Arriving at Santiago Atitlan, a Tzutujil Mayan village on the breathtaking shores of Lake Atitlan, Prechtel met Nicolas Chiviliu Tacaxoy--perhaps the most famous shaman in Tzutujil history--who believed Prechtel was the new student he had asked the gods to provide. For the next thirteen years, Prechtel studied the ancient Tzutujil culture and became a village chief and a famous shaman in his own right.In Secrets of the Talking Jaguar, Prechtel brings to vivid life the sights, sounds, scents, and colors of Santiago Atitlan: its magical personalities, its beauty, its material poverty and spiritual richness, its eight-hundred-year-old rituals juxtaposed with quintessential small-town gossip. The story of his education is a tale filled with enchantment, danger, passion, and hope.

    There is the Kuwaiti sex therapist in a leather suit with matching red headscarf, and the Syrian engineer advocating a less political interpretation of the Koran. MacFarquhar interacts with Arabs and Iranians in their every day lives, removed from the violence we see constantly, yet wrestling with the region's future. These are people who realize their region is out of step with the world and are determined to do something about it--on their own terms.

    Laying the foundation for modern science, he actively promoted mathematics and astronomy as well as made advances in navigation and optics that helped elevate England to the foremost imperial power in the world. Centuries ahead of his time, his theoretical work included the concept of light speed and prototypes for telescopes and solar panels. Dee, the original "007" (his crown-given moniker), even invented the idea of a "British Empire," envisioning fledgling America as the new Atlantis, himself as Merlin, and Elizabeth as Arthur.But, as Jason Louv explains, Dee was suppressed from mainstream history because he spent the second half of his career developing a method for contacting angels. After a brilliant ascent from star student at Cambridge to scientific advisor to the queen, Dee, with he help of a disreputable, criminal psychic named Edward Kelly, devoted ten years to communing with the angels and archangels of God. These spirit communications gave him the keys to Enochian, the language that mankind spoke before the fall from Eden. Piecing together Dee's fragmentary spirit diaries and scrying sessions, the author examines Enochian in precise detail and explains how the angels used Dee and Kelly as agents to establish a New World Order that they hoped would unify all monotheistic religions and eventually dominate the entire globe.Presenting a comprehensive overview of Dee's life and work, Louv examines his scientific achievements, intelligence and spy work, imperial strategizing, and Enochian magick, establishing a psychohistory of John Dee as a singular force and fundamental driver of Western history. Exploring Dee's influence on Sir Francis Bacon, the development of modern science, 17th-century Rosicrucianism, the 19th-century occult revival, and 20th-century occultists such as Jack Parsons, Aleister Crowley, and Anton LaVey, Luov shows how John Dee continues to impact science and the occult to this day.

    But in The History of Jihad: From Muhammad to ISIS, Islamic scholar Robert Spencer proves definitively that Islamic terror is as old as Islam itself, as old as Muhammad, the prophet of Islam, who said “I have been made victorious through terror.” Spencer briskly traces the 1,400-year war of Islamic jihadis against the rest of the world, detailing the jihad against Europe, including the 700-year struggle to conquer Constantinople; the jihad in Spain, where non-Muslims fought for another 700 years to get the jihadi invaders out of the country; and the jihad against India, where Muslim warriors and conquerors wrought unparalleled and unfathomable devastation in the name of their religion. Told in great part in the words of contemporary chroniclers themselves, both Muslim and non-Muslim, The History of Jihad shows that jihad warfare has been a constant of Islam from its very beginnings, and present-day jihad terrorism proceeds along exactly the same ideological and theological foundations as did the great Islamic warrior states and jihad commanders of the past. The History of Jihad: From Muhammad to ISIS is the first one-volume history of jihad in the English language, and the first book to tell the whole truth about Islam’s bloody history in an age when Islamic jihadis are more assertive in Western countries than they have been for centuries. This book is indispensable to understanding the geopolitical situation of the twenty-first century, and ultimately to formulating strategies to reform Islam and defeat radical terror.

    It is an indispensable guide to the depth and power of the Shia–Sunni split.

