there are hard days coming welcome to
watch mojo
and today we're counting down our picks
for the top 10
real-life wizards of the world whatever
the truth
his image has become a modern icon of
evil and darkness
you have summoned the prince of
temptation
for what purpose i think gerald felt he
was a nothing less than a sacred mission
and now he had found his audience for
this list
we're looking at the most famous
intriguing and influential purported
magic users in history
we will be including faith healers
spirit mediums
alchemists and self-described magicians
if we forgot someone important please
enchant us with your knowledge in the
comments
number 10. khaim shmul gyakab falk
better known as the ba'al shem of london
falco was a mysterious rabbi of
uncertain origins
either bavaria or pedolia in modern-day
ukraine
in westphalia germany he was almost
burned at the stake
but found refuge with a german count and
eventually moved to london
falk practiced various mystic arts
including alchemy and practical kabbalah
he gave frequent demonstrations of his
magical abilities giving rise to
numerous legends
it was said he could discover gold
underground keep candles lit for an
impossible duration
and even put out a fire at a synagogue
by writing in hebrew on the door
number nine abe
[Music]
sometimes described as the japanese
equivalent of merlin
abeno seme was an onmyoji or spiritual
diviner who advised emperors during the
heian period
in addition to advising the emperor on
spiritual matters seme also conducted
exorcisms
warded off evil spirits and was
supposedly skilled at locating lost
objects
[Music]
like most onmyoji seimei also divined
the future
after his death numerous folk tales
sprang up about him
including that he was half kitsune or
fox spirit on his mother's side
one has to wonder if he foresaw just how
great his reputation would become
number eight dion fortune a british
occultist during the early 20th century
dion fortune was one of the foremost
female magic practitioners of her time
born violet firth fortune became
involved in several spiritual groups
including alpha a omega a daughter
organization of the hermetic order of
the golden dawn
she also co-founded one of her own the
fraternity of the inner light
which still exists today fortune was a
prolific writer
and infused her own ideas on occultism
in both her fiction
and non-fiction works although a
practicing medium
fortune claimed that she did not contact
deceased spirits
but instead enlightened masters who had
ascended to a higher state of being
number seven heinrich cornelius agrippa
fondness heim
a literal renaissance man heinrich
cornelius agrippa had many talents
including occult research the german
polymath is best known for writing
occult books
particularly his three books of occult
philosophy which include information on
magical disciplines such as alchemy
scrying and the four classical elements
agrippa also developed a celestial
alphabet
which can supposedly be used to converse
with angels i knew he'd send you
gabriel
you're always so eager to please him
unsurprisingly he had several conflicts
with the church
though he was never formally persecuted
towards the end of his life however
he appeared to recant at least some of
his earlier writings
warning against the quote deceits of
devils
you have summoned the prince of
temptation
for what purpose oh [ __ ] number six
john d another renaissance man john d
was a british scholar whose pursuits
included both science and magic
an advisor to queen elizabeth the first
d acted as the court astronomer
something else we can do
there are hard days coming however his
studies also included alchemy and
divination
after leaving the queen's service dee
traveled europe with another well-known
occultist
edward kelly together they developed the
enochian language
another proposed language of the angels
your ego is astounding
although the duo performed magic for
royalty all over europe
dee's focus on contacting angelic beings
brought him back to england where he
eventually died
destitute number 5. gerald gardner
there's a good chance you've heard of
this wiccan pioneer's most famous work
the book of shadows an english civil
servant
gerald gardner found a new purpose after
retirement teaching a version of the
pagan faith that he claimed
came from the secretive mysterious new
forest coven
in penning his spell book the book of
shadows he took ideas from other
cultists such as aleister crowley as
well as freemason rituals
i think gerald felt he was a nothing
less than a sacred mission
and now he had found his audience
gardner also founded the brickett wood
coven
wrote several other books on witchcraft
and curated a museum about the subject
helping spread his beliefs to much of
the english-speaking world magic
changed gerald's life it gave him a
vision of a new type of religion
and it drove him to push back the
boundaries of the possible
number four elephants levy porn alphonse
louis constance
was an influential french occultist sage
socialist and pan-humanist
as a young man he trained to become a
catholic priest but left the priesthood
and dedicated his energy towards
revolutionary social change
in his middle years he became a
ceremonial magician
and wrote extensively on magic with a
particular interest in tarot
he stood out as an independent thinker
who eschewed ideas like spiritualism and
reincarnation
and retained an attachment to catholic
teachings it was this divergence from
his contemporaries that made him so
popular
and influential number 3. helena
blavatsky
she was a genius nobody before her
had the audacity to try to do a
global reinterpretation of spirituality
the way that she did
a controversial figure helena blavatsky
was a russian spiritualist
and the founder of the esoteric religion
theosophy
well-traveled blavatsky first gained
fame in the united states as a spirit
medium
she claimed that she could contact
elementals that inhabited the psychic
shells of the deceased although very
interested in spiritualism
hpbs understanding of the phenomena was
somewhat different than her fellow
mediums
but she did explore this world
and produced many manifestations her
demonstrations of occult phenomena
generated both excitement
and accusations that she was a fraud
what i say is this
you do not know me for whatever there is
inside it is not what you think it is
during her life
she published several books detailing
her theosophical outlook
which merged occult beliefs with ancient
teachings from both the west
and east her teachings proved immensely
influential
especially in the new age movement
number two
gregori rasputin you don't need psychic
powers to have seen this one coming
this russian mystic and faith healer is
famous or infamous
for his involvement with the last royal
family of russia rasputin was
instrumental
in wiping out the 300 year old dynasty
and
changing the history of russia forever
gregory rasputin gained tremendous
influence due to his purported ability
to heal the romanov royal heir alexei of
hemophilia
it's also been claimed that he was able
to hypnotize people
but the most astonishing tales are those
surrounding his death
although the exact circumstances of his
murder remain unsolved
the man was supposedly poisoned multiple
times and shot
and still didn't die with a violent
movement rasputin jumped to his feet
this dying poisoned shot-ridden creature
on all fours
made his way up the staircase and out
into the courtyard
while further gunshots did do him in the
fact that it took so much to kill him
certainly feels supernatural no one can
be sure whether rasputin was simply a
misunderstood peasant
or a devil in the flesh whatever the
truth
his image has become a modern icon of
evil and darkness
before we unveil our top pick here are
some honorable mentions
hugh draper charged with sorcery he
carved an astrological map in his cell
israel regardi once aleister crowley's
secretary
he revealed secret rituals to the world
[Music]
gerard arcos also known as papus
hypnotist and popularizer of modern
occultism
[Music]
theophrastus von hohenheim also known as
paracelsus
this swiss alchemist created the
alphabet of the magi
cora l v scott an american spiritualist
who delivered lectures in a trance
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number 1. aleister crowley the
quintessential modern occultist proley
took inspiration from those who came
before him
and exerted a strong influence over
those who came after
after joining the hermetic order of the
golden dawn the english occultist went
on to found his own religious movement
thalima declaring himself the prophet of
a new age
he preached the maxim do what thou wilt
shall be the whole of the law
a prolific writer he penned numerous
books and essays filled with rituals and
magic
spelled with a ck including various
forms of
sex magic his writings also touch on
banishing and summoning spirits
astral projection and divination just to
name a few
crowley's extensive writings as well as
his opponent's attempts to demonize him
have led to lasting fame and study do
you agree with our picks
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