absolutely dry,  and not even then if they can still find a use for you as a 
catspaw. A blackmailer is never got rid of by 
giving him money. It is merely an invitation to call again. Act quickly and 
firmly at the outset and you will soon be at 




the end of your troubles. 
To demand money with threats is blackmail,  and to coerce to any course of 
action by threats is also a crime. Any 
arrangements entered into,  or documents signed in con sequence of threats are 
not binding. Threats need not 
necessarily be gross and open,  such as the pointing of a revolver; anything 
which coerces you against your inclinations 
may be interpreted as a threat. For instance,  supposing it were intimated to 
you,  however tactfully,  that if you did not 
subscribe to the funds of an organisation,  your interest in occultism would be 
liable to be gossiped about,  and possibly 
involve you in unpleasantness with your relatives,  or your employers,  this,  
in the eyes of the law,  would be blackmail. 
Anything,  in fact,  which plays upon a person's fears is a threat. 
Let us now consider what is the best thing to do if you are being threatened. It 
is seldom wise to answer threat with 
threat. The best thing is to reply that you will think it over and see what can 
be done,  and then go straight to the nearest 
police, station and tell the whole story. You can be sure of the utmost courtesy 
and kindness,  and that every effort will 
be made to help you,  even if you have to admit that you have not been wholely 
blameless yourself. In coming to the 
police and telling them frankly the position of affairs you have,  in popular 
language,  "turned King's evidence, " and the 
authorities will go a long way to protect anyone who does this. 
Do not be deterred by the fact that you cannot bring forward any additional 
testimony in support of your statement. The 
police may tell you that there is not sufficient evidence for them to apply for 
a warrant; nevertheless,  they will make 
enquiries,  and the very fact that the police are making enquiries will be 
sufficient to frighten black mailers out of their 
wits and probably out of the country,  nor will they usually stop to make the 
threatened disclosures en route,  but will 
"go while the going is good." Moreover,  your complaint will go on to the police 
records,  and a watch will be kept; in 
due course another complaint may be made,  or,  for all you know,  may already 
have been made,  and then the net begins 
to tighten. 
Always remember that the blackmailer has a great deal more to fear from exposure 
than you have; for whatever 
unpleasantness may be in store for you,  he has to look forward to a long term 
of penal servitude,  and possibly the 
dreaded "cat" if the case is a bad one. A timely reminder of this fact works 
wonders with prospective blackmailers. 
Nor need the fear of exposure of your own shortcomings deter you. The nature of 
the charges brought against you by 
the blackmailer will never be mentioned. It is not you who are being tried. 
Neither will your identity be disclosed. You 
will be referred to as Mr. A. or Mrs. B. Far from being treated as an evil, doer 
or having the finger of scorn pointed at 
you,  you will find that you are looked upon as a person who is performing a 
public service and every effort will be 
made by those in authority to smooth your path. A determined effort is being 
made at the present time to stamp out this 
abominable crime,  and judges are giving exemplary sentences and protecting 
prosecutors in every way in order to 
encourage them to come forward. 
But quite apart from any form of coercion,  unwary persons may,  while filled 
with enthusiasm or glamoured by the new 
revelation,  part with considerably more money than they can comfortably spare; 
they may even literally lay their all 
upon the altar,  and then,  disillusioned by subsequent events,  greatly regret 
having done so. In many such cases a 
competent solicitor can secure a refund. The courts do not look with favour on 
excessive contributions to "movements." 
It goes without saying,  that no rightly conducted organisation would consent to 
augment its funds at the expense of the 
ruin of one of its members. It must,  of course,  equally protect itself against 
capriciousness and spite and the 
machinations of the kind of mentality that tries to buy influence by 
subscriptions. It has always been our custom,  in the 
Fraternity of the Inner Light,  to insist that any woman who proposes to give a 
large donation should consult her 
financial adviser before doing so. For one reason or another we have refused 
upwards of twenty, five thousand pounds 
during the last seven years. Nor have we had any reason at regret having done 
so. The strength of an occult 
organisation does not lie upon the physical plane. 
It is well known that there are various drugs which can be used to exalt 
consciousness and induce a temporary 
psychism. It may not be equally well known that most of these substances come 
under the regulations of the Dangerous 
Drugs Act,  and that to obtain them from irregular sources,  or even to be found 
in possession of them save for a 
legitimate purpose,  is to render oneself liable to prosecution,  and in this 
case too the authorities are exceedingly alert 



and the magistrates exceedingly drastic. 
All initiates of the RighthandPath agree in declaring that to exalt 
consciousness by means of drugs is a dangerous and 
undesirable proceeding. There may be research workers who for legitimate reasons 
wish to undertake experiments,  but 
I cannot conceive of any legitimate reason for introducing a neophyte to the 
drug habit. In any case,  if such experiments 
are undertaken,  they should be conducted under the supervision of a qualified 
medical practitioner who will be in a 
position to prevent catastrophe or deal with it should it arise. The drugs that 
alter consciousness also affect the heart,  
and hearts are not always all they should be. More over,  the composition of 
rare drugs is not standardised and varies 
enormously; they are liable to contain various impurities,  and samples may turn 
out to be unusually toxic. The 
unpleasantness of having upon one's hands an unexpected and unaccountable corpse 
is only exceeded by the 
unpleasantness of becoming the corpse oneself,  either of which eventualities 
may happen when people begin to 
experiment with the drugs that "unloose the girders of the mind." 
The morals of mankind in general leave much to be desired from the point of view 
of the purist,  and the occult 
organisations,  occupying as they do,  the sea, coast of Bohemia,  leave more 
than usual. A few of the best,  maintaining 
that occultism is essentially a religion,  uphold a high standard; the remainder 
are blest with a kaleidoscopic collection 
of soul, mates. This need not concern us here. If people choose to kick over 
Mrs. Grundy's apron, strings,  that is their 
affair. Nor need we at the moment consider the occult abuses of sex, force,  
which will require detailed consideration in 
their proper place. All we need consider in this chapter is the purely normal 
form of loose living which is camouflaged 
under a pretence of occultism. Of this I have seen numerous cases. The head of 
one group systematically seduced his 
pupils under the pretext that it was part of their initiation,  and the group 
accepted the situation in a spirit of the purest 
self, sacrifice. Several others sailed unpleasantly near the wind,  with the 
result that "crushes" and the subsequent 
nervous breakdowns were very prevalent. It ought hardly to be necessary to say 
that such methods form no part of the 
RighthandPath. 
It is amazing to what an extent women of the highest ideals and of good family 
and wide culture can be induced to 
accept such theories and practices. The danger of membership of such a group to 
young girls or unsophisticated women 
can readily be imagined. 
I have often been accused of being narrow, minded in my attitude towards groups 
in which such happenings are 
allowed to go on,  but the cost in human suffering is so great and the general 
demoralisation so sordid that tolerance 
comes perilously near to cynicism. 
It may not generally be realised,  but there is just as much danger of 
corruption in a Black Lodge for boys and youths as 
there is for women. There have been a number of cases so flagrant that the 
police have intervened,  both here and 
abroad. 
In ancient times,  and among primitive peoples,  human sacrifice was a common 
incident in connection with occult 
practices. It is not unknown in Eastern Europe even at the present day. The 
nursery story of Bluebeard has its origin in 
the practices of the infamous Gilles de Rais,  Marshal of France and comrade of 
Joan of Arc,  who slaughtered 
innumerable children and youths in connection with his magical experiments. I 
have never heard of a case in England,  
but there have been at various times some curious killings reported from the 
United States which look suspiciously like 
ritual murders,  but in the absence of adequate information it is impossible to 
come to a final conclusion upon them. 
There recently came into my hands,  however,  a book upon magic published for 
private circulation,  in which the 
statement is made that the ideal blood sacrifice is a male child. 
The charge of revolutionary activities is one that has been frequently made 
against the occult movement. There are 
certain things,  however,  which must be borne in mind when assessing the truth 
of this charge. Firstly,  the occult 
movement is not a homogeneous whole. It is totally unorganised and unregulated,  
and may best be likened to the state 
of England before the Norman Conquest. Conditions in the various groups and 
associations vary widely,  and what is 
true of one may not be true of another. There can be no doubt whatsoever that 
various organisations at various times 
have been implicated in politics,  as witness the Theosophical Society's 
association with Indian political movements; but 
we must bear in mind that one generation's revolutionaries are the next 
generation's reactionaries. After all,  politics are 
a matter of opinion,  and even the people we disagree with may turn out to be 
right in the end. I,  personally,  am of the 
opinion that an occult fraternity is extremely ill, advised to concern itself 
with politics for reasons which I have stated in 




another of my books,  Sane Occultism,  and which I will not enter upon now,  as 
they are not relevant to these pages. But 
as folk from time immemorial have banded themselves together for political 
action we cannot very well take exception 
to what the law permits. People who join an organisation established for 
political work join it with their eyes open and 
presumably for the purposes for which it was founded. Grounds for objection 
arise,  however,  when an organisation is 
founded for non political pursuits and subsequently the leaders,  without 
consulting,  or even informing their supporters,  
take up political activities on their own account and use their organisation for 
the purpose,  thus involving their 
followers without their consent in whatever complications may arise,  and using 
money contributed for a specific 
purpose for ends other than the donors had in view. 
It may be wondered what use,  at the present day,  revolutionaries could make of 
the occult organisations. Within my 
personal knowledge they have used,  or attempted to use them,  for the purpose 
of getting letters to people whose 
correspondence is being watched,  and I myself once received a request to allow 
a person who had been deported to 
return to the country under an assumed name and reside in one of our community 
houses as a member,  and was offered 
some hundreds of pounds for so doing. Needless to say,  the correspondence was 
sent straight to the authorities. 
The problems which we have considered in this chapter are not peculiar to occult 
fraternities,  but are common to any 
organisation which does not discriminate as to its members. The organisations 
which advertise must perforce take all 
comers and sort them out in the light of subsequent experience,  and some of 
these experiences can be very queer 
indeed. One cannot blame an organisation that picks up an occasional black 
sheep,  one only takes exception if it retains 
an accumulation of them. 
A lodge of dubious whiteness can be readily recognised by the type of people who 
belong to it,  who may best be 
described as the seedy adventurer type with a sprinkling of smart society folk 
who often have a taste for crude flavours 
in the way of sensation. The really Black Lodges are as carefully guarded as the 
high, grade White Lodges,  and no 
outsider can gain entrance to them. The serious student of Black Occultism is 
out for knowledge and magical 
experiment and he is not going to waste his time on a tyro. Those who choose to 
graduate into a Black Lodge after 
serving their apprenticeship in the Outer Court of a White Lodge do so with 
their eyes open,  and experience must be 
their teacher. One cannot feel that they deserve much sympathy if the experience 
is a painful one. The person I am out 
to help is the person who is a victim,  not the one who is hoist with his own 
petard. The man or woman who,  rejecting 
the steady grade of the Way of Initiation,  chooses to go up with rocket had 
better come down with the stick. 
Any request for a large sum of money should always be regarded as a danger 
signal. It is one of the strictest conditions 
of initiation that occult knowledge may never be sold or used for gain. I know 
of an occultist who charges £300 for one 
of the initiations he confers; and he will give it to anyone who has got £300. 
In my opinion,  the person who pays out 
£300 for such a purpose deserves the kind of initiation he is going to get. 
It is also a bad sign when an occultist makes free with signs and wonders before 
the uninitiated. No genuine adept ever 
does this. The person who reads your past incarnations,  describes your aura,  
rolls up his eyes,  twitches,  and gives you a 
message from your Master as soon as he is introduced,  is a person to be 
avoided. 
The more I see of the occult movement,  the more I am amazed at the things 
people can say and do and "get away with." 
The average person is out of his depth when he deals with psychic matters. He 
usually goes through three phases. 
Firstly,  he thinks it is all superstition and fraud. Secondly,  his scepticism 
being breached,  he will believe anything. 
Thirdly,  if he ever gets as far as thirdly,  he learns discrimination,  and 
distinguishes between the Black Fraternities,  the 
White Fraternities and Fatuous Fraternities. 







CHAPTER 10. 
 
THE PSYCHIC ELEMENT IN MENTAL DISTURBANCE.
WE have seen in a previous Chapter that nervous and mental disorders can 
simulate a psychic attack,  especially 
if the subject is familiar with the terminology of occultism. We must also 
consider the part played by psychic attack in 
nervous and mental disorders. But before we can embark upon this section of our 
studies,  we must give a brief 
explanation of the nature of nervous and mental disturbances and the distinction 
between them. We will not go into 
academic considerations,  for these pages are not written for the orthodox 
professional psychologist,  who has an 
abundance of textbooks at his disposal,  but for the person whose interest is 
primarily in occult matters,  and who comes 
to the study of the subject unequipped with the technicalities of psychology and 
psycho, physiology,  two sciences of 
which at least a working knowledge is exceedingly necessary in the pursuit of 
practical occultism. 
In the course of an incarnation the mind is built up on the foundations of the 
traits of the Higher Self,  or Individuality,  
which is the immortal soul that develops in the course of an evolution. The 
mind,  therefore,  is part of the personality the 
unit of incarnation,  commencing at birth and dissolving at death,  its essence 
being absorbed by the individuality,  
which evolves thereby. 
[Note for clarification from the Editor/Arranger of this html document: The 
Personality is the ego or external identity 
and ordinary consciousness of a person,  and the Individuality is the Higher, 
self,  H.G.A.,  or spiritual component of a 
person.] 
The mind is essentially the organ of adaptation to the environment,  and it is 
when that adaptation fails that neurotic and 
hysterical troubles begin. Each living creature is the channel for a current of 
life, force which proceeds from the Logos,  
the Creator of this universe. This current is divided into three main channels 
represented to us as the three great natural 
instincts,  Self, preservation,  Reproduction,  and the Social Instinct. These 
are the mainsprings of our lives. The pressure 
of Life itself is behind them,  and if they are thwarted beyond their power of 
compensation (considerable as that is),  they 
are like streams whose channels are blocked,  and which in consequence overflow 
and make a morass of the adjacent 
land. 
Emotion is the subjective aspect of an instinct. That is to say,  when an 
instinct is at work,  we feel emotion. Every 
emotion we feel can be referred to one or other of the instincts. Our resentment 
of a slur upon our dignity has its roots 
in the instinct of Self, preservation. Our love of art has its roots in the 
instinct of love,  beauty and creative expression 
which,  upon its lowest arc,  is called sex. Each of these instincts has its 
high spiritual aspect and its elemental physical 
aspect,  and transmution from one plane to another takes place freely,  so that 
unless we understand the significance of 
these manifestations we shall be misled. In their understanding is the key to 
the science of life. 
If one of these great instincts is so thwarted that all attempts at compensation 
break down; or if the temperament is so 
inelastic and unaccommodating that it will not modify its demands,  the ego 
makes a final desperate attempt at 
adjustment which goes outside the limits within which harmonious relations with 
the environment can be maintained. 
Communications with the environment break down,  and the mind has,  in part at 
least,  quitted the sphere of reality for 
the sphere of imagination. The sense of fixed values is lost,  and things assume 
a symbolic importance. This breakdown 
may be partial,  relating to certain aspects of the life only,  or it may be 
total. 
In hysteria,  the dammed, up forces of life remain in the channel,  but spurt 
with concentrated force through any sluice 
that may be opened to them. Consequently,  instead of the river below the 
obstruction being a smooth, flowing body of 
water,  it descends in rapids and whirlpools difficult and dangerous to 
navigate,  so that the barque of life makes 
shipwreck therein. The surrounding country,  too,  is reduced to a morass,  
neither land nor water. In other words,  the 
temperament becomes tempestuous and unduly emotional,  and the non, emotional 
factors of the mind,  such as judgment 
and self, control,  are demoralised. Such a temperament must of necessity be 
perpetually in difficulties with life,  and 
periodically the repressed emotions boil over in fits of screaming,  crying and 
convulsive muscular movements,  which 
act as safety, valves and relieve the pressure temporarily. 
56 of 103.



The neurotic differs from the hysteric in certain well, marked ways which need 
to be carefully borne in mind,  as they 
are very important from the practical standpoint. The troubles of the neurotic 
start in the same way as those of the 
hysteric,  being due to repressed emotion and failure to adapt to environment; 
but in his case,  the life, forces set to work 
to cut fresh channels for themselves that shall circumvent the obstacle which 
blocks their path. Consequently we get 
what the psychologist calls displacement of emotion. Some comparatively 
innocuous matter becomes the object of an 
outpouring of emotion which in no way concerns it,  for it has been made a 
substitute for something else. It is this 
curious underground tracking of emotion in the mind which causes so much 
trouble,  for the sufferer is not insane,  and 
yet certain sections of his values and reactions to life are perverted. He is an 
extremely tricky person to deal with 
because he is given to unexpected and quite irrational loves and hates and 
fears,  and acts accordingly. 
Similar conditions prevail in the organic insanities; the psychological results 
are the same,  but because the origin is 
physical,  not mental,  they are but little amenable to psychotherapy. Certain 
things can be done to alleviate them,  
however,  even if they are not entirely curable; therefore let us consider them 
from both the psycho, physical and occult 
standpoints. 
The body is the vehicle of the mind. If the vehicle be faulty,  the mind cannot 
express itself accurately; its reactions will 
be distorted. Orthodox science says that the brain is the organ of the mind,  
but esoteric science says the brain is the 
organ of perception of sense impressions and co, ordination of efferent 
impulses. It is the telephone exchange of the 
nervous system. It is only one of the points where mind touches body,  the 
others being the ductless glands of the 
endocrine system,  the pineal,  pituitary,  thyroid,  adrenals,  thymus and 
gonads; to which may be added the Solar Plexus 
and Sacral Plexus. The student of Tantric physiology will be very dull if he has 
not observed that the Chakras coincide 
in their physical location with the endocrine organs. 
Now the endocrines have for their task the maintenance of the chemical 
composition of the blood. They pour into it 
their secretions,  called hormones,  in certain balanced proportions. If the 
balance is in any way upset,  either by an 
overplus of one secretion or shortage of another,  profound changes in 
metabolism take place. The whole of the life 
processes are regulated by the endocrines,  and can be speeded up or slowed down 
in their different aspects as the 
balance of the endocrines alters. This endocrine balance is known by 
physiologists to be intimately associated with 
emotional states,  and especially with the alertness or stolidity of the 
temperament. Psychologists do not sufficiently 
appreciate the importance of the recent work upon the endocrines,  but 
occultists have a knowledge of this aspect of 
psycho, physiology as part of their traditional teaching. The breathing 
exercises of the yoga system are based upon this 
knowledge,  and are exceedingly potent,  as are all occult practices which are 
brought through correctly to the physical 
plane. In fact,  we may say that no occult process is really potent,  nor can it 
be said to have completed its circuit,  unless 
it has its point of contact with dense matter; a point which many occultists 
leave out of their calculations. Occultism,  
though primarily a mental process,  is not a purely mental process. It is both 
spiritual and material. 
In the great majority of cases of insanity,  organic brain changes cannot be 
demonstrated,  but alienists are more and 
more coming to recognise that they may look for the lues of Hecate in the blood. 
Its chemical composition may depart 
from normal,  whether owing to a change in the hormone balance or to the by, 
products of disease. This change in the 
blood chemistry is immediately followed by a change in the emotional tone. It 
may become over, emotional or 
depressed,  apathetic or irritable. The ancients described these conditions 
admirably as the four humours,  the sanguine,  
the bilious,  the limphatic and the choleric. 
It has been abundantly demonstrated by physiologists that emotional states 
affect the chemical composition of the 
blood. It is gradually being realised that these changes are brought about 
through the mediation of the ductless glands,  
which may be called the emotional brain,  just as the grey matter within the 
skull may be called the sensory, motor brain. 
It follows,  therefore,  that if through some interference with their 
functioning the glands produce a blood, composition 
corresponding to that produced by them when a particular emotional state is 
giving its special stimulus,  the individual 
will experience the physical sensations associated with the corresponding 
emotional state. His mind will proceed to 
adjust itself to these conditions by accounting for them through the imagination 
as best it may. So that if there is a state 
of the blood characteristic of the condition of fear,  fear, images will arise 
in the mind. It is upon this basis that the 
organic insanities produce their characteristic mental states. 
Whether the emotional state be due to a mental cause or a physical cause,  the 
result is the same for the patient. Organic 
insanities are distinguished from functional ones solely by their origin. An 
organic insanity tends to depart further from 
the normal than a functional nervous disorder,  because in the latter a 
considerable degree of compensation takes place,  
for the patient can to a great extent pull himself together and keep himself 
from going to disastrous extremes. This is 





not the case with an organic insanity,  which proceeds to its logical 
conclusion. It is for this reason that a neurotic,  
although he may suffer severely,  seldom has a complete breakdown unless he is 
sure of the necessities of life. The 
self, preservation instinct keeps him on his feet. 
Having considered the physical and subjective bases of mental disturbances,  we 
are now in a position to assess 
accurately the part played by the Unseen. What happens when a neurotic takes up 
occultism? We can best answer this 
question by considering what happens when a normal person takes up occultism. He 
learns for the first time of the 
existence of the Invisible Worlds and begins to think about them. Immediately he 
does this he comes into touch with 
them. At first he may not be able to perceive them consciously; nevertheless he 
is feeling them subconsciously and they 
are affecting him. His life shows this to the close observer in a thousand ways. 
There are great forces moving like currents in the Unseen and we are drawn into 
these according to our temperamental 
affinity for them. The violent personality is drawn into the Current of Mars,  
the emotional,  suggestible one into the 
sphere of Luna. The influences of these spheres play upon them. Now the 
occultist working under a proper system,  
knowing that he has got to meet these forces sooner or later,  picks them up one 
by one voluntarily and by means of the 
appropriate rituals,  and synthesises them within his own nature. He knows too 
that each aspect has its obverse. The 
Virgin Mary is reflected in Lilith. The older faiths knew this,  but popular 
Christianity,  which has no roots in tradition,  
has forgotten it. Protestant Christianity threw away its occult aspect at the 
Reformation. All the pagan pantheons have 
gross aspects of divinities as well as etherial ones. We need to search the 
refuse, heap of history for the lost parts of our 
own tradition if our faith is to be complete,  and the most profitable line of 
search is in the Qabalah and the Gnostic 
literature. The literature of the Gnosis has been largely destroyed by 
systematic persecution,  but in the Qabalah there is 
still left us a complete system. The Jews,  being strictly monotheistic,  did 
not speak of gods,  but they recognised a 
hierarchy of angels and archangels which is the equivalent of the pagan 
pantheons. It is through these etherial 
messengers that the All, Father formed the worlds. 
Let us consider once more the Qabalistic doctrine of the Qlippoth,  for it has 
an intimate bearing upon the problem of 
insanity. The doctrine of the Ten Holy Sephiroth,  arranged in their correct 
pattern to form the Tree of Life,  is 
invaluable in enabling us to conceive the Invisible. The First Sephira is 
concentrated out of the Unmanifest,  the Point 
within the Circle. This emanates the Second,  which in its turn emanates the 
Third. As soon as one has emanated 
another,  these two are said to be equilibrated; but when emanation is in 
process,  there is a period of unbalanced force. 
This,  as it were,  goes off by itself in the Cosmos and establishes a sphere of 
its own,  unconnected with the Cosmic 
system. Consequently,  each sphere of the Cosmos has its counterpart in Chaos,  
in miniature,  it is true,  but nevertheless 
potent and functional. 
Each sphere,  in the course of its evolution,  builds up an Oversoul which is 
called by different names in different 
systems. In the Qabalistic system we call them the Archangels,  the Spirits 
before the Throne. The Sphere of the Sun is 
represented by Raphael,  the Sphere of the Moon by Gabriel. The Obverse 
Sephiroth,  or Qlippoth,  build up in exactly 
the same way. In the Habitations of Hell these two are known as the Disputers 
and the Obscene Ones,  whose names 
sufficiently indicate their characters. The Sphere of the Sun is also the point 
of manifestation of the Messiah or Saviour 
upon earth. The Prince of Peace has His obverse in the Disputers. Who that has 
had the Vision Beautiful does not 
know the reaction that follows it,  and the need of wisdom,  self, control and 
patience to deal with the forces that are 
released not only in the soul but in the environment? It is for this reason that 
periods of purgation and discipline 
precede all revelations. We must keep the vigil before we can sit at the feast. 
Consciousness,  released from the Sphere of Earth,  rises straight upwards to 
the Sphere of the Moon. This is the 
negative,  feminine,  receptive,  psychic sphere. From thence it passes onwards 
to the Sphere of the Sun. This is the 
positive,  masculine sphere of the higher consciousness,  the vision of the seer 
as distinguished from the psychic. Upon 
either hand the path is flanked by the Spheres of Hermetic Wisdom and Elemental 
Beauty. 
These Spheres,  which have to do with the grades of initiation,  need not 
concern us in the present pages. We shall only 
have to do with the Sphere of the Moon,  Luna,  the Mistress of the Luna, tic. 
Now Luna was represented by the ancients 
under diverse forms as Diana the chaste huntress,  symbol of sublimation,  and 
Hecate,  patroness of witchcraft and 
childbirth. We have already noted that the Qlippoth of the Sphere of Luna are 
called the Obscene Ones. Hence it is that 
when the unstable soul advances by the Path of Saturn that bridges the Astral 
and enters the Sphere of Luna,  he touches 
her Hecate aspect and finds himself en rappart with the Gamaliel,  the Obscene 
Ones,  whose chief is Lilith,  she who 
giveth lustful dreams. Need we then wonder that Freud finds the dreams of the 
neurotic filled with sexual images in 
their most perverted and debased forms? The Rabbis knew their psychology just as 
well as he does. 

page 58 of 103. 

