 |
| ESOTERIC | Our website has moved to a new host server. This is an old page which still works but is no longer being maintained. Please click here to visit our current site. |
 |
||||||||||||||||||
 |
||||||||||||||||||||
 |
STEWART FARRAR: Writer on a Broomstick Stewart Farrar was a World War II veteran, an accomplished script writer and a journalist who worked for many prominent and respected media companies such as Reuters and the newspaper Reveille. As a world traveller, Stewart had the opportunity to meet and work with many fascinating people and noted celebrities during his career. He was also a gifted photographer. In 1969, at the age of 53, he met Alex Sanders – the infamous “King of the Witches” – and his wife Maxine while interviewing the couple for Reveille. The encounter introduced him to a world of Witchcraft and magic and changed the course of his life. Farrar left his job as a journalist and devoted his life and career to writing about the Craft. The many books he authored on Witchcraft, together with his wife, Janet Farrar, have become widely read and respected works on the topic. Elizabeth Guerra and Janet Farrar have collaborated to record and explore Stewart Farrar’s life and career in detail. This book tracks Farrar’s development from an eager and talented adolescent to a college student and dedicated Communist to a gifted journalist and television, radio and film script writer and finally to his later life as a practitioner of Wicca and author of many non-fiction books and science fiction novels. Stewart Farrar found Witchcraft by accident but devoted the rest of his life to the subject by educating others. He became one of the most prolific and much loved writers on the subject, and in doing so, helped to make Wicca a viable and accessible path for many. |
|
||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-84-8 |
£12.99
|
$19.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
MAGICAL IMAGINATION Imagination is our inner vision, our human skill to see different realities. It can take us to the throne of God, it can connect us to the stream of infinity and allow us to see the universe for what it really is. Controlled use of the imagination is fundamental to magical practice, and this comprehensive study by an experienced practitioner provides the keys to understanding and using these powerful inner techniques. Based on Nick Farrell’s previous book Magical Pathworking, this greatly revised and expanded edition includes new chapters which further develop the techniques of pathworking for magical and spiritual purposes. It covers group work, divination, visiting other inner world dimensions and working towards what Farrell calls ‘objective pathworking.’ “Even if you think you know all about visualisation, pathworking and the magical key of imagination – even if you teach the subjects – this book will astound you. Nick Farrell explores magical imagination with depth and discernment, revealing principles and methods that will enrich and transform your magical and spiritual practice. Quite simply, this book is the best of its kind and extends the magical use of imagination to new heights and insights. It is an essential book for all magicians, Pagans and anyone who works with the inner realms.” — Peregrin Wildoak, author of By Names and Images |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-72-5 |
£14.99
|
$23.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
THE LITTLE BOOK OF THE GREAT ENCHANTMENT William Sharp (1855-1905) was a prolific writer; friend and confidant to the literati of the day; an active member of the occult world of the late Victorian period; and a man who spent his life cloaked in layers of secrets – the most important being that he was the pen behind the writings of the mysterious Fiona Macleod. He kept her true identity a closely guarded secret. Many famous people – W.B. Yeats, “AE”, MacGregor Mathers, Dante Gabriel Rossetti – were involved in Sharp’s short life; he was a member of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and Yeats’ secret Celtic Mystical Order; and he and Fiona Macleod were involved with the mysterious Dr. Goodchild whose ancient bowl was proclaimed by many to be the Holy Grail. But the enduring legacy of these two fascinating writers is the wealth of Faery magical lore contained in the writings of Fiona Macleod. For the first time this book reveals previously unknown secrets from the life of William Sharp and shows clearly how to recover the Faery lore contained in Fiona Macleod’s literary output. These writings are not only about the Realm of Faery, they are the first authentic first-hand accounts from the Realm of Faery, revealing previously unknown Faery gods and goddesses, Faery belief, lore and magic. The Little Book of the Great Enchantment adds significantly to the corpus of serious writings on this greatly misunderstood subject. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-83-1 |
£15.99
|
$24.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
THE FAERY GATES OF AVALON The knights of King Arthur’s Round Table – Erec, Lancelot, Yvain, Perceval and Gawain – first appeared in the works of Chrétien de Troyes, who cast into Old French stories told by Welsh and Breton story tellers which had their origin in Celtic myth and legend. Chrétien wrote at a time when faery lore was still taken seriously – some leading families even claimed descent from faery ancestors! So we do well to look again at these early stories, for they were written not so much in terms of mystical quests or examples of military chivalry but records of initiation into Otherworld dynamics. Gareth Knight, an acknowledged expert on spiritual and magical traditions and a student of medieval French, goes to the well spring of Arthurian tradition to unveil these original principles. What is more, he shows how they can be regenerated today. “Opening the faery gates” can have its reward not only in terms of personal satisfaction and spiritual growth but as part of a much needed realignment of our spiritual responsibilities as human beings on planet Earth. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-40-4 |
£12.99
|
$19.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
THE BOOK OF MELUSINE OF LUSIGNAN Considerable interest in faery tradition has grown up in recent years and not least in the story of Melusine of Lusignan, the subject of a prose romance by Jean d’Arras at the end of the 14th century, swiftly followed by one in verse by Couldrette. This book provides a collection of material from various sources to give an all round picture of the remarkable faery, her town, her church, her immediate family, and the great Lusignan dynasty she founded. An established authority on Melusine, Gareth Knight collects together all the best source material, which he translates from the French, and presents his own researches into the Lusignan family of the 12th century, whose dynasty included kings of Cyprus and Jerusalem, examining the possibility of a familiar spirit guiding the family in its destiny. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-67-1 |
£15.99
|
$24.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
THE FORGOTTEN FAITH Celtic spirituality is the "forgotten faith" of the West. It is essentially joyful and holistic and holds together the two human faculties of reason and intuition, taking joy in the beauty of the created world. The Celtic saints were intuitives whose feet were very firmly planted on the ground. It is their equilibrium as human beings that gives much of their appeal, and in this, as in the holiness their lives display, they are Christlike. This book by Anglican cleric Anthony Duncan examines the lives of the Celtic saints in the context of their time, along with the sacred places in the landscape that have become associated with them. It includes such figures as Patrick, Columba, Ninian, Dewi (St David), Kentigern, Maelrubha, Cadog, Padarn, Samson, Melangell, Teilo and St Paul Aurelian. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-71-8 |
