Ernesto de Martino was a major critical thinker in the study of vernacular religions, producing innovative analyses of key concepts such as 'folklore', 'magic' and 'ritual'.
This is the first major study of the most famous Reclaiming Witch community, founded in 1979 in San Francisco, written by an author who herself participated in a coven for ten years.
This book began with a simple question: when readers such as us encounter the term magic or figures of magicians in early modern texts, dramatic or otherwise, how do we read them?
Unveils the spiritual meaning that fueled the artistic, political, and social revolutions of the 1960s *; Investigates the spiritual principles that informed everything from the civil rights and anti-war movements, to the hippies' rejection of materialist culture, to the rise of feminism, gay rights, and environmentalism *; Reveals how medieval troubadours, Gnosticism, Renaissance hermetic magic, and the occult doctrines of Aleister Crowley helped shape the psychedelic Sixties *; Offers in-depth analysis of many of the era's most famous books, films, and music No decade in modern history has generated more controversy and divisiveness than the tumultuous 1960s.
Reveals the origins and history of the New England witch hysteria, its continuing repercussions, and the multilayered practices of today's modern witches *; Shares the stories of 13 accused witches from the New England colonies through interviews with their living descendants *; Explores the positive role witches played in rural communities until the dawn of the industrial age, despite ongoing persecution *; Includes in-depth interviews with 25 modern witchcraft practitioners, interwoven with practical information on the sacred calendar, herb lore, spells, and magical practices New England has long been associated with witches.
A comprehensive handbook of more than 1,000 magical words, phrases, symbols, and secret alphabets *; Explains the origins, derivatives, and practical usage of each word, phrase, and spell as well as how they can be combined for custom spells *; Based on the magical traditions of Europe, Greece, and Egypt and recently discovered one-of-a-kind grimoires from Scandinavia, France, and Germany *; Includes an in-depth exploration of secret magical alphabets, including those based on Hebrew letters, Kabbalistic symbols, astrological signs, and runes From Abracadabra to the now famous spells of the Harry Potter series, magic words are no longer confined to the practices of pagans, alchemists, witches, and occultists.
This advanced exploration of tarot cards includes an in-depth analysis of the 22 Major Arcana cards and explains their symbology and astrological science.
From the 1830s to the Civil War, Americans could be found putting each other into trances for fun and profit in parlors, on stage, and in medical consulting rooms.
This book explores local cultural discourses and practices relating to manifestations and experiences of the demonic, the spectral and the uncanny, probing into their effects on people's domestic and intimate spheres of life.
Comprising well over a thousand pages of densely written Aramaic, the compilation of texts known as the Zohar represents the collective wisdom of various strands of Jewish mysticism, or kabbalah, up to the thirteenth century.
Demons in the USA argues that the discourse on the demonic that developed in the nineteenth century continues to exert a powerful hold over the American spiritual imagination.
Follow Aleister Crowley through his mystical travels in India, which profoundly influenced his magical system as well as the larger occult world *; Shares excerpts from Crowley's unpublished diaries and details his travels in India, Burma, and Sri Lanka from 1901 to 1906 *; Reveals how Crowley incorporated what he learned in India--jnana yoga, Vedantist, Tantric, and Buddhist philosophy--into his own school of Magick *; Explores the world of Theosophy, yogis, Hindu traditions, and the first Buddhist sangha to the West as well as the first pioneering expeditions to K2 and Kangchenjunga in 1901 and 1905 Early in life, Aleister Crowley's dissociation from fundamentalist Christianity led him toward esoteric and magical spirituality.
*; Explores esoteric practices for individual development, handed down from a primordial tradition and discernable in alchemy, Hermetism, religious doctrines, Tantra, Taoism, Buddhism, Vedanta, and the pagan mysteries of the West *; Reveals the ultimate magical goal of the ';Absolute Individual,' the immortal and divine potential that requires rare gifts and extraordinary efforts for its realization This volume, the third in the series, complements the first two, yet they are not strictly sequential, and their contents can be read in any order.
Witch Fulfillment: Adaptation Dramaturgy and Casting the Witch for Stage and Screen addresses the Witch as a theatrical type on twenty-first-century-North American stages and screens, seen through the lenses of casting, design, and adaptation, with attention paid to why these patterns persist, and what wishes they fulfil.
Originally published in 1970, this book explores the role of concepts of disease in the social life of the Safwa of Tanzania, particularly through beliefs concerning witchcraft and sorcery.
This book explores the cross- and trans-cultural dialectic between Tantra and intersecting 'magical' and 'shamanic' practices associated with vernacular religions across Monsoon Asia.
*; Explores Kremmerz's life, his teachings, his work as a hermetic physician, and the metaphysical and hermetic principles that guided his activities *; Offers a detailed account of the distance healing practices, diagnostic methods, and rituals of the Fraternity of Myriam *; Includes texts written by Kremmerz on the inner workings and magical operations of the fraternity, intended for its practicing members Giuliano Kremmerz (1861-1930), born Ciro Formisano, was one of the most influential Italian occultists, alchemists, and Hermetic masters of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, though he remains almost unknown to English readers.
Julius Evola's masterful overview of the political and social manifestations of our time, the "e;age of decline"e; known to the Hindus as the Kali Yuga.
*; Explains how a Vampyre is not a blood-sucking mythical figure but a shaman who is skilled in gathering, using, and storing energy for magical power and personal liberation *; Reveals how to gather and store energy from the world around you and shares magical techniques, manifestation methods, and practices to utilize the energy you have collected *; Looks at servitors and familiars, vampyric runes, dream architecture, money magick practices, and sex magick techniques as well as advanced practices such as healing with vampyric magick In this initiatory guide, Don Webb explains how to learn from the myth of the vampire to gather, use, and store energy for magical power, manifestation, and personal liberation.
Devils, ghosts, poltergeists, werewolves, and witches are all covered in this book about the "e;dark side"e; of supernatural beliefs in early modern Europe, tapping period literature, folklore, art, and scholarly writings in its investigation.
In Freud's Early Psychoanalysis, Witch Trials and the Inquisitorial Method: The Harsh Therapy, author Kathleen Duffy asks why Freud compared his 'hysterical' patients to the accused women in the witch trials, and his 'psychoanalytical' treatment to the inquisitorial method of their judges.
The Witch-Hunt in Early Modern Europe, now in its fourth edition, is the perfect resource for both students and scholars of the witch-hunts written by one of the leading names in the field.
In "Frauen in der Freimaurerei" nimmt Autorin Gwenda Roland die Leserschaft mit auf eine aufschlussreiche Reise durch die Geschichte und Gegenwart weiblicher Beteiligung in der Freimaurerei, einem Bereich, der traditionell als männlich dominiert gilt.
A comprehensive A-to-Z reconstruction of the oral tradition of the Rom--gypsies--based on sources never before available in English *; Presents the origin myths and magical traditions of the gypsies, including their legendary ties to Egypt, animal ancestors, and tree spirits *; Examines the three major settings of gypsy folktales--the forest, the waters, and the mountain--and shows how their world is full of spirits *; Shows how the religious concepts of the Rom testify to a profound syncretism of the pagan traditions and Christianity Although their own myths and their common name point to Egyptian origins for the gypsies, the Rom, as they call themselves, originated in India, as evidenced by studies of their language.
This book contains all three volumes of Edmund Goldsmid's "e;The History of the Devils of Loudun"e;, which deals with the purported demonic possession, sexual repression, religious fanaticism, and mass hysteria that occurred in the small town of Loudun in 17th-century France.
This comprehensive resource explores the intersection of religion, politics, and the supernatural that spawned the notorious witch hunts in Europe and the New World.
