Post #13. The Angelic Conversations: John Dee, Edward Kelley, and the Enochian Keys

 

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"The angels speak in a language older than Babel, and London trembles at their words."

In the shadowed chambers of Mortlake, just outside London's ancient boundaries, two men sat before a crystal sphere that would forever change the course of Western occultism. Dr John Dee, Queen Elizabeth's most trusted advisor, and Edward Kelley, a mysterious scryer with a dark past, were about to receive communications they believed came directly from the angelic realm.

What emerged from their sessions between 1582 and 1587 was the Enochian system—a complete magical language, cosmology, and ritual practice that would influence occultists for centuries to come.

But these were no mere scholarly exercises. The angelic conversations that took place in Dee's Mortlake library were part of a larger work to transform London itself into a vessel for divine power, preparing the city for its role as the centre of a new spiritual empire that would span the globe.

John Dee & Edward Kelly

The Crystal and the Vision

Edward Kelley arrived at Dee's door in 1582, claiming abilities as a scryer—one who could see visions in crystal balls and other reflective surfaces. Dee, despite his vast learning and mathematical genius, lacked this particular gift. He had spent years attempting to communicate with angels through various methods, but his efforts had yielded only frustration.

Kelley's arrival seemed like divine providence. The crystal they used was no ordinary stone. Known as the "Dee Shewstone," this obsidian mirror was allegedly brought from Mexico by Spanish conquistadors and was said to have been used by Aztec priests for divination. The mirror now resides in the British Museum, but those who have studied it closely report an unsettling quality—as if something still watches from within its dark surface.

During their sessions, Kelley would gaze into the crystal while Dee carefully recorded everything the scryer reported seeing and hearing.

What emerged was a complex cosmology involving multiple angelic hierarchies, detailed descriptions of heavenly realms, and, most remarkably, an entirely new language that the angels claimed was the tongue spoken before the confusion of Babel.

The Enochian Language: The Tongue of Angels

The language that emerged from these sessions was unlike anything previously recorded in magical literature. The angels called it "Enochian" after the biblical patriarch Enoch, who was said to have walked with God and been taken up to heaven without dying. This was not a simple cypher or code, but a complete language with its own grammar, syntax, and vocabulary.

The angels dictated the language in a peculiar manner. Rather than speaking words sequentially, they would present entire tablets of letters, which had to be read backwards, from right to left, bottom to top. This reverse method of transmission was said to prevent the premature activation of the magical formulas contained within the language itself.

Some of the most powerful Enochian calls begin with phrases like:

"Ol sonf vorsg, goho Iad Balt, lansh calz vonpho..."

Which translates roughly to: "I reign over you, says the God of Justice, in power exalted above the firmaments..."

Modern linguistic analysis has revealed that Enochian possesses characteristics of a genuine language, with consistent grammatical structures and a vocabulary that follows logical patterns. This has led some scholars to suggest that Kelley was either a linguistic genius capable of creating a complete artificial language, or that something genuinely otherworldly was occurring in Dee's Mortlake study.

The Great Table and the Watchtowers

The angels didn't merely provide a language—they revealed an entire cosmological system. Central to this was the "Great Table," a massive grid of letters that served as a map of the spiritual universe. This table was divided into four sections, each corresponding to one of the cardinal directions and governed by a different set of angelic beings.

Each section contained what the angels called a "Watchtower"—a spiritual fortress from which angelic forces could observe and influence the material world. The Watchtower of the East was associated with Air and communication, the South with Fire and energy, the West with Water and emotion, and the North with Earth and material manifestation.

But here's where the London connection becomes crucial: the angels specifically instructed that these Watchtowers were to be established in the physical world, with London serving as the central point from which their influence would radiate. The city's position at the intersection of major ley lines made it the ideal location for anchoring these spiritual forces in the material realm.

