The Italian Renaissance and Planetary Magick - Part Two

The Italian Renaissance and Planetary Magick - Part Two - Continued from Part One

The Church’s profound effects were felt for anyone engaged in scholarly pursuits at that time. The field of philosophy had lied dormant as the Church reigned over the secular and theologic aspirations of millions. When the taking of Constantinope occured, people who were starving for knowledge were given a glimpse into the enormous vaults of Greek thoughts, and the ideas resonated in a way that couldn’t have been predicted by the Dour Catholics. What the Greeks also re-introduced to the Era was the concept of the beauty of form. And many of the works of that era were magnicificent to behold

Of course, philosophers of the Middle Ages weren’t used to the brilliant and moving imagery of the Greeks, especially as it related to philosophy. They must have been incredibly moved by the stirring forms they witnessed, and the impression was felt by Ficino deeply. Ficino felt that the use of music and art was essential to his interpretation of Soul. He often played his lyre to soothe the battered consciousness of his patients.

Ficino gave an imbalanced account of the planets. He was clearly afraid of the influences of Saturn and Mars. Mars, indeed, seemed to shake him literally to his core. You can understand his reticence to dealing with the War God archetype considering the backdrop of the times he lived in. War and violence were a constant threat to his very way of life, and everyone of his time was familiar with the sudden onset and results of violent outburts.

With warfare and murder being a common occurence, it’s not hard to see where Ficino could go wrong with Mars. But, as modern practioner’s of this noble art, we don’t need to fall into the same trap. Of course, over-invoking Mars could be extremely dangerous to anyone, but if you carefully subdue the influences, you won’t have any more issues with Mars than you will with the kinder and gentler entities. In fact, you’ll find Mars extremely easy to work with. He’s always fast to respond, especially if you call him in his prescribe hour, because he’s duty bound to do so, and duty is something he never shirks. He also has the most pronounced sense of humor of any of the entities, and he tends towards blunt communication and honesty. He’ll be the first one to tell you to be careful of his influence.

To me, both Saturn and Mars have gotten bad raps. With Saturn, it’s easy to understand why, when you consider the legends of him eating his own children. Time, which he rules, is in essence a supreme enemy of all mankind, because it’s the one thing that will force us back to the light. All of us are born with a death sentence, and this uneasy feeling you get when you think about your demise is undoubtedly the fear you face at your own mortality. To come face to face with Saturn and understand his role is as important a part of discovering your planetary power is just as important as working with the much kindler and gentler natures of Venus and Sol.

One of the remarkable things about Ficino was the fact that he met so many other remarkable characters, Giordano Bruno counted Ficino as one of his main inspirations, and he too ran afoul of the Inquisition with such teachings. Bruno believed in a heliocentric universe, and this hearsay ended up costing him dearly. But Bruno knew that history would judge him innocent of the crimes of which he was charged, and he knew that Time would offer his final vindication. Upon learning of his execution, he bravely said: “Perhaps you, my judges, pronounce this sentence against me with greater fear than I receive it.”

Paracelsus was another fascinating character of this time frame. In many ways, he’s one of the founding fathers of modern medicine, but knowledge of all he did remains elusive for researchers.

Frances Bacon
Giovanni Pico della Mirandola

Hermetic Philosophy

It’s tough to talk about the Hidden Universe without mentioning Hermetic Philosophy. The two are inexorably entwined. Hermes Trimestigus has long been considered the father of the occult, and with good reason.

Theurgy - Alliance with divine spirits

In a sense, theurgy is white magick. The magician doesn’t use magick to further profane ends, but rather uses theurgy to commune with higher entities, who’s sole purpose is to aid the advancement of mankind.