The
Medieval and Renaissance Eras
The "classical age" of
the grimoiric texts is roughly equivalent to the span of the
Middle (or Medieval) and Renaissance ages. The Middle Ages began
roughly in the fifth century CE, when the empire of Rome was both
infiltrated and violently overrun by Germanic tribes. This is when
the famous sacking of Rome took place at the hands of the Vandals,
in the year 455 CE. The established government was slowly inched
out of power, and Italy became little more than an extension of a
German kingdom. The vast Roman Republic faded away, and was
replaced by a wholly agricultural society.
The Roman government, however, was not willing to simply vanish
into the pages of history. It quickly shifted from its past
political structure and focused upon a theocracy instead. Much of
the groundwork for this was set as early as the mid-300s, when the
Roman Emperor Constantine decided to take action against the
fragmentation of his empire. He saw his chance within the various
religious cults of Christianity (which had steadily gained
popularity with the people regardless of attempts to exterminate
it), and the already widespread worship of Mithras (a rather
Christ-like solar God). If the people could be united under one
religious structure, then the entire land would finally be
controllable again.
In 325 CE, Constantine called together the famous Council of
Nice- where four hundred bishops gathered to establish a unified
and government-controlled religion. Constantine built churches
across the land, and enforced the observance of the new faith.
Highly adept at persuading his people, he combined the most
popular elements of Christianity with those of other cults such as
Mithraism in order to make the new doctrine as attractive as
possible. His maneuvering paid off; as this was the foundation of
the Holy Roman Empire.
The decisions of the Council- recorded as the Nicene Creed-
became something of a holy scripture itself. It contained the
specific outline of what made one a Christian, in the form of
theological beliefs. For example, one line of the Creed reads as
follows:
We believe in the Holy Spirit,
The Lord and Giver of Life,
Who proceedeth from the Father.
The Nicene council is often considered the birth of
Catholicism, but this is not entirely the case. Originally, the
Christian religion was quite decentralized, and any given church
had its own way of doing things. When issues arose that concerned
the religion as a whole, large gatherings of Bishops and religious
leaders were called together so the issues could be debated and
ruled upon. The Council of Nice itself is an example of this
process.
It was not until three hundred years later that a major schism
took place within the organization, creating two distinct branches
of the faith: Orthodox and Catholic. Though it may be hard to
believe, the division was created by the inclusion of a single
Latin word into a song. This was done by a French priest who was
working on setting the Nicene Creed (in Latin) to the music of
Gregorian chant. Apparently, he had trouble with the line quoted
above, as the metre of the song left a few notes of the chant
without lyrics. In order to "flesh out" the words to fit the
music, the priest added the four syllable word filioque
onto the line- changing it to:
We believe in the Holy Spirit,
The Lord and Giver of Life,
Who proceedeth from the Father, and from the Son.
As the song became popular, it brought the theological
implications of the lyrical addition into the spotlight. One camp
saw little problem with the inclusion, while others felt it
inappropriate to alter the Creed- especially where it concerned
the natures of both the Holy Spirit and Jesus Christ. In 589 CE,
the Third Council of Toledo officially accepted the new word into
the Creed, and effectively divided the faith in two. Those who
refused to accept the new Creed separated into the Eastern
Orthodox faith (centralized in Constantinople under the guidance
of the "Ecumenical Patriarch"), and those who remained became the
Catholic Church (centralized in Rome under the "Pope").
Such was the state of Europe at the beginning of the Medieval
era, ruled by its Germanic kings and Catholic clergy. The people
gathered together upon "manors," which consisted of the landlord's
castle, the church, a village, and the farmlands that surrounded
them. These manors were actually land grants given by the king to
powerful noblemen. In return, the noblemen had to declare loyalty,
and promise tribute and access to military troops to the king. The
noblemen then divided their land amongst various lesser nobles
called "vassals," or land barons. Finally, the land barons
contracted peasants ("serfs") to tend and cultivate the farmland
in return for military protection. This was the basic structure of
the feudal economic system. The serfs were uneducated, traveled
very little, and were heavily taxed by their landlords. The rulers
themselves were constantly embattled in petty political and
military intrigue.
By the seventh century, the religion of Islam arose upon the
Arabian peninsula, and swept through the middle east. Its armies
defeated the Byzantine and Persian kingdoms that ruled there, and
took control of the Holy Land by the year 638 CE. Over the next
three centuries, the Arabians pushed northwestward onto the
continent of Europe- engaging in a holy war against the empire of
the Christians.
In the eleventh century, the Christians were experiencing more
difficulty at home. The East/West schism that had begun nearly
half a century before finally came to a boil in 1054 CE. In an
effort to mend the dissolving relationship between the Churches,
emissaries from Rome journeyed to Constantinople and visited the
Ecumenical Patriarch. Unfortunately, the discussions failed, and
ultimately ended with both sides casting anathemas of
excommunication at each other. The schism was complete, and the
Eastern Orthodox Church had no involvement in the later actions of
the Roman Catholic Church.
Meanwhile, the Turks displaced the Arabians as the rulers of
Islam. Where Arabian rulers had often been tolerant of the
Christians' interest in the Holy Land, the Turks were not so kind.
Christian pilgrims to the middle east soon found themselves
traveling in armed bands for protection against Turkish attackers.
In the year 1095 CE, the Byzantine emperor, Alexios I Komnenos,
sent an urgent plea for help to Pope Urban II. The sympathetic
Pope addressed a council of leaders in Clermont, and the Crusades
were created in answer. The Holy Land thus became a place of
bitter religious war.
There were several Crusades that took place over the next few
hundred years, all directed against non-Christian peoples. The
warrior class of Europe had become a religious order in its own
right, fighting one holy war after another in the name of God and
King. Military conquest continued even after the loss of the Holy
Land to the Turks in 1291 CE, though this date is often considered
the "official" end of the Crusades.
The Knights Templar arose in the environment of the Crusades in
1118 CE. They were a mystery cult of warrior-monks who protected
the merchant lanes of the Holy Land, and practiced the rites of
ancient Gnostic Christianity. They were established at the site of
the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem by the French king Baldwin II.
By 1128 they had been confirmed by Pope Honorius II at the Council
of Troyes. As the Holy Land fell to Islam, the Templars slowly
withdrew toward Paris, and finally established their headquarters
at the Temple Monastery there.
The Knights Templar had grown in wealth and power over the
years, and eventually excited the greed of the King of France,
Phillipe le Bel. Declaring that the mystery rites of the order
were heresy to the Church, he began to systematically destroy the
order one member at a time. All of the treasure of the Templars
was to go directly to his coffers, but none of its members could
be coerced or tortured into revealing its whereabouts. Phillipe
had wasted his efforts. In a final maneuver, he attempted to
demand judgement against the Templars from the Pope. When the holy
man refused to be manipulated, the king dismissed him and instated
his own man, the Bishop of Bordeaux, as Pope Clement V. This Pope
gladly issued a papal bull suppressing the Templar order in 1312
CE.
This was the basis of the dreaded Inquisitions. Their stated
objective was to discover heresy within the Church, and thus rid
the world of all rival Christian (i.e.- non-Catholic) groups. The
Templars were merely the first to fall, with their Grand Master
Jaques de Molay burned at the stake with several others in March
of 1314. The order went underground, and its history becomes
shaded from that point forward.
The "Holy Inquisition" had been growing since the twelfth
century, though it had not become institutionalized (under the
governance of Dominican monks) until the thirteenth century. In
1231 Pope Gregory IX declared life imprisonment for heretics who
confessed and repented, and death for those who refused. Once
rival Christian sects had been obliterated, the Church turned its
attentions toward others. Two Dominican monks- Heinrich Kramer and
James Sprenger- penned the Malleus Maleficarum (Witches'
Hammer) in 1468 CE; a text of hatred, lies, and methods of torture
dedicated to the eradication of pagan practices. It is in this
book that we find the stereotypical images of Medieval witches,
midnight sabbaths, black witchcraft, and pacts with Satan. It also
happened to give exceedingly graphic instructions for torture, and
outlined some of the ludicrous "tests" for witchcraft with which
many of us are familiar today. Needless to say, this was the
textbook upon every inquisitor's desk. As late as 1492, the Queen
of Spain established the Spanish Inquisition- aimed at the
conversion, expulsion, or eradication of its Jewish and Moslem
people. This latter was by far the bloodiest chapter of the
inquisitorial period.
This entire episode of human history is known today as the Dark
Ages, where we find very little beyond blood and ignorance. There
was little cultural advancement, much ancient knowledge was lost
forever, and the world existed under the iron fist of a Church
gone mad.
However, there was some light during these dark times. The
1200s saw great gatherings of scholars and philosophers in Spain
and other areas of Europe. This class of people did not harbor the
all-too-common religious bigotry of the day, and they met
Christian, Muslim, Jew, and Pagan alike. It was here that the
Qabalah as we know it was created, marked especially by the
publication of The Sepher haZohar (Book of Splendor)- a
mystical commentary on Biblical literature- by Moses de Leon.
This was also the time of the famed Magna Carta, a human
rights contract which the English land barons of 1215 forced King
John to sign at peril of his life. It changed little for the
serfs, but it greatly restricted the king's right of taxation and
required trials before punishment. In many ways, it is the
historical forerunner to the American Bill of Rights.
Finally, the domination of the Medieval Church was dealt its
greatest blow, in the fourteenth century, by the spread of the
bubonic plague from China. The cycle of the virus continued until
the seventeenth century, and wiped out a large portion of the
population of Europe. For centuries the people had paid heed to
the Church's doctrines of the end of the world, and to the armies
of Angels who would come to the aid of the faithful in those
times. When the black plague struck, the Church lost no time in
proclaiming the final rapture, and insisted that only the sinners
of the world would suffer.
This was a political disaster. The plague swept through the
known world, and paid no attention to the piety of its victims.
Worse than this, the one segment of society least affected by the
plague were the Jewish peoples, due to their strict religious laws
regarding cleanliness. These were the people whom the Church had
promised would first fall. Now, if the plague were truly the
Armageddon, then it was the Jewish people who were proving
themselves the "Chosen." The Church could do nothing, and its
armies of Angels languished with sheathed swords. This ultimately
broke the spell the Church held over Europe. These sixteenth
century people felt that, when the chips had been on the table,
their spirituality had failed them. Thus, they slowly began to
seek for alternative answers. This ended the Dark Ages, and began
the age of the Renaissance.
The invention of the printing press by Johann Gutenburg in 1450
revolutionized communication and scholarship in a manner
comparable to our own development of the Internet. Columbus
discovered the New World in 1492. On October 31, 1517, Martin
Luther nailed a copy of his 95 Theses to the doors of
Castle Church in Wittenberg; leading to the separation of the
Roman Church into Catholic and Protestant sects. King Henry VIII
created his protestant Church of England, and his daughter
Elizabeth established it during her reign from 1558 - 1602.
Johannes Kepler, Galileo, John Dee, and a host of others came to
the forefront of the scientific world in the late sixteenth and
early seventeenth centuries; many times in direct opposition to
the Catholic Church. This was also the time of the most famous
wizards of history; such as Johannes Trithemius (1462-1516), Dr.
John Dee (1527-1608), Giordano Bruno (1548-1600), and others. It
isn't taught in our modern schools, but the very men who
originally fashioned the basic scientific assumptions about our
world had copies of the grimoires upon their shelves, and/or
claimed membership to various mystery orders.
