Occult Disney: Bedknobs and Broomsticks

The 1971 Disney film ‘Bedknobs and Broomsticks’ was one that I watched as a very young child and I remember being somewhat ‘bewitched’ by it at the time. Rewatching it years later it is clear that the film is oozing with occult themes and iconography. While it may be considered nothing more than a simplistic pop-culture based take on the occult and witchcraft, the stereotypical isolated witch living with her broom and a black cat. There is also a deeper undercurrent of occult symbolism going on that deserves some attention that I doubt viewers at the time may have been aware of. This is in keeping with Walt Disney’s legacy of films that contained similar occult themes that continues up to today. See my post from back in 2009 where I go in to Walt Disney and some of his earliest films/shorts. Though it was made a number of years after Walt Disney’s death (1966), according to Springmeier (who sources Disney Magazine 1996, p 96) this was apparently Walt’s “final pet project” which would be not be a surprise considering its themes. I do know that Walt bought the rights to the book in the early 1960s giving credence to that (imdb).I briefly touched on this film in the ‘To the Devil a Daughter’ post a few days ago which delves into Astaroth the demon. As I stated, Astaroth (in ‘Bedknobs’, Astoroth) is described as an ancient Sorcerer pictured in the introductory sequence holding a lantern (illuminating the hidden, or “occult” knowledge), a symbolic owl is on his shoulder (symbolising secret societies, esoteric knowledge, Minerva), covered in noteworthy symbols giving the sign of silence.

The film’s plot differs wildly from the original books by Mary Norton.

“For those who think Walt simply recreated fairy tales on the screen, if one examines the changes that are made from the original storylines, they are changed to make them more useful for mind-control.” – Deeper Insights Illuminati Formula

I believe Disney continued to do this after Walt’s death and can be seen from the fact that Disney has inexplicably added a demonic name, Astaroth (Astoroth in the film, I do not believe the demonic name features in the books), that is one of the “Principle demons that are popular to place into Monarch systems,” along with its relevant symbolism. As well as the occult aspects of the symbols I have picked out in this film, all of them could and probably are used as triggers in mind control programming.

Astoroth’s magickal robe has occult astrological symbolism all over it, some of the symbols are also reminiscent of the symbols on the Seal of Astaroth in The Lesser Key of Solomon (see further down). These symbols on Astaroth are interesting choices (see below), such as the circled point which can represent the sun and eye among other things. The All Seeing Eye makes an appearance to synch with the circled point on Emelius Browne (David Tomlinson) who is revealed as a charlatan stage magician. You will also notice the planet Saturn in these two pictures. On the image of Astoroth, I believe the astrological symbol for Saturn appears on Astoroth’s left arm (it seems likely that that is what the symbol is supposed to represent, feel free to correct me on any of these symbols). Also on Astoroth are: Jupiter, Venus  (more on that shortly), Aries (rams head, this symbol may be taken from the Seal of Astaroth also), possibly the arrow is for Sagittarius (combined with Aries?) and the ascending lunar node symbol.

The film begins and ends in the town of ‘Pepperinge Eye’ (the witch’s hometown) which is (in order to confuse the Nazis), perhaps symbolically covered (a hidden eye).

The circled point also denotes an Entered Apprentice Freemason (the first degree). The singular witch in the film, Eglantine Price is working her way up through her witchcraft degrees (which she subsequently finds out to be set up by a fraud). She states that she has now reached the “First Degree… Apprentice Witch.” Note in the medieval tapestry introduction (a mock Beyeux Tapestry) the man using a compass with a square drawn in, perhaps a nod to the Masonic compass and square. Also the reptilian/lion type creatures biting their own tales (like the ouroboros) in lower border, some of these border images are just copies of the original Bayeux Tapestry. The owl and Venus symbolism on Astaroth is notable because because Astaroth derives from the Babylonian goddess Ishtar (below) who was considered the divine personification of the planet Venus. Also called Astarte by the Greeks (Ashtoreth in the Hebrew Bible), the Sumerian Inanna, and many other representations of the goddess. Note in the above picture the twin owls flank the solar symbolism along with the solar, lunar symbols.

The Venus symbol can also be seen on the Seal of Astaroth with the vertical line extended, the pentagram is associated with Venus also.

Aspects of the Seal can be seen on a page in the film's ‘Spells of Astoroth’ grimoire (a fairly accurate recreation of the Seal from ‘The Book of Ceremonial Magic’, above right) that the witch is trying to search for in London, this confirms that Disney was using this occult knowledge as a direct source for their film. Perhaps these are included to trigger those with demonic programming in their Monarch system.

Here are a few more noteworthy scenes from the tapestry introduction. Note the witch apparently using human skulls in her brew creating bats with skull heads. The harpy, some kind of scarlet woman riding a goat/ram, the personification of the wind (one of the five elements) and the sun. Also note the piscine humanoid.The occult symbol (possibly a variation of Venus’ astrological symbol) points towards the “Satanic” looking Jester made up to look like Baphomet with his goat legs. This “Satanic Jester” is in fact Lucifuge Rofocale, “the demon in charge of Hell’s government by order of Lucifer.” This depiction of Lucifuge that Disney has used comes from the Grand Grimoire. He is in control of Lucifer’s “finances”, so to speak (see Book of Ceremonial Magic which describes Lucifer giving him control of the purse). The Grand Grimoire contains instructions for summoning Lucifuge for the purposes of making a “deal with the devil”. Some may consider that Disney has done just that by including these occult themes in many of their films.

