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Magical Knowledge I
Breaking out of the age old restraints of secrecy & oaths, Magical Knowledge leads the reader through the techniques, issues and beings that the Initiate can expect to encounter.
This second book in a series of three, guides and advises, informs and introduces the serious magician to rarely discussed areas of visionary and ritual magic.
The information presented in this book flows from the deep roots of true magic, and as such can be applied to any particular path or magical method; the reader is introduced to the structure and inner contacts behind the various schools of magic that exist today. Magic can only truly blossom if the boundaries are challenged, and to do that, the magician needs to understand the dynamics of power and the inner worlds. This book aims to guide the magican along that path.
Contents: Accessing the inner worlds: making contacts without the use of temples, rituals and patterns/Practical methods for working with angelic beings/ Working with deities: pitfalls and approaches/ Working with Ancestors/ Accessing and Working Within the Faery Realm/ Polarization: magical dynamics of work and partnerships/The physical implications of practicing magic/Inner landscapes of the people and the land/Magical protection: working methods/Sigils and seals: what they are, how they work and what to do with them/ Inner World Parasites/Removing ghosts and other unwelcome guests/How to deal with simple magical/psychic attacks/Dismantling Hermetic or Kabbalistic curses/ Short Tour of the Tree of Life without Kabbalah/The Structure of the Abyss without Kabbalah/The inner structure of magical lodges & groups/The Ritual Overlaying and Patterning of the Sacred Isle of Britain/ Working with Sleepers/Death and Birth/Using Tarot as a working tool/ Working methods for leading group visions/workings/The Inner Aspects of Consecration
This second book in a series of three, guides and advises, informs and introduces the serious magician to rarely discussed areas of visionary and ritual magic.
The information presented in this book flows from the deep roots of true magic, and as such can be applied to any particular path or magical method; the reader is introduced to the structure and inner contacts behind the various schools of magic that exist today. Magic can only truly blossom if the boundaries are challenged, and to do that, the magician needs to understand the dynamics of power and the inner worlds. This book aims to guide the magican along that path.
Contents: Accessing the inner worlds: making contacts without the use of temples, rituals and patterns/Practical methods for working with angelic beings/ Working with deities: pitfalls and approaches/ Working with Ancestors/ Accessing and Working Within the Faery Realm/ Polarization: magical dynamics of work and partnerships/The physical implications of practicing magic/Inner landscapes of the people and the land/Magical protection: working methods/Sigils and seals: what they are, how they work and what to do with them/ Inner World Parasites/Removing ghosts and other unwelcome guests/How to deal with simple magical/psychic attacks/Dismantling Hermetic or Kabbalistic curses/ Short Tour of the Tree of Life without Kabbalah/The Structure of the Abyss without Kabbalah/The inner structure of magical lodges & groups/The Ritual Overlaying and Patterning of the Sacred Isle of Britain/ Working with Sleepers/Death and Birth/Using Tarot as a working tool/ Working methods for leading group visions/workings/The Inner Aspects of Consecration
177 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2012
49 people are currently reading
209 people want to read
About the author
Josephine McCarthy
47 books102 followersJosephine McCarthy is an internationally renowned author, practitioner and teacher of western magic with forty years' experience as a practitioner and adept, and over twenty-five years of experience as a teacher in Europe and the USA. She has authored twenty-eight books on magic and is the creator and director of the Quareia magical school.
She has produced many original articles and essays on technical, historical and practical aspects of magical subject matter, and is known for her ground-breaking innovation in magical training and thought.
Today she spends her time assisting the students of Quareia, and producing articles and books for the Quareia school website, where they are made available to the public, free of charge.
www.quareia.com
She has produced many original articles and essays on technical, historical and practical aspects of magical subject matter, and is known for her ground-breaking innovation in magical training and thought.
