By C.F. Blackangel Kat Arawyn conThanatos Tzeenj

Literal Independent Beings Manifestations of the Subconcious Beings Created By Belief
*Past Mages Made Powerful What is the motivation of an entity to have anything to do with magicians and what sort of benefit do they get from this?

Choosing Entities to Work With

The entities you work, particularly in the long term, with should be chosen with care. Try to choose entities which have aims and objectives are similar to yours. If you do this carefully, you may well find that they will give you a lot of help for not very much in return if your desires and objectives are similar to theirs.

Initially, go with your gut feeling and pick entities you think you'll get on with. Don't be put off to too great an extent by other people's opinions or by bad reputations. I have had a lot more success with some entities that are supposedly very dangerous and allegedly "should not be approached" but which have actually transpired to be quite helpful and chatty than with some of the supposedly helpful ones, which never bothered to turn up. Please note, this does not mean go through all your books and pick the most dangerous obnoxious entity you can find just for the sake of it because you might well find that it's reputation is deserved. The way an entity reacts is often dependant upon how you approach them, so be polite.

Some sort of affinity with those you are working with is probably the most important thing. Don't work with an entity just because it has a cool name.
For relatively short term workings, magicians often pick entities for specific tasks and switch to others when the task is done and another one is waiting for which the first god is useless. In the long term, a magician may consistently work with an entity or group of entities for decades, and it is in these situations that mutual goals between the entity and magician are important.

Beginners with this form of magick might find it advisable to pick a system that is from their original heritage. The relevance of this is that, presumably, one's own cultural heritage would be somewhat easier to get to grips with than anything else.
Most entities don't tend towards racial discrimination, although some people have made claims to this effect with regards to Kali and also to a few Aztec deities.
Basically, use what you're most familiar with to start with. And no, "Xena: Warrior Princess", wonderful though it may be, does NOT constitute an accurate historical portral of magick and legend of time, or of the deities it features.

In the short term, you don't need to stick to one entity for a specific task. You can use a couple for one task. It would probably be for the best if they come from the same pantheon, or are otherwise compatible. And they should both be treated the same way so as not to upset one. If one deity does not appear too suitable for the task in question don't be shy to switch over to another one.
Take care that you are suitably thankful to the first one.

Keeping Good Entity - Magician Relations

If you decide to work with entities, and attempt to call them, stand before them strong and proud, and treat them as potential friends and allies. If you cower before them like a simpering dog, they will probably think it's very funny to kick you like a simpering dog.

Above all, DO NOT follow the traditional method of using one lot of entities (for example, but not necessarily, angels) to force another lot of entities (e.g. demons or devils) to do your bidding. This may (but not necessarily) lead to some fast results in the short term but will CERTAINLY lead to you having both lots UP YOUR ARSE LIKE THE HOUNDS OF HELL SOONER OR LATER. If you want to ask a friend for help, you don't start by kicking him in the face.

And don't go out of your way to piss them off just to see what will happen, because they're quite capable of turning your life into a living hell without your even knowing they're doing it.

Arawyn advises that, should it prove necessary, one should be [cough] "prepared to kick ass there and then", and comments that the carrot and stick method can work well in dealing with demons. Certainly, you it is advisable to be in a situation where you are able to get rid of and/or have some hope of controlling the damn thing should it start causing trouble.

If you consistently try to call a particular entity or force to your aid with no result whatsoever, maybe you should pick a different one. If we accept the paradigm that these beings exist in an independent, literal sense, if you get no result, it's not very likely they haven't heard you. It's infinitely more likely that they just don't want to know. There's plenty to choose from, and if you pester ones that don't want to know you, you'll just get a proverbial slap.

What sort of thing do you do in the name of the entities you work with?
A stereotypical example is desecrating Christian ground. A better example is performing rituals in their name, making offerings to them, and so on. Some entities may demand specific offerings at specific times, for example a ritual meal being offered to them.

Research on how they were originally worshipped should be done. For this, you'd better pick some reliable resources, and NOT various american fundie xtians who describe in great detail how evil their ways were.

The greater the sacrifice they ask are the greater their favour toward you should be too. Make it clear that they won't get anything for nothing.

What Sort Of Results Can I Expect?
Should you choose to work with entities, don't expect fireworks and 20 foot tall things popping up in front of you like a Dennis Wheatly novel. If you're lucky, and they like you and decide to help, sooner or later, you will find ideas and pieces of information popping into your head from nowhere and suddenly think "hang on, where did that come from? That wasn't me", but don't expect this to happen overnight. These are often more symptomatic of long term entity work.