 

More rams by what may represent the Tree of Life. Below we have again more paganism with Pan and the nymphs around the sacred Tree of Life.The King of Naboombu  wearing the Star of Astoroth sitting on his throne between twin pillars and under an arch decked in royal garb. Although it is not mentioned in the film, we know his name is King Leonidas (named after the Spartan King) because in all promotional material this is the name given to him. Leo obviously meaning Lion in astrological terms, Leonidas meaning “son of the lion”, phonetically resonating 'sun’ and ‘lion’ again. The lion is also a symbol of royalty seen in the British coat of arms and others throughout history, check out Michael Tsarion’s take on this kind of symbolism which some may find enlightening and we will get into more Atonist symbolism later.

The film resonates King Solomon in several ways, the Seal of Solomon is comparable to the “Star of Astoroth” in the film not only because they are both magickal pentacles but Solomon’s Seal is sometimes drawn as a pentagram rather than a hexagram.

 

Note the occult Vesica Pisces symbol used by Disney on the cover of the DVD as well as the moon (which Ishtar/Astarte/Ashtoreth is associated with).

Further relating to Solomonic Magick is the central theme of the flying bed, its bedknob imbued with magical properties that allow the bed to turn into, what is effectively a variation of Solomon’s magic carpet (the magic carpet also features in Disney’s Aladdin). Some sources state that the flying carpet’s power comes from Solomon’s signet ring with the Seal on it. The ring also was said to have given Solomon the ability to command demons and talk to animals, which again is reminiscent of Astoroth’s ability to converse with animals through anthropomorphic magic. The Star of Astoroth, that they spend much of the film seeking, gives the witch the power to make inanimate objects move on their own, embodying them with spirit. The spell to perform this magic is written around the star, similarly it is said that the power of Solomon’s Seal is given by the sacred name of God written on it rather than the hexagram Seal on the signet ring itself.Another indirect reference to Solomon comes in the Portobello Road musical number where they go in search of the other half of Astoroth’s grimoire. One of the children, Carrie (played by Cindy O’Callaghan) is trying on jewellery and an elder lady says to her, “Who do you think you are, the Queen of Sheba?” This could obviously be quite a stretch but the synchronicity fits with Solomon and Freemasonry, if I elaborate on this somewhat tenuous connection.

Balkis (the Queen of Sheba) was said by some to have had a relationship with Solomon, some sources stating they bore a child, Menelik. In Masonic lore, one legend states that Balkis may have indirectly caused Hiram Abiff (whose tribulations make up the rituals of the three degrees of Freemasonry) to be killed. One of the reasons she visited Solomon was to see his temple which Hiram was the principle architect behind its construction. She apparently was in awe of Abiff’s talents and sought a relationship with him. Solomon was unhappy with this of course and hinted to three jealous, disgruntled masons (who Abiff refused to teach the Master Masons’ secrets) that his removal would be acceptable to him so they kill him in varying symbolic ways (with different masonic tools and such, varying between chapters of the craft).Perhaps a double meaning in the above scene, if viewed through the prism of MK? Again, this could be a trigger.

The flying bed (resonating Solomon’s magic carpet) is used by the witch and the rest to access another dimension, the “Isle of Naboombu” where the aforementioned King Leonidas rules and has the Star of Astoroth. Naboombu may derive from the Assyrian and Babylonian god of wisdom and writing Nabu, pictured below on a door to the Library of Congress John Adams Building and in the British Museum. In the end it is discovered that the spell was written in the child’s picture book all along.

Incidentally, the Star Wars planet of Naboo probably also derives from Nabu and both have piscine/amphibian humanoids living under water (the Gungans in Naboo), as well as an intelligent civilisation living above water (as above, so below; although there are no anthropomorphic animals above ground on Naboo). While down in the depths the humans win a dance contest and receive a trophy with a clamshell on it, perhaps symbolising Venus bringing us back to Venus/Ishtar/Astarte/Astaroth (the clamshell is also symbolic of the rising sun). The two handles as fish is reminiscent of the symbol of Pisces.

Naboombu appears to be shaped like a crescent moon, one of Astarte’s most common symbols was the crescent moon.