£10.99
|
$17.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
MAGICAL IMAGES AND THE MAGICAL IMAGINATION The knowledge and use of magical images was once a closely guarded secret of initiates and adepts in the Mystery Schools. Gareth Knight gives easy-to-follow classifications of the various kinds of magical image, along with instructions for their use as agents of self realisation and spiritual service. Indispensible for beginners and advanced practitioners alike, this book presents the theory and techniques of creative visualisation and meditation. These practical teachings range from the circulation of force within the aura for the purpose of balancing the personality to the development of a full magical system of pathworking, enabling contact with inner sources of wisdom. Now in its third edition, a new section is included on magical applications of the Tarot images, plus an extensive chapter on Qabalistic pathworking in the Western Mystery Tradition. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-52-7 |
£11.99
|
$18.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
THE SECRET TRADITION IN ARTHURIAN LEGEND In this book Gareth Knight explores the archetypal themes, images and characters of the Arthurian cycle and their place in the Western magical tradition. The Arthurian stories are the most famous and most haunting of all British legends, which draw their inspiration from Greek, Irish and even Atlantean myth. This book takes in turn the core grades of Arthur, Merlin, Guenevere and the Holy Grail to build a complete magical tradition. The central themes and characters are brought to life with clear and thorough explanations of their underlying symbolism, while the ancient pattern that is woven around the Arthuriad is carefully unravelled and its full esoteric significance revealed. This fascinating study takes the reader beyond the world of medieval literature and unfolds an inner landscape as real as the isles in which it was created. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-62-6 |
£13.99
|
$21.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
THE CHRONICLES OF THE SIDHE For a thirteen-year period, the reclusive Scottish writer Fiona Macleod enthralled the Victorian reading public with a deluge of stories, novels, poems and essays drawn from the wildly romantic Highland and Island landscape. Although it was later revealed that these works had issued from the pen of William Sharp, it was clear that Fiona Macleod was more than a pseudonym; to Sharp she was very much an autonomous entity. What's more, the wealth of previously unknown and unheard of myths, names, traditions and beliefs in her writings, while shone through a Celtic prism, show every sign of having emanated from the Realm of Faery. Steve Blamires presents a ground-breaking assessment of the Faery lore within Fiona Macleod's literary output as part of his ongoing study of this enigmatic writer. Building on the established groundwork of his biography of Sharp, The Little Book of the Great Enchantment, he explores the mythology and traditions of Faery, their symbolic and magical significance, and the devices employed by Fiona in the transmission of Faery teachings and inspirations. Using examples from Fiona's rich and resonant body of work, his detailed interpretation will enable the reader to tease out the Faery gems that are still to be found woven into the lines and verse of her writings. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-59-6 |
£12.99
|
$19.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
THE SACRED STONE CIRCLES OF STANTON DREW The village of Stanton Drew in north Somerset is host to a remarkable group of ancient monuments which together comprise the third largest collection of standing stones in England. The Great Circle, the largest of its three stone circles, encloses an area of 2000 square metres, exceeding the dimensions of Stonehenge. It was once approached by an avenue of standing stones, now lost. A smaller Southwest circle is aligned to The Quoit and The Cove nearby. Recent archaeology has revealed evidence of a substantial woodhenge at Stanton Drew, underlining its importance as a major ritual centre of the Neolithic age. Gordon Strong, author of Stanton Drew and its Ancient Stone Circles and a regular lecturer on the subject, has spent many years exploring this fascinating site on multiple levels. In this book he presents the available archaeological detail along with local folklore and the testimonies of various commentators, from 18th century antiquarians to modern dowsing surveys, discussing ritual, mediumship, earth energies and mythology. He also gives his own observations and insights gleaned from his "long love-affair" with the site, interpreted through the Western esoteric tradition and British Mysteries. Most importantly, he offers the visitor some clues for making their own inner connection to this unique monument which still vibrates with ancient magic. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-58-9 |
£9.99
|
$15.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
THE CHRIST, PSYCHOTHERAPY AND MAGIC The Christ, Psychotherapy and Magic is a Christian priest's appreciation of occultism, with a particular focus on the Qabalah. Far from condemning occult thinking, he finds it has much common ground with the Christian perspective and contemporary developments in psychotherapy. Drawing on the works of Dion Fortune, Gareth Knight and others, he appraises the theology and assumptions of occultists and examines how Christian mysticism coheres with the Tree of Life. While his ideas may be challenging and thought-provoking for many occultists as well as for many Christians, his spectrum is broad and his criticisms carefully considered. He also provides a lucid overview of the Tree of Life which makes the book an incredibly valuable introduction to the Qabalah, especially as a guide for aspiring "Christian Qabalists". Originally published in 1969, this book came about through Anthony Duncan's friendship with occultist Gareth Knight, and directly inspired Knight's major work Experience of the Inner Worlds. "Now at least one clergyman has got the point and in this book urges his fellow Christians not to dismiss occultism either as a cranky fad or as 'a black art'." |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-51-0 |
£12.99
|
$19.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
THE WAY OF MAGIC The multiple strands which make up the Western Mystery Tradition can present a bewildering tangle of paths for the seeker to negotiate - and this book provides the roadmap by exploring them with clarity and insight. Gordon Strong, who has written various books on the Arthurian legends, Tarot, the goddess and sacred stone circles, is uniquely placed to offer this journeyman’s guide to magic. Meditation and contacts, Tarot, Qabalah, shamanism and polarity magic are covered, as are the British and Egyptian mysteries. The Way of Magic explores the path of ancient secrets as well as more modern adaptations of them, winding through the enigmatic codices of Egypt and the early shamen through to the modern use of Qabalah and practical magic today. Strong follows an established path with the fervour of a pioneer, making new connections and bringing fresh insights to age-old teachings. He contends that “wisdom does not automatically follow in the wake of a great deal of information, no matter how comprehensive” and proceeds to offer a practitioner’s manual for ritual magic that emphasises commitment and self-discipline. This book will be an invaluable guide to any student of the mysteries looking to find some clarity in making their way forward. It will also appeal to those interested in the history of various mystery schools and their impact upon philosophical thought. "Strong successfully manages to cover the broad outlines of the major systems in use in the Mysteries today, giving sound information, challenging the reader and pointing the way for further study ... I was pleasantly surprised by the new perspectives offered and reminded that sometimes we need to step outside of our well established comfort zones in order to get a clearer view. Moving through the Tarot and Qabalistic thought, from the Arthurian myths to Egypt and ritual the book offers a fresh, clear glimpse into the Mysteries as they are currently practiced." |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-53-4 |
