If you've been feeling lately like life is an unfair game, you're not alone. And game designer, author, and anti-fascist scholar Max Haiven knows why. In his latest book, The Player and the Played: From Gamed Capitalism to Twenty-First Century Fascism, Haiven uses games to explain how financialized capitalism recruits us into our own exploitation, seeing ourselves as "players," rather than people, who would be winning and succeeding... if only someone wasn't cheating us!—and how fascist politics takes that justified anger and directs it away from precisely the people and institutions who are rigging the game and reaping the rewards.

Tune into Max Haiven's vibrations at: https://maxhaiven.com/

And get the book (available as a free download!) at: https://maxhaiven.com/player/

Join the ritual: www.patreon.com/thispodcastisaritual

In the tiny fishing village of Rif, out on the coast of the Snæfellsnes Peninsula in western Iceland, you'll find an unlikely cultural hub: The Freezer. Built in a former fish freezer, this hostel / performing arts venue is the work of Kàri Viđarsson, a local Icelander who left his village and returned having changed... only to change the cultural landscape of his community in the process.

Tune into the Freezer's magic (or book a stay!) at: https://www.thefreezerhostel.com/

The Freezer also provided a home to the Wizard and 50 other artists this summer as part of the Portal residency. You can hear all about that in the This Portal is a Ritual miniseries: https://www.patreon.com/c/thispodcastisaritual/posts?filters%5Btag%5D=This+Portal+is+a+Ritual

Join the ritual: www.patreon.com/thispodcastisaritual

Sometimes things suck. Sometimes we feel bad, can't get what we want, or just plain don't know what to do. And that's hard. But there's a cultural narrative that often makes it way worse, the insidious idea that "it shouldn't be like this." That somehow, feeling this way is a personal failure. That's why the Wizard is here to remind you that sometimes things really do suck! And it's okay to feel bad! And you don't even gotta feel bad about feeling bad. And sometimes, remembering that can help us feel better...

...and if you'd like to really be reminded of that, you can do so with the full length bonus episode available exclusively on our Patreon! Or you can just listen to this preview version and get the gist of it.

Listen to How to Feel Bad:

https://www.patreon.com/thispodcastisaritual/posts/how-to-feel-bad-170369117

Join the ritual: www.patreon.com/thispodcastisaritual

Magic can be a lot of work. But does it have to be? What if there was a way to use magic, not to bend the world to one's will, but to transform reality into an open field of possibility? Thus, life's stage becomes a board on which we can enjoy a myriad of complex and fascinating games, all experienced through the strange and delightful mode of being known as "Play.

This episode builds on the metaphysics laid out in What's the Point? (theory), What is a Person? (theory), and What is Power? (theory) but it can absolutely be listened to on its own. And these ideas will all return in The Avengers: Doomsday... I'm sorry, I mean What is Play? (practice)

For more on the ideas explored in this episode, check out

What's the Point? (theory) - https://www.patreon.com/posts/whats-point-147660543

What is a Person? (theory) - https://www.patreon.com/thispodcastisaritual/posts/what-is-person-159310290

What is Power? (theory) - https://www.patreon.com/thispodcastisaritual/posts/what-is-power-161898774

The Invocation - https://www.patreon.com/posts/invocation-144989332

Join the ritual: www.patreon.com/thispodcastisaritual

The Wizard has arrived in the Netherlands and is ready to embark on his quest to become "Amsterdam's #1 Wizard," but first, he has to figure out what the heck is going on in a strange land where everything feels odd and unfamiliar. Thankfully, these are the moments magic was made for so he's putting himself in places of possibility and letting divination lead the way to the "slightly better" reality that awaits just on the other side of that "oh no, what am I even doing here?!" overwhelm that greets every traveler when they step out of the familiar and into life's great adventure...

...and oh what an adventure it is! So if you want to hear the actual episode, you too will need to embark on the epic quest that is joining our Patreon!

Listen to Stranger in a Strange Land:

https://www.patreon.com/thispodcastisaritual/posts/168890113/

Join the ritual: www.patreon.com/thispodcastisaritual

Aidan Wachter, author of Six Ways, Weaving Fate, and Changeling, joins the ritual for a spirited discussion with the Wizard about the lively world we live in and how magic can help us better align ourselves with the many allies, ancestors, and more mysterious entities who seem to take in interest in our particular plane of being.

Tune into Aidan's magic at: https://www.aidanwachter.com/

Join the ritual: www.patreon.com/thispodcastisaritual

As the moon slides in front of the sun while Icelandic clouds obscure them both, the land grows dark and the Wizard takes a moment to reflect on art, creativity, festival culture, and how to create truly radical structures in a world eager to commodify and capitalize on whatever novelty is left to discover. And with these final thoughts, the Portal closes, one ritual comes to an end, and a new adventure begins...

Learn more about The Portal at Iceland Eclipse: https://icelandeclipse.com/the-portal

For more THIS PORTAL IS A RITUAL, check out:

Opening the Portal - https://www.patreon.com/thispodcastisaritual/posts/opening-portal-164554937

Rising Tension - https://www.patreon.com/thispodcastisaritual/posts/rising-tension-165188858

Dawning Insight - https://www.patreon.com/thispodcastisaritual/posts/dawning-insight-165848380

Join the ritual: www.patreon.com/thispodcastisaritual

Using chance to make choices has a long magical history, from complex divination systems to mythologies that imagine the gods gambling and throwing dice to determine human affairs. By taking a simple coin toss as our starting practice, we can learn to let go of the heavy burden of contemplation and let the fates take a more collaborative role in our decision making process.

So flip a coin and learn whether you should join the Patreon where you'll find the full bonus episode where I share the rules to Coin Night, a fun simple group game that implements these magical ideas in a rather charming way.

Listen to How to Flip a Coin:

https://www.patreon.com/thispodcastisaritual/posts/how-to-flip-coin-171675635

Join the ritual: www.patreon.com/thispodcastisaritual