One thing for which the Renaissance is particularly known is
the shifting of thought from the Medieval philosophy based on
Aristotle to the more pantheistic Neo-platonic views. In the late
1400s, Marsilio Ficino translated the Corpus Hermeticum-
believing it was a true reflection of ancient Egyptian religion
and the source for the philosophy of Plato and the Greeks. Of
course, today we know that the Hermetic Arts arose in the early
Common Era, and that it was they who were affected by Plato.
However, this was not understood in the fifteenth century, and
Ficino's work created something of an Egyptian craze among mystics
and occultists.
At the same time that Ficino was disseminating the Hermetic
teachings, one Pico della Mirandola was doing the same for the
Qabalah. Both of these traditions (Hermetic and Qabalistic) had
been in vogue centuries earlier, but had been largely lost due to
Church suppression. The efforts of men such as Ficino and
Mirandola re-created the mystical movements that gave rise to the
spiritual values of the Renaissance mystics. This Neo-platonic
Hermetic-Qabalistic philosophy is the very one described in detail
by Henry Agrippa in his Three Books of Occult Philosophy.
(An extremely important book in relation to the grimoiric
literature- see below.)
This philosophy endured until the 1600s, where it would
culminate in a German mystical movement known as the "Brotherhood
of the Rosy Cross." In 1614 and 15, two manifestos (generally
known as the Fama and Confessio) were anonymously
published in the name of this Brotherhood. Each of them took a
very strong anti-papal stance, and insisted on religious
tolerance, the advancement of science as a spiritual art, and the
reform of education, religion, and ethics. These "Rosicrucians"
were deeply Hermetic (holding Alchemy as the most sacred of
sciences) and they drew much from the philosophy outlined by Dr.
John Dee in his Hieroglyphic Monad of 1564 CE.
It is most likely that the Brotherhood did not exist in any
tangible sense. The Rosicrucians claimed to meet only at an
"Invisible College"- and there are many subtle hints to suggest
that this was meant as an allegory. The Rosicrucian manifestos
were addressed to all free thinkers and spiritual seekers in the
world; especially those who yearned for the dawning of a new age,
the advancement of learning, and freedom from the oppressive Roman
Church. The Invisible College was the common ground within the
hearts of all who sought such goals. There is no known historical
philosopher or Hermetic mystic, who we would call "Rosicrucian"
today, who ever claimed membership to such an Order. Instead, it
is the results of their Work that make them Rosicrucian thinkers.
This represents the end of the classical period upon which this
book focuses. The Rosicrucian movement initiated a new magickal
current- much less shamanic in nature than the grimoiric material
(see chapter two). After the initial furor caused by the
publication of the manifestos, the Thirty Years War broke out in
Europe, driving the thought movement underground. There it
continued until it finally found expression in the Age of
Enlightenment and within Freemasonry. It is from Freemasonry that
so many of our modern magickal systems descend. Rosicrucianism,
therefore, stands as a mid-point between the authors of the
grimoires, and the Masonic founders of our own post-Victorian
magickal systems.
The Classical Grimoires
Though the time of the grimoires rests mainly in the late
Medieval era, the legacy upon which they were founded extends much
further into the past. The methods of magick they utilize are as
ancient as the tribal magicks of pre-history. Their forms,
however, seem to have been set during the first four centuries of
our Common Era; specifically within the Greek magickal papyri.
These Greek spells drew from such sources as ancient Christianity
(Gnosticism), Judaism, and Egyptian magick. Their focus was much
the same as the later Medieval texts- healing, obtaining visions,
exorcism, the destruction of enemies, the gaining of beauty, etc.
They incorporated mystical names and words into their prayers- the
so-called "barbarous names of invocation" which have no earthly
meaning, but indicate magickal formulas of vibration. They insist
upon ritual cleansing and purity, and the donning of priestly
linen garments. The list of similarities between the Greek and
later European literature could continue, though an example would
serve as well. Perhaps the most famous Greek ritual today is an
invocation performed before attempting an exorcism, known as the
Rite of the Headless One:
Write the names upon a piece of new paper, and having
extended it over your forehead from one temple to the other,
address yourself turning towards the north to the six names,
saying�
Compare this, then, with a quote from the Key of Solomon the
King, Book I, chapter 13:
Write upon a slip of virgin parchment�this Character and
Name; ...thou shalt hold with thy right hand the aforesaid strip
of parchment against thy forehead, and thou shalt say the
following words:
At the same time, another influence played a primary role in
the formation of the classical grimoires: the apocryphal biblical
text known as the Testament of Solomon. Elizabeth Butler
considers this work "The turning point between ancient and
Medieval magic�" The Testament outlines the mythology of King
Solomon, from his subjugation of the spirits to build the Temple
to his eventual entry into worship of foreign Gods. Most important
for our consideration, however, is the fact that the text
describes a sophisticated demonology wherein the King summons,
questions, and binds several spirits. Each spirit revealed to
Solomon his functions, an (often hideous) composite appearance,
and the name of the Angel who directly opposes him. For example,
one of the demonic princes interrogated by King Solomon was known
as Beelzeboul:
I Solomon said unto him: "Beelzeboul, what is thy
employment?" And he answered me: "I destroy kings. I ally myself
with foreign tyrants. And my own demons I set on to men, in
order that the latter may believe in them and be lost. And the
chosen servants of God, priests and faithful men, I excite unto
desires for wicked sins, and evil heresies, and lawless deeds;
and they obey me, and I bear them on to destruction. And I
inspire men with envy, and murder, and for wars and sodomy, and
other evil things. And I will destroy the world."
Many of the lesser spirits in the book were associated with
physical ailments rather than social taboos, and the Angelic names
given are regarded as curative formulas. This links the entire
tradition to older rites of exorcism:
The third said: "I am called Arotosael. I do harm to the
eyes, and grievously injure them. Only let me hear the words,
'Uriel, imprison Aratosael', at once I retreat."�
The sixth said: "I am called Sphendonael. I cause tumours of
the parotid gland, and inflammations of the tonsils, and tetanic
recurvation. If I hear, 'Sabrael, imprison Sphendonael', at once
I retreat.'
The Testament even lists four demonic rulers of the cardinal
points of the compass, who were later echoed by a great number of
Medieval grimoires: Oriens (of the east), Amemon (of the south),
Eltzen (of the north), and Boul (of the west).
It would seem that the direct inheritor of this material among
the Medieval grimoires is the Goetia- or Lesser Key- which
lists 72 such spirits, along with their characters, functions,
appearances, and information on how to bind them to the will of
the magickian. The four "cardinal princes" even make an
appearance, called here Amaymon, Corson, Zimimay, and Goap. The
Goetia, in turn, had a major influence on the texts that followed.
Therefore, the demonology of the Testament of Solomon became the
grimoiric standard.
This occurred along with another trend that ran throughout the
European texts- the assimilation of Jewish mysticism into the
primarily Christian material. Even before the rise of the Qabalah
in the thirteenth century, there existed a form of Jewish shamanic
magick known as Mahaseh Merkavah or the "Work of the
Chariot." This was a practice of astral travel through the seven
palaces of heaven (i.e.- the planetary spheres), where the
ultimate goal was the Vision of the Throne of God.
This practice does not seem to have originated with the
Merkavah. The oldest examples of such literature we have found to
date are the Egyptian Book of the Dead, and the Tibetan Book of
the Dead, which both deal with the ascension of the soul through
the heavens after death. Apparently, the Chaldean or Babylonian
priests of later times made this after-death journey while still
alive- creating a kind of controlled near-death experience. The
practice was then adopted by both Gnostic and Jewish mystical
schools, which have each had a large influence upon Medieval
European magick.
The Ethiopian Book of Enoch, the Hebrew Book of Enoch,
the Pirkei Heichaloht, and even such canonical Biblical
texts as Ezekiel and the Revelation of St. John are all centered
upon- or connected to- the Merkavah tradition. The Merkavah's use
of ritual drugs, its focus upon talismans and seals, the summoning
forth of Angelic gatekeepers, and the gaining of mystical visions
are elements that run throughout the grimoiric spells.
The fascination of the Medieval mages for the Merkavah, and the
reputation of its Jewish practitioners as extremely powerful
wizards, led to the adoption of quite a bit of Judaic material
into the grimoires. Richard Kieckhefer lists several examples in
relation to the Sworn Book of Honorius, though the ideas
extend to many texts. Meanwhile, he explains that Jewish tradition
was likely a main source for the grimoires' insistence upon moral
purity along with the usual ritual purity. Also, the texts' use of
prayers with linguistic variations on similar words is probably
derived from the Jewish Qabalah. Even the instructions to bury the
grimoires if their owners could not find suitable successors may
be a reflection of the Jewish custom of burying (rather than
destroying) prayer books containing the Name of God. Professor
Kieckhefer suggests that the grimoiric manuscripts, drawing as
they do from Judaic magick, are examples of a primitive form of
Medieval Christian mysticism that preceded the Christian Qabalah
of the thirteenth century. He points out that Medieval society had
a surplus of clergy, and thus the spawning of an underemployed,
largely unsupervised, and frankly mischievous "clerical
underworld" was the inevitable result.
It is obvious enough that the grimoires are clerical in nature,
beside the borrowings from Judaism. The rites of the Church are
mirrored in the texts, such as techniques of exorcism, recitation
of Psalms, the Litany of Saints, and other established Catholic
prayers and sacraments. In many cases, access to an actual church
is necessary: such as placing a grimoire on the altar during a
service to consecrate it, the use of the elements of the
Eucharist, or the necessity of holy oil used in a church. All of
these presuppose that the mage either has close connections
inside, or is perhaps employed in the Church itself. Other
grimoires instruct the use of Christian observances without
describing them, or fully explaining their use in the spell, which
indicates that the authors of the texts considered them "given"
and felt no need to write them out in full.
Another Christian trend that runs through the texts is the use
of pseudepigrapha, or the attribution of a text by its author to
someone other than himself. In many cases the supposed author may
be a purely legendary figure, and in some cases it might be a
historical personage. Most of the books of the Bible fall into
this category, starting with the Gospels (at least Mathew, Luke,
and John), and continuing into the apocrypha such as the Book of
Enoch, or the Testament of Solomon. Where it comes to the
grimoires- such as the Key of Solomon, Sworn Book of Honorius,
etc- it might be said that tradition was simply followed.
Yet, there were other factors involved as well. Books of
"ancient wisdom" tend to sell better when attributed to someone
great from the past. Besides this, the books were illegal, and it
was a rare mage who could enjoy seeing his name on the title page
of such a work. (It may even be true that this is why a tradition
of pseudepigrapha arose among the early Christians, as they were
also persecuted heavily in their day.)
The existence of the grimoires on the shelves of Medieval
clergy strikes me as a perfectly natural occurrence. By this, I am
not merely indicating the dynamic of a group of mystics caught in
a land where magick was illegal, and thus producing a body of
underground mystical material. I am also indicating the very
nature of Christianity as a written tradition. From the original
circulation in Palestine of anti-Roman war literature, known today
as the four canonical Gospels, the Christian religion has been
dedicated to the written word. From Bibles to prayerbooks to
litanies, Christian magick is very often centered upon its sacred
writ. This is no less true of the Judaic tradition, which may have
adopted this aspect from Babylonian and Egyptian sources.
