#Daniel a. Schulke

[erase-rebuild]

After a five year wait, an unwanted cancellation of my pre-order and a subsequent, and much more costly, re-order it finally arrived today. Daniel A. Schulke's massive tome The Green Mysteries. This beast is much bigger than I expected, and a thing of beauty.

Have not had time to read more than a few snippets so far, but it seems promising.

[lailoken]

so in the viridarium umbris there's a section called "the curse of the viridarius upon the false" is that a curse on book/pdf thieves?

I've always viewed it as a curse against those who might desecrate sacred/consecrated ground, but honestly, I don't have any real certainty. Does anyone else have their own thoughts?

[alephskoteinos]

Noticed this in Schulke's Lux Haeresis and remembered that Ford uses the phrase Will-Desire-Belief in his Order of Phosporus era material. Schulke implies a connection to Thelema, so I'm wondering if/how Ford plucked his Will-Desire-Belief idea from Crowley.

[friend-crow]

on today’s episode of People Let Me Touch Their Fancy Books:

[musingmelsuinesmelancholy]

Hey there! I’ve followed you for a bit but haven’t asked you much yet! So I’ve got one for you—what are your general thoughts on Chumbley’s work? Any books you recommend regarding Cultus Sabbati?

Hello! hope all is well 😁

Admittedly I’ve read more Schulke than Chumbley, though I do enjoy his works. I enjoy his writing style more than Schulke’s, tho like most sabbatic literature it can be hard to grasp but that’s the point! I enjoy the emphasis on ecstatic and oneiric experiences, the draconic motifs, the stellar motifs. It’s kinda what I was looking for when I got interested in witchcraft as a pre-teen. Sabbatic lit provided me structure as I was leaving behind the New Age stuff, which I desperately needed as I no longer had the structure of Wicca.

I’d recommend Azoetia, Lux Haeresis, Opsulca Magica and Qutub to somebody newer to sabbatic craft. I also really really enjoy Viridarium Umbris, Ars Philtron!

Pretty sure all of these are easy to find as PDFs. VK who? 👀

Just for transparency’s sake I am very much a novice, I have been practicing trad craft for like 6 ish years? Gotta long way to go!

[themotherofrevelation]

Thorns are chiefly weapons of Warding. As such, there is often to be found some sweet treasure the Herb or Tree is obliged to defend against those who would steal it: the odorous blossom of the Rose, the moist oasis at the heart of the caftus, the succulent dates of the Crucifixion Thom. The Thorn, therefore, is naturally endowed with the potencies of brisk defense, and further to this virtue, hatred of its enemies and valour in warfare. In this latter manifestation the Thorn is both punitive and binding, the Holy Nail of the Greenwood executing the grim sentence of Crucifixion at once harnessing the forces of binding and torment.

Daniel Schulke, Viridarium Umbris: The Pleasure Garden of Shadow

[banecraft]

Why I won’t buy, read, or review “The Green Mysteries” by Daniel Schulke

Three Hands Press has become an untrustworthy print on demand grift and Daniel Schulke, its sole proprietor, is as equally terrible at indie publishing as he is at writing intelligible books. A lot of people don’t know Daniel Schulke is the only person behind Xoanon and Three Hands Press. There’s no companies, no offices, no warehouses, no employees, and no cultus sabbati group, it’s literally just a dude. Despite claiming it was founded in 1992, Xoanon didn’t exist until post 2000 and it was just Chumbley self-publishing. After his death Schulke used it for self-publishing. Despite claiming it was founded in 2003, Three Hands Press was founded after Chumbley’s death in 2004 with its first book not published until 2009. I doubt Chumbley was ever involved. The press ran smoothly for a few years until Michael Howard (the anonymous unnamed partner who was the money and the publishing expert) died in 2015 and then it started to fall apart. Chumbley and Schulke are windy trash bags and always were. Stop listening to traditional witch influencers who make you think you have to have certain authors on your shelf to be legit. Neither has given anything back to the community. They never created community. Exclusion was their marketing ploy and it worked. Everyone wants into the exclusive club. It was always about book sales and the email list. Just an occult bro mlm. And y’all fell for it. Eight years to publish just one book and y’all still kissing Schulke’s ass after he spent all the preorder money, wouldn’t answer emails or give refunds, and then the book sucks? Insane.

