Courting Autumn

Courting Autumn



The path of the witch is long and winding. For many years, I felt I was stumbling around in the dark. Through grit, intuition, and inexplicable luck I eventually found my way to a light-switch. It's interesting what I saw once the lights were on. I assumed the illuminated path would be easier. I assumed I would be able to immediately make a beeline for the exit and that after all this time I would finally be "done." Things were not so simple. Finding the map just revealed the extent of the ground I had yet to cover. I had a few more items to collect before escaping this dungeon.

With illumination came the knowledge of old contracts waiting to be restored. I had many old paths to walk, all of which I would have to walk in turn. For my first, I chose the Seasons. I had recently taken an interest in goetic magic, especially the practice's various connections to astral spirits. Approaches to astral magic vary, but I was already in the habit of focusing my personal practice on exploring the relationships embedded in the Zodiac.

The Zodiac can be divided in many ways, one of which includes assignation to the Seasons. I had already spent years working with the Seasons using simple rituals throughout the year. I had no reservations about approaching them in this way. The local season in my region was currently on the verge of Mid-Autumn. I would start there.

To Rite a Name

A common component of modern goetia is the invocation of authority. Conventional practice invokes the authority of the Abrahamic god, angels, celestial intelligences, demon kings, or dead magicians like Solomon or Cyprian. In each case, the theory of authority seems to differ slightly. Authority may be invoked due to promises made by a god to its people, primordial limits attributable to divine order, spoils from legendary battles, or existing pacts forged in the mythic past. I took this as an indication that the invocation of authority was somewhat flexible.

In my mundane life, I tend to lean on fraternal or paternal authority. In other words, I tend to prefer a theory of authority based on societies of mutual interest. This of course requires that I either invoke a shared lineage with the spirit or make a compelling argument for why the spirit should join our league. Assuming I have the former, how would I get the latter? I decided that name-dropping would get me a meeting to initiate negotiations. If only I had a name.

I have a pre-existing relationship with Autumn, as well as the planetary rulers of the Autumnal signs (Venus, Mars, and Jupiter). I'd like to be able to invoke Autumn by name before approaching the Zodiacal spirits of Libra, Scorpio, and Sagittarius. I used my usual method of crafting fu-like talismans and crafted a spell to learn Autumn's name. In this case, when I say "name" I mean a specific pass phrase or key that I use to refer to Autumn that is emblematic of our unique relationship, but also fit-for-purpose. This is comparable to a person being known by different names to different people in different circumstances (e.g. Ashley, Ash, Honey, Babe, Mom, Dr. Ashley Smith, etc).

I drew a sigilized orange leaf to act as the Archetypal focus for the spell. I surrounded the leaf with the symbols for Venus in Libra, Mars in Scorpio, and Jupiter in Sagittarius. I connected the Archetypal focus to the Terrestrial plane using the characters of Luna as a Celestial bridge. Normally, I would acquire ingredients by harvesting things from my local environment, then return home to perform the spell. In this case, I decided a longer walk into the forest was more appropriate as was performing the spell on-site.

The first ingredient I found was a bunch of marsh-marigold on the edge of a stream. These flowers had bright yellow blooms and were perched precariously on the edge of a rocky bank that reminded me of the Temperance card. I scrambled down the rocky bank and collected one of the blooms to tap into Venus in Libra.

It was some time before I found the next component, which I almost missed. Along the side of my path, I saw a forked cypress tree. A low-hanging branch had gently tapped the crown of my head with its fronds. The tree exhumed a martial scent so subtle that I stared at it for a few minutes just to convince myself that what I was seeing was actually there. Sufficiently convinced, I collected the frond that brushed my head as a bit of Mars in Scorpio.

The final piece, Jupiter in Sagittarius, proved even more difficult to acquire than the last. I wandered for some time before I found myself on an island in the middle of a lake. The island was home to a small grove of trees. I suppose I figured Jupiter might be found at "court." Nonetheless, Jupiter was not there. I inquired to the trees as to where I might find the lord of this forest. They put me on to a location across the lake. I initially assumed they had pointed me to another tree, but was quickly liberated of this notion when whatever I had locked on to started moving. I had not known trees to walk.

Upon reaching the other side of the lake, I met several dead ends. My senses told me I was in the right place, but I simply couldn't find what it was that I sensed. I eventually started back the way I came, figuring I would continue the search in another part of the forest. However, that was when an idea struck. Jovial things tend to be in abundance. What was currently in abundance?

It was the height Autumn. I was surround by falling leaves. The ground was covered in fallen leaves. I immediately became aware this particular working required catching a falling leaf before it hit the ground. I'll spare my dignity and omit some details, but suffice it say that catching a falling leaf is easier in theory than practice. I recommend a playful relationship with the Winds and a net.

All the necessary ingredients in hand, I quickly found a secluded spot to perform the rite. I appealed to the spirits of marigold, cypress, and oak to prepare an astral space to receive the name. I tapped into Luna to build a bridge between that astral space and my current environment. Once I felt the talisman was sufficiently imbued with the appropriate potentials, I destroyed it and scattered it to the winds. Within seconds, birds began to gather to my location and the wind began to pick up. The forest seemed to sing some phrase over and over again. I focused on the word and made note of its syllables.

At some point, I had closed my eyes to focus on the sound. When I opened them again, I found a particular bird staring directly at me from deeper in the forest. I believe it was a cedar waxwing and it seemed to be waiting for affirmation. I greeted it and expressed Gratitude. After that, the birds became quiet and the winds calmed.

On the Name

Pulling words out of the astral is a bit of a crapshoot. In my experience, audible manifestations are open to interpretation and do not reliably come in a modern tongue. For mysterious reasons, I often seem to receive names as abstract symbols or in audible Ancient Greek. I do not speak nor understand Ancient Greek, but I can read and pronounce it (again, for mysterious reasons). So, the hunt for what these names mean usually involves transliteration into Greek characters and a visit to Wiktionary. In this case, the word I heard in the forest roughly translated to "Mediator."

Ianvs