The Hermetic Hour

On Thursday, June 6th, 2014 The Hermetic Hour will present a reading by Poke Runyon (Fra. Thabion) of his 1976 essay "Negative vs. Positive Gnosis" from Gnostica magazine, no. 40. This is an important instructive paper dealing with the ancient and modern spiritual differences between Thelemic (libertine) Gnosticism, Hermetic neo-Platonism and ancient and modern Paganism (wiccans, druids, etc.) These differences are so deep and so misunderstood that many New-Agers involved in the Occult do not know what they profess to believe in. They participate in various groups simply because they are attracted to the style and glamor of the organization and because it provides a rebellion against the religion of the parents. The article explains the fundamental differences between  Gnosticism of the negative world view and Hermetic magick of the positive world view, comparing them to the Pagan and neo-Pagan "natural" world view. You will discover how similar Thelemic Gnosticism is to the Fundamental Christianity it rebels

On Thursday May 28th, 2014 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will review the 2008 book "The Music of Pythagoras" by musicologist Kitty Ferguson. This is a wonderfully erudite and deeply meaningful book on the accomplishments, and lasting influence of the most important of the pre-Socratean philosophers, and perhaps the most important ancient avatar of the Western Esoteric Tradition. As a musicologist Ferguson is able to fully expound on the master's development of "The Music of the Spheres" from mythical Orpheus through Kepler to Close Encounters of the Third Kind (we can all whistle that one). The Pythagorean harmonious universe of music, mathematics, and geometry has been re-validated in modern times with the advent of new theories in quantum physics. It was, of course, the bed rock of Qabalah, Alchemy and Magick. We will demonstrate some applications of the Pythagorean magical scale used to activate psychic centers (chakras) and discuss the employment of these techniques in magical oper

On Thursday March 21st, 2019 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the various traditions of the Underworld from the mythologies, religions and folklore of cultures around the world with our guest Very Honored Frater Solomon. Michael Johnson (Frater Solomon) is a Bible scholar with a background in Social Science. Mike has compiled maps of the underworld which locate the Hells of the major religions. Your host (Frater Thabion) will join in with references to Kenneth Grant’s “Tunnels of Set”, Shaver’s dero caverns, the underground kingdom of Agartha and the Shamanic under and over worlds and the proto-psychological Kabbalistic metaphore of The Nepesh, the Nechamah, and the Ruach. So if you want to take the E-ticket ride through the Great Fun house below the horizon, tune in and we’ll go below.

On Thursday May 22nd, 2014 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a review on a very important recent book on the Hermetic Tradition by Dutch author Jacob Slavenburg titled: "The Hermetic Link." Reviewing this book will be a team effort between the host and our esteemed guest Frater Ophis (Freeman Presson) who beat us to the punch and reviewed Slavenburg's book on his website two years ago. How did we miss it? No excuse because it should not have been missed. Certainly there have been other surveys of the Hermetic Tradition, usually combined with other related elements such as Kabbalah, Rosicrucianism, magick, etc. but this is the best and most complete tracing of the great Hermetic Gnosis from ancient Egypt, through Alexandria, Harran, the Dark Ages, the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, the so-called "Enlightenment" and the present modern age. Slavenburg takes us from Zosimus to the Kybalion in a sympathetic, very thoughtful and comfortably philosophical style. He quotes Peter Kingsle

On Thursday March 7th, 2019 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will review and comment on the 1948 science fiction novel by Stuart J. Byrne “Prometheus ll” recently republished by Armchair Fiction. This remarkable work, like so many early science fiction efforts was set in a future time, in this case 1970, and predicted a Third World War between the United States, its traditional allies and post Soviet Russia. Of course Russia did not become post soviet until the 1990s, but the Russian leader in Byrne’s novel seems and acts a lot like Putin. In this story the Russians are allied with China and they have conquered all of Latin America. They are on the verge of swarming our southern border. But their leader Nicholas (not Valdamir) has literally made a deal with the devil (the deros of the subterranean world) which has escalated World War lll into another dimension and brought in the forces of Agartha, the subterranean good guys and finally the Elder Gods (the original ancient astronauts) who arrive from hy

