Path: typhoon.sonic.net!newsfeed.skycache.com!logbridge.uoregon.edu!newsfeed.berkeley.edu!pln-w!spln!extra.newsguy.com!newsp.newsguy.com!enews3 From: Gnomedplume@cavecom.net (Gnome d' Plume) Newsgroups: alt.christnet.demonology,alt.necronomicon,alt.magick,alt.magick.goetia,alt.magick.tyagi,alt.pagan.magick Subject: Romancing the Necronomicon (was: Necronomicon Sigils) Date: Fri, 11 Feb 2000 00:50:20 GMT Organization: Minions of Atargatis Lines: 91 Message-ID: <38a351e6.3314023@cnews.newsguy.com> References: <38a21963.3704304@cnews.newsguy.com> <87v7p9$dfg@bolt.sonic.net> NNTP-Posting-Host: p-396.newsdawg.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Newsreader: Forte Agent 1.5/32.451 Xref: typhoon.sonic.net alt.christnet.demonology:10099 alt.necronomicon:10207 alt.magick:178926 alt.magick.goetia:168 alt.magick.tyagi:21176 alt.pagan.magick:21395 On Thu, 10 Feb 2000 20:41:08 GMT, nagasiva@luckymojo.com (nagasiva yronwode) wrote: >50000210 IVom > >"Digital Buddha" : >>>I am seeking a depiction of the sigil of of the Watcher described >>>in the book of the Necronomicon. Are there anyone who knows of >>>where I would find this symbol? > >Gnomedplume@cavecom.net (Gnome d' Plume): >>There are not one, but three sigils employed in the Conjuration of >>The Watcher according to Simon (Peter Levenda) found on page 69 of his >>book -- however, the first is a regular pentagram, one is a >>double-ended kamea type (about as functional as a snake with a head on >>each end) and the third is a kamea with a kink in its tail. > >lovely response. which one should be used? combination? > >>Why not get copies of real magick books, > >how do YOU discern the "realm magick books" from the "fake" ones? > >>learn how sigils are actually constructed, > >what principles are required for sigil construction, by your >assessment? what qualities are evidence of "false constructs"? > >you know, I'm getting tired of your stupid little song. I may >construct a parody of it which purports that you are fictional >if you keep posting it to this newsgroup. > >blessed beast! >nagasiva ****Nagasiva: I'm going to do something weird and apologize for coming down on you a little too hard on this "real" vs. "fake" Necronomicon issue. First off, I'm an old Lovecraft fan from way-back, second, I think that the macabre, the gothic, etc. is a genuine element in our NeoRomantic movement, sub-culture, or whatever; third, I believe that an element of mysterioso and glamour is part of magick. If I'm going to staunchly defend Wynn Westcott for concocting a German Rosicrucian origin for MacKenzie's English Cypher Manuscript (which MacKenzie himself claimed he derived from German sources), then why can't I bend enough to find some "reality" behind H.P.L.'s Al Azif? The answer is: I can. Lovecraft actually dreamed several (if not most) of his stories. His idea of The Old Ones harks back to the disturbing possibility that we have not always been the dominate intelligent species on this planet. (I just published an article on this concept in The Seventh Ray in which I credit Lovecraft for having a psychic premonition of this.) Although I am not a full-time diabolist, I very much enjoy the writings and artistic gleanings of Kenneth Grant, who continually refers to Lovecraft. So then why do I poke (pun intended) fun at the various "Necronomicons"? Well, the answer to that is pretty easy. I appreciate the idea behind the Necronomicon, I appreciate its mystique and its glamour, but when people clap these hoaxes together I wish they would at least do their homework. Levenda's (Simon's) Necronomicon is full of lifted Akkadian, bolixed-up sigils that are insulting to those of us who know how sigils are constructed, and his "Testimony of the Mad Arab" is the poorest attempt to imitate medieval Arabic style I've seen yet. Why couldn't he have just read a little Burton first, for Cathulu's sake! But, for a moment, let's imagine that somebody does fake-up a convincing Necronomicon. It would still be a fake -- and sooner or later the gullible teenager who buys it and treasures it will be disillusioned -- not to mention the money he forked out for it. A hoax for fun is often for giveable -- but hoaxes for big bucks, especially from impressionable teens are something else again: something bad. But if you want my vote for a good Necronomicon, I will line up along side Ludvig Prinn and recommend my old friend Lin Carter's version of "The Dee Translation." This work captures the essence, is marvelously entertaining, and gets Lovecraft's visions across far better than Simon's bastardized cash-cow -- and as far as I can tell Lin never made a penny on it. I remember Lin actually created the first Necornomicon hoax at an early 1950's sci-fi con by baking a few parchment folios in the oven and letting some younger fen take a peek. Unfortunately that started it. DeCamp followed with his "Duriac" version that repeated itself every eight pages, and before long we had fake Necronomicons all over the place. Allow me to close with a line from H.P.L. ". ...and you shall know them by their smell." He was certainly right. Most Necronomicons do smell pretty bad. ***** Gnome d' Plume