https://astromagia-org.zoom.us/j/84034183858
Many/One;One/Many
It would not be too great of an exaggeration to say that Greek philosophy, and the dramatic cultural and intellectual revolutions it would give rise to, was born from the challenge to understand the relationship between the One and the Many. Parmenides, Heraclitus and Plato overtly wrestle with this problem, Empedocles is just as troubled by it, even if it hides a bit more beneath the surface. The Orphic Mystery tradition, which underlies all these philosophical “takes,” proposed its own unique solution to the problem through stories, songs, and rituals – rites which themselves related to the older wisdom traditions of Babylonian and Egyptian temples that had grappled with the same fundamental dialectic. Through these many ancient Mediterranean influences, this problem - the question of how unity and plurality relate and whether one or the other is more fundamental - finds itself at the very heart of the development of astrology and astrological magic as we know it.
Panel Organiser: JD Kelley
John-David (JD) Kelley is the chairman of the Scottish Astrological Association, having served since 2020; the founding president of the International Association of Astral Magic (IAAM), and the organiser of Astro Magia.
JD is a professional natal and electional astrologer, as well as a practicing astral magician and talisman crafter. His astrological leanings are both traditional and modern alongside a deep interest in astrological and astral magic. JD is influenced by historical approaches to magic, the mixing of magical traditions throughout the world, by an animist view of the Cosmos, by art and art-making, and by visionary and ecstatic practices. You can find him at Cunning as Folk where he teaches and practices his range of esoteric and interpretive arts, or you can follow his dance on instagram @cunningasfolk.
Fellow Panellists: Michael Ofek, Kadmus, and Kristin Mathis
Michael Ofek is a professional astrologer, philosopher, astral magician, and shamanic practitioner from Israel. He has been practicing astrology and magic for more than two decades, avidly researching all branches of the ancient tradition, with an emphasis on Hellenistic astrology and its connection with Greco-Egyptian cosmology, philosophy, theurgy, and magic. His passion lies in unveiling and reconstructing the roots of the tradition, and the practical refiguring of these ancient arts. Michael is also a student of the mysteries of Andean shamanism and of working and healing with entheogens.
In his work, Michael stresses the importance of direct experience of astrological processes, for which he has developed a unique system, drawing on and integrating magical, theurgical and shamanic practices. Michael is an international speaker, and gives workshops and lectures worldwide, including magical retreats. He is the co-founder of the Israeli professional astrology magazine “Urania”, which also produces yearly conferences and workshops.
Kadmus is a professor of philosophy, a writer, teacher, practicing occultists and dedicated pagan. He has taught classes for every year of both the Salem Witchcraft and Folklore Festival and the Astro Magia astrological magic conference. He has two new books out, “Learning from Legendary Practitioners: A Necromantic Journey into History, Myth, and the Practice of Magic” is published by Hadean Press and a book of short occult themed mystery stories “The Elucidations of Drake”, published under the pen name of Bill Koch, is out from Sul Books.
Kristin Mathis is a translator, poet, and scholar whose work focuses on the Orphic Hymns—ritual texts from the Greek Mystery traditions that flourished in Sicily and Southern Italy around 500 BCE. Her translations illuminate the sophisticated wordplay and esoteric knowledge embedded within these poems. She studied ancient Mediterranean esoteric religions and cultural anthropology at Brown, Princeton, and Columbia Universities, where her teachers included Elaine Pagels, Hans Dieter Betz, John Gager, and David Pingree. In 2022, she founded the Mysteria Mundi translation project, pursuing her passion for the Orphic Hymns while adapting to the challenges she faces living with Long Covid.
Kristin’s understanding of the cosmos as a living being was shaped by her childhood in 1970s Borneo, where she grew up alongside indigenous animist traditions. Now based in Brooklyn, NY, she's a single mom to one teenage son, two cats named Venus and Comet, and an ever-expanding collection of herbs, plants, and books.