Dragon Shaman Q&A Session 2

Time for round 2! You've sent in your questions, now it's time to have them answered! Remember, if you have questions, send me an email at papahooddeumbra@gmail.com with the subject line "Q&A Session Questions" and I'll take note of your submission. Not every question may get answered, but I'll do my best to answer everything as publicly as possible. And afterwards, if you do want to pursue dialogue on one of these, drop a comment or send me a message and we'll get into it.

Would you work for a gay, lesbian, bisexual or transexual client? -I would, and have. In fact, I have trained students of various identities and sexualities as well, and I have done work for people of various identities and sexualities. I am not concerned with how someone identifies or who they are interested in, nor is there any real reason for anyone to be concerned with this. The only time this has any impact in the occult is during sex Magick, which is generally written from a cis/het point of view and may need some modifications, and during certain initiations, dependent on tradition. For instance, in some Vodou communities, men are only initiated by men and women by women for certain reasons.

Is becoming a vampire in this world of illusion possible or not? -Generally speaking, no. No more than you can become a dolphin or a bear. There is supposedly a ritual that can do it, but even those who hold the ritual say that the effects are not the same as being born into the current.

Is physical transformation into an animal or plant possible in this world of illusion? -Not in my experience, but I'd pay good money to be proven wrong.

If a client asked you to perform a custom work on his behalf, that is IMPOSSIBLE to happen, then what would you do? -Turn them down. Impossible is impossible, and I reserve every right to turn down whomever or whichever request I so choose.

Would you work for a celebrity, government official, FBI agent, ex-convict, political leader or member of royalty? -If they paid.

If one of your student or apprentice would be convicted in prison, then would you continue working with him? -This is another nuanced question. It depends on why they went to prison.

Is it possible for angels to possess human bodies? -Sure. Just the same as any other spirit, angels can be invited to share your space.

If a client asked you to send a demon or spirit to possess him, then what would you do? -I would do nothing. I do not do such things for a number of reasons.

If the client would make a typo error in his details (name or date of birth), then could it ruin the ritual work? -Ruin? No. But it would make it substantially more difficult.

What would happen, if I were to use a mind control spell or ritual on myself? Could it help me to control my behaviour, personality and actions? -Yes. This is a common practice.

What would happen, if I were to use a curse or hex on myself? Could it kill a part of myself or remove negative things from myself? -There are more efficient ways to do this, and better avenues to take. Doing this would be foolish at best. But, technically, you could use a curse in such a way.

How can I empower a physical item with an attunement? -By sending the energy into it. Or, by following the instructions in the manual for the attunement.

Can I empower physical items with the contents of an Orb of Life? -Yes. You tell it what you want it to do, and it does it.

What happens if someone uses a fake persona for too long in a mystical connotation? Do they take on traits of it? What if the persona is gender different from the "public" self? -I have actually had this question many times over the years, in some form or another, due to the number of different personas I have assumed for various reasons. The simplest answer is, devoting time and energy to a persona creates a thoughtform, and if this is a public persona that others interact with, they feed into it and create an Egregore. Eventually, this Egregore can begin influencing you, taking over more of yourself. And yes, if you assume an identity that is different from your own, such as a woman creating a male persona, that energy can influence you and alter your energy as well. This is why a separation is necessary, or a grounding. The Dragon Shaman is perhaps my Pinnacle of achievement insofar as personas are concerned, as it has no name attached to it to give it a separate identity, and it is still rooted to me through being a surrogate for empowerments using my picture. But this is often why initiatory names are held in high regard- they are the energy you aspire to, so being given a powerful name will help you become someone powerful enough to have earned it.

I've hit a wall in my Magickal training. Could a spirit help? -Yes, as long as you are careful. Communication and pact work is often used for this reason, but you can't give up too much of yourself or you'll lose more than you gained.

I've noticed that you don't have targeted love spells or domination spells, why is that? -I used to offer these things, but I do not care for controlling another person. Plus, love Magick is ultimately slavery when it is used like that, regardless of the rationalizations you might use. I will use influencing Magick, but not domination. Aside from the ethical concerns, it's difficult to make it work, and it always eventually backfires. So I'd rather stick to lighter things.