On Thursday February 28th, 2019, the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will review and discuss "The Eighth Tower" by the late UFO investigator John A. Keel (1930-2009). He was most noted as author of "The Mothman Prophecies" (1975) and film (2002). Keel was more interested in monster sightings, like the mothman and big-foot than he was in UFOs but he believed that the two phenomenon were related and emanated from the same source. He was an ardent successor to Charles Fort "The Book of the Dammed" (1919) which was a collection of fantastic anomalies such as UFO sightings, monster sightings and other fantastic events such as rains of frogs and ghost ship sightings. Mostly newspaper clippings collected from the beginning of the industrial age to the First World War. Like Charles Fort, Keel was a journalist who continued the collection from the 1920s, through the UFO era. The Eighth Tower is a Fortean book but with an agenda that Fort was very cryptic about. What do all these strange things mean m

On Thursday February 21st, 2019  the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will reprise a discussion on different interpretations and conceptions of Qabalah. This is a subject we have covered before, however, that was years ago before we started climbing The Tree in our weekly lectures. Now that we have arrived at The Abyss and and are venturing onto The Eleven Sphere "Tree Before the Fall", it is appropriate for us to review our Hermetic Qabalistic structure and establish the philosophical, mythological and metaphysical differences between the various Kabbalahs, and the particular innovations we have made in our modern Hermetic version of the ancient system. Tune in and we'll play Monopoly on the greatest board game in the universe.  

On Thursday February 14th, 2019 The Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the first Ancient Astronaut Theorists, before Van Daniken, Sitchen, and the rest there was Richard Shaver and Ray Palmer and the Shaver Mystery. In recent years more and more of their fantastic 1940s revelations about Ancient extra-terrestrial Aliens and their high technology and their continued influence on, and interfearence in, earthly affairs (mind control and child trafficking and madness) has been confirmed and exploited by later whistle-blowers such as Tom Delonge, Corey Good, David Witcock and others. It seems that Shaver and Palmer wrote their History Channel documentary scripts but are never credited as the source. Are these Ancient Aliens still with us? "Our original Ancient Astronaut theorists say yes!" So tune in and let's return to the thrilling days of yesteryear and revisit The Shaver Mystery.  

On Thursday April 3rd, 2014 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a special program discussing the O.T.A.'s Pathworkings beyond the Sphere of Chesed. These Paths lead to the re-manifested Sphere of Da'ath, which in the Eleven Sphere Tree becomes Saturn, the beginning of the physical universe and the gateway to the Abyss. This concept and its practical applications are covered in "New Tarot Trumps for an Eleven Sphere Tree of Life" in THE SEVENTH RAY, Book III, "The Red Ray." We will also discuss the Golden Dawn's eleven sphere tree and the idea of the Tree before and after "The Fall." This is a Key lecture and lesson in our study program. So tune in and we will journey to Mot's Back-o'-Beyond.  

On Thursday January 31st, 2019 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will air a discussion on the life and work of Victorian Age British artist and writer William Morris (1834-1888) on the modern Hermetic revival. Morris was a Renaissance man of many talents. An Oxford scholar who idealized and romanticized the medieval period and yearned to recreate Camelot in the modern era. He was appalled by the pollution, social misery and esthetic mediocrity caused by the industrial revolution and he believed that Karl Marx held the key to creating a utopia (although Morris admitted that he could not understand Marx) But we need to understand Morris in order to fathom the continuing fascination our cultural elite have for Marx's continually failing system. So, come with us back to the Gas-light era and we will see where a lot of today's progressive ideas got started.  

