Jan Fries is a German

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 occultist freestyle shaman

Shamanism

Shamanism is an anthropological term referencing a range of beliefs and practices regarding communication with the spiritual world. To quote Eliade: "A first definition of this complex phenomenon, and perhaps the least hazardous, will be: shamanism = technique of ecstasy." Shamanism encompasses the...

. He is a musician, artist, magician and author of several books.

He lives in Frankfurt

Frankfurt

Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...

 near the Taunus Mountains

Taunus

The Taunus is a low mountain range in Hesse, Germany that composes part of the Rhenish Slate Mountains. It is bounded by the river valleys of Rhine, Main and Lahn. On the opposite side of the Rhine, the mountains are continued by the Hunsrück...

.

Biography

Jan Fries is credited with coining the term freestyle shamanism in reference to a style of magic

Magic (paranormal)

Magic is the claimed art of manipulating aspects of reality either by supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to science. It is in contrast to science, in that science does not accept anything not subject to either direct or indirect observation, and subject to logical...

 that emphasizes trance

Altered state of consciousness

An altered state of consciousness , also named altered state of mind, is any condition which is significantly different from a normal waking beta wave state. The expression was used as early as 1966 by Arnold M. Ludwig and brought into common usage from 1969 by Charles Tart: it describes induced...

 and closeness to nature, but instead of roots in a shamanic tradition, draws from individual experience in a way akin to chaos magic

Chaos magic

Chaos magic is a school of the modern magical tradition which emphasizes the pragmatic use of belief systems and the creation of new and unorthodox methods.-General principles:...

. He notes the Zos Kia Cultus

Zos Kia Cultus

Zos Kia Cultus may refer to*a system of magic developed by Austin Osman Spare, see Austin_Osman_Spare#Influence_on_Chaos_magic*an album by the blackened death metal band Behemoth, see Zos Kia Cultus...

, Maat Magick, Taoism

Taoism

Taoism refers to a philosophical or religious tradition in which the basic concept is to establish harmony with the Tao , which is the mechanism of everything that exists...

 and Thelema

Thelema

Thelema is a religious philosophy that was established, defined and developed by the early 20th century British writer and ceremonial magician, Aleister Crowley. He believed himself to be the prophet of a new age, the Æon of Horus, based upon a religious experience that he had in Egypt in 1904...

 as his chief influences.

Works

Although Fries is a native German speaker his books have all been written and first published in English.

English

• Visual Magick: A manual of freestyle shamanism (Mandrake, 1992, 2001)
• Helrunar: A manual of rune magick (Mandrake, 1993 & 2002)
• Seidways: shaking, swaying and serpent mysteries (Mandrake, 1996)
• Living Midnight: three movememts of the Tao (Mandrake, 1998)
• The Cauldron of the Gods: manual of celtic magick (Mandrake, 2003)
• Kali Kaula: manual of Tantric Magick (Avalonia, 2010)

German

• Visuelle Magie: ein Handbuch des Freistilschamanismus (Ananael 1995)
• Helrunar: ein Handbuch der Runenmagie (Ananael 1997 & 2002)
• Seidwärts: Schütteltrancen, Wiegetänze und die Mysterien der Schlange (Ananael 2003)
• Der Kessel der Götter: Handbuch der keltischen Magick (Edition Roter Drache 2009)

Spanish

• Magia(k) Visual: Manual de chamanismo estilo libre (Noctiluca 2003)

External links

• Homepage
• Interview of March 2006
• review of Seidways by Phil Hine
  Phil Hine
  Philip M. Hine, more commonly known as Phil Hine, is a writer, book reviewer, and occultist. He became known internationally through his written works Pseudonomicon, Condensed Chaos, and Prime Chaos, as well as several essays on the topics of chaos magic and Cthulhu Mythos magick.-Biography:Growing...
  
  
• Interview on Elhaz Ablaze: 2009