£10.99
|
$17.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
THE IRISH CELTIC MAGICAL TRADITION The Irish Celtic Magical Tradition explores the wealth of spiritual philosophy locked into Celtic legend in The Battle of Moytura (Cath Maige Tuired), a historical-mythological account of the conflict, both physical and Otherworldly, between the Fomoire and the Tuatha de Danann. This legend contains within it the essence of the Celtic spiritual and magical system, from Creation Myth to practical instruction and information. Alongside a translation of The Battle of Moytura, Steve Blamires provides a series of keys to facilitate understanding of the legend and sets out an effective magical system based upon it, including interpretations of the symbolism, meditation exercises and suggestions for its practical use. The book offers a powerful and illuminating method of working with ancient Celtic legendary material in the context of modern magic. Originally published in 1992, the text has been revised, updated and expanded to incorporate two decades of new insights and suggestions. Steve Blamires is a well-known authority on Celtic traditions and founder of the Celtic Research and Folklore Society in Scotland. He is also an authority on the work of William Sharp and Fiona Macleod, and has written a biography of Sharp, The Little Book of the Great Enchantment. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-57-2 |
£13.99
|
$21.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
TAROT & MAGIC: THE TREASURE HOUSE OF IMAGES Far more than a fortune telling device, the Tarot is also a profound and powerful system of High Renaissance magic. Here is unfolded the fascinating history and development of the Tarot, from its fifteenth-century beginnings as a conjunct to the playing cards to the massive explosion of its popularity as a system of occult symbolism. Gareth Knight presents his analysis of the basic archetypal principle behind each card and gives practical examples of magical work with the Tarot images in pathworkings and rituals. Several different approaches are adopted which can be used to develop familiarity and skill with the Tarot system, including both Greater and Lesser Arcana. Originally published in 1986 as The Treasure House of Images, and later re-issued in the USA asTarot & Magic, this new, expanded edition includes an extra six chapters, pulling together many of the new insights garnered over the 25 years since it was first published. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-35-0 |
£13.99
|
$21.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
FAERY LOVES & FAERY LAIS The Breton lai is a narrative poem, usually accompanied by music, that appeared in France about the middle of the 12th century, carried by travelling musicians and storytellers called jongleurs. What is important about them is that they contain a great deal of faery and supernatural lore deriving from Celtic myth, legend and folktale. This collection of twelve tales focuses on faery lore in the lai tradition. Nine are taken from anonymous medieval jongleur sources; the other three are from the more courtly tales collected by Marie de France in the late 12th century. Gareth Knight, a scholar of medieval French as well as an established author on esoteric faery lore, provides a vivid and lively translation of each lai along with a commentary which takes a perspective both historic and esoteric. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-48-0 |
£10.99
|
$17.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
BY NAMES AND IMAGES The Golden Dawn (GD) system of magic is the main source of the esoteric and magical wisdom and techniques practiced in the West today. While the rituals and bare teachings of the tradition have been published for sixty years, the inner workings and esoteric keys that empower those rituals have largely remained unpublished or unexplored in contemporary works. By Names and Images remedies this lack by providing detailed and clear instructions for the visualisations, spiritual connections and energetic practices required for every major GD practice and ritual, as well as several unpublished techniques. Focusing on the meanings and use of sacred names and practical techniques of visualisation, the book thoroughly explores meditation and divination, purification ritual, invocation and evocation, grades of initiation, and direct experience of the inner realms. Also covered is an explanation of the Qabalah and its use as a magical framework. While the book is sufficiently practical and clearly explained to be of huge benefit to a newcomer to magic, its primary aim is to allow people already practicing the Golden Dawn system to do so more effectively, and to be touched by the amazing spiritual blessings the rituals offer. “The book is the finest introduction to the Golden Dawn system yet penned and includes many never before seen highlights from the author’s years of oral instruction and training. A “must have” for every student of the Golden Dawn, beginning and advanced.” – Tony DeLuce, Initiate of the Rosicrucian Order of the Golden Dawn “Peregrin’s reader-friendly style of teaching displays a joyous sharing of knowledge that demystifies complex teachings, revealing the ‘heart and soul’ of the Work. This book will be a treasured addition to every Golden Dawn magician’s library.” |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-50-3 |
£16.99
|
$26.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
THE MAGICAL BATTLE OF BRITAIN Immediately following Britain's declaration of war in 1939, Dion Fortune began a series of regular letters to members of her magical order, the Fraternity of the Inner Light, who were unable to hold meetings due to wartime travel restrictions. With enemy planes rumbling overhead, she organised a series of visualisations to formulate "seed ideas in the group mind of the race", archetypal visions to invoke angelic protection and uphold British morale under fire. "The war has to be fought and won on the physical plane," she wrote, "before physical manifestation can be given to the archetypal ideals. What was sown will grow and bear seed." As the war developed, this was consolidated with further work for the renewal of national and international accord. For the first time the Fraternity's doors were opened to anyone who wanted to join in and learn the previously secret methods of esoteric mind-working. With unswerving optimism she guided her fraternity through the dark days of the London Blitz, continuing her weekly letters even when the bombs came through her own roof. Long out of print and much sought after, Skylight Press is very pleased to be re-issuing this fascinating and important book. Introduction and commentary by Gareth Knight. "A compelling portrait of an adept practising the magic of the light for the sake of the nation." – Alan Richardson |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-45-9 |
£12.99
|
$19.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
GWENEVERE AND THE ROUND TABLE A follow up to her acclaimed Red Tree, White Tree, this book puts the faery elements of Arthurian legend into practice. It shows how the Round Table was an actual, practical system of magic, demonstrated by Gwenevere, who was its prime interpreter within the court of the Round Table. Central to the book is the concept of five Faery Kingdoms described in the legends, with which Gwenevere was closely associated: Lyonesse, Sorelois, Gorre and Oriande, about the central Grail kingdom of Listenois.
