In this episode of Spirit Box, I’m joined by researcher and author Judith Dillon for a deep conversation about runes, alphabets, and the hidden patterns behind magical and divinatory traditions.We talk about Judith’s latest book 'Futhark Rune Mysteries, Origins of Magic and Divination in the Primal Alphabet' on the mysteries of the Germanic runes and trace their roots back to ancient Semitic alphabets and Egyptian hieroglyphs. Along the way, we explore how early writing systems, oracle traditions, and symbolic templates share remarkable similarities across cultures — from Celtic tree lore and tarot to nursery rhymes and sacred texts.Focusing on the first four runes, Judith unpacks their mythological, magical, and life-cycle symbolism, showing how they map stages of human development, healing, and spiritual transformation. She also shares fascinating insights into how ancient systems preserved meaning through precise positioning and pattern, even as languages evolved — including the remarkable history of the Hebrew Torah script.We move through mystery traditions, underworld myths, celestial cycles, and the enduring power of symbolic order in human culture, reflecting on why these ancient systems still matter today.This is a thoughtful and illuminating conversation for anyone interested in runes, esotericism, ancient knowledge systems, and the deep architecture of meaning behind our oldest symbols.Show notes:https://www.innertraditions.com/futhark-rune-mysteriesKeep in touch?https://linktr.ee/darraghmason

In this episode of Spirit Box, I sit down with Chad Andro, host of the podcast Radical Elphame, to talk about his journey into witchcraft, animism, and the search for right relation while living inside an imperial system. Chad reflects on an early entheogenic awakening and his eventual move away from chaos magic toward traditional witchcraft, fairy lore, and a more primal, land-rooted practice shaped by initiation rather than belief.

We explore animal encounters as genuine moments of spiritual threshold—bears appearing during ritual, deer as initiators, and the presence of wolves, foxes, and owls in magical work. Our conversation moves through symbolism, shamanic experience, and the difficulty of maintaining spiritual seriousness in a modern, distracted world. We also reflect on what it means to practise witchcraft beyond self-improvement, and how magic can force a reckoning with fear, responsibility, and moral consequence.

In the Plus episode, our conversation turns to Chad’s work as a winemaker and his experience of creating talismanic wine as offerings. Chad explains how wine, intention, labour, and land become inseparable in devotional magic, and shares the thinking behind a recent occult-focused wine release designed to be worked with rather than collected.

From there, we move into podcasting and writing as acts of discipline and devotion, Chad’s Substack work, and the writers currently shaping his thinking, including Lee Morgan’s A Deep Without Name. We end by talking frankly about empire, exhaustion, and the uneasy possibility that real transformation—personal and collective—may only come through collapse, and what it means to try to remain in right relation as that process unfolds.
Show notes:
Chad on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/radicalelphame/
Chad's substack: https://thefoliatehead.substack.com
A deed without a name: https://www.worldofbooks.com/en-gb/products/deed-without-a-name-a-unearthing-the-legacy-of-traditional-witchcraft-book-lee-morgan-9781780995496?sku=GOR006392626
Radical Elphame podcast

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

In this episode of Spirit Box, I’m joined by Robert Peter to talk about what it actually means to work with angels—beyond dogma, aesthetics, or blind faith. Robert shares his journey into angelic practice and how consistent guidance, personal resistance, and hard-earned sincerity shaped the way he works today. What emerges is a grounded, practical approach to angelic contact rooted in discernment, self-knowledge, and emotional stability.

We talk about angelic encounters, synchronicities, prayer, and communication without assuming a fixed religious framework, alongside the importance of personalisation, skepticism, and virtue as an active magical principle rather than a moral performance. Robert reflects on how angels often redirect our desires toward what we actually need, not what we think we want, and why sincerity consistently outweighs technique.

In the Plus Show, we go deeper into the risks of angelic work: spiritual inflation, obsession, misinterpretation, and the very real danger of losing grounding. We speak frankly about spiritual psychosis, misplaced certainty, and the ways online magical culture can amplify delusion rather than understanding. We also get into therapy as a magical tool, the importance of keeping some practices private, and how to stay human while working with forces that don’t always encourage that.

This episode is less about summoning angels and more about becoming someone capable of listening to them without losing yourself in the process.
Show notes:
https://robertpetermagi.substack.com
https://www.instagram.com/robertpeterservices/

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