On Thursday March 27th, 2014 Hermetic Hour host Poke Runyon will talk with Jo Carson, leader of Feraferia, about Eleusis and the Mysteries of Death and Rebirth. What happens to the soul after death? What can be expected in the afterlife? Jo has written a new book, Celebrate Wildness—Magic, Mirth and Love on the Feraferia Path which includes a discussion of the Eleusinian Mysteries. The Mysteries of Demeter and her daughter Persephone were held at Eleusis, in Greece, for almost 2,000 years. These Mysteries had the goal of providing a first hand experience of certainty in the continuity of life after death. The Mysteries were established around 1450 BCE, and ended only when the Roman Christian emperor Theodosius I forcibly closed them in 392 CE. They were centered around the myth of Demeter, the earth mother Goddess, and her daughter Persephone. In this story, Persephone was abducted by Pluto and taken to the Underworld, and eventually was able to return. This myth provided a key to giving real revelations to t

On Thursday January 17th the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will review and discuss "The Cygnus Mystery" (2006)  and "The Cygnus Key" (2018) by Andrew Collins. These recent books are in the tradition of "Hamlet's Mill" (1969), "The Sirius Mystery"(1976) and Gordon White's "Star Ships" (2016) and they all fall into the category of popular celestial archaeology. Most importantly for us in the Hermetic community they all seek to validate our ancient Initiatiatic Code which holds that we descend from the Heavens and to the Heavens we shall return via the Milky Way as our "River of Souls." Like so many of his predecessors in this Collins locates the ancient Shamanic origins of this in old Hyperborea in North Central Asia. He presents a good case for Cygnus the Swan bringing down the souls like the stork brings babies. He suggests that the  Paleolithic genius-giant Denisovian hominids recently discovered in Siberia were the originators of of our Celestial mythology and that they carried it all th

On Thursday January 10th, 2019 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will review and highlight the twenty-six live shows we presented in 2018. As most of you know these programs are all archived on our Hermetic Hour website with abstracts describing them. So you can catch up on what you missed at any convenient time. Be sure to have a note pad handy as you listen so you can jot down the dates and titles of the shows you want to find. Such as "Count Cagliostro, the Wizard who invented himself" aired on February 22nd, 2018 -- or "The real secrets of the Hypnerotomachia" on May 24th. You can find all these episodes ready for listening or downloading on our website: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/the-hermetic-hour so tune in and catch up on what you've missed.  

On Thursday March 20th, 2014 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the 19th Path of the Qabalistic Tree of Life called "Strength." This path laterally connects the Spheres of Geburah, on the Pillar of Severity, with Chesed on the Pillar of Mercy. The Path is attributed to the letter Teth, the Serpent, and the astrological sign of Leo. The Tarot Trump shows a woman gently closing the mouth of a lion. This is a "Key" Path on the Lightning Flash which defines our extended "Middle Pillar" yoga system. Gareth Knight suggests that it represents the initiatory journey of an Adeptus Major (6=5) to Adeptus Exemptus (7=4). Crowley's version of the card was called "Lust" and had the woman riding the beast -- this at least symbolizes one aspect of this path, that of conquering the beast within. The lion symbolism is also astrological and alchemical. The Heart of the Lion being the marker star Regulus in the Golden Dawn siderial system. This also relates to the Labors of Hercules. This is an

On January 8th, 2015 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a reprise of the 1977 article in the old Seventh Ray number nineteen by author Janine Renee titled: Parzival and the Hermetic Grail. The author researched and wrote this at our request. It forms an important element in our reconstructed linkage of ancient Phoenician rituals to early Valentinian Christian Gnosticism and to medieval Grail lore. The major source for Janine's article is the 1965 "The Krater and the Grail: Hermetic Sources of the Parzival by Henry and Renee Kahane. Modern neo-pagans have never lost their fascination for the Holy Grail quest. The idea that the Grail was originally pagan (The Hermetic Krater) goes along with the recent revelations of Jesus and Mary Magdalene and the paganizing of Christianity. So if you want to start on your own Grail Quest tune in and we will give you directions to the Grail Castle Montsalvat.