The Medieval era itself saw the advent of paper, a medium much
cheaper and convenient than parchment. An explosion of written
material and bound books resulted; even if it was a specifically
limited explosion. Most of the world remained illiterate, and it
was the clergy who were charged with producing and reading written
material. Those in Kieckhefer's "clerical underground" were the
same monks who took on jobs of transcribing and translating texts
on a regular basis. If a literature arose which circulated amongst
a reading audience, these men would have been both the audience
and the authors. The grimoires were such literature.
It may be true that much of the grimoiric material was
originally transmitted orally. Oral transmission might also help
explain some of the more blatant corruptions of Hebrew, Greek,
Arabic, and Chaldean words in the invocations. It was during the
middle to late Medieval era that the tradition began to surface on
paper thanks to the pen-happy and ambitious monks. Not only this,
but the Christian mysticism of the written word had woven itself
into the tradition, and the books surfaced as living magickal
objects. They were often regarded as alive, or as possessed of
spirits. When they were burned, witnesses actually reported
hearing screams coming from within the pages. Even the
cleric-mages themselves warned against the opening of the books by
those unpracticed in magickal lore.
When the Inquisitions did come, it was indeed the clergy who
made up the majority on the prosecution's list. Remember, after
all, that it was to ferret out heresy within the Church that the
Inquisition was founded, and those who possessed grimoiric texts
were highly suspect. Pope John XXII, in 1318, had the bishop of
Frejus investigate a group composed of clerics and laymen accused
of necromancy, geomancy, and similar magickal practices. In 1406,
a conspiracy was uncovered in which another group of clerics was
accused of working magick against the king of France and Pope
Benedict XIII. By 1409, Benedict himself was charged with both
using necromancy and employing necromancers. In 1500, a monk from
the Sulby monastery named Thomas Wryght was caught with a book of
magickal experiments, and was fortunate to escape with light
punishment.
So the grimoires arose in a world of drastic political and
religious change. They draw from several sources of mysticism and
magick, which we have only begun to cover in this chapter. They
were born from the hands of a clerical underground, perhaps even
from mystical groups associated in some way with the Knights
Templar. They represent a community of mages existing within the
confines of its contemporary religious doctrine, experiencing
mysteries that lay far outside of that doctrine. This is perhaps
the most romantic trait of the grimoires. They embody a rebellion
of the human spirit, and a refusal to let go of the Light even in
the darkest of ages.
At this point, I feel it will be helpful to offer a list of the
most popular and influential of the European grimoires. I will
explain what the books contain, when they were published, and how
they have transmitted their subtle influences to our modern
systems of magick.
The Picatrix (Gh�yat al-Hak�m
fi'l-sihr):
Recent scholarship on this Arabic text indicates that it may
in fact be a major sourcebook for many of the later grimoires
(listed below). According to Joseph Peterson, the Latin
translation most familiar to scholars of the West dates to 1256
CE, from the court of king Alphonso the Wise of Castille.
Unfortunately, we have yet to see an English translation of the
book- though copies do exist in Arabic, German, French, and
Latin.
According to Martin Plessner, the text is extremely erratic
while covering a surprisingly wide range of occult topics. The
philosophical doctrines that form the basis of the talismanic
art, the theory of magick, astronomy, astrology and love,
extensive instructions on practical magick, and anecdotes
concerning the employment of the magick are jumbled together
throughout the book without apparent rhyme or reason.
The work is divided into four books. The first contains a
preface with �autobiographical� information about the author,
his reasons for writing the book (i.e.- to make available the
secrets of magick as guarded by the �ancient philosophers�), and
a summery of the material found in the four books. The chapters
of book one contain large portions of occult philosophy
according to its author (largely Neo-Platonic and
�pseudo-Aristotelian� according to Plessner), a definition of
magick (into theoretical and practical), as well as preliminary
information on astrology and the mansions of the moon. The
latter is given as vital information for the formation of
talismans.
Book two continues the discussions of philosophy above, the
correspondences between earthly creatures and celestial
archetypes, and gets further into the mysteries of astrology-
the triplicities, degrees, conjunctions, the fixed stars, etc-
along with (in chapter three) some long and in-depth information
about the occult virtues of the moon. Yet another definition of
magick follows in chapter five- dividing it this time between
the talismanic art, worship of the planets, and incantations.
These three, it is suggested, were divided among the human race
so that different cultures became the masters of different arts.
In the same chapter, material concerning the art of prophecy and
divination is related. Chapters six and seven (as well as
several following chapters) then go into depth upon the
philosophy of talismans, explaining even that �Man makes
talismans unawares as soon as he begins to manipulate nature in
such processes as dyeing cloth, breeding animals or compounding
drugs, as well as in the manufacture of objects of everyday use
from the products of nature, as in cooking, spinning and the
like.� Beyond this, such subjects as the natures of the four
Elements (which Agrippa seems to have adopted- see below) and
further astrological information are related.
Book three continues its lessons in astrology- this time
treating the planets and signs �more individually, with their
specific qualities. The planets are personified to such a degree
that they are virtually conjured and worshipped.� The chapters
include information on images, inks, perfumes, colors, robes,
metals, etc, etc- all used in the worship/invocation of the
planets. The dominions (i.e.- jurisdiction) of the planets and
signs are all outlined, along with magickal hours and the like.
From here, about chapter four (which discusses Islam and
astrology), the book returns to philosophy, the nature of man,
the spiritual essence of the wise man, etc. From there,
beginning at chapter seven, the text shifts to more practical
concerns. Initiation into the worship of the seven planets is
given, along with prayers and adorations, and the gifts to be
gained from each. Full ceremonies for each planet are outlined
in chapter nine. From chapter ten onward, practical talismans
and other information are given for various effects common to
the grimoires (love, honor, protection, etc). The final chapter
(twelve) returns to philosophical concerns (the absolute need
for practical magickal operation, the love of God, etc) that run
almost directly into the first chapter of book four.
Finally, book four continues the philosophical discussion,
outlining various substances of nature and the theory (history)
of creation. It continues outlining the threefold nature of the
world which began in an earlier book- dividing creation into
Substance, Intellect, and Soul (once again, this seems to have
been a probable source for Agrippa- see below). From here,
prayers, ceremonies, and information are given for the twelve
signs of the Zodiac- along with stories to illustrate the
possible effects of these rites. Plessner states that each
ceremony is preceded by a seven day fast, and magical characters
are used in the ceremonies (pp 319-322). Some aspects of this
may be found in various Hermetic manuscripts. I find this
suggestive of the Ars Notaria (see below). Chapter four returns
to the subject of astrology and talismans (etc), and chapter
five outlines the ten disciplines considered necessary before
one can become a master in the magickal arts. Oddly, the
subjects of the evil eye, heredity, and even bi-sexuality are
discussed here. Chapter six returns to the subject of planetary
incense, providing rites for each blend. The rather lengthy
chapter seven concerns the magickal virtues and uses of plants,
and consists mainly of �avowed and verbatim extracts from the
Nabataean Agriculture� The final chapters, nine and ten,
concern the occult virtues of physical substances, and the
description of talismans which rely on those virtues.
This, of course, merely scratches the surface of the material
contained in the chapters of the Picatrix. Being that it is very
much a sourcebook for the grimoiric tradition as we know it, I
hope that an English translation will soon be made available for
general study.
The antiquity of this French grimoire is not known exactly,
though it is often placed somewhere in the fourteenth century.
A. E. Waite is willing to allow as much as two centuries before
this time for the book to have been created and transmitted
(perhaps orally), placing its true origin as far back as the
twelfth century. It would seem that scholars generally agree on
the idea that the Key (along with the Lemegeton) is the
fountainhead of Medieval grimoiric writing; providing the
format, style, and even much of the content of those which
followed.
The Key is composed of two books. Book one concerns the art
of spirit summoning- without offering any set hierarchies of
intelligences or the use of a triangle. Instead, the spirits
arrive at the edge of the circle, and it is up to the mage to
question them about their names and functions. Also given are
several planetary talismans to be inscribed upon metal, and
shown to the spirits in order to gain their obedience. Each one
directs the spirits to perform different functions. Not only
this, but �They are also of great virtue and efficacy against
all perils of Earth, of Air, of Water, and of Fire, against
poison which hath been drunk, against all kinds of infirmities
and necessities, against binding, sortilege, and sorcery,
against all terror and fear, and wheresoever thou shalt find
thyself, if armed with them, thou shat be in safety all the days
of thy life.� The remainder of the book is filled with
day-to-day practical magick and experiments, such as finding
stolen objects, hindering sportsmen from poaching game, and even
fashioning a magick carpet.
Book two concerns itself with all ritual preparations-
purifications, the construction of magickal tools, incense, holy
water, etc. These are the most well known aspects of the book,
even used in many instances by modern Hollywood: wands cut from
trees at sunrise with one stroke of the knife, thread spun by a
virgin, the conjuration of the magickal sword, etc.
Waite felt that the Key is the only (or perhaps merely the
first?) magickal text that regulates the operations of magick by
the attribution of the hours of the day and night to the
rulership of the seven planets. These are what we call the
planetary hours. While the Key certainly introduced the practice
of the planetary hours into the larger tradition, it is likely
that the Picatrix stands as an older source for this
information.
The Key of Solomon the King is also the book from which
Gerald Gardner drew much of his material in his formation of
Wicca. Such rites as the blessings of salt and water, and the
magickal characters for inscription upon the Athame and Pentacle
are found here.
This is a collection of five magickal texts, Goetia,
Theurgia-Goetia, the Pauline Art, the Almadel
of Solomon, and the Ars Nova. It would appear that
these were once separate texts (of which, perhaps, the Goetia is
the oldest) collected together at some later date into the
so-called Lemegeton.
Goetia:
The meaning of the word �Goetia� has long been a subject of
scholarly debate. It is often thought to have derived from the
Greek word goa� (to wail, groan, or weep), and is related to
the howling of bestial demons. On the other hand, A.E. Waite
suggests that the word indicates �witchcraft.� This would
derive from the Greek word goes (an enchanter, sorcerer), and
from the word goety, indicating the art of the sorcerer- which
is witchcraft.
In classical times, �witchcraft� was a direct reference to
working with spirit familiars, or the performance of
necromancy. Thus, the very name of the text was meant to
convey its focus upon infernal spirit working. It is
introduced in the Weiser edition: �The First Book, or Part,
which is a Book concerning Spirits of Evil, and which is
termed The Goetia of Solomon, sheweth forth his manner of
binding these Spirits for use in things divers. And hereby did
he acquire great renown.�
The examples we have today are said to date back only to
the seventeenth century. However, Waite suggests that it must
be older; due to such earlier texts as Liber Spiritum,
which mimic the style of the Goetia. Elizabeth Butler was
convinced that Liber Spiritum, and even Liber
Officiorum, were earlier names for the Goetia itself. To
add to this, I discussed above the relation of the
Testament of Solomon to the Goetia, with its large
collection of demons, sigils, functions, and bindings. The
Testament dates itself within the second through fifth
centuries of the Common Era, suggesting that the Lemegeton
might have enjoyed a rather long tradition both orally and
written.