    This essential handbook contains everything an aspiring Wizard needs to know. It is profusely illustrated with original art by Oberon and friends, as well as many woodcuts from medieval and alchemical manuscripts--plus charts, tables, and diagrams. It also contains: Biographies of famous Wizards in history and legend; Descriptions of magickal tools and regalia (with full instructions for making them); spells and workings for a better life; rites and rituals for special occasions; a bestiary of mythical creatures; systems of divination; the Laws of Magick; myths and stories of gods and heroes; lore and legends of the stars and constellations; instructions for performing amazing illusions, special effects,! and many other wonders of the magickal multiverse. To those who study the occult, in particular, Witchcraft, the name of Oberon Zell-Ravenheart is internationally-known and respected. He is a genuine Wizard, and he has written this book for any person wishing to become one. Perhaps, as some have written, Oberon Zell-Ravenheart is the real Albus Dumbledore to aspiring Harry Potters!In addition to his own writings in this collection, he also presents other writers who add some highly thoughtful insights. Such as Raymond Buckland among others.The illustrations and photographs which accompany the text are among the finest found anywhere, and are a helpful boon to those wanting to see what they are reading about. Biographies of many famous Wizards of history and legend appear in the book. Detailed descriptions of magickal tools with information for making them appears in this book. Additional information includes rites and rituals for special occasions, a bestiary of mythical creatures, a detailed and educational discussion on the laws of magick, myths, and lore of the stars and constellations. This book is full of instructions!As a handbook and guide for becoming a Wizard, this is as near perfect and honest a book as one will find today. New Page Books has done a great service to the paranormal and occult community readers by publishing this worthwhile reference book.Oberon Zell-Ravenheart has written a classic on Wizardry. This is his masterpiece. One of the American pioneers of Paganism in the United States, his lifetime of learning and information is shared with readers from all walks of life. He started in 1968 with the publication of his award-winning journal, Green Egg, and is often considered by readers as one of their favorite Pagan writers. The lessons in this fine book are accurate, honest, and entertaining.If you want to become a Wizard, this is the book to start with, and learn from. This Grimoire is must-have reading for readers interested in true magick. The information given on ghosts will hold the reader spellbound, as will all information in this reference book!

    The Golden Bough" describes our ancestors' primitive methods of worship, sex practices, strange rituals and festivals. Disproving the popular thought that primitive life was simple, this monumental survey shows that savage man was enmeshed in a tangle of magic, taboos, and superstitions. Revealed here is the evolution of man from savagery to civilization, from the modification of his weird and often bloodthirsty customs to the entry of lasting moral, ethical, and spiritual values.

    Here is the revised and updated version of Earth Magic, the author's personal book of magical practice, made available for today's Witches. Based on an indepth study of the many facets of Witchcraft, Earth Magic presents the religion as positive and life-affirming.The book is filled with how-to's of a practical nature, as is traditional in Witchcraft. It is intended to be a springboard, to unlock the reader's psychic Wiccan abilities and guide them into the creation of their own unique and personal work. Every technique is explained in detail, in keeping with Weinstein's proviso that one should never attempt to work any magic unless one understands it fully. The goal is to encourage true Witchcraft expertise and creativity.The information from the original edition is still available, as well as a treasure trove of new material, some of which has never been seen before. In this thoroughly revised edition, you will learn: -- How to set up psychic protection.-- How to work string and cord magic.-- Working with the phases of the Moon.-- Forming and working with your own coven.-- Visualization in a Witch's mode.-- Choices of Deity alignments from a wide realm of cultures.-- Not one, but two methods of Manifestation: Creation Manifestation and Affinity Manifestation.-- Creating rituals, creating Words of Power, composing one's own spells, use of talismans, candles, pendulums, Witch's Bottles, scrying, oracles, and much more.

    However, recent discoveries of astonishing accomplishments from the Neolithic Age - in art, technology, writing, math, science, religion, medicine and exploration - demand a fundamental rethinking of humanity before the dawn of written history.In this fascinating book, Richard Rudgley describes how:* The intrepid explorers of the Stone Age discovered all of the world's major land masses long before the so-called Age of Discovery* Stone Age man performed medical operations, including amputations and delicate cranial surgeries* Paleolithic cave artists of Western Europe used techniques that were forgotten until the Renaissance* Prehistoric life expectancy was better than it is for contemporary third-world populationsRudgley reminds us just how savage so-called civilized people can be, and demonstrates how the cultures that have been reviled as savage were truly civilized. The Lost Civilizations of the Stone Age shows the great debt that contemporary society owes to its prehistoric predecessors. It is a rich introduction to a lost world that will redefine the meaning of civilization itself.

