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Danyel Loyal user Italy 293 Posts |
During the summer, sunbaths apart, I've studied in depth, and applied regularly, the oracle system proposed by Les P. Cross in his book. This detailed review comes from the experience of some month of work on it.
ASTROGEM GEOMANCY BY LES CROSS – A REVIEW It is a harsh duty to review a book whose incredibly innovative proposal has been defined by Richard Webster (Foreword, p. xi) as “the most ground-breaking advance in geomancy since the Renaissance”. Moreover, I am a knowledgeable as tarot Reader, but I wasn’t much interested in geomancy until I read this book. So my perspective will be either that of a Reader (a person who uses his intuitive insights), and that of a reader (person who reads a book). These two different points of view will join together in highlighting the remarkable interest of this great work. The rationale The structure of Astrogem Geomantic Divination could be explained in different ways. But the best approach is, I believe, stating a fact – AGD is firstly a book about geomancy. Or, better: about a new approach to geomancy – namely, its marriage with astrology. Les rejuvenates a noble tradition, which hadn’t changed at least from the XIX century, in three ways: - He creates a simpler model for the creation of the geomantic figures; - His model connects together in a very interesting and elegant way the core elements of an astrological reading: planets, signs, houses, aspects; - It is expressed in a beautiful, elegant way by the means of gemstones of different colours, which assume specific meanings, either of a geomantic and an astrological significance. Imagine: a querent or a Reader casting (extracting them from a bag) some stones on a map, and by doing only this they generate a complex and interwoven set of different meanings, at diverse levels of insight, which can be adapted to different kinds of reading. There is enough to work out interpretations for an hour, or for offering a brief ten minute reading. Structure and content: The geomantic component Technically speaking, geomancy pertains to the kind of oracles which have a combinatory structure. If in itself the geomantic divination was born (in various ways) as a way to interpret the signs on earth (geo-), it later became a quite codified set of (sixteen) figures. Each figure is obtained via a system of permutation, where at each one of four levels you can find one or two dots (or ‘taps’ in the book). Each figure is assigned with a different Latin name. So, the figure with the least number of taps, ‘Via’, has only four, where the one with the greatest number, ‘Populus’, has eight. All the possible permutations fall in between, and give birth to different shapes, each with a distinct set of meanings. Traditionally, the Reader would interpret one or several figures, or create a complex geomantic chart, via a long and complicated calculation, from which he derived the oracle, which was condensed in one figure (in some cases with a second added for clarity of interpretation). The Four Level model proposed by Les is a very interesting development under two aspects. First, he gives a very detailed and complete description of the traditional geomantic meanings (p. 58) which is very useful for those who prefer to adhere strictly to the canon. And along with that, he offers (p. 82) his model – this way, there is ample room for choosing one’s personal strategy on how to interpret the figures. Secondly, his model highlights the creative and insightful active role of the Reader (p. 74), in a way which is very near to Enrique Enriquez’s approach to the Tarot. Not to mention the excellent drawings (p. 63) which enable you to memorize the geomes (as Les calls the ‘figures’) names and shape in no time. The rationale of the interpretation of the geomes is extremely brilliant and intuitive –personally, being explained about this in a quarter an hour on Skype prior to reading the book, I offered a couple of brief readings the day after (limiting myself to this aspect of the model, of course). The core of the model is this easy to grasp! The astrological component and the gemstones The review of the main components of astrological lore is equally rigorous and interesting also for people not very versed in the matter. Les takes the reader by hand step-by-step, towards progressively deeper levels of information. He starts with a table (p. 12) which explains the meanings of the planets; a second table (p. 15) for the signs, and then a third and a fourth for the houses and the aspects. (pp. 17 and 24). If this appears to be a very complicated thing – rest assured: the planets and the signs are very easy to memorize. The houses follow naturally, also because you then have them printed on the casting table or cloth, and as for the aspects – they are completely intuitive. But here comes Les’s genius: the planets and the geomantic figure assigned to each one- are symbolized by a gemstone. This creates two very nice effects: Firstly, you don’t need to remember purely by heart the planet-geome connection – you look at the gem, and everything comes to mind at once. Secondly, you see physically two things – the house a stone is in, which gives you a third level of information, and the angle created between, say, two different houses, and this corresponds to the astrological aspect. And a fourth level of meaning has been added. But don’t underestimate one thing: the sheer beauty of the gemstones. One can also explain via a notepad the nature of the geome, one can use also different means to construct the geomes (explained in some very professional videos to which Les gives to purchasers of the book), but the gems on the table are in themselves a class apart when we come to discuss readings. They fascinate everybody. And in this oracle, more than in numerological readings with gems, they convey such an array of different meanings almost impossible to imagine till you understand completely the system. Pros and cons of the book The book is in itself a very beautiful object, very clearly printed, with plenty of explanatory tables which sum up the meanings of the different components of the system. This is where the book really stands up in a class very difficult to reach when we come to a multilevel model for readings of this depth. The reader is taken from a step to the following one in a very consequent manner, leaving nothing unexplained. You go through the astrological part, then the gemstones are introduced, then we come to the geomes, all in a continuous flow. At p. 105, we find a table which sums up the different tables encountered beforehand, and it enables the reader to check if s/he has clear in mind the structure of the system. This is repeated in an intelligent way in the Appendix (pp. 161-163), where we find also the detailed analysis (pp. 163-171) of the correspondences between the classical meanings and the Four Levels model. And from p. 107 to p. 152, a rich analysis of how to give different kinds of reading is proposed, which enable to bridge the gap between such a rich system and the possible doubts which could come to mind –‘yes, but now, how will I…’ Some readers may find a book containing the complete reading system to be too detailed, but Les has clearly marked out the concepts for experienced or advanced readers. The summary at the end of the book (pp. 159 to 161) tells you the key ideas you will get from the book. From the point of view of a reader who teaches as his day job, I can assure that I have seen on few occasions, and not only in the magic field, a wealth of information so rich and complex expressed in such an orderly manner, and with so great didactic competence. As a Reader, I’ve been fascinated by this book and the system proposed – in which I don’t find flaws of any kind. The reasons which explain my fascination are twofold: - This is an oracle which grants enormous freedom. You want to use only the geomantic figures? You can. You want to use the gemstones, but limiting yourself to the planets and the zodiac signs? Why not! You want to offer two-hour readings which take into account all the components of the system? You are welcome. And, in my opinion, this is very interesting for the professionals as well as the high-level amateur Readers; - Moreover, Les’s insistence on the active role of the Reader, his creativity, his insight, brings this system very far from ‘this happens – say that’ model of too many books on divination, making this contribution one of the more cultivated, mature and useful I’ve seen for a long time in this field.