As has already been noted,  the neurotic is very often psychic,  and the psychic 
is very often neurotic. What may we 
expect to happen to the soul that has taken initiation in a past life,  retains 
subconsciously the psychic development thus 
conferred,  and finds itself incarnated in a neurotic personality in this life? 
He will come under the dark dominion of the 
Moon,  and Lilith will be his mistress. Through the ill, fitting doors of the 
neurotic temperament the forces of the Abyss 
find ingress. The dissociated complexes of the Microcosm are reinforced by the 
dissociated complexes of the 
Macrocosm,  for that is precisely what the Qlippoth are. 
Occultists and their ignorant admirers,  the superstitious,  have always held 
that insanity had to do with demonic 
possession. Modern medicine disputes this,  and declares the various 
manifestations of the diseased mind to be due 
entirely to subjective psychological processes. At present these two schools of 
thought are like two armed camps,  
drawn up for battle and shaking their weapons at each other. Each is too sure of 
his own ground to be willing to give 
the other a hearing. It is my belief that a common ground can be found for the 
meeting of these two opposing 
view, points. Psychology demonstrates the mechanism of the mind and can explain 
the mental processes whereby the 
ideas of the deranged assume their ultimate form. It can show the connection 
between these ideas and the dreams of the 
normal mentality. What it cannot explain is the fundamental difference between 
these subjective states and the normal 
waking consciousness. It is here that the occultist can tell the psychologist 
something that it is worth his while to hear,  
for he can show how these visions can be produced experimentally and at will by 
means of ceremonial magic. And still 
more important,  the occultist can show him how these visions can be dispersed 
and the psychic faculties closed down 
and sealed. 
This brings us to the practical part of our considerations: How far can the 
methods of ritual magic be applied to the 
relief of mental disease? They are undoubtedly palliative,  but they will not 
produce a permanent cure unless the origin 
of the disturbed mental condition is found and cleared up. Unless this be done,  
as fast as we disperse the phantoms,  
they will re, form,  because the mental state of the patient is invoking them. 
Under such circumstances,  no magic circle 
can be kept intact. As fast as we break the rapport with the Abyss,  the patient 
renews it. 
But such conditions constitute a vicious circle. The Qlippotic forces with which 
a contact has been established will 
actively develop it,  and will hold on to their victim when attempts are made to 
dislodge them. In this rationalistic age 
we are apt to forget that there is such a thing as organised and intelligent 
evil. If the physical causes of this disturbance 
have been cleared up,  the septic focus eradicated,  or the tumour pressing upon 
the ductless gland excised,  and still the 
mentality does not return to normal,  an exorcism will often produce immediate 
and marked results. 
In the case of the neurotic,  whose trouble is entirely in the sphere of the 
mind,  an exorcism is of enormous value as a 
preliminary to the appropriate psycho, therapeutic treatment because it clears 
the ground and prevents re, infection,  
giving the patient a chance to make a fresh start. It is possible for the 
Qlippotic demons to gain so powerful a hypnotic 
influence over a victim that he is powerless to break it by any effort of his 
own will,  nor can the orthodox type of 
psycho, therapy touch the root of the trouble. The exorcism may have to be 
repeated two or three times in the course of 
the treatment,  because the rapports may be renewed after they have been broken. 
But once the patient's complexes have 
been cleared up,  they will not return. In any case,  an exorcism produces 
marked temporary benefit; during the lull the 
patient gets a chance to pull himself together and the evil influences are 
undermined. A courageous patient,  who is 
co, operating intelligently,  will seldom have to be exorcised more than three 
times provided material conditions are 
favourable. I have seen cases cleared by a single exorcism,  and remaining well 
indefinitely so long as the patient 
obeyed instructions and had nothing whatever to do with the Unseen,  neither 
reading books upon occultism nor 
associating with people who were interested in such subjects; and I have also 
seen the Abyss re, establish its influence 
when the patient disobeyed instructions and re, awakened the old vibrations. 
We need to realise that the human consciousness is not a closed vessel,  but 
like the body,  has a continual intake and 
output. The cosmic forces are circulating through it all the time,  like sea, 
water through a living sponge. Whatever 
emotional state may arise within us is reinforced from outside. The subjective 
self only has the kindling,  the Cosmos 
supplies the fuel. Once the fire is started,  the cosmic forces of the 
appropriate type will stoke it. Just as the devout 
Catholic is inspired by the influences of his patron saint,  invoked by prayer,  
so the neurotic is hag, ridden by his 
obsessive demon,  invoked by the morbid broodings of the dissociated 
subconsciousness. The occultist maintains that 
the generalised principle of evil has its intelligent channels,  just as the 
organised Principle of Good has Its ministering 
spirits. Any observer who considers the phenomena of mental disturbance will 
find much to support this hypothesis. 




The question of obsession is an exceedingly important one. The word is used very 
freely in occult circles,  and is held to 
mean the withdrawal of a soul from its body and its replacement by another soul,  
but I doubt whether this is a true 
representation of what happens. It has always appeared to me that in obsession 
we have not got the actual replacement 
of one soul by another,  but the complete domination of one soul by another. It 
is a hypnotic domination,  and we can 
explain it in terms of the known psychology of hypnosis,  the hypnotist in the 
case being an astral entity. 
There is an operation in magic known as "assuming the god, form, " in which the 
operator identifies himself in 
imagination with the god and so becomes a channel for its power. It is one of 
the special modes of Egyptian magic 
wherein the priest always wore a mask to represent the animal head symbolically 
attributed to the god he represented. 
This imaginative identification is a method well known in occultism and is often 
employed in order to enter into the 
inner life of a plant or a crystal as a mental exercise. The effects of it are 
very marked and very peculiar. I am inclined 
to think that it is this method,  combined with hypnosis,  which is used by the 
obsessing entity,  which first identifies 
itself with its victim and then superimposes its own personality upon his,  thus 
obtaining a vehicle of manifestation. I am 
also of the opinion,  however,  that it is only in certain abnormal states,  
whether induced by disease of mind or body,  or 
by some of the more drastic operations of black magic,  that this imposition can 
take place. 






PART 3. 
THE DIAGNOSIS OF A PSYCHIC ATTACK. 
CHAPTER 12. 
METHODS EMPLOYED IN MAKING A PSYCHIC ATTACK.
 
ANYONE who reads the old books on witchcraft,  usually compiled by the 
professional witch, finders from the 
confessions of alleged witches extorted under torture,  will find that the 
phenomena described fall into certain broad 
categories which are so constant in different ages and in different parts of the 
world that we are left with the impression 
that there must be some fire behind so much smoke. The State records of witch, 
trials in Scotland,  the reports of a priest 
charged with the task of extirpating witchcraft in Northern Italy,  the archives 
of Brittany,  the stories of magic in 
classical literature,  and finally,  travellers' accounts of the practices of 
primitive people all over the world,  all 
corroborate each other,  agreeing as to the phenomena described,  the 
explanations given by the witches of their 
methods,  and the broad divisions into which the phenomena fall. 
We must first take account of the use of drugs,  of which the Black Fraternity 
in all ages have possessed a remarkable 
knowledge. Potions,  unguents and fumigations were used extensively,  and among 
all the weird and wonderful 
ingredients of which they were composed we now and again find substances which 
are known to be medicinally potent. 
The poppy which gives sleep and dreams,  hemp which gives visions,  datura which 
produces loss of memory,  blighted 
grains which produce abortion,  certain insects which are powerfully 
aphrodisiac,  certain barks which are effectually 
anaphrodisiac,  and,  in the New World,  the buds of a certain cactus; all these 
and many others play their part in 
the witchbrews. Paracelsus earned fame by turning some of the traditional 
magical brews to medicinal purposes. The 
Borgias earned infamy by employing them as subtle poisons which destroyed the 
mind without necessarily destroying 
the body. It is related that the Roman philosopher Lucretius was driven insane 
by a magical draught given him by his 
wife in order to restore to her his lost affections. There exist old recipes for 
witch, unguents which contain opium and 
cantharides. It is not difficult to imagine what manner of dreams would come in 
the sleep thus induced. C. S. Ollivier,  




in his recent book,  Analysis of Magic and Witchcraft,  gives it as his opinion 
that attendance at the Sabbat was often 
achieved by means of drug, induced dreams. 
Subtle poisons also undoubtedly play a part in the effectiveness of curses,  a 
favourite method being to make a talisman 
of brass,  copper or lead,  and fasten it inconspicuously at the bottom of a 
drinking vessel or cooking pot. What effect 
the talisman had is conjectural,  but there is no doubt at all about the effect 
of the steady dissolving of small quantities 
of lead and verdigris in the food. 
But while all these things were a part,  and a considerable part,  of the witch, 
cult,  they cannot,  strictly speaking,  be 
considered a psychic method of attack,  and we only refer to them in these pages 
in order that their effects may be 
excluded from the diagnosis. 
There are three factors in a psychic attack,  any or all of which may be 
employed in a given instance. The first of these 
is telepathic hypnotic suggestion. The second is the reinforcement of the 
suggestion by the invocation of certain 
invisible agencies. The third is the employment of some physical substance as a 
point d'appui,  point of contact,  or 
magnetic link. The force employed may be used as direct current,  transmitted by 
the mental concentration of the 
operator,  or it may be reserved in a kind of psychic storage battery,  which 
may be either an artificial elemental or a 
talisman. 
In Chapter II we have considered in some detail the psychology of suggestion,  
and need not repeat what has already 
been said,  save to remind the reader that the essence of telepathy consists in 
the sympathetic induction of vibra tion. 
Experimental psychologists are already suspecting that emotion is closely akin 
to electricity; they have proved 
conclusively that emotional states alter the electrical con ductivity of the 
body. The occultist believes that emotion is a 
force of an electrical type,  and that in the case of the ordinary man it 
radiates out from him in all directions,  forming a 
magnetic field; but in the case of the trained occultist it can be concentrated 
into a beam and directed. Supposing you 
are able to concentrate your whole attention upon a single feeling,  inhibiting 
all else,  you will have achieved a pure 
emotional state,  unadulterated and undiluted. All the life, force coming into 
your soul will therefore flow in this single 
subdivision of a single channel instead of in the many ramifications of the 
usual three channels previously referred to. 
The concentration will be terrific,  but it will only be achieved at a terrific 
price. It is in order to achieve this terrible 
concentration that the saints of the West and the yogis of the East practise a 
torturing asceticism. You must sell all that 
you possess in order to purchase this pearl of great price,  and an echo of the 
method lingers in the fairy, tale tradition 
that the person who finds the lucky stone can only have one wish. Such a 
concentration is good for one purpose,  and 
one purpose only. We can concentrate on a healing,  or on a destruction,  but we 
cannot work at both simultaneously; 
neither can we readily change over from one to the other. We cannot com bine 
incompatibles within the limits of a 
single life. That is to say,  if we have concentrated on a work of malediction 
and death in order to achieve an act of 
revenge,  our rage being satiated,  we cannot immediately reverse the spin of 
the soul and reconcentrate upon works of 
wisdom and redemption. We may liken the soul moving with the tide of evolution 
to a wheel spinning clockwise,  or 
deosil; and a soul moving against the tide of evolution to a wheel spinning 
counter clockwise,  or widdershins. The 
position of the axle can be altered so that the wheel revolves at any angle 
without the direction of its revolution being 
effected,  but the flywheel has to be stopped before the engine can be reversed,  
and a big flywheel takes a great deal of 
stopping. Moreover,  in order to reverse the flywheel,  we have to stop the 
engine. The normal movement of the soul is 
deosil,  forward with the current of evolution. We need to think many times 
before we undertake to reverse that spin 
even momentarily,  in order to undertake a work of malediction and death. The 
old saying,  "There is the devil to pay, " is 
a true one. Indeed,  it is questionable whether there is such a thing as a momen 
tary reversal of spin. Momentum has to 
be checked and worked up again before reversal of spin can take place. 
Very great forces can be developed by this subjective concentration of the mind 
itself,  but even greater forces can be 
rendered available if we apply the mechanical equivalent of gearing; if,  in 
other words,  while this tre mendous 
concentration is being held,  we pick up the contacts of the corresponding 
cosmic force. We use the powers of the 
human mind as a self, starter,  and as soon as its lesser driving,  wheel is 
flying round merrily,  we throw in the clutch of 
the main engine. There is a brief period of struggle as the little machine 
forces over the reluctant levers of the great 
machine,  then the vapour fires and the engine takes up its work. After that it 
is only a matter of engaging the gears and 
driving,  if you can! So it is with ceremonial magic. 
Let us consider a concrete case of someone who wants to avail himself of a 
fighting force. He would have recourse to a 
ceremony of the planet Mars. He would therefore gather together in his temple 
all that was appropriate to Mars. He 
would drape his altar with a scarlet cloth; he would himself wear a scarlet 
robe. All his magical implements would be 



of iron and his rod of power would be a naked sword. Upon his altar he would 
place five lights,  five being the number 
of Mars. Upon his breast would be the symbol of Mars engraved upon a steel 
pentagon. On his hand would be a ruby 
ring. He would burn sulphur and saltpetre in his thurible. Then,  according to 
the work in hand,  he would call upon the 
angelic or demonic aspect of the Fifth Sephira,  Geburah,  the sphere of Mars. 
He would invoke either the deity, name in 
Geburah,  calling upon the God of Battles to hear him,  or the arch, devil of 
the Fifth Infernal Habitation. Having 
performed this mighty invocation,  he would then offer himself upon the altar as 
the channel for the manifestation of the 
force. 
There are many formulae extant designed to enable a force to be brought through 
without the necessity of the magician 
himself being the channel. In my opinion they are one and all ineffectual; the 
only possible substitute for the magician 
himself being a trance medium. It is for this reason that ritual magic so often 
fails to come off. You cannot make 
custards without breaking eggs,  and if you mean to be a magician you have got 
to "go the whole hog." When it is a 
question of bringing through the angelic aspect of a force,  the matter is on a 
clear footing. To be the channel of such a 
force is a great privilege and is an initiation in itself. The operator has 
simply to eliminate from his nature all incom 
patibles and maintain his concentration without wavering. The worst that can 
happen is that he should fail to obtain his 
results. But when it comes to bringing through the demonic aspect of a sphere,  
the matter is on an entirely different 
footing. Very few people care to offer themselves for the manifestation of such 
a force as Asmodeus. I do not believe 
that there is any reliable device for invoking the devils without being obsessed 
by them save the method of Abramelin,  
which involves six months' preparation and is only operated after the knowledge 
and conversation of the Holy 
Guardian Angel have been attained. The edge of the Abyss is well fenced. It is 
not possible to fire a gnn and avoid the 
recoil. 
Having invoked and concentrated his force,  our sorcerer has next to consider 
his target. He has to get into astral contact 
with his victim. In order to do this,  he must form a rapport,  not quite as 
easy as might be imagined. First he has to find 
his victim and establish a point of contact in his sphere,  and then,  working 
from this base,  succeed in piercing his aura. 
An unfocussed force is not very much use. A focus has to be achieved. The usual 
method is to obtain some object 
which is impregnated with the intended victim's magnetism,  a lock of hair,  
nail, paring,  or something habitually worn or 
handled. Such an object is magnetically connected with its owner,  and the 
sorcerer can work up the trail and thus enter 
the sphere of his victim and establish a rapport. He then proceeds as does any 
other practitioner of suggestion who has 
succeeded in getting his victim into the first stages of hypnosis. By means of 
the magnetic link he has gamed the 
psychic ear of his victim,  who will hear his suggestions subconsciously. It now 
remains to be seen whether the 
thought, seeds thus planted will strike root or be cast out from the mind. In 
any case the victim is rendered disturbed and 
uneasy. 
If a magnetic link cannot be obtained,  the practitioner of black magic has to 
fall back upon other devices. One of the 
most common is that of Substitution. Something is chosen and by means of 
ceremonial is identified with the intended 
Victim. For instance,  a small animal may be baptised with the victim's name,  
and then immolated,  usually with torture,  
the operator meanwhile concentrating upon the personality of the original. The 
old device of making a wax image and 
melting it before a fire,  or driving nails into a wooden statue,  baptised with 
the name of the victim,  are frequently met 
with in the records of witch, trials. The actual driving of the nail has no 
conceivable effect upon the victim,  but it helps 
the concentration of the operator. 
The talismanic method in various forms is also employed. A talisman is a symbol 
representing a certain force,  or 
combination of forces,  depicted upon a suitable substance and magnetised by 
ritual. It can be made from anything 
which will retain magnetism; metals,  precious stones or parchment are usually 
employed; paper is less effective unless 
it be enclosed in a metal case. Water and oil can be effectually magnetised but 
soon lose their potency. A talisman is 
made by invoking the requisite force,  as already described,  and then 
concentrating it upon the prepared object,  which is 
placed ready upon the altar before the evocation begins. 
A talisman thus made has next to be brought into the magnetic sphere of the 
victim. It is related that Lady Burton,  
anxious to convert her free, thinking husband,  the famous Sir Richard Burton,  
the great explorer,  used to get her priest 
to bless little statues of the saints and put them in the pockets of his 
clothes. A similar device is used by the workers of 
black occultism. Magnetised objects are placed in the rooms habitually occupied 
by the victim,  or buried in his path,  so 
that he must pass over them frequently. These talismans of evil not only work by 
their own power,  but also serve the 
sorcerer as a point of concentration for his meditations. 
Harmful effects are also produced by objects which have been used in black magic 
and have become impregnated with 



the forces they were employed in generating. Odds and ends of magical equipment 
turn up in some queer places. I was 
present at an auction in a country town when the twelve signs of the Zodiac,  
neatly painted on a blackboard,  came up 
for sale. Various of my friends have picked up magical treasures,  such as altar 
lamps and incense burners that 
obviously came out of ritual lodges,  but the prize of the collection was a 
magical rod that was put up to auction along 
with a bundle of fire, irons. Large crystals for scrying are frequently seen in 
antique shops. All such things need 
carefully de, magnetising before they are brought into one's psychic sphere. 
I was taking part at one time in a series of psychic experi ments which had been 
going on very well,  when,  for no 
apparent reason,  things went wrong and there was a con siderable upheaval. We 
did not know at the time,  but we learnt 
later,  that the owner of the flat where they were being held had obtained 
possession of a floor, cloth that had been used 
in ritual magic by an occultist whom only the utmost leniency could call 
doubtful. 
The artificial elemental is really the basis of the efficacy of curses. in this 
case no physical substance is employed,  but a 
portion of the Akasha is moulded into a definite form and held thus by the will 
of the operator until,  as it were,  it "sets." 
Into this mould is poured the concentrated energy of the operator,  something of 
his own self goes into it. This is its 
soul,  and it is like a self, steering torpedo which is set to move in a curve 
towards a chosen mark. Or the operator,  if an 
expert magician,  may deliberately ensoul this thought, form with elemental 
essence,  which is the raw,  undifferentiated 
substance of life drawn from one or another of the elemental kingdoms. It is in 
order to do this that the curse is invoked 
in the name of some being. The curser declares,  "I curse you by so and so." 
This is the form of evocation which calls 
the ensouling essence into the thought,  form,  thus making an artificial 
elemental which is endowed with an 
independent life of its own. 
If we want to know something of the efficacy of curses,  we have only to 
consider the record of the men who were 
connected with the opening of the famous Tut, ankh, amen tomb. There are many 
other cases equally well authenticated. 
One can become exposed to occult unpleasantness either by thwarting or in some 
other way falling foul of an un 
scrupulous occultist,  or by getting oneself involved with a dubious occult 
fraternity. In the case of a quarrel with an 
occultist,  in addition to the ordinary human motives for an abuse of power,  
one has to reckon with the fact that an adept 
who is not of the whitest nearly always suffers from that unpleasant psychic 
disease of "hypertrophied ego." He will 
love power for its own sake,  and take any defection on the part of an erstwhile 
follower,  or any resistance to his 
imperious will as a personal insult or even injury. With a trained mind,  an 
angry thought will do damage,  and I have 
known cases of occultists who,  out of pure pique,  went to extraordinary 
lengths of spite. One can only hope that they 
did not really believe in the efficacy of what they did,  and were merely 
playing to the gallery "pour encourager les 
autres" and ensure loyalty among their supporters. 
Another thing which is particularly disliked by this type of adept is any 
attempt on the part of a pupil who has broken 
with him to make use of what he has been taught. There seem to be no lengths to 
which a jealous guru will not go in 
order to smash his chela psychically. 
In one case which came to my knowledge a concert singer had had "treatment" for 
the improvement of her voice from 
an adept of sorts. She finally decided that she would spend no more money on 
this enterprise,  and told him so at the 
visit which she had decided should be the last. He concentrated his gaze upon 
her and told her that if she broke with 
him,  as soon as she went on the concert platform she would see his face in the 
air in front of her,  and her throat would 
close and she would be unable to utter asound,  and that this horrible 
experience would occur every time she tried to 
sing until she returned to him and continued to have "treatment" (at a guinea a 
time). This potent hypnotic suggestion 
proved effective,  and her career was at an end until the spell was broken. 
The following letter contains a very illuminating experi ence,  and is of value,  
not only for its account of a psychic 
attack,  but also for its description of the manner in which the attack was 
combated. 
"In the winter of 1921, 2 I was told (from the Inner Planes),  'We see your 
initiation into the Order of the Christ.' 
I did not understand very clearly and I waited. 
"In June,  1922,  an Oriental,  the head of a great religious Order,  came to 
see me. (I was living in Switzerland.) We will 
call him Z. I expected great things from him and looked on him as a sort of 
Master. Knowing that he had met Abdul 
Baha,  I thought to please him by putting A. B.'s photo on my walls,  but when 
Z. entered my room I saw at once that he 

