John
Dee: Born: London, 13 July 1527 -Died:
Mortlake, Surrey, Dec. 1608
1. Magicina, 2. Astrologer, 3. Alchemist, 4. Mathematician, 5.Philospher
(neoplatonic,
kabbalistic and hermetic).
 Facts: Worked
for Queen Elizabeth 1(1533-1603).
Contributed greatly to the revival of interest in mathematics in England.
Accused of Black magic, jailed, released in 1555.
Had a large library (over 4000 books) on witchcraft, the occult and magic.
Larges library of its kind in Europe.
Wrote 79 manuscripts but only a few were published.
Gave instruction and advice to pilots and navigators who were exploring
the New World.
Was married three times and had eight children.
Met Edward Kelley, an Irishman who had lost his ears for forgery. kalley
became his medium and an uneasy relationship developed. Although he remained
in favour with Queen Elizabeth I, Dee, along with Kelley and their wives
and servants, were forced out of England when the clergy began preaching
against magical activities. A mob destroyed much of Dee's valuable library
of books.
In 1595 Kelley was imprisoned by Emperor Rudolf II at Prague for wizardry
and sorcery. Kelley died in an escape attempt.
 Elizabeth
made him warden of Christs College in Manchester in 1595.
Elizabeth died in 1603 and her successor James 1 opposed magic.
Dee was forced to retire to Mortlake, Surrey. He died in 1608, two years
before the first Rosicrucian manifesto, the Fama Fraternitatis, began
to circulate in 1610.
Dee was described by his biographer, John Aubry, as "a beaten old man
with 'a long beard as white as milke, tall and slender, who wore a gowne
with hanging sleves' . He earned a pittance telling fortunes and even
sold his beloved books, one by one, in order to eat."
- Visions and Prophesies
Legends: 1. Consulted mediums in his attempts
to communicate with spirits. 2. Only communicated with angels.
No interest in Black Magic. 3. Interpreted his own dreams. 4. Wrote Shakespeare's
works.
 "Before
we raise our eyes to heaven, kabbalistically illuminated by the
contemplation of these mysteries, we could perceive very exactly
the constitution of our Monad as it is shown to us not only in
the LIGHT but also in life and nature, for it discloses explicitly,
by its inner movement, the most secret mysteries of this physical
analysis." John Dee, Theorem XVIII
"...In Dee's most Hermetic work, the Monas Hieroglyphica, (One Hieroglyph), published
in Antwerp in 1564, Dee believed he had found a 'hieroglyph', a hitherto hidden
'symbol' which contained in its form the very unifying principle of reality.
It is a kind of micro-chip which contains within it all the most elementary principles
of the universe. It is to be contemplated upon and fixed in memory as an archetype
applicable to all studies. But what is it? If one can imagine a great ocean of
prima materia which we may call in this context 'spirit', a pure unformed, undirected,
unmoving, unmoved homogenous world, then we see the beginning of the universe.
If a hand were to, as it were, drop the Monas Hieroglyphica into that ocean of
potentials, the materia prima would immediately start forming itself into the
universe we imagine we know." - Tobias Churton, The Gnostics
"Dee and Kelley recorded hundreds of spirit conversations, including...an angelic
language called Enochian, composed of non-English letters, but which computer
analysis has recently shown to have a curious grammatical relationship to English." -
Terence McKenna, The Archaic Revival
"Many magicians assert that the Enochian language predates all human languages.
Gerald J. Schueler is widely considered one of the foremost experts on Enochian
magick. Mr. Schueler states that Enochian magick is 'the powerful system of Magick
used by Aleister Crowley, and the Golden Dawn, and of the The Necronomicon, to
contact intelligences from other dimensions'." - Parker Ryan, "Necronomicon
Info Source"
|
