Evocation

In RITUAL, the calling forth of a spirit, entity, or deity. The spirit may be either an external, independent force or the physical manifestation of a force within the magician. According to FRANCIS BARRETT, “gods and hierarchies of spirits may be reasonably supposed to be but previously unknown facets of our own consciousness.”

In magic, sorcery, and witchcraft, an evocation is a command to an entity to appear and do the bidding of the magician. In ceremonial magic, spirits are evoked to appear in a magic triangle outside the magician’s protective magic circle, lest they cause him harm.

Evocation is an elaborate ritual, and various procedures for it are detailed in the many magical grimoires.

• Before the ritual, the magician must map out exactly what he desires to accomplish and how he intends to do so.
• He must carefully choose the spirit or intelligence that he will summon to aid in the purpose of his work.
• He must know the ritual thoroughly and be able to perform it smoothly and flawlessly without break or pause.
• The magician purifies himself through fasting and prayer,clean garb,purifies his magical tools,and casts the circle and triangle.
• To evoke the spirit, he must have perfect knowledge of it and the purpose it is to serve.
• The correct sigils,perfumes,and names must be used.
• He must visualize the spirit, for once evoked, the spirit will reappear in the same form in subsequent evocations.
• The evocation comprises words and gestures with ritual tools.
• The magician speaks in a commanding tone of voice and may even shriek the evocation to intimidate unruly spirits.

Franz bardon said that evocation is the most difficult magic to understand. In his second book, The Practice of Magical Evocation (1956), he gives one of the first detailed public descriptions of evocation in the Western tradition. Bardon said that the powers of astral seeing and hearing— psychic senses of clairvoyance and clairaudience—are essential to evoking spirits. He said it does not matter where a spirit is evoked—triangle, magic mirror , fluid condenser—as long as the magician creates an artificial atmosphere akin to the environment of the spirit. The magician must transfer his consciousness into the atmosphere in order to be noticed by the spirit.