Theodosius I signs Edict of Thessalonica in 380 CE, making Christianity the official state religion of the Roman Empire.

In 395, after winning two destructive civil wars, Theodosius I died. He left a collapsing field army, and the Empire divided between the warring ministers of his two incapable sons. Goths and other non-Romans became a force that could challenge either part of the Empire. Further barbarian groups crossed the Rhine and other frontiers. The armed forces of the Western Empire became few and ineffective, and despite brief recoveries under able leaders, central rule was never again effectively consolidated.

Wikipedia - Fall of the Roman Empire

So my question is this - there's only 15 years between the acceptance of Christianity as the state religion and the collapse of the state. What were the effects of forced conversion in the late western Roman empire, and did it accelerate or delay the fall of the empire?

Psychedelics are often associated with disconnecting from reality, but a recent neuroimaging study found that psilocybin can actually make our brain activity more attuned to the world around us.

Including all of their various Furstocks.

Anyone here know how to Madison?

Workin' 9 to 5

What a way to make a livin'

Barely gettin' by

It's all takin' and no givin'

They just use your mind

And you never get the credit

It's enough to drive you crazy

If you let it

9 to 5, yeah

They got you where they want you

There's a better life

And you think about it, don't you?

It's a rich man's game

No matter what they call it

And you spend your life

Puttin' money in his wallet

Some excerpts:

The area has a history of strange happenings long before Aleister Crowley moved in. The parish of Boleskine was formed in the 13th Century. A Kirk and graveyard were built in the parish around this time. A succession of Ministers ran Boleskine Parish and would travel the area on horseback or on foot in all weather conditions. Minister Thomas Houston (1648–1705) was said to have had the task of hastily laying animated corpses back in their graves after a devious local wizard had raised the dead in Boleskine graveyard.

Boleskine House was built on the site of the kirk, which, according to legend, caught fire during congregation and killed everyone inside

Crowley believed the location was ideal to sequester himself to perform a series of operations known as the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage, taken from a grimoire called The Book of Abramelin.

According to Crowley, in his book The Confessions of Aleister Crowley, in order to perform the operations "the first essential is a house in a more or less secluded situation. There should be a door opening to the north from the room of which you make your oratory. Outside this door, you construct a terrace covered with fine river sand. This ends in a 'lodge' where the spirits may congregate."

The purpose of this ritual is to invoke one's Guardian Angel.

It requires at least 6 months of preparation, celibacy, and abstinence from alcohol. However, it also includes the summoning of the 12 Kings and Dukes of Hell, to bind them and remove their negative influences from the magician's life. Whilst Crowley was in the process of performing the lengthy ritual, he was called to Paris by the leader of the Golden Dawn. According to legend, he never banished the demons he had summoned, leading to strange happenings occurring in and around Boleskine House.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/51071085

History of Aura

Featuring:

• Chris Cornell
• Jeff Ament
• Matt Cameron
• Stone Gossard
• Mike McCready
• Eddie Vedder