Tag Archives: Esotericism

Black Toad

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Alchemy of Body, Spirit, & Stone
Ron Wyman

The Black Toad
Alchemy of Body, Spirit, & Stone
Ron Wyman
ISBN 978-1-906958-84-8
£15.00 / US$25.00

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This book on spiritual alchemy presents an initiate’s undertaking of the internal alchemical process. It is a pathway of vision and illumination; and with particular emphasis placed on the induction of the alchemical dream, this movement becomes a visionary transition and passage.

The practitioner’s psyche moves through the paths of the Opus Magnum, and these paths have a goal—the attainment of the Philosopher’s Stone. It is the internal alchemy that acquires access to the ethereal level of the body, and eventually to the enactment of the alchemical Will.

Ron Wyman is an artist and writer living in London. His writing on alchemy stems from his own experience of the alchemical dream process and its related effects. through his background in philosophy he has brought this into a methodical format for the occult practitioner, or for anyone interested in the transcendental effects of internal alchemy.

Bulwer-Lytton

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Occult Personality

John S. Moore

Bulwer-Lytton Occult Personality
John S. Moore
ISBN: 9781906958855, 166pp/bw & full colour illustrations.
£20+p&p / US$26.00+p&p

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—
Edward Bulwer, Lord Lytton, once the most successful novelist in the English speaking world, now unfairly neglected and even derided, was also the central figure in the underground culture of magic and the occult. With his esoteric studies he built a reputation for deep learning in the history and philosophy of this alternative tradition, as well as passing for an adept in his own right. His creative influence, especially through his occult fiction, was surprisingly far reaching.

The book sets the achievement of this nineteenth century magus into a large historical context, exploring the intellectual and other influences on him as well as movements he inspired. Some chapters discuss aspects of Bulwer’s life, while some explore people and ideas that influenced him and others those he influenced. His seminal role in several cultural movements has been largely forgotten, not least in his home country. This book offers an often unfamiliar perspective on the Victorian era and hopefully succeeds in provoking some questions about our own times.


With Bulwer as its focus, and employing a wealth of illustrations, it manages to provide a whirlwind tour of much occult and esoteric culture, from Iamblichus to Symbolist art and literature, Theosophy and modern psychedelia.

Watch John Moore’s presentation of Bulwer-Lytton Occult Personality
on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iufOV7EmT0Y&feature=youtu.be

Doors of Valhalla

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An Esoteric Interpretation of Norse Myth
Vincent Ongkowidjojo

 

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Doors of Valhalla
An Esoteric Interpretation of Norse Myth
Vincent Ongkowidjojo
Format: Softcover
ISBN: 978-1-906958-72-5
£15.00 / US $24.00
Subjects: Runes/Odinism/Northern Tradition.

In Doors of Valhalla, the author offers a comprehensive interpretation of Norse mythology based on contemporary esoteric ideas.

From the author’s introduction:
“In modern days, the Ageless Wisdom was first given out by Helena Petrovna Blavatsky and later by different writers such as Dion Fortune, Annie Besant, and Alice Bailey. It makes sense to relate what they have to say about the world of the soul to the myth and mystery of Ancient Scandinavia.”

From Maria Kvilhaug’s foreword:
“In his Doors of Valhalla, Vincent Ongkowidjojo makes an honest attempt to consider the worlds of Norse mythology as various planes of consciousness on the path towards spiritual enlightenment in the light of Theosophy and Vedic traditions.”

From David Parry’s afterword:
“His excellent book Doors of Valhalla: An Esoteric Interpretation of Norse Mythology demands our attention, while clearly setting fresh standards for this sort of scholarship.”

Freya Aswynn on the book:
“This is a book that will shake up the Heathen Community. … It fills a glaring hole in the Northern Mysteries and this will be most welcomed by those in Heathenry willing to explore the deeper mysteries behind the lore.”