Dee's detailed maps of London, created during this period, show the city divided into sections that correspond exactly to the Enochian Watchtowers. The Tower of London occupied the position of the Eastern Watchtower, Westminster the Southern, the area around what would become Buckingham Palace the Western, and the northern heights of Hampstead the Northern Watchtower.

The Angelic Hierarchy and London's Spiritual Government

The angels revealed a complex hierarchy that was to govern not just the spiritual realm, but the earthly kingdom as well. At the top were the "Heptarchia Mystica"—seven angelic kings who ruled over the days of the week and the planetary spheres. Below them were numerous princes, ministers, and lesser angels, each with specific duties and areas of influence.

What's remarkable is how closely this angelic hierarchy mirrored the structure of Elizabeth's court. The angels spoke of earthly kings and queens as their representatives, and made it clear that Elizabeth's reign was part of a divine plan to establish a new spiritual order with London at its centre.

The angel Uriel, who served as the primary communicator, explicitly stated that England was chosen to be the launching point for a new age of spiritual enlightenment that would eventually encompass the entire world. The expansion of English influence through trade and colonisation was not merely political or economic—it was a sacred mission to spread the angelic teachings to every corner of the earth.

The Spiritual Exercises and Ritual Practices

The angels didn't just provide theoretical knowledge—they gave detailed instructions for practical magical work. These included elaborate rituals for invoking angelic presence, methods for travelling in spirit to the various heavenly realms, and techniques for gaining knowledge of hidden things.

The most powerful of these was the "Spiritual Exercises," a series of visions that took Dee and Kelley on guided tours through the angelic realms. During these sessions, they claimed to visit the courts of the angelic kings, witness the creation of the world, and receive prophecies about the future of England and the world.

One particularly significant vision involved a tour of London as it would appear in the future, transformed into a city of crystal and light where angels walked openly among humans. The Thames was shown flowing with liquid light, and the major buildings of the city were revealed to be physical anchors for spiritual forces that extended far beyond the material plane.

The Dark Turn: Kelley's Doubts and the Wife-Swapping Revelation

As the angelic conversations continued, they took an increasingly disturbing turn. The angels began making demands that tested the limits of Dee's faith and Kelley's willingness to continue. The most shocking of these was the command that Dee and Kelley should share their wives in common, as this would create a spiritual bond necessary for the completion of their work.

This revelation came through the angel Madimi, who appeared as a young girl but spoke with authority about the most intimate aspects of human relationships. The angel claimed that the conventional bonds of marriage were obstacles to spiritual advancement and that the two men needed to transcend such earthly attachments to receive the highest angelic teachings.

Kelley was horrified by this command and began to express doubts about the source of their communications. He suggested they might be dealing with demons rather than angels, and that the entire enterprise was leading them toward damnation rather than enlightenment.

Dee, however, was convinced of the divine nature of their work and eventually persuaded Kelley to comply with the angelic command. The wife-swapping arrangement was implemented, but it created a tremendous strain in both households and marked the beginning of the end of their partnership.

The European Exile and the Emperor's Court

In 1583, the angels commanded Dee and Kelley to leave England and travel to the court of Emperor Rudolf II in Prague. This journey was presented as necessary for the completion of their work, as the emperor was said to be destined to play a crucial role in the establishment of the new spiritual order.

The years in Europe were marked by both triumph and disaster. At Rudolf's court, they gained access to the greatest alchemical library in Europe and worked alongside other renowned magicians and natural philosophers. They claimed to have successfully performed the alchemical transmutation of base metals into gold, and their reputation spread throughout the courts of Europe.

However, the relationship between Dee and Kelley continued to deteriorate. Kelley became increasingly erratic and violent, at one point attacking Dee with a knife during a disagreement about the interpretation of an angelic message. The scryer also began claiming that he, rather than Dee, was the actual recipient of the angelic revelations and should be recognised as the leader of their work.

