Conjuring Spirits: Texts and Traditions of Late Medieval Ritual Magic Review

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(More customer reviews)This is a fantastic book especially if you are looking from a historical perspecive. The book is very intellegently written, and it is very apparent the author spent a great deal of time researching the work. This is not just another rehash as so many other books are. Highly reccommended for any magicians library.

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Conjuring Spirits contains both general surveys and analyses of magical texts and manuscripts by distinguished scholars in a variety of disciplines. Included are chapters by Richard Kieckhefer and Robert Mathiesen on the "Sworn Book of Honorius," Michael Camille on the Ars Notoria, John B. Friedman on the Secretum Philosophorum, Nicholas Watson on the McMaster text, and Elizabeth Wade on Lullian divination. The work also includes Juris Lidaka's edition of the Liber de Angelis, and an overview of late medieval English ritual manuscripts by Frank Klaassen. This book will be invaluable for scholars and other readers interested in ritual magic in the later middle ages.

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The Egyptian Book of the Dead (Penguin Classics) Review

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(More customer reviews)This edition of Budge's book of the Dead is not the same as the Dover edition (the Papyrus of Ani). It's in fact an edition Budge published a few years later (The Chapters of Coming Forth by Day), and it's a compilation of all the papyri available at the time, making this the most complete edition of the Book of the Dead available today. The translation itself has over 3 times the material in the earlier edition, and the translation is more polished than Budge's earlier work. If you have the Papyrus of Ani, I recommend you get this as well, as you're missing out on a ton of material. While the binding and presentation is not as good as the Dover, in terms of contents it is unbeatable.

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The most famous of all ancient Egyptian texts—with an introduction by one of the most celebrated Egyptologists of our timeAMONG THE MOST WIDELY read and studied of all ancient writings, The Egyptian Book of the Dead consists of funerary texts that ancient Egyptian scribes composed for the benefit of the dead. This astonishing array of spells, hymns and litanies, magical formulae and names, and words of power and prayers were all found cut or painted on walls of pyramids and tombs, and painted on coffins, sarcophagi, and rolls of papyri.

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Arcane Lore: "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About the Occult But Were Afraid to Ask" Review

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(More customer reviews)I'm not quite sure how to phrase my review of this unusual book. I liked it, as it was well written, well researched, and an enjoyable read. However, I must say that it conflicts with the teachings of other systems, and some of the techniques could be dangerous if misapplied. The mysterious author is amusing as he antagonizes 'Classical Ceremonial Magicians', unscrupulous gurus, and ignorant New Age dabblers, and I'm sure that he has made a number of enemies as a result of these criticisms. He has made a few valid observations, though, and it is good to expose certain characters for what they truly are.
I found the author's perspective of the spirit world very interesting, and I liked the way he compared and contrasted his perceptions of the dream state with the astral realm and OOBE/Remote Viewing. He also cautions the reader against idle experimentation, psychedellic drugs, and affiliating oneself with negative cult-like groups. On the other hand, he tends to ramble at times, makes several somewhat bizarre statements, and quotes from dubious sources like 'The Book of the SubGenius,' 'Principia Discordia,' and even the 'Necronomicon!' Although he rightfully acknowledges that certain of his sources (including the aforementioned) are fictional, and even presents his own non-fiction book as 'fiction' as well, it seems as though he really believes what he's saying. Perhaps (like the three aforementioned sources) it is a joke of some sort? Or maybe certain revolutionary truths can only be presented as fiction, because the author would be ridiculed and denounced if he claimed otherwise? Perhaps this is why he has chosen to keep his identity a secret?
The author is an 'anti-guru' who pokes fun at those who would presume to master others, a renegade who dares to reveal forbidden knowledge, a comedian who makes us laugh, and apparently a guide who truly walks the path of the warrior.
Recommended, but with reservations. If you are on an eclectic or shamanistic path, it may open your eyes to a great many profound truths. If you are on a wrongful or negative path, it may show you the error of your ways and steer you in the right direction. But if you are a New Ager who thinks the spiritual world is all 'goodness & light', or a rigid traditionalist lacking a healthy sense of humor, then this book is definitely not for you. I give it Four Stars.

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