Ibis

A useful source book for Pagan spiritualists. Elisabeth Goldsmith examines symbols found in the art and artefacts from across cultures and throughout history. Explanations reveal the symbolism of the Elements, the Lotus, the Tree of Life, the Cross, the Swastika, and many more.Elisabeth Goldsmith begins Ancient Pagan Symbols with a poetic description of the creative forces of life and the metaphys

Important Symbols presents an extensive compilation of the symbols of ancient cultures, describing the context and usage of each symbol around the world and throughout time. Adelaide Hall groups the symbols into categories, each comprising a chapter of the book. Chapters including "The Halo and the Crown," "Fabulous Creatures," "Architectural Forms," "Military Emblems," "Plants and Blossoms," "A

First published in 1912, William Gemmell's translation of The Diamond Sutra was one of the first books to introduce general readers in the West to Buddhism. It still stands as a refreshing, easy-to-understand look at an ancient and enduring tradition. The Diamond Sutra, a sacred Buddhist text, recounts the Buddha's discourse to one of his disciples. It discusses fundamental Buddhist practices,

Count Michael Maier (1568-1622) is among the giants of the Alchemical Renaissance of the early 17th century. Atalanta Fugiens and Themis Aurea transcend their era and continue to inspire alchemical students today. But Maier's many other works remain virtually unknown--to our loss, for he was a champion of Rosicrucianism as well as a spiritual alchemist of the highest caliber. Reverend J.B. Crave

William Greene was unique among his fellow Christian writers on the Kabbalah in that he saw clearly both its significance for Freemasonry and its application to radical thought. He prefaced his study, first published in 1872, with a stirring account of the significant Masonic symbol of the Blazing Star - a symbol also of liberty of conscience and political freedom, goals that must still be sought

Theurgy means "the science or art of divine works." In alchemy, this process is called the "Great Work," which is the purification and exaltation of our "lower" nature by the proper application of esoteric principles, so that it may become united with its higher counterparts, whereby we may attain spiritual, and ultimately divine, consciousness. Drawing on the teachings of the Egyptian, Greek,

The Sepher Yetzirah, or Book of Formation, although very short, is probably the most important of the Kabalistic texts. Its secrets were passed on in the Hebrew oral tradition until it was written down in the 2nd century b.c.e. It lays out the principles of Kabalistic cosmology and the Tree of Life, how humankind (the microcosm) reflects the Divine (the macrocosm). It also sets forth the Hebrew

In The House of the Hidden Places, first published in 1895, Adams clearly lays out evidence that the Great Pyramid at Giza corresponds architecturally to the initiation ritual detailed in the Egyptian Book of the Dead (which Adams preferred to call what he felt was its rightful title, The Book of the Maste). The House of the Hidden Places was the first book to go beyond the current speculations

In ancient Pompeii, just before the fateful eruption of Vesuvius, a proud Roman tribune, Ombricius, is attending a friend's wedding celebration. No sooner does he finish telling another wedding guest about his doubt that he will ever find a woman who will stir his soul, than a patrician woman, Hedonia Metella, passes by and drops a flower at his feet engaging him with a provocative look. He is i

There is an old saying: when the student is ready, the master will come. In Naina's case, her master -- or mistress, in this case -- was a black-and-white stray cat she called Sweetie, who crawled through a tiny opening in her sixth floor kitchen window in her rooms at the Prasanthi Nilayam Ashram in India, and gave birth to kittens. But this experience did not adequately prepare her for the whi

This down-to-earth exploration of natal chart interpretation shows the familial, male-female patterns in the zodiacal signs and the potentials they hold in combination with planetary energies and house symbolism. Our personalities are strongly influenced by what was happening around us when we were infants and whether our needs were met. Lundsted explains that our natal chart is our parent's trans

This is a source work of medieval magic that gives complete sets of zodiacal lames, characters, and planetary sigils, with full details for their manufacture and consecration, often omitted by later writers. Paracelsus is essentially concerned with the practical applications of magic, especially with regard to healing, rather than the extravagant fantasies of theorists. His sections on alchemy i

From the latches on our kitchen cabinets to the magnetic strips on our credit cards, we take magnetic forces for granted every day. Magnets are a relatively new technology, although people have remarked on naturally-occurring magnets, or loadstones, for hundreds of years. Mickaharic, in his inimitable, no-nonsense style relates the history and folklore of magnets and how they work, and explains

Geomancy, or "divining by means of the earth," was originally carried out by making marks in the dirt with a divining stick and then determining the geomantic symbols from these marks. It's based on the idea that our movement is influenced by the energies in circulation within and around us. This book explains the modern method of geomancy using just a writing tool and a piece of paper to obtain

This abridgment of Il Direttorio Mistico, written by G.B. Scaramelli (1687?-1752) is a foundational work for people seeking the contemplative life that leads to the Spiritual Marriage, or reintegration of the human spirit with God. Nicholson's translation has been skillfully abridged to include the most cogent material. Step-by-step, Scaramelli describes mystical theology in general and then moves

This little book is an engaging treatise on prayer throughout history, how people have prayed, what true prayer is, and what it can do. Originally published in 1912, it contains truths that stand fast today. Wright says "the object of prayer is not to change that which is immutable, a self-evident impossibility, but to alter the conscious or unconscious rebellion of the individual against such

The Jesus Prayer is based on the power of the name of the Lord. In this exceptional translation of Bishop Brianchaninov's essay on the Jesus Prayer, we are introduced to a spiritual exercise known as Hesychasm. Hesychasm gives expression to the method of enlightenment that has been in use in Christian monasteries in the East almost from Apostolic times. The practice of Hesychasm falls into three p

In 1769, James Bruce, returning from Upper Egypt, brought The Codex Brucianus to England and bequeathed it to the Bodleian Library. It contained several Gnostic works, written in Coptic, dating from about the 6th century ad, but the original Greek texts from which they came are probably much older. Part of this collection?"The Untitled Apocalypse"?is translated in this book and has been dated arou

At an early age the author discerned a "certain something" about powerful people and became obsessed with finding out what this was. His quest brought him in contact with many successful business people who admitted that there was something "outside" them that was "on their side" and always worked silently on their behalf. Still, he was dissatisfied and continued his search in books as well. Mea

Just about every kid has experienced the euphoria of spinning around, arms outstretched. The Sufi dervishes harnessed this joyful movement in their ecstatic celebration of and union with the divine. Thanks to Idris Lahore, the art, philosophy and science of the movements of Samadeva, as they have been taught and practised by the dervishes in their secret brotherhood since ancient times, are now av