The book comprises a graded series of meditations, practical magical exercises, guided visualisations and a full ritual, which take the reader into each of the Faery kingdoms in turn, guided by Gwenevere, to experience the various challenges and gifts that they each represent. The fourth kingdom, Oriande, takes the reader into the Round Table of the Stars, an experiential journey through 12 constellations, which very neatly and remarkably demonstrates the continuing work of the Round Table into the future.
"A classic! Not only a lucid guide to faery dynamics in Arthurian and Grail legend but what to do about it, why, and how. A practical follow up to Wendy's mind blowing Red Tree White Tree. Highly recommended." "This contribution to the on-going practical work of the Arthuriad will be of great importance to not only Grail-Seekers but anyone interested in the Arthurian legends, the Western Mystery Tradition, Faery lore and the vital role of women in the Mysteries today." – Steve Blamires "This book speaks to the Soul – read, experience, be joyous and be forever changed." – Maddy Johnson, Founder/Leader of S.O.N.G. Druid Order |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-47-3 |
£12.99
|
$19.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
THE FAT GIT Inside every Fat Git there's an Enchanter wildly signalling to be let out. Alan Richardson is back with a ground-breaking esoteric satire, The Fat Git, with a rip-roaring cast of characters including Ambrose Hart, the Merlin of Strathnaddair; his reluctant nephew, Arthur; the mythical seductress, Vivienne, and the dastardly evil Vortig. Richardson takes no prisoners with his take on psychic pretentiousness, taking mythical simulacra and Arthurian archetypes to levels of absurdity, yet always displaying trenchant psychological insights and a sound background in the deeper aspects of occultism. This mix of mundane and fantastic, at wild odds with each other, is reminiscent of the work of Charles Williams, and perhaps one or two of his fellow Inklings. Richardson does not hold back from lambasting certain quarters with his iconoclastic wit but seems to be saying something that needs to be said. With great humour and panache, he provides a riveting burlesque of modern magic and the Arthurian Mysteries. "If Strathnaddair exists in another realm, and yet is also a real place that we have all visited, then so are The Arthur, The Merlin and all the rest real people, with addresses, postcodes, mortgages, debts, and all the troubles and triumphs of modern life. You can find them in any phone book, just look under your own name. For there are moments when, if only for the blink of an eye and on the canvas behind its lid, we become them…” |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-31-2 |
£9.99
|
$15.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
MERLIN AND THE GRAIL TRADITION Few figures from myth and legend have impressed the imagination like that of Merlin, Archmage of the land of Logres, whose shadowy, compelling presence plays a key part in the tales of Arthurian legend and the Quest of the Holy Grail. In this lively collection of essays, Gareth Knight traces the historical importance and esoteric influence of Merlin and the Grail tradition from its mythological beginnings right down to modern times. Topics covered include Dion Fortune’s grail work at Glastonbury, the Merlin archetype, the “Elizabethan Merlin” John Dee, the blue stones of Preseli (which were used to build Stonehenge), and the connection between Merlin and Tolkien’s figure of Gandalf. This new edition of the book is expanded and has three additional articles, including an esoteric analysis of the legend of Sir Gareth which has never been published before. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-33-6 |
£10.99
|
$17.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
AWEN: The Quest of the Celtic Mysteries It was the Celtic bards who laid down the foundation of inner wisdom that has come down to us as Arthurian legend, passing their traditions to the Arthurian romancers of the 12th and 13th centuries. Thus the Celts provide an immediate bridge that leads to a very ancient world. Focusing on the Brythonic Celtic material and the "Taliesin" cult whose lineage preserved the mysteries through the Mabinogion and other texts, Awen: the Quest of the Celtic Mysteries reveals the sources of the British sacred tradition right back to the Neolithic and Bronze Ages, and, as some believe, further back still to even more ancient sources. Awen is a Welsh word often translated as "inspiration". However, in its fullness it has a much deeper meaning, an irradiation of the soul from paradisal origins. In the context of the Celtic folk-soul it casts the paradisal pattern by which the people and the land were harmonised. Through the aligned symbolism of the goddess, the sacred king and the stars, a compelling picture is built of a thriving mystery tradition which marries the constellations to the landscape, exploring as an example the interwoven five-fold and seven-fold stellar geometry of Moel ty Uchaf stone circle in North Wales, and the stellar alignments on the landscape of Cadair Idris. Mike Harris is a well-established authority on the Welsh mystery traditions, having lived for many years in the area of Gwynedd where the Mabinogi and Taliesin myths arose, where he developed an acute sense of the Celtic and pre-Celtic mystery cults and their relationship with the landscape. He is the author of Merlin’s Chess, co-author of Polarity Magic, and founder of the Company of Avalon. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-36-7 |
£13.99
|
$21.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
THE ABBEY PAPERS For a period of ninety days in 1993, Gareth Knight received a sequence of communications which seemed to come from three inner plane communicators who had worked regularly with Dion Fortune for much of her life. Forming a series of teachings and practical meditations which later became important knowledge papers issued to the Gareth Knight Group, the scripts construct an elaborate and multi-faceted magical image of an "Inner Abbey" which serves as a focal point for a wide variety of magical purposes and the evolution of consciousness. As well as providing vivid magical forms and pathworkings within the structure of the abbey, the papers discuss at length the development and use of such magical images and how to establish the magical vortex which empowers them. Three years later, while working with the Inner Abbey papers, Knight's daughter Rebecca received a further series of communications which augment the original material and add a practical example of its use, culminating in the Chapel of Remembrance ritual, a magical vortex focused on spiritual resolution for war victims. Now published together for the first time, the scripts provide a tried and trusted construct for personal magical work along with a fair amount of practical advice on occult and mystical techniques. It is open to the reader to follow up on this to find their own way into the Inner Abbey and come to a personal judgement of its experiential validity. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-44-2 |
