Rating: 
Summary: Offers a concise, methodical approach to entity-creation
Review: Perhaps the only work of its kind solely dedicated to entity creation, Creating Magickal Entities offers step-by-step information and instructions on servitor creation. Everything from possible uses and precautions, practical advice and examples of entities previously created by its authors is discussed in depth.While Creating Magickal Entities assumes the reader knows little about magickal entities, it is not designed to be an 'intro to magick' type book. It offers little introduction to general magickal theory or technique; the authors expect the reader to know a thing or two about what they're doing beforehand - and it is highly appreciated. A created entity is noted as being an extension of a thought-form, which is described as 'a symbol that represents a concept or thought for the person...It is entirely in the realm of concept until the person makes the thought-form manifest into reality' (pg. 9). A created entity is defined as being a 'vital principle held to give life to an immaterial essence, which has been created to have a self-contained and distinct existence with a conceptual reality, by the deliberate effort to personifying segregated thoughts and emotions' (pg. 9). The basic methodology authors lay out for entity creation details that by 'taking specific thoughts and emotions and identifying them with things like names, symbolic attributes, etc., we are better able to work with them in a conscious manner.' Advising that it is 'very important that we wisely chose our thoughts and the way we understand them. If we do not understand our thoughts and emotions and try to use them for our own benefit, the results can, and more often than not, will be counterproductive' (pg. 11). I do, however, have a few minor quibbles. While it is refreshing that the authors do expect a certain intelligence of the reader, footnotes may have been a good idea. For example, not everyone may be familiar with the Pythagorean system of numerology mentioned frequently throughout the book, and while a brief description is given in the glossary it wasn't noted anywhere prior to that. There are a few uncorrected typos, but they are infrequent enough to be of no major concern. Beliefs common to chaos magickians such as 'the important thing is to use whatever feels right to you, and works best for you' (pg. 47) are frequently stated, though there is no formal mention of chaos magick by name. Despite the subject of the book. Creating Magickal Entities does not use the chaos magick terminology. The words 'servitor' and 'sigil' are curiously absent from this work, words like 'entity' and 'programming symbol' are employed instead. While not 'bad', it is curious that the have authors avoided these terms. Perhaps it is due to the negative connotation that chaos magick has, and the desire to appeal to a broader audience? Several practical examples are given in the appendices, using various methods employed by the authors are likely to make for excellent reference for the novice entity creator. Cunningham, Ellwood and Wagener offer a concise, methodical approach to entity-creation without pandering to the lowest common denominator. With practical advice and step-by step instructions, Creating Magickal Entities is well written, and highly recommended for magickians interested in learning more about servitor creation.
Rating: 
Summary: This is the one.
Review: There is a reason there are so many 5 star reviews for this book, it deserves every one of them. The techniques presented in this work are very applicable and can be layered onto any style of magick that you might possess. This is one of those few texts that can transcend style and dogma, being useful to chaos mages, wiccans, and ceremonialists alike. This really is a must have text for everyone. I see this being one of the fundamental books in any practitioner's library.
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