On the island the group are invited to a “Savage Soccer Match” in which the King makes the rules up as he goes along and enjoys seeing both sides maul each other purely for his own amusement. There wasn’t much purpose to this scene other than to see what kind of leader the King of was and gives them the opportunity to steal the Star of Astoroth from him. The royal lion’s throne in the royal box contains occult symbolism with the (red, white and blue) horns above it and draped across the fence is a royal blue material with a (football) sun cross drawn on to it (also Mickey Mouse in the top right). The royal tent where the King resides is red and white striped (same colours as the Knights Templar/St George flag) and note the goat head (or other horned beast), the solar crossed circle (and more sun symbolism in the picture), circled pentagram, pyramid shape and various other symbols like the fleur-de-lis on the numerous banners. The olive branch is a symbol of Atonism (remains of Akhenaten holding the olive branch). Curiously, the olive branch has 13 leaves, like the olive branch on the Presidential Seal. A lot of this sun symbolism originates (or rather stolen from previous solar cults) from the fundamentalist solar cult of Atonism (see the Tsarion link for more info on, source of below images) as Akhenaten quashed the polytheism of old in favour of worshiping solely the sun disk Aten, arguably giving birth to the template for monotheistic religions of today (though monotheism as a belief system was much older). According to Tsarion, the lion is also a symbol of Aten (Akhenaten pictured below as a sphinx).

The Sun-Lion symbolism was also used heavily in the 1994 Disney film, ‘The Lion King’ (above, notice how only the lion’s left eye is ever properly visible, probably to symbolise the Eye of Ra-Horus, the former Akhenaton appropriated as Aton because of Ra’s symbol of the sun-disk). The film is a mixture of allegories for Joseph and Moses. Some, such as Sigmund Freud have claimed that Akhenaton was, in fact the biblical Moses, and as we have seen Akhenaten pictured as the lion (see further up) this further explains the Atonist/Solar symbolism in the film. Remember in the Lion King when Simba (the future ‘Lion King’/Moses) is baptised by the magician/shaman Rafiki - by breaking a round (sun) fruit over the sun (sunlight is flashed on screen when it is cracked) and using its juices to baptise him, symbolically baptising him in the sun’s light - he is held up to the sky, the clouds part and the sun’s rays shine down on the future ‘Lion King’ (the scene depicted in the above right poster). Atenism is a prominent feature in some of Disney’s films, hence their use of the solar lion as king in their films.

A lion at Ishtar Gate above.

This is obviously just my personal perception and should be taken with a pinch of salt, but I viewed the “Savage Soccer Match” to be analogous to the Second World War, which the film is set around and is always in the background of the film (the children are sent away from the city to escape the war and in the end the Nazis invade). In my opinion wars, to a degree are exercises of mass human sacrifice for the elite bloodlines, particularly World Wars which may appear to be genuine conflicts between two opposing sides and ideologies. Often those at the top (such as the royal houses) have the same vested interests and are actually working together funding both sides (see the Rothschilds) for the purposes of shaping humanity in the way they require. Another example would be the British Royals and the Nazis (Prince Phillip and Freemason King Edward VIII, the British Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Royal Family are themselves predominantly of German descent).

The King wears the Star of Astoroth around his neck during the royal match. Astaroth is related to blood sacrifice due to his biblical associations with Ba’al (Moloch) in which they are equated; Judges 2:13 "And they forsook the LORD, and served Baal and Ashtaroth", Judges 10:6 "And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD, and served Baalim, and Ashtaroth..." Ba’al is also arguably a sun-god so you could bring in the lion/sun symbolism here too. Ishtar and Astarte (from which Astaroth derives) both had lions as one of their identifying symbols so this is probably another reason why the lion was chosen apart from the lion’s typical depiction as “king of the beasts”.

“The game’s over, I WIN!” The Royal Lion announces as both sides of the match are left to mercilessly fight with no real clue what is going on, even the referee (Emelius), until the King decides it’s over. At the end of the film he leaves to fight in the actual war where he’ll similarly have no clue about the real reasons why he has been sent to die in mass ritual sacrifice.

Towards the end of the film the Nazis invade from the sea, note above in the tapestry introduction the solar Swastika symbol. The witch saves them by using the spell she learned from the Star of Astoroth to make medieval suits of armour come alive (they used real medieval armour, with real history of murder and death) controlled by the witch who resonates the goddess Britannia here (whose symbol is again, the lion). Some, like the Freeman Perspective argue that Britannia is another version of the goddess (Ishtar/Astarte/Venus/etc).

As the witch animates the medieval suits of armour using the spell she acquired from the Seal of Astoroth, the trumpets come alive and sound a call to arms, with the Royal Arms of England draped off them. This motif originates from King Richard I who committed atrocities (blood sacrifices) in the Crusades. He was associated with the Knights Templar (he was friends with the Grand Master at the time Robert de Sablé). Richard I was famously known as the Lionheart, from the Merovingian royal/”Illuminati”/Atonist bloodline, hence the Atonist solar lion, using three is also significant. Richard the Lionheart’s anti-Muslim crusades are relatively similar to Akhenaton’s barbaric persecution of Amenists and polytheistic beliefs.

One Nazi officer in the witch’s house wearing the Iron Cross (cross patteé). The Nazis are eventually driven out by the invincible suits of armour controlled by the occult powers of the goddess/demon Astoroth (Ashtoreth/Astarte/Ishtar).

I went in a more “synchromystic” direction for this post that I found enjoyable to research and write so hopefully that comes across in reading it and some of you found it interesting even though it is quite disjointed. As I said in the introduction, there certainly are many overtly occult themes in this film which I have covered but I have also tried to root out and speculate as to some of the deeper symbolic occult connections and synchronicities in the film.