The story (or mythos) within the Goetia is based upon a
Talmudic legend, wherein King Solomon sealed a group of
spirits (in this case, 72 planetary spirits) into a brass
vessel, and cast it into a Babylonian lake. The Babylonians
witnessed the king disposing of the vessel, and retrieved it
in hopes of finding treasure. Instead, they only succeeded in
freeing the demons once more in a fashion reminiscent of
Pandora�s Box. Thus, the 72 spirits that Solomon once
commanded are available for summoning, and are herein named
and described, along with rites and conjurations meant to call
them. The Goetia is the home of such popularized demons as
Ashtaroth, Bael, Amon, Asmodai, and the four Cardinal Princes
Amaymon, Corson, Zimimay, and Goap. With their brethren, they
pretty much make up the standard hierarchy of demons from
Medieval grimoiric literature.
Perhaps the most fascinating aspect of the Goetia is its
obvious tie to the tradition of the Arabian Thousand and
One Nights. In these tales, mages are often depicted
imprisoning jinni (genies) into brass bottles. In the example
of Aladdin and the Lamp, the prison was a brass
oil-burning lamp instead. The powers attributed to the spirits
of the Goetia likewise reflect the magick portrayed in the
legends: production of treasure, turning men into animals,
understanding the speech of animals, etc. Of course, the
Arabic tradition focused somewhat on King Solomon, and most of
the legends that we remember of him today originated there. I
strongly recommend one read Arabic mythology (including the
Thousand and One Nights) when studying the Goetia.
The Goetia is the source of the ever-popular Triangle of
the Art, into which spirits are generally summoned. This is
also the source of the infamous �Greater Curse� where the seal
of a disobedient spirit is placed into an iron box with
stinking herbs and perfumes, and dangled over an exorcised
flame. The Seal of Solomon, which the King impressed upon the
brass vessel, is reproduced here; as are the Pentagram,
Hexagram, and Disk (or Ring) of Solomon. These magickal tools
have been used by various mages, for various purposes, since
the publication of the Goetia.
Theurgia-Goetia:
In the Middle Ages, the term �Theurgy� was usually meant to
imply �high magick,� or the methods of working with good
spirits. (Literally, theurgia means �God-working.�) Thus, the
Theurgia-Goetia was so named to indicate its contents of both
good and evil spirits. Unlike the more feral Goetic demons,
these spirits were organized into a functional cooperation,
assigned to the points of the compass. In total, there are
thirty-one chief princes, who are each provided with an
incomprehensible number of servient spirits. The name of each
chief and several of his servitors, all with seals included,
is recorded- making for a shockingly large collection.
Conjurations, all identical in form, are provided with each
group along the way. Yet, even with this large number of
spirits to choose from, the preamble to the text describes
them in a very singular fashion:
The offices of these spirits are all one, for what one can
do the others can do also. They can shew and discover all
things that is hidden and done in the world: and can fetch and
carry or do any thing that is to be done or is contained in
any of the four Elements Fire, Air, Earth and Water, &c. Also,
they can discover the secrets of kings or any other person or
persons let it be in what kind it will.
The introductory material describes the Theurgia as ��one
which treateth of Spirits mingled of Good and Evil Natures,
the which is entitled The Theurgia-Goetia, or the Magical
Wisdom of the Spirits Aerial, whereof some do abide, but
certain do wander and bide not.� This leads me to the
suspicion that these spirits are in some way connected to the
stars or other astronomical concerns.
Pauline Art (Ars Paulina):
This book of the Lemegeton is introduced as follows: �The
Third Book, called Ars Paulina, or The Art Pauline, treateth
of the Spirits allotted unto every degree of the 360 Degrees
of the Zodiac; and also of the signs, and of the planets in
the signs, as well as of the hours. Joseph H. Peterson notes
that the Pauline Art was supposed to have been discovered by
the Apostle Paul after he had ascended the third heaven, and
was then delivered by him at Corinth. He also points out that,
although the grimoire is based on earlier magickal literature,
it is apparently a later redaction due to repeated mention of
the year 1641 as well as references to guns.
The book is divided into two principal parts. The first
part deals with twenty-four Angels who rule the hours of the
day and night. The powers of each Angel changes depending on
the day in question, and which planet happens to rule his hour
on that day. (See the chapter on magickal timing for charts of
these hours.) Each Angel is listed with several serviant
Angels (or spirits), and instructions for fashioning
astrological talismans for any of the Angels one wishes to
work with. At the end of the text, the conjurations (used for
any Angel, changing only certain key words) are written out in
full.
The second part of the Pauline Arts is extremely
interesting- as it concerns the finding of the Angel of the
degree of one�s own natal Ascendant. In other words, this is
the Angel who was rising above the eastern horizon as you were
born. He holds the mysteries of one�s destiny, career,
fortune, home, and all such factors that can be outlined by an
astrological birth chart. Like the first part, methods of
talisman construction are outlined for working with these
Angels. The text finishes with a conjuration for the Natal
Angel called �The Conjuration of the Holy Guardian Angel,� in
which the Angel is invoked into a crystal ball. Apparently,
there was either little distinction between the Angel of the
Nativity and Holy Guardian Angel at the time this text was
composed, or it was simply unknown to the author.
As for current magickal technology that may have originated
from this book, I mainly note the �Table of Practice� (or
altar) the text instructs one to fashion. I refer specifically
to the image on top of the table, which appears to be the
oldest known example of the Golden Dawn�s planetary hexagram.
In both cases, the sun is assigned the central position within
the hexagram, and the six remaining planets orbit this at each
of the six points. The only difference is the ordering of
planets around the hexagram points.
Almadel of Solomon:
The fourth book of the Lemegeton is perhaps my favorite.
Weiser�s Goetia includes the following blurb: �The Fourth
Book, called Ars Almadel Salomonis, or the Art Almadel of
Solomon, concerneth those Spirits which be set over the
Quaternary of the Altitudes. These two last mentioned Books,
the Art Pauline and the Art Almadel, do relate unto Good
Spirits alone, whose knowledge is to be obtained through
seeking unto the Divine. These two Books be also classed
together under the Name of the First and Second Parts of the
Book Theurgia Of Solomon.� The four �altitudes� alluded to
above are simply the four cardinal directions, though they are
considered as stacked one on top of the other in this
instance. It either originates from, or reflects, the
Qabalistic tradition of the Four Worlds of creation that exist
between the earth and the throne of God. Each world is
populated with good spirits (Angels) who can be summoned by
the text of the Almadel for a diverse array of benefits.
The magick itself is worked via a fascinating piece of
magickal apparatus called an �Almadel.� This is a square
tablet of white wax, with holy names and characters written
upon it with a consecrated pen. Its main feature is a large
hexagram, which covers most of the surface of the tablet, and
a triangle in the center of this (reminding one of the
triangle used in the Goetia). As a final feature, four holes
are drilled through the tablet- one in each corner. When this
work is done, more wax is used (specifically more of the same
wax from which the tablet was made) to fashion four candles;
each with a small shelf-like protrusion of wax (called a
�foot�), presumably, half-way up the length of the candle. The
four candles are placed in candlesticks, and positioned in a
square pattern with the �feet� all facing inward. The Almadel
itself is then placed between the candles, so that it rests on
the �feet� (taking care they do not block the four holes) and
is thus elevated well above the surface of the table or altar.
The final components are a small golden or silver talisman
which rests in the center of the Almadel, and an earthen
censor placed on the table directly underneath.
No less than four Almadels must be made- including the four
candles and the earthen censor (but not the metal talisman)-
so there is one of a different color for each of the four
altitudes:
Note; The golden seal will serve and is to be used in the
operation of all the Altitudes. The color of the Almadel
belonging to the first Chora is lily white. To the second
Chora a perfect red rose color; The third Chora is to be a
green mixed with a white silver collour. The Fourth Chora is
to be a black mixed with a little green of a sad color &c
These four colors are alchemical in their symbolism, rather
than the common elemental colors of yellow, red, blue, and
black or green of modern magickal systems. Once you have
chosen which Angels (and thus which Altitude) you wish to work
with, you set up the Almadel, light the candles, and burn
mastic in the censor. The smoke will rise against the bottom
of the wax tablet, and is thus forced to some degree through
the four holes. It is within this smoke, and upon the Almadel
and its golden talisman, that the Angel(s) in question will
manifest.
This text has had a profound, and yet little-known, effect
on modern magick. It was never adopted directly into our
modern magickal systems by men such as S. L. Mathers or Gerald
Gardner. Instead, it had its effect upon Dr. John Dee in the
late sixteenth century. The equipment described by the Angels
for his Enochian system of magick seem to have been derived
largely from the Almadel tradition. However, since I will be
explaining the Dee Diaries later in this chapter, I will save
the comparisons for then.
Ars Nova (The New Art):
�The Fifth Book of the Lemegeton is one of Prayers and
Orations. The Which Solomon the Wise did use upon the Altar in
the Temple. And the titles hereof be Ars Nova, the New Art,
and Ars Notaria, the Notary Art. The which was revealed unto
him by Michael, that Holy Angel of God, in thunder and in
lightning, and he further did receive by the aforesaid Angel
certain Notes written by the Hand of God, without the which
that Great King had never attained unto his great Wisdom, for
thus he knew all things and all Sciences and Arts whether Good
or Evil.� The Ars Nova only appears in one version of the
Lemegeton (Sloane MS 2731). It is simply a book of invocations
for the construction of the sacred space and some of the tools
in the Goetic operation. (Whether or not it is meant for use
with the other books of the Lemegeton is unclear, though it
should extend by definition to the Theurgia-Goetia.) Prayers
are given for the inscription of the Magickal Circle and
Triangle of Art, the donning of the Hexagram and Pentagram of
Solomon, the lighting of the candles, etc. Then follows an
invocation for binding the Goetic demons into the brass
vessel. These were perhaps something of an afterthought on the
part of the compiler of the Lemegeton, but it does address the
glaring omission of such invocations within the Goetia itself.
Finally, the short text ends with a �Mighty Oration� that
seems to be aimed at the catching of thieves and appears
utterly removed from the material of the Lemegeton itself.
When Aleister Crowley published a translation of the Goetia
by Samuel Mathers, it came with a copy of part of the Ars
Nova. (Not including the Mighty Oration or the invocation
against thieves.) However, it is not called such in the
Mathers/Crowley text, and stands only as an �Explanation of
Certain Names Used in this Book Lemegeton.�
A wonderful discussion of this tradition can be found in an
essay by Frank Klaassen, entitled English Manuscripts of
Magic, 1300-1500. Another essay by Michael Camille, entitled
Visual Art in Two Manuscripts of the Ars Notoria,
contains more historical analysis along with photographs of the
pages of the book itself. Finally, from the same source, we have
an equally informative essay entitled Plundering the Egyptian
Treasure: John the Monk�s �Book of Visions� and its Relation to
the Ars Notoria or Solomon, which compares the Notary Arts
to a later version of the text (The Book of Visions) that
focuses upon the Virgin Mary rather than Solomon.