£13.99
|
$21.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
I CALLED IT MAGIC "I called it magic – Kathleen Raine called it poetry – J. R. R. Tolkien called it enchantment – others have called it a variety of things – from mysticism to mumbo jumbo. All I know is that it works – and that for better or worse I have lived most of my life by it." The esoteric autobiography of Gareth Knight covers six decades of magical work, beginning with his induction into the Society of the Inner Light in the early 1950s, his resignation and founding of his own magical group, and subsequent return to the Society. It traces his series of legendary Hawkwood meetings working with Arthurian, Rosicrucian, Celtic and Greek archetypes, the powers of Merlin, the Tarot, the Qabalah, the Goddess and Tolkien's elves. His journey takes in the Christian mystical tradition and the shining allure of Faery – all told through the warmth, wit, wisdom and humour of one who has never been afraid to plough his own furrow. "If you have ever wanted to glean some understanding of the mind, and motivation, of an adept Mage-of-Light – this is THE book to read. It is the best account of its kind to be published in over a century." "Very highly recommended." — The Cauldron |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-15-2 |
£12.99
|
$19.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
I CALLED IT MAGIC "I called it magic – Kathleen Raine called it poetry – J. R. R. Tolkien called it enchantment – others have called it a variety of things – from mysticism to mumbo jumbo. All I know is that it works – and that for better or worse I have lived most of my life by it. Now seems the time to take stock of it – not so much in self justification – but in order to dust it off, look it up and down, and make some kind of appraisal of what it was all about. Was it all worth it? What did it serve? Was it a public service for the greater good or a fanciful diversion – a flight from the real in pursuit of the ideal?" The long-awaited magical autobiography of Gareth Knight covers a long career in pursuit of the Mysteries, from the adventures of New Dimensions magazine to the calling of King Arthur, from the rituals of Sherwood Forest to the Somme, from the wrath of fellow ritual magicians to the shining allure of Faery. This edition is a clothbound hardback edition, limited to 150 individually numbered copies. SOLD OUT |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-43-5 |
|
|||||||||||||||||||
 |
BOTH SIDES OF THE DOOR A re-issue of a remarkable little novella published in 1918, which Sir Arthur Conan Doyle praised as "a unique experience". It comprises a fictionalised account of a psychic upheaval the young Margaret went through in 1913 while living in a disturbed house in Bayswater, London, with her sister. A casual experiment with table-turning triggered an intense and terrifying haunting, beginning with odd patches of shadow and light and soon developing into a full blown poltergeist manifestation – household items vanishing and reappearing in odd places, writing appearing on window blinds, and malevolent presences who began to materialise in various disturbing forms. Margaret Lumley Brown went on to become a significant figure in the Western Mysteries revival, and her remarkable mediumship gift was sparked by the experiences described in Both Sides of the Door. Margaret Lumley Brown (1886-1975) is best known as resident trance medium at the Society of the Inner Light, where she took over the role of arch-pythoness after Dion Fortune's death in 1946. In her youth she published this novella and a book of poetry, both originally under the pen-name of Irene Hay. This re-issue includes an Introduction by Gareth Knight and an essay by Rebecca Wilby explaining the locations and historical background to the story. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-37-4 |
£10.95
|
$17.95
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
THE ROMANCE OF THE FAERY MELUSINE Springing from the heart of medieval France, The Romance of the Faery Melusine tells the story of Raymondin of Poitiers who accidentally kills his uncle while out hunting, and flees deep into the forest until he encounters a faery by a fountain. Struck by mutual soul-love, the faery Melusine agrees to help him, and to become his wife, on condition that he makes no attempt to see her between dusk and dawn each Saturday. On this basis the house of Lusignan magically thrives, until a treachery tempts Raymondin to violate his promise and shatter the magic which holds his faery wife to the human world. First rendered into written form in a text by Jean d'Arras in 1393, the legend of the Faery Melusine is well established in France, where she is credited with having founded the family, town and castle of Lusignan. However, it is very little known in the English-speaking world, despite the fact that Melusine originally hailed from Scotland. This new translation by Gareth Knight of André Lebey's 1920s novel Le Roman de la Mélusine captures the freshness of Lebey's retelling of the legend and brings the benefit of Knight's expertise both in French literature and in the esoteric faery tradition. Gareth Knight is the author of The Faery Gates of Avalon and Melusine of Lusignan and the Cult of the Faery Woman. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-32-9 |
£10.99
|
$17.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
WORKING WITH INNER LIGHT: The Magical Journal of As the New Age seemed to explode into being from the late 1960s onward, everything spiritual had to be Eastern. Psychedelic artwork showed Glastonbury Tor overshadowed by the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, or Stonehenge sending its energies up to Lord Krishna – imagery which Bill Gray summed up quite simply as “Balls.” He was working hard at making sure that our weakened (or slumbering) Western Traditions would survive. Now, 19 years after his death, a new manuscript has come to light representing some of his vintage work on the inner and outer practicalities of ritual magic. On what turned out to be his last visit to Bill, Alan Richardson was given a ring binder containing what seemed to be an occasional Journal-cum-Magical Diary for 1965. However it is far more than a journal; it is a detailed course in modern Qabalistic magic. Now published for the first time, this advanced but practical text will be of immense value to esoteric students and practitioners working within the Western Mysteries today. At the editors' request, all royalties from the sale of this book, and |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-14-5 |
£14.99
|
$23.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
