Book picks similar to
Twelve Keys by Basilius Valentinus
occult
alchemy
non-fiction
spirituality
The Seven Sermons to the Dead
C.G. Jung - 1925
We are, however, the pleroma itself, for we are a part of the eternal and infinite. But we have no share thereof, as we are from the pleroma infinitely removed; not spiritually or temporally, but essentially, since we are distinguished from the pleroma in our essence as creatura, which is confined within time and space. Yet because we are parts of the pleroma, the pleroma is also in us. Even in the smallest point is the pleroma endless, eternal, and entire, since small and great are qualities which are contained in it. It is that nothingness which is everywhere whole and continuous. Only figuratively, therefore, do I speak of created being as a part of the pleroma. Because, actually, the pleroma is nowhere divided, since it is nothingness. We are also the whole pleroma, because, figuratively, the pleroma is the smallest point (assumed only, not existing) in us and the boundless firmament about us. But wherefore, then, do we speak of the pleroma at all, since it is thus everything and nothing? I speak of it to make a beginning somewhere, and also to free you from the delusion that somewhere, either without or within, there standeth something fixed, or in some way established, from the beginning. Every so-called fixed and certain thing is only relative. That alone is fixed and certain which is subject to change. What is changeable, however, is creatura. Therefore is it the one thing which is[...]".
De Umbris Idearum: On the Shadows of Ideas
Giordano Bruno
To memorize anything, distribute vivid, emotionally stirring imagined images around a piece of familiar architecture. This is the method of loci, or memory palace method, first developed in classical antiquity. Giordano Bruno perfected the art in the late 16th Century. He published a series of books on the subject, beginning with De Umbris Idearum (On the Shadows of Ideas). His work and life would lead him across the major centers of Renaissance Europe, to the patronage of kings and nobles, the scorn and envy of academics, and ultimately to his imprisonment and execution at the hands of the Roman Inquisition in 1600.Bruno's works have been reprinted periodically since his death. The current edition is the first complete English translation to be published.
Zohar: The Book of Splendor: Basic Readings from the Kabbalah
Gershom Scholem
It is the central work in the literature of the Kabbalah, the Jewish mystical tradition. This volume of selected passages from the Zohar, culled by the greatest authority on Jewish mysticism, offers a sampling of its unique vision of the esoteric wonders of creation; the life and destiny of the soul; the confluence of physical and divine love; suffering and death; exile and redemption.
Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry
Albert Pike - 1871
The lectures provided a backdrop for the degrees by giving lessons in comparative religion, history, and philosophy."
Arktos: The Polar Myth in Science, Symbolism & Nazi Survival
Joscelyn Godwin - 1992
Explored are the many tales of an ancient race said to have lived in the Arctic regions, such as Thule and Hyperborea. Progressing onward, the book looks at modern polar legends: including the survival of Hitler, German bases in Antarctica, UFOs, the hollow earth, and the hidden kingdoms of Agartha and Shambhala. Chapters include: Prologue in Hyperborea; The Golden Age; The Imperishable Sacred Land; The Northern Lights; The Arctic Homeland; The Aryan Myth; The Thule Society; The Black Order; The Hidden Lands; Agartha and the Polaires; Shambhala; The Hole at the Pole; Antarctica; Arcadia Regained; The Symbolic Pole; Polar and Solar Traditions; The Spiritual Pole; The Catastrophists; The Uniformitarians; Polar Wandering; more.
The Little Book of Curses and Maledictions for Everyday Use
Dawn Rae Downton - 2009
“Fresh” produce, “wholesome” food. Your boss. Your former boss. Your coworkers. Your crush. Doctors. Customer service. Who can you call to get that monkey off your back? You can’t call anyone because they won’t return your calls. Isn’t it time to have a little ammo of your own? Here you go: fifty custom maledictions for situations you run into every day, and for people you know and wish you didn’t. In step-by-step, user-friendly detail, The Little Book of Curses puts the power back in your hands. Learn how to place spells, incantations, hexes, and more. Authentic, ancient curses from around the world are tweaked for easy, contemporary use. The book covers the four essentials to practicing any kind of magic: what to do and say, what materials to use, what frame of mind to be in, and what limits to set. In some cases it even matters where you are when you set your curse, what time of day it is, and who’s around. All that is here, too. It’s foolproof!