In somewhat more general terms, you can expect a variety of results. Note that I'm not going to cover the results of asking an entity to do something for you; those should be largely self-explanatory. What I'm going to cover here is what to expect during various forms of entity work.

Probably the most basic symptom is a notable change of atmosphere. Generally, this will take the form of the air feeling somewhat electrically charged, and possibly exhibiting odd visual effects (such as a sort of haze) or a change in temperature.

Then you've got your basic spontaneous evocation; this will most commonly consist of shapes being formed in the aforementioned haze, sometimes quite vividly. However, this is not the only form it takes.
Situations also occur when one can clearly and plainly see whatever form the entity is taking.
Evocation and invocation will be covered in more detail below.

Benefits of Entity Work

Entities can fuck with people's heads to make them give you things and make mistakes in your favour. You can request favours, but you will sometimes find that inordinately fortunate events just turns up, often accompanied by an obvious hint that something is responsible for it. This is again, from more of a long term view.

God-forms are frequently called upon by people who wish to achieve a result which falls within the godform's sphere of influence. Needless to say, one would not call upon Pazuzu (a demon of pestilence, among other things) to help in the casting of a love spell. Unless, of course, you follow Arawyn's method of threatening to set Pazuzu on someone if they won't go out with you...

Control and Your Position In The Relationship What can I use to control this Entity?
In my book, it is somewhat unwise to attempt to 'control' entities. Regard them as friends or acquaintances you would like to keep. You wouldn't force a friend to do anything they don't want to, so don't force entities to do so. Binding entities with angelic names, triangles, and various other ceremonial methods is a common practice, which I regard to be (a) impolite and (b) provocative. If you force an entity into doing something, you could end up a powerful and potentially long-standing enemy. It is, however, a good idea to have some precautionary measures you could use to get rid of an entity should it start to cause trouble, and it can sometimes be useful to threaten a recalcitrant entity into doing a task.

You always say you Work with these Beings not Worship. Why?
Because I work with them magically. I respect them and I'll make offerings and pay respects to them but it's not really worship in the traditional sense. Many chaos magicians and others of that ilk will not say they 'worship' entities.

I personally treat entities as existing pretty much in the same sense as you or I (other magicians will disagree vehemently, but I find this approach to be successful).
Blind worship is something I find rather repulsive, and can think of little magickal use for beyond obsession.

What do you do if an Entity tries to enslave you?
Panic.
I suppose that if a demon was occupying a host's body during a ritual and precautions (for example, having another half-way decent magician in attendance) weren't taken, it could refuse to give it back, or it could harm it, but I don't personally know of any occurrences of entities actually enslaving magicians per se... psychological damage on the other hand..

Precautions for the Solitary Magician

For most entity related workings, being a solitary mage has no real disadvantages. Methods such as having a sigil by which you can destroy or remove (politely) in order to terminate a working, and pentagram banishings and so on work well for communicatory and evocatory rites, and so on. However, performing a full invocation alone can have it's potential problems.

For solo Invocatory Work, Tzeenj suggests a couple of precautionary techniques which can be used, both of which should be worked out with the entity in question beforehand.

Implant a command (with a Sigil or whatever works for you) that gives the entity licencse to depart when the time is right (or boots it out if it is uncooperative)

Instruct a Servitor to do the same - I have a Watcher Servitor which I frequently set to observe and record my rituals so I don't miss anything. Or you could just cop-out and do the split-consciousness thing.

What Methods are Used to Control Entities?
Standard methods would be all those names of the Xtian/Jewish god along with his sigils to threaten them to obedience. Usually if you possess the sigil of the entity you're supposed to have the power over it - just the same as with the name. Works just as well as the links you use to manipulate people.
In Enochian magick you bug the angels and demons with their leaders name. So basically you do it by telling them "Do what I told you or I'll tell your boss"

Circles and triangles Circles & triangles are used to separate the mage from the entity. In the theory that the entity is part of the mage, you'd have to do just that. Bring it forth and separate it from you for the time being. The creation of the circle and triangle should get the mind of the caster on the task. It's already part of the rite. While s/he draws them, they already start thinking of what they are for and thereby prepare them for it. It could make the evocation slightly easier. Since I never bothered with that stuff I wouldn't really be able to say (used a circle once for something else and discovering the disadvantage of chalk on wood...)