As a long time student of Freya Aswynn, Vincent Ongkowidjojo helps run her School of Runes and Northern Mysteries. Vincent’s vision is rooted in Western and Eastern esoteric philosophies. He earlier published Secrets of Asgard and Runen in de Noordse traditie. Visit Vincent’s website for latest updates on talks, courses and workshops.

William Lilly: Magician, Astrologer & Adept

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William Lilly,
Magician, Astrologer & Adept 
Peter Stockinger & Sue Ward

Foreword by David Conway

Format: Softcover, 252pp
ISBN: 978-1-906958-62-6


£14.99+p&p / US$26.00+p&p

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Triple Peter Stockinger UK

Triple Peter Stockinger USA 

Born less than a year before the death of Queen Elizabeth I in 1603, William Lilly lived during one of the most turbulent times in English history. Like so many of his generation, he had to deal with the plague, was drawn into the madness of the English Civil War and was forced to take sides, and witnessed the regicide of King Charles I. Lilly lived in a time of enormous religious and social upheaval, but his astrology remained the outer expression of a magical world-view, based on hermetic and neo-Platonic principles and rooted in the 16th century.

This book provides the reader with a thorough introduction to the world of William Lilly, the famous 17th century astrologer and magician. It brings together transcripts of his autobiography and of some of his most important works. It also includes Peter Stockinger and Sue Ward’s Monster of Ingratitude, an investigative journey offering new insights into the notorious contention between Lilly and the astrologer John Gadbury. Amongst other valuable information, the book contains:

* The Life of William Lilly, Student in Astrology

* Monster of Ingratitude
This research contains brief biographies of Lilly and Gadbury. It shows how their enmity began, developed and ended, including details of the rather one-sided pamphlet war. An in-depth study of published material, timelines and bibliographic entries of all primary sources used are also included and provide the grounds for a different explanation from that commonly proposed.

”The Last Magician is a very worthwhile work. Although some parts are hard going for the non-specialist, others are of value to anyone with an interest in Enlightenment esotericism and seventeenth-century English history in general. — Clive Prince.”

The Peacock’s Egg

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Ron Wyman

The Peacock’s Egg
Ron Wyman
Format: Softcover
ISBN: 978-1-906958-34-3
£15.00+p&p / US $23.00+p&p
Subjects: Alchemy/Magic/Occult.

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The Peacock’s Egg describes a transformation of the psyche. This is based in the alchemy in which an alchemical dream process is set into motion, acquiring highly resolute manifestation through phases of the opus. An intensive and lengthy occult praxis is entered in which dreams and dreaming practices are developed. Advanced levels of occult experience are attained in which ethereal energy becomes mastered, involving a purification. These attainments adhere to beliefs regarding this type of paranormal experience that include the author’s interest in the work of Carlos Castaneda. The intricacies of a crucial alchemical image are described—a Vision of the Peacock’s Egg, an accessible metaphysical anatomy. The spatiality of the rose garden, the alchemical death, and attainment of the lapis are then brought into the practice.



The Return Of The Tetrad

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Christopher McIntosh
(Occult Fiction)

The Return of The Tetrad
Christopher McIntosh
Format: Softcover
ISBN: 978-1-906958-18-3
£9.99 / US$15.00
Subjects: Magical/Occult Fiction/Occult Thriller.

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Paul Cairns, the narrator of this story, is a young journalist with a penchant for the occult. Prompted by a mysterious recurring nightmare, he seeks the advice of Gilbert North, scholar, country squire and occultist, who leads him on an extraordinary series of adventures involving a quest for the Tetrad, four primal magical objects corresponding to the elements and the suits of the Tarot. Cairns’ life becomes full of weird and supernatural happenings in a great magical battle between dark and light. But in the world of Gilbert North things are not quite what they seem. Layers of reality and unreality are peeled away until the deeper meaning of the whole quest is revealed.

REVIEW
Herbie Brennan (Ireland) –

This review is from: The Return Of The Tetrad (Kindle Edition).

