Rating: 
Summary: Was I reading the same book as everyone else?
Review: Was I reading the same book as all the other reviewers? I found this book very disjointed and difficult to follow. The author has a very annoying writing style and although he obviously knows what he is writing about, he does it in a rather pompous and unprofessional manner and often veers off on tangents. He talks as though he has invented the Kabbalah and the system is exclusive to him, like a patented design. He makes his own rules up as the book progresses and expresses his beliefs as though they are facts, rewriting the history of the Kabbalah to fit in with his own magickal paradigm. He dictates to the reader how to do many of the rituals associated with ceremonial magick, but does not explain the intrinsic meaning or symbolism behind each ritual or why they are done. After a few chapters I became frustrated at having so many rituals thrust upon me without understanding their relevance or their structure. By the middle of the book I was confused, frustrated and bored. I was expecting this to be an succinct but interesting book about a system which interests me - Kabbalah. Instead, I have found a monotonous tome weighed down by the egocentric perspective of its author. The only redeeming factor is the extensive bibliography - which (in my opinion) lists many better books on Kabbalah/Qabbalah and magick in general.
Rating: 
Summary: confusing for me, great for cerimonial magicians
Review: cerimonial magick makes my head spin , all those complicated rituals, the hebrew alphebet, other languages, i personally perfer wicca,Vodou,shamanism,hoodoo (though i have incorperated a little cerimonial magick into my practice) but this book takes the intimidation from cerimonial magick, and puts it in baby steps
Rating:
Summary: A LIBRARY OF INFORMATION IN ONE BOOK!
Review: Get the "how-to's" and "why-not's" of ancient ceremonial, magickal and divination practices from a highly informed and experienced practicing magician. An instant favorite in my personal collection, I learned more from this book than several of other books now collecting dust on my bookshelves! Books on this subject can be sometimes intimidating in content - this one is easy to follow and gives great explainations of "why and why not" with great lesson plan built in. Whether you are new to the ritual arts, or been practing for years - this is one you'll want to own for yourself!
Rating:
Summary: Great book for the ultra beginner!
Review: This book taught me a ton on High Magick...
As previous reviews have stated, I have some great results also..
I Got everything I ever wanted and more, and my life has been changed for the better....Everything in my life became more clear and focused and I owe it all to this book..
So pick up a copy for yourself & give one to a friend to change their lives also, believe me it will work..
Rating: 
Summary: Great for beginners...but often oversimplified.
Review: Kraig cuts right to the chase with this practical manual of ritualistic magic. This works and it doesn't. On one hand it gives the beginner to the Great Work a chance to jump right in without having to wade through countless works of incoherent (stuff) concerning the philosophies of magic. On the other hand, it has the tendency to make the reader beleive that they do not have to understand any of the philosophies of magic, this in my opinion is dangerous. But otherwise a great read.
Rating:
Summary: BUY this book
Review: If you're into magic(k) and want to know more, please do not miss this book. Kraig is one of the best authors I have ever come across with and am so glad I read his volume and practiced his exercises as I now got more knowledge than before; even if you do not intend to practice you may be interested in this book as it is a MUST HAVE for every serious magician.
Rating:
Summary: Very Good but the solomon magick evocation is not his work!
Review: I thought the overall layout and material presented in this book to be very well laid out , the sequence of study is very cleverly designed to take the aspiring magician through a very thorough course in magick.However the very powerful method outlined in lesson nine having to do with the magickal mirror is material that could only have come from the master of evocation himself "Carroll Poke Runyon" yet nowhere in kraigs book is acknowledgement given to runyon for this method. This is disturbing in that anyone with experience in the magical arts would know that this method was rediscovered by Runyon in the late sixties to early seventies and before then the only known method was to use the ineffective smoke technique. So this is why I have to give the book only 3 stars out of five, also it's important to note that kraig does not go into the necessary details of this method deeply enough which could cause the practitioner some potential problems if not careful, I believe he does'nt reveal further details of the magickal mirror technique because that in turn is information that only runyon has, which he recently released in his book "The book of solomon's magicK" and the companion video "the magick of solomon" Which is essential material for any magician interested in performing this art to it's true effect.
Rating:
Summary: If you follow instructions everything will porve to be
Review: Modern Magick is not, as a certin review put it, biased nor is it totaly Kabbalistic. The main structure of the matierial is that of the Tree of Life and as such the author follows the basics of Kabbalistic philosophy. There are many reasons for this. Kabbalistic Magick draws energy from ten spheres, known as sephirah which can mean numbers or words as in writtings, and no matter what the ultimate purpose of the ritual these spheres are used for the purpose of drawing the energy needed in the ritual. The reason is simple. The ten spheres are said to be the ten aspects of Ruach Elohim ( Breath of God, as in Gods creative force and mans spirit) in different stagees of manifestation. By constantly useing the spheres of for direction in a ritual your mind, body and soul is constantly in harmony with the divine current which they represent. Unlike lower magickal systems where the symbols are not always of the same system, this system keeps your mind focused and trained so as to see the entire universe as emanating from the divine. Now, this does not imply that you must believe in a certin form of God to work the practicle Kabbalah, it simply means that you are drawing the energy for your powerful magick from the divine source, what ever you believe it to be. In wicca, the God and Goddess are said to be the personification of "SPIRIT" in the masculine/Feminine sense. This does not in any way conflict with the Kabbalah. In this book you will read that Spirit is the Balancing force and source of all the elements, and even learn a simple pagan ritual for chargeing a low magick Talisman. You will also learn techniques for becoming one, literaly, with the elements. These are very powerful techniques in the sense that you become that element, as opposed to the many wiccan books ive read that simlpy have you visualize a color and say a few words. If you want to FEEL the forces of the elements these exersices are the perfect way. This book has true meditation, which ive never seen written in any wiccan book, and does not simply say contemplate a sound color or image. If youve studied buddhism, or any forms of yoga then youll know that this system of meditation is correct and brings results. I know from experience that this book will change the way reality in general is percieved by any who use it, and that you will see that after alo of hard work and practice, the secrets of creatin your own reality have been within you all along. Ritual magick encompasses every form of metaphysics there is, yet is all compact into a single dail course of action wich you embed into your being. The powers of magick are then apart of you when ever you need them. When done as written, everyday without lusting for results and with full concentration, the rituals are no longer jerky and out of step with you everyday life. They become fulid in motion, simple in style and you will experience things not commonly experieced by the averag joe. Buy this book, and if you can get ahold of Modern Sex magick, by the same author.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Esssential for Beginners
Review: I bought this book about three years ago, and spent the recommended month on each chapter while undergoing other magickal training and initiations. A thorough curriculum (with full step-by-step instructions) which, if followed, will establish an educational and helpful regimen of spiritual activities, laying groundwork for future, more advanced, operations. As I went on to study other books, other authors, and other topics, I continued to gain an appreciation for exactly how much information Mr. Kraig had packed into his introductory book. True, it's not all in-depth, but this book serves as a primer for a host of topics relevant to the budding Ceremonialist. I continue to refer to the book.
Rating:
Summary: Money well spent
Review: This is undoubtedly one of the better books Llewellyn has put out. Followed as intended by the author, this book gives a well rounded course in basic Ceremonial Magick. While it does not go into a great deal of depth on any given area of practice, it does give the student a good grasp of basic foundation techniques. Well worth the investment of time and money.
|