Sources:

“Navigating the Crooked Path: Andrew D. Chumbley and the Sabbatic Craft “by Ethan Doyle White, 2019.

Video: “Why I won’t buy books from Three Hands Press anymore”

https://youtu.be/-abIFwGxWuQ?si=x3vK7Rrv0ayNYDfy

Three Hands Press’ Better Business Bureau complaints:

https://www.bbb.org/us/ca/san-pablo/profile/online-shopping/three-hands-press-1116-925897/complaints

[thanatoseyes]

So I think I just bought The Green Mysteries

by Daniel A. Schulke.

[cryptotheism]

Who are some of the scholars who inspire you? are they scholars you aspire to be like or are they scholars you just admire for the quality of their work? I don’t know how big the occultism field is but do you have like a favorite living occultist? also I love your work so much, you’re very cool

I think my favorite living academic writer is Prof. Gideon Bohak. His book Ancient Jewish Magic simultaneously converses with experts and layman, both deep and approachable, while betraying an infectious enthusiasm for the subject matter. The gold standard of academic writing. It's been a signpost for my own work.

As for favorite contemporary occultist it's gotta be Daniel Schulke.

[ghoulnextdoor]

Rosa canina by Benjamin Vierling The Rose Labyrinth Pen & ink on paper ᛭ Illustration from The Green Mysteries By Daniel A. Schulke

[talonabraxas]

Gus Von Krampus! Krampus Imagery by Daniel A. Schulke

[lailoken]

What reading or background knowledge would you consider to be a pre-requisite for starting Viridarium Umbris?

I'm honestly not sure what I would suggest, other than maybe trying to learn what you can about Eruopean Wort Cunning and the Cultus Sabbati first. Others are welcome to give their own suggestions to this, though!

[alephskoteinos]

Schulke is interesting in that if you read Lux Haeresis you'll notice that some of it sounds like some forms of Anti-Cosmic Satanism with the talk of the Unmanifest Self even though he never cites these as his inspiration. The fact there is so much obviously satanic imagery and references to the cult of the fallen angels, Lucifer, Lilith and all that at the same time as referring to the Word of God probably makes sense in that light, especially when he refers to the Unknown God as a figure of worship in his witchcraft and the God of Abraham as an adversary of divine light. It's very obviously Gnostic-influenced, with a dash of Neoplatonism in that the Void is referred to as Monad (though somehow gendered), but at the same time Schulke employs an emphasis on pleasure and the human body as a conduit of magical knowledge of power, all the senses as "arenas" or "grottoes" for the perception, power, and gnosis of the witch, thus forming a link between the individual self/body and the Other, the Void, the unmanifest. In that sense I think I actually like where Schulke is going to some extent.

[arcane-offerings]

Daniel Schulke. The Green Mysteries: An Occult Herbarium. Illustrations by Benjamin Vierling. Three Hands Press. Hardcover edition, 2022. 560 pages. Full green cloth with color dust jacket. Limited to 1500 copies.

www.arcaneofferings.com

Shop link in bio.

[musingmelsuinesmelancholy]

“Deeds of the Art Magical may forge, intensify, differentiate, or disrupt the bonds o f phantasmal emanation, thereby re- presenting their sentient qualities. Where Will, Desire and Belief perfectly frame the emanant trajectory, enchantment achieves realisation in the form o f hypostasised Eternity. This is accomplished by the congressive formulae of Light oo Void, the particulars of the Grand Triangulum, and the manifest strength of the Phantasmal Body.”

“Implicit within these maxims is the principle that every successful enchantment of the Art Magical produces a distinct emanation of Light, Shadow, and Void interweaving Totality. Knowledge of this maxim assists the Wise in determining how the Magical Fire is to be kindled, what serves as its best fuel, its immolative nuances, and its ultimate duration. This principle also embodies the mindful considerations o f magical trajectory and perpetuity. Accordingly, Operations of the Art are formulated not merely by need, inspiration and ingenium, but also in consideration of their radiative proclivities and points o f reception. This encompasses the knowledge that the light so produced exists not only as a presently-manifest form, but also as a distant artifact in futurity.”