A HISTORY OF WHITE MAGIC The world of magic is one of high imagination. In this wide-ranging historical survey Gareth Knight shows how the higher imagination has been used as an aid to the evolution of consciousness, from the ancient Mystery Religions, through Alchemy, Renaissance Magic, the Rosicrucian Manifestos, Freemasonry and 19th century Magical Fraternities, up to the modern era. Knight considers magic as a middle ground between science and religion, reconciling them in a technology of the imagination, which properly used, can bring about personal regeneration and spiritual fulfilment. He uses Coleridge's theory of the imagination as a basis for the validity of magic as science and art in its own right. Many systems and structures have come down through the ages slightly shoddy, misrepresented, maligned, misaligned. With this book a deconstruction becomes a recycling of raw material for the purposes of re-ordering and re-configuring – a righted prism, a shored up temple, a foundational re-ballasting. "It is obvious from the beginning that we have here a work revealing the author's spiritual maturity, a work with a definite message and structure, rather than the piecemeal gathering of snippets of information which often is offered in books with this sort of title, by inferior authors with little occult understanding." |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-04-6 |
£13.99
|
$21.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
THE ROLLRIGHT RITUAL In the early 1970s the redoubtable old occultist William G. Gray bicycled from his Gloucestershire home to the Rollright stone circle in Oxfordshire on a clear and full-mooned summer night. The visionary experiences he encountered on that night and in other similar visits resulted in the writing of this book, originally published by Helios Books in 1975 and now a classic among pagan and craft traditions. The text of the ritual is given in full, along with a discussion of its pattern and purpose. The Rollright Ritual is a powerful initiatory rite for attuning oneself to a personal and communal path of spiritual growth, presented here with an explanatory text and a discussion of the spiritual lives and practices of the stone circle builders of Great Britain. "Somehow, we ought to get away from ideas that a Standing Stone is only an outworn sign of our past, and see it as an upraised Finger of Fate beckoning us ahead toward our future. The Stone is not merely a memorial of bygone beliefs, but a pointer that should raise our highest hopes of finding faith in all the Life that lies ahead of us." William G. Gray is a well established author of many books on Qabalah and ritual magic. He also worked with many practitioners of traditional witchcraft including Doreen Valiente, Pat Crowther and notably Robert Cochrane, in whose memory The Rollright Ritual was written. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-17-6 |
£10.95
|
$16.95
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
THE OLD SOD: "OK so I'm an old sod, an old bastard, a thousand different kinds of shit if you like, but I am a human being who loved the esoteric Tradition I tried to serve… Perhaps I didn't do very well with what I'd got but I did my best…" William G. Gray was a real magician, a kind of primeval spirit who worked his magic as an extension of the Life Force, not as a sop to ego. He reeked of psychism like he often reeked of incense, could give you the uncomfortable feeling that he could see right through you and beyond, and had been to places in spirit that we could scarcely imagine. Many of the books on magic and the Qabalah which appear today owe a huge if unrecognised debt to his pioneering writing. If there is anything evolutionary about the current urge to work with harmonic energies within the Earth and ourselves – whether through green eco-movements, the Celtic Revival or the Wiccan arts – then it is due in no small degree to the work that was done by an old bastard who lived near the bus station in a town in Gloucestershire. Bill Gray met and worked with many of the most important figures in the British esoteric scene. His boyhood meetings with Dion Fortune and Aleister Crowley are described here in his own words, along with his personal recollections of working magic with Pat Crowther, Doreen Valiente, Ronald Heaver, Robert Cochrane and many others. This lively, entertaining and authoritative biography tells the story of how a difficult, psychic child grew into a powerful adept who was equally at home in Hermetic and Craft traditions, and who challenged established assumptions within paganism and Qabalah alike and revitalised them from within – often falling out with those he worked with but maintaining their affection and respect. Generously illustrated with photographs, many never published before, the book also includes contributions by R.J. Stewart, Gareth Knight, Evan John Jones, Marcia Pickands and Jacobus Swart, plus, of course, W.G. Gray himself. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-12-1 |
£12.99
|
$19.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
EXPERIENCE OF THE INNER WORLDS Originally published in 1975, Experience of the Inner Worlds is a classic magical textbook of the Western Mystery Tradition. Covering a wide range of topics within a Christian-oriented Qabalistic framework, Gareth Knight explains the difference between magic and mysticism, natural and revealed religion, monism and theism. He also covers the practicalities, examining methods of inner plane communication, contact with the Masters, the ‘consciousness’ approach of Carl Jung, the vision of Dante and the archetypal power of the Hebrew alphabet – all within the context of the Qabalistic Tree of Life. The book also contains powerful visualisation exercises and examples of communication with angelic and elemental contacts. While this book can be used as a course of self-instruction, it is also an important modern reference book of magical theory and practice, and has been used for decades by students of Western Qabalah and magic. |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-03-9 |
£14.99
|
$23.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
YOURS VERY TRULY – GARETH KNIGHT Written over a period of forty years and to over seventy different people, these letters include learned discourse with academics, exchanges of strange experiences with esoteric colleagues, and advice to seekers trying to find their path. The letters reveal extraordinary, entertaining and personal details of the life and work of a contemporary occultist. "One fault of many occult students is to read too much … all too often the new student is so interested in reading the latest thing that he never gets round to actually doing any of it." "I suppose you can at least feel what it is like to be 'a lone voice crying in the wilderness' … I think even John the Baptist, in time, would have packed up his traps, said 'Sod it' (or 'Sod them') and gone home, maybe to start a locust and wild honey farm." "I am, I suppose, trying to pass myself off as a grand old man these days, after a long career as a slowly maturing and now possibly decaying enfant terrible." "Your remark that the devil works by compromise and subtlety is altogether too glib a simplification. He works equally well through uncompromising 'principles' very often. The thing that bothers me though is your preoccupation with the insinuations of the devil, which seems at times to verge on 'old maid's insanity'. I get the impression – I hope wrongly – that I stand a good chance of being cast in the role of the serpent offering the poisoned, or forbidden fruit." |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-05-3 |