Christopher McIntosh’s `Return of the Tetrad` is that rarest of commodities, an intelligent, vivid, well-written and, above all, authentic occult thriller that grips like a man-trap and provides an ending at once surprising and ultimately satisfying. The McIntosh style is reminiscent of Colin Wilson’s early novels, presenting thought-provoking ideas and deep-rooted esoteric concepts in an easily-digestible form that never becomes either difficult or patronising. This is occult fiction as it should be, but seldom is.

McIntosh, himself an academic expert in the esoteric, has mastered the art of suspending reader disbelief until the time comes for revelations that are as convincing as they are unexpected. According to the author,the first draft of the work was completed 40 years ago and has undergone various rewrites and revisions ever since. The end result is worth the wait. I read this book with enormous enjoyment and no little admiration.


Highly recommended.

Journal for the Academic Study of Magic 1-4

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A wide and deep view of magic – rating 9.’ Fortean Times 176

‘A must-read for all those interested in an academic approach to the magical arts.’ The Cauldron

JSM1
ISBN 978-1869928-674
Format: Softcover/200 pages.
ISSN 1479-0750
£20/US$40

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Contents
Beyond Attribution: The Importance of Barrett’s Magus/Alison Butler

Shadow over Philistia: A review of the Cult of Dagon/John C. Day

A History of Otherness: Tarot and Playing Cards from Early Modern Europe /Joyce Goggin

Opposites Attract: magical identity and social uncertainty / Dave Green

‘Memories of a sorcerer’: notes on Gilles Deleuze-Felix Guattari, Austin Osman Spare and Anomalous Sorceries. / Matt Lee

Le Streghe Son Tornate: The Reappearance of Streghe in Italian American Queer Writings/Ilaria Serra

Controlling Chance, Creating Chance: Magical Thinking in Religious Pilgrimage / Deana Weibel

—


JSM2
ISBN 978-1869928-725
Format:Softcover/410 pp.
ISSN 1479-0750
UK £20/US$40

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‘8 out of 10 – A bit of magic dust sprinkled over academe’ – Fortean Times
Contents
Alien Selves: Modernity and the Social Diagnostics of the Demonic in ‘Lovecraftian Magick’:/ Woodman

Wishful Thinking Notes towards a psychoanalytic sociology of Pagan magic: /Green

A Shell with my Name on it: The Reliance on the Supernatural During the First World War. /Chambers

The Metaphysical Relationship between Magic and Miracles: /Morgan Luck

Demonic Possession, and Spiritual Healing in Nineteenth-Century Devon:/ Semmens

Human Body in Southern Slavic Folk Sorcery:/ Filipovic & Rader

Four Glasses Of Water:/ Snell

The Land Near the Dark Cornish Sea:/ Hale

Kenneth Grant and the Magickal revival:/ Evans

Magic through the Linguistic Lenses of Greek mágos, Indo-European *mag(h)-, Sanskrit màyà and Pharaonic Egyptian heka:/ Cheak

The symbolism of the pierced heart: Froome/Nicholas Roerich:/ McCannon
/ Book Review, etc.
Reviews of JSM2
‘After being dunked in a cauldron of magic potion, the JASM now has classier paper, a larger format and bigger type and has grown to almost 400 pages.
The 12 articles further the Journal’s remit to present and promote new academic writing, thinking and research on all aspects of the subject, and demonstrate again just how broad this ever-expanding field is. One would have to have completed courses in ancient history, anthropology, religious studies, linguistics, philosophy, post-modernism, art, literature, folklore, the sciences and quite probably mathematics to properly assess the material here.
So, as a film studies graduate, I feel perfectly placed to pass comment…
Articles include: an anthropological insider’s look at a troupe of archly post-modem HP Lovecraft- inspired magicians, and their relationship to our world and that of The Great Old Ones, as experienced through guided meditations and dead-of-night possession rituals; magic,superstition and supernatural belief in the trenches of WWI; the evolution of Tintagel as a mystical Celtic pilgrimage site; an overview of the Russian mystic and artist Nicholas Roerich; a critical deconstruction of Kenneth Grant’s oozy oeuvre; witchcraft in 19th century Devon; libertarian magical iconoclast Lionel Snell (aka Ramsey Dukes) on cultures of scepticism and belief, and more besides. Diverse materials, then, people who really know their stuff.