Daniel Schulke, Lux Haeresis

[windvexer]

disappointment anon, i didnt actually know you could create spirit doors i thought i just had to hope that the spirits heard me after i called them to me because i dont have clairsenses or good divination.. LOL but thank you for that post that was extremely helpful :)

Hi! In Traditional Witchcraft and other related practices, I think I especially want to say Fairy Faith, the idea that the practitioner has the ability to find, capitalize on, or simply create portals, gateways, and roads into the spirit world is a dominant theme.

The only time I ever see this referenced in 101 stuff is casting a circle! The concept in Traditional Witchcraft is more or less the same as a Wiccan circle, but we call it a compass. If a lot of your education is coming from online sources, you may be unaware that a primary function of a magic circle is to "join the worlds" and, as Kelden puts it,

On a deeper level, though, and most central to Traditional Witchcraft, the compass is a liminal place, a doorway through which we can enter into the Otherworld.

On one hand, the word compass is synonymous with the word circle, but it also denotes the well-known navigational tool used in travel. This second meaning makes a lot of sense in the context that Traditional Witches use the compass round to navigate and traverse the different realms.

Kelden, The Crooked Path, 2020 (emphasis my own)

For a spirit-working witch, the skill of learning where to find spirits and how to reliably call them is a skill which I believe is separate from brokering deals. I also believe that working with these gateways is probably a fundamental skill of witchcraft.

The witch has many tools at their disposal for creating gateways into the spirit world and walking back and forth between this world and the next, with new knowledge, allies, and powers.

Some of these gateways are physical locations, each of which may lead to a different place in the otherworld, or make it easier or more difficult to access certain powers.

A small, secluded cave half-filled with water at the bottom of a steep riverbank may be the ideal location to enter the Underworld, or commune with chthonic powers.

A tiny thicket formed by the arch of a rosemary bush where it tangles with the branches of a thorny rose may be an excellent location to leave tiny gifts for the Greenwood and commune with the green folk.

Much more accessible for many of us is indeed just the concept of crossroads, either a 4-way X or a 3-way T. These locations are long famed for being the meeting places of spirits, or ideal locations to leave offerings or broker spirit deals. The Devil Himself is often said to be haunting just such remote crossroads.

But these gateways don't just have to be found. The witch has the power to create them.

Exhibit A - casting a circle (or more accurately to say, laying a compass).

Also, I believe the creation of a spellcasting altar, if properly magicked and tended to, begins to become liminal in and of itself - it literally becomes a doorway to the otherworlds.

Certain human-made locations, like gas stations and grocery stores, are often considered to be gateways and have been used by some practitioners to fulfill spellwork.

Various charms and talismans can assist with creating doorways navigating the liminal, most famously the Holey or Hag stone.

Robin Artisson details several methods of understanding, discovering, creating, and working with such doorways, I believe in Witching Way of Hollow Hill, but especially in An Carow Gwyn, in the section called The Breaching Charms: The Gateways into Sorcerous Experience.

Daniel Schulke, at least in Viridarium Umbris, provides several sigils and charms for obtaining entrance into the otherworld.

Roger J Horne, in A Broom at Midnight, details thirteen "gateways" to spirit flight. While these are specifically methods of entering astral travel, any student of the concept of gateways and doors within witchcraft I think would benefit from studying the rituals within.

Speaking of astral travel, many common methods espoused include imagining that a person is climbing down the roots of a tree, or inside of the trunk of a tree and floating down like an elevator; or going down a well. All of these things are analogous to (or, the same thing as) mentally seeking out a gateway to the otherworld, searching in mental constructs of places in nature where gateways are commonly found or believed to be found.

Indeed, the concept of roads, gates, thresholds, and doors, is (I think) a vital contemplation to the understanding of Witchcraft itself, and it is upon these bedrocks that a great deal of witchcraft has been built.