The Stone of the Philosophers: Now Available!

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This work is quite interesting; written by Edward Kelly (sometimes spelled 'Kelley') while he was under imprisonment (either for murder or for failing to make gold using alchemy!) it is a discourse proving, he believes, several alchemical principles he held at the time, by referring to other parties' works; philosophers, alchemical authors, and works of alchemy of both known and unknown origin; the Rosary, the Turba, and many others.

The main overarching principle is quite clear and not veiled at all, possibly because Kelly wished to escape the dungeons of Rudolph II: That gold, silver, and mercury, and those in their elemental forms, are the only materials used within the main great work of alchemy. Kelly allows one exception; the work of Saturn, the creating of elixir using lead and/or antimony a-la Hollandus. Under duress, or apparently so, Kelly created a short but monumentally clear work containing little of the ambiguity of most contemporary chemical works.

34 pages.

Cultus Arborum: Now Available!

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Cultus Arborum is one of the most important works within the span of the more anthropological side of the occult, spiritual, and mystic. Written in 1890, it was created along with works specifically on serpent worship and phallic worship at the time. The Cultus is, of course, about tree worship within a number of cultural contexts.

The content here is dense and quite good; some studies of magickal and spiritual lore predominantly focus just on one culture or one time period, but the Cultus focuses on two thousand years of history, drags in hundreds of outside sources, and ranges from Egyptian, to Greek, to Norse, to English, to Indian and Tibetan material revolving around tree worship and stories of the same in one form or another. Needless to say, because it speaks primarily of plants, this is one of the most interesting works (to me) that I have edited.

120 pages.

Demoniality; Incubi and Succubi: Now Available!

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Now comes the first of at least three works on demonology which I intend to edit and release in the wake of King James' own Demonology; this time, a Catholic rather than Protestant work, which appears to be a rough counterpart to (and at several points a refutation of) the Protestant Demonological tradition.

The text covers, in quite a bit of detail, the nature of incubi and succubi in an elemental and physical sense, their relative status as beings, relates several specific tales of their amorous passion or their violent nature, then proceeds to speak of literal demonic necrophilia in which a corpse has been requisitioned by an incubus for nocturnal purposes; unlike King James' work, which refutes the concept that such unions produced children, Sinistrari believes that they can, and that often the resultant offspring were essentially lesser Nephilim, spawned (as Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, and others supposedly were) not by mortal man but by "gods" which Sinistrari considers a reference to the demonic. Helpfully, the original author clears up an apparent confusion over whether sex with corpses possessed by demons is a form of bestiality; he claims that it is merely an act of spiritual pollution punishable only by urging repentance- a rather tolerant stance for the era.

In the strangest twist of all, he then claims that demonic entities, at least those of certain types, are actually capable of being killed physically by humans, and of also repenting of their sins and gaining entry to paradise.

Originally a Renaissance work in Latin, Father Sinistrari's Demoniality was translated into English in the 1870s by Isidore Liseux. Liseux' version retained the Latin and contained several lengthy advertisement pages as well as a post-preface ramble on the work which did very little to illuminate it (all of this material I have omitted as useless.)

90 pages.

Triple Update: Demoniality, Cultus Arborum, Sickness in Hell

Time for a short update; "Demoniality" has been completed; indeed, it would already be available, but I noticed a misspelling on the cover I designed and had to resubmit the work again; which means it won't be live until tonight. After the Latin and ads were taken out and the formerly gigantic trim size brought to modern standards, the work was 90 pages in length. It's certainly worth a read; it's at least as good as King James' Daemonologie.

Cultus Arborum is a breeze because it isn't in old English; I am now a third of the way through editing the work, and if you have any interest in strange myths, eastern spirituality, herbalism, antiquities, or the occult in general, this dense work has a little bit for everybody. Honestly I'm taking time out of editing just to read the work over several times because this is the sort of text I like best.

Chapter 10 of "Sickness in Hell" is now complete. Subsequent chapters will be steadily more deranged and grotesque- but as always I am restraining myself just enough to make sure there's an actual coherent plot. As such, this work is now more than half complete. Huzzah!

Three Works of Demonology For 2016

Because King James' Demonology has risen up so quickly in sales I have decided to expedite several other works on the topic of demonology and try to get a couple of them released before the end of the year alongside the work I need to do before Halloween; namely Sickness in Hell, Cultus Arborum, and the Greater Key of Solomon.

The first work is entitled "Demoniality" and was written in the 17th century by a "Father Sinistrari"- the work was translated from its original Latin in the 1870s, and is actually fairly short- which you wouldn't know looking at the nearly 300 page original; indeed, the typeface used and the fact that it combines, on every other page, the Latin original with the English, means that this work will probably be no more than 150 pages when properly completed. It ruminates on sex with corpses, Incubi and Succubi in general, stories related to the same, the nature of the Devil's Mark, witchery, and other related topics- it's quite good. I have already begun editing this particular manuscript.