The Journal is not entirely unproblematic, however. most of the pieces are clearly and engagingly written, one or two are o presented in awkward academese; S in others, one’s eyes can hardly move for the tangle of footnotes scattered across the page. Perhaps my gripes are with the academe itself, but if JASM seeks wider readership, these issues wort considering. Otherwise, another fine emission.’
– Mark Pilkington, Fortean Times

The Pentacle 13
‘Don’t be put off by the academic titles these articles are well worth reading whatever your path and I can’t wait for Issue 3. – rated 5 Pentacles’

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JSM3
ISBN 978-1869928-964
Format: Softcover/300 pp.
£20/US$40

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JSM3 – Drs Dave Green (University of the West of England, UK) and Susan Johnston Graf (Penn State, Mont Alto, USA) are taking over as co-editors of the journal.
We wish to thank Dave Evans, founding editor, for all his wonderful work in getting the journal up and running and establishing its reputation. The new editors are also pleased to announce that Mandrake is continuing its involvement with the journal as publishers.
Contents:
Amy Lee – A Language of Her Own: Witchery as a New Language of Female Identity
Dave Green – Creative Revolution: Bergsonisms and Modern Magic
Hannah Sanders – Buffy and Beyond: Language and Resistance in Contemporary Teenage Witchcraft
Mary Hayes – Discovering the Witch’s Teat: Magical Practices, Medical Superstitions in The Witch of Edmonton
Penny Lowery – The Re-enchantment of the Medical: An examination of magical elements in healing.
Jonathan Marshall – Apparitions, Ghosts, Fairies, Demons and Wild Events: Virtuality in Early Modern Britain
Kate Laity – Living the Mystery: Sacred Drama Today
Research Articles:
David Geall – ‘A half-choked meep of cosmic fear’ Is there esoteric symbolism in H.P.Lovecraft’s The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath?
Susan Gorman – Becoming a Sorcerer: Jean-Pierre Bekolo’s Quartier Mozart and the Magic of Deleuzian and Guattarian Becoming
Book Reviews

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JSM4
ISBN 978-1869928-391
Format: Softcover/400 pp.
£20/US$40

