David Michael Cunningham

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David Michael Cunningham is a respected and an influential figure in modern magick. He is primarily known as the last officially appointed administrator of the Society of Magi (SoM), a magickal organization, which in its original form doesn't exist today, although several modern fraternities claim to continue its tradition. Besides being a proficient occultist, Cunningham is a talented musician, artist, and actor.

He was born on December 16 in the State of Ohio, USA, under the astrological sign of Sagittarius. His father, Gerry Lewis, left Cunningham's mother (whose maiden name was Cunningham) while she was pregnant with Cunningham in an attempt to regain his former position at the Lockheed Corporation. Lewis was never heard from again.

In his youth Cunningham began his discovery of occultism at the age of seven. He immersed himself in anything related to witches, demons, spirits and all manner of related subjects. In grade school he was introduced to advanced studies of Greek and Roman mythology, which answered many of his questions and confirmed several hunches he had years before. Armed with several years of occult knowledge and teachings, he had declared that from that time forward he would no longer be a passive student of the occult, he would become an active practitioner. Fortunately, he had no religious upbringing to hinder his new direction in life.

In the early 1990s, Cunningham was initiated into the Clan of the Black Flame, a Pagan family group that focused on the occult side of spirituality. It was then that his eyes were opened to the often unseen side of spirituality and furthered his passion for spiritual literateness. While studying with the Clan of the Black Flame (which is not related in any way to the Satanic publication "The Black Flame"), he enrolled into the Celestial Teaching Center of Kentwood, Michigan. It was there that he furthered his spiritual education with a primary focus in occult studies.

Cunningham received his Priesthood ordination from the Clan of the Black Flame in the mid 1990s. Around the same time he received his Doctor of Divinity from the Celestial Teaching Center and was dually ordained as a Pagan priest.

It was at that time Cunningham had focused his spiritual knowledge and development on magickal studies and understandings. He sought to formulate a contextual understanding of spiritual traditions that are "self-centric" by nature, and that acknowledge and celebrate the hidden side of spirituality. This journey took him into the body of various magickal and occult organizations. Notably, he became the youngest member of the Society of Magi (an international magickal association composed of various magickal traditions) and subsequently served as US National Administrator and later as International Administrator (according to official Society of Magi documents).

Cunningham is considered a mild eccentric with a taste for the macabre, which shows through in his paintings. Although his paintings are primarily occult related, Cunningham has an interesting way of interjecting macabre subject matter in ways that are unexpected, unnecessary, or both. Because of this quirk, or in spite of it, his artwork tends to command a decent price (when they are made available for public purchase).

When given the opportunity, Cunningham enjoys acting in various manners. He has played various rolls in many projects ranging from local plays to independent movies. He also shows great enthusiasm in historical Native American reenactment. Cunningham is part Ojibwe (unenrolled) and Cherokee (unverified), and enjoys exploring that aspect of his heritage.

The vehicle for Cunningham's musical creative exploration has been named Black Collar Rebirth. Black Collar Rebirth is a virtual occult music group that has combined several styles of music such as industrial, noise, dark ambient, grindcore, and spoken word. It is often considered a "super group," and as such it affords the privilege of having members from other bands add to the experience. Cunningham is sometimes mocked as being "Trent Reznor's magickal shadow."

He has owned and operated several businesses and has been a committee member, adviser, and administrator to many nonprofit organizations. Cunningham has been known to hold workshops and lectures dealing with magick and the occult. He has authored several articles and books on the occult arts. in 2003 he has co-authored the book, Creating Magickal Entities, which is on spirit creation with noted occultists Taylor Ellwood and Traeonna A. R. Wagener.

[edit] References

Books

• Cunningham, David M.. The Art of the Magickal Curse. Denver: Society of Magi, 1997.
• Cunningham, David M.. Creating Magickal Entities. Perrysburg: Egregore Publishing, 2003.
• Cunningham, David M.. Magickal Symbolism. Denver: Society of Magi, 1996.
• Society of Magi Book of I° Magic. Ed. David M. Cunningham. 1996. Society of Magi.
• Society of Magi Book of II° Magic. Ed. David M. Cunningham. 1996. Society of Magi.
• Society of Magi Book of III° Magic. Ed. Neil Mohammad. 1998. Society of Magi.
• Society of Magi Book of Administration. Ed. Vicky Andersen. 1998. Society of Magi

Websites

• Cunningham, David Michael. Personal home page. <http://www.davidmichaelcunningham.com>.
• Cunningham, David Michael. Cunningham's MySpace.com account <http://www.myspace.com/dmcunningham>
• Ellwood, Taylor. Taylor Ellwood's Metaphysical Multiverse. <http://taylorellwood.chaosmagic.com/>.
• Wagener, Traeonna A. R.. Personal home page. <http://www.traeonna.com/>.
• Wagener, Traeonna A. R.. Web Log. <http://traeonna.livejournal.com/>.

Internet Forums & Discussion Lists

• Cunningham, David Michael. Various online postings. Geist-Project. 2003. <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Geist-Project/>.
• Cunningham, David Michael. Various online postings. The Incense Exchange. <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/incense_exchange/>.
• Cunningham, David Michael. Various online postings. NativeList. <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NativeList/>.

Interviews

• Cunningham, David M. <d.cunningham@societyofmagi.org> "RE: Society of Magi." 5 May. 1998. Organization e-mail.
• Davis, James. "So You Want to Join a Magical Lodge?." Underground Vent. 1997: 21 - 23.
• Edwards, Lacey. "Myth and Magic." Pagan Tymes International Spring 1996: 18.
• MadGhoul.com. "Interview With Taylor Ellwood." 2005. <http://www.madghoul.com/ghoul/arcanum/occult/taylorellwood.xsp>.