Today she spends her time assisting the students of Quareia, and producing articles and books for the Quareia school website, where they are made available to the public, free of charge.
www.quareia.com
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
September 17, 2013
This is a solid 101 book which provides sound advice about the realities of magic and some of the dangers that can occur whether you are new to magic or have been practicing it for years. While I occasionally disagreed with the author about experimentation or other such topics, I did agree overall with her points and cautions. The book has a few practical exercises in it, which are useful to practice, especially in terms of making contact with inner connections, but I'd really recommend this book as a must read before you even practice magic. If you still want to practice after you read this book and do the exercises in it, then at least you are forewarned and armed accordingly.
January 21, 2020
Book essentially gives you basic understanding about magic and the different realms. Fills in some blanks and gives you a better understanding about whats out there. Best part is that she also gives practical advice on how to get started. If you are a newbie this book will definitely answer alot of questions and can help you get started. Recommended.
September 26, 2013
Ok.. book was very informative... but it was rather slow for me to digest.. its not something you can just read by your bedside.. No this book is meant to be STUDIED with a Cup of Coffee and a Notebook in hand :) Aside from that its a good introduction to Vision magick
July 11, 2020
The book is divided into two halves. The first half is basically explaining the pitfalls of esoteric practice that someone new will encounter and the second half has a bunch of basic exercises for new people to use.
My favorite part is the part in and around pages 30-34 where the author lays out the rungs of the ladder of spiritual growth that people get into.
The lowest rung of the ladder is the ego trap, where people figure that there is supernatural and paranormal forces at work in the universe and can pull a few manifestations here and there. This is the first trap, where people want to be "le edge magic user guy" and wear funny clothes and join weird groups and a bunch of other froo froo fucking nonsense. People are supposed to pass this rung by recognizing that they should be more open and look at themselves in a mirror and how ridiculous they are in acting like that. This is where practitioners turn up red faced and take a huge blow to the ego.
The next higher rung of the spiritual development ladder is "a higher octave of the first." They then start to LARP as the Gandalf/Merlin/pop gurus and are more concerned with "the community/lodge/organization/etc." than a spiritual path. This is the "glamour trap," where people are stuck in this "I'm so fucking important look at me" state of mind. When someone discovers a sense of self awareness, they take another huge blow to the ego and turn red in the face over making an ass of themselves like this.
The next rung of the ladder in spiritual growth is where people who have some level of spiritual knowledge reject being this self absorbed cause they can tell it's unhealthy. Such people sometimes wind up teaching newer people how to grow, as they themselves have overcome a good deal in their lives. This is where practitioners decide to shun groups and lodges and often go work on being a lone practitioner more devoted to a higher power.
I gave this book 5 out of 5 stars because this one section resonated very strongly with me. I too have made myself red in the face by making an ass of myself again and again. But I've grown as a person because of it. Lone practitioner path is best path. I'd say I'm leaving the second rung for the third rung right around now.
My favorite part is the part in and around pages 30-34 where the author lays out the rungs of the ladder of spiritual growth that people get into.
The lowest rung of the ladder is the ego trap, where people figure that there is supernatural and paranormal forces at work in the universe and can pull a few manifestations here and there. This is the first trap, where people want to be "le edge magic user guy" and wear funny clothes and join weird groups and a bunch of other froo froo fucking nonsense. People are supposed to pass this rung by recognizing that they should be more open and look at themselves in a mirror and how ridiculous they are in acting like that. This is where practitioners turn up red faced and take a huge blow to the ego.
The next higher rung of the spiritual development ladder is "a higher octave of the first." They then start to LARP as the Gandalf/Merlin/pop gurus and are more concerned with "the community/lodge/organization/etc." than a spiritual path. This is the "glamour trap," where people are stuck in this "I'm so fucking important look at me" state of mind. When someone discovers a sense of self awareness, they take another huge blow to the ego and turn red in the face over making an ass of themselves like this.
The next rung of the ladder in spiritual growth is where people who have some level of spiritual knowledge reject being this self absorbed cause they can tell it's unhealthy. Such people sometimes wind up teaching newer people how to grow, as they themselves have overcome a good deal in their lives. This is where practitioners decide to shun groups and lodges and often go work on being a lone practitioner more devoted to a higher power.