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Contents
The Practitioner, The Priest, and The Professor: Perspectives on Self-Initiation in the American Neopagan Community/Laubach, Martinie’ and Clemons/
The Trinity of the Hebrew Goddess: A Guided Presentation Of Goddess Narratives and Submerged Beliefs : DeMente
The Topography of Magic in the Modern Western and Ancient Egyptian Minds : Stannish
The science of magic: A parapsychological model of psychic ability in the context of magical will : Luke
Is Magic Possible Within A Quantum Mechanical Framework? : Ash
Angels with Nanotech Wings: Magic, Medicine and Technology in The Neuromancer and Brain Plague : Lord
Rowling’s Devil: Ancient Archetype or Modern Manifestation? : Lauren Berman
“Delivered From Enchantment”: Cotton Mather, W. B. O. Peabody, and the Struggle against Magic : Sederholm
In a Mirror, Darkly : A comparison between the Lovecraftian Mythos and African-Atlantic mystery religions : Geall
The Journey of The Lion King and the Collective Unconscious : Marsh
The Third Time’s the Charm”: Mythic Operative Magic in the Merseburger Zaubersprüche : Moynihan
The Old Irish Impotence Spell: The Dam Díli, Fergus, Fertility, and the Mythic Backround of an Irish Incantation : Bernhardt-House
Reading the Turkish Coffee Cup and Beyond: The Case of North Cyprus : Karimova
Reviews
Issue 5 is now seeking contributions. Scholarly articles in English about any aspect of magic/occultism are welcome up to 8000 words in length.
Submission to the journal is by Email attachment, in Rich Text Format documents using Harvard Citation Style. Full submission details, an outline style guide can be found here
http://www.sasm.co.uk/styleguide.html
Could all submissions now be sent to Dave Green David2.Green@uwe.ac.uk
Please feel free to contact Dave or Susan – sjg9@psu.edu – about the suitability of any proposed article, but in principle we aim to be as inclusive as possible, welcoming submissions from any academic discipline concerning any aspect of magic/occultism from any geographic region in any historical period. Academic articles from magical practitioners are also encouraged.
Deadline for submissions is 21st June 2006, with early submissions welcome.
Society for Academic Study of Magic – elist
The Academic Study Magic e-list is back by popular demand. The list is now being managed and moderated by Amy Hale and myself, Dave Green. We felt that the list, despite its difficulties and personality clashes, was a valuable and exciting resource for academics and others interested in all forms of magical practice from any period of history, any geographic area and any disciplinary background. The new moderators will not tolerate the flaming of old and want to foster an open and tolerant attitude to what will always be an interdisciplinary topic with many divergent views – long may it stay so and let us learn from these differences.
If you wish to join you can do so at this url:
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/ACADEMIC-STUDY-MAGIC.html
It might take a little time to recapture the old momentum of the list, but in the meantime we can start reacquainting ourselves so please feel free to post an introduction once you have joined and let’s see the academic magic phoenix rise from the ashes …
Please feel free to circulate this to any relevant lists and individuals.

—

JSM5
Format: Softcover
£20/US$40

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Click HERE for JSM5 / USA

JSM5 : Contents
Flavius Josephus’ Terminology of Magic: Accommodating
Jewish Magic to a Roman Audience, / Philip Jewell

The Role of Grimoires in the Conjure Tradition / Dan Harms

Hermetic/Cabalistic Ritual in Christopher Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus /
Dana Winters

Italian Cunning Craft: Some Preliminary Observations / Sabina Magliocco

Walking The Tightrope: A Study Of Secret Astrologers In Mainstream
Professions / J.A. Silver Frost

Martyrs, Magic, and Christian Conversion / Patrick Maille

“Worshiping the Devil in the Name of God”Anti-Semitism,
Theosophy and Christianity in the Occult Doctrines of Pekka Siitoin /
Kennet Granholm

“The Witching Hour: Sex Magic in 1950s Australia” / Marguerite Johnson

Reviews

Obituaries

Mystical Vampire

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The Life and Works of Mabel Collins
Kim Farnell

Mystical Vampire
The Life & Works of Mabel Collins
Kim Farnell
Format: Softcover
ISBN: 9781869928858
£15.00/US$26
Subjects: Biography/Theosophical History

Click HERE for the UK edition

Click HERE for USA & Worldwide
–
”I recommend the book to one and all whom have an interest in Victorian Society, for the off-beat origins of many institutions that are influential on our lives today. More than a few ideas found within Mystical Vampire such as the possibility of Annie Besant and Helena Blavatsky being more than just friends, make the book a good investment. For the Ripperologist, the two (and there may be other gems in there, so buy it!) items I mentioned on Collins / Stephenson are worth the price of the book alone. Few books (Sugden, Begg and Evans come to mind) are as well referenced and footnoted as this one. Ms Farnell has done an excellent job on her subject, Minna Mabel Collins.”
Howard Brown, Casebook: Jack The Ripper, the Web’s largest Jack The Ripper public archive www.casebook.org

”Kim Farnell has done devotees of gaslight and mediums a service in bringing Mabel’s world back to life.” Gary Lachman – The Independent On Sunday.
Gary Lachman’s works include:Turn Off Your Mind -The Mystic Sixties and The Dark Side of The Age of Aquarius (Sidgwick & Jackson) and The Dedalus Occult Reader: The Garden of Hermetic Dreams (Dedalus).

MYSTICAL VAMPIRE
The characters:
*Mabel Collins, Theosophist, novelist, fashion columnist, journalist and anti-vivisection campaigner
*Madame Blavatsky the extraordinary and highly influential Russian occultist and author, and other eminent members of her Theosophical Society
*Annie Besant, social reformer and Theosophist
*Robert Donston Stephenson, a suspect for Jack the Ripper and Mabel’s lover
*Frances Power Cobbe, social reformer, suffragist and anti-vivisection campaigner
*Charlotte Despard, social reformer, and anti-vivisection campaigner

Mabel Collins was an independent woman in the oppressive Victorian climate. She wrote many novels, but most will remember Mabel Collins, for her best selling mystical text Light On The Path published by the Theosophical Society. After her fall out with Madame Blavatsky,she carried on with her life as an esotericist, traveller and writer. She was moved by the plight and suffering of helpless creatures and became a campaigner for the abolition of vivisection.

Becoming Magick

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New & Revised Magicks for the New Aeon
David Rankine

Becoming Magick / UK / £15.00+p&p

Becoming Magick / USA  / US $22+P&P

Becoming Magick
New & Revised Magicks for the New Aeon
David Rankine
Format: Softcover
ISBN:
£15.00 /US $22
Subjects: Magick/Occult
–
Drawing on over twenty years of magickal work in a variety of systems, this book is a forward-looking manual full of new material and techniques created to push the boundaries of contemporary magick. Inspired by the great magickal traditions of past millennia, Becoming Magick presents new techniques of sigilisation and gematria, as well as a new system of energy magick based on the lunar Kalas, and prime Qabalah, a new system of English gematria.

REVIEWS

In the acknowledgements to this book David Rankine writes:
‘Ian Read, for being the first person to publish my writings as Jack Dracula in Chaos International.‘It is, therefore, the least we can do to have a gander at Becoming Magick and give you our considered opinion thereon. The system put forward here has something for everyone, all explained in the free and easy way that is one of the few good things about modern literature. The reader is guided through anything and (just about) everything from Maat to Angle and Mantra Webs and from Qabalah to Grant’s take on the Kalas, and it all somehow adds to- gether to make a great whole. There is a fair bit of number working in this book but anyone but the worst idiot (surely not present in the occult world?) should be able to follow this. This book is of particular use to Chaos Magicians because it is formed from ideas and techniques lifted from so many diverse systems. Definitely worth buying.’
– Frank Erpel, Chaos International, 26

‘The author of this new work exploring “magicks for the New Aeon”, is well known on the esoteric scene in Wales and London for his lectures and workshops. He has also been involved with a wide variety of magical groups and he draws on this experience to convey the essence of practical magick in simple terms. The book presents new techniques of visualisation and germatria, as well as a new system of magical working based on lunar symbolism and the Cabbala.’- The Cauldron

‘This book is a wonderful propellant for those who wish to bring that magic with a K into their lives. Having the benefit of knowledge of many systems of magic, from kundalini to kameas and kalas to qabalah, Mr Rankine delivers hard and fast ideas regarding these and a myriad of other subjects…An instructive book, especially for those with pre-knowledge of the author’s chosen subject matter.’- Hyena, Witchcraft & Wicca Magazine, Beltane to Lammas 2005

MORE REVIEWS

‘David Rankine has been practicing magick for 25 years. His book Magick Without Peers was the handbook for his correspondence course on Progressive Witchcraft, a hands on primer. This book continues in the same vein, giving you some further study in some material that Mr. Rankine has developed over and above conventional practices. This book assumes you have some grounding in basic magical practices. It would be a good to have some idea of what the Hebrew alphabet has to do with the Qabalah, and how it works with gematria, or better yet, have an idea of what gematria is. It would also be a good idea to know a little about thought forms, a touch of Magic Squares, advanced mantras, and maybe some basics in the 9 Gates.