The Return to London and the Legacy

Dee returned to London in 1589, leaving Kelley behind in Bohemia, where the scryer would eventually die in prison after being arrested for practising illegal alchemy. Dee found his Mortlake library ransacked and his reputation in ruins. The new generation of courtiers viewed him as an embarrassing relic of the previous reign, and his claims about angelic communications were dismissed as the delusions of an ageing scholar.

But the seeds planted during the angelic conversations had already taken root in London's spiritual soil. The Enochian system would be preserved in Dee's meticulously kept diaries, and would eventually be rediscovered by later generations of occultists who recognised its power and significance.

The Golden Dawn would make Enochian magic central to their advanced teachings, and Aleister Crowley would claim that the Enochian calls were the most potent magical formulas ever devised. Modern practitioners continue to work with the system, and many report that the angels described by Dee and Kelley are still accessible through the proper use of the Enochian keys.

The Enochian Influence on London's Development

The impact of the angelic conversations extended far beyond the realm of occult practice. The vision of London as a centre of global spiritual influence, received during the Enochian sessions, would prove remarkably prophetic. The city's subsequent rise to become the capital of a worldwide empire, the centre of global finance, and a hub of international communication seems to follow the pattern laid out in the angelic revelations.

The specific locations in London that were identified as Watchtower positions during the angelic conversations would later become sites of enormous political and economic power.

The Tower of London remained the symbolic heart of royal authority, Westminster became the centre of parliamentary government, the area around Buckingham Palace became the focus of royal ceremonial, and the northern heights continued to be associated with intellectual and spiritual pursuits.

Even the layout of modern London reflects the Enochian cosmology. The city's expansion followed patterns that corresponded to the angelic hierarchies described in Dee's diaries, with different areas developing characteristics that matched their assigned spiritual functions.

The Continuing Mystery

The true nature of what occurred in Dee's Mortlake study remains one of the great mysteries of Western occultism. Were Dee and Kelley genuinely in contact with angelic beings, or was the entire enterprise an elaborate fraud perpetrated by Kelley for personal gain? Was the Enochian language a divine revelation or the product of Kelley's remarkable linguistic creativity?

What cannot be disputed is the profound influence that the angelic conversations had on subsequent occult development and, more subtly, on London's evolution as a centre of global power. The vision of the city as a spiritual nexus, capable of projecting influence worldwide, has proven remarkably accurate.

Modern practitioners of Enochian magic report that the system remains as powerful today as it was in Dee's time. The angels described in the conversations are said to be still accessible, still willing to communicate with those who approach them with the proper knowledge and preparation.

And in the depths of London's financial district, in the corridors of political power, and in the hidden chambers where modern occultists gather, the influence of those long-ago conversations continues to shape the city's destiny. The angels may have spoken in a language older than Babel, but their words continue to echo through the streets of London, guiding the city toward a future that was glimpsed in crystal visions over four centuries ago.

The Enochian keys remain locked away in archives and private collections, but their power has not diminished. London continues to serve as the earthly anchor for forces that extend far beyond the material world, just as the angels promised it would.

The great work begun in Mortlake continues, and the city itself remains the most potent magical instrument ever created by human hands, guided by angelic wisdom toward purposes that may not be fully revealed until the end of time itself.

Next in our series: "The Enochian Magic System: Decoding the Language of Angels" - where we explore the practical applications of the magical system revealed to Dee and Kelley, and its continuing influence on London's occult underground.

Solomon Jones (Author/Researcher)

Sources:

•British Library MS Sloane 3188 (Dee's Spiritual Diaries)

•Bodleian Library MS Ashmole 1790 (Kelley's Alchemical Notes)

•Casaubon, Meric. "A True & Faithful Relation of What passed for many Yeers between Dr John Dee and some spirits" (1659)

•Whitby, Christopher. "John Dee's Actions with Spirits" (1988)

•Laycock, Donald. "The Complete Enochian Dictionary" (1994)

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