Here's a combined sex/history/literary/occult/etc
item for you.  (Gotta figure out how to cross-list
this.)  Have any of you had the pleasure of reading
the memoirs of Casanova?  The abridged edition is
but a thin folio, but the unexpurgated (and illustrated)
version runs several volumes. In it an eloquent 18th
century libertine relates his life and loves.  All
this is done after the fact while he is in retirement 
as a librarian at (I believe) the house of a noble in 
Prussia.

Details of mores of 18th century Europe are well covered.
He even describes 18th century condoms when he's having
relations with a nun.  (Yes, I said a nun.  He started out
in the Church, you know.)  He also dabbles in the Cabala and
uses it to swindle two rich merchants.  (He's eventually
imprisoned for possesion of occult books.  His escape from
prison is also described.)

If anyone hasn't read this and would like, I'll see if
I can't find out if it's still in print.

76 responses total.

This is now linked from Sexuality #65 to Synthesis #39.

Thanks!  Now I'll have to figure out which volume
covered his involvement with the Cabala.  I tend
to think that he tapered off a bit after he
was imprisoned for posession of "heretical works".

Albeit interesting, how *is* this connected to Synthesis.
Just curious.

It's connected to Synthesis in that it mentions a fair
amount of 18th century European occultism.  Besides
the mention of the cabala, there is at least one
incident where Casanova is the intended target of
a bit of sympathetic magic of the.  He also tries a
bit of it himself in an attempt to curry favor with
a certain lady.  These sorts of things are scattered
throughout the volumes of the set.

I found it interesting to hear of some of the beliefs
that were extant at that time directly from the pen
on one who had lived then.  However, this item is
more of historical then current interest.  

Of course I do wonder if there are any cabalists out there.
Supposedly Casanova learned his background in the Cabala
from a relation of a Jewish friend.  I've read a bit
about Jewish mysticism, but I've really no formal background.
This might be an interesting topic for another thread.

Speaking of Qabalists...where's Robh theses days...

"You say Qabala, I say Cabala, let's call the whole thing off..."
Oops.  I wax musical.  I didn't know Robh was versed in this
area.

Well I've heard rumors...
Robh, are you out there??

No!  I'm not!  I was at work when you entered those responses.
Sorry, I realize my folly, I'm going to quit my job and spend
the entire day sitting in front of my computer, instead
of just four or five hours.

Yep, I'm a Qabalist.

good job rob you should.
<grin>

well, then, could you explain (briefly, if that's possible) to those
of us who grew uf sheltered catholics?

a sheltered catholic? no....

yes...   <sigh>

Sure, if someone wants to start up a Qabalah item in Synthesis,
so we can stop flooding the Sex conference with this discussion.

So what about this Casanova guy?

Casanova dabbled in the Qabalah.  In his case, I'm afraid he
used it for dishonest means.  However, there are accounts
of him succeeding in one ceremony beyond his wildest dreams.
This made him a bit timid in further experimentation.
As I mentioned earlier, he was also imprisoned in the
Tuilleries (sp?) or lead-works for possession of manuscripts
that the Inquisition considered heretical.  These were
likely texts on the Qabalah.  I second Rob's motion about
starting a second thread on this in Synthesis.  You don't
generally hear much about the Qabalah and others might
like to know its history.

all right, see you in synthesis
(that's a third, and call for vote...)

ug, i love reading this item on SEXUALITY and on SYNTHESIS. so, why is it on
sex again?

Casanova?  You know, guy who had lots and lots of sex?

Okay.  Rob, could you please unlink this again.  Since we've
started off on different tangents now, these individual threads
can probably go off on their own.  I just wanted to get the
conversational ball rolling in two different areas.  Thanks!

re: #8-  Rob, I believe that's why the Rabbis would only teach Kabala to a
married man over fourty; because he had enough responsibility and grounding
in reality not to get so caught up in playing mind-fuck (oops I mean in 
pondering intricacies) that he'd forget such minutae as food, sleep and work.
Speaking of which, what am I doing here at this hour?  Sigh.

Hey, when I was in abstract math I used to enjoy pondering "intricacies"!
(Abstract math is kind of like the Kabala, but far less grounded in reality.)

um, i agree.

BLASPHEEMER, YOU SPEAK THE EVIL WORD HERE...
I'm a little emotional about m...ma...mmmmmmmmath....ugh.

Yes, it started to affect me that way, too.  I'm better now...

Michael reads math texts for fun, and chortles over problem sets.  Sick man.

Sometimes I still do that.  But thanks to MA (mathematicians
annoymous), I can call a counselor and talk about something mindless
for a few minutes...Listening to political speeches sometimes
has the same affect...

sick, sick, sick! 
Did I tell you I just picked up a copy of Claude Levi-Strauss's _The Naked
Man_, and I'm figuring to get a book or two by Georges Dumezil, to compare
the dualism of the former with the triads of the latter, as well as the
organization of myth in Reeses' _Celtic Heritage_, to look at ways of 
breaking down and interpreting cosmology.  Don't know how long it will take
to get through it all.  So I need to think about who's calling whom nuts <g>

I'm sorry, but you'll have to be married and over 40 before you
tackle all that...

why is this item still in SEXUALITY? i dont wanna read it twice, and its more
fit for synthesis. although i suppose its exposing sex fiends everywhere to
paganism...

I'm gonna freeze this item in Sexuality, if anyone in the Sex
conference wants to discuss Casanova and his exploits, please
enter a new item.

So, now that we're off on our own, how about talking about the
Cabala/Qabala/Kabalah a bit?  My knowledge of this is quite
rusty since I last read about this about ten years ago.
From what I recall, the idea was a geometric (at least I
saw it laid out that way) representation of different
sephiroth (I might be forgetting the terminology) representing
the kingdom of God (that's capital 'G' as in the OT one).
I also remember correspondence with different angels, planets,
and metals, but that might have been ceremonial magicians
modifications of the original idea.  So now that I've hoplessly
mangled all this, could someone sum up the Qabalah in a few
thousand words or less?

time for some awe inspiring ascii art, anyone?  Not me, sorry.

i'd love to, but i don't know anything about it.  (if you'll remember.
about halfway back up the item, i asked for an explaination)
<dang chidingly reminds them that some here want to learn>
;)

Remind me after June 13th, between Robh and me, I expect we can do a quicky
overview of the Cabalistic Tree of Life and some of the other places it 
shows up (tarot, for example).

Sounds great.  (Of course the tarot could be a discussion unto itself.
Well, maybe after we've covered the cabala.)  Incidentally, this ASCII
mode stuff leaves a bit to be desired.  I don't know about the rest
of you, but I wouldn't mind a few reasonably sized PCX, GIF, TIFF, BMP,
etc. files to illustrate some of these discussions.  If anyone's
artistically inclined or has material that may be freely distributed,
I'd like to see it.

um...kami?  it's july 1st now, could you explain it for me?

She probably meant July 13th.  >8)

Actually, I can probably find an ASCII Itz Chaim somewhere on the
Net.  I'll check for it later.

I meant July 13th.  Haven't left yet.  Michael says if I draw something, he
can convert it to GIF and maybe some of the other formats.  No promises, 
though.  I'd sooner someone else did that part.  See ya!

hmm...it is waaaay past July 13th.  I am intersted in the Qabalah and
would like to hear more. please...

Hey Robh!  Oughtn't this to be your baby?  I'm putting it off because it's
not one of my strong points.

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