Liber Kaos

by Peter J. Carroll

A complete, advanced magical training course for the individual or for groups, with details of the author's magical order, an outline for setting up a temple, and instructions for carrying out the essential rituals of Chaos Magic. Includes a fresh look at aeonics, cosmogenesis, auric magic, and shadow time, as well as discloses the technical aspects of spells and equations. Illustrated. Appendices. References.

Genres: Occult, Magick, Nonfiction, Magic, Spirituality, Esoterica, Witchcraft

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 15, 1992

About the author

He maintains a personal website at www.specularium.org

and acts as Chancellor to Arcanorium College:- www.arcanoriumcollege.com

Peter Carroll began his career in Magic at London University where the Chemistry proved so tedious that he settled on a pass degree in that and an unauthorized first in Magic, with Liber Null & Psychonaut emerging as his postgraduate thesis over the next several years whilst teaching high school science.

He then set off around the world wandering in the Himalayas, building boats in India and Australia and seeking out unusual people.

Then after a stay in Yorkshire, he headed back to the Himalayas for a while again before returning to settle in the west of England to found a family and a magical order. Appalled by the compromises made by so many magi to make a living out of their writing or teaching, Carroll decided to make his fortune with a natural products business so that he could write and teach only what had value and interest for him.

Past Grandmaster of the Magical Pact of the Illuminates of Thanateros

Chancellor of Arcanorium College

Acting Marshall, Knights of Chaos

A Bard of Dobunni Grove


*Whilst Carroll derides the very low predictive power of natal astrology he nevertheless looks forward to his Uranus return.

Reviews

[Amadeus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liber Kaos elaborates on many concepts introduced in the essays of Liber Null & Psychonut. The first portion of the book textbookily answers the question: "How does magic actually work?" and how it has evolved since the dawning of shamanism. It pulls explanations from chaos theory and some other scientific models, which paradoxically adds and subtracts to the existential nature of it's predecessor.
The middle portion of the book introduces a color magic system that corresponds to the eight points of the chaos star. It may contradict the anti-dogmatic themes of Liber Null, but I feel like it is made understood that this is Carroll's system and you may apply it as you see fit.
The final portion of the book is instruction to the reader on how to start your own local chaos temple, and also rituals for the initiate.
The book does feel like more of a "manual" than any other of Peter J. Carroll's books, but that doesn't mean that it doesn't hold to psychologically freeform ideas.

[Felix · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is in parts truly excellent - and should be essential reading for students of the 'arte magickal'. The descriptions of mechanism and process are outstanding - although they will appeal most to people with a physics / maths inclination.
Some other parts of the book (perhaps less important ones, really) are much weaker - and make lots of sense but probably are only really useful if you already know what the author is talking about ... otherwise they are likely to be seen as either uninformative or superficial.
However - well worth reading for the good bits - and there are some very good bits.

[Rob · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like his move of trying to justify CMT on grounds of theoretical physics-- his math is woefully underdone here, but the math on his website carries onward where this book fails.

[El Pethybridge · Rating 1 out of 5]

A book made up entirely of unsupported claims.

[Jennifer Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book had some interesting points to be made once you make it past some nonsensical blather in the early pages. It puts a name to a lot of concepts you likely already work with intuitively. Two things troubled me- the concept of Kkk- which seemed to be insinuating that magic can and has been used to oppress targeted groups. The second point had to do with sex magic and how to control women and use them as sexual pawns in your power plays. There were a number of distasteful things regarding oppressing and manipulating others and the environment but was glad to read. Ultimately the world and reality is very malleable, especially when we free ourselves from conceptions of self and belief systems. And how our consistent thoughts and accompanying actions can create our most desired universe when working in harmony with the natural elements

[Timm]

One of the best technical manuals on magick yet created. Carroll is one of the minds behind the rise of Chaos Magick. This book is a refreshing dose out of the standard mythic embedded occult offerings.

[Jason · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are into Chaos Magic this is a pivotol book, along with Liber Null and Psychonaut: An Introduction to Chaos Magic

[Mychole-Anthonie Price · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book to refresh the magickal knowledge already has. Definitely retro in presentation.

[Claudio Yáñez Valenzuela · Rating 3 out of 5]

El ensayo "Liber Kaos" de Peter J. Carroll ha suscitado en mí una reacción matizada y ambivalente. Mi experiencia con esta obra se puede dividir en varias partes que reflejan su contenido diversificado.
La primera sección del libro se adentra profundamente en las explicaciones vinculadas a la física cuántica, un enfoque que, aunque puede haber sido revelador en su momento, se presenta hoy en día como un tanto desfasado debido al rápido avance de la ciencia. Este enfoque en aspectos científicos no resultó particularmente atractivo desde mi perspectiva, ya que mi inclinación no gravita hacia las matemáticas y la física. Es importante señalar que, si bien esto puede no haber sido de mi interés personal, es probable que resulte fascinante para aquellos con una mentalidad más afín a estas disciplinas.
Sin embargo, las secciones posteriores del ensayo despiertan un mayor interés. En particular, la porosa ambigüedad que define la magia del caos, parte fundamental de la esencia del libro, genera una mezcla de atracción y desconcierto en el lector. Esta ambigüedad es un elemento intrigante, que, al mismo tiempo, puede resultar desafiante y enigmático.
A pesar de mis reservas y ambigüedades en relación con ciertos aspectos del libro, reconozco que "Liber Kaos" sigue siendo un clásico en el campo de la Magia del Caos. Su capacidad para explorar paradigmas que aún hoy son considerados radicalmente revolucionarios en el ámbito de la magia es un testimonio de su relevancia continua. En contraste con la marea de textos sobre magia wicca o pagana (o similares con otros nombres rocambolescos) que a menudo son meros refritos de los clásicos de las décadas de 1960 y 1970, esta obra destaca por su capacidad de seguir siendo un faro de innovación y exploración en el terreno de la magia contemporánea.