There are approximately fifty different manuscripts of the
Notary Arts known at this time, dating from between 1300 to 1600
CE. The Solomonic mythos from which it draws its foundation is
found in the canonical Bible:
�Now, O Lord God, let thy promise unto David my father
be established: for thou hast made me king over a people like
the dust of the earth in multitude. Give me now wisdom and
knowledge, that I may show myself before this people: for who
can judge this They people, who are so great?� And God said to
Solomon, �Because this was in thine heart, and thou has not
asked riches, wealth, or honour, nor the life of thine
enemies, neither yet hast asked long life, but hast asked
wisdom and knowledge for thyself, that thou mayest judge my
people, over whom I have made thee king. Wisdom and knowledge
is granted unto thee; and I will give thee riches, and wealth,
and honour, such as none of the kings have had that have been
before thee, neither shall there any after thee have the
like.� [II Chronicles 1:9-12]
This is the very scene that gave rise to the legend of the
Wisdom of Solomon. By refusing to ask for anything beyond
self-improvement, he was able to enjoy all the things to which
others cling with greed. Only without greed can true happiness
be obtained, and physical things enjoyed. Many of us are
familiar with the phrase, �ask for wisdom and all else will
come.� Solomon learned to stop allowing his physical
surroundings to control his actions, and was thus granted the
power of controlling them instead. This entire concept has been
foundational to similar practices all over the world; from
eastern systems such as Bhuddism, to the grimoires themselves,
and even many systems of today.
The Ars Notoria is a collection of purification procedures,
obscure prayers, and magickal images which promise to result in
the understanding of ��Magical Operations, The liberal Sciences,
Divine Revelation, and The Art of Memory.� The purifications are
composed of fasts, observance of times, confessions, etc. In
appearance it very much resembles prayer books or Psalters of
the day- and the calligraphy and illustrations were very often
commissioned to professional artists (the same men who did in
fact fashion Psalters and prayer books). The text itself is
arranged into three distinct Parts. Part I contains the prayers
to achieve the �general� virtues necessary to attain the higher
virtues found later. These are four in number: Memory,
Eloquence, Understanding, and Perseverance. Without these, any
attempt to produce results with the more advanced prayers will
simply come to nothing.
Part II of the operation contains the prayers and magickal
images that promise to bestow the �special� virtues. These are
specifically the seven Liberal Arts that composed the common
educational curriculum for the Medieval scholar: Grammar, Logic,
and Rhetoric, followed by Arithmetic, Geometry, Music, and
Astronomy. It then culminates in Philosophy and Theology.
Following this is Part III, or the Ars Nova. This section is
composed of ten prayers said to have been delivered to Solomon
at a later time, and by different Angels, for the purpose of
rectifying any mistakes the aspirant may have made in the
previous books. Apparently, they are mainly reprisals of some of
the prayers of Part II. Finally, the text ends with the
necessary instructions (needed for all three Parts) concerning
preparation of the sacred space, consecration of the images,
fasting, confession, charity, instructions on using the prayers,
etc.
The prayers themselves are arranged within the elaborate
magickal images, so that the reading of the prayer also results
in the abstract viewing of the image. The effect of these two
together is intended to induce trance. (In many cases, it is
even necessary to rotate the book as you read- the prayers being
arranged in concentric circles or spirals. State of the art
hypnosis technology for the 1300s!) Here is an example of the
prayers and how they are applied practically:
This following is for the Memory: O Holy Father,
merciful Son, and Holy Ghost, inestimable King; I adore,
invocate, and beseech thy Holy Name, that of thy overflowing
goodness, thou wilt forget all my sins: be merciful to me a
sinner, presuming to go about this office of knowledge, and
occult learning; and grant, Oh Lord, it may be efficacious in
me; open Oh Lord my ears , that I may hear; and take away the
scales from my Eyes, that I may see: strengthen my hands, that
I may work; open my face, that I may understand thy will; to
the glory of thy Name, which is blessed for ever, Amen.
Overall, the Notary Arts stand apart from the usual structure
of grimoiric texts, which demand more elaborate efforts for
highly specific effects. One who made use of the Memory prayer
above was not attempting to remember one specific item, or to
pass a single test. Instead, he was acting on the question of
what might be gained if only he had a better memory in general.
Rather than achieving one single goal, after which the rite
would have to be performed again, the idea was to master the
entire subject in one fell swoop.
This philosophy of magick is very productive, and highly
recommended. It is extremely important to the grimoiric
traditions overall, and echoes of it can be found in the
introductions to even the most materialistic texts. Those books
which have gained reputations of deep mystery- and even danger-
are very often just this kind of text. See the Book of Abramelin
and the Sworn Book of Honorius below (as well as others in this
list) which are such legendary examples.
First drafted in 1509-10 by Henry Cornelius Agrippa (student
of Johannes Trithemius), this is the single most important
grimoiric text in existence. It is not, in fact, a practical
manual, but is instead a compendium of the theories and
philosophies upon which Medieval and Renaissance magick are
based.
Agrippa divided his work into three distinct sections (or
books): the first focuses upon natural or earth-magick. The
second outlines the more intellectual techniques such as
Qabalah, Gematria, mathematics, and divination. The third book
concerns religious observances and interaction with Angelic
beings. There are no ceremonies outlined, and no chapters
dedicated to �how to� instructions. Instead, it is a sourcebook
or reference without which the other grimoires would be nearly
useless today. One could spend a lifetime with this book, and
still discover new treasures of ancient thought within its
pages.
More than any other, this book (especially Book II) has had a
major impact on our modern magickal cultures. It seems to have
been a favorite of John Dee, as many of its correspondences and
magickal wisdom appear throughout the Enochian system of magick.
It was also a major sourcebook for the founders of the Golden
Dawn, and most of their lists of Angels and Divine Names can be
found in its pages. The seven magickal squares, or planetary
kameas (used in many traditions from the Golden Dawn to Wicca),
are found in Agrippa�s work. The four philosophical Elements,
the gnomes, sylphs, salamanders, and undines, construction of
talismans, gematria, the Shem haMephoresh and more are all
outlined here. And these are merely a few examples; due to its
overshadowing influence on today, it would be impossible to list
all of the modern borrowings from the Three Books in this small
space.
According to Joseph Peterson, the Magical Elements is a
concise handbook of ritual magick, and was translated by Robert
Turner in 1655. It appeared in Turner�s collection of esoteric
texts along with pseudo-Agrippa's Fourth Book of Occult
Philosophy. The text is attributed to Peter de Abano
(1250-1316), though Mr. Peterson feels that this is probably
spurious, since de Abano�s work betrays �no acquaintance with
the occult sciences.� The Magical Elements is primarily based
upon Solomonic literature, and even appears in the Hebrew Key
of Solomon (Mafteah Shelomoh, fol 35a ff) under the
title The Book of Light.
Agrippa published his Three Books� without including
any practical ceremonies. In the last chapter of the third book,
he tells us his reason: �For we have delivered this art in such
a manner, that it may not be hid from the prudent and
intelligent, and yet may not admit wicked and incredulous men to
the mysteries of these secrets, but leave them destitute and
astonished, in the shade of ignorance and desperation.�
However, there was apparently some call for a �how to�
section of the work regardless of Agrippa�s original intention.
Thus the Magical Elements was written as a companion
volume, including the necessary circle castings, invocations,
consecrations, seals, etc. As Mr. Peterson suggests above, the
book was very likely not written by the famed physician Peter de
Abano. The death of Abano occurred in 1250, while the Heptameron
did not make its appearance for another two hundred years.
This book needs little explanation, as it is basically
another version of the Magical Elements, with large portions of
the original Three Books... included. Also, the Lemegeton (at
least its style) had an influence on this work, as it does
concern the evocation of �evil spirits� and even suggests the
use of a triangle.
The author is known only as �pseudo-Agrippa,� because he
chose to sign Agrippa�s name to the work. According to A. E.
Waite, the text appeared only after the death of the famous
wizard, and was rejected as a forgery by a student of Agrippa�s
named Wierus.
Published In 1801 by Francis Barrett, this work was meant as
a textbook for classes in magick that Barrett was offering at
No. 99 Norton St., Marylebone- at any time between the hours of
eleven and two o�clock. It would appear that he was attempting
to found a magickal order, which may or may not have succeeded.
As for the content of the book, I�m afraid we have to class
this text with the others that have taken so much from Agrippa�s
Three Books� and those which came directly after. It consists
mainly of large portions of Agrippa�s work (specifically
portions of the first and second books), along with large chunks
of the Magickal Elements and Fourth Book of Occult Philosophy
thrown in. Many tend to consider Barrett a plagiarist, as he
leaves his sources (which he does indeed quote word for word in
most cases) unaccredited. Although, I tend to feel that Barrett
(operating as late as the 1800s) was simply compiling a workable
textbook for his class from the sources he had personally
tracked down and studied. In fact, The Magus seems to represent
a last revival of grimoiric material before the Victorian work
of Eliphas Levi, and the Golden Dawn after him.
S. L. Mathers, in his edition of this text, places the Book
of Abramelin at the end of the seventeenth and beginning of the
eighteenth centuries. Like the tradition of the Notary Arts, the
Abramelin system stands apart from the grimoiric mainstream. Its
focus is much more spiritual in nature than one might expect
from the Key of Solomon or Goetia. The principal upon which the
text is based is that all material happiness can only come from
spiritual evolution.
The text is divided into three books. The first is an
autobiography of the author - a man who calls himself Abraham
the Jew. There may be a symbolic relation to the father of
Judaism, though this Abraham writes of living during the reign
of Emperor Sigismond of Germany (1368-1437 CE). Abraham
describes his years of wandering in search of the True and
Sacred Wisdom (more echoes of King Solomon), and his several
disappointments along the way. In fact, the tale takes on the
traditional tone of a quest. He learns several forms of magick,
but finds them all lacking, and their practitioners to be less
than they claimed. At the last moments before giving up the
quest, Abraham meets an Egyptian adept named Abramelin, who
agrees to teach Abraham the Sacred Magic.
Abraham wrote this text for the sake of his son Lamech
(another Biblically-inspired name). According to the story,
Abraham had granted the secrets of the Qabalah to his oldest
son, in the tradition of Judaism. However, he did not wish to
leave his younger son with no Key to spiritual attainment, and
thus Abraham left behind the Book of Abramelin.
The second two books, then, are composed of the instructions
for the Sacred Magick, which Abraham copied by hand from
Abramelin�s original. The first part (book two) describes a
heavily involved procedure of purification and invocation,
resulting in the appearance of one�s own Guardian Angel. Of
course, the concept of the personal Guardian (and the invocation
thereof) extends well before the dawn of written history. The
system outlined in Abramelin itself shows amazing similarities
to tribal shamanic procedures. The purifications take the
standard grimoiric forms of seclusion, fasting, cleanliness, and
a heavy dose of prayer. A separate room- called an Oratory
(prayer room) must be maintained in utmost purity during a six
month period, as this is where the Angel will appear and bond
with the aspirant at the end of this time. Afterward, the Angel
takes over as Teacher for the aspirant, and it is from this
being (and only this being) that the True and Sacred Wisdom and
Magick will be discovered.
Once the cooperation of the Angel is assured, one continues
to summon forth such demonic princes as Lucifer, Leviathan,
Astarot, Belzebud, and several others (twelve in all). These
beings are commanded to deliver an Oath of obedience to the
mage, as well as the use of four familiar spirits for day-to-day
practical tasks.
The final book is a collection of magick-square talismans,
which the demonic princes and spirits must swear upon when
giving their Oaths. Each talisman can then be used to command a
spirit to perform a task, in much the same fashion as those in
the Key of Solomon the King. The functions of the talismans are
those common to grimoiric material- finding treasure, causing
visions, bringing books, flight, healing the sick, etc, etc.