A One Hour Short Sweet Zen Retreat
Tai Sheridan - 2013
It is a simple one hour practice that requires no special belief, training, or particular religious affiliation. The simple act of being intimate with your world in a quiet way can not only refresh your body, spirit and mind, it can lead to deep wisdom, loving kindness, peace, and tender intimacy.
The Elixir & the Stone: The Tradition of Magic & Alchemy
Michael Baigent - 1997
By the middle of the twentieth century, the battle appeared to be won; scientific rationalism and skepticism were triumphant. Yet in the last few decades a strong and potent counter-current has emerged. One manifestation of this has been the so-called occult revival.In The Elixir and the Stone, Baigent and Leigh argue that this occult revival — and indeed the entire revolution in attitudes which has taken place recently — owes a profound debt to Hermeticism, a body of esoteric teaching which flourished in Alexandria two thousand years ago and which then went underground. The authors trace the history of this intriguing and all-encompassing philosophy — which has much in common with contemporary holistic thought — charting it’s origin in the Egyptian mysteries, and demonstrating how it continued to exercise enormous influence through the magicians and magi of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.Many remarkable characters feature in the narrative, including the Franciscan friar Roger Bacon and the Elizabethan magus John Dee; prototype of Shakespeare’s Prospero in The Tempest, but the central figure that emerges is that of Faust himself — one of the defining myths of Western civilization.The Elixir and the Stone is a remarkably rich and ambitious book that adds up to a little short of an alternative history of the intellectual world. Perhaps for the first time it puts into their true context those shadowy alchemists and magicians who have haunted the imaginations of people for centuries. Moreover it offers a way of looking at the world that is in one sense ‘alternative’, but in another, deeply historical.
How the World Is Made: The Story of Creation according to Sacred Geometry
John Michell - 2009
The laws of geometry are not human inventions. They are found ready-made in nature and hold a truth that is the same in all times and all places and is older than the world itself. In How the World Is Made John Michell explains how ancient societies that grasped the timeless principles of sacred geometry were able to create flourishing societies. His more than 300 full-color illustrations reveal the secret code within these geometrical figures and how they express the spiritual meanings in the key numbers of 1 through 12. For example, the number 8 and its octagon are symbols of peace and stability, the holy 7 and its seven-sided figure are connected to the world-soul. He identifies the various regular shapes and shows their constructions; their natural symbolism; their meetings, matings, and ways of breeding; and their functions within the universal order. Some are musical and structural, others relate to life and humanity. In the process of making these discoveries, Michell helps us see the world in a new light. Disparate shapes and their corresponding numbers are woven together, resolving themselves into an all-inclusive world image--that “pattern in the heavens,” as Socrates called it, “which anyone can find and establish within themselves.”
Tarot and the Journey of the Hero
Hajo Banzhaf - 1997
Drawing on Jungian psychology and his own considerable knowledge of esoterica, Banzhaf clearly shows how the major arcana of the Waite tarotdeck tell the story of the hero's journey. It is the world's oldest story, residing in our collective unconscious, as women and men alike find themselves engaged in the heroic task of maturation. 126 color illustrations. Notes. Bibliography
Horror in the Woods
Steph Young - 2017
and the possible answers behind it. The Woods will never be the same again... Steph Young has appeared on National radio shows including "Coast to Coast Am," "Midnight in the Desert," "Where did the road go?" "The Unexplained," & "Darkness Radio." Steph Young is an independent researcher, addicted to researching all Supernatural, Paranormal, Esoteric and enigmatic Mysteries. Each book seems to lead to further questions and searches for answers, as the Mysteries inevitably deepen & develop into ever more complex riddles in the spectrum of the Unknown.... Creepy true tales of strange disappearances in the woods, unexplained vanishings & mysterious Deaths. Creepy Mysteries of the Unexplained. Unexplained Disappearances & Missing people; True Stories. ....Things can get strange when you're alone in the woods....and something in the woods is taking People; something unknown that we cannot define; something that others have had the misfortune to encounter. People snatched soundlessly, never to be seen again. Or returned; dead. A strange and highly unusual predator. Highly intelligent. Very successful. And able to overpower someone in an instant.... This is a puzzle. An often deadly one. People are disappearing in the Woods. Screams heard in the distance; or, just ominous silence... The primal fear of something dangerous lurking, coming closer…..For some people, this can turn into a deadly reality. For those left behind, there is only confusion, fear, panic…..The Woods will never be the same again....
