psychedelics | The Blog of Baphomet

In the season of Leo there is a delicious warmth in the air. Some days are bright, bold and blue, their horizons punctuated with towering Jupiterian thunder clouds. On others the breeze caresses the river reeds into sibilant susurrations as they sway beneath the sultry west country skies. High summer is here.

This time of the academic summer holiday is one I feel fully entitled to embrace, having finally finished another book which Psychedelic Press will release this autumn:

Trip Sitting is your essential guide to supporting safe, meaningful psychedelic journeys. Informed by cutting-edge science and extensive real-world experience, this book offers practical insights into the skills, techniques, and mindset that every effective trip sitter needs.

From preparing the space and setting the tone, to navigating the journey and supporting successful integration, Trip Sitting takes a holistic approach to care. With a strong foundation in ethics and practical experience this guide will help you hold space with clarity, confidence, and compassion, maximising the benefits and minimising the risks when exploring these magical medicines.

Whether you’re already working with psychedelics or preparing to hold space for yourself or others, Trip Sitting is a valuable resource. With a focus primarily on one-to-one sessions, its principles and practices can be adapted to a variety of contexts, from small group settings to personal journeys. This book is equally useful for those seeking a safe and effective psychedelic experience, offering clear guidance on what good practice looks like and how to recognize a trustworthy setting.

Foreword by Julie Holland, MD

* PRE-ORDER NOW! Out September 2025 *

Music is an important part of my life and I celebrate being born in a time when so much amazing recorded music is available so easily. As a great fan of analogue electronic music — the first album I ever bought was Rubycon by Tangerine Dream — I’ve been enjoying the work of Caught in Joy, a prolific composer whose music can be found on both Bandcamp and YouTube. Being able to support content creators whose work I enjoy directly is also a real blessing. I’ve recently subscribed to the Patreon of Justin Sledge who is a real treasure in the scholarship of the western esoteric tradition and allied currents. Do check out his work if you’re not familiar with it.

Later this year I’ll be back in teaching mode with classes hosted by Treadwell’s Books, The College of Psychic Studies and Morbid Anatomy. I’ll also be available for one-to-one mentoring sessions, just message me for details.

A History of Chaos Magic – a lecture linked to the publication of This is Chaos edited by Peter J. Carroll, which includes my essay Chemognosis Redux, is on Tuesday 16 September. (All these session are live online and also offer the chance to catch up with the recording.)

I’ll also be lecturing on Cannabis in Magical Practice on Tuesday 30th of September and then on Sexual Magics on the 16th of October.

I’m teaching with Treadwell’s The Magical Qabalah on the 11th and 18th of November and participants on that course will also get access to the set of audio pathworkings which I’ve been working on over the last three years.

Then on the 4th and 11th of December we’ll be exploring Trancing in the Dark.

Check out the teaching I’m doing on the Qabalah, the Thoth Tarot and Samhain with The College of Psychic Studies here, and my two part Morbid Anatomy workshop on Crowley and his channelled text The Book of the Law.

I’ll be speaking at the wonderful Occulture conference in Berlin in October, hope to see you there!

I’ll also be speaking at the online Earth, Sea and Sky Conference on the Role of Fungi in Magic on the 8th of November and in-person in Cornwall on the 9th of October at the Penzance Pagan Moot, and in Wales on the 18th of October as part of the Annual magic and witchcraft conference 2025.

Expect too more films from My Magical Thing, the charming and instructive pandemic side-project of mine that refuses to die, I think I’ve done more than 100 episodes to date!

Right that’s enough for now, back to reading the excellent book by my friend — and My Magical Thing participant — Rupert Callender What Remains: Life, Death and the Human Art of Undertaking and enjoying the sunshine in my garden which right now is full of flowers.

Wishing you many Blessings,

Julian

XxX

Living in the northern hemisphere, in the British Isles, as we head towards Midsummer there is so much light! As I write this it’s 9:30pm on the 19th of June and the sky is still blue with the longest of twilights.

Spring, with its blossom and bluebells, gives way to the branching white heads of umbellifers and the yellow glow of St John’s Wort as we reach the height of the year. The floral gems of Sedum acre, also known as ‘biting stonecrop’, – from its habit of growing low across almost bare rock – are scattered over the ground at Midsummer. Its habit of growing in luxurious patches over stone gives rise to an alternative name for this vibrantly coloured plant, ‘golden carpet’. The ones shown here are from a little spot beside the river where I like to practice my Qigong.

I’ve been pulling back on some of my work, or at least trying to, so I can focus on doing more writing, I’m currently about 13k words into a new book project. That said, there’s still plenty of cool things planned over the next few months that I wanted to share with you…

One big project that reaches its next stage this year is the release of more of my Magical Qabalistic pathworkings with Treadwell’s Books. These guided audio journeys through the tarot paths and sephira of the Tree of Life are designed to work even if you only know a little Qabalistic symbolism, while those more familiar the Tree will be able to appreciate the rich iconography woven into the pieces. Each journey is built using a carefully crafted blend of spoken word and original soundscapes, using contemporary and cross-cultural imagery to make the Qabalistic system really accessible. There is some challenging material here; these are not a series of easy-going well being meditations. Unsurprisingly the path of The Tower and sphere of Geburah include some challenging material. My intention has been to provide a deep and, at times, intense set of practices which can be used multiple times. I’m planning eventually to produce guided audio journeys for every sphere and path of the Tree of Life.

The first group of pathworkings are already available here and I’ll be teaching a two-part workshop which will sit alongside the new audio tracks that are due be released in the autumn. If you’ve never explored the Qabalah before these workshops will give you an easy introduction to the system, while experienced practitioners will discover new ways to think about and connect with the various zones of the Tree.

I’ll also be teaching sessions on The Magick of Aleister Crowley and Knowledge & Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel online, and presenting two in-person events at Treadwell’s for those who are able make it to London in September, The Magic of Sound and Vision and Psychedelic Magic.

Another big project, this time with The College of Psychic Studies, is the first London exhibition from The Order of the Sun and Moon (OSM). Kate Southworth, Greg Humphries and I will be showing our magical artworks at the College from the 30th of August until the 27th of September. We’re also doing some in-person esoteric art workshops and a group ceremony on the opening weekend. And before that we’re inviting you to a free online event where we’ll be sharing some of our practice, including a preview of some of the artworks we’ll be showing in London. In February 2025 OSM will be exhibiting again in St.Ives, Cornwall to coincide with a show at the Tate gallery, St Ives of work by the occultist, artist and esoteric founder of the Order, Ithell Colquhoun.

I’m going to be doing additional workshops with the College later in this year – see my listings on their site for details – which will include a deep-dive, eight-part course on the Eight Colours of Chaos Magic in theory and, most importantly, practice.

Finally, I’m proud to be a member of The Fellowship of Psychonauts; we offer multidisciplinary teaching in psychedelic space holding, with a focus on an apprenticeship model and practical skills development. Our next psychedelic ceremonial retreat in the Netherlands will be held in October this year, from the 9th to the 15th, with additional sessions before and after the retreat providing a six month training program. This program is for people who already have some psychedelic experience, and want to broaden and deepen their space-holding practice. It’s also for those who want to get a better understanding of ceremony, and to have an opportunity to explore what other roles they might be suited to within the wider psychedelic community. To find out more and register your interest click here.

The sun stands still, the tide of the year changes. I wish my friends in the northern hemisphere a bright Midsummer, and a cosy Midwinter for my friends in the south.

From the heights of the heavens, to the depths of the earth, we are one heart, connected.

Sending blessings to you all from sunny Devon!

Julian