Spirit Worlds. The Library of Esoterica

Library of Esoterica #6

by Jessica Hundley

Featuring essays, interviews and over 400 images, from cave paintings to contemporary works of channeled art, Spirit Worlds steps through darkened doorways and into the labyrinths that lead to the mysterious, to kingdoms of the afterlife and to communion with denizens of dimensions, just beyond our own.

Genres: Spirituality, Art

520 pages, Hardcover

Published June 18, 2025

Reviews

[Thomas · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was very excited by the title of this book and the good experiences with the image selection, perhaps hoping the fluffy essays of the other books in the series would somehow be redeemed. I think this book fails for me on several accounts. The theme "spirit worlds" makes me think of explorations of the otherworld in several mythologies and communities across the world, but what it harbors is basically a very large emphasis on the (Western) afterlife and ghosts and such. There are more spirit worlds than the one after life and before reincarnation (which is what is heavily explored in this book). I don't know when these books are gonna follow a better organizational plan? Perhaps dividing them by continent could lead to a more coherent whole. And how hard can it be to place images you're talking about next to the text where they are mentioned (apparently very hard, as this is the sixth volume where they don't care)?? The art selection this time was below what I have come to like about these books; this time I could not connect with it at all, safe a few exceptions. Hit or miss -- in this case a clear miss for me. Your mileage may vary.

[Beatrice · Rating 5 out of 5]

things i liked:
- hinduism and buddhism
- loved that KaliMaa was discussed; especially since we are living through Kali Yuga
- images through out the ages (except for the image on 177 that looks like the artist photoshopped a bunch of death symbols together)
- Egyptian funeral rites and passages
- the minor focus on abrahamic religions (they’re not even that old)
-mesoamerica
- greeks & romans

what i would’ve like to see:
-more on Irish mythology and folklore
- more details about First Nations mythology and lore
- more about Japanese folklore (tho it is discussed, primarily the Shinto region)

it’s quite long but it’s a good chunk of image. i had a fun time reading it and learned a lot.

“The hope is that The Library of Esoterica emboldens readers to begin their own journey down into the dark halls of the arcane, to pull dusty tomes from the shelves, to take the timeworn cards from the satchel and spread them across the silks, to look up to the sky and read meaning in the movement of the stars” - page 512

[Winona · Rating 2 out of 5]

Waste of my time and money. I learned almost nothing from this book, and the selections of artworks are poor.