The Darkest of the Hillside Thickets
It is th’ art that constrains th’ rain to speak again
It is th’ art that pries open th’ hidden eyes
It is th’ art that makes bloom th’ rot-dead tree
& leaps th’ Hedge that never dies.
-The Resurrection of the Meadow
You've reached A World Unseen, the virtual home of Robin Artisson, noted mystic, hedge-crosser, folklorist, author, man of letters, herbalist and villainous troublemaker, formerly of New Orleans. This site has been created to act as an informational source for news on Robin's writing endeavors and his efforts to share his perspectives on the modern culture of traditional European and American occult wisdom-practices, the reconsideration and rebirth of traditional folk beliefs, and alternative spiritual worldviews.
The mysteries and lores of sorcery- extraordinary participation in matters of the unseen world- are Robin's main concern. Though long despised by mainstream cultures, sorcery and witchcraft have always existed on the fringes of European and American societies, as well as in various places in other societies worldwide. The modern day has afforded the world a chance to re-appraise the realities behind these important hidden institutions, and the persistence of ancient wisdom that they represent.
Sorcery and Witchcraft are two names for the same historical phenomenon- the art and craft of taming or befriending spiritual powers, and enlisting their aid to achieve specific goals- whether goals for the good or ill of people and places in this world, or goals of inner growth and wisdom. They are the oldest human spiritual practices, and they are the true core of the many tales of the "supernatural" that we have become so familiar with in the modern day. And they are never as far away as you may think.
Once Upon A Time...
Long ago, but not so long as most people in the West would like to believe, there were men and women about who were capable of extraordinary things- of seeing what others could not see, and healing their fellow man in mysterious ways. They were capable of seeing the world with different eyes from others. They spoke of the world they saw with those other eyes- a world full of hidden populations of non-human sentient beings, and of spiritual powers who were every bit as natural to this world as men or women. They knew the virtues of plants, the meanings of symbols, and could read signs in the movement of birds through the sky. They could speak to the dead; they could curse and hex, and even were reported to fly through the sky- for in the minds of those who sought them out for their services or guidance, these sorcerous people were liberated in ways that far transcended what other people could (or in some cases should) manage.
These wise people of Not-So-Long-Ago told their own stories of mystical powers, stories which were continuations of earlier traditions of sorcerous word-craft. Their stories were intended to awaken others to subtle realities that affect us all, and to help them (and us) to live more wisely. In some cases, in some places, their stories are still with us, though we perceive their meanings dimly, if at all. It is we who have forgotten how to listen. We have also forgotten that once, our world wasn't so empty of the extraordinary and mystical as it appears to be now. Where we once lived alongside beings who dwelled under hills and in forests, beings who inhabited rivers, wells, and springs, now we just see empty spaces. This is the curse of our day- thanks to our lost senses, we are alone in more than one way.
They Might Still Live Happily Ever After
Alongside our neatly organized world and our tidy, limited minds is the presence of something extraordinary. The vastness of our world cannot be trapped and explained away, no matter how much it may please us to think so- and most people still feel strongly attracted to reports of the "supernatural" and to "unexplained phenomenon". For some, it is a passing interest, a hobby; for others, it is the cornerstone of their hope that life contains more than they've seen, or been taught to expect. Our love affair with things occult and hidden isn't a flaw in our thinking; it is what remains of an older wisdom, an older experience of this world that showed us boundless depths of mystery and inter-relatedness. It was an experience that we remember now as "magic". Its power has been passed down to us in traditional stories, odd folk-customs, and folklore.
The sorcerers and storytellers of old weren't wrong- there is an unseen world, an amazing world out there, just at the edge of our senses, and it contains the hidden seeds of all that we see or do "here", in our "everyday" world. Our chance at wholeness and peace has nothing to do with successfully negotiating the limited perspectives of science and religion as they are so well known today; it has everything to do with getting back to the source of our cultures and to the source of our lives, peeling away the layers of confusion that have become calcified as "dogma" and thoughtless habits of perspective. That hidden source is the secret "golden theme" that all true myths and folk-tales are pointing to, the "philosopher's stone" of the wise.
This path is long and passes over oceans and through valleys and forests of mythical proportions- unseen landscapes that never give us a moment of certainty or peace, until we consent to become comfortable with the unknown. We have to be comfortable with the unknown, for in that vastness, we see our true origins. And then, the promise of sorcery- the promise of extraordinary ways of living and consciously affecting the worlds that are seen and unseen- becomes real. This isn't all wonderful fluffy faery-tale material- both the human soul and those worlds have their bright radiance and their unutterable darkness. Getting to know them both "again for the first time" is part of the gift of sorcery and wisdom. Maybe this time we'll get it right.
Or perhaps Fate has other plans, and the story will go on to more chapters of confusion. Either way, the truly cunning people of this world- the mystics who always stay close to the heart of things- will be the ones who turn the pages and write in secret themes and subversive messages intended to wake us up. And the world will still be waiting.