Of course it gives you also the feeling of protection. The entity is contained in that small space over there while I stand here in that protective circle - separated by those lovely thin lines (and when the robe is too long and breaks the circle...) The more traditional sense is that the circle reduces your world to a small and more importantly clean area without any outside influence.

Communicating With Entities

What language should I speak to entities in?
Your native language will do. Think about what you are saying and mean it. Magickal languages can be of great use in ritual, and in bypassing the psychic censor, but you really don't need to use any special language for magick unless you particularly want to; probably the best language to use is one you are fluent in and comfortable with.

In terms of magickal languages, the ones you're most likely to come across are Enochian, which is purported to be the language of the Christian angels and fallen angels, and Ouranian Barbaric, which is a set of words channeled and used primarily by chaos magicians.

Some magicians advocate the use of latin for communicating with demons and angels, or speaking the entity's native language. However, these generally seem to be somewhat irrelevant.

Can Entities communicate by telepathy?
This one's a much debated question. Many magicians experience strong 'intuitive' feelings and messages as part of workings with entities. Needless to say, if you invoke a godform into someone, the godform will speak through that individual.

Methods of Communication

Communication is a magickal technique related to both invocation and evocation. A self-explanatory term, communication can involve aspects of invocation and evocation, and some techniques more usually associated with divination, such as getting an entity to communicate through a pendulum, runes, tarot cards, an ouija board, etc.

Communicating with entities is a varied area, ranging from voices in one's head, to studious reading of Tarot cards, to full invocation, to dream interpretation. The methods of interpreting and using entity communication are largely the same as for a normal divination.
 

• Use of pendula

An entity would be called upon, and a pendulum would be used to indicate it's response to questioning. This can either be done by a yes/no method (for example, swinging to indicate yes, rotating to indicate no), or with a set of letter is a manner similar to that of an ouija board.
 

• Asking for images

This can be done using mirrors, crystals ink, or whatever. The entity can either be called into the general area, or can be called into the specific medium of divination. On a related note, it is possibly to bind an entity to a mirror, through which it would also communicate. Methods similar to the death posture mirror meditation can be used for this for of communication.
 

• Automatic writing/drawing

The entity is partiually invoked for this. Automatic musical work is also possibly, although less easily interpreted, unless you were in fact asking the entity to write music, or use an established method of interpreting musical notes, phrases and keys.
 

• Creating a focus

Focii can be used as antennae to improve receiving telepathic signals from the entities. Check up the correspondences for the entities before you create one.
 

What are the Bloody Things Anyway?
Sod knows. Anyone's guess really. Here's a rundown of some of the most common theories as to what entities may be.
 

Literal Indepentant Beings

There are several varients of the literal view of godforms. The literal view basically assumes these entities to be independent intelligences, existing in a literal sense. With regards to what they actually are, there are a number of theories, from independant intelligences fueled by belief (see below) to interdimensional travellers.

Some people are of the opinion that each entity is an individual in it's own right, while others believe that all may be aspects of one or two, or that they are all independant manifestations of universal energy.
There is a theory that there are a number of beings with basically the same characteristics, which take on different names and appearences in the mythologies of different cultures. (The theory that there is just one thunder god, with 20 different hammers and a variety of false noses.)

Manifestations of the Subconcious

One popular theory is that entities are projections of the subconcious of individual magicians (the "all gods and demons are we"
approach). Another varient of this is that they are manifestations from a collective subconcious.

Beings Created by Belief Belief is regarded by many to be a crucial factor in terms of the existance and power of entities. Some opine that entities are purely contructs of mass belief, while others argue that belief merely strengthens beings which are already extant (either in a literal sense, or as manifestations of the subconcious). That belief equals power for a godform is one of the most commonly held opinions by magicians. The theory of gods growing in power and intelligence through belief is probably best expressed by Terry Pratchett:
"Most of them never get worshipped, They are the small gods - the spirits of lonely trees, places where two ant-trails cross - and most of them stay that way. Because what they lack is belief. A handful, however, go on to greater things. Anything may trigger thing. A shepherd, seeking a lost lamb, for example, may find it among the briars and take a minute or two to build a cairn of stones in general thanks to whatever spirit might be around the place."
"The trouble with gods is that, if enough people start believing in them, they begin to exist. People think the sequence is: first object, then belief. In fact it works the other way. Belief sloshes around in the firmament like lumbs of clay spiralling into a potter's wheel. That's how gods get created."
"Gods and humans are inseperable. Because what gods need is belief, and what humans want it gods."

