Grimoires
To all mankind that which is not understood is magic or the realm of
God. As ancient man began to evolve perceptions of nature into formulas
of science, the general populace still saw nature as magical and anyone
who understood it a magician. The complex jargon of early scientific
works from cave writing to papyrus scrolls to illuminated manuscripts seemed,
to the uninitiated, to be works of magic, formulas of power. And
some of those who wished for that power began to create their own books
of magic.
These works, especially those that described the use of natural forces
for personal gain or to gain control over others, became known as works
of black magic or grimoires. The grimoire usually involved invoking
spirits to assist the asker or creating spells which controlled the forces
of nature. They are generally written in complex cryptic forms, in
ancient languages, or with such density of jargon to prevent the uninitiated
from understanding the secrets of the work.
The two best known grimoires are the Key of Solomon (Clavicula Salomoni)
and the Lesser
Key of Solomon (The Lemegeton). These are believed to have been
written by King Solomon because of his gift of wisdom from God, which must
have brought him magical powers. This myth comes in no small part
from a first century historian named Joseph Ben Matthias (37 or 38 A.D.
- about 101 A.D.), born in Jerusalem of both royal and priestly lineage.
For those who do not believe that Solomon wrote them himself, there is
a myth which gives the credit to a Rabbi Abognazar. Sadly, the tradition
of Solomon and the Caballah has created, or was created, with anti-Semitic
overtones. Josephus, himself a Jew, may have perpetrated the myth
of Jewish ritual human sacrifice and the eating of children. While
this is all bunk, it did make the Jewish magician a personage to fear.
The most dangerous of the grimoires comes from the Solomonic tradition:
The Grand Grimoire is said to be the most evil of all grimoires.
The Christian version of the grimoire cycle is attributed to Pope Honorius
III, who succeeded Pope Innocent III in 1216. Perhaps this is because
Honorius was a prolific author of religious philosophy. The main
work is the Grimoire of Honorius, a catalogue of fallen angels and how
to raise them. "It not only instructed priests in the arts of demonology
but virtually ordered them to learn how to conjure and control demons,
as part of their job."
The oldest of the grimoire myths is the works of Hermes Trimegistus.
As the Romans invaded and occupied Egypt, they incorporated Egyptian gods
into their own pantheon of gods. The geat Egyptian god Thoth, the
creator of writing, became the Roman “Hermes Thrice Great.” Not only
was his invention of writing significant but it incorporated the secrets
of life, nature, and alchemy. Most famous of these works is the Emerald
Tablet. It is supposed to hold the secrets of nature and allow man
to do magical things, mainly turn base metals into gold.
Perhaps the man who did the most to bring the grimoire to prominence
was Dr. John Dee. Desiring to make a name for himself among the crown
heads of Europe, he claimed to know the secrets of Alchemy and wrote a
number of works which are basically grimoires in order to convince the
rich and famous to finance his experiments. From Dee came the secret
society tradition: the Masons, the Rosicrucians, the Order of the Golden
Dawn, and other secret societies which rely on books of ancient lore as
their bonding element.
With the printing press, the general public got a taste for the arcane
and such works as “Le Dragon Rouge” (The red dragon), “La Poule Noire”
(The black chicken), “The Greater Etteila” and “Le Grand Albert”
et “Le Petit Albert” (the greater and the lesser Albert) gained attention.
Most are on the level of a snake oil salesman’s pitch and claim to produce
everything from making“girls dance without shirts” to making your cows
produce more milk.
Other people who have had lucritive careers writing, translating, and
promoting grimoires are Alistiar Crowley, Francis Barret, Eliphas Levi,
and L. W. de Laurence. Many have translated earlier works, revised
earlier works to their tastes, or created new grimoires.
But, be they real works by dedicated believers or hoaxes, grimoires
are fascinating manifestations of our desire and fear for the unknown.
JPO
Various
Authors - Main Page or return
to top
Arbatel
of Magic.
De art Magica par Jirgis ibn al-'Amid (Girgith) (pre 1412)
The
Black Hen.
The
Book of Death.
The Book of Enoch the
Prophet
Errores
Haereticorum.
Expeirmentum
Invisitilibatis .
For
the Invocation of Spirits .
Liber
experimentorum Johannis Trithemius .
Liber
Pentaculorum.
Liber
Spirituum.
Oupnekhat.
Picatrix.
Red
Book of Appin.
The
Sage of the Pyramids.
The
Secret Grimoire of Turiel .
Shemhamphoras.
Tonalamatl.
Y-Kim.
Zekerboni.
Abramelin the Mage - Main
Page or return to top
The
Book of Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage.
Adam -
Main
Page or return to top
The
Book of Raziel.
Book
of Signs.
Henry Cornielius Agrippa - Main
Page or
return to top
Fourth
Book.
Heptameron.
Liber Juratus. See Liber
Juratus (Solomon) and Liber
Juratus (Honorius)
The
Philosophy of Natural Magic by Henry Cornelius Agrippa .
Albert Magnus - Main
Page or return to top
Little
Albert.
Egyptian
Secrets .
Grimoirium Verum.
See Grimoirium Verum (Solomon)
and Grimoirium Verum (Little Albert).
Dr. Faust - Main
Page or return to top
Doctor
Faust's Gorsser und Gewaltiger Meergeist.
Great
and Powerful Sea Ghost.
Hell's
Coercion.
Hermes Trimegistus - Main
Page or return to top
Pymander
Commentary on the Pymander by Mead
Tabula Smaragdina or Table of the Emerald.
Pope Honorius - Main
Page or return to top
The
Constitution of Pope Honorius the Great.
Grimoire
of Pope Honorius.
Sworn
Book of Honorius.
.
Moses - Main
Page or return to top
Sixth
Book of Moses.
Sword
of Moses.
King Solomon - Main
Page or return to top
Includes an article about King Solomon
and his magic by Josephus along with notes and references for the works
attributed to King Solomon.
Key
of Solomon. Also known as Grand Clavicle or Clavicula Salomonis.
Lemegeton.
Also known as The Lesser Key of Solomon
Goetia, first book of the Lemegeton (q.v.)
Theurgia goetia, second book of the Lemegeton
(q.v.)
Paulina, third book of the Lemegeton (q.v.)
The
Almadel, fourth book of the Lemegeton
(q.v.).
Ars Notoria.
Sometimes called the fifth books of the Lemegeton (q.v.)
Grimoirium Verum.
See Grimoirium Verum (Solomon)
and Grimoirium Verum (Little Albert)
The Grand Grimoire.
See Grand Grimoire (Solomon)
and Grand Grimoire (Agrippa)
Sanctum
Regum. The second book of the Grand Grimoire
Red
Dragon. A another version of the Grand Grimoire.
Liber Juratus. See Liber
Juratus (Solomon) and Liber
Juratus (Honorius)
True
Black Magic.
True
Grimoire.
Testament
of Solomon.
Works on the History of Magic
or return to top
Witchcraft,
Magic, & Alchemy by Grillot De Givry .
The Great
Book of Magical Art, Hindu Magic and Indian Occultism by L.W. de Laurence
.
The Hindu
Occult Chamber: The Magic and Occultism of India, Hindu, and Egyptian
Crystal Gazing: The Hindu Magic Mirror by Dr. L. W. de Laurence .
On-Line Library
While in its infant
stages, the Miskatonic University On-Line Library is open to the public
and seeking submissions of works which are of interest to scholars, students,
and devotees of esoterica and weird literature. To enter the stacks,
follow this LINK.