The second is Robert Brown's "Demonology and Witchcraft." This work is substantially longer and was released in 1889. This is a much more christianized style of work than most I am used to editing but worthy nonetheless of inclusion into the growing occult catalog I'm fielding here.

The third is Walter Scott's "Letters on Demonology and Witchcraft." This 1830 work requires little explanation due to its general notoriety, suffice it to say it covers just about everything that could possibly be related to demons and witches. It is a substantially long work and will take quite a bit of time.

Tract on the Tincture and Oil of Antimony: Now Available!

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This was a one-day editing work alongside some material I got done for Sickness in Hell and the Greater Key; a little work by Roger Bacon on processing antimony to make the infamous red oil of the philosophers, using also lead, in a way quite similar to the work of Hollandus on the topic of Saturn.

The process here is quite literal so those who desire more how-to and less metaphoric alchemical lore will probably appreciate this specific tract. The medical applications of the final result of this work are considered here to be quite prolific- ranging from treating gout to preventing or stopping mania and fever.

24 pages.

Secretum Secretorum: Now Available!

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This is one of the most important works within Medieval literature. Ascribed to Aristotle in his dialogue and letters to Alexander the Great, it actually dates to the 10th century or thereabouts and was originally composed in Arabic.

The Secretum Secretorum, or Kitab Sirr Al-asrar, delivers a lengthy and varied expose of truths and philosophical murmurings on topics ranging from medicine and dietary strategy, to governance, to battle and social mobility. In an era where most reigning monarchs were seen as tyrannical and absorbed entirely with the quest for wealth, sex, and expanded borders, this guide seems like a massively advanced philosophical tract by comparison. This edition has been rendered into fully modern English from extremely archaic English. It covers spiritual topics, physical topics, and much more.

66 pages.

Turba Philosophorum: Now Available!

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The Turba Philosophorum is one of the foremost philosophical and alchemical texts of all time; probably comparable in popularity to the Rosarium Philosophorum.

It is delivered in the form of a dialogue between various great antiquated minds in science and philosophy, despite the fact that it was created no earlier than perhaps the late 800sAD and probably in the early 900s. It expounds and elaborates upon alchemical principles and truths that would become commonplace centuries later in virtually all Renaissance era works of this type.

I utilized Waite's (now public domain) translation of this work, and modernized it completely, significantly improving the formerly cramped format of the same.

110 pages.

Second Update: Turba Philosophorum Complete, SIH, More

It is an exciting time of year and Halloween is getting closer by the day- the slow decline of my garden and the beginning of changing color on the leaves of the trees is a fine thing to behold. It looks like this year, unlike last, I will have achieved my three main goals at least two weeks before that special spooky day; namely, the release of Sickness in Hell, the release of the Greater Key of Solomon, and the release of the Book of Forbidden Knowledge.

Sickness in Hell is now almost half complete- I topped off the eighth chapter today and developed an expanded, better plot for the ninth, which would have contained material from the 11th, 12th, and 13th chapters of the original manuscripts. I can now guarantee that this work will be done by late September unless I fall into a coma or off a cliff.

The Greater Key is going well, and I have compiled about a third of the material itself into proper form without editing anything beyond the introduction just yet. Once it's all in a good format and I get an idea of the length I can begin editing. I hope to have it done by the first week of October.

The Book of Forbidden Knowledge I haven't worked on in three days but no worries; it's far shorter than these other works.

In the meantime I have finished the Turba Philosophorum; which is probably as popular and important as the Rosarium Philosophorum and Twelve Keys of Basil Valentine. I've also formatted the Aurifontina Chymica although I have not begun editing it. For the time being I have stalled out on the Secret Book of the Black Arts although I hope to have this done in November at latest. As for Letters of Demonology and Witchcraft, it is a substantial work of about 300 pages so that will be a long time coming; maybe early 2017. I have work to do on Cultus Arborum as well.

General Update: New Works Being Edited, etc

Just so people know what they're looking forward to here I figured it was time for another general update.

Having released half a dozen new works in alchemy, I think I've sated my appetite for the philosopher's stone for a while- I've proceeded to begin working on literally half a dozen works at the same time, in addition to Sickness in Hell (which is now roughly one third complete.) Because they are not all the same in length (especially considering format and the size of text used!) they will surely not all be done at the same time. Because I tend to do a massive amount of work on a text and, if it isn't short, subsequently lose interest for a while in the subject matter, I have a tendency to rotate the work that I do weekly, so that it stays fresh in my mind and helps my concentration.

Thus the following works are on my plate.