'People who lean on logic and philosophy and rational exposition
end by starving the best part of the mind' -William Butler Yeats |
lucavolpe Inner circle Italy - London 3349 Posts |
Great review Daniel!
As Crystal Therapist, I have done in the past reading with crystals, only asking the sitter to chose three crystals from the pouch and then I have expanded the reading using the crystals on the Vitruvian Square. I am really intrigued by this work and I think is worth to have a look :)
Luca Volpe
"The Italian Mentalist" https://www.lulu.com/spotlight/lucavolpe http://www.lucavolpe.com |
Danyel Loyal user Italy 293 Posts |
Luca, upon my word!
This is a great cultural value and a terrific oracle. Les is a genius.
'People who lean on logic and philosophy and rational exposition
end by starving the best part of the mind' -William Butler Yeats |
lucavolpe Inner circle Italy - London 3349 Posts |
I know, Thomas (paralab) gave great appreciation to this work and I was already tempted to purchase long time ago...now, after your review, I am more tempted
Luca Volpe
"The Italian Mentalist" https://www.lulu.com/spotlight/lucavolpe http://www.lucavolpe.com |
ParaLabs - Thomas Special user 913 Posts |
So go for it, Luca!
This work is definitively inspiring and thought provoking - in addition to all the other qualities pf Les' work that Dan emphasized and that I already pointed out in my review of this book! Great review, Dan. In addition to your insights I like to hint at an aspect that is a great inherent quality of Les' work: Even if his methods, working steps and options are manifold, you can slim the system down easily so that you can perform a reading based on his system literally bare handed! You need nothing but your knowledge (whereby no memorization is needed once you understood the core system) and you can not only give a somewhat 'static' reading on the sitters situation - more than this you can describe development options and the potential 'evolution' of things in detail! So your reading will have a natural 'flow' and progress. This is where Les' system sets itself apart from many other systems I know. And - as I said - all this with the option to give a reading without any additional 'equipment': Neither the gem stones nor a casting cloth are compelling (as beautiful as they are), and you don't need a chart or something like this either. All those things can make your reading more visual if you want this as a matter of fact; or you can 'flesh it out' even more by applying those things, but they are not indispensable - and your reading will work perfectly anyway even without them. So the core system is as slim and practicable as can be, simply because you need nothing at all but your knowledge ... and a sitter. Cheers Th. |
mota Inner circle 1658 Posts |
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Danyel Loyal user Italy 293 Posts |
Thanks, mota -you give me the occasion to address another point.
I had already seen that review, and appreciated it for its insight and the evident specific knowledge. Where I do disagree are two points, one quite trivial, and one more serious. The former, the trivial one, is: I wouldn't advise to buy this book 'if you have the pocket change': a very unfortunate expression, which I find really derogatory if referred to a work like AGM. The latter -the more serious one: from what the author says, it is quite clear (and he describes himself as a 'traditionalist') that his point of view is a rather deterministic one. Now, we range -as readers- from those who take any 'sign' as 'the word' of the Powers, to those who trust only their own intuitive gift. Les' work situates itself in the middle -not resigning from the ancient tradition, but highlighting the importance of the active role of the reader. And I find that in a secularized world like the one in which we live this balance can talk to the souls of people much more than the Wizardly Word of the Roman Aruspex (who was *legitimated* as a social and cultural interpreter of the Mystery by its society, but who today would be seen as little more than a funny lunatic, his legitimation having faded away centuries ago.) It's a matter of personal choice, and -I repeat- I appreciated that review. But I also find that the point of view of its author brings him to underestimate the value of Les' contribution to the craft. Which, in my opinion, is extremely high.
'People who lean on logic and philosophy and rational exposition
end by starving the best part of the mind' -William Butler Yeats |
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