We owe the emergence of this branch of magic primarily to two Englishmen: Sir John Dee and Edward Talbot (Kelly). Sir John Dee was one of the most intelligent and learned men of his era. A brilliant cartographer, geographer, mathematician, personal astrologer, and favorite of Queen Elizabeth, he left as great a mark on science as he did on magic. This most upright of men was also a spy, and signed his dispatches under the pseudonym 007.
Edward Talbot, better known as Edward Kelly, was a deeply creative individual. He practiced what might be called a "functional approach to art." That is to say: an ordinary artist first paints a picture, then sells it, and ultimately receives money or promissory notes. Kelly cut the picture out of this chain and painted promissory notes and money directly. These and other achievements of his were duly appreciated by his contemporaries: he made the acquaintance of the pillory, and the executioner cut off Kelly's ears. Edward Kelly also practiced black magic and had a reputation as a very gifted medium (the noted English mountaineer, poet, and Beast of the Apocalypse Aleister Crowley claimed to be a reincarnation of Edward Kelly).
We, for our part, would cast doubt on this claim: among Kelly's other professions was that of notary, and all notaries, as is well known, go to hell after death — consequently, Kelly could not have been reborn in the form of Crowley). Sir John Dee hired Kelly as a medium and conducted visionary research with his assistance. The medium would gaze into a crystal ball and recount his visions to John Dee, who recorded them in meticulous detail. Their collaboration continued over many years. In the course of this work, various spiritual beings appeared to them and revealed a specific cosmogonic and theurgic system. The angels who came also delivered nineteen invocations in a peculiar language, complete with a translation and an alphabet. Each of the invocations is intended for summoning and commanding the corresponding elemental and sub-elemental forces. The nineteenth invocation summons the forces of the aethyrs (one need only insert the name of the desired aethyr in the appropriate place). The language in which these invocations are written has been named "Enochian"; it has no parallels with any modern "human" languages and exerts a powerful effect on the psyche — for which reason the administration of the Nizhny Novgorod Encyclopedia recommends that anyone wishing to study this language first consult with their attending psychiatrist.
The angels also transmitted to Dee and Kelly a large quantity of symbols, seals, tables, and so forth. The angels presented themselves to Dee as "angels of the Apocalypse" — they were to play a direct role in organizing the aforementioned event, namely, the end of the world. The invocation of the thirty aethyrs contains motifs of the condemnation of the Earth as a dwelling place of lawlessness, and so on.
The Worldview
Enochian cosmogony presents the world in the form of an onion, at the center of which lies manifested reality, surrounded by the so-called 30 "aethyrs" or "ethyrs" — levels of reality. The further from the center, the more rarefied the substance. Each of the aethyrs is densely populated with non-material beings and has its own governors. Enochian cosmogony also pays considerable attention to the four "Watchtowers" (not to be confused with the magazine of the Jehovah's Witnesses sect), which guard the cardinal directions. Different magical schools attribute (correlate) the Watchtowers to the four magical elements in different ways. A Watchtower can be conceived of as a multi-tiered hierarchy of forces responsible for a particular element and direction. In ritual practice, the so-called "elemental tablets" serve as working analogues of the Watchtowers, functioning as something like a map and telephone directory of the corresponding Watchtower.
Enochian magic consists of three branches: the Heptarchy, the invocation of the angels of the Watchtowers, and the "Book of Alchemy, Knowledge, and Terrestrial Victory."
The Heptarchy is the branch of Enochian magic in which the magician addresses the Enochian governors of the days of the week and those subordinate to them. Accordingly, rituals are performed on specific days and make use of the corresponding names and magical seals.
The invocation of the angels of the Watchtowers entails precisely what the name of this section suggests, namely, the invocation of the angels of the Watchtowers.
The "Book of Alchemy, Knowledge, and Terrestrial Victory" constitutes the third branch of Enochian magic. This branch involves addressing the governors of the aethyrs and the spirits subordinate to them. The aethyrs are correlated with the cardinal directions, geographical regions of the world, and biblical tribes. The occult school Aurum Solis has studied in detail the spheres of competence of each aethyr's governor and produced something akin to a cookbook, with recipes for every occasion.
Enochian magic is rightly considered the most effective and most dangerous branch of the Western magical tradition. Well, you know what we said about the psychiatrist…