£13.99
|
$21.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
RED TREE, WHITE TREE The relationship between human and Faery lies at the very core of the Arthurian stories. In this radical re-evaluation of the Grail legends, Wendy Berg brings some meaningful light to the ancient mythology of the British Isles, centred around the marriage of King Arthur to the Faery Gwenevere. Drawing upon numerous Arthurian sources and other related texts, from the Book of Genesis to The Lord of the Rings, she explores the magical ritual underpinning of the legends and their connection to the ancient stellar deities of Britain. "When these stories are read with the additional level of understanding that they are for the most part a record of the lives and relationships of Faeries and humans working together about the Round Table, they immediately become not only a great deal more interesting, but also acquire a new and vivid relevance for the present day." Wendy Berg has thirty years' experience of all aspects of the Western Mystery Tradition and is an authority on Egyptian, Celtic, Arthurian and Grail magical traditions. She blends a thorough knowledge and experience of the Qabala and formal ritual magic with Christian Mysticism and modern Paganism. She currently runs the Avalon Group, the magical fraternity founded by Gareth Knight. "This is the most important and challenging book on Arthurian and Grail tradition for many a long year." – Gareth Knight |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-06-0 |
£12.99
|
$19.99
|
||||||||||||||||||
 |
IMMORTAL JAGUAR Immortal Jaguar is Hugh Fox's account of his experiences with the inner worlds and ancient powers unleashed by his use of traditional South American spiritual hallucinogenics. After consuming psychoactive plants in Peru he is gripped by visionary experiences and finds a dazzling magical world of Immortals opening up, a whirl of ancient knowledge pouring through his consciousness. On his return to academic life in the US he finds that having a shamanic gift which he is unable to switch off is something of a dangerous liability. Part memoir, part archaeology, this fusion of visions and ideas into fictional narrative is among the most excitingly readable presentations of the spiritual underworld of the Andes and its expression through sacred hallucinogens. The vision extends outward across the ancient world through language and legend, all leading to a voyage to the house of the Sun-King – Tiawanaku in Bolivia. Fox, a major authority on the Pre-Columbian Americas, and a true visionary to boot, makes a compelling case for the connection of myths and cultures around the world in deepest antiquity. "Hugh Fox has long been a legend in the annals of contemporary American poetry, a poet who is unafraid to explore the deeper fodder of the human psyche .... there are no barriers here for Fox is a shaman who walks through walls, ignoring all social rules and regulations." |
|||||||||||||||||||
ISBN: 978-1-908011-09-1 |
£10.95
|
$17.95
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
 |
|||||||||||||||||||
| FORTHCOMING TITLES ... | ||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
COMING AUTUMN 2013 By the time we met, he was a newly ordained curate and I was scratching a living in the esoteric world, had written a book on the Qabalah (about to be published) and ran an occult magazine. We were thus inhabitants of two worlds that were never supposed to meet – at least by popular convention – of if they did, to be diametrically opposed to each other. The catalyst for such a meeting of the minds was the provocative poetry of Anthony Duncan, hitherto little known to the world but privately praised by the likes of Kathleen Raine. Following on from the “Lord of the Dance” chapter in his recent autobiography, I Called it Magic, and various entries in his book of collected letters, Yours Very Truly, Gareth Knight muses on the esoteric resonances resulting from his unlikely friendship with the Reverend Anthony Duncan. Their intellectual sharing of ideas led to Duncan’s The Christ, Psychotherapy and Magic and Knight’s Experience of Inner Worlds, which have become companion texts of esoteric Christianity often read and taught together. The pair had planned to co-author a book before Duncan’s untimely passing in 2003 so Christ & Qabalah comes as a fulfilment of a long-held promise. The book will delight admirers of both authors with its intertextual interplay as well as a fresh exploration of the differences and similarities between a cleric and an occultist. Knight has described the book as an “organic process, almost an initiation, that has left me with a somewhat expanded consciousness.” Readers are invited to share in the various machinations that sparked this dynamic relationship – one that keeps on giving. ISBN: 978-1-908011-68-8 |
||||||||||||||||||||
This title will be released in early October as a The regular paperback edition will be released |
COMING AUTUMN 2013 Dion Fortune encoded much practical magical lore within her novels, leaving it up to the reader to work out how to make use of it. Behind the novels were two major rituals, the Rite of Isis and the Rite of Pan, which Dion Fortune occasionally performed in public in the 1930s as part of her drive to open up occultism beyond the closed walls of esoteric fraternities. Now for the first time, these important magical workings have been released from her society's archive in their complete and original form. Edited and explained by Gareth Knight, this book contains the full text of the original Rite of Isis and Rite of Pan which formed the basis for Dion Fortune's Moon Magic, The Goat-Foot God, and The Sea Priestess. Further archive material elucidates the practical magical principles found in The Winged Bull. The book is supplemented by several articles written by Dion Fortune in the 1930s which shed further light on the practical content of her novels, including the essay Ceremonial Magic Unveiled, a review of the work of Israel Regardie in which she gives her views on the controversies within the Golden Dawn and frankly describes her own falling out with Moina MacGregor Mathers. "The clearest, simplest - and best - analysis and explanation of what magic is and how it works that I have ever come across. Gareth Knight shows that DF's novels are initiatory and were intended to be so. He supplements his exposition with DF's own commentaries on her work and reveals the secret methods she employed in her art to link the reader's imagination to spiritual and cosmic realities in order to activate the powers of the soul."
