A.D. Manns - The Strange Origins of Aradia скачать в хорошем качестве

A.D. Manns - The Strange Origins of Aradia

Who really shaped one of the foundational texts of modern witchcraft? In this lecture from Occulture Conference 2025, A.D. Manns uncovers the hidden life and influence of Roma Lister behind Aradia. Recorded at Occulture Conference 2025, this talk re-examines the origins of Aradia, first published in 1899 by Charles Godfrey Leland and long regarded as a cornerstone in the development of modern witchcraft. While the book is traditionally understood as the result of collaboration between Leland and the Italian fortune teller Maddalena, this lecture presents compelling evidence for the involvement of a third, largely forgotten figure: Roma Lister. Raised, as she described it, “among witches and wizards” in the Roman countryside, Roma Lister emerged in the late nineteenth century as a dedicated folklore collector and one of Leland’s closest confidantes. Beyond her scholarly interests, she was also reputed to be a powerful occult practitioner—capable of spirit communication, spellcraft, healing, and prophecy—operating at the blurred boundary between lived magical practice and written tradition. Drawing on new research from Aradia’s Hidden Hand: The Untold Life of Roma Lister (Hexen Press, 2025), this lecture reconstructs Lister’s life, her occult reputation, and her likely contribution to Aradia. In doing so, it challenges long-standing assumptions about authorship, authority, and gender in the history of modern witchcraft, while opening new perspectives on how esoteric knowledge was transmitted, edited, and concealed at the turn of the twentieth century. About the speaker: A. D. Manns is an oral storyteller and historian and a graduate of the Warburg Institute. His doctoral research examined propagandistic reinterpretations of the Renaissance magus Tommaso Campanella in Civil War–era England. He writes widely on overlooked histories and mystical literature and has contributed to publications including Atlas Obscura, Hellebore, Abraxas Journal, Folklore Thursday, and The Thinker’s Garden. About Occulture Conference: Occulture Conference brings together artists, researchers, and practitioners to explore the intersections of culture, esotericism, politics, and contemporary spiritual practice. Learn more at: 👉 https://www.occultureconference.com