Negotiations with Algol

A more raw and stream of consciousness experiences with the Stars

I’ve decided to start a new series on my Substack where I share my external and internal experiences without over-polishing the stories.

A fellow magician whom I occasionally bother (not that one, the other one) once described working with Algol as, “She will show you the evil inside of you.” The concept of evil has never resonated with me; horror movies always felt fake. Yet, through my work with Algol, I’ve come to understand her perspective, though I don’t fully agree. Before I digress into a tangent about the duality of reality and its purpose, let me share my observations from the beginning and how they’ve evolved.

The recurring message I’ve encountered both in my personal work and with clients is that our darkness, or shadow, is actually our power. From my perspective, I’ve always felt more at home in the underworld, in the trenches, around death, or among spirits lingering between worlds. Darkness isn’t always marketable in today’s environment, where spirituality is often commercialized, emphasizing love and light rather than the hard work of confronting trauma and deconditioning.

I’ve tended to attract clients whose birth charts interact with Algol and who are drawn to heavier spiritual work. Speaking from personal experience, those of us trying to support ourselves financially in the spiritual realm often hide aspects of ourselves to fit the mold of what we believe will be successful in the current environment. To reiterate: your shadow is your superpower once you fully accept it as part of yourself. Awareness is key.

My journey to Algol and the stars began with working with the planets. At the time, I was experiencing a Saturn-Venus conjunction transit. As a Taurus rising, I am ruled by Venus. Being a practicing medium, it has become easier to distinguish between my own thoughts and the projections of spirit. During this transit, I was plagued by intrusive thoughts of lack overwhelming and persistent. Eventually, I realized these thoughts weren’t coming from me; they were external, emanating from Saturn. Saturn feels like a spiral vise, tightening its grip relentlessly.

My Vedic astrologer friend suggested I bring more Venus energy into my life to counterbalance Saturn’s influence. She recommended placing a copper pot filled with water in the southeast corner of my house the direction associated with Venus. Moments after doing this, I felt an internal shift, a palpable change that altered how I perceived their influence on our daily lives.

How has Algol manifested in my physical reality, you ask? Recently, I visited a large day spa in NYC equipped with various saunas and pools. The downstairs area is gender-segregated, and clothing is optional. While there, I felt eyes on me a group of three men, clearly more than just friends, had their gaze and energy fixed on me. It was deeply uncomfortable, to the point where my skin crawled.

I kept to myself, trying to enjoy the experience as much as possible, but I felt isolated. When it was time to leave my wife was meeting me for dinner I headed to the locker room, where only group showers were available. As soon as I started showering, the group of three men coincidentally joined me. My first thought was for my safety; if anything happened, I’d at least put up a fight.

I stayed in the shower, feeling intensely uncomfortable and unsure of what might happen. I glanced around discreetly, staying alert for any potential threats. One of them had an erection a detail that feels excessive to include, but it’s part of the story. I hurried through my shower and left, disgusted. I felt violated, even though I hadn’t done anything.

This experience might be overwhelming for some, but it forced me to confront my own shadow. How many times have I objectified women? How often have I viewed them as mere objects of desire? This is what Algol does: she creates experiences that force you to feel and acknowledge your shadow. We become so consumed by our desires that we forget our own humanity and worse, the humanity of others. Even now, as I recount this experience, I feel it in my throat and solar plexus. Another important aspect is my inability to speak up in that moment. As a large 6’3” man, I didn’t feel comfortable saying anything. I can only imagine how someone who couldn’t physically defend themselves would feel. How often do we stay silent because we fear how others will perceive us for speaking up?

I wanted to deeply explore my feelings to fully understand that awareness. When I felt their gaze on me, I experienced a spiral of constricting energy in my throat, which traveled to the base of my skull. The more I tuned into the energy, the more I felt the dominance of one man in the group, as if his solar plexus was projecting onto my body, imposing his will onto me. The wet, damp environment amplified the intensity and unease of the situation. Their passive demeanor allowed them to bypass my consent for any energetic interaction. I’ve had enough.

These are raw experiences I believe are connected to Algol. I also want to share a dream I had, along with its subtext. In the dream, my oldest son, Luke, and I were playing basketball at the YMCA. (We frequent our local YMCA, which I see as a decent gym, though it has many rules enforced by eager young staff bootlickers, as I call them.) We were playing basketball when a staff member walked in and announced that a doctor was there to check Luke. The doctor began by examining my son’s leg, but after a moment, he started touching him inappropriately. I stepped in and punched the doctor in the face. Immediately, I was swarmed by YMCA staff, who held me down as I struggled. Meanwhile, my son began vomiting.

In this dream state, I became aware of an energetic entity in the background. It was black and felt masculine to me, with a face resembling the alien from the movie Alien and tentacle

like limbs. It floated and moved fluidly, almost like water. The connection felt strange, as if it were manipulating my dream from the background. The way I sensed it similar to how I feel spirit unsettled me. What intrigued me was that the entity seemed surprised I could sense its presence. Its acknowledgment, while I was held down by the YMCA staff, made me realize my own power. In an instant, I exploded with energy, knocking everyone back and destroying the entity simultaneously. The surge of energy woke me up.

I believe Luke represents my inner child or inner self, as well as my ability to be vulnerable, especially in reflecting on spiritual experiences. This dream ties back to my earliest spiritual memory. At around 9 or 10 coincidentally, my son’s age in the dream I was in Sunday school. The priest led us in a meditation, which was surprisingly basic: focusing on a candle in the center of the room. I don’t recall all the details, but the experience itself is unforgettable. I felt a connection with Jesus (I’m still unsure about him), sitting on a park bench, enveloped in his unconditional love. Even now, 30 years later, I can tap into that feeling. He held me in his energetic field, and I felt complete self-acceptance. There were no words or messages just his loving presence. When I shared this experience with the priest, I was brought into his office, judged, and dismissed.

This became a core memory for me. I always assumed it was significant because it represented my personal connection to an aspect of God. Now, I realize it was also about questioning my ability to be vulnerable. Why share deep experiences if they’ll only be judged? If I want to create a reality that feels authentic to who I am, I need to embrace vulnerability and share myself fully, without reservation.

I feel these experiences are all interconnected, part of the same web. The journey will continue until it doesn’tvand I’ll keep sharing along the way.