There is some speculation that book three was a later edition
to the work. I don�t know if this is the case, though it is true
that it contains more contradictions and general mistakes than
the second. In fact, those who have made use of the Abramelin
system have found book three of little concern. Abraham himself
hints at the reason for this in Book Two, chapter 14:
Though the following advice may be scarcely necessary for
the most part, since I have already explained unto you all
things necessary to be done; and also seeing that your
Guardian Angel will have sufficiently instructed you in all
that you should do�
It is very possible that Book Three represents only
�Abraham�s� version of the True and Sacred Magic, which will, of
course, be different for everyone.
I also feel I should state that the talismans are
specifically useless for those who do not first undergo the six
month invocation. They have no power in and of themselves, as
they work only by showing them to spirit helpers who have
touched them and sworn the Oaths. Of course, that can only be
done with the aid of one�s Guardian Angel, which can only be
achieved by following the entire six-month operation. Some of
the most common urban legends I have heard concerning the
dangers of grimoires were centered around those who have
attempted to make use of book three of Abramelin by itself. Much
more than this, however, I believe people simply find it of
little use at all.
The Book of Abramelin granted one major concept to our modern
practices- that of the Holy Guardian Angel. The Golden Dawn
adopted the �HGA� straight from the pages of Abramelin, and the
system of Thelema adopted it from the Golden Dawn. Both
traditions agree on the vast importance of gaining Knowledge and
Conversation of the Holy Guardian Angel. Abramelin is one of my
own areas of focus, and I could not agree with them more. In
time, both the Golden Dawn and Thelema have developed their own
methods of invoking and working with the Guardian Angel; though
I have to admit that I find the Abramelin system to be the most
impressive method.
Joseph Peterson describes this text as appearing first in
Latin in Basle, Switzerland 1575. It is also mentioned in John
Dee�s Five Books of the Mysteries (circa 1583). This was among
the rituals classified by A.E. Waite as �transcendental magic�-
that is, magick that does not include what he considers black
magickal elements (see the Book of Ceremonial Magic p.
28.) It was later translated into English by Robert Turner In
1655.
The Arbatel was originally intended to contain nine volumes,
though we only know of the first book today. Many speculate that
the other eight were never written, and this could very well be
true. Although, the magick that is supposedly contained in those
eight books would not have been uncommon Medieval magickal
literature. I feel that the author at least intended to write
them, if he did not in fact do so after all.
The first book, called Isagoge (or A Book of the
Institutions of Magick), concerns the basics of magickal
procedure in general. It contains 49 �aphorisms,� divided into
groups of seven called �septenaries,� which must be learned and
followed in order to succeed in magickal experiments. A fitting
example of the nature of these aphorisms would be number two:
In all things call upon the Name of the Lord: and without
prayer unto God through his onely-begotten son, do not thou
undertake to do or think any thing. And use the Spirits given
and attributed unto thee, as Ministers, without rashness and
presumption, as the messengers of God; having a due reverence
towards the Lord of Spirits. And the remainder of thy life do
thou accomplish, demeaning thy self peaceably, to the honour
of God, and the profit of thy self and thy neighbour.
The third septenary of aphorisms begins a description of the
natures and methods of working with seven planetary Olympic
Spirits, who inhabit the firmament (sky), specifically the stars
(or planets) of the firmament. Their office is to declare
Destinies and to administer fatal Charms as far as God permits
them. Their names are Aratron, Bethor, Phaleg, Och, Hagith,
Ophiel, and Phul.
According to this text, the universe is divided into 186
�provinces,� which are ruled by the Olympic Spirits. Each Spirit
also rules, in succession, a period of 490 years. According to
the text, we have been under the general governance of Ophiel,
the Spirit of Mercury, since 1900 CE, and will remain so until
the year 2390 CE.
The eight non-existent books said to follow the first are
described in the introduction of the Arbatel. The second book
concerns Microcosmical Magick, and sounds as if it might be an
operation of working with one�s Lesser Guardian Angel or Genius
(see the Pauline Arts above). The third contains Olympic Magick,
or the methods of working with the spirits who reside upon Mt.
Olympus. The fourth book contains what it calls Hesiodiacal or
Homerical Magick, and focuses upon working with �cacodaimones�
(unclean spirits, or demons). It is very likely that this text
was (or would have been) somewhat along the lines of the Goetia.
The fifth of the nine books contains �Romane or Sibylline
Magick,� which concerns work done with Tutelar Spirits- that is,
those spiritual entities who guide and protect human beings. The
sixth book is called Pythagorical Magick, which promises the
appearance of spirits who will teach one all of the �rhetorical
sciences� such as medicine, mathematics, alchemy, etc. The
seventh book is called the Magick of Apollonius, and claims to
work according to the rules of both the Microcosmical (book two)
and Romane (book five) Magicks. However, this work claims to
work with hostile spirits instead of benevolent. The eighth book
is called Hermetical or Egyptian Magick, and is described only
as being similar to �Divine Magick.� If I were to make an
assumption as to what this means, I might assume that it was
related in some way to work with celestial beings (�theurgy�),
or even devotional religious magick as found in Book III of
Agrippa�s Three Books. Finally, the ninth book is �that wisdom
which dependeth solely upon the Word of God; and this is called
Prophetical Magick.�
The oldest copies of the Latin Sworn Book we have today are
Sloane MS 313 and 3854, both of which date to the fourteenth
century. Based on evidence in the text itself, Robert Mathiesen
suggests that the material was composed �sometime in the first
half of the 13th century.� Overall, there are six known copies
of the book.
The introduction of the Sworn Book gives the story that the
book was fashioned in response to the Medieval inquisitions. As
the officials of the Church sought to destroy all works of
magick, a large council of adepts gathered with the purpose of
somehow preserving the sacred science. One among them- Honorius,
son of Euclidus- was chosen for the actual performance of the
task. As is common in classical grimoiric literature, the master
entered into conversation with an Angel who directed the
reception of the magick. In this case, the Angel�s name was
Hochmel- obviously a version of the Hebrew word �Chockmah�
(Wisdom). The Sworn Book of Honorius was the result of this
action. Each adept was allowed to make no more than three copies
of the book, and each copy was to be either buried before his
death, interred in his grave with him, or given into trusted
hands.
The Sworn Book is a specifically Catholic text which seems
closely related to the Ars Notoria. Joseph Peterson points out
the similarities in the prayers used in both manuscripts, and
suggests that the two are directly connected. Both texts indeed
utilize pure prayer, divorced for the most part from typical
grimoiric techniques, in order to achieve their high magickal
goals. However, where the Ars Notoria focuses upon the gaining
of rhetorical knowledge, the Sworn Book promises the gaining of
the �Beatific Vision.� This is simply the Christian version of
the vision of the Merkavah- wherein one achieves a vision of the
Face of God through purification, fasting, and prayer.
Robert Mathiesen explains that the operation lasts for
twenty-eight days. It is divided into two principal parts: the
first part lasts twenty days, and concerns the purification of
the operator for the work of the second part. The second part
(the actual magickal ritual) is a mere eight days long. This
appears similar in style to the Book of Abramelin, which
instructs one to enter an extended six-month period of
purification, followed by a much shorter seven-day rite to gain
the vision of the Holy Guardian Angel and to bind the Demonic
Princes.
Interestingly, John Dee owned a copy of this work (Sloane
313). Like the tools of the Almadel of Solomon, Dee also adopted
an aspect of this work into his Enochian system. The text
describes the inscription on parchment of a �Seal of God,� which
Dee used as the basis for his �Sigillium Dei Ameth.� I will go
into this somewhat below.
In the late 1500s, two alchemist-mages joined their magickal
efforts and began to contact Angels. One of these men was Dr.
John Dee- the most celebrated scholar of his day. He enjoyed the
patronage of Queen Elizabeth I, and was wholly dedicated to the
furtherance of the English empire. His goal seems to have been
to receive a system of magickal world-domination, by which he
could influence the fates of neighboring (and hostile) kingdoms.
His partner was Edward Kelley, a dedicated alchemist (who seems
to have indulged in alchemical fraud a number of times) who
sought the true mysteries of turning base metals into gold.
With these goals in mind, the two men summoned and conversed
with a large family of Angels. Like the two mages, the Angels
seemed to have an agenda of Their own- the transmission of an
extremely powerful system of magick that would influence the
world forever after. Not surprisingly, of these three goals
(military power, gold, and magickal evolution), only that of the
Angels came to pass. The Angelic system of magick thus delivered
came to be known as �Enochian,� as it was supposed to have been
delivered originally to the Biblical prophet Enoch before the
Great Flood. It was eventually adopted, in part, by the Hermetic
Order of the Golden Dawn in the late 1800s, and has thus become
the very backbone of modern magickal knowledge.
John Dee made only one attempt to produce a Solomonic-style
grimoire, which is published today as The Enochian Magick of
Dr. John Dee, by G. James. However, this text has not been
of nearly as much use to us as the journals he kept during his
work with the Angels. There we witness Dee and Kelley
interacting with the celestial intelligences on a daily basis,
and the new system of magick delivered piece by obscure piece.
Dee was in charge of summoning the entities (mainly by nothing
more complicated than the recitation of Psalms), and Kelley
would gaze into a crystal ball and report on what he saw. (In
fact, much of the common stereotypes of �the wizard� that exist
in our popular culture today- such as the crystal ball- are
traced directly to Dee and Kelley and their magickal journals.)
The sessions continued on a regular basis from 1581 to
approximately 1607- and the heart of the work seems to have
occurred between 1582 and 1585. The journals which are of
primary relevance are as follows:
Five Books of the Mysteries (Quinti Libri
Mysteriorum):
These five books (preserved as Sloane MS 3188) cover the
years from December 22, 1581 to May 23, 1583. Their subject is
the transmission of the �Heptarchia,� a form of magick that
centers around the mystery of the seven Archangels who stand
before the Throne of God (see Revelation Ch. 4). It focuses
upon the seven planets, days of the week, and even the seven
Biblical days of creation. The magick itself works through the
patronage of 49 planetary Angels, all of whom have very
typical (though lofty) grimoiric functions- such as the
bestowing of wisdom and knowledge, or military protection.
The tools of Angelic magick are very typical of grimoiric
technology. In fact, most of them pre-exist John Dee, having
been adopted from various Medieval texts. For instance, the
influence of the Almadel of Solomon (see above) is quite
obvious. Its design- square in shape, a boarder inside its
edges containing Divine Names, and a hexagram in its center-
is the basis for Dee�s Holy Table (or Table of Practice).
Although the Almadel is made of wax while Dee�s Table is made
of �sweetwood�, wax is used to fashion the Sigillum Dei Ameth
(Seal of God, or of Truth). This Seal rests upon the Holy
Table and, like the Almadel, is intended to facilitate the
skrying of the Angels; perhaps in a crystal ball resting upon
it as They did for Kelley. Even the design on the face of the
Sigillum is traditional. The �Seal of God� makes its original
appearance in The Sworn Book of Honorius, though (like the
Table) the names and characters inscribed upon it differ from
Dee�s final versions.
Also included is a Ring of Solomon, fashioned of pure gold,
and featuring the Divine Name �Pele.� This Name is found in
Agrippa�s Three Books, as well as Judges 13:18: �Why askest
thou thus after my name seeing it is a secret?� The Hebrew
word for �name� (PLE) indicates �a miracle of God.� The
Archangel Michael delivered the design of this ring to Dee,
stating that this was the actual ring worn by Solomon when he
worked his miracles. Dee himself was instructed to attempt
nothing without it.