— Society of the Inner Light
limited edition hardback ISBN: 978-1-908011-87-9 |
|||||||||||||||||||
COMING LATE 2013 Written by one of the world's foremost experts on Western Esoteric Traditions, this book is full of wisdom and insights that will help readers apply spiritual, magical and Qabalistic principles to their everyday life. A collection of essays covering a wide spectrum of knowledge and experience, whose underlying theme is to show how our daily lives can be made a training ground for adepthood. It brings together strands of Qabalah, psychology and the philosophy of Coleridge with practical methods of meditation. ISBN: 978-1-908011-34-3 |
||||||||||||||||||||
COMING LATE 2013 A new and previously unpublished book by the late Anthony Duncan, author of The Christ, Psychotherapy and Magic, which openly and frankly examines the experience of psychic communication with "extra-terrestrial" contacts, and the leaps of faith and mutual acceptance on which such contact depends. Incorporating an essay on "The Liberation of the Imagination", the book represents a sane and sensible discussion of a controversial subject by a Christian priest and mystic who has never been afraid to think and minister beyond conventional boundaries. More details soon. ISBN: 978-1-908011-63-3 |
||||||||||||||||||||
COMING LATE 2013 Potent medieval faery lore and hidden goddess traditions for the 21st century. Gareth Knight explores and reveals the hidden mystery of the Faery Melusine, a major figure in medieval French lore and legend. Through vivid interpretation of original source texts, Gareth Knight shows that the Melusine story is a powerful initiatory legend emerging from the deeply transformative Faery Tradition of ancient Europe. Furthermore he demonstrates how such legends manifest as history: the innate sacromagical power of Melusine affected key places and events in the development of the medieval world and from there reached far into the shaping of the modern world through the conflicts for Jerusalem and the Middle East. Gareth Knight is the author of many books on magic, occultism, and esoteric tradition. His work is known world-wide and has been influential in the development of the contemporary magical revival. ISBN: 978-1-908011-28-2 |
||||||||||||||||||||
COMING EARLY 2014 In this new concise and important treatise Michael Howard delineates between various modern neo-pagan Wiccan traditions, cunning folk traditions, heathen folk or the ‘pagani,’ and an assortment of ritual magicians and pathworkers in order to present a ‘gramarye’ distinctly for those who aspire to the ‘Old Craft.’ An experienced practitioner, writer, researcher, folklorist and magazine editor of the respected witchcraft magazine, The Cauldron (since 1976), Howard elucidates important elements of the Traditional Craft, including preparation rituals, tools of ‘the Arte,’ fellowship of the coven and the casting of circles, finally taking us through the ‘Great Wheel of the Year’ and the assortment of sacred rites as performed within. The seasonal rituals are based on traditional witchcraft and folklore sources and have been specially written for this book. ISBN: 978-1-908011-85-5 |
||||||||||||||||||||
COMING EARLY 2014 In The Talking Tree (also formerly titled Growing the Tree Within) W.G. Gray presents an encyclopaedic and systematic analysis of the 22 Paths of the Qabalistic Tree of Life. This major work includes a detailed and comprehensive study of the symbolism of the Tarot, in which Gray offers an alternative method of allocating the Major Arcana to the Paths, in place of the commonly used Golden Dawn system. He also explains how the Western alphabet can be applied to the Tree of Life as a viable alternative to Hebrew letters. Gray's purpose throughout this significant book is to demonstrate that the Tree of Life is in a continual state of growth and evolution, and that those who study and work with the Qabalah should not be afraid to apply new correspondences to it and rethink some of its traditional assumptions. ISBN: 978-1-908011-75-6 |
||||||||||||||||||||
COMING EARLY 2014 A major study of the work of one of the seminal thinkers in Western Paganism. Ross Nichols was Chief of the Order of Bards Ovates and Druids until his death in 1975. He was a man who believed passionately in the power of myth, poetry, ritual and drama, and in the interconnectedness of the world's religious systems. This fascinating and wide-ranging selection of Ross Nichols' work contains writings on key themes including ritual, festivals, mythology, symbolism, temple architecture and archaeology, and the links between Druidry and other ancient wisdom traditions. It is the essential resource for students of Druidry and lovers of Celtic spirituality. ISBN: 978-1-908011-86-2 |
||||||||||||||||||||
COMING 2014 The Bardic Chair is awarded as a prize in competitions of artistic merit, held in a festival of the arts known as an eisteddfod. Born of the Celtic Tradition, initially in Wales, Bardic Chairs are a growing phenomenon – transcending cultural barriers – not just around the British Isles, but around the world. This book explains the background of Bardic Chairs, lists all the current ones on record, and explains how to set one up. This comprehensive guide features the modern Bardic Chairs of England and the Celtic Fringes – Wales, Ireland, Scotland, Cornwall, Brittany, Isle of Man – and beyond, including Australia, North America, Canada and Argentina. This all-new expanded edition updates the first edition published by R.J. Stewart books in 2008. It will include special features on the U.S. West Coast Eisteddfod and Gorsedd Ynys Witri – the Bardic Chair of Glastonbury; new profiles on Grand Bard, Tim Hall, and all winners of the Glastonbury Chair; Updated listings of all Gorseddau, the Bards of the Lost Forest in Birmingham, the Bardic Picnic in Northampton and Stony Stratford events; Updated websites, organisations, etc., including mini-profiles on members of the Silver Branch Bardic Network. ‘It continues to sum up a remarkable achievement, produced by an extraordinary city and community.’ — Ronald Hutton ISBN: 978-1-908011-89-3 |
||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||
