Geoffrey W. Dennis > Quotes

“According to the Midrash, Adam Kadmon is androgynous, incorporating all the aspects of both genders. He is also a macrocosm, extending from one end of the universe to the other and containing all Creation.”
― Geoffrey W. Dennis, The Encyclopedia of Jewish Myth, Magic and Mysticism: Second Edition by Geoffrey W. Dennis

“First of all, let us clear something up: a myth, a really good myth, is not a story about something that never happened. It’s a story about something that happens all the time. Myths are archetypal tales, fabulous stories told to help us fathom important truths—truths about ourselves, our universe, and how things really are.”
― Geoffrey W. Dennis, The Encyclopedia of Jewish Myth, Magic and Mysticism: Second Edition by Geoffrey W. Dennis

“Perhaps even more important to this mystical tradition, angels can be summoned and brought down to earth to serve a human initiate. Many rituals and practices devoted to this end have been preserved in the Hechalot writings.”
― Geoffrey W. Dennis, The Encyclopedia of Jewish Myth, Magic and Mysticism: Second Edition by Geoffrey W. Dennis

“Virtually every form of Western mysticism and spiritualism known today draws upon Jewish mythic and occult teachings—magic, prayer, angelology, alchemy, numerology, astral projection, dream interpretation, astrology, amulets, divination, altered states of consciousness, alternative, and rituals of power—all have roots in the Jewish occult.”
― Geoffrey W. Dennis, The Encyclopedia of Jewish Myth, Magic and Mysticism

“Biblical angels fulfill a variety of functions in the lower worlds, including conveying information to mortals (Zech. 1–4), shielding (Ex. 14), rescuing (Gen. 21), and smiting Israel’s enemies.”
― Geoffrey W. Dennis, The Encyclopedia of Jewish Myth, Magic and Mysticism: Second Edition by Geoffrey W. Dennis

“Of the sample of amulets from late antiquity that have been found, perhaps the most intriguing are incantation bowls: pottery dishes painted with incantations and then buried under the doorpost of a house to trap underworld spirits who attempt to enter.”
― Geoffrey W. Dennis, The Encyclopedia of Jewish Myth, Magic and Mysticism: Second Edition by Geoffrey W. Dennis