[Constantin · Rating 3 out of 5]

In a single word ... Mehhh

In more words,

If you are new to Carroll's books, then this book is a good introduction and has some nice information in it to catch your interest.

If you have read other works by Carroll, then you realise that every single book is a plagiarism of his other books. Literally, every book is almost identical, says the same things on the same subjects with the same advice, just in sort of different words. It feels like "limbo" for books. Also, every single one of the books is an entry-level information, and the rituals mentioned in this one are ridiculous!

Only gave it 3 stars because it would be a good starting point for a beginner and due to the fact that it has 3-4 paragraphs that are good food for thought.

[The Vampire Javinus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liber Kaos was something else.

I wrote a review recently, regarding my thoughts on Liber Null and Psychonaut. I enjoyed that book a lot and found a lot of value in the concepts Carroll presented. However, Liber Kaos was not something I found particularly helpful.

A large portion of the book is focusing on quantum mechanics and it's relationship with chaos magick, something that is difficult to grasp for the average magician. I enjoyed Liber Null's focus on the practical aspect of magick, but the emphasis on theory and mathematics was something I found myself wading through with a lot of effort.

[Brendan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this to be a great continuation of the theories set out in Liber Null & Psychonaut; the theoretical physics of magic as presented in the first part of this book were especially enlightening and helpful.

[Justin · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a beginner, this was way above my head. I think I will stick to Lon Milo DuQuette who I can actually understand

[dp · Rating 4 out of 5]

Phenomenal followup to Liber Null & Psychonaut

[Mitchell Stern · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book serves to provide greater clarity to Chaos magic as a concept compared to Liber Null and provides a great overview of the methodology behind the practice. A fascinating read.

[Eve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definitely the most comprehensive and up to date book I've read about magic so far. Outlines rituals and practices clearly. I actually read the whole thing, which also says something about it.

[j.e.rodriguez · Rating 5 out of 5]

"However as sunlight obscures the stars by day so does wakefulness blind us to the fact that we are still dreaming."

[Shawn M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very insightful. Will have to dig deeper on the subject, but some things in this book clicked for me.

[Bill Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book that I wish I would have read soon. It is not the first book of Carroll you should read, but it is an important read for Chaos Magick.

[Sasha Grankin · Rating 4 out of 5]

cool book

[Daniel Paplawski · Rating 5 out of 5]

it was interesting reading this in 2025, I still think a lot of it holds up

[Arthur B · Rating 2 out of 5]

Carroll's attempt to convince the world - and, perhaps, himself - that he was still at the cutting edge of chaos magic does not quite ring true. Whereas his Liber Null presents techniques still widely recommended and utilised by chaos magicians, few have followed him down this particular metaphysical cul-de-sac, with the result that the book is rather inessential to anyone studying chaos magic (either as an actual practice or as a cultural phenomenon) unless they're trying to follow Carroll specifically. Full review: https://fakegeekboy.wordpress.com/202...

[Ankhie Weiser]

After a lively and well attended discussion of Peter Carroll's Liber Null & Psychonaut for last month's Weiser Book Club - the members have voted to carry on with Liber Kaos. We will be meeting on Twitter, Facebook & www.weiserbooksblog.com on Wednesday June 1st (noonish ET) using the hashtag #WBC8! Join us!

[Pamela · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I read it, it blew my mind. I've read a lot since tho, so it's hard to remember my first impression. There's not enough out there about mathemagics tho, so I think it still holds it's place as an important read.

[Lindsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent description of Chaos Theory used as a magical theory. It was really refreshing to read this after reading so many of the heavy handed magical/mystical theories out there. And this stuff works.

[Aaron Meyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember when this book came out it was like the hottest thing out there. As far as Chaos Magic goes this is one of the essential books to have on the shelf. It gives theory, philosophy and practices that are essential for the practitioner.

[Sighris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Available for free on-line... or at least it was last time I looked. The theory on how the IOT should work.

[Terra Bosart · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the first books on magic that didn't talk down to me, and also didn't use a great deal of flowery language. It inspired me to analyze my perspectives, and begin practice again.

[Edric Unsane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oddly enough, it's not my favorite book on Chaos Magic.

[Al Terry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very informative open ended view of magic stripped almost entirely of dogma. Interesting read.