did not quite like it. We conversed for a while and he asked me several 
questions. Suddenly he offered me initiation 
into his Order. I was taken aback and did not feel the inner consent. I said I 
must reflect. Later on an inspiration  
came to me and I said,  'Is your Order the Order of the Christ?' He answered,  
'It is.' I told him of my experience (related 
above) and accepted initiation; but I had the inner conviction that all was not 
right. 
"I felt no inner response to several incidents during the initiation,  and I 
began to call mentally and earnestly upon the 
Christ,  and kept on doing so until the end of the ceremony. (I learned 
afterwards that he had told one of his disciples 
that I had accepted initiation but not the Master.) 
"It would take too long to relate other less important details so I go on to our 
second interview during which he asked 
me several times to leave the town where I was and to join him in active work. 
This time I heard the inner voice clearly; 
it said,  'No.' Suddenly he said,  'Sit in front of me; I will heal you.' (I was 
in very bad health at the time.) He fixed his 
eyes on mine with a strong commanding gaze. Mentally I called on the Christ and 
I felt form all round me a sort of 
shell. 'There, ' he said,  'I have healed you.' The inner voice said,  'No.' 
"Well,  he went away and I had a 'bad time, ' for I had the feeling that all was 
not right,  though I had no suspicion of evil. 
(Nor have I now.) 
"I wrote an account of this interview to a friend,  and a letter from her 
crossed mine. She told me that about the time of 
my interview with Z.,  of which she was unaware,  she was told to join our 
spiritual teacher in helping me. She withdrew 
from the Outer Planes,  and then she realised that strong hypnotic forces were 
playing upon me in waves. Again and 
again she had to use all her spiritual power to help me withstand them,  but 
finally 'we stood on a rock,  bathed in light 
and free.' My letter gave her the key to it; but she replied,  'Take care,  Z. 
will try again. He realised that he was baffled; 
he will try on the Inner Planes next time.' 
"Now comes the great experience. A few weeks later,  at night,  I had a very 
vivid vision,  it seemed; but it was a real 
experience. I was in the middle of a group of seven or eight persons of whom I 
saw two clearly. On my left was a 
woman entirely veiled in black,  but she made a startlingly clear figure for all 
that. On the right was Z. He said,  ' Now I 
will give her the second,  the higher initiation.' And he seized my right arm 
with force. But I disengaged myself,  and 
standing straight and calm I said (I can hear myself now),  'Before this 
ceremony proceeds I wish to make a statement. I 
can allow nothing and no one to come between me and the Christ.' There was a 
howl,  a tossing of hands and every 
thing disappeared. 
"Soon after I tore up my initiation card,  put Z. out of my mind and have had no 
conscious personal experience of him 
since. 
"But I had introduced him to a young French musician of high social standing,  
whom he found much to his taste. (We 
will call him F.) There is a close friendship between F. and me,  and at that 
time he needed some Oriental music for one 
of his compositions,  on the other hand,  he might have been extremely useful to 
Z.,  towards whom he felt strongly 
attracted. After my own experience I began to be much alarmed,  but felt that I 
was not big enough to deal with the 
situation,  so I said nothing to F. but prayed that he might be protected from 
all evil. Shortly afterwards F. told me in his 
letters of various astral experiences. In his dreams he was going through all 
sorts of disagreeable things and voices kept 
saying to him,  'Ask Z. to help you. He will help you.' Then he became conscious 
of my presence and began calling on 
the Christ (all this in his dream) and everything vanished. This happened more 
than once. Only when I met him again 
did I tell him of my own experience. 
"I must add that a friend with psychic power came to see me at this time and 
said,  'This last week,  at night,  I have seen 
you three times. You asked me to help you save a young man who was in danger. 
What did it mean?'" 
The above case indicates clearly the deliberate use of mental power by Z. His 
pretence of "spiritual healing" being an 
obvious attempt at hypnosis. My correspondent says definitely that she has never 
suspected him of deliberate evil; 
rather was he acting rightly according to his lights. I maintain,  however,  
that any attempt to dominate others,  or in any 
way to manipulate their minds without their consent,  is an unwarrantable 
intrusion upon their freewill and a crime 
against the integrity of the soul. How can we judge the intimate spiritual needs 
of another,  especially if that other has 
not elected to confide in us? What right have we to invade his spiritual privacy 
and thrust our tampering fingers into the 
wheels of his innermost being? It is so common a practice to send the names of 
people to healing circles with a request 
64 of 103 

that they should be concentrated upon,  without taking the preliminary 
precaution of asking their permission,  that I have 
heard it announced from the platform of a large Spiritualist public meeting that 
only those cases could be taken up 
which gave their written consent. 
Fortunately for all concerned,  the proceedings at such "healing circles" are 
usually so futile that nobody need mind 
being concentrated upon by them even if they were attempting murder. The 
principle,  however,  remains,  and I can only 
record my opinion once more,  as I have already recorded it many times,  that 
such a proceeding is an outrageous breach 
of good manners and good faith,  and contrary to all occult tradition. I think I 
can honestly say that I have never wished 
to direct the great currents of destruction upon my fellow, occultists,  but 
there are some of them I would like to get face 
downwards across my knee! 


CHAPTER 18. 
THE MOTIVES OF PSYCHIC ATTACK. 
WE have noted in a previous chapter that the simplest way to find out whether 
the victim of an alleged psychic 
attack is romancing or not,  is to seek for motives,  and if they are not 
discernible,  to give imagination the benefit of the 
doubt. The commonplace motives of greed,  lust,  revenge and fear of betrayal do 
not need psychic discernment for their 
discovery but are perceptible to the naked eye. There are other motives,  
however,  that may be operative in occult 
circles but which would be passed by unsuspected by the ordinary investigator. 
The old charm, books that have come down to us,  mostly via the servants' hall,  
are replete with recipes for securing the 
love of the opposite sex. The ancient grimoires supply more elaborate ritual 
prescriptions,  and the reports of witchtrials 
contain frequent indictments of the wise woman who,  for a consideration,  
undertook to direct people's affections 
towards persons for whom they apparently had no natural predilection. Are such 
operations to be taken seriously,  or 
should we class them with the anti, fat pills that reduce without dieting? 
We have already referred to the old love, philtres. The ancients were well 
acquainted with the aphrodisiac drugs which 
excited sexual passion. Nor are the modems altogether ignorant of them,  as 
carefully, worded advertisements in certain 
occult publications reveal. There are firms in France which specialise in the 
manufacture of chocolates which contain 
masked doses of these drugs. Publicity was given to their productions recently 
owing to the death of two girls and a 
man through taking overdoses. There are cocktails in use in this country 
containing so, called "tonic" ingredients whose 
effect is well known. If these are not "love, philtres, " what are they? 
We are not concerned in these pages with methods that belong solely to the 
physical plane,  but these matters call for 
mention because there are grounds for belief that upon more than one occasion,  
even in this country,  aphrodisiacs have 
been employed as an adjuvant to occult practices. There was a certain firm which 
began to advertise extensively and 
was building up a nice business in what might be called "occultist's sundries." 
Among other preparations which they 
supplied was "Incense for the operation of Venus." However,  the firm came to an 
untimely end through the intervention 
of the police,  both partners going to jail. 
But apart from the use of purely material means,  it is not difficult to see 
what uses could be made of mental influence in 
this direction. I have seen several cases that looked extremely suspicious,  but 
in these matters it is very difficult to get 
at the facts. The manner of attack is intangible and leaves no trace,  and the 
victim may be unsuspicious and entirely 
ignorant not only of the psychic side of sex,  but also of its physical and 
subtler emotional aspects. Moreover,  those who 
have suffered most usually talk least. One may occasionally hear of the attempt 
which was frustrated. The attempt 



which was successful very rarely comes to light because the victim has just as 
much motive for concealing it as the 
aggressor. 
When we come to purely occult practices,  there are two ways in which the 
desired end can be achieved; psychic 
pressure may be brought to bear upon the desired person so that he or she shall 
come under the influence of the 
operator; or the psychic operation known as congressus subtilis may take place. 
What exactly is congressus subtilis? We shall have to know a good deal more than 
we do at present about the occult 
side of sex before we can answer that question. In the first place,  what are 
the facts,  or alleged facts,  of the matter? The 
ancients held very definite beliefs upon the subject,  and these beliefs can 
very often afford us a clue,  even if we do not 
accept the very anthropomorphic explanations by which they are accompanied. 
It was believed that the arch, demon Lilith had a very great deal to do with 
these matters. According to the Qabalists,  
Lilith was the first wife of Adam,  who used to visit him in his dreams while he 
was as yet alone in the Garden of Eden,  
and the Lord God became so perturbed at these goings, on that He created Eve as 
a counter,  attraction. Witches were 
the recipients of similar attentions from the Devil. St. Theresa of Avila 
records that the Godhead Itself visited her. The 
Virgin Mary received the Holy Ghost. St. Anthony was tempted by apparitions of 
beautiful female demons. There are 
many cases on record of whole nunneries being attacked by the Devil,  who 
visited their members. George Moore,  in his 
exceedingly interesting study of convent life,  Sister Theresa,  gives an 
account of an outbreak of "Counterparts" among 
the younger nuns,  in which they formed liaisons with angelic lovers,  who were 
supposed to be the souls of those who 
were drowned in the Flood. We read in Genesis and in the Book of Enoch that the 
Sons of God mated with the 
daughters of men,  and the demonic race was the result. The folk, lore of every 
country contains instances of the mating 
of humans with elementals,  usually with disastrous consequences. Classical 
literature is full of stories of the visits of 
gods and goddesses to human kind. What shall we say of all such stories? Is 
there any element in them beyond 
fairy, tale and wish, fulfilment? We can readily understand the motive of the 
nun who,  wishing to conceal the identity of 
her paramour,  declares herself to be with child by the Devil. We can equally 
understand the psychology of the rest of 
the convent that take up the story and see the Devil in every corner. 
Let me cite certain cases which have come within my personal knowledge and see 
whether in the light of these we can 
sift fact from phantasy. There came to visit me once a young man who was in love 
with a married woman. He told me 
that upon several occasions he had had a very vivid dream of visiting her,  and 
she had simultaneously dreamed of 
receiving his visit. He was anxious to perfect the technique of this operation,  
hence the visit to me. I am afraid I was 
unsympathetic,  consequently I did not obtain any further information concerning 
this curious experiment. 
An even more curious case came to my knowledge some years ago. A woman told me 
that in the days of her youth she 
had been engaged to marry a man to whom she was very deeply attached,  and who 
was murdered while working as a 
missionary in West Africa. Having lost the only man she felt she could love,  
she consented to marry a second cousin 
who had long been in love with her,  and who was a semi, invalid. Whenever she 
had relations with her husband,  she 
always visualised the form of her first lover. She herself was short,  dark and 
petite. Her husband,  a blood relation,  was 
similar in type to herself,  and a weed into the bargain. But her three sons 
were tall,  upstanding blond men of the nordic 
type,  bearing a strong resemblance to the dead man. The truth of this story was 
vouched for to me by a friend of the 
family. 
I have know personally two alleged "changelings." The male had the pointed ears 
of Pan,  and if anyone was ever a son 
of the Devil,  he was. The female was a curious and fascinating creature,  
essentially non, human,  and when her child 
was born it came into the world with no more trouble than a kitten. Both these 
beings were conceived when their 
mothers were under the influence of drink,  and both of them were characterised 
by a marked callousness,  which in one 
case developed into deliberate cruelty. Although very peculiar to look at,  
neither of them was in the least defective,  
both being,  in fact,  possessed of considerably more than the average share of 
brains. 
Anyone who has any knowledge of the esoteric aspect of sex knows that union is 
as much etheric as physical. It is this 
fact which constitutes the real difference between normal union and self, abuse,  
and explains why the former is 
vitalising and harmonising,  and the latter is exhausting and nerve, wrecking. 
May we not conceive it possible for 
anyone who can project the etheric body,  or a being whose densest vehicle is 
etheric,  to play a part in unions under 
certain conditions? And if we accept the theory of medium,  ship,  or of 
obsession,  which is a pathological form of 
mediumship,  what shall we say concerning the possibility of a union while one 
or other of the partners is under control? 
What maimer of soul might come through into incarnation under such conditions? 
 

Medieval tradition recognised two classes of demons which invade sleep,  and 
called them Incubi and Succubi. These 
were held to be responsible for lascivious dreams. Modern psychology discounts 
their services and looks nearer home. 
The psychic,  however,  is of the opinion that there is something in the old 
belief,  and that the lustful imaginings of men's 
hearts (and women's too,  for that matter) do indeed produce artificial 
elementals according to the method described in a 
previous chapter,  and that these elementals are something more than subjective 
images,  and have an objective etheric 
existence and play their part in the genesis of certain experiences. For 
instance,  a person may have dreams and 
phantasies of a lascivious nature,  and these may give rise to their 
characteristic thought, forms; these thought, forms,  
now existing independently of the mind that originally conceived them,  and 
being in the aura of that person,  give him 
suggestion just as any other thought, forms projected telepathically from the 
mind of another person might do. We little 
realise the extent to which we give ourselves telepathic suggestion by means of 
extruded thought, forms. We are,  in 
fact,  ensphered by our own atmospheres,  emanated by ourselves. I remember 
being told as a child that if a bird, cage 
were hung immediately under the canopy of an old, fashioned four, poster bed,  
the bird would be found dead in the 
morning,  poisoned by the carbonic acid gas exhaled by the sleeper lying below. 
We little realise the extent to which we 
are psychically poisoned by our own emanations of unguarded and unpurified 
thoughts. 
It is well known that orgasm takes place in dreams,  accompanied by appropriate 
dream, pictures. The ancients believed 
that such an experience was due to the action of demons. Moderns believe it to 
be due to physical tension. It is not so 
generally known that there are people,  both male and female,  who can produce 
the same reaction at will solely by 
means of day, dreams. May we not ask ourselves whether it cannot also be 
produced by means of telepathic suggestion,  
and whether this may not have played a part in the operations of many covens? 
There is another curious phase of this aspect of the Left,  hand Path,  which 
was brought to my knowledge through a 
case which came into my hands. A young girl,  simple minded and unsophisticated,  
living a very isolated life with a 
widowed mother,  went to consult a well, known psychic,  whom we will call Mr. 
X. In the circle in which both Miss Y. 
and Mr. X. moved there was another,  and prominent figure,  whom we will call 
Mr. Z.,  who had a reputation for a 
knowledge of magic. Mr. X. told Miss Y. that he had read the records of her past 
lives,  and that there was a karmic tie 
between herself and Mr. Z.,  and that she could help him in his work by pouring 
out upon him her love and magnetism. 
She was instructed to meditate upon Mr. Z. every night as she lay in bed,  until 
she fell asleep. This poor girl,  lonely and 
unsuspicious,  gave herself up unreservedly to this task. Presently,  however,  
she began to grow uneasy. Her common 
sense asserted itself,  for she found the meditations she was required to 
perform were having a very disturbing effect 
upon her; but Mr. X. allayed her fears and recalled her to her allegiance by 
assuring her that he had looked into the 
future and seen that eventually Mr. Z. would marry her. By now she had upon her 
hands a heart, breaking love affair 
which was making her very unhappy and unfitting her for work. A number of 
letters upon the subject were exchanged 
between Miss Y. and Mr. X.,  which I have seen. I did my best to persuade her to 
drop the whole affair. Mr. X. 
succeeded in persuading her to go on with it,  playing upon her feelings and 
telling her how terrible would be the plight 
of Mr. Z. if she withdrew her psychic support,  and renewing his assurance of a 
karmic tie which would result in an 
ultimate marriage if she were faithful. Miss Y.,  pitifully distressed and 
bewildered,  betook herself to certain of the 
leaders of the organisation to which all three of them belonged. These people 
seconded my advice that she should 
discontinue these practices,  but persuaded her to surrender the very 
compromising letters which were in her possession. 
Having secured these,  they declared that the whole transaction was imagination 
on her part,  and instead of turning this 
choice pair of scoundrels out of their ranks,  let them continue to function as 
usual. 
This would be a strange enough case if it were an isolated one,  but it is not. 
Another woman came to me about this time 
in a state bordering on insanity,  and told me that she too had been consulting 
Mr. X.,  who had told her that she had 
already received initiation on the Inner Planes,  though she might not be 
conscious of it,  and that her psychic faculties 
were on the point of opening (a stock remark of his),  but if she wanted to make 
real progress on the Path she must 
cease to live with her husband and he (Mr. X.) would put her in touch with her 
astral soul, mate. The consequence of 
this precious advice was to break up her home and send her out of her mind. One 
day,  walking in the Park,  she met Mr. 
Z.,  and declared him to be her astral lover,  a statement which Mr. X. 
confirmed,  and embellished with the information 
that Mr. Z. was also the Master who would initiate her. 
I tried to persuade her to bring the whole transaction to a summary conclusion 
and return to her husband,  but she 
replied that she could never do this after the astral experiences she had had. 
Mr. X. re, established his influence over 
her,  she left the address at which I had known her,  and I have never heard 
what became of her. Her condition when I 
last saw her was deplorable,  emaciated,  wild, eyed and twitching with 
convulsive movements. 
page 67 of 103.

 

Would anyone believe the story of such a woman? Obviously no one,  unless they 
had seen the letters that I had seen. 
Nor is this the only case; a fellow, worker of mine told me of two precisely 
similar ones which had come to her 
knowledge in connection with Mr. X. It is cases such as these which make the 
honest investigator of occult phenomena 
thankful that there is upon our statute, book a law which enables magistrates to 
deal effectually with occultists who 
prostitute their powers. It is so generally known that no initiate may use the 
occult arts for gain that it is difficult to 
sympathise with people who pay some advertising occultist his half, crown or 
half, guinea and then find themselves let 
in for unpleasantness. 
What conclusions may we draw from the incidents that I have related,  for the 
facts of which I can vouch from personal 
knowledge? Four women are persuaded to embark upon a meditation process whose 
aim is to pour out force. The 
nature of the force that is to be poured out is indicated by the fact that the 
married women are instructed not to live with 
their husbands and the unmarried girl is encouraged to fall in love with the man 
who is made the focus of the operation. 
This man is the head of a group of people known to be occupied with practical 
occultism and ceremonial. The 
conclusion I draw is that an occult experiment was afoot,  and that,  regardless 
of the consequences to them,  these 
women were being made use of in order to carry it out,  the procurer being the 
well, known psychic,  Mr. X.,  and the 
operator the notorious Mr. Z. 
The same group have to their credit a recurring series of scandals in connection 
with unnatural vice. If this were merely 
vice as such it would not come within the purview of these pages,  but it 
appears to be used systematically as a means of 
obtaining occult power. Those who have any knowledge of the deeper aspects of 
occultism know that sex force is one 
of the manifestations of kundalini,  the serpent,  fire that according to 
Tantric philosophy lies coiled at the base of the 
spine,  or in the terms of Western occultism,  the sacral plexus. The control 
and concentration of the kundalini force is an 
important part of the technique of practical occultism. There is a right way of 
directing it through thought, control,  the 
technique of which I have explained in my little book,  The Problem of Purity 
(Rider); but there is also another method,  
which consists in stimulating this force,  and then directing it into abnormal 
channels where it will not be absorbed,  but 
remain available for magical purposes. It is for this reason that in certain 
forms of the Black Mass the altar is the naked 
body of a woman who may either be still living,  or have been slain 
sacrificially. A. E. W. Mason gives an account of 
such a transaction in his book,  The Prisoner in the Opal. 
Less expert operators,  however,  cannot control this form of force; as soon as 
they generate it,  it has to go to its logical 
conclusion. They therefore employ another type of stimulus,  not the woman,  but 
the boy or youth. The practice of 
paederasty in connection with occultism is very old,  and was one of the causes 
of the degeneration of the Greek 
Mysteries. 
I have dealt with these subjects in some detail in another book of mine,  Sane 
Occultism. Particulars of the actual cases 
can be found by reference to the files of Truth,  the journal already referred 
to. 


Chapter 19. 
THE MOTIVES OF PSYCHIC ATTACK. 
IT is a matter of general knowledge among occultists that it is not a pleasant 
thing to fall foul of an occult fraternity 
of which one has been made a member by means of a ceremonial initiation and to 
which one is bound by oaths. As we 
have already seen,  the malignant mind of a trained occultist is a nasty weapon; 
how much more so the group, mind 
formed out of a number of trained minds,  especially if concentrated by means of 
ritual? 
But in addition to the individual mental force of the members of a fraternity,  
and in addition to the collective force of its 
group, mind,  there is another factor to be reckoned with when a genuine occult 
organisation is concerned in operations 


of either protection or destruction. Every occult organisation depends for Its 
power to initiate upon what are called its 
"contacts, " that is to say,  upon one or more of its leaders being psychically 
in touch with certain forces. If,  in addition to 
this,  the organisation has a long line of tradition behind it,  a very potent 
collection of thought, forms will be built up in 
its atmosphere. Every initiation ceremony contains in some form or other the 
Oath of the Mysteries,  which binds the 
candidate neither to reveal the secrets of the Mysteries nor to abuse the 
knowledge they bestow. This oath always 
contains a Penalty Clause and an Invocation wherein the candidate submits 
himself to a penalty in the event of a breach 
of faith,  and calls upon some Being to exact the penalty. Some of these oaths 
are most formidable affairs,  and they are 
administered with every circumstance of solemnity that stage management can 
devise. The way in which the occult 
fraternities have succeeded in preserving their secrets shows how seldom these 
oaths are broken. 
In the event of a dispute with an occult fraternity,  the force invoked in this 
oath may come into action automatically. If 
the recalcitrant brother is in the spirit of the tradition and it is his chiefs 
who are at fault,  the power invoked in the oath 
will be a potent protective influence with which the chiefs themselves will 
collide. If,  on the other hand,  he breaks faith 
with the Mysteries,  this avenging punitive current will come into action 
although his defection may pass undiscovered. 
I was informed by an eye, witness of an incident which took place at an 
initiation,  in which the candidate,  a man to all 
appearances normal in every way,  after taking the oath in the usual manner,  
suddenly screamed most terribly,  startling 
everyone,  and was ill for some weeks as if from a severe nervous shock,  and 
never had anything more to do with 
occultism. No explanation of the incident was ever forthcoming. I was present 
myself upon one occasion when a batch 
of three candidates was being "done, " and it was suddenly noticed in the course 
of the ceremony that the number of the 
candidates had become reduced to two. Enquiry elicited the fact that the third 
had taken fright and fled. 
What happened in these two cases,  I do not know; whether there had been a 
breach of good faith,  or whether one was 
intended,  no one can say; but something put the fear of the Lord into these two 
individuals pretty effectually. That no 
such shock is inherent in the ceremony is proved by the fact that these are the 
only two cases in my experience,  and I 
have seen a very large number of ceremonies. Person ally,  when I took my own 
initiation I felt as if I had come into 
harbour after a stormy voyage. 
Another man who was intimately known to me as an advanced occultist was turned 
out of the Order to which he 
belonged,  why,  I do not know,  but from what I saw of him I should imagine 
there were plenty of reasons. In defiance of 
his initiation oath he began to work an independent lodge. He was warned to 
desist,  and did so,  dismantling his temple. 
But he immediately began to get together another temple in a carefully concealed 
place; and this time he was more 
ambitious,  for he made ready to attempt the Greater Mysteries. He was an 
exceedingly clever craftsman and made all 
the equipment of the temple with his own hands so that no one should know what 
was afoot. Concealed behind 
Nottingham lace curtains in a mean street in West London was a beautiful little 
temple of the Greater Mysteries. He 
completed this work after some months of arduous toil,  no one knowing of it 
save those in his immediate confidence. 
But before commencing the actual ritual work he went away for a short holiday at 
the seaside,  and there he was seized 
with a heart attack while sitting on the beach and died in four hours. The Order 
secrets were not betrayed. 
Another man who had had a dispute with the same famous Order,  printed and 
published their secrets as an act of 
revenge. He was a man of good social position,  considerable wealth and 
brilliant literary abilities,  already making a 
name for himself as a writer. From that moment be began to go downhill,  and 
came to poverty and disgrace. The curse 
of Ahasuerus seemed to be upon him,  and he was hounded from country to country,  
finding no abiding place. No 
publisher will handle his books,  no paper will review them. 
Let me finally tell of my own experiences in an astral skirmish. I wrote a 
series of articles on the abuses prevalent in 
occult fraternities,  and these were published in the Occult Review. My writing 
is largely inspirational,  a great deal 
"coming through" of which I have no previous knowledge,  and in this particular 
case I evidently shot a great deal better 
than I knew,  and got myself into serious trouble. My first intimation of it was 
a sense of uneasiness and restlessness. 
Next came a feeling as if the barriers between the Seen and the Unseen were full 
of rifts and I kept on getting glimpses 
of the Astral mingling with my waking consciousness. This,  for me,  is 
unaccustomed,  for I am not naturally psychic,  
and in the technique in which I was trained we are taught to keep the different 
levels of consciousness strictly separate 
and to use a specific method for opening and closing the gates. Consequently one 
seldom gets spontaneous psychism. 
One's vision resembles the use of a microscope in which one examines prepared 
material. 
The general sense of vague uneasiness gradually matured into a definite sense of 
menace and antagonism,  and 
presently I began to see demon faces in flashes,  resembling those picture, 
images which psychologists call by the 
unpleasing name of hypnogogics,  flashes of dream which appear upon the 
threshold of sleep. I was quite unsuspicious 





of any particular individual,  though I realised that my articles had probably 
stirred somebody up pretty thoroughly; 
what was my surprise,  then,  to receive from a person whom I looked upon as a 
friend and for whom I had the greatest 
respect,  a letter which left me in no doubt whatever as to the source of the 
attack and what I might expect if any more 
articles were published. I can honestly say that until I received this letter I 
had not the slightest suspicion that this 
person was implicated in the scandals I was attacking. 
I was in a somewhat difficult position; I had fired off a charge of shrapnel on 
general principles,  and had apparently 
"bagged" a number of my friends and associates and fluttered the dove, cote 
generally. My position was rather 
complicated by the fact that I did not know nearly as much as they apparently 
suspected me of doing; I had,  of course,  
known that these abuses existed sporadically about the occult field,  as 
everybody in the movement knows; but to know 
in this vague way is one thing,  and to put one's finger on specific cases is 
another. I had evidently blundered into 
something much more considerable than I had bargained for. I felt like the small 
boy who,  fishing for minnows,  has 
hooked a pike. I had to decide whether I would try and get my articles back from 
the Occult Review,  or whether I 
would let them run their natural course and take the con sequences. I had had a 
very strong impulse to write those 
articles,  and now I began to see why I had had it. I shall have something to 
say in another chapter concerning the 
Watchers,  that curious section of the Occult Hierarchy which is concerned with 
the welfare of nations. A certain 
section of their work is apparently concerned with the policing of the Astral 
Plane. Very little is actually known about 
them. One comes across their work sporadically and pieces the bits together. I 
have crossed their trail on several 
occasions,  as I will tell later. Whenever black magic is afoot,  they set to 
work to put a spoke in its wheels. Be that as it 
may,  I came to the conclusion that,  in view of what had now transpired,  the 
impulse I had had to take in hand this piece 
of work might have emanated from the Watchers. At any rate,  the work obviously 
needed doing. Someone had to 
tackle these plague spots if they were to be cleared up,  so I determined to 
stick to my guns and see the matter through,  
and so left the articles in question to run their course. 
Very soon some curious things began to happen. We became most desperately 
afflicted with black cats. They were not 
hallucinatory cats,  for our neighbours shared in the affliction,  and we 
exchanged commiserations with the care taker 
next door who was engaged in pushing bunches of black cats off doorstep and 
window, sill with a broom,  and declared 
he had never in his life seen so many,  or such dreadful specimens. The whole 
house was filled with the horrible stench 
of the brutes. Two members of our community at that time went out to business 
every day,  and at their offices,  in 
different parts of London,  they found the same penetrating reek of the tom, 
cat. 
At first we attributed this persecution to natural causes,  and concluded that 
we were near neighbours to some 
fascinating feline female,  but incidents succeeded each other which made us 
feel that things were not quite in the 
ordinary course of nature. We were getting near to the Vernal Equinox,  which is 
always a difficult time for occultists; 
there was a sense of strain and tension in the atmosphere,  and we were all 
feeling decidedly uncomfortable. Coming 
upstairs after breakfast one morning,  I suddenly saw,  coming down the stairs 
towards me,  a gigantic tabby cat,  twice 
the size of a tiger. It appeared absolutely solid and tangible. I stared at it 
petrified for a second,  and then it vanished. I 
instantly realised that it was a simulacrum,  or thought,  form that was being 
projected by someone with occult powers. 
Not that the realisation was any too comforting,  but it was better than an 
actual tiger. Feeling decidedly uncomfortable,  
I asked one of my household to join me,  and as we sat in my room meditating we 
heard the cry of a cat from without. It 
was answered by another,  and another,  We looked out of the window,  and the 
street as far as we could see was dotted 
with black cats and they were wailing and howling in broad daylight as they do 
on the roofs at night. 
I rose up,  gathered together my paraphernalia,  and did an exorcism then and 
there. At the end we looked out of the 
window again. There was not a cat in sight,  and we never saw them again. The 
visitation was at an end. Only our 
normal population of local mousers remained to us. 
The Vernal Equinox was now upon us. I must explain that this is the most 
important season of the year for occultists. 
Great power, tides are flowing on the Inner Planes,  and these are very 
difficult to handle. If there is going to be astral 
trouble,  it usually blows up for storm at this season. There are also certain 
meetings which take place on the Astral 
Plane,  and many occultists attend them out of the body. In order to do this,  
one has to throw one self into a trance and 
then the mind is free to travel. It is usual to get someone who understands 
these methods of work to watch beside the 
body while it is vacated to see that it comes to no harm. 
In the ordinary way,  when an occult attack is afoot,  one clings to waking 
consciousness at all costs,  sleeping by day and 
keeping awake and meditating while the sun is below the horizon. As ill, luck 
would have it,  however,  I was obliged to 
make one of these astral journeys at this season. My attacker knew this as well 
as I did. I therefore made my 





preparations with all the precautions I could think of; gathered together a 
carefully chosen group to form the watching 
circle,  and sealed up the place of operation with the usual ceremonial. I had 
not much faith in this operation under the 
circumstances,  for my attacker was of much higher grade than I was,  and could 
come through any seals I might set. 
However,  it afforded protection against minor unpleasantness. 
The method of making these astral journeys is highly technical,  and I cannot 
enter upon it here. In the language of 
psychology,  it is auto, hypnosis by means of a symbol. The symbol acts as a 
door to the Unseen. According to the 
symbol chosen will be the section of the Unseen to which access is obtained. The 
trained initiate,  therefore,  does not 
wander on the astral like an uneasy ghost,  but comes and goes by well, known 
corridors. 
My enemy's task was therefore not a difficult one; for she knew about the time I 
must make this journey and the symbol 
I must use in order to get out of the body. I was therefore prepared for 
opposition,  though I did not know what form it 
would take. 
These astral journeys are really lucid dreams in which one retains all one's 
faculties of choice,  will, power and 
judgment. Mine always begin with a curtain of the symbolic colour through whose 
folds I pass. No sooner was I 
through the curtain on this occasion than I saw my enemy waiting for me,  or,  
if another terminology is preferred,  I 
began to dream about her. She appeared to me in the full robes of her grade,  
which were very magnificent, and barred 
my entry,  telling me that by virtue of her authority she forbade me to make use 
of these astral pathways. I replied that I 
did not admit her right to close the astral paths to me because she was person 
ally offended,  and that I appealed to the 
Inner Chiefs,  to whom both she and I were responsible. Then ensued a battle of 
wills in which I experienced the 
sensation of being whirled through the air and falling from a great height and 
found myself back in my body. But my 
body was not where I had left it,  but in a heap in the far corner of the room,  
which looked as if it had been bombed. By 
means of the well,  known phenomenon of repercussion the astral struggle had 
apparently communicated itself to the 
body,  which had somersaulted round the room while an agitated group had rescued 
the furniture from its path. 
I was somewhat shaken by this experience,  which had not been a pleasant one. I 
recognised that I had had the worst of 
it and had been effectually ejected from the astral paths; but I also realised 
that if I accepted this defeat my occult career 
was at an end. Just as a child who has been thrown by his pony must immediately 
get up and remount if he is ever to 
ride again,  so I knew that at all costs I must make that astral journey if I 
were to retain my powers. So I told my group 
to pull themselves together and re, form the circle because we must make another 
attempt; I invoked the Inner Chiefs,  
and went out once more. This time there was a short sharp struggle,  and I was 
through. I had the Vision of the Inner 
Chiefs,  and returned. The fight was over. I have never had any trouble since. 
But when I took off my clothes in order to go to bed my back felt very sore,  
and taking a hand, glass I examined it in the 
mirror,  and I found that from neck to waist I was scored with scratches as if I 
had been clawed by a gigantic cat. 
I told this story to some friends of mine,  experienced occultists,  who at one 
time had been closely associated with the 
person which whom I had had this trouble,  and they told me that she was well 
known for these astral attacks,  and that a 
friend of theirs after a quarrel with her had had an exactly similar experience,  
and she too had been covered with 
claw, marks. In her case,  however,  she had been ill for six months and had 
never touched occultism again. 
There is a curious epilogue to this story,  which may or may not have any 
bearing upon it. I have already told the story 
of the mysterious death that took place on lona. How the body of this 
unfortunate girl was found lying naked on a cross 
cut out of the turf. No cause of death could be found,  and the verdict was that 
she died of exposure. But if she were 
lost,  how did she come to lie down to die in this ritual manner,  instead of 
wandering about? Why had she taken off all 
her clothes before leaving her house,  covering herself only with a black cloak? 
And why did she take with her the large 
knife with which she cut the cross in the turf? I do not know her later history,  
for I had lost sight of her during the last 
two or three years of her life,  but at the time I knew her she was associated 
with the woman I have referred to. The only 
marks found upon her dead body were scratches. 
page 71 of 103. 




PART 4. 
METHODS OF DEFENCE AGAINST PSYCHIC ATTACK. 
CHAPTER 15.
PHYSICAL ASPECT OF PSYCHIC ATTACK AND DEFENCE. 
WE have distinguished the various types of psychic attack,  we have described 
the methods that can 
be employed in carrying them out,  and we have also noted the various forms of 
delusion,  fraud and 
auto, suggestion that may complicate the issue. We are now in a position to 
discuss the question of 
diagnosis. Let us consider the whole matter from the practical point of view. 
Supposing a stranger comes 
with a story of a psychic attack,  what should be our procedure? 
We must first of all bear in mind that there is great need of caution in 
presuming that a psychic attack is 
being made. Psychic attacks are comparatively rare things. We must not assume we 
are dealing with one 
until we have excluded all the other things it can possibly be. Not so long ago 
I came across a case of 
alleged obsession which turned out to be neglected constipation,  and which was 
effectually exorcised 
with castor oil. If there are any physical symptoms at all,  even if they are no 
more than a bad colour or a 
bad breath,  a diagnosis ought to be made by a qualified medical practitioner,  
for even if the trouble have 
a predominating psychic element,  its origin may be physical. Septic foci are 
really centres of 
decomposition,  and as such they open the door to low forms of elemental life 
whose function is to assist 
in the return of dust to dust. Impurities in the blood, stream may poison the 
brain. New growths or 
abscesses may derange its functions. These things can only be recognised by the 
man who understands 
the body; other things being equal,  the trained man is the better man,  and the 
man with the best training 
is the best man,  and the only place where an adequate training in diagnosis can 
be obtained is a general 
hospital. Moreover,  should things turn out badly,  the only person who can pull 
the chestnuts out of the 
fire is the person whose signature the authorities will accept on a certificate. 
Supposing the patient turns 
out to be a lunatic,  what is the unqualified practitioner going to do with him? 
A very large proportion of 
the cases of alleged psychic attack turn out to be lunatics and hysterics. 
Incipient lunacy is a very hard 
thing to detect; hysteria is very cunning and plausible; a doctor who is 
handling human nature in bulk 
every day of his life will detect either of these two conditions much quicker 
than the layman who has 
never met them before. 
It may be objected that it is a very difficult thing to find a doctor who will 
have a sympathetic attitude 
towards occultism. To argue thus is to misunderstand the position. The doctor is 
not being asked to 
co, operate with any occult operation,  but to examine for physical disease,  
and if he finds it,  to treat it. He 
is no more concerned in the occult measures that are taken for the benefit of 
his patient than he is in the 
church his patient attends. 
If the doctor finds no evidence of organic disease,  or some complaint such as 
varicose veins which can 
obviously have no bearing on the mental condition,  the case may be held to have 
passed the first test,  
and we may feel that it is worth while to proceed to the psychic investigation. 
If the case is a bad one,  or 



the trouble is of long standing,  the doctor will probably find that the patient 
is debilitated,  even if there is 
nothing definitely amiss,  and will proceed to treat the condition accordingly. 
This is all to the good,  for 
the better the physical condition of the patient the more mental control and 
stamina he will have. 
Sleeping, draughts,  however,  should be avoided if possible,  and if they have 
to be administered,  then the 
patient should be watched while he sleeps by someone who knows how to keep an 
occult guard,  and the 
room in which he sleeps should be purified and sealed. In the ordinary way,  if 
a person who is out on the 
astral meets with an occult attack,  he bolts back to his body like a rabbit to 
its burrow and wakes up as if 
from a nightmare; but if the sleep is made unnaturally deep by a sleeping,  
draught,  he cannot wake up,  
and is locked out on the astral,  as it were,  which is the last thing one wants 
in the case of a psychic 
attack. If a sleeping, draught is considered essential,  for it is impossible to 
go without sleep indefinitely,  
the person who is watching beside the sleeper should observe carefully any signs 
that the sleep is being 
disturbed by dreams,  and if he observes muttering or twitching,  should 
immediately perform the 
necessary banishings and whisper into the ear of the sleeper soothing and 
reassuring suggestions such as 
Coue recommends should be done in the case of young children. One of the most 
distressing features of 
a psychic attack is that the victim fears to sleep because he feels that in 
sleep he is defenceless. Those 
who have read Kipling's terrible story,  "The End of the Passage, " may remember 
that the victim of the 
occult attack therein described always went to bed wearing spurs in order that 
he might rowel himself 
and so wake up if he were struggling with his invisible enemy during sleep. 
There is a great deal that can be done upon the physical plane to help the 
person who is suffering from 
an occult attack,  and we may as well consider these physical methods while we 
are upon the subject of 
the part that can be played by a doctor in dealing with the case. Sunlight is 
exceedingly valuable because 
it strengthens the aura and makes it much more resistant. People are often 
advised to go away into the 
country on this account,  but for the victim of an occult attack to go into the 
depths of the country may 
not be the wisest thing,  because elemental forces are much more potent away 
from towns,  and if he is 
threatened by an uprush of atavistic forces,  he had better cling to the haunts 
of men. The sea,  too,  is an 
elemental force that is best avoided,  for water is an element intimately 
associated with psychism. Large 
bodies of water and high mountains should be avoided in choosing a health resort 
for a person suffering 
from psychic trouble. The best place is an inland spa. Games,  physical 
training,  massage,  anything that 
improves the bodily condition,  are invaluable,  but long solitary walks should 
be avoided because there is 
often a risk of suicide. The person who is the victim of an occult attack should 
at all costs avoid solitude. 
There is another very simple measure which gives immense relief in cases of 
psychic interference. It is 
obvious that the attack is made through the psychic centres,  therefore any 
thing which closes those 
centres will render the victim comparatively immune. It is well known how the 
stolid,  materialistic type 
of person can live with impunity in haunted houses that drive the sensitive to 
madness and suicide. It is 
also well known that psychic work cannot be performed if there is food in the 
stomach; the best results 
are always obtained when fasting. The obvious corollary of these facts is that 
if we want to keep the 
psychic centres closed,  we should not allow the stomach to become empty. The 
person who is facing a 
psychic attack should not go more than two hours without food. 
Certain important psychic centres are in the head. One of the simplest ways of 
checking their activity is 
by drawing the blood down from the head. This can be done effectually by a hot 
bath or putting the feet 
in hot mustard and water. Another important centre is the solar plexus; during a 
psychic attack this is 
often felt to be tense and distressing. A large hot, water bottle, well filled 
so that it is heavy as well as hot,  
laid upon the solar plexus,  which is the hand, breadth between the pit of the 
stomach and the ribs,  will 
effectually relieve tension in that spot. Indeed,  pressure without heat will 
give relief,  and I have known 
cases where a firm pad held in place by a belt or corsets gave much comfort. 


Above all things,  the bowels should be kept freely open while facing a psychic 
attack,  because there is 
nothing that puts one at so great a disadvantage as the accumulation of effete 
matter within the body. 
All these simple physical remedies are readily available. They will not afford a 
cure for psychic 
pathologies,  nor a complete defence from psychic attack,  but they can give 
great relief from distress; 
they enable the victim to put up a much more effectual resistance,  and by 
relieving the strain,  they 
increase his endurance. In many cases of psychic attack,  he who endures longest 
wins; psychic attacks by 
human beings are not things which can be maintained indefinitely because they 
use up too much energy. 
There is an old adage,  "Never use a big spade if a little spade will do." 
Physical methods of defence 
involve much less outlay of energy than psychic ones,  therefore it is 
psychically economical to make as 
much use of them as possible. Why trouble to exorcise the earth elementals with 
a ritual if you can do it 
with a pill? 
The question of diet also requires to be considered in this connection. The 
widespread propaganda of the 
Theosophical Society has caused vegetarianism to be regarded as a sine qua non 
of occult training. This,  
however,  is not the case. The Western Esoteric Tradition does not make 
vegetarianism any part of its 
system,  but teaches that a man should partake sparingly and temperately of the 
food of the land in which 
he finds himself. Personally I am inclined to think that occultism and 
vegetarianism are apt to be an 
injudicious mixture for a European,  the result being a hyper, sensitiveness 
that makes life very difficult in 
our hard, driving civilisation. 
Vegetarianism has to be thoroughly understood and exceedingly well done if it is 
to be successful,  and 
even so,  there is a goodly proportion of people who are incapable of digesting 
vegetable proteins,  which 
are not nearly so easily dealt with as animal substances. Nothing but experience 
and experimentation can 
show whether a vegetarian diet suits a given person. Indigestion is not the only 
indication that all is not 
well. Loss of appetite,  loss of energy,  loss of weight,  or a flabby stoutness 
are all danger signals which if 
disregarded will cause chronic ill, health. Vegetarianism may agree with a 
person well enough at first,  
but after a considerable period,  possibly years,  they may find that they are 
becoming subject to neuritis,  
neuralgia,  sciatica,  or one or another of the nerve pains. This is a sure 
indication that a vegetarian diet is 
affording insufficient nourishment,  not because it does not contain the 
necessary food units,  but because 
the digestion is unable to assimilate them and they are passing out of the body 
unchanged. Wherever 
there is a history of neuralgic pains complicating a case of psychic 
disturbance,  I should be inclined to 
suspect chronic malnutrition as the cause of a hypertrophied psychism. In such 
cases it will probably be 
found that a gradual return to a nourishing mixed diet will bring about a 
reduction of the 
hyper, sensitiveness,  the undesirable contacts that have been formed will fade,  
and the condition return to 
normal. The change of diet,  however,  should always be made gradually lest the 
digestion be upset. 
Anyone who is having trouble with psychic disturbance should immediately 
discontinue all occult 
practices and should exchange his habitual meditations for the prayers of his 
childhood,  or New Thought 
methods. It is no time to open up the psychic centres when there is astral 
trouble. The thing to do in such 
cases is to get back on to the physical plane and stop there resolutely. There 
was a picture in an old 
number of Punch which to my way of thinking exactly expresses the correct 
attitude for the person 
afflicted by psychic trouble. In front of an old, fashioned four, poster 
bedstead stands a ferocious female 
armed with a rolling, pin,  and from under the valance protrudes the head of her 
spouse,  who says,  "Ye 
may whack me,  and ye may thwack me,  but ye canna break my manly spirit,  for 
I'll no Camelot." 
If the victim of an occult attack concentrates on mundane things he is a heart, 
breaking proposition for 
any sorcerer. What is the sorcerer to do if,  at the time when he is operating 
the Black Art,  his victim is at 



the local cinema roaring at the antics of Charley Chaplin? There is an old 
saying that one nail drives out 
another. If in fear of in visible dangers,  take up a sport with an element of 
risk in it. 





CHAPTER 16.
DIAGNOSIS OF THE NATURE OF AN ATTACK. 
HAVING considered the purely physical factors in a psychic disturbance,  we may 
now come to the 
consideration of its genuinely psychic factors. We must always bear in mind,  
however,  that because 
physical disease is found,  it does not necessarily eliminate the psychic 
factor. A physical condition,  such 
as an abnormal state of the blood,  may cause a low form of psychism and put its 
victim in touch with 
evil astral conditions. Science may call it delirium or hallucination,  but the 
occultist calls it pathological 
psychism and can do a great deal to relieve it,  either by closing down the 
psychic centres,  or by 
excluding evil psychic influences from the environment of the patient so that 
the spirits he sees shall be 
angelic instead of demonic,  and cause him happiness instead of distress. The 
psychic centres forced open 
by a diseased blood, stream perceive anything that comes within their range of 
vision. Therefore let us 
ensure that nothing save what is pleasant shall come near them. We may not be 
able entirely to keep him 
off the Astral,  but at least we can ensure that his wanderings shall be in a 
safe and pleasant part of the 
Astral. People do not realise the extent to which the wanderings of delirium can 
be directed and 
controlled by suggestions whispered into the ear of the sick person. We can 
companion the sick man in 
his astral wanderings and make our voice heard among his visions,  by our 
knowledge driving away the 
evil presences that threaten him and guiding his dreams into the way of peace. 
At the commencement of our diagnosis we must distinguish between three broad 
classes of psychic 
disturbance: those which are a by, product of physical disease,  those which are 
due to malicious human 
action,  and those which are due to non, human interference. The first type 
should be readily picked out 
by the doctor if,  as has already been advised,  recourse has been had to him as 
the essential preliminary. 
Moreover,  he will also be effective in eliminating the frauds,  for people 
moving in psychic circles and 
familiar with their terminology may simulate a psychic attack either in order to 
borrow money or obtain 
hospitality,  or out of pure love of notoriety,  a far commoner motive for human 
aberrations than is 
generally realised. Frauds usually either fade away or recover quickly when 
threatened with a physical 
overhaul. Those who decide to chance their luck are pretty quickly caught out by 
the man who has 
served his time in the out, patient department of a general hospital. 
The diagnosis which the occultist has to make therefore lies in distinguishing 
between the attack of an 
incarnate mind and the attack of a discarnate mind. There are two ways in which 
he can do this,  and he 
ought to use them both,  so that they countercheck each other. He ought to get 
at least two independent 
psychics to psychometrise the case,  and he himself ought to make his own 
diagnosis entirely from the 
case, history interpreted in the light of first principles. It is a great 
mistake to mix the psychic and the 



scientific. They are apt to neutralise each other. Let one person do the 
psychism and another the 
observation,  and let proper precautions be taken to prevent the results of the 
clairvoyant investigation 
being vitiated by suggestion,  or by the thought, reading of previously 
conceived opinions held in the 
mind of any of the persons concerned. It is therefore a good thing to send off 
the specimens for 
psychometrising at the commencement of an occult investigation,  before any 
opinions have been formed. 
It is not the simplest matter in the world to take psychometric specimens 
properly. I have seen a man 
bring a lock of hair belonging to someone else out of his pocket,  where he had 
carried it about for a 
couple of days,  and hand it over for psychometry. It was of course so 
thoroughly impregnated with his 
own emanations as to be useless. A psychometrical specimen should be some object 
thoroughly 
impregnated with the vibrations of a person. A garment recently and habitually 
worn,  a lock of hair,  a 
piece of jewellery,  all these can be made to serve provided they are properly 
preserved. Crystalline 
substances,  such as precious stones,  hold magnetism better than anything else; 
metals are also good,  
whether precious or otherwise. A pocket knife,  for instance,  will hold 
magnetism well. Wood holds it 
badly,  and so do paper,  wool,  cotton and artificial silk,  especially the 
latter. Silk and linen are good. 
India, rubber is useless. Glass depends for its holding powers upon its form. If 
it is cut so that it will 
refract light it can be very good; if it is flat and purely transparent,  like a 
window pane,  it is almost 
useless. Stone is fair. Earthenware poor. An elaborate article is not as good as 
a simple article. For 
instance,  a marquise ring is not as good as a signet ring. Letters are apt to 
be misleading because they 
often contain nearly as much of the magnetism of the recipient as of the writer. 
Some psychics can work 
from a photograph,  but this method is not,  strictly speaking,  psychometry,  
for the mental image evoked 
by the photograph is used to pick up the corresponding image in the reflecting 
ether. 
Great care should be used in taking a psychometric specimen,  for it is readily 
contaminated by the 
magnetism of anyone who handles it,  who is in proximity to it,  or who even 
thinks about it 
concentratedly. For instance,  if while packing up such a specimen for sending 
off you are brooding over 
the problem it presents and working out your own theory,  the psychometrist may 
pick up your 
thought, form instead of reading the conditions of the person to whom the object 
belongs. The materials 
which are used for packing should also be free from magnetism. I knew of a case 
wherein the psychic 
said that a certain trinket belonged either to a nurse or to someone who had to 
do with hospitals. As a 
matter of fact,  it belonged to neither,  but had been packed in surgical 
cotton, wool. 
When packing up a psychometric specimen,  do it as expeditiously and with as 
little handling as possible. 
Take a piece of "virgin" black or white silk (not coloured),  large enough to 
serve as a wrapper. Throw it 
over the article and bundle it up rapidly,  handling it through the silk. In the 
occult sense,  "virgin" means 
something that has never been used for any other purpose. For instance,  you 
should not use part of an old 
dress or a cushion, cover. An article which does not lend itself to handling by 
this method can be picked 
up with sugar, tongs or the points of a pair of scissors and laid on the square 
of silk in which it is to be 
wrapped. Pack the wrapped article in a wooden box,  being sure that any padding 
which is used is also 
virgin. The report of a single psychometrist should not be relied upon. 
Specimens should be sent to two 
at least. It is also well when sending specimens,  and especially when sending a 
birth, hour for a 
horoscope,  not to allow the name to be known lest gossip should be spread 
about. Astrologers are much 
too fond of handing round charts and discussing them. I have known some very 
unfortunate things come 
about in this way. 
A horoscope from someone who understands the nature of the work in hand is of 
great value,  for the 
position of the planets in the heavenly houses not only serves as an aid to 
diagnosis but is a very 
important guide to treatment. It is best therefore to explain to the astrologer 
the nature of the case,  and 
the kind of information that is wanted,  so that he can examine the chart 
accordingly. A horoscope is to 




an occult therapist what an X, ray photograph is to a doctor. 
While awaiting these returns,  and while his mind is still uninfluenced by them,  
the occultist should make 
his own independent diagnosis. In order to do this he should have at least two 
interviews with his 
patient. In the first he should hear the case, history,  allowing the patient to 
present the facts in his own 
way,  without guidance or leading questions. Immediately the patient has left,  
the operator should write 
out the case, history with as much detail as he can recall. It is exceedingly 
undesirable to take notes in the 
presence of a patient,  because it makes him nervous,  for he feels that,  in 
the words of the police, court,  
"everything he is saying will be taken down and used as evidence against him." 
In preparation for the second interview the occultist should study this record 
carefully and have its points 
and sequence clear in his mind. Now is the time to question the patient 
concerning any discrepancies or 
hiatuses. This proceeding will reveal the liar,  whether deliberate or 
hysterical,  quicker than anything else,  
for the discrepancies of his second statement will be clearly revealed against 
the written record of his 
first. If he is telling the truth,  the two statements will be in agreement. If 
he is distorting the facts,  he will 
soon contradict himself. 
Remember that you are dealing with a person who has something of either the 
psychic or the neurotic,  or 
very likely both,  in his disposition,  and that your attitude towards him,  and 
even your unspoken thoughts,  
will influence him profoundly. If he feels that you are doubting his veracity,  
he will lose his 
selfconfidence and begin to think that his experiences may,  after all,  be the 
fruits of his own 
imagination. Consequently,  he will suppress things which may be all, important 
from the diagnostic 
standpoint. It is in this outpouring of relevant and irrelevant detail that you 
are going to find your clues. 
There are certain landmarks which you want to look out for in taking this case, 
history,  but you do not 
want to let your patient realise what you are looking for,  because if you have 
won his confidence,  he will 
be very apt to take on your view, point,  and if he sees you have formed any 
opinion,  he will 
unconsciously twist incidents so that they fit in with that opinion. Do not 
allow him to guess the bearing 
of your questions,  and then you will obtain from him an unbiassed response. In 
order to prevent his 
guessing what you are driving at,  do not ask a series of questions elucidating 
information on a specific 
point. There will probably be several points on which you want information. Ask 
questions upon first 
one and then another of these. For instance,  if you suspect that the trouble 
may be due to the house in 
which your patient is living,  the last thing you want to do is to rouse his 
suspicions in this respect lest 
you should be on a false scent. And even if you should prove to be on the right 
track,  you do not want to 
disclose the facts to him until you are ready to act,  for by increasing his 
apprehensions you will increase 
his sufferings. If you suspect that sex plays a part in his trouble,  and he 
guesses the trend of your 
questionings,  he will immediately cover his tracks,  and you will find it very 
difficult to get at the facts at 
all. Whereas,  if his suspicions are not aroused,  he will reveal himself to an 
astute and experienced 
questioner who approaches him indirectly,  without realising that he has done 
so. By approaching thus 
indirectly you not only get at the real facts of the case,  but spare his 
feelings. 
In taking a case, history you want to look for correlations between your 
patient's psychic experiences and 
the circumstances of his life. Dates and places therefore should be sedulously 
sought for. When did the 
trouble start,  and where? Having obtained as detailed information as possible 
on these two points,  set out 
to see whether any occult significance is to be found in it. Note the dates 
carefully,  and turn them up in 
an ephemeris of those years,  and observe how the moon stood in relation to 
them,  also the planets. 
Observe whether they fell on or about the equinoxes or solstices. Note also the 
days of the week upon 
which they occurred. If you found that all the crises of the case occurred on 
Thursdays,  or round about 
the Vernal Equinox,  or at the full moon,  you would have a piece of information 
which was of 




considerable significance. You would be sure of one thing,  at any rate,  that 
you were dealing with a case 
in which the invisible psychic tides played a part. 
Information should also be sought concerning the place or places in which the 
different crises of the 
trouble took place,  and especially the circumstances attending its first onset. 
It is exceedingly useful if 
possible to visit the place and sense its atmosphere. A very great deal can also 
be learnt from visiting the 
place where the patient is living. 
Having obtained such geographical information as you can,  study it carefully in 
connection with a 
large, scale Ordnance map. Access to this,  and to all relevant information 
desired,  can readily be obtained 
at any public library. Note whether there are any prehistoric remains in the 
neighbourhood,  and if so,  
how the house bears in relation to them. Observe not only whether it is near any 
of them,  but whether it 
is in a direct line between any two of them. Look up the history of the 
district,  and see whether it affords 
any further information. Roman remains are often at the bottom of the trouble,  
for the legions brought 
some very queer cults with them in the days of Rome's decadence. Druid remains,  
too,  should be suspect 
if they are near neighbours. 
Enquire also concerning any unusual objects in the house,  such as images of the 
deities of primitive cults 
or savage weapons. It is quite possible that powerful elementals are attached to 
these. 
Enquire whether the trouble seems to lift when the patient goes away to another 
place. If the reply is in 
the affirmative,  it may safely be presumed that local conditions are at the 
bottom of the trouble. But if 
the reply is in the negative,  it does not necessarily follow that the opposite 
is the case. It may also be that 
the trouble does not depend upon the place,  but upon some person residing at 
the place. Never forget that 
in the great majority of cases that person's harmful influence is due to an 
unfortunate psychic make, up 
rather than deliberate abuse of occult knowledge. Be very slow to accept the 
latter hypothesis,  for its 
occurrence is comparatively rare. And even if the person suspected is known to 
have occult knowledge 
and can be proved to be antagonistic to the patient,  it does not necessarily 
follow that the attack is 
conscious and deliberate. It may be unconscious and reflex. It is quite true 
that an occultist ought to have 
sufficient control over his vehicles to prevent them from acting independently 
of his will and 
consciousness; but this is not always the case. People are at many different 
stages of development. There 
is always a difficult period between the awakening of the higher powers and 
their full control. 
Enquiries should also be made concerning the nature of the dreams,  and whether 
the patient is subject to 
night mares apart from any question of occult attack. Also whether he has ever 
had any other psychic 
experiences,  and if so,  of what nature. 
Finally,  a careful enquiry should be made concerning the patient's associates,  
as to whether any of them 
are psychic,  or students of the occult. Be very careful,  however,  not to cast 
suspicion upon any person 
unless you have conclusive evidence and it is essential to do so in order to 
save the patient. Remember it 
is always possible that you may be mistaken. A case was reported in the papers 
not so long ago of a man 
who committed suicide because a doctor told him that he had organic heart 
disease and ought not to 
marry the girl he was engaged to. At the post, mortem it was found that there 
was nothing whatever the 
matter with his heart. Imagine the feelings of the doctor who had given this 
rash diagnosis. A person 
already upset by a psychic attack will be in a state to jump at shadows. He must 
be handled very 
discreetly. Be very chary of announcing your suspicions until they are 
conclusively verified. When all is 
said and done,  the main object is a cure,  not an explanation. It is of little 
value to your patient to fix the 
blame unless the matter can be cleared up. He is considerably worse off if his 
suspicions are turned 
towards some person in his environment from whom he cannot escape,  than if he 
be left to attribute his 



trouble to unidentified psychic influences. Where ignorance is bliss 'tis folly 
to be wise is truer in 
psychic matters than anywhere else. Never open the eyes of your patient to a 
danger for which you 
cannot give him an effectual defence. The surgeon who is about to operate covers 
his instruments with a 
cloth so that the patient shall not see them. The wise occultist does the same. 
Do not forget that the 
Unseen is always suspect to the uninitiated. 
Having conducted an enquiry along the lines laid down in the previous pages,  
you should have acquired 
a considerable amount of material for investigation. Examine it carefully for 
correlations of cause and 
effect. Note if any exacerbation of the trouble is regularly associated with any 
incident,  place,  or person. 
Consider also the various type, cases that I have given as examples in the 
previous chapters,  and see if 
you can find any that resemble the case you are investigating. Note the 
explanations given,  and see if 
they throw any light upon the problem,  or suggest lines along which enquiry 
might be pursued. 
Working in this way,  you ought to be able to arrive at a tentative diagnosis. 
If this is confirmed by the 
findings of the psychics to whom you have sent specimens for psychometry,  then 
you may feel confident 
you are upon the right track and go forward boldly. 
Remember,  however,  that although the psychics ought to agree as to the main 
points of their 
investigation,  you cannot expect any complete agreement as to details. They are 
inspecting a composite 
photograph of the patient's entire life,  and there is so much to see that no 
one person is likely to see 
everything. The things in which they confirm each other may be held to be 
established,  but the things 
which the one sees and the other does not are not necessarily illusionary.


 
CHAPTER 17.
METHODS OF DEFENCE. 
I, IN writing for the general reader an account of the methods to be used in 
combating a psychic attack,  I 
am reminded of those excellent manuals upon medicine and surgery which an 
enlightened Board of 
Trade insists shall be provided for the captains of ships,  together with a 
cupboard full of remedies,  
harmless and otherwise. When an emergency arises,  the worthy skipper reads 
through the chapter he 
believes to bear upon the case in hand and goes to work as best he may. On these 
occasions the personal 
factor is a large one. 
So it is in dealing with psychic trouble. Wide experience is needed for 
diagnosis,  and specially trained 
faculties and specially developed powers are needed to cope with the conditions 
that may be found. This 
book is more in the nature of a manual of first aid than a treatise on 
treatment. 
79 of 103.

We must also bear in mind that just as the potent drug is effectual in the hands 
of the expert but 
dangerous in the hands of the amateur,  so do the more potent occult formula 
need special equipment for 
their use. Moreover,  a formula that is used indiscriminately by the uninitiated 
is apt to lose its potency 
and become useless. The popular expletive which G. B. S. introduced into polite 
society in his play,  
Pygmalion,  is the worn, out remnant of the once, powerful adjuration,  "By Our 
Lady." Moreover,  no two 
cases are alike,  and the clear, cut,  typical case is a rarity and treasure. 
Common sense,  natural aptitude 
and experience are the exorcist's best equipment. 
Having made his diagnosis and being ready to proceed to the handling of the 
case,  the exorcist has to 
achieve three things: he must repair his patient's aura,  clear the atmosphere 
of his environment,  and 
break his contact with the forces that are causing the trouble. These three 
things are interdependent,  and 
not one of them is first or last. It is next to impossible to get a damaged aura 
to heal if you do not clear 
the atmosphere; nor will the atmosphere remain clear for long if you cannot 
break the contacts. 
Theoretically,  the ideal thing to do is to break the contacts as a start. But 
unfortunately,  in actual 
practice,  these often take a good deal of finding,  and a good deal of handling 
after they have been found. 
Meanwhile,  something has to be done to keep the patient going. The exorcist has 
got to clear himself a 
place in which to work. Or if the victim of the attack is defending himself 
single, handed,  he has got to 
throw up some temporary defences while he digs himself in. 
The first thing to do when dealing with an occult attack is to make a temporary 
clearance of the 
atmosphere and so gain breathing, space in which to re, form the shattered 
ranks. This is more readily 
achieved by an organised ritual than by unaided will, power. Any act performed 
with intention becomes a 
rite. We can take a bath with no more in mind than physical cleanliness; in 
which case the bath will 
cleanse our bodies and no more. Or we can take a bath with a view to ritual 
cleanliness,  in which case its 
efficacy will extend beyond the physical plane. We therefore perform certain 
physical actions not only as 
a means of clearing etheric conditions,  but also as a means of definitely 
effecting astral ones through the 
imagination,  a very potent weapon in all magical operations. 
Physical objects become impregnated with etheric emanations and retain them for 
considerable periods 
as a knife will retain a smell of onions and taint everything that is cut with 
it. These emanations,  
magnetism as they are called in the terminology of occult science,  profoundly 
affect any sensitive person 
who is in contact with them. There is something in the old superstition that it 
is unlucky to place boots 
on a table. It is equally inadvisable to place outdoor garments on a bed. You do 
not know whom you 
have rubbed shoulders with in bus or train,  so why give their magnetism a 
chance to contaminate your 
sleeping place? 
Fortunately for all of us,  magnetism is a very fugitive force,  and although it 
may be potent when fresh,  it 
soon fades unless it has been deliberately created by means of ritual. The 
terrible atmosphere that 
surrounds the victim of an occult attack and permeates all his belongings is not 
difficult to get rid of,  
though it will rapidly reform unless the conditions which gave rise to it are 
cleared up. 
The most effectual way of getting rid of magnetism is to move to a fresh place,  
taking nothing of one's 
old belongings with one. This,  however,  is a counsel of perfection for most 
people. Fortunately there are 
other devices which enable us to attain our ends nearly as effectually. If it be 
in any way possible,  let the 
victim of an occult attack move temporarily to another environment,  taking with 
him as few of his 
belongings as possible,  and let him make the move in new clothes,  or in 
clothes that are just back from 
the cleaner. Let him,  moreover,  keep his whereabouts a secret as far as it is 
convenient for him to do so. 