Further tools consisted of seven talismans known as the
Ensigns of Creation (corresponding to the seven Biblical days
of creation) fashioned from purified tin and arrayed around
the Sigillum Dei Ameth, a Lamen written in Angelic characters,
several covers of silk, a crystal �shewstone�, Lamens for each
planetary Angelic King (and perhaps the Princes of each planet
as well), and four miniature wax seals for placement
underneath the legs of the Table. Toward the end of the Five
Books, the Angels delivered the first of the truly �Enochian�
material. This came in the form of a holy book named Liber
Logaeth, the Book of the Speech From God. This text consisted
of forty-nine pages covered with an indecipherable language
arranged in the form of huge magickal squares. The Angels
proclaimed that it was a new doctrine, and that it contained
the words by which God created the universe (as per Genesis
I). From there the records continue with:
A True and Faithful Relation�:
The full title of this text is A True and Faithful
Relation of What Passed for Many Yeers Between Dr. John Dee (A
Mathematician of Great Fame in Q. Eliz. and King James their
Reignes) and Some Spirits. It is a huge tome published in
1659 by Meric Casaubon, containing a full thirteen books, and
covering May 28, 1583 to September 7, 1607.
It is here that we find the famous �48 Claves Angelicai�
(Angelic Keys), the Great Table of the Earth (the
Watchtowers), the 91 (or 92) Parts of the Earth, and the 30
Aethyrs (Heavens). The Angels related instructions for using
the Keys- also known as Calls- to access the mysteries of
Logaeth. The Celestial hierarchies within the Watchtowers
are defined for the most part, along with an extended rite of
summoning to establish contact with Them. There are also some
rather obscure instructions for skrying into the Parts of the
Earth- which are actually spiritual reflections of
geographical locations. Dee hoped to control any country in
the world by simply having access to the Angels who resided in
that area of the world.
This, of course, does not even begin to scratch the surface
of the �Enochian� material of Dr Dee and Sir Edward Kelley.
However, space here would not permit such a massive
undertaking. A True and Faithful Relation runs for several
hundred pages- filled with magick, mysticism, politics, and
intrigue. The study of this book, and the Enochian Angelic
system of magick, is the dedication of a lifetime.
The Grimoire of Armadel (Liber Armadel Seu Totius Cabalae
Perfectissima Brevissima et Infallabilis Scientia Tam
Speculativa Quam Practiqua):
This text is very often confused with either the Almadel of
Solomon, or the Arbatel of Magic. In fact, it is very possible
that the name �Armadel� is a corruption of one of these words-
especially of the name Arbatel. The Grimoire of Armadel does
happen to borrow its principal conjuration and license to depart
from the Arbatel of Magic. However, regardless of its use of
material from earlier sources, the Grimoire of Armadel remains a
magickal operation distinct from other texts with a similar
name.
It is difficult to say exactly when the manuscript first
appeared in history. The earliest recorded mention of the book
is found in a bibliography of occult works compounded by Gabriel
Naude in 1625. We do know that the name �Armadel� enjoyed some
popularity among occultists during the seventeenth century, with
several unrelated texts attributed to him. Eventually, a
manuscript in the French language (MS 88) found its way into the
Bibliotheque l�Arsenal; which was then translated into English
in the early 1900s by Samuel Mathers. An introduction was then
written for the text in 1995 by William Keith.
It is a very simple book, full of colorful Sigils related to
recognizable Angels and spirits (such as the seven Archangels:
Cassiel, Sachiel, etc), along with borrowed conjurations.
Apparently, one is intended to inscribe the Sigils on
consecrated parchment, and use them to contact Angels and
spirits who have mysteries to reveal. The book begins with a
short section outlining the basic ritual procedure, and the
afore-mentioned Arbatel conjurations.
The Sigils are then grouped into three categories. The first
is called �The Theosophy of Our Forefathers or Their Sacred and
Mystic Theology.� It contains Sigils to contact Angels such as
Gabriel- whose chapter is called �Of the Life of Elijah.�
Raphael teaches the �Wisdom of Solomon.� Other chapters of
potential interest are �The Explorer and Leader Joshua�, �The
Rod of Moses�, �The Wisdom of Our Forefather Adam�, �The Vision
of Eden�, and even �The Beholding of the Serpent [of Eden].�
These are only a few of the best examples.
The next section is entitled �The Sacro-Mystic Theology of
Our Forefathers.� Herein we can learn lessons �Concerning the
Devils and How They May be Bound and Compelled to Visible
Appearance�, as well as �Concerning the Ways of Knowing the Good
Angels, and of Consulting Them.� (The latter is taught by no
less than Zadkiel and Sachiel together.) We can learn much
�Concerning the Evangelic Rebellion and Expulsion�, and
�Concerning the Life of the Angels Before the Fall.� Again, this
merely scratches the surface of available Sigils.
The final section is called �The Rational Table: or the
Qabalistical Light; Penetrating Whatsoever Things be Most Hidden
Among the Celestials, the Terrestrials and the Infernals.� This
title represents the universally-typical threefold-world of the
shaman. (We will learn much more of the importance of this
three-fold division in later chapters.) Here are contained
further magickal requisites, talismans, orations, and several
chapters that appear to be Christian sermons, or perhaps
invocations.
Some scholars tend to suggest that the Grimoire of Armadel is
a complete fabrication- akin to the Grimoirium Verum and
Grand Grimoire we shall see below. Armadel flourished
during the occult panic that gripped France between 1610 and
1640. The Christian orientation of the text, several Biblical
sermons, the invocation of Saints, and its instructions to
recite such official prayers as the Pater Noster, Ave
Maria, or the Creedo would probably have caught the
attention of a public hungry for rumors of necromancers among
the clergy.
However, I feel there is some reasonable doubt surrounding
objections to this book�s authenticity. The Armadel is indeed a
simple text- more akin to a working notebook than a full
magickal manuscript. It certainly would have been easy to put
together- assuming one could have easily amassed its source
material in the 1600s. However, the Armadel still lacks the
shock value that is written into other forgeries like the Grand
Grimoire, or even our own modern Necronomicon. In fact, the text
is highly shamanic- offering to teach one how to contact the
spirits in order to be safe from them, to learn mysteries from
them, etc. There are not even any blood sacrifices found in the
instructions. The focus of the work seems to be upon visionary
quests or spiritual encounters facilitated by the magickal
characters, as well as gaining some magickal powers such as
healing, alchemy, agriculture, etc.
This kind of straightforwardness would not be expected of the
shock-value forgeries. William Keith and several contemporary
grimoiric scholars tend to feel the magickal value of this book
is �slight, or at best highly dilute.� I feel that the overall
simplicity of the book disappoints many occult researchers.
However, I am personally fascinated with the implications behind
the Sigils and the mystical experiences they promise. It seems
just as likely that this grimoire was once a personal notebook
used by a working mage. The reader may even agree with me if he
encounters the Armadel after reading this book (especially
chapters two, three, and ten).
Here we have one of the famous grimoires of �black� magick.
Both A. E. Waite and Elizabeth Butler introduce the work with
the text of its own title page: �Grimoirium Verum, or the Most
Approved Keys of Solomon the Hebrew Rabbin, wherein the Most
Hidden Secrets, both Natural and Supernatural, are immediately
exhibited, but it is necessary that the Demons should be
contented on their part. Translated from the Hebrew by
Plaingiere, a Dominican Jesuit, with a Collection of Curious
Secrets. Published by Alibeck the Egyptian. 1517.�
Waite suggests that the date given in the above quote is
fraudulent, as the text actually belongs to the mid-eighteenth
century. It is written in French, though it very likely has
Italian connections, and does in fact seem to have a connection
to Rome. It owes a debt, as do so many other grimoires, to the
Key of Solomon the King- as some of its material is taken
directly therefrom. The Lemegeton, too, had its influence- as
the Grimoirium contains instructions for the evocation of the
exact same entities.
Little more needs said concerning this text. This, along with
other purported �black� rituals, have always struck me as
somewhat boring, very unoriginal, and rarely of much use
practically. Overall, they tend to appear as little more than
re-hashes of the Key of Solomon and Lemegeton, with a few
dissertations included to give the text a renegade �Satanic�
feel. Most of them, in my opinion, do not even make the grade as
Satanic or �black.� While it is true that they call upon demonic
entities, and usually include prayers and invocations directed
to Lucifer, we shall see in later chapters that this does not
properly make an operation �black.�
This text was published without a date, though Waite suggests
that it is about the same age as the Grimoirium Verum. The work
is introduced: �The Grand Grimoire, with the Powerful Calvicle
of Solomon and of Black Magic; or the Infernal Devices of the
Great Agrippa for the Discovery of all Hidden Treasures and the
Subjugation of every Denomination of Spirits, together with an
Abridgment of all the Magical Arts.�
This is, perhaps, the most well known of �black� grimoires-
appearing even in Hollywood next to the Key of Solomon the King.
Like the Grimoirium Verum, the Grand Grimoire probably has an
Italian origin or influence, as indicated by the name of its
editor Antonio Venitiana del Rabina. The book itself is
attributed to Solomon and depicts his summoning and binding of
the demonic Prime Minister Lucifuge Rofocale, who thenceforth
became rather popular among occult authors (such as Eliphas
Levi).
What perhaps makes this book so famous (or infamous) is the
fact that it deals specifically with making pacts with devils.
Other texts, such as Goetia and Abramelin, do not work through
pacts at all, and the latter example expressly forbids such
action. Meanwhile the Grand Grimoire instructs one to make a
conditional pact with Lucifuge:
It is my wish to make a pact with thee, so as to obtain
wealth at thy hands immediately, failing which I will torment
thee by the potent words of the Clavicle.
The written document to be signed by Lucifuge reads as
follows:
I promise the grand Lucifuge to reward him in twenty years�
time for all treasures he may give me. In witness whereof I
have signed myself. N.N.
After some dickering, further conditions are added by
Lucifuge:
Leave me to my rest, and I will confer upon thee the
nearest treasure, on condition that thou dost set apart for me
one coin on the first Monday of each month, and dost not call
me oftener than once a week, to wit, between ten at night and
two in the morning. Take up thy pact; I have signed it. Fail
in thy promise, and thou shalt be mine at the end of twenty
years.
The Grand Grimoire then proceeds to communicate Solomon�s
instructions for the making of a pact. E.M. Butler writes that
this is the only complete �and perfect� outline of such a pact
of which she is aware (though she does make mention of the
similar Faustian ritual). The form of the pact in the Grand
Grimoire is deliberately evasive- supposing that the mage is
�getting one over� on the demonic forces.
For those who are interested in the darker side of the
grimoires, I must recommend Ritual Magic and The
Fortunes of Faust, both by Elizabeth Butler. She is an
expert in what is known as the �Faustian� tradition- a Germanic
phenomenon based upon the mythos of Faust and his dealings with
Satan. A. E. Waite also gives portions of the texts of the above
two (and other) grimoires in his Book of Ceremonial Magic.
