Book Reviews | Forum
Member
MemberThis is the famous (or
infamous, depending on how you view the post-RHP rooted history associated with
the book) Corpus Hermeticum: The Divine Pymander, authored by Hermes
Trismegistus. I am reviewing the original manuscript based on the new edition
edited by Tarl Warwick, 2015.
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Corpus Hermeticum: the
Divine Pymander is dated to 200 C.E. Some of the texts are suspected to have
originated even earlier by scholars and modern translators. Although each of
the 17 books hold a variety of teachings they all hold one simple goal: to
teach of the oneness of God, assist one with a better understanding of the
spirit and mind in order to combine both, and the purify the soul by means of
the wisdom written herein. his book consists of seventeen books combined into
one religious text. The language is written from the first-person perspective
of Hermes as he teaches one of his disciples.
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The book covers many
topics with an interesting tone in speech. Such ideas incorporate teaching fundamental
truths, explaining how everything came to be, creation through polytheism, and
more. The Corpus Hermeticum is written in the same lingual structure as the King
James Holy Bible, without the ‘thee’ and ‘thy’ wordage. It isn’t too thick to
easily finish within a few days, but dense with information. I found myself
rereading and studying over the meanings of much of the manuscript. If one were
to study the Greek links of anthropological history and the cultural religious
doctrines of the times, a study of the Corpus Hermeticum could easily be a
semester long college course to fully dissect in order to thoroughly understand
the book.
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Having taken 2 weeks of
study through the Corpus Hermeticum, I give it a 2 out of 5 sigil rating.
Although it is an important historical document of philosophical understanding
by which western esotericism can be pulled from, it is not as geared towards
LHP practice/doctrine as most other LHP focused books are. It is a good book to
study, but there are other deeper LHP relative books I would deem more vital to
the black magician.
Member Grimorium Verum: The True Grimoire. I am reviewing the
first edition of the manuscript dating back to the 18th century, authoring
is attributed to “Alibeck the Egyptian” and edited by Tarl Warwick, 2018.
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The writing of the
Grimorium Verum: The True Grimoire is dated to the early 1500s C.E. However,
there is controversy over the authenticity of the time frame by which the text
was written. In accordance with an opposing view, the book was written in the
1800s in Italian or French and fraudulently dated earlier. Throughout the four
books which comprise the Grimorium Verum, the focus is on various spiritual
black magic spell/ritual workings to assist the black magician in his/her goals
and the conjuration of certain demons. (ie: 3 superior and 15 inferior). The
inferior demons work under the superior demon of their respective office. The
book is written as an instruction to LHP practitioners of black magic.
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The book covers differing
type of spells and conjuring the spirits for various reasons. Such spells are
to perform the following: To make a girl come to you, the conjuring of 3
men/women for your company, to make oneself invisible and much more. The
Grimorium Verum black magic workings are written in such a way that the
Solomonic traditions and rituals are clearly seen in the magical procedures. Such
can be seen in prayers to Adonai, purification of the body through the heavenly
father, etc. The 56 page book is very thin, but the instructions are very
specific as to exactly what time, day, and how many times things should be done
and events take place. The instructions of this grimoire leave nothing to
question in regard to the procedures. I find using Book 2 to incorporate the chart
of hours of the day, days of the week, and days of the month of celestial body
would help in one’s own black magic practices. However, due to the nature of
this grimoire and its magical origins, I would caution one against alteration
of the more specific portions of spells, invocations/evocations to conjuration
without a deep understanding of the demonic and metaphysical laws.
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Having taken 3 days of
study through the Grimorium Verum, I give it a 3 out of 5 sigil rating.
Although it is vital piece of literature to add to the collection given its Solomonic
black magic origins, it is not as useful of a grimoire for workings by the
majority of LHP practitioners given the very specific addresses and prayers
used. If you are a firm believer and practitioner of the ancient magical arts
of Solomonic practices, I would rate it a 5 of 5 sigil rating. It is a good
book to study in order to gain an understanding of black magic from varying
approaches, but there are other LHP relative books I would deem more fit to the
generic black magician.