    It's about the man who composed the Koran.Author F. W. Burleigh draws on an academic, investigative, and literary background to bring forth this penetrating look at the man behind it all. Burleigh’s interest in Islam was sparked by the events of 9/11. The questions guiding his studies were, “Why do Muslims do what they do? Why is there so much violence connected with this religion?” After a line-by-line scrutiny of 20,000 pages of the original literature of Islam, the author gives his blunt assessment in the title: It’s All About Muhammad.The book is in three parts. The first 12 chapters explore the epileptic fits that convinced Muhammad that he was in communion with God, explain the Koran and why he composed it the way he did, and show the humble origin of the Kabah, which only attained its cubic shape in the year A.D. 605 with Muhammad as a member of the construction crew. The book shows the magma chamber of hatred that formed in him due to traumatic early-life experience and tracks the emergence of his psychopathic nature. It exposes how he modified ideas he took from Judaism and Christianity to suit his grandiose idea of himself as the "last and final prophet," his intolerance of Meccan polytheistic beliefs, and finally his declaration of war against "all and sundry" who refused to accept him and his religion.In the second part, Muhammad's magma chamber of hatred erupts on the world. The book shows the creation of his al-qaeda--his base of operations in Yathrib (Medina) where he fled after the Meccans decided they had to kill him, his conflict with the Jewish tribes of Yathrib after they refused to accept him as their prophet; his genocide of the Jews including the beheading of the men of an entire tribe; the assassination of his critics; the battles and raids and orgies of rape, plunder, and slaughter; and finally his conquest of Mecca. Like a dramatic arc, these 18 chapters form Act II of a script that is still being played out today.In the final part, Muhammad's ruthless conquest of all of Arabia is presented. This section also gives an account of his numerous wives and the expansion of his wars beyond the confines of the Arabian peninsula. One of the final chapters explores his claim that he will be the first to be resurrected on the day of resurrection and that he will assist Allah in determining who goes to heaven and who stays in hell--part of the "breathtaking nonsense" of what Muhammad claimed about himself, as the author phrases it.What Muhammad created continues to wreak havoc on the world. It follows the script he wrote fourteen centuries ago. It is not sufficient any longer merely to raise the alarm about Islam--an ideology of submission to the will of a psychologically deformed and spiritually grotesque man. What needs to accompany the alarm is a solution, and this book offers a solution: It is a matter of an aggressive, relentless, and unapologetic exposure of the truth about Muhammad in every graphic form possible, from illustrated books to docudramas to full-length feature films. With its 25 illustrations, It's All About Muhammad offers itself as an example of the approach.The truth about Muhammad is a powerful weapon of self-defense that people must take up to oppose and ultimately push back what he created. It is a weapon within the reach of everyone.

    Many of the old-time superstitions and customs have been nurtured and kept alive through the area's relative isolation and the strong attachment of the hillfolk to these old attitudes. Though modern science and education have been making important inroads in the last few decades, the region is still a fertile source of quaint ideas, observances, and traditions.People are normally reticent about their deepest beliefs, especially with outsiders. The author, however, has lived in the Ozarks since 1920 and has long since been a student of Ozark life—and a writer of a number of books and articles on various aspects of the subject. Through casual conversations rather than by direct questioning, he has been able gradually to compile a singularly authentic record of Ozark superstition. His book contains a vast amount of folkloristic material, including legends, beliefs, ritual verses and sayings and odd practices of the hillpeople, plus a wealth of general cultural data. Mr. Randolph discusses weather signs; beliefs about auspicious times for planting crops, butchering hogs, etc.; prenatal influence in "marking" babies; backwoods beauty treatments; lucky charms, omens and auguries; courtship jinxes, love potions, etc.; dummy suppers; and numerous other customs and convictions—many racy and amusing, others somewhat grisly or spooky.Here you'll meet and learn about the yarb doctor who prepared curious remedies of herbs and odd concoctions; power doctors who use charms, spells, and exorcism to effect cures; granny-women (mountain midwives); "doodlebuggers" and witch wigglers who find water with the aid of divining rods; "conjurefolk" and Holy Rollers; witches and goomer doctors; clairvoyants and fortune-tellers; plus the ordinary finger-crossing, wish-making citizens of the area. The general reader as well as the specialist in particular fields of cultural anthropology, etc. will truly enjoy this lively survey of lore and practice—a little-known but fascinating slice of American life.Its gentle humor takes the reader into the hills with the author. The book deserves a place in any general collection of Americana and in all collections of folklore," U.S. QUARTERLY BOOKLIST. "A veritable treasury of backwoods custom and belief… [ a ] wealth of circumstantial detail and cultural background," Carl Withers, N.Y. TIMES.

    And indeed, the servant will speak words that are displeasing to Allah, due to which he will not he given a good condition, but (instead) be thrown into the Hellfire."(Bukhari)This book highlights those sins that seem so light on the tongue yet so grave on the scale and offers practical advice on how to keep the tongue in check.

    Sufferers report feeling suffocated, held down by some "force," paralyzed, and extremely afraid.The experience is surprisingly common: the author estimates that approximately 15 percent of people undergo this event at some point in their lives. Various cultures have their own name for the phenomenon and have constructed their own mythology around it; the supernatural tenor of many Old Hag stories is unavoidable. Hufford, as a folklorist, is well-placed to investigate this puzzling occurrence.

    Includes Crowley's "An Initiated Interpretation of Ceremonial Magic," his version of "The Bornless Ritual," Enochian translations of some of the Goetic invocations, an introduction, and notes. Illustrated. Smythe-sewn and printed on acid-free paper.

    Originally published in 1932, predating by more than a half century the current interest in the mind’s power to heal, this concise work guides readers through what Israel Regardie calls the Middle Pillar meditation — a technique that combines the mystical concepts of yoga’s chakras and the Kabbalah’s Tree of Life to create a simple and effective healing tool.In this edition, editor Marc Allen brings Regardie’s work into the twenty-first century — showing us how to unleash energy to heal our bodies and, ultimately, every part of our lives. Like few books before or since, The Art of True Healing provides both the theory and practices necessary for attaining well-being and fulfillment.