Conclusion
The Medieval texts do not (for the most part) contain dark and
horrible rites that call upon �Lovecraftian� beasties. They are
not all about curses or pacts with �the devil,� and there is no
enslavement of innocent spirits. Instead, they reflect the
magickal philosophies and wisdom of our magickal ancestors, from
whom we have inherited much. It is a system of magick complete
unto itself and rich with the influence of tribal magick. Agrippa,
in the Three Books of Occult Philosophy, describes what the
grimoires promise:
To defend kingdoms, to discover the secret councils of men,
to overcome enemies, to redeem captives, to increase riches, to
procure the favor of men, to expel diseases, to preserve health,
to prolong life, to renew youth, to foretell future events, to
see and know things done many miles off, and such like as these,
by virtue of superior influences, may seem things incredible;
yet read but the ensuing treatise, and thou shalt see the
possibility thereof confirmed both by reason, and example.
[Three Books of Occult Philosophy, Llewellyn, p lxi]
The schools of magick or �natural philosophy� (that is-
Alchemy, Astrology, and Spirit-working) were considered among the
respectable sciences from the earliest of times. The Medieval and
Renaissance mages I�ve mentioned above, along with numerous others
both known and unknown, were also physicists, doctors,
astronomers, biologists, mathematicians, philosophers, architects,
navigators, etc. The existence of the Notary Arts and related
texts makes this point evident. In truth, the men who created most
of our modern fields of scientific study were adept mages as well
(such as Sir Isaac Newton, who was in fact an alchemist).
For further information on this point, I highly recommend
The Rosicrucian Enlightenment, by Frances Yates. The preface,
especially, and truly the entire book, contains much information
about the magickal nature of the early sciences, and the mystical
minds it took to dream of them. The Rosicrucian thinkers of the
seventeenth century were the ancestors of the Masons, the Royal
Society of England, and of the Age of Enlightenment overall.
Not only was magick respected among the sciences, it was
actually considered the highest and most sacred science. The
Goetia begins, in some manuscripts, with the following words:
Magic is the Highest, most Absolute, and most Divine
Knowledge of Natural Philosophy, advanced in its works and
wonderful operations by a right understanding of the inward and
occult virtue of things; so that true Agents being applied to
proper Patients, strange and admirable effects will thereby be
produced. Whence magicians are profound and diligent searchers
into Nature: they, because of their skill, know how to anticipate
an effect, the which to the vulgar shall seem to be a miracle.
One must question, then, why magick fell from its lofty
position. Why are the texts considered superstitious rubbish when
they were penned by the hands of such as John Dee, Henry Agrippa,
and Trithemius? In general, we are given the impression that
magick fell by the wayside due to its inability to withstand the
scientific process. By applying the steps of experimentation,
magick is said to have come up short, producing no results, and
was thus abandoned by the educated.
However, that assumption is simply not true. The historical
fact is that magick was feared enough by the Medieval Church to
outlaw it. Richard Kieckhefer opens his book Forbidden Rites
with the observation that we are (mentally speaking) what we read,
and the power that books hold to transform minds has given rise to
anxiety as much as celebration. Various related developments in
late Medieval Europe brought about a Renaissance of literature,
and brought with it concerns about what people were reading.
Magickal books which blatantly called upon demonic powers embodied
the worst fears of those who naturally feared a populace that (for
the first time in history) could read.
It was not that magick failed to pass the test, but that it
passed enough of its tests to make the world-rulers of the day
take action against it. It was forced from its position of highest
respect into the underground realm of the outlaw and fraud. This
is, in fact, no different from the current drug laws, and the
treatment received by such educated men as Timothy Leary. History
shows us that such arts as magic, alchemy, and even a good number
of the currently accepted sciences have been regularly repressed
by established governing bodies. The scientists of the Medieval
and Renaissance Eras necessarily had to distance themselves from
the practice of magick (at least outwardly). A world where a man
could be executed for suggesting that the Earth revolves around
the Sun was no world for the investigations of occult philosophy.
As well, the black plague that decimated Europe at the end of
the Medieval Era had shaken many of the peoples� faith in all
things spiritual. Those who continued to insist on its use were
often feared by the peasants, and ridiculed by their peers. Thus,
a tangible separation began to grow between the studies of magick,
and the other- materialistic- sciences.
So, here we stand at the dawning of a new Age, with the fear of
the Church and our dependence upon materialistic science receding
ever further into the past. We might choose to accept their
authority on the uselessness and superstition of the grimoires, or
we might instead return to the manuscripts for a second look; to
judge them according to our own knowledge and experiences. We
might decide to put them to the test- nearly six or seven hundred
years after they were written- and see what results they might
produce. Though it is common knowledge that they are the origins
of many of our current magickal practices, few seekers have taken
an interest in learning what deeper secrets they might contain.
In my searches, I found precious few who had taken such an
interest. As I stated before, most (even Neopagans) were happy to
accept the Medieval Church�s doctrine on the matter. On the other
hand, those few who did make the effort to duplicate the
experiments of the classical texts seemed to report outstanding
results time and again. One might have to get up a little early on
a Wednesday morning to find a virgin nut-tree from which to cut a
wand. It might take some time to find thread spun by a young
maiden. One might even have to dedicate a search by phone and
internet to locate rare materials, herbs or perfumes. However, as
E. M. Butler suggests concerning the Greek texts that gave rise to
the grimoires: the instructions are not prohibitively difficult to
follow, but they are by no means easy, and frequently demand
considerable physical and mental effort on the part of the
aspirant.
If one has �what it takes� to put forth such physical and
mental effort, then one can eventually access the treasures of the
grimoires. I personally made the decision to test their promises,
and to follow their instructions and procedures as completely as
possible. What I have found is far from a failed science that can
not stand up to scientific process. On the contrary, I have found
the results of the practice extremely impressive.
This book is about my experiences with, and discoveries within,
the classical art. I have not written this book to explain the
process of any single grimoire. Instead, it is about the living
tradition of Medieval grimoiric magick that resides within the
overall body of literature.
Of course, I understand the difficulty in referring to the
grimoires as a �living tradition,� as it has been all but dead now
for nearly five centuries. Some of their secrets have faded away,
and the culture that gave them life has long since passed. Not
only this, but the communities of the modern occult revival are
seldom composed of Christian mystics who would find use for the
prayers from the Notary Arts or Liber Juratis. Overall, there is
no direct link between ourselves and the authors of the Medieval
and Renaissance texts.
Yet, they remain in fact our magickal ancestors, and their work
has provided the very backbone of our own modern systems.
Knowledge of this fact is becoming more widespread today than ever
before, and for the first time we have an abundance of information
concerning them. Meanwhile, occult students seem to have a natural
inclination to seek out the �root origins� of the subjects they
study. Therefore, the classical grimoires are just beginning to
enjoy their own revival- with their tribal-shamanic magickal
secrets appealing to a surprisingly wide (and usually
non-Christian) audience. They are, once again, becoming a living
tradition.
I, of course, can not hope to cover every detail of Medieval
practice in this one book. My hope is only to provide a solid
background upon which to study and experiment with the grimoires.
I have also attempted to share some of my own experiences;
especially to illustrate how the techniques must be adopted into
their proper modern framework. Only by understanding what these
mysterious books once were can we understand what they will (and
have) become.
Medieval - Renaissance Timeline
Including Historical Events and Appearances of
Grimoires
325 - Council of Nice called by Roman Emperor Constantine.
455 - Rome sacked by Vandals. Medieval Era begins circa this
time.
589 - Third Council of Toledo inserts filioque into the
Nicene Creed, driving a wedge between the Eastern and Western
Churches.
638 - Islamic armies take control of the Holy Land.
1054 - Eastern Orthodox Church and Roman Catholic Church
mutually excommunicate each other, and separate into two distinct
bodies.
1095 - Byzantine Emperor pleads with Pope Urban II for help
against Islamic Turks in the Holy Land. The Crusades are begun.
1118 - Knights Templar are established in Solomon�s Temple in
Jerusalem.
1128 - Knights Templar confirmed by Pope Honorius II at Council
of Troyes.
1215 - King John forced to sign the Magna Carta, an
early Bill of Rights, by land barons.
1231 - Pope Gregory IX declares life imprisonment for repentant
heretics, and death for those who refuse to confess.
1256 - Date of earliest known copy of the Picatrix,
from the court of king Alphonso of Castille. The text is likely
much older.
Late 1200s - Moses de Leon publishes the Sepher haZohar,
the principal book of the Qabalah.
1291 - Holy Land lost to the Turks. �Official� end of the
Crusades. Knights Templar establish new headquarters at Temple
Monastery in France.
1300s - Bubonic plague spreads from China during this century,
and continues until 1600s. The Key of Solomon the King
appears during this century, though it may be quite a bit older.
The oldest known copies of the Ars Notoria also
appear during this century.
1312 - Pope Clemet V, at the insistence of French King Phillipe
le Bel, issues a papal bull suppressing the Templar order.
1314 - Templar Grand Master Jaques de Molay, and others, burned
at the stake for heresy.
1318 - Pope John XXII has the bishop of Frejus investigate
several clerics and laymen on charges of necromancy, geomancy,
etc.
Early 1400s - Suggested origin of the Sworn Book of
Honorius.
1406 - Group of clerics accused of working magick against the
King of France and Pope Benedict XIII.
1409 - Pope Benedict XIII is himself accused of working
necromancy and employing necromancers.
1450 - Johann Guttenburg invents printing press. Renaissance
Era begins circa this time.
1462 - Trithemius born.
1468 - Two Dominican monks write the
Malleus Maleficarum
(Witches� Hammer).
1492 - Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition; except for the
Queen of Spain. Columbus sets out to find shortcut to India.
Early 1500s - Martin Luther instigates schism of Roman Church
into Catholic and Protestant sects. King Henry VIII creates the
Church of England.
1509-10 - Agrippa writes the
Three Books of Occult
Philosophy. After his death the
Fourth Book of
Occult Philosophy appears, and is rejected as a forgery by
Agrippa�s student Wierus.
1527 - John Dee born.
1558 - Henry�s daughter and successor, Queen Elizabeth I,
officially establishes her father�s Church circa this time.
1575 - Latin copy of the
Arbatel of Magic
appears. (John Dee also mentions the book in his work between 1581
- 1583.)
1581 - 1583 - John Dee scribes the Five Books of the
Mysteries.
1583 - 1607 - John Dee scribes further Angelic journals,
published by Meric Casaubon in 1659 (see below).
1600s - Earliest known copies of
Lemegeton date
to this century, though it is certainly much older.
1610 - 1640 -
The Grimoire of Armadel flourishes
in France around this time.
1614 - 1615 - The �Rosicrucian Manifestos� (the Fama and
Confessio) are published in Germany, sparking the
Rosicrucian thought movement.
1655 - Robert Turner includes a translation of the
Heptameron in his collection of esoteric texts.
1659 - Meric Casaubon publishes A True and Faithful
Relation�, a collection of John Dee�s journal entries (see
1583 above), in order to slander Dee�s memory.
Late 1600s to Early 1700s - The Book of
the Sacred Magic
of Abramelin the Mage appears (though it claims to have
been written between 1368 - 1437).
Mid 1700s - The probable origin of the
Grimoirium Verum,
and the
Grand Grimoire.
1801 -
Francis Barrett publishes The Magus,
perhaps attempting to establish a magickal order.
Copyright � 2003 C. "Aaron Jason" Leitch
Contact Aaron at
[email protected]
www.aaronleitch.com
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