From these foundations David Rankine takes us a step further, exposing us to some out of the box thinking on these particular essentials to basic magic practice, and gives us something to ponder and possibly incorporate into our own practices. He also includes some “found” techniques he has devised from his own ponderings and practices, and he explains those rather well. Some topics of interest include The Prime Qabalah, The Kalas, The Mantra of Becoming, Magickal Ingestion, Magick Squares and so much more. There is much to digest here, and I am going to give but a brief overview. The Prime Qabalah is a look at a variation of gematria (Hebrew Numerology) applied to the English alphabet and using the 26 prime numbers. Mr. Rankine has some interesting results, which give one cause for reflection. Well worth checking out.

The Kalas chapter is interesting, being based on the concept given by Kenneth Grant. Mr. Rankine has developed his own 16 Kalas (five elements and eleven Astrological Planets) and gives all the properties and attributions of each. From his explanation of what the Kalas are (cycles of energy), to the explanation of each Kala, he presents us with an extraordinary new working that many will find fascinating. If you work with Kalas, you will want to check this section out. The Mantra of Becoming is a discovery of Mr. Rankine, incorporating a root mantra of Kia with some variations that progress on the magical “ia” and incorporates the next four Hebrew letters: L, M, N, and S. This revelation yields some very interesting analysis from the gematria aspect of the mantra, and Mr. Rankine goes a bit further to show the relationships suggested by the gematria analysis and gives us a very interesting mantra to work with.

Magickal Ingestion I found so basic that I wondered why someone else had not thought of it before. In Egyptian, Heka is magic. It is the spoken word that makes magic manifest. The ancient Egyptians would take a spell, and write it on a piece of papyrus and dissolve it in beer and drink it, imbibing the spell as part of themselves as well as being a working.

Bringing that into the present, writing our working, or sigal, or spell on food, writing our intent on a magical cookie, writing blessings on the cakes for ritual with various methods would be an excellent idea to bring the magic and the magician closer together, as suggested by Mr. Rankine. He gives some ideas, some uses and a whole new insight into “you are what you eat”. Much to ponder here and discover.

Magick Squares are the basis for much of our magical workings, be it talismans or creating sigals for personal work. The squares are based on the astrological information from hundreds of years ago and include Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercury and the moon. However, since the discovery of Uranus, Neptune and Pluto, there has been no one who has updated these squares. Mr. Rankine gives us his version of the squares using the Prime Qabalah and also includes Earth, which seems to have been neglected by the astrologers of the past.

Again, more interesting material to ponder over, chew up, and possibly incorporate into our own magical workings. Note that if you do not understand the material discussed here, it is because this book is not a basic primer, and you are not at fault. This can get to be very deep, covering some more advanced material and concepts that knowledgeable practitioners will understand. I found this to be refreshing, and a bit challenging, as there was material here that went beyond my own basic knowledge.

I love a book that can teach me something new, or send me out looking for the basics so I can kick my own working knowledge up a notch. Mr. Rankine did an excellent job of explaining the concepts he is suggesting, and includes illustrations for much of what he discusses, and but for a few places where I had no working knowledge of what he was discussing, I did follow most of what he wrote. And after a bit of backtracking and research, the material I was not familiar with did fall into place.

The mark of a good teacher is his ability to make the unfamiliar understandable, and Mr. Rankine succeeded. If you are looking for new material for your own practice, if you are looking at what other working magicians are doing and are interested in some new concepts and ideas. If you want to challenge yourself with some new aspects to the magickal practices, then this book will definitely give you something to chew on. Again, this is not a magic 101 book, but is intended for those who have gone beyond that. This book is a wondrous look at another man’s discoveries and practices.’
– Boudica, The Wiccan/Pagan Times

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David Rankine – Magician, Esoteric Author & Researcher and a leading authority on grimoires. davidrankine.wordpress.com