Past Mages Made Powerful

One of the more unusual theories on the subject is that espoused by Michael D Eschner, former(?) head of the A.'.A.'. in Germany. Eschners "theory", and he seems to truly believe it, is, in short:
The soul consists of a couple of parts. One of those is the soul fire. This fire has to be transformed into a huge flame then the soul is capable of living on its own without the need of a supporting body.
He got almost everything into the theory.

Reincarnation: if you weren't able to make a nice blaze of your soul fire.
Existance of Demons: the soul fire was kindled, but not enough. They grow weaker with time and then they have to reincarnate to get new "fuel" and then they'd have the chance to be gods again.
Existance of Gods: Soul fire went ablaze and the soul became truly independent and immortal. He claims that this was done by quite a lot of mages in the past and they are now the gods of Earth (Pick any from any mythology).

There are some parts of Uncle Al in there. More or less you'd have to turn that flame into a sun - suns are stars, and every man/woman is a star... But what do you expect of the "reborn" Aleister Crowley?
Oh, if you don't find a host where you can reincarnate into, it's game over.
Basically, you build that fire by meditation, yoga, tantra, whatever. But you shouldn't waste to much energy on useless stuff like remaining young - as Eschner put it.

Of course, it is quite possible that all (or none) of these theories apply to different entities under a variety of different cicumstances.
Right, that's a quick precis some popular opinions on what god-forms are.
You can argue amongst yourselves now.

What is the motivation of an entity to have anything to do with magicians and what sort of benefit do they get from this?
Entertainment

Amusement is one of the first things which springs to mind, especially considering the reactions that some entities have had upon being contacted (hysterical laughter's quite a common one).

Power

Of course there's belief in it for them. If you didn't believe in them, you wouldn't work with them. So if you work with them, they have for the time being another "follower" or at least believer.

Sex & Other Sensual

Pleasures Entities have been known to indunge in sensual pleasures to a fair extent. When invoked, the entity using the host's body to have sex and imbibe intoxicants. Interestingly enough, there have been reported invocations during which the host imbibes much larger quantities of an intoxicant than he can typically take without passing out, and show no ill effects after the entity has left. On some occasions, there have even been reports of a host having no ill effects after consuming fatal levels of certain substances.

This indicates that invocation can cause certain physical changes in the host. There have also been occasions when a host's appearence has changed. Changes in eye colour and the appearence of the skin are among those most commonly reported. Evoked entities also tend to take advantage of any available opportunities to get layed.

Invocation

Invocation involves an entitiy being invited into a magician who will be taking the part of the medium, or vessel, in the ritual.

Invocatory possession is referred to in vodun type traditions as being ridden by a loa, and some wiccans refer to it by the rather ambiguously used term 'drawing down the moon' (or sun). There are varying 'strengths' of invocation, although it can be hard to pick and choose how intense a possession you get.
Invocation can be performed alone, although it is generally safer and more effective with 2 or more participants. I find, and others report, that full invocation almost completely blacks out your senses if you are acting as the vessel except for some extreme emotional and sensual responses, which means that communication with the entity which is invoked into you can be difficult, to say the least, although it is possible to direct your intentions to a degree.

This state is the reason it is advisable to have another magician present, to act both as a questioner of the invoked entity, and to protect the medium from being injured, physically or mentally.
It can be helpful to tape invocations.
Further Information on Invocation

Evocation

Evocation is an act of magick by which an entity is summoned into being outside a vessel. While this most commonly brings to mind movie scenes of a devil in red lycra appearing in a puff of smoke, it is more generally typified by a sort of solid, almost electric force (which is possibly what some people call 'ectoplasm') which may appear in a distinct shape or form, or which may be formless. If you can see it, it looks sort of smokey, and it feels rather like static electricity.

Banishing

If you're going to perform magick involving godforms, it is more than a little useful to know at least one good banishing. The short form of the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram (LBRP) is pretty efficient at most things along those lines.

Basically, you draw an upright pentagram in the air with a wand or with a finger, visualising each line appeaing in glowing octarine (i.e. whatever colour you see magickal force as - for me it's a sort of light flourescent greeny/orange).

For each line of the pentagram vibrate the vowels IEAOU (pronounced ieee - eeeh - aaah - oooh- uuur), so the first line goes with I
- you get the idea.

The order in which the lines are drawn is, as in the longer forms of the LBRP, generally in the form of Crowley's Earth pentagram, which, for banishing, begins with the line from the lower right hand point to the upper point, and continues from there as is obvious.