1. The Greater Key of Solomon: An extremely popular and important work compiling various Solomonic manuscripts together, originally released in its modern form by Mathers in the late 1800s. This grimoire is probably third in popularity only behind the Lemegeton and the Grand Grimoire. I can't get a good indication of its final length until I've gotten more of it done because the typeset used was tiny. I estimate 150 to 200 pages. I have completed everything up to the preliminary introduction of the first book.

2. Cultus Arborum: This one is shorter (about 100 pages) and was released in the same series as the Ophiolatreia. It concerns phallic tree worship. I've gotten about 10 pages of this edited.

3. The Book of Forbidden Knowledge: An early 1900s manuscript combining aspects of talismanic magic, folk rites, folk medicine, and fortune telling. It is quite dense, and will stretch to an estimated 80 pages, 15 of which are done now.

4. The Secret Book of the Black Arts: Not to be confused with Cavendish' work which comes a century later. I am 20 pages into this 200+ page work.

5. Secretum Secretorum: A roughly 70 pages pseudo-Aristotelian tract professing to be an antiquated work in which Aristotle guides Alexander the Great. In reality it is likely a Medieval tract simply attributed to the same. This one is fully formatted but it will take a long time to work through the extremely archaic English it contains.

6. Aurifontia Chymica: The second longest alchemical work I've seen, second of course to the Rosary of the Philosophers. At about 140 pages it will take a little time. I've formatted part of it and not yet begun editing.

Three Works of Alchemy: Now Available!

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Here are three short works of alchemy compiled together, for the purpose of length; each one was too short to release on its own. That being said, it's one of the most significant possible triplicities of alchemical lore that could possibly be released at all.

It contains "The Immortal Liquor Alkahest" of Philalethes, "Everburning Lights" by Trithemius, and "Philosophic Fire" by Pontanus. Philalethes' work, in the form of question and answer, spells out what alkahest is, where it comes from, and how to obtain it (namely, from human blood and urine.) Trithemius' work is ascribed to him but was made later, containing the simplistic backstory that Trithemius gave a scrip to someone whom the author met with, discovering the secret of creating phosphorescent lamps which could give off light for thousands of years. The third text, by Pontanus, is itself a key of alchemy- namely because it is the only text to tell the reader the nature of alchemical fire and where to research it (specifically, they are recommended to read Artephius' work.) With these three texts combined, alchemy becomes substantially easier to understand.

26 pages.

The Secret Work of the Hermetic Philosophy: Now Available!

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While this specific work claims the title of Hermetic Philosophy, it is more a standard alchemical text than a philosophical tract.

It attempts to reduce the convolution and deliberate obfuscation of alchemical truth by prior authors to a lesser degree such that the student is more readily able to understand the process of creating the stone of the philosophers- an attempt which is partially successful. It then divides the total work into the Zodiac, referencing stages of time required to produce the final result by astrological means.

52 pages.

On the Philadelphian Gold: Now Available!

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"On the Philadelphian Gold" is mostly a Socratic-style dialogue related to philosophy as opposed to alchemy, but it is an alchemical work nonetheless, insofar as  it relates to the several types of matter and body posited to exist by one member of this same dialogue; Philadelphus, speaking with the materialistic Philochrysis on the topic of spiritual gold.

This work was made by the Philadelphian Society many centuries ago. This edition has been rendered from older English usage to mostly modern English, save for a few references which have no other proper counterpart.

38 pages.

Demonology of King James I: Now Available!

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Here is one of the most interesting of all spiritual works; a tract on demonology literally written by a king- King James I of England that is- in the twilight of the 16th century.

Originally composed in extremely old English, this edition has been modernized, although a few generally outdated terms (like betwixt) have been retained for stylistic effect. The entire work is delivered in the form of a dialogue, between the fictional Epistemon and Philomathes. This usage was considered by James to be of greater entertainment than delivering a more academic text.

It covers the nature of witchcraft, the different types of magic (differentiating, for example, necromancers, sorcerers, and witches) and the nature of airy spirits or "fairies." It proceeds to heavily denounce Catholicism and list some categories of demonic entities, the meaning of incubus and succubus and what they pertain to, and their connection to the "night mare" (sleep paralysis) among other things.

75 pages.

Hieroglyphical Fortune Teller: Now Available!

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In a stroke of good luck I happened upon this work while researching the early 1900s Oraculum; the Dream Book version, as opposed to Tousey's far better Book of Fate version.

A slimmed down work, it contains an expansive oracle in place of Tousey's shorter oracle twain with other content. As a pure fortune telling manuscript, it revolves around asking one of 26 questions, then choosing one of 26 letters to represent the answer- this works better when ascribing the numbers 1 through 26 on a random number generator to this purpose, or when the letters have been placed on cards and turned facing down so the user is able to eliminate the possibility of guesswork based on prior usage (the original text merely instructs the user to choose a Hebraic symbol for their answer- useless if they have used it more than a few times.)