 

There is an old superstition that a witch can be thrown off the trail by 
crossing running water. It is my 
opinion that many of these old folk, beliefs have a basis in fact,  however 
overlaid by superstition they 
may have become. I once had a curious experience which gives support to this 
opinion. I was about to 
take part in an important piece of occult work to which I knew there would be 
opposition. A friend who 
was concerned in the matter asked me to dine with her on the night before the 
day fixed for the 
proceeding. We were both conscious of tension in the atmosphere,  and she 
suggested that I should 
remain the night at her flat instead of returning to my own,  informing no one 
of my whereabouts in order 
to throw the attack off the trail. The maneuver was not wholly successful,  and 
we had a rather trying 
night,  and I was conscious of a good deal of psychic tension next day. I 
decided therefore to walk to the 
appointed place across Hyde Park in order to refresh myself. When part of the 
way across,  I suddenly felt 
that the tension relaxed,  and I was able to go through the work in hand without 
interference. I told my 
friend of this experience,  and she questioned me as to where I was when it took 
place. We looked up the 
spot on a map,  and found that I had just crossed the underground conduit which 
takes the overflow from 
the Serpentine. I did not know of the old superstition concerning running water,  
neither did I know of the 
existence of the conduit. Nevertheless,  the sense of relief was sufficiently 
marked to cause me to 
mention it when I saw my friend again,  and to be able to indicate the spot 
where it had occurred. 
We have very little exact knowledge concerning these subtle forces which are the 
basis of both occult 
attack and spiritual healing,  but we have good reason to believe that in their 
nature they are closely 
analogous to electricity. They are not inanimate forces,  however,  but have in 
their nature something that 
is akin to life,  though of a low type. It has been my experience that if we 
work on a blended analogy of 
electricity and bacteriology,  we get pretty near the facts; as near,  at any 
rate,  as our present state of know 
ledge permits. In other words,  if we act as if thought possessed the combined 
qualities of electricity and 
bacteria we shall have a sufficiently accurate method of steering by dead 
reckoning in the absence of 
certain knowledge and actual sight. If we consider the various methods used in 
folk, magic of all ages 
and races,  we shall observe that they are in agreement with these hypotheses. 
Running water,  we know,  has peculiar electrical qualities,  as is witnessed by 
its effect on the 
divining, rod in the hands of a sensitive person. Whatever it may be that 
affects the diviner is probably 
the same thing that affects the occult attack. When we recall,  moreover,  that 
running water will throw 
hounds off the scent just as effectually as it will the alleged witch,  we may 
feel that we cannot be 
accused of gross superstition if we give the old folk, tradition a trial and 
note the results. 
Water,  again,  is the vehicle of purification. It is used in the rite of 
baptism by the Church and in the 
Preparation of the Place by the occultist about to perform a ceremony. Strictly 
speaking,  there should be 
a trace of salt in the water thus employed,  and both salt and water are blessed 
with powerful invocations 
when the priest is preparing holy water,  whether for a baptism,  or for placing 
in the holy water stoup for 
the use of the congregation. 
As far as the occultist is concerned,  salt to him is the emblem of the element 
of earth. It is also a 
crystalline substance,  and crystalline substances,  in their different forms,  
receive and hold etheric 
magnetism better than anything else. Water,  on the other hand,  is the emblem 
of the psychic sphere. 
These two realms,  between them,  contain by far the greatest part of occult 
evil. It is rare indeed that 
spiritual wickedness in high places will reach up as far as the airy realms of 
mind or the fiery realms of 
spirit. If we want to get into touch with,  or operate upon a particular sphere,  
we use as base a substance 
appropriate thereto. Consequently,  a solution of salt and water makes a better 
base than either salt or 
water could do separately because it enables us to cover the whole of the sphere 
of probable operations 
in a single act. It may be interesting to note concerning the magical properties 
of crystalline substances,  
that crystals are used in wireless apparatus to pick up the subtle vibrations of 
the ether. Once again we 




are close upon the trail of our electro, bacteriological analogy. 
It is an excellent plan,  when trying to break an undesirable psychic contact,  
to immerse oneself in a bath 
of water that has been especially consecrated for the purpose; re, dressing in 
new or at least clean 
clothing afterwards,  and if it be by any means possible,  moving into a 
different room. If this cannot be 
done,  move the bed into a different position,  taking care to turn it at a 
different angle; that is to say,  if 
you have been in the habit of sleeping lying north and south,  place your bed so 
that you will now be 
lying east and west. 
The following prayers may be used for the blessing of the salt and water. 
"(Pointing the first and second fingers at the salt.) I exorcise thee,  creature 
of earth,  by the living God 
(+),  by the holy God (+),  by the omnipotent God (+),  that thou mayest be 
purified of all evil influences in 
the Name of Adonai,  Who is Lord of Angels and of men. 
"(Extending hand over salt.) Creature of earth,  adore thy Creator. In the Name 
of God the Father 
Almighty,  maker of heaven and earth,  and of Jesus Christ His Son,  our 
Saviour,  I consecrate thee (+) to 
the service of God,  in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy 
Ghost. Amen." 
"(Pointing first and second fingers at the water.) I exorcise thee,  creature of 
water,  by the living God (+),  
by the Holy God (+) by the omnipotent God (+),  that thou mayest be purified 
from all evil influences in 
the Name of Elohim Sabbaoth,  Who is Lord of Angels and of men. 
"(Extending hand over water.) Creature of water,  adore thy Creator. In the Name 
of God the Father 
Almighty,  Who decreed a firmament in the midst of the waters,  and of Jesus 
Christ His Son our Saviour,  
I consecrate thee (+) to the service of God,  in the Name of the Father and of 
the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen." 
"(Casting the salt into the water.) We pray Thee,  O God,  Lord of Heaven and 
earth,  and of all that in 
them is,  both visible and invisible,  that Thou mayest stretch forth the right 
hand of Thy power upon 
these creatures of the elements and hallow them in Thy holy Name. Grant that 
this salt may make for 
health of body and this water for health of soul,  and that there may be 
banished from the place where 
they are used every power of adversity and every illusion and artifice of evil,  
for the sake of Jesus Christ 
our Saviour. Amen." 
The water thus consecrated may be used as a bath,  or for making the Sign of 
Cross upon the forehead,  or 
for sprinkling about a place. When thus using it,  the following prayer may be 
employed. 
"In the Name which is above every other name,  and in the power of the Father 
and of the Son and of the 
Holy Ghost,  I exorcise all influences and seeds of evil; I lay upon them the 
spell of Christ's Holy Church,  
that they may be bound fast as with chains and cast into outer darkness,  that 
they trouble not the servants 
of God." 
In pointing or making the Sign of the Cross (+),  the first and second fingers 
are extended and the third 
and fourth are bent towards the palm of the hand and the thumb laid upon their 
nails. When the hand is 
extended in blessing over the salt and water,  it is held flat,  fingers 
together and parallel,  and thumb 
stretched at right angles to the fore finger. 
If there is sufficient occult force at work to produce physical phenomena,  it 
is very advisable to take 



precautions to prevent materialisations taking place. The physical phenomena are 
of several types. They 
may take the form of noises,  usually creakings,  thuds,  or more rarely bell, 
like notes or wailing sounds. If 
actual words are heard,  auditory hallucinations should be suspected,  for in 
the absence of a medium,  
spirit messages are given to the inner ear,  not to the auditory nerve. Lights 
may also be seen,  usually 
taking the form of dim balls of luminous mist drifting like soap, bubbles. They 
may be any size from 
mere points of light to considerable dimensions,  some six feet or more in 
diameter. In these spheres of 
dim luminosity psychics can generally see forms,  sometimes human,  sometimes 
from the animal 
kingdom. Whitish, grey clouds can also sometimes be seen,  rising pillar, wise 
from the floor like smoke. 
These are usually fixed to one place and do not move about the room as do the 
spheres of light,  such 
movement as occurs being within themselves,  like the eddyings of smoke caught 
under a tumbler. More 
rarely a distinctive odour may be noticed,  and still more rarely there may be 
precipitations of powdery 
substances or slime. Light objects also may be overturned or thrown about the 
room. 
There are certain substances which experience has proved to be effectual in 
preventing the condensation 
of etheric energy from taking place. Camphor dissolved in vinegar and placed in 
saucers about the room 
will cope effectually with low degrees of force,  but for higher potencies 
nitric acid is the best thing to 
use,  a small quantity being poured into a saucer and exposed to the air. It is 
best to use it well diluted to 
prevent accidents,  for it is not the strength of the acid in the saucer that is 
efficacious,  but its evaporation 
into the air,  and it will evaporate just as well when diluted as when neat. In 
what manner it works I have 
not the slightest idea,  but its value is well known among psychic 
experimenters. 
The methods of occult attack employed in modern Europe are exclusively mental,  
so far as my 
experience of them has gone at any rate. That is to say,  they work by the mind 
on the mind,  and only 
affect physical conditions incidentally. In the East and among primitive people,  
however,  other aspects 
have to be considered,  as a much more etheric type of magic is in use under 
primitive conditions of life 
and upon virgin soils. For these etheric operations,  material sub stances are 
required in order that the 
magnetism attached to them may be made use of. Hair, combings,  nail, parings,  
cast, off clothes,  objects 
in familiar use,  all contain magnetism. Consequently care should be taken to 
see that such things are 
effectually disposed of when discarded. Combings and nail, parings should be 
promptly burnt. Cast, off 
clothing should never be allowed to go out of the possession of the owner till 
it has had at least three 
days' exposure to sun and air in the open. The magnetism will be more 
effectually dispelled if the 
garments be laid on the earth,  especially freshly turned earth,  than if hung 
on a line. The same applies to 
furniture. The chair that has been the accustomed seat and,  above all things,  
the bedding,  should be 
thoroughly aired and sunned before they are parted with. The same precautions 
are useful if any 
second, hand article has been purchased. 
The disposal of night, soil should also be carefully arranged for and entrusted 
to reliable servants,  
abundant disinfectants and deodorants being constantly in use. Precautions 
should be observed to 
prevent any native obtaining access to fresh excreta. After the animal heat has 
gone out of it,  its magical 
value has greatly decreased. A dirty handkerchief,  too,  is an effectual 
magnetic link,  and so are dressings 
from a wound. Anything,  in fact,  that bears traces of any of the by, products 
of the body. 
But apart from any question of psychic attack,  there are two substances which 
are especially prized for 
purposes of magic,  and these are seminal fluid and menstrual blood. The former 
is used in fertility rites 
and the latter in certain forms of evocation. These substances are exceedingly 
hard to come by in 
primitive lands,  because the natives,  knowing their significance,  guard them 
most scrupulously; but the 
mem, sahib has no suspicions,  and allows stained garments and bed linen to go 
into the hands of the 
washerman to be disposed of at his discretion,  satisfied so long as the 
garments themselves return safely 
at the end of the week,  and never thinking to enquire what becomes of the water 
in which they were 

washed. There are many parts of the world in which the sale of these magical 
substances is a profitable 
side, line of the laundering business. 
In Europe,  menstrual blood and feces are part of the magical substances of the 
Black Mass,  being made 
up into patens with wheat flour. 
A time, honoured method of clearing a bad psychic atmosphere out of a house,  
and one which I have 
known in my own experience to be effectual,  is to strew garlic about the place,  
leave it overnight and 
then take it up and burn it. Among country people,  an onion is sometimes placed 
in a vase on the 
mantelpiece as if it were a hyacinth bulb when unpleasant visitors are expected,  
and solemnly burnt in 
the kitchen fire as soon as they have departed,  it being believed that the 
onion tribe have the property of 
absorbing noxious emanations. It is curious to note in this respect that in one 
coal mine to my knowledge 
the miners are forbidden to take onions down into the workings as part of their 
dinners because the 
onions absorb the underground gases and become poisonous. My informant told me 
that he and others 
had smuggled onions down and learnt from bitter experience the wisdom of this 
rule. 


CHAPTER 18,
METHODS OF DEFENCE, 2. 


THERE are two types of practical psychic work which may be used separately or in 
combination,  the 
latter method,  in my opinion,  giving by far the best results,  though the 
exponents of each are apt to decry 
the other. The method which we will distinguish as the meditative method 
consists of mediation upon 
abstract qualities,  such as peace,  harmony,  protection and the love of God. 
It is the method of the New 
Thought school,  and its value lies in the harmonising effect it has upon the 
emotional state and its 
counteracting of harmful auto, suggestions. The other method,  which we will 
call the invocative,  consists 
in the invocation of external potencies and the employment of formal methods for 
the focussing of their 
force. This method has many gradations of complexity and an infinite variety of 
technique. It ranges 
from the simplest prayer which calls upon Christ with the Sign of the Cross,  to 
the most elaborate rituals 
of exorcism performed with bell,  book and candle. The essence of the system 
lies in the attempt to 
dissect out from the general force of good the particular aspect of energy that 
is needed,  and the use of 
some symbol to act as the magical vehicle of that force upon the plane of form. 
This symbol may be a 
mental picture of the blue robe of Our Lady; it may be the action of making the 
Sign of the Cross; it may 
be the consecrated water sprinkled for token of cleansing; or it may be some 
object specially magnetised 
to act as a talisman. In the invocative method the aim is to concentrate the 
force,  and therefore some 
symbol of form has to be employed. In the meditative method the aim is to escape 
beyond the bounds of 
form into the atmosphere of pure spirit,  too exalted for evil to enter,  and 
therefore the use of any form or 
formula is eschewed as calculated to prevent the soul from rising into this pure 
air. 
84 of 103. 

In my opinion,  and with all due respect to the practitioners of this latter 
method,  much better results 
would be obtained if the invocative method,  with its utilisation of the 
efficacy of formula,  were used to 
enable the mind to climb into the pure air of spiritual consciousness where no 
evil is. It is only those who 
are highly trained in meditation who can rise on the planes unaided. It is 
exceedingly difficult to "take 
off" from sense consciousness without the use of some kind of psychological 
device to act as a 
spring, board. There seems to be little object in refusing for purely academic 
reasons to avail ourselves of 
a method of proven efficacy. If we realise that the use of forms and symbols is 
merely a psychological 
device to enable the mind to get a grip on the intangible,  we shall not fall 
into the error of superstitious 
observances. A superstition has been defined as the blind use of a form whose 
significance has been 
forgotten. 
On the other hand,  we shall be unwise to rely exclusively upon formal or 
ceremonial methods unless at 
the same time we use meditative methods in order to purify and harmonise our own 
consciousness. If we 
neglect this aspect of our work,  we shall re, infect by our own vibrations the 
magic circle as fast as we 
have cleared it. It is not much use sealing a circle with the protective Names 
if we allow a panic,  stricken 
imagination to run riot,  picturing every conceivable kind of evil and leaving 
blank spaces for the 
possibility of inconceivable kinds. Equally,  however,  we shall find it very 
much easier to perform the 
harmonising meditation if we are working within the protection of a magic 
circle. To attempt to perform 
the work of exorcism solely by means of meditation is like raising a weight by 
the unaided effort of our 
two hands. The employment of the magical method resembles the use of a lever,  
or a pulley and block. 
Our muscles are still the sole source of energy,  but by the utilisation of 
mechanical principles we have 
redoubled their power. Let us,  then,  in meditation,  use symbols to 
concentrate our attention; we shall 
find this much easier than meditation in terms of abstract thought. Indeed,  in 
times of stress and crisis,  
abstract thought may be impossible for us unless we are very experienced in its 
use; but we shall seldom 
reach a state when we cannot picture the Cross and call upon the Name of Christ. 
Occult attacks may be divided into two types,  those which take place by means 
of thought, forms,  and 
those which operate by means of a current of force. But even in the latter case 
the current of force soon 
gathers to itself or germinates thought, forms congenial to its nature. 
Therefore in every psychic 
disturbance the thought, form is a factor which has to be considered and dealt 
with,  and which,  in fact,  
forms the readiest means of diagnosis; for it is by the perception of the 
associated thought, forms that the 
experienced psychic is able to detect the nature of the attack. 
Thought, force is a thing which has no relation to geographical position,  but 
is a matter of pure 
consciousness and of tuning in to its key, note. We can pick up the forces of 
dead faiths a thousand years 
after the death of their last votary,  and upon the opposite side of the globe 
to that in which they 
flourished. But thought, forms are a different matter. They have position in 
space,  and although they can 
be moved about with the speed of thought,  and can be withdrawn to the subtlest 
level of the astral and 
there anchored to an idea and thus prevented from impinging upon the planes of 
form for all practical 
purposes,  nevertheless,  although they do not occupy space,  they can be 
referred to definite positions in 
space. They can,  for instance,  be associated with a particular object,  and 
will follow that object about,  
remaining within its magnetic field. The immediate magnetic field is anything 
from twelve to thirty feet; 
the remote magnetic field from a hundred to three hundred yards. Powerful holy 
centres,  like 
Glastonbury or Lourdes,  have a bigger magnetic field than this,  extending 
possibly to a couple of miles; 
they are also inter, connected among themselves by lines of force. These things 
have to be taken into 
account in practical occult work. 
When we are confronted by a disturbing influence emanating from a focus of 
power,  such as the site of 




an old temple,  we have got to deal with the remote magnetic field by means of 
ceremonial. As this is a 
method that can only be used by a high, grade initiate,  we will not consider it 
here. For all practical 
purposes in a psychic attack it is the immediate magnetic field that has to be 
considered. 
The best method to deal with this is to make a magic circle. A mere banishing by 
itself is not so effective 
as a banishing performed within a circle,  because the circle will effectually 
prevent the banished forces 
from flowing back again. There are various methods of performing this operation,  
but the principle of all 
valid ones is the same. The more potent conjurations cannot be given in these 
pages,  because their 
effective use depends upon the grade of initiation possessed by the person who 
proposes to use them,  
and to possess a formula without the grade to which it belongs is as 
unsatisfactory as possessing a gun 
without any knowledge of shooting. The formula I will give will be found 
effectual for all ordinary 
conditions. Extra, ordinary conditions can only be dealt with by a person who 
has had experience. 
In making the magic circle the operator stands upright facing east. He faces 
east because the magnetic 
current on which he proposes to operate runs from east to west. His first 
procedure must be to steady his 
own vibrations and purify his aura. In order to do this,  he makes the 
Qabalistic Cross on breast and brow. 
Touching his forehead he says,  "To Thee,  O God (touching his solar plexus) be 
the Kingdom,  (touching 
his right shoulder) and the Power (touching his left shoulder) and the Glory,  
(clasping his hands) unto 
the ages of the ages. Amen." 
By this formula the operator affirms the power of God as sole creator and 
supreme law of the universe to 
which all things must bow,  and he establishes this formula magnetically in his 
aura by the action of 
making the Sign of the Cross upon himself. This Sign is not an exclusively 
Christian symbol,  and can be 
used as readily by the Jew as the Churchman,  for it is the Equi, limbed Cross 
of Nature that is being used,  
not the Calvary Cross,  of which the shaft is double the length of the cross, 
bar,  and which is the symbol 
of sacrifice. The Equi, limbed Cross refers to the four quarters of the globe 
and the four elements,  and the 
formula associated with it proclaims the dominion of God over these,  and 
thereby occultly formulates 
His kingdom within the sphere of the operator. 
The operator next imagines himself to be clasping in his right hand a large,  
cross, handled sword,  such as 
is depicted in pictures of Crusaders. He holds it point upright and says,  "In 
the Name of God I take in 
hand the Sword of Power for defence against evil and aggression, " and imagines 
himself to be towering 
up to twice his natural height,  a tremendous armed and mailed figure,  
vibrating with the force of the 
Power of God with which he has been charged by his formulation of the Sword of 
Power. 
He now proceeds to draw the Magic Circle upon the floor with the point of the 
Sword of Power,  and he 
should see in his imagination a line of flame following the point of the Sword,  
consisting of small 
flames,  such as spring up when methylated spirit is spilt and ignited,  but of 
a pale golden colour. A little 
practice should enable this circle of light to be formulated effectually. Keep 
on going round the circle 
until it is formulated. The circle should always be drawn deosil,  that is to 
say,  from east,  to south,  to 
west,  to north,  in the same way that the hands of a clock would move were the 
clock laid face upwards 
on the floor. The contrary way is widdershins,  the way in which the witches 
danced at the Sabbats. The 
deosil movement affirms the rule of God's law in Nature because it is the Way of 
the Sun; the 
widdershins movement repudiates God's rule over Nature by moving against the 
sun. In resisting an 
occult attack the whole formula should be tuned to the key, note of asserting 
God's dominion over all 
existence,  the aim of the operator being to align himself with Cosmic Law and 
cause the Power of God 
to deal with the interference. 
The Circle being formulated,  the operator,  ceasing to visualise the sword but 
still visualising the circle,  


clasps his hands in prayer,  and raising them above his head towards the east,  
prays,  " May the mighty 
archangel Raphael protect me from all evil approaching from the east." Turning 
to the south he repeats 
the same formula in prayer to Gabriel. Turning to the west,  he invokes Michael. 
Turning to the north he 
invokes Uriel. Facing to the east again,  and thus completing the circle,  he 
repeats the formula of the 
Qabalistic Cross. 
This formulation of the magic circle is especially valuable for protecting the 
sleeping, place,  the circle 
being drawn around the bed. It is not necessary to move about the room,  or 
shift the furniture in order to 
draw the circle,  it will be formulated wherever it is visualised to be. 
It is necessary to reaffirm this circle each time the tides change; that is to 
say,  a circle made after 
sundown will hold good till sunrise,  and a circle made after sunrise will 
maintain its potency till sunset. 
After the circle has been affirmed a number of times in the same place its 
influence will persist for a 
considerable period,  but it is advisable to re, formulate it morning and 
evening during the active phase of 
an attack. 
Incense burnt within the circle is very helpful,  but care has to be exercised 
in the choice of an incense. 
Joss, sticks of unknown composition should never be used,  as they are usually 
compounded with a view 
to assisting manifestation. Good quality church incense,  such as can be bought 
at most church furnishers,  
is safe and satisfactory because it is compounded according to traditional 
recipes; cheaper qualities may 
not fulfill these conditions. 
In dealing with elementals or non, human entities the Pentagram,  or Pentalapha,  
is the best weapon. This 
is a five, pointed star drawn in a particular way. Pointing the first and second 
fingers of the right hand,  
and folding the others into the palm and touching their tips with the thumb,  
proceed to draw the 
Pentagram in the air,  keeping the elbow stiff and swinging the arm at full 
length. Start with the right arm 
across the body,  the hand about the level of the left hip,  the extended 
fingers pointing downwards and 
outwards. Swing it upwards,  as if drawing a straight line in the air,  until 
the fingers point straight 
upwards above the head at arm's length. Now sweep it down again,  keeping the 
elbow stiff,  until the 
hand occupies the corresponding position upon the right side to that from which 
it started on the left. 
You have now drawn a gigantic V upside down. Next swing the hand across the 
body,  on a rising 
incline,  until it is stretched on a level with the left shoulder,  pointing to 
the left. Bring it across the body 
horizontally until it is in the same position on the right,  fingers pointing 
away from the body. Now swing 
it downwards across the body till the hand has come back to the point by the 
left hip whence it started. 
This is an exceedingly potent sign. The value of the Five, pointed Star,  the 
symbol of Humanity,  is 
widely known among occultists,  but its potency depends upon the manner in which 
it is drawn. The 
method I have given is the correct one for banishing. 
The potency of the sign may be illustrated by an experience of my own in using 
it,  which the sceptical 
are at liberty to doubt if they wish; I merely mention it for the sake of those 
who may be interested. 
I was taking part in some work with an Indian occultist when I became suspicious 
that all was not as it 
should be,  protested,  and was asked to withdraw. I did so,  determined to 
watch proceedings from a 
distance,  and if my suspicions were confirmed,  to have an expose. A few days 
later I was sitting in my 
room one afternoon chatting with a friend; it was just getting dusk,  and we 
were talking by the light of a 
gas, fire. Suddenly we were both aware simultaneously of a presence in the room 
and turned 
spontaneously in the same direction. My friend sensed an antagonistic presence,  
and I,  being more 
psychic,  saw who it was,  and had no difficulty in perceiving the form of my 
Indian associate in an 
egg, shaped sphere of misty yellow light. I told my friend to quit the room and 
wait in the hall,  and as 


 

soon as the door closed behind her,  I made use of the Pentagram I have 
described,  together with certain 
Names of Power that are unsuitable for disclosure in these pages. Immediately 
the appearance in the 
corner by the door shattered and vanished,  at the same time there was a 
resounding crack,  which my 
friend heard in the hall. I called to her to return,  and as she entered she 
exclaimed,  "Look what has 
happened to the door!" and we found that one of the panels had split clean in 
two. It was this that had 
evidently caused the loud crack we had both heard. I offer no explanation of 
this incident for the good 
and sufficient reason that I do not know what the explanation may be. I merely 
state what happened. My 
readers can explain it as they please. 
When it is not possible to seal the room,  it is a very useful thing to be able 
to seal the aura. Stand upright 
and cross yourself,  by touching forehead,  breast,  right shoulder and left 
shoulder,  saying,  "By the power 
of the Christ of God within me,  whom I serve with all my heart and with all my 
soul and with all my 
strength (extend your hands forward as far as you can reach at the level of the 
solar plexus,  finger tips 
touching,  then sweep them round to the back and touch the finger, tips together 
again behind you,  
saying),  I encompass myself about with the Divine Circle of His protection,  
across which no mortal error 
dares to set its foot." This is an old monkish formula. It is very effectual,  
but its potency only lasts about 
four hours. 
There are various other devices which are useful,  not only in dealing with 
psychic attacks,  but in any 
case of undue influence or domination. 
If you have to interview persons whose influence you find overwhelming,  imagine 
that they are 
separated from you by a sheet of plate, glass. You can see them,  and hear them,  
but their magnetism 
cannot reach you. Visualise this sheet of glass until it appears to you to be 
absolutely tangible. If you 
have to associate with persons who distress you,  but are not actually 
interviewing them,  imagine that 
they are separated from you by a brick wall,  and say to yourself,  "You just 
aren't there. I can't see you or 
hear you,  and you simply don't exist." 
When dealing with a person who saps your vitality,  interlace your fingers,  and 
lay your folded hands 
upon your solar plexus,  keeping your elbows pressed against your sides. Keep 
your feet touching each 
other. You have thus contacted all your own terminals and made of your body a 
closed circuit. No 
magnetism will go out from you while you maintain this attitude. Your friend 
will probably complain of 
your lack of sympathy,  however kindly you may speak. 
If anyone tries to dominate you by gazing intently into the eyes,  do not 
attempt to return gaze for gaze,  
for this only leads to an exhausting struggle in which you may get the worst of 
it,  but look steadily at the 
spot just above the base of their nose,  between the inner ends of the eyebrows. 
If you are merely dealing 
with an ordinary bully,  you will immediately have the upper hand. If,  however,  
your antagonist has 
knowledge of mind, power,  you may not be able to dominate him,  but he 
certainly will not be able to 
dominate you,  and the result will be a stalemate. Do not attempt to dominate 
him,  merely keep your eye 
on the spot and wait for him to weary of his attempt to dominate you. You will 
not have long to wait. 
By the use of the methods described in the preceding pages any person of normal 
courage and mentality,  
provided he avoids drugs,  alcohol and long periods without food,  can,  if he 
does not lose his nerve,  wear 
down any ordinary psychic attack; or in the case of attacks of abnormal potency,  
can at least ensure 
himself time to make good his escape and seek help. 
The sacraments are also a most potent source of spiritual power,  and a church 
where the Blessed 
Sacrament is reserved,  or which is sufficiently old to have been consecrated 
before the Reformation,  is an effectual sanctuary. 





