Wake Up, Underworld!

Cameron Steele and Justin Little

What does it mean to practice magick as a path to enlightenment? Does practical magick have a role on the spiritual path? What exactly is the Western Magickal or Esoteric Tradition and who are its main thinkers and key figures? What does this tradition have to do with other spiritual pursuits or paths, from Buddhism to Animism, the Twelve Steps of AA to Christian Hermeticism? What do magick and awakening have to offer a person struggling with the anxieties of our age, its loneliness and algorithms? What is synchronicity and how does it relate to prophecy? These are some of the questions co-hosts Justin Little and Cameron Steele explore on Wake Up, Underworld! We delve into postmodern disenchantment, practical magick, and spiritual awakening within the context of the Western Magickal Tradition, alive and well thanks to Alan Chapman’s Magia, and, ever-present throughout human history as the tradition behind traditions. You can expect true stories of real magick, deep conversations about occult texts, and heartfelt explorations of the surprising, beautiful, and enduring presence of magick in the heart of spirituality, Reality, and the human being itself. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episodes

  1. Sep 9

    “Tending to the Bonds Between the Seen and Unseen Worlds”

    What is the relationship between mystical experience on drugs and spiritual awakening that happens when sober? What does it mean to look back upon a life of addiction, drug use, and “being the worst version of oneself” and to see that even the rock bottoms were supposed to be there? Is there a way to express the inevitability of one’s path without affirming what looks like “trauma for one’s own good?”1 What is the use of understanding one’s mundane suffering and spiritual realizations as part of a cycle of creation, an expression of a complete cosmology that we participate in, whether we’re conscious of it or not? Is there a benefit to making such a cycle conscious? We raise these questions and more in our second episode of Wake Up, Underworld!, where co-hosts Justin Little and Cameron Steele explore Justin’s backstory and one example of what it looks like to wake up in the middle of hell. Perhaps it’s the case that passing the test of faith doesn’t simply reframe your life, such that it was never a test at all. Perhaps such passage is also a powerful magick that alters Reality, changing past, present, and future altogether. Read Justin's essay "Spiritus Contra Spiritum" Texts mentioned in the show: His Dark Materials series by Philip Pullman The Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis Alan Chapman’s Magia Reality by Peter Kingsley Drumming At the Edge of the Magic by Mickey Hart The Tibetan Book of the Dead Occult Experiments in the Home podcast by Duncan Barford The Baptist’s Head by Alan Chapman and Duncan Barford “Jason Louv and John Dee’s Empire of Angels” episode of the Occult of Personality podcast by Greg Kaminsky On Drugs by Justin Smith-Ruiu “On On Drugs” essay series by Mary Jane Eyre The Book of Thoth by Aleister Crowley “Trauma for Your Own Good” episode of the Worp FM podcast by Alan Chapman and Duncan Barford The AA Big Book The L. Ron Hubbard series produced by The Last Podcast on the Left Peter Carroll’s books on Chaos Magick Advanced Magick for Beginners by Alan Chapman Dr. Rachel Elior’s academic work on mysticism and magick within Jewish culture Preorder Cameron's book "Interruption" Read Justin's essay "Spiritus Contra Spiritum" Show Art by Beck Corrigan https://beckcorrigan.cargo.site/about-contact Music by Justin Little Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  2. Aug 26

    Anarchy with Common Sense

    "Anarchy with Common Sense," our first episode explores "work" -- as well as the material obsession with career, status, and money (or the lack of any of these) -- as the true opiate of the masses. We talk about the Great Work of magick as the true opportunity to grow what you care about without fighting shadows. Sometimes that opportunity comes to you through the sudden tragedy of illness; sometimes it comes to you in the only week you've had off work in years. Why is that? What is that about? The conversation explores the Great Work through the lenses of personal experience and spiritual practice, amidst the backdrop of late-stage capitalism in the West. You can find the podcast on any of your favorite podcast streaming services or on Acast. If you enjoyed listening, please like, subscribe, and share, or let us know in the comments! Texts mentioned: Magia by Alan Chapman The Lost Soul by Olga Tokarczuk and Joanna Concego Magick Without Tears by Aleister Crowley, edited by Alan Chapman and Duncan Barford The Baptist's Head by Alan Chapman and Duncan Barford The Last Night: Anti-work, Atheism, and Adventure by Federico Campagna Be Creative by Angela McRobbie The Red Book by CG Jung The Introduction to the Black Books, by Sonu Shamdasani and CG Jung The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage tao te ching by Ko Hsüan (Aleister Crowley) Cosmic Trigger by Robert Anton Wilson Neurologic by Timothy Leary The Philosophy of Freedom by Rudolph Steiner Seven Lectures on Inner Development by Valentin Tomberg Meditations on the Tarot by Valentin Tomberg The Occult of Personality Podcast by Greg Kaminsky The Qabbalistic Tarot by Robert Wang The Mystical Qabbalah by Dion Fortune Preorder Cameron's book "Interruption" Read Justin's essay "Spiritus Contra Spiritum" Show Art by Beck Corrigan https://beckcorrigan.cargo.site/about-contact Music by Justin Little Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

About

What does it mean to practice magick as a path to enlightenment? Does practical magick have a role on the spiritual path? What exactly is the Western Magickal or Esoteric Tradition and who are its main thinkers and key figures? What does this tradition have to do with other spiritual pursuits or paths, from Buddhism to Animism, the Twelve Steps of AA to Christian Hermeticism? What do magick and awakening have to offer a person struggling with the anxieties of our age, its loneliness and algorithms? What is synchronicity and how does it relate to prophecy? These are some of the questions co-hosts Justin Little and Cameron Steele explore on Wake Up, Underworld! We delve into postmodern disenchantment, practical magick, and spiritual awakening within the context of the Western Magickal Tradition, alive and well thanks to Alan Chapman’s Magia, and, ever-present throughout human history as the tradition behind traditions. You can expect true stories of real magick, deep conversations about occult texts, and heartfelt explorations of the surprising, beautiful, and enduring presence of magick in the heart of spirituality, Reality, and the human being itself. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.