The Bahir: Illumination
Anonymous
The Bahir is quoted in every major book on Kabbalah, the earliest being the Raavad's commentary on Sefer Yetzirah, and it is cited numerous times by Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman (Ramban) in his commentary on the Torah. It is also quoted many times in the Zohar. It was first published around 1176 by the Provence school of Kabbalists; the first printed edition appeared in Amsterdam in 1651. The name Bahir is derived from the first verse quoted in the text (Job 37:21), "And now they do not see light, it is brilliant (Bahir) in the skies." It is also called the "Midrash of Rabbi Nehuniah ben HaKana," particularly by the Ramban. The reason might be that Rabbi Nehuniah's name is at the very beginning of the book, but most Kabbalists actually attribute the Bahir to him and his school. Some consider it the oldest kabbalistic text ever written.Although the Bahir is a fairly small book, some 12,000 words in all, it was very highly esteemed among those who probed its mysteries. Rabbi Judah Chayit, a prominent fifteenth-century Kabbalist, writes, "Make this book a crown for your head." Much of the text is very difficult to understand, and Rabbi Moshe Cordevero (1522-1570), head of the Safed school of Kabbalah, says, "The words of this text are bright (Bahir) and sparkling, but their brilliance can blind the eye." One of the most important concepts revealed in the Bahir is that of the Ten Sefirot, and careful analysis of these discussions yields much of what will be found in later kabbalistic works, as well as their relation to anthropomorphism and the reason for the commandments. Also included is a discussion of reincarnation, or Gilgul, an interpretation of the letters of the Hebrew alphabet, the Thirty-two Paths of Wisdom, and the concept of Tzimtzum.
The Book of Pleasure (Self-Love): The Psychology of Ecstasy
Austin Osman Spare - 2010
It is also festooned with examples of his automatic drawings and sigils, this work has established Spare as a formidable and unique figure in twentieth century western magic.This edition includes the original 1913 introduction by Ernest H.R.Collings and the 1975 introduction by Kenneth Grant.Fine Image Reproduction:This edition reprints all the graphics and half-tone illustrations from a particularly fresh and well printed copy of the first edition. Illustrated endpapers and divider pages feature photomontages of the original book, overprinted with designs by Spare in silk varnish.We have also located an original art work from the book and include a new reproduction for inclusion in this edition.A re-worked version of one of the original illustrations is also featured, alongside Mr Staley’s eulogy to Kenneth Grant and his relationship with this book.
Symbols of Freemasonry
Daniel Beresniak - 1998
Its past members include kings, presidents, military leaders, writers and philosophers, and today there are over ten million freemasons in the world.
Secret Language of Signs
Denise Linn - 1996
Even ordinary events in your life carry communications from the realm of the Spirit. . . .Whether we are conscious of it or not, the universe is communicating to us through signs. In this mind-opening book, renowned healer and author Denise Linn shows that coincidence, synchronicity, and those premonitions we've all experienced are never accidents but a kindly world's way of trying to nudge us in the right direction.Drawing on firsthand true stories and native wisdom from around the world, Linn helps us regain our innate capacity to listen to the universe, to use the signs that speak to us every day of our lives. Step by step, she shows us how to call for a sign, how to create the best conditions for receiving it, and how to interpret the signs we receive, with the most comprehensive dictionary of signs ever compiled. Designed to help you develop your own ability to interpret signs as they call to you, the dictionary entries give you a starting point for understanding what your signs are communicating. For instance . . * An abyss might symbolize a chasm in your life. Is there something that seems impassable to you?* A storm can indicate internal conflict. It can also indicate that the air is clearing in regard to a situation in your life.* A crossroads signifies that a time of decision is ahead. Take time and tune in to your intuition before choosing your future path. * Smoke can be a warning of danger. Is there a situation in your life that's about to go up in flames? Smoke can also indicate a lack of clarity.With this powerful, easy-to-use guide, Denise Linn helps us to reconnect with the magic of our inner selves to make the right decisions and choices in our lives.