CHAPTER 19. 
METHODS OF DEFENCE 3.

PSYCHIC trouble not infrequently arises owing to the formation of an undesirable 
rapport. In order to 
understand the nature of this problem we must consider the whole subject of 
rapport. 
We have already considered in some detail the question of telepathic suggestion. 
Rapport might be 
considered as the passive aspect of that of which telepathic suggestion is the 
active aspect. It forms,  in 
fact,  the basic condition necessary for telepathic suggestion to take place. 
Two people who are in rapport 
might be described as astral Siamese twins. Although the physical bodies are 
independent units,  the 
astral bodies are linked in such a manner that there is free circulation of 
astral force between them,  just 
as the circulatory system of the mother is connected through the umbilical cord 
with the unborn child,  
and the same blood circulating freely through both. 
This fact explains many important occult phenomena. It is the real key to 
marriage,  and explains many 
facts in the relationship of parent and child. It also accounts for some 
important aspects of the relation of 
pupil and teacher. 
But not only is it possible for a rapport to be established between two 
individuals,  but between an 
individual and a group. This fact plays an important part in all fraternity 
work. It is also possible to 
establish rapport between a human being and other kingdoms of nature; with 
discarnate entities,  
superhuman beings,  and,  in fact,  with any form of life with which an 
individual can form a sympathetic 
understanding. There must be some ground of sympathy as the basis for the 
formation of a rapport,  but 
once formed,  it can be developed almost indefinitely. It is a curious fact that 
if a rapport is long 
continued,  the persons thus united gradually come to resemble each other. We 
all know the "horsey" type 
of man; also the son of the soil of whom it was expressively remarked,  
"Father's in the pig, stye. You'll 
know him by his hat." 
When two human beings are in rapport,  the less positive of the two tends to 
lose his own individuality 
and becomes the pale reflection of the other. It is for this reason that the 
Western occultist,  who values 
individuality highly,  does not take personal pupils in the same way as does the 
Eastern guru,  but prefers 
to work through ritual with a group because this method is more impersonal. But 
even so,  the individual 
members of a group will undergo certain changes whereby they are tuned in to the 
group, tone,  so that 




there will be a certain common denominator which they all possess. Who cannot 
recognise the 
sign, manual of the Christian Scientist,  the Theosophist,  the Quaker? Any 
system which has group 
meditation rapidly puts its mark on its members. 
In this fact,  of course,  lies much of the value of association with a worthy 
group. In it,  equally,  lies the 
detriment of association with an unworthy group. Let us consider what happens 
when a person of 
ordinary good character becomes associated with a group of degenerate moral 
tone. He will either find 
himself in such sharp antagonism to the group, mind that he will have no option 
but to withdraw,  or he 
will rapidly but unconsciously be tuned to the keynote of his new associates. 
Without his being aware of 
the fact,  his moral sense will have become blunted and he will accept as a 
matter of course what he 
would originally have turned from in disgust. 
Rapport once established,  other things beside the general feeling, tone can be 
shared. Actual ideas can be 
transferred from one mind to another as in telepathy; and in the same way,  
vital force can be transmitted. 
It is this fact which is the explanation of certain types of spiritual healing. 
When etheric vitality is being 
transmitted,  it is necessary that the persons concerned should be within the 
immediate magnetic field of 
each other; but when astral force is in question,  this is not necessary. 
Transmission is independent of 
space. 
We are not now considering the legitimate use of this force for healing,  or for 
teaching and developing 
neophytes,  so we will not,  therefore,  consider its modus operandi in detail. 
Enough has been said to 
show in what way it works. Let us now proceed to the consideration of the 
practical methods of breaking 
such a rapport if for any reason it is desired to discontinue its use. 
To astral vision the telepathic link appears as a ray of light,  a shining cord,  
or some similar 
thought, form,  because it is in this form that it is usually formulated by the 
person who is making the 
magnetic link. It sometimes happens,  however,  if the operator has a high grade 
of initiation,  that instead 
of connecting the ray direct to the person with whom he desires to be in touch,  
he will formulate an 
astral animal at the end of it to which he transfers a modicum of his own 
consciousness. This 
animal, form is called a Watcher; it does not act on its own initiative unless 
attacked,  when it defends 
itself according to the nature of the species in whose likeness it is made. The 
use of a Watcher is to 
obtain a record of what is transpiring without the necessity of focussing 
consciousness thereon. When 
the psychic substance of the Watcher is reabsorbed by the adept,  he becomes 
aware of the content of the 
Watcher's consciousness. The disadvantage of this method lies in the 
vulnerableness of the Watcher to 
psychic attack,  and the fact that its projector is affected if it is injured or 
disintegrated. 
In dealing with a thought, form,  always bear in mind that it is the product of 
the imagination,  and is in no 
sense self,  existent. What the imagination has made the imagination can unmake. 
If the maker of a 
thought, form has thought it into existence by picturing it imaginatively,  you 
can equally well think it out 
of existence by picturing it clearly and imagining it bursting into a thousand 
fragments,  or going up in 
flames,  or dissolving into water and being absorbed by the soil. That which is 
thought into existence by 
the imagination can be thought out of existence by the imagination. 
If what was taken for a thought, form resists destruction by this method,  it is 
probably an artificial 
elemental. Now there are two such elementals,  one kind being ensouled by the 
invocation of elemental 
essence into a thought, form,  and the other by the projection of something of 
the magician's own nature 
into it. If it is ensouled by elemental essence,  the use of the Pentagram will 
serve to banish it; but if it is 
of the kind that is ensouled by the magician's own force,  another method must 
be used,  known as 
absorption. 




Now absorption is a very high, grade method,  and its successful use depends 
upon the state of 
consciousness of the user. Each individual has to decide for himself whether in 
any given case at a given 
moment he is in a fit state to attempt it. Unless he can completely steady his 
own vibrations and arrive at 
a state of perfect serenity and freedom from all sense of effort,  he should not 
make the attempt. 
We will,  however,  describe the method for the benefit of those who care to try 
it. 
Harmonising himself by mediation upon the Christ,  the adept,  as soon as he is 
satisfied that his own 
vibrations are steady,  proceeds to call up before his astral vision the image 
of the form he intends to 
destroy. He sees it clearly in all its details and seeks to divine its nature,  
whether it is a vehicle for malice 
or lust,  or vampiric action: these are the three most common,  and it can 
almost certainly be assigned to 
one or other of these classes. Having discerned the type of the force with which 
he has to deal,  he then 
proceeds to meditate upon its opposite,  concentrating upon purity and 
selflessness if the force be lust; 
compassion and love,  if it be malice; and upon God as the creator and sustainer 
of all life if it be vampiric. 

He continues this meditation until he feels himself suffused with the quality 
upon which he is 
meditating; until he feels himself so imbued with purity and selflessness that 
lust causes him to feel 
nothing but pity,  malice causes him to feel nothing but compassion,  and in 
regard to vampirism,  he is so 
assured that his life is hid with Christ in God that he would willingly let the 
vampire finish its meal in 
peace if he could thereby help it. In fact,  the adept who proposes to perform a 
magical absorption has to 
reach the point where he has clearly realised the nothingness of the evil he 
proposes to absorb,  and no 
longer has any feeling towards it but pity for an ignorance that thinks it can 
gain any good thing for itself 
in this way. He desires to uplift and educate and free the misguided soul from 
its bondage. Until he has 
arrived at the point when he has no other feeling than this towards his 
persecutor,  it is not safe for him to 
attempt an absorption. 
Having satisfied himself that he is ready for the attempt,  he proceeds to draw 
the thought, form towards 
him by pulling in the silver cord that connects it with his solar plexus if it 
be a vampiric thought, form,  or 
by opening his aura to it and enfolding it if it be one of the other two types. 
He literally sucks it in. This 
process should be done slowly and gradually,  taking some minutes in the doing. 
If it be done suddenly,  
the adept may not find it possible to keep his own vibrations steady,  and then 
he will indeed be in an 
unpleasant situation. 
As the thought, form is absorbed,  the adept will feel a reaction in his own 
nature corresponding to the 
type of the thought, form. If it is a lust, force,  he will feel desire rise 
within him; if it is a malicious force,  
he will feel anger; and if it is a vampire,  he will feel blood, lust. He must 
immediately overcome this 
feeling and revert to his mediation upon the opposite quality,  maintaining it 
until his vibrations are once 
more fully harmonised. He will then know that the evil force has been 
neutralised and there is that much 
less evil in the world. He will immediately feel a great access of vigour and a 
sense of spiritual power,  as 
if he could say to a mountain,  "Be ye cast into the sea, " and it would be 
done. It is this sense of spiritual 
exaltation and power which tells him that the work has been successfully 
accomplished. It is,  however,  
advisable to repeat the meditation at intervals for two or three days in case 
another thought, form is 
formulated and sent after the first. 
As for the sender of the thought, form,  when the absorption takes place he will 
feel that "virtue has gone 
out of him, " and may even be reduced temporarily to a state of semi,  collapse. 
He will soon revive,  
however,  but with his power for evil of this particular type considerably 
reduced for some time to come; 


 

and if he have the possibility of reform in his nature,  it may even be that he 
himself will be permanently 
freed from this type of evil. 
The great advantage of this method is that it actually destroys the evil,  root 
and branch; whereas the mere 
destruction of a thought, form is like cutting off the top of a weed. On the 
other hand,  it can only be done 
by an advanced occultist keyed up to the highest pitch. If one is disturbed or 
harassed or has in any 
degree lost his nerve,  one dare not attempt it. 
If the rapport is perceived as a line of light,  a cord,  or any similar form,  
attached to the solar plexus,  the 
forehead,  or any other part of the body,  the best way of severing the rapport 
is to forge a magical weapon 
and cut it. In fact,  if a rapport is felt,  the first thing to do is to 
visualise the cord and try to see where it 
attaches; the solar plexus is the commonest place. 
Next formulate the cross, handled sword as already described,  and invoke God's 
blessing upon it. Then 
visualise a flaming torch,  and invoke the power of the Holy Ghost,  whose 
symbol it is. Now with the 
sword hack through the cord or ray until every shred is severed. Then sear the 
stump with the 
consecrated fire of the torch until it shrivels up and falls off from its point 
of attachment to your body. 
After such a severing one must,  of course,  take the ordinary human precautions 
to prevent the link being 
re, formed. Refuse to meet the person responsible for its formulation,  or to 
either read or answer letters 
from him. In fact,  cut off physical communications as thoroughly and resolutely 
as one has cut off astral 
ones for a period of some months at least. 
There are occasions,  however,  when a person is so completely overshadowed and 
dominated that he 
cannot perform this operation for himself. The magical operation of Substitution 
can then be performed,  
if he can find a friend ready to undertake the task. 
In order to perform this operation,  the two friends agree that it shall be 
done,  but the one who is to 
become the substitute does not tell the original victim when he proposes to 
undertake the operation lest 
that latter should be so completely in the hands of the dominator that he should 
give the game away 
involuntarily. 
Choosing a time at which he is sure his friend is asleep,  the substitute 
concentrates upon him and 
imagines himself to be standing beside him,  and visualises the cord or ray of 
the rapport stretching from 
his friend out into space. If he can visualise its other point of attachment in 
the dominator,  so much the 
better. 
He then formulates the sword and the torch as above described,  and with these 
in his hands he imagines 
himself stepping right through the line of rapport,  so as to break it with his 
body. He must not use either 
sword or torch for this process,  but break it with his own flesh,  as it were. 
Having thus severed it from 
his friend,  he should then go for it with sword and torch with all his strength 
as it tries to enwrap him,  as 
it assuredly will do,  for it resembles nothing so much as the tentacle of an 
octopus. He should go for it 
hammer and tongs,  making up in zeal what he lacks in knowledge,  until it has 
had enough,  and begins to 
curl up and withdraw. The combat,  of course,  takes place in the imagination,  
but if a clear and vivid 
image is produced it will be effectual. 
In illustration of this method I may mention a case I once handled by its means. 
I was asked if I could 
help a woman who had been a lifelong invalid,  but whose case the many doctors 
she had consulted were 
neither able to diagnose satisfactorily,  nor to help. They all agreed that 
there was nothing organic the 




matter with her,  and after trying in vain to get her better,  they generally 
united in saying that it was pure 
hysteria. She suffered from a chronic condition of exhaustion,  indigestion,  
attacks of vomiting,  blinding 
headache and palpitation of the heart. She was,  however,  not in the least of a 
neurotic disposition,  but a 
quiet,  sensible,  intellectual woman,  bearing her sufferings with fortitude. 
I made a psychic diagnosis and came to the following conclusion. That for many 
past lives she had been 
upon the Path,  and that in her last life,  a male incarnation,  in order to 
speed up her progress she had 
travelled in the East,  and eventually took initiation into one of the Thibetan 
Orders,  which unfortunately 
turned out to be upon the Left, hand Path. Here she learnt the Hatha Yoga which 
gives control over the 
functions of the body. 
In her present life,  she retained the powers her training had given her,  but 
not the memory of its 
technique. Consequently her emotional states affected those automatic systems of 
nervous control whose 
functions are normally not under the direction of the mind. Whenever,  
therefore,  she was emotionally 
disturbed,  her subconscious mentation overflowed into the automatic mind and 
threw certain of the 
functional systems of the body out of gear. It is my belief that this 
explanation affords a key to a good 
many cases of functional disorder. Many people in the course of occult 
meditative practices obtain 
control of the automatic mind which controls the functioning of the bodily 
organs. It may be recalled that 
the famous scientist,  Sir Francis Galton,  the founder of the science of 
eugenics,  experimented with 
mental control of respiration,  and having obtained it,  found that the 
automatic function had fallen into 
abeyance,  and he had to spend three anxious days breathing by will power and 
voluntary attention until 
the automatic function was re, established. 
In this particular case,  however,  there was more than disturbance of function,  
there was this peculiar and 
very marked chronic exhaustion. I formed the opinion that a rapport still 
existed between her and the 
Thibetan Order of which she had been an initiate in her previous life. As is 
well known to occultists,  one 
returns life after life to the Order of which one is an initiate,  the rapport 
being a very strong one. This is 
one of the reasons why the great Mystery Schools have no need to make themselves 
known by 
advertising,  they know their own,  and pick them up on the astral plane. 
But while it is an invaluable thing to be under the aegis of a reputable Order,  
it is an exceedingly 
unpleasant thing to stand in a similar relationship to a disreputable Order. In 
this particular case it was 
my opinion that the Order to which this lady had belonged in her previous life 
had sunk to a very low 
ebb indeed,  and its leaders were deliberately drawing upon the vitality of its 
members. 
Acting upon this hypothesis,  I projected myself astrally in the way I have 
already described,  and visited 
this lady at night. I perceived that from her solar plexus as she lay asleep 
there stretched a black,  elastic,  
stringy, looking substance that resembled nothing so much as a stick of Spanish 
liquorice that has been 
well chewed by a small boy. This went off into space. Upon trying to see its 
further end I had a brief and 
far, off vision of a monastery with a Chinese type of roof perched on a crag 
among vast mountains. 
I tackled the situation by the simple expedient of passing in my astral body 
athwart the line of black 
substance,  thus breaking it. It immediately transferred itself to my solar 
plexus,  and for a moment I felt a 
surge of tempting thoughts urging me to get this woman under my thumb and 
exploit her to her full 
financial capacity. I cast these out,  and "went for" the rope of astral 
liquorice in the manner I have 
described,  casting it off and searing the stump,  and had the satisfaction of 
seeing it curl up and disappear 
into the darkness. I then fell into what I considered a well, earned sleep. 
I had told this lady nothing of my ideas because I wanted to see whether I could 
clear up the case by 





working solely on the occult hypothesis without any admixture of suggestion. 
Next morning I visited her 
to see how she was getting on,  and found her sitting up in bed eating a hearty 
breakfast and looking an 
entirely different woman to the grey, faced,  exhausted creature I had seen the 
day before. 
Without waiting for any enquiry from me,  she said,  "I don't know what has been 
done,  but I feel as if 
something has been broken and I am free." 
After breakfast she got up,  went for a stroll,  and met the doctor who was 
attending her in the street. So 
great was the change in her appearance that he failed to recognise her until she 
spoke to him. 
I told her that in my opinion she ought to have nothing whatever to do with 
occult studies lest she 
re, form the magnetic link with her old Order,  and also taught her how to 
prevent her subconscious mind 
from giving disruptive suggestions to her bodily systems of functional control. 
For some years she 
remained in good health,  but later,  unfortunately,  took up the study of 
occultism again and relapsed into 
a condition approximating to her previous one,  having presumably re, forged the 
contacts with the 
Thibetan Brotherhood which had proved so disastrous to her. 







CHAPTER 20.
METHODS OF DEFENCE, 4.
 
THERE are so many stories of the appearance of guardian angels at moments of 
crisis that even the 
most sceptical must admit that there is a case to be answered. 
There is a tradition in Devon that if Drake's Drum,  which is preserved at 
Buckland Abbey near 
Tavistock,  is beaten in a time of crisis,  Drake himself will return to lead 
the fleets of England. Newbolt 
has immortalised this legend in his famous poem. 
"Take my drum to Devon,  hang et by the shore. 
Beat et when your powder's runnin' low. 
If the Dons sight Devon,  I'll quit the port of Heaven,  
And drum them up the Channel as we drummed them long ago." 
The idea of the hero who returns to lead his people,  the guardian angel that 
appears in times of crisis,  is 
sealed deep in the hearts of all nations,  and nothing will eradicate it. 
Innumerable instances were 
reported by the men returning from the trenches during the War. 



 

Let us again refer to the ancient wisdom of the Qabalah,  that storehouse of 
occult knowledge. We learn 
here of the Good Angel and the Evil Angel of the soul of man who stand behind 
his right and left 
shoulder,  the one tempting him,  and the other inspiring him. Translate the 
Dark Angel into terms of 
modern thought and we have the Freudian subconsciousness. 
But the Freudians fail to realise that there is also a Bright Angel who stands 
behind the right shoulder of 
every man. This is the mystic superconsciousness or,  in other words,  the 
Higher Self,  the Holy Guardian 
Angel whom Abramelin sought with such ardour and effort. 
We all know that,  when caught off our guard,  there comes a dark temptation 
from the depths of our 
lower selves,  something atavistic stirs,  and we think thoughts,  or even do 
deeds,  of which we would 
never have believed ourselves capable. We have heard the voice of the Dark Angel 
speaking. 
Equally in times of dire stress,  when we have our backs to the wall and we are 
fighting for more than our 
physical lives,  another Voice makes itself heard,  the voice of the Bright 
Angel. I have never known this 
to occur when a man was fighting simply for his physical life. To those who see 
beyond the veil,  death is 
no great evil; but in times of spiritual crisis,  when the very self is being 
swept away,  then it is that the cry 
of the soul is heard,  and Something manifests out of the mists of the Unseen,  
manifests in a form that is 
comprehensible to the one who calls. Whether intense stress induces a temporary 
expansion of 
consciousness,  a fugitive psychism,  or whether a Being of its own volition 
passes through the veil and 
manifests,  I do not know; there are never any details available of these 
incidents. They take place only in 
times of dire stress and go as swiftly as they came,  leaving no trace except 
upon the soul. 
I maintain that even as the Lower Self can rise up in moments of temptation,  so 
can the Higher Self 
descend in moments of spiritual crisis. It is the aim of the mystic to live 
exclusively in the Higher Self. It 
is the aim of the occultist to bring this Higher Self through into manifestation 
in brain consciousness,  "In 
my flesh shall I see God." Just as surely as the Lower Self can rise up and 
betray us to some horrible 
deed,  so can the Higher Self come to the rescue,  "terrible as an army with 
banners." 
I have already told of the mysterious voice which instructed me how to extricate 
myself from grave 
psychic danger. Upon other occasions of stress and strain I have experienced a 
sudden expansion or 
shifting of the level of consciousness. The Higher Self has descended and taken 
control. From being in 
the midst of turmoil one is suddenly raised high above it and sees all the 
circumstances of one's life 
spread out like a bird's, eye view,  as one might see the land from a high 
place,  and one knows intuitively 
the out come of the matter. All emotional turmoil ceases,  and one is like a 
ship hove, to,  securely riding 
out the storm. When this occurs to me,  the memory of my past incarnations is 
always vividly present 
also. It is this simultaneous wakening of the past which makes me feel that the 
voice is that of my own 
Higher Self,  and not of another entity. 
It is my belief that in times of spiritual crisis the man that has faith in the 
law of God can rise up and 
invoke its protection and a seeming miracle will be performed for his benefit. 
Yet there can be no breach 
of natural law; there fore such a miracle must simply be an example of the 
working of a law with which 
we are as yet unfamiliar,  just as an eclipse appears to the savage as a 
miracle,  but to the astronomer as a 
natural phenomenon which he can forecast with accuracy. 
What is it that induces this change of control in our lives? We are familiar 
with the fact that the engine 
of a car has three speeds and a reverse. May it not be that our minds are also 
geared,  and that it is a 
changing of gears which induces psychism? Are there not times when we get into 
reverse and the ape 
and tiger within us take charge? 


Behind the physical plane lies the astral plane,  and behind the astral plane 
lies the mental plane,  and 
behind the mental plane lies the spiritual plane,  each plane acting as plane of 
causation to the one 
beneath it,  and each in turn being controlled from the subtler plane above it. 
When we "change gear, " 
consciousness is shifted from a denser to a subtler plane and we begin to move 
among remoter and 
remoter causes of which the happenings upon the physical plane are the end, 
results; we manipulate these 
causes and the results are immediately effected. 
When we change gear from the physical to the astral,  we find' ourselves upon 
the plane of psychic 
consciousness and the lesser magic. Supposing a psychic combat is taking place 
between two occultists,  
if one of them is of such a grade that he can change gear again,  so that 
consciousness is lifted from the 
astral to the mental plane,  he will be in the sphere of the greater magic and 
be in full control of the 
situation. The other can make no stand against him. But what happens in the case 
of the rare and mystic 
soul who can shift consciousness once again and engage the gears of a purely 
spiritual power? He has 
outclassed the adept. There are many souls who have this mystical spiritual 
consciousness although they 
have no occult knowledge. Between the higher and the lower modes of thought 
there is a great gulf fixed 
across which they leap precariously. If in a time of crisis they are able to 
rise up in faith and enter into 
this mystical consciousness and be still,  they will have the upper air of any 
occultist who relies upon 
nothing save the technique of occultism. 
The question of mystical consciousness is,  however,  outside the scope of our 
present enquiry,  which is 
concerned with psychic methods and the traditional technique of the occultist. 
Different temperaments 
will employ different methods,  and the mystical method does not appeal to 
everybody. 
The occultist does not ignore the Christ, force,  however; he recognises it as 
among the hierarchy of 
supreme forces of the universe,  although he may not be prepared to assign to it 
the exclusive position 
which it occupies in the heart of the Christian mystic. In the Western Tradition 
it is symbolised by 
Tiphareth,  the central Sephira of the Ten Holy Sephiroth of the Qabalistic Tree 
of Life. 
The Christ, force is the equilibriating,  compensating,  healing,  redeeming,  
purifying factor of the universe. 
It should be invoked in every operation of psychic self, defence where any human 
element,  incarnate or 
discarnate,  is concerned. Where non, human elements,  such as elementals,  
thought, forms,  or the 
Qlippoth,  have to be dealt with,  it is the power of God the Father,  as 
Creator of the universe,  that is 
invoked,  His supremacy over all the kingdoms of nature,  visible and invisible,  
being affirmed. God the 
Holy Ghost is the force that is employed in initiations,  and it should not be 
invoked during times of 
psychic difficulty,  as its influence will tend to intensify the condition and 
render the Veil yet thinner. 
There is a very curious aspect of the occult field concerning which something 
must be said in the present 
pages,  though not a great deal can be revealed,  and,  to be frank,  I do not 
know a great deal about it 
myself,  but only such aspects as I have actually come across. I have always 
heard it called the Occult 
Police; others may know it by different names but I believe it to be a very real 
and concrete thing,  though 
its organisation is not upon the physical plane,  nor,  so far as I know,  are 
its mundane activities gathered 
up into any single pair of hands. I have crossed its trail upon a number of 
occasions,  and played my part 
in its activities,  and I have talked with others who have also been concerned 
in it,  and they have always 
said as I do,  that it is the inner voice and circumstances alone that direct 
our activities when we 
co, operate with this mysterious organisation. 
I think myself that it is organised in national units,  for people seem to go in 
and out of jurisdictions,  or to 
be passed on from one to another. In my experience it has no particular 
political bias,  but concerns itself 


solely with occult methods applied to criminal ends and offences against 
society. 
One or two illustrative cases may help to make the matter clear. Some 
complications arose at one time 
over an Indian occultist who was visiting this country in order to found a 
school. He was deeply involved 
in the politics of his own country,  and there could be no doubt about it that 
he disliked the English and 
all their ways very much indeed. I think that I was the only pure, blooded 
Anglo, Saxon who was in touch 
with him. As far as I know,  he did not concern himself with mundane plane 
political activities,  his idea 
being to organise a meditation group which should pour the regenerative 
spiritual force of the East into 
the group,  soul of the British Empire,  which he declared was in a very bad way 
indeed. I maintained,  
however,  that the group, soul was not dying,  as he held,  but very tired,  for 
it was immediately after the 
War. Moreover,  I could not see how any body who disliked it so very much was 
going to be able to 
regenerate it. Nor was I sure that the regeneration was going to be to our taste 
if we were to get it. This 
man,  whom I will call X.,  was of an intense spiritual pride,  and his root, 
idea was that England must 
acknowledge the spiritual supremacy of India and take her spiritual inspiration 
from the East. I was 
young and inexperienced at the time,  but I began to ask myself what manner of 
spiritual force was going 
to be poured in through the channel we were constructing. Sup posing during the 
War a group of English 
Occultists had tried to perform a similar service for Germany,  what line would 
they have taken? Would 
they not have tried to influence the German group, mind to give up its 
militarist ideals and concentrate on 
the League of Nations? Was it not more than likely that our Indian friend was 
trying to disabuse us of 
our Imperialistic tendencies? Would it not appear to him,  smarting as he was 
under the race prejudice of 
the white man,  that the world would be a much better place for humanity if the 
English cultivated their 
own garden and let other people alone? I got more and more uneasy,  and X.,  
being a good psychic,  
detected my uneasiness,  and I was asked to withdraw from the group he was 
organising. 
I felt quite convinced that something sinister was being attempted against the 
group, mind of my race,  but 
I had no means of gauging its extent or potency. This was not the kind of tale 
one could take to Scotland 
Yard; moreover,  several of my personal friends believed in the bonafides of X. 
and were taking part in 
the group he was organising,  and I was very anxious not to involve them in any 
unpleasantness. In my 
perplexity I resolved to do nothing upon the physical plane and to invoke the 
Masters upon the Inner 
Planes. 
At this time I was not of a grade which is supposed to have direct access to the 
Masters,  but I determined 
to try and get them telepathically,  though I did not know whether those to whom 
I was trying to telepath 
were human or non, human,  incarnate in physical bodies or discarnate entities,  
for at that time I was not 
very advanced in my occult studies. 
All I had to hold on to was an abstract idea and the knowledge that in previous 
difficulties I had been 
able to get in touch with Something on the Inner Planes which had proved a 
powerful friend. 
In telepathing,  the usual method of getting in touch is to visualise the person 
you want to communicate 
with and call him by name. I had nothing I could visualise and I knew no names. 
However,  I determined 
to make the attempt as best I might and,  metaphorically speaking,  I put my 
head out of the window of 
this fleshly tabernacle and called for the police. And I got an answer. The 
Inner Voice replied to me very 
clearly and distinctly: 
"You are to go to Colonel Y." 
I was taken aback at this,  for Colonel Y. was a rather eminent person to whom I 
had once been 
introduced,  and the last person in the world one would invite to go mare's 
nesting. I had no desire to 
 

make myself ridiculous by bearding this forminable warrior in his den. My 
psychological studies had 
made me familiar with the workings of the subconscious mind and what it can do 
when dissociated,  and 
I felt that the situation required handling with considerable caution because 
the results of a mis, step 
might be unpleasant. 
I therefore replied to the Inner Voice,  "I cannot trust you unless you will 
give me a sign." 
The reply came through,  "Colonel Y. will be at our next lecture. Tell him 
then." 
To this I replied,  "I know that Colonel Y. cannot be at my lecture because his 
regiment is ordered 
abroad,  and he will have left before it takes place." 
The answer came back,  "Colonel Y. will be at your next lecture." 
"Very well, " I said,  "that shall be my sign. If Colonel Y. is there,  I will 
tell him,  and if not,  I shall leave 
the affair to take its course." 
The day duly arrived when I was to give a public lecture at a certain town. I 
arrived at the hall in due 
course,  and the first thing I saw was Colonel Y. going up the stairs! So I 
determined to take the bull by 
the horns,  and immediately after the lecture I went straight to him and said,  
"I have got a message for 
you." 
"I know you have, " he replied,  "for I have been told to expect it." 
It appears that he was sitting in his quarters one evening with his two dogs. 
They suddenly became 
disturbed and began to investigate something that wasn't there. He heard a voice 
saying distinctly to his 
inner ear that I should come and ask his help and that he was to give it. He was 
so impressed by this 
occurrence that he went to a mutual friend and asked her whether I was in 
trouble of any sort. At his 
request she wrote to me to enquire how I was faring,  but mentioned no names,  
and I,  not realising the 
significance of the incident,  returned a non, committal answer. 
He heard my story and told me to leave the matter in his hands,  which I did. 
This is a queer enough story of coincidence,  but the sequel is even queerer. 
After leaving Colonel Y.,  I 
enquired once more of the Unseen whether I should take any further steps. The 
reply came through that 
for the present I was to do nothing,  but that I would be told when further 
action was to be taken. I learnt 
afterwards that X. had left the country a few days after my interview with 
Colonel Y. 
Nothing happened for about five months,  and then one evening when I was sitting 
over my fire in the 
dusk I distinctly heard the Inner Voice telling me that now was the time to make 
a move in the matter of 
X.,  and that I was to go to Mr. Z. and tell my story. Now Mr. Z. was a very 
eminent person indeed,  
whom I knew of as being an advanced occultist,  but whom I had never met. I 
replied to the interior voice 
that for me to approach Mr. Z. was impossible,  I should merely be shown the 
door,  and that unless they 
could open up the way from their end,  I did not see how it was to be done. The 
answer came through 
very clearly that the way would be made plain. And it was. 
A couple of days later a visitor was announced,  an old friend whom I only saw 
occasionally,  and after 
the usual greetings and exchange of news,  he said,  "I should very much like 
you to meet a friend of mine 
who I think would be interested in your work. May I take you to see him? His 
name is Mr. Z." Needless to say I agreed. 
When I came to the appointed meeting,  I said to Mr. Z.,  after I had been 
introduced,  " I have got a 
message for you, " thinking I might as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb. He 
listened attentively,  and 
when I mentioned the name of the Indian,  my friend who was present,  exclaimed,  
"It is a curious thing 
that you should be moving in this matter at the present moment. X. landed in 
England a couple of days 
ago." 
It will be noted that as soon as X. left England,  I was instructed to hold my 
hand,  and as soon as he 
returned after an absence of five months,  I was instructed to commence action 
again. Unless we are 
prepared to pull the long arm of coincidence clean out of its socket,  we must 
conclude that some 
directing intelligence was at work. This is but one among many instances in my 
experience. Limitations 
of space forbid me to mention any more. 
In addition to the Occult Police,  who function solely on the Inner Planes,  
there also exist certain groups 
of occultists who have banded themselves together for the purpose of combating 
Black Occultism. I 
suppose they give themselves different names,  but I do not know what these are; 
I have always heard 
them referred to generically as the Hunting Lodges. Upon various occasions I 
have skirmished on their 
flanks and looked on at some lively forays. I imagine them to be organised in 
conjunction with the 
Occult Police,  and they certainly possess means of obtaining information which 
point to co, operation 
from the Inner Planes. They appear to possess alliances in unexpected quarters 
and to be able to pull a 
remarkable number of strings. What psychic weapons they use I do not know,  but 
upon the physical 
plane they appear to rely largely upon newspaper exposes,  and upon keeping 
undesirables on the move,  
never allowing them to settle down and organise. Knowing what I do of their 
methods,  I have from time 
to time recognised their sign, manual in various transactions for which decent 
citizens have every reason 
to be grateful. 
I came across them in a manner which serves to illustrate the way in which 
occultists can "call" for 
information they may be in need of,  and the fortuitious train of circumstances 
that will supply it. 
As a young girl,  at the commencement of my interest in occultism,  I came in 
touch with an adept whom I 
soon realised to be on the Left, hand Path,  and with whom I soon severed my 
connection. Shortly after I 
broke with him,  I was watching a gymkhana in company with some friends,  among 
them a student of 
occultism,  and we began to discuss matters of mutual interest. Impelled by I 
know not what impulse to 
confide in him what I had never told a soul,  I told him of my experiences with 
the adept I have referred 
to. To my surprise he knew all about him. It seems that my new acquaintance was 
connected with a 
group of occultists who had taken for their work the hunting out of Black 
Lodges; they had already 
crossed the trail of my black adept and had compelled him to close down,  and he 
had sworn not to 
reorganise his Order. They had had reason to believe recently that this oath was 
not being kept and that 
he had again organised a Lodge and was working his rituals,  but they did not 
know where to lay their 
hands on him. Then here came I,  a bit of human flotsam tossed up on a sports 
field to give them the 
information they needed at the very moment when they needed it. These things 
happen too regularly in 
occultism for one to be able to look upon them as chance. 
It is my belief that It Is possible for anyone who has need of them to get into 
touch telepathically with 
this occult police force. The symbol I was taught to use was a black Calvary 
Cross with circle on a 
scarlet ground. This is pictured in the imagination,  and while gazing at it 
mentally the call is sent out 
into the Unseen,  projecting it from the centre of the forehead. 
99 of 103.

 

Various attempts have been made to prove that the occult fraternities are all 
directed from a single 
headquarters,  said variously to be situated in Germany,  Thibet,  Mongolia and 
South America. Personally 
I do not believe it. I suppose that I have a pretty varied acquaintance with the 
inner workings of the 
occult movement,  and I have never seen anything whatever that indicated any 
centralised control,  
whether for good or for evil. Everything,  in fact,  points the other way,  and 
indicates that there is no 
connecting link save that of a common literature,  a common idealism,  and a set 
of symbols which,  if not 
common to all sections,  are readily translatable by means of well, understood 
equivalents. The position in 
the occult field is analogous to that of Protestant Christianity,  not Roman 
Christianity. Occultism has no 
Pope. 
Nor do I think that Bolshevism ever gained any foothold in the Lodges,  though I 
believe it tried; as 
witness the application to my own fraternity. The average occultist is not 
interested in politics,  his 
concern is with things invisible. Moreover,  the occult fraternities are too 
inco, ordinated and scattered to 
be formidable political weapons even if they were imbued with Bolshevism. 
It has also been said that the occult fraternities are controlled by the Jews in 
the interests of Zionism. 
This is quite untrue. There are very few Jews in the occult movement. It is 
true,  however,  that the 
Qabalah,  the traditional mysticism of the Jewish race,  is one of the principal 
sources of Western 
occultism,  and that any occultist working on that tradition must know at least 
enough Hebrew to be able 
to transliterate Hebrew script. The study of the modern mystical Qabalah is 
almost exclusively in the 
hands of Gentiles,  and orthodox Jewish scholars know little or nothing of its 
literature and nothing 
whatever of its mystical significance. 
No one has said harder things of the occult movement than I have,  and if I 
thought that there were any 
organised system of evil influence,  I should not hesitate to say so,  for I 
have the integrity of the 
movement very much at heart; but I honestly do not believe that there is any 
generalised organisation of 
the occult movement,  whether for good or evil,  whatever may be one's 
conception of good and evil. One 
can,  of course,  only speak of that which one has seen,  but I think it would 
have been impossible for me 
to have been as intimately associated with that movement as I have been and 
never to have crossed its 
trail at any point. I have crossed so many trails,  and seen,  I will not deny 
it,  so much that was evil,  but 
this particular evil I have not seen,  and I do not believe it exists outside 
the imagination of people with 
bees in their bonnets. The true nexus of the occult movement is devotion to a 
common ideal,  but this 
ideal is approached by an infinite diversity of paths,  as many as the breaths 
of the sons of men. 
I am sorry for the hypothetical person who has the task of organising the occult 
movement,  for occultists 
of different schools cannot be induced to co, operate. Any technique which 
differs from that which they 
are used to is suspect; any unfamiliar contact is black. The great majority of 
the heads of schools that I 
have known have sat each in his own circle of light and damned everybody else. 
Like the old lady who 
watched her son march past with the Territorials,  they exclaim,  "They're all 
out of step except our Jock." 
I had once dreamed of a federation of occult societies with an annual 
convention,  but I soon realised that 
it was unwork able. If occultists cannot be got to organise to serve their own 
interests,  it is very unlikely 
that they would ever be got to organise to serve anybody else's. 
The most prevalent abuses of Western occultism are immorality,  drug, taking and 
the bamboozling of 
silly women. Its worst faults are credulity,  a slipshod scholarship that verges 
on illiteracy,  and a 
widespread sappiness of intellect. Fortune, telling in all its forms and some 
very spurious spiritual 
healing constitute another slur upon what should be holy ground. It is difficult 
to do justice to ideals 
which one does not share,  but it has always seemed to me that the highly, 
coloured humanitarianism with 
which certain sections of the movement are soaked is not an ornament. "By their 
fruits ye shall know 


them." Such fruits of this as I have seen have appeared to me to be somewhat 
over, ripe. 
The finest minds in occultism are totally unknown outside their own Orders. A 
very common clause in 
initiation oaths binds the candidate not to reveal the names of his fellow 
members. If this oath were 
broken,  the general public would get some surprises. Occultism not being in 
good repute with the 
general public,  men in public positions cannot afford to have their names 
associated with it; their interest 
is therefore carefully concealed,  and they only speak of it to those upon whose 
sympathy and discretion 
they can count. 
Those who know what to look for,  however,  can pick them out readily. Anyone 
who is accustomed to 
the analysis of literary style can detect the regular reader of the Bible. 
Anyone who knows the occult 
rituals will detect their flavour in the literary or oratorical style of a man 
who is habituated to their use. 
Perhaps at this length of time I may be forgiven if I break the Oath of the 
Mysteries that binds to secrecy 
concerning the names of initiates and suggest that the key to the Bacon, 
Shakespeare controversy may lie 
in the fact that Bacon and Shakespeare were members of the same Order? 




CONCLUSION.
IN the preceding pages I have endeavoured to discharge a difficult task,  one 
that it is almost impossible 
to discharge satisfactorily. Limitations of space prevent me from explaining my 
concepts step by step 
and offering proofs thereof. To have done so would have required a library,  not 
a book. I have had to 
presume in my readers not only an acquaintance with the literature of occultism 
but,  what is much rarer,  
some experience of its practice. At the same time I have endeavoured to offer 
sufficient explanation as I 
went along to make my pages comprehensible to those whose acquaintance with the 
subject is but cursory. 
This book is not,  and cannot be,  a satisfactory handbook for the treatment of 
psychic disorders. All it can 
do is to point in directions where enquiries might be pursued with advantage. If 
it serves to direct 
attention to certain subjects that badly need investigation it will have 
fulfilled its purpose. 
I may be charged with having revived the superstitions of the Middle Ages. To 
this charge I must plead 
guilty. But I must put forward as a counter, claim the plea that there could not 
be so much smoke without 
some fire,  and that the superstitions of the Middle Ages may repay examination 
in the light of the recent 
discoveries concerning the psychology of subconsciousness. 
Whoever is familiar with the literature of psychic research,  abnormal 
psychology,  and the baser aspects 
of that movement which took its rise from the inspiration of Christian Science 
and spread into a hundred 
uncontrolled cults,  cannot fail to be struck by the fact that the old witch, 
finders were getting exactly the 
same phenomena as we meet with in all these different movements and fields of 
thought. 


It has been said that since we find the stigmata of hysteria liberally 
distributed among those unhappy 
beings charged with witchcraft that the witch, cult is explained and disposed 
of. But we may find that a 
study of the real motives underlying the witch, cult would throw light on 
hysteria and the allied mental 
states. 
It has also been said that history moves in cycles. At the present moment we are 
seeing a great revival of 
interest in psychic and occult subjects. We shall not have to look very much 
further to find that there are 
also the very promising beginnings of a witch, cult in our midst. 
Let it be remembered that the cases I have quoted in these pages are from the 
experience of a single 
person,  and I am by no means exceptional in the range of my experience,  though 
I may be less cautious 
than most in committing myself to paper. If one dip of the bucket reveals so 
much,  what might not be 
brought up by systematic dredging? 
Since my treatment of my subject must necessarily be cursory,  I should like to 
direct the attention of my 
readers to certain books which throw a great deal of light upon the question 
from various angles. 
Not only occultists,  but psychologists,  alienists and students of psychic 
matters owe an immense debt of 
gratitude to the scholarship of the Rev. Montague Summers and the enterprise of 
Messrs. Rodker for 
making available exact and complete translations of the principal books upon 
witchcraft that were 
written by the men who were actually concerned in stamping out the witch, cult 
and had first, hand 
knowledge of its nature. 
In addition to these I would direct my readers' attention to Projection of the 
Astral Body,  by Muldoon 
and Carrington,  which throws a very interesting light upon the manner in which 
genuine witches 
attended the Sabbats. I do not mean by these words to imply that Mr. Muldoon is 
addicted to wizardry,  
but he certainly possesses the traditional powers,  and if he can do these 
things at the present day,  why 
could not the witches have done them in days past? At any rate,  I do not think 
there is much doubt that 
the Holy Inquisition would have paid him the compliment of burning him if he had 
lived during its 
hey, day. 
Thirty Years with the Dead,  by Dr. Wickstead,  is another book which gives 
chapter and verse for 
personal experience instead of citing authorities and theorising about them. It 
is the record of an asylum 
doctor whose wife is a trance medium,  and who made a most remarkable series of 
investigations 
concerning the nature of obsessing entities. 
In Dr. Moll's book on hypnotism some remarkable phenomena are recorded such as 
do not find their way 
into modern books,  whether because the investigators are less expert at 
eliciting them,  or more cautious 
in communicating them,  having profited by the experience of the earlier 
investigators. Some of the 
earlier books on hypnosis and mesmerism yield some very interesting reading to 
the psychic investigator. 
Dr. T. W. Mitchell's Medical Psychology and Psychical Research is another book 
of value to the 
student,  who should be familiar not only with the signs of psychic attack,  but 
also with the signs of 
pseudo, attack in order that he may distinguish between them and not be misled 
into some very 
uncomfortable errors. To find one has been successfully hoaxed by a lunatic is a 
humiliating experience. 
Myers' Human Personality is of course a classic with which every student of 
psychic phenomena ought 
to be familiar. There is an excellent abridged edition available for those who 
do not feel equal to coping 
with the two massive volumes of its original form. 


Nicholl's Dream Psychology and Hart's Psychology of Insanity are two exceedingly 
illuminating little 
books,  both written for the layman and readily comprehensible by him. They 
throw a great deal of light 
upon the mechanisms of the mind,  and no one should attempt to deal with a 
psychic attack unless he 
understands those mechanisms. My own little book,  Machinery of the Mind,  
written under my maiden 
name of Violet M. Firth,  will,  I think,  be found a useful general 
introduction to modern psychology. 
Let us approach the subject of modern witchcraft neither in a spirit of 
incredulity nor of superstition,  but 
from the standpoint of the psychologist,  seeking to understand the workings of 
the mind and prepared to discover much that had hitherto passed unsuspected. 

end of book.