Occult Traditions edited by Damon Zacharias Lycourinos

Occult Traditions by Damon Lycourinos
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book is a collection of essays from mostly the Western esoteric tradition. The essays are written by not only sympathetic scholars with a personal interest in this field, but also by practitioners and magicians who understand the phenomena through personal experience. The result is an unique volume which will appeal to anyone wanting to avoid the so-called impartiality or "objectivity" of the scholar. It will also be of interest to those who want something more than what is offered by popular occult writings such as are published by Llewellyn, etc.

Although each article is excellent and has it's own special appeal, I was especially pleased by a few of them in particular. Damon Zacharias Lycourinos' and Aaron Cheak's articles on the Greek Magical Papyri shed new light on this important "mine" of esoteric knowledge, ancient theurgical rites, and forgotten formulas and spells. Christopher Smith presents an essay on Icelandic magic by examining a grimoire written well after the apparent Christianization of the country. Tess Dawson's explanation of the "Canaanite View of Death and Necromancy" was very enjoyable to read. Gwendolyn Toynton's two essays on augury and on Buddhist magicians in Thailand were very informative.

Because I have a personal interest in the ritual use of incense and aromatics, I found Ioannis Marathakis' article "Composite Incenses and Incense Attributions: A Historical Survey" to be fascinating.

The articles "Seth, the Red One of Chaos and Equilibrium" and "Evolian Sex, Magic, and Power" by Damon Zacharias Lycourinos will help in the removal of the many misunderstandings people might have about the god Seth or about sex magic.

The end of the volume contains several rites and invocations that will be of value to practitioners and initiates.

Because of the variety of subjects covered, I'm certain that anyone interested in magic or the occult will find several articles personally interesting and the entire volume a welcome addition to their library.



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Book Review: Tantra: The Path of Ecstasy by Georg Feuerstein

Tantra: The Path of Ecstasy by Georg Feuerstein
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is could be the best introduction to Tantra available. The style of the author is easy to understand which makes for light reading. A clear distinction is made between authentic initiatic Tantra and deviations of Neo-Tantrism or pseudo-Tantrism. The reader is presented with the main metaphysical and cosmological doctrines necessary for a correct understanding of the essence of Tantra. He also makes very clear distinctions between Tantra and other schools of Hinduism. Also presented are chapters on specific features of Tantra such as the role of the guru, initiation, discipleship, yoga, ritual, sadhana, mantra, mudra, and also the so-called "forbidden" practices which are usually associated with Tantra by people in the West. I would recommend this book to anyone who would like authentic information concerning this fascinating tradition.

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Book Review: Manuscript Found in Accra by Paulo Coelho

Manuscript Found in Accra by Paulo Coelho
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The setting for this latest offering by Paulo Coelho is in Jerusalem. The date is July 14, 1099. On this date, the city was held by the Fatimids. Outside the city, the Crusaders are to make their final assault and enter the city. Most of the inhabitants of the city at this time profess one of the three Abrahamic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Knowing that the Crusaders will soon attack, the people, vexed with uncertainty, are told to gather around a wise Greek simply known as the Copt. Some expected some sort of sermon; but instead the Copt wanted the people to ask questions that were troubling them. This dialogue would be set to writing or memorized for posterity. Certainly, many of them asked about what will happen the next day. But others asked some different questions about their life, love, dreams, disappointments, and fears. The book reminds me of "The Prophet" by Kahlil Gibran. I see this book as a continuation of his book "The Warrior of the Light". People who are expecting a novel when they pick this up, will be disappointed. But those who are willing to read through it, may benefit from some of the author's perspectives on some of life's most difficult problems.

NB According to "Al-Kamil fi'l Tarikh" by the famous historian Ali ibn al-Athir, the Crusaders slaughtered 70,000 Muslims, including women and children, who took refuge in the Al-Aqsa Mosque.

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