On Thursday December 20th, 2018 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the Hermetic origins of the Holy Grail as presented in Wolfram von Eschenbach’s Medieval romance “Parzival. This is a follow-up on an earlier broadcast from three years ago in which we read Janinne Rene’s Article on Parzival from The Seventh Ray issue number 19, January 1977. In the introduction to her article I stated that: “Much of the symbolism and the allegory of Kellner’s original O.T.O. derived from Parzival.” This and other fascinating secrets embedded in Wolfram's medieval masterpiece will be the subjects of tonight’s broadcast. So, if you want to find the Grail we have the clues for you. Eschenbach’s Parzival is like Colonna’s Hypnerotomachia. Its one of those old books full of secrets and magick. And our job on the Hermetic Hour is to dig them out for you.  

On Thursday March 13th, 2014 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a discussion on the 20th Path of the Tree of Life. This is the Path that leads from Tiphareth to Chesed and is aptly attributed to the astrological sign Virgo, the Hebrew letter Yod and the Tarot Trump The Hermit. Again our texts will be Gareth Knight's Practical Guide to Qabalistic Symbolism and John Michael Greer's Paths of Wisdom. This particular path is concerned with the issues of personality and individuality in relation to the spiritual ideal of dissolving the ego. In this regard Chesed represents The Garden of Eden, and the Hermit travels the lonely road to recover his/her virgin state of selfless innocence. The alternative to this -- according to Gareth Knight -- is a return to Lemurian black magick, an option which we will also examine for it's symbolic significance. So, if you want to journey beyond the Sun then join us Thursday night.   

On Thursday December 6th, 2018, the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will review and discuss “The Spiritual Meaning of the Sixties” (2018) by Tobias Churton. This is a 653 page door-stopper of a book subtitled: “the Magic, Myths & Music of the Decade that Changed the World,” And it certainly lives up to its subtitle. Even though Churton’s previous books have been in the mystical, occult genre, this one should break into the mainstream and be read by every thoughtful reader interested in the present spiritual, philosophical and political divisions in what we call Western Civilization. Using the Music, films, television, and popular fads of the period as his mirror of reflection he leads us through the decade. The cultural impact of the Beatles, and rock music, the sexual revolution, psychedelics, the Bomb, the Vietnam War, Civil Rights, and the rise of feminism are all dealt with in turn. And the inability of established religion to cope with the spiritual challenges of the time is considered. The autho

On Thursday March 6th, 2014 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present Part Two of Frater Thabion's essay on Immortality. This section will deal with the theory and the methods of Consciousness transference to coming incarnations, what is reffered to in the East as the Tulku process. The Christian aspects of this concept will be discussed along with a review of the origins of Christianity in Gnosticism and its original principles. The relation of immortality to the Qabalah, Astrology, Alchemy and the Tibetan Buddhist Kalachakra system will be discussed. This is an important position paper and should be considered one of our more meaningful contributions to the Hermetic Revival. Listen in and learn how to live forever.   

On Thursday February 27th, 2014 the Hermetic Hour with host Poke Runyon will present a purposefully cryptic lecture on the Hermetic conception of immortality and the concept of "The Great I AM," in Qabalah, astrology, alchemy, magick and Kalachakra. This profound and ultimate mystery can be explained briefly in fairly simple terms, but whenever someone tries to do this they are either laughed at, locked up, or put to death. The concept is so feared and reviled that it is demonized by psychologists and marginalized by modern philosophers, although the great pre-Socratean thinkers Parmenides, Empedocles and Heraclitus considered it primary: the starting point from which the science of logic and reason arise.The Great Secret is obviously not for everybody even though Jesus tried to get the common man to understand it in mythic rather than philosophic terms. And even though he mythologized it, he still got himself killed! So, we can't come right out and cast our pearls before swine, lest they "turn a