I gave this book 5 out of 5 stars because this one section resonated very strongly with me. I too have made myself red in the face by making an ass of myself again and again. But I've grown as a person because of it. Lone practitioner path is best path. I'd say I'm leaving the second rung for the third rung right around now.
October 10, 2020
I searched through many books written by many authors on the subject of how to understand and go about the basics of ritual and magical practice. I had to do this because, even though I didn't know what it was, there was always something missing. With this book, and all the others by this author for that matter, you not only get information, but you also get an in depth understanding along with it.
In this day and age where science supposedly either already has or is on the verge of all the answers to everything, not only does hardly anyone take the subject of magic seriously outside its community of practitioners, but it's also rare to see a piece of writing on the subject that isn't an overt appeal to vanity of either the reader or its author - if not both.
In "Magical Knowledge: Book I - Foundations / The Lone Practitioner", this author is not satisfied with the idea of simply regurgitating the same old concepts (the ones that you can get from a thousand other sources) or having you run through yet another magical to-do list, Josephine McCarthy goes a bit further to offer something unique by passing along both decades worth of her own personal experience and the meaning that it holds in the context of your own growth and development - in large part, the lessons learned and the mistakes to be avoided.
A true win-win. The information passed along is invaluable and rarely found in other sources. Warning, this is not just another book from the pile that lists step-by-step spells and gives out a bunch of edgy sigils and rituals for you to wave your magic "wand" around.
Nothing fancy here, nor are you asked to slave away at elaborately contrived workings that require a sacrifice of your first born (although that might help, it is by no means a requirement). However, it can with all honesty be said that this is a place you should start out only if you want to go deep into a serious and meaningful practice of the western magical tradition, while slowly but surely unraveling its mysteries.
In this day and age where science supposedly either already has or is on the verge of all the answers to everything, not only does hardly anyone take the subject of magic seriously outside its community of practitioners, but it's also rare to see a piece of writing on the subject that isn't an overt appeal to vanity of either the reader or its author - if not both.
In "Magical Knowledge: Book I - Foundations / The Lone Practitioner", this author is not satisfied with the idea of simply regurgitating the same old concepts (the ones that you can get from a thousand other sources) or having you run through yet another magical to-do list, Josephine McCarthy goes a bit further to offer something unique by passing along both decades worth of her own personal experience and the meaning that it holds in the context of your own growth and development - in large part, the lessons learned and the mistakes to be avoided.
A true win-win. The information passed along is invaluable and rarely found in other sources. Warning, this is not just another book from the pile that lists step-by-step spells and gives out a bunch of edgy sigils and rituals for you to wave your magic "wand" around.
Nothing fancy here, nor are you asked to slave away at elaborately contrived workings that require a sacrifice of your first born (although that might help, it is by no means a requirement). However, it can with all honesty be said that this is a place you should start out only if you want to go deep into a serious and meaningful practice of the western magical tradition, while slowly but surely unraveling its mysteries.
September 8, 2018
Totally digestible
September 14, 2020
For the initiated, advanced book. Only if you really want to put in the hard work.
Not so much an informative book, as in general knowledge, but more a work book.
Not so much an informative book, as in general knowledge, but more a work book.
December 3, 2024
Foundational. Read it.
October 3, 2016
My favourite of McCarthy's works, although not for the beginning aspect. McCarthy has written a series of well-levelled works for self-initiation and development.
What I enjoy most about this work of McCarthy's is that there is a hint, just a hint, of a left-hand path approach to self-development and the work to be undertaken. McCarthy here is no cuddly initiator and guide, rather she is a realistic and appropriately firm guide to those who need such. As an example of how to introduce beginners to witchcraft, then McCarthy has written a great book and guide. Many initiators could learn a great deal from this approach.
What I enjoy most about this work of McCarthy's is that there is a hint, just a hint, of a left-hand path approach to self-development and the work to be undertaken. McCarthy here is no cuddly initiator and guide, rather she is a realistic and appropriately firm guide to those who need such. As an example of how to introduce beginners to witchcraft, then McCarthy has written a great book and guide. Many initiators could learn a great deal from this approach.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews