In this episode I sit down with Aidan for a wide-ranging conversation that starts with a personal catch-up and somehow takes us into animism, anarchism, mutual aid, sustainability and the possibility of creating a very different kind of society. Now this was recorded a few month ago (I've had a lot of life admin!) so some of the work Aidan mentions is out of date but you can find his latest offerings on his Patreon, the links to which are in the show notes.Aidan talks about his forthcoming book, Spirit and Stone: Animism in the Old Lines, his trance courses and his recent work within the pagan and occult community. From there, we get into the bigger questions about where we are as a society — and where we might go from here.We talk about Aidan’s After the Fall project and the idea of imagining a future beyond what he describes as “empire”: a society based more on care, cooperation and shared resources, rather than accumulation, scarcity and authoritarian power.We explore animism and mutual aid, community gardens, food sharing and the informal networks that already exist around us. We ask whether cooperation might actually be more fundamental to human and ecological life than the competitive model we've been taught to accept.We also get into some difficult territory. Why do people continue defending systems they know aren't working? Why have we tied so much of our identity and self-worth to money, work and material success? And how do we respond to scarcity, polarisation and the concentration of power without simply reproducing the same structures we're trying to move beyond?For me, one of the most interesting parts of this conversation is the question of whether we can actually imagine something different and whether imagining it is the first step towards making it possible.From ancestral “old lines” and trance work to permaculture, mutual aid and alternative ways of organising society, this is a conversation about awakening, resilience and the long, often difficult process of creating change, one person, one community and one generation at a time.Show notes:https://www.patreon.com/cw/aidanwachterKeep in touch?https://linktr.ee/darraghmason

In this episode, I sit down with Miss Vendredi as she shares what it feels like to watch a war unfold in real time in the place she calls home. It’s been less than two weeks since the conflict began, and she describes the surreal, disorienting experience of seeing her own city appear on international news—under attack. Her family and friends are safe for now, but the emotional weight of constant alerts, uncertainty, and distance is immense.

As we talk, it becomes clear that this didn’t begin with the first strike. Miss Vendredi tells me about the disturbing dreams and impressions she experienced in the weeks leading up to the conflict—something she connects to her ongoing work with the jinn. Normally, these spirits communicate in subtle, emotional currents, but lately, she says, that contact has become chaotic, urgent, almost frantic. It mirrors the state of the world itself.

We move between the personal and the global. With tensions rising across multiple regions, Miss Vendredi is planning a group ritual for her community—an act of protection, maybe even resistance. From there, we get into the structure of jinn society: kings, elders, vast tribal networks, and their deep ties to land and culture.

We talk about the fae, about taboos and bargains, and how different cultures describe strikingly similar encounters with non-human intelligences. From changelings in rural Ireland to jinn encounters across the Muslim world, the patterns are hard to ignore.

Toward the end, Miss Vendredi opens up about how her own practice has shifted. She’s moved into more specialised work and tells me about strange warnings she believes she received before all of this began.

This conversation moves through grief, fear, folklore, and spirit contact—but underneath it all is a single, uneasy feeling: that something is happening not just in our world, but alongside it.
Show notes:
remedialmagickalmentorship@gmail.com
Miss Vendredi’s Pharaohs Club : https://buymeacoffee.com/mademoisellev

Keep in touch?https://linktr.ee/darraghmason

What happens when you take ceremonial magic out of the ritual room and into the fields? This week I sat down once again with Todd Elliott, author of the newly released The Cunning Farmer: Agrarian Magical Practices, Mythology, and Folklore, to explore the rich intersection of esoteric tradition and working the land.

Todd shares his journey from urban life to farming in Kentucky, where over nearly three decades he has woven together Western ceremonial magic, astrology, animism, and shamanic practice into a living, breathing spiritual path rooted in the soil. Drawing on the cunning folk of 17th-century Britain, the folklore collected by James Frazer and Alexander Carmichael, and the philosophical traditions of Hermeticism and Neoplatonism, Todd has developed a uniquely eclectic approach to land-based magic that is both historically grounded and deeply personal.

Together we dig into how astrology and magic actually work, the role of spirits and consciousness in the natural world, and why restoring a sense of the sacred to agriculture matters more than ever. Todd also shares stories of ancient Adena mounds and Paleo-Indian arrowheads found on his own land, and reflects on what it means to work with the spirits of a place with respect and reverence.

Whether you're a seasoned practitioner or simply curious about the magical traditions woven into our relationship with nature, this is a conversation you won't want to miss.

Show notes:

The Cunning Farmer is available now.
https://thecunningfarmer.substack.com

Keep in touch?https://linktr.ee/darraghmason