Altogether an interesting work.

35 pages.

What Your Neighbor's Say: Now Available!

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This little booklet is one of the most bizarre things I've ever edited. It manages to combine Victorian-Era quack medicine (various and often psychotropic pills and tablets) with a fairly decent dream interpretation section (similar to that of Tousey's "Napoleon's Oraculum) and multiple "recipes for invalids." It also contains some folkish material, specifically regarding the preservation of linens, cleaning kitchenware, and fire safety.

The testimonials and ads for Dr. Pierces' medicines are amusing but not generally connected to the more interesting dreams-and-folkishness content.

36 pages.

Sickness in Hell Update, And More!

Courtesy of the "Secret Book of the Black Arts" containing numerous references to other occult works, often philosophical and often historical, I have hit pay dirt once again and obtained five new works I was not formerly aware of, including King James' own Demonological manuscript; I will be releasing these over time along with all the work I already had going on.

Progress is swift on SIH so far; I'm half done with the fourth chapter and now getting into the meat and bones (figuratively and literally) of the story; without giving too much away, it's a festival of degraded morbidity already and I've only tentatively inserted a few grotesqueries so far out of a horde of vicious, slopping, cancerous abominations.

Today the heat wave came back and although I got necessary work done I didn't get any editing completed on any of the three works I'm plowing through as we speak; when it's 90 degrees with near 100% humidity, this state feels like southern Florida, and working under those conditions can be more difficult than when it's crisp and warm and the crickets are chirping happily outside to remind me that all living things rot away in due time.

A New Booklet I Obtained; And More!

I have obtained a copy of Dr. Pierces' "What your Neighbors Say about You." This long-running quack pharmaceutical pamphlet is half dream interpretation and half other material- the "other" category is mostly medical ads for quack healing but also contains some herbal at-home remedies, recipes, and other stuff. The particular edition I purchased from ebay isn't like any of those I have seen on the internet as pdf scans so I can only guess at some of the content.

Obviously I plan to scan this for the occult archive (as the first new file available there in several years! Huzzah!) as well as to create a paperback edition for others to purchase. The dream interpretation section appears to be almost as long as that found in Napoleon's Oraculum.

I am currently editing "The Hieroglyphical Fortune Teller" which is similar to the early 1900s Oraculum but has Hebrew lettering instead of nativity symbols and has several different questions and a dissimilar casting system. It will take quite a bit of time to complete despite its short length because I am simultaneously writing "Sickness in Hell" (I am now done with the epilogue and first three chapters!) and editing The 1875 work "The Secret Book of the Black Arts" (not to be confused with the similarly titled work by Cavendish much later.) It's a somewhat longer work (about 200 pages) so I will release three or four shorter manuscripts while editing it.

A Teaser From "Sickness In Hell"

What follows is a brief teaser from Sickness In Hell; my forthcoming splatterpunk novel. It's been years since I wrote the first drafts and it is finally taking form.

If Pillwaff and her cronies had bothered to let the monitoring staff know what Henry had been up to days before, they might have been a little more vigilant- those mushrooms growing in the slurry-tainted swamp separated from the intake stream by only a few yards of loose dirt had finally made their way to fresher water- which didn't benefit their growth, but didn't stop them either. Some of those spores had gotten into the intake, and the decaying filter screens installed long ago hadn't stopped them so much as they had provided the perfect dirty, greasy substrate for them to take hold inside the water ducts under the plant. The rusted, leaking pipes there weren't helping, and the entire system was, unknown to anyone in the plant, ripe for infestation by fungal colonies.

The situation worsened over the next few minutes as well; the intake system quickly began spawning hyphae and little, almost microscopic bits of mushroom flesh were now circulating freely past the filter, as the happy little fungus growths pushed their feeding receptacles to the other side of the filtration sheets. With no way to monitor the filtered water (for such technology did not exist in their aging plant) those in the monitoring center could only ring Pillwaff hours later when they finally bothered to check the indicator lights and tell her that they should close things down for the afternoon and have someone replace the filter system. Pillwaff wanted to go home and wear bondage gear while watching dwarf porn anyways, to get herself all greasy and sweaty, so she didn't give a shit and switched everything off herself.

Down in the shipping room annoying Sally had already been told to go home, but decided to be anally retentive as always and commanded the last truck to dock anyways and she'd load it herself. She didn't like unfinished work- her raging obsessive compulsive disorder drove her mad and she wouldn't be able to sleep if the hams weren't packed and shipped before five o'clock sharp. It wasn't hard- years of doing the odd lifting job herself when others weren't willing or present had left her muscles bulging with veins- perhaps she was stronger physically than any of the men in the plant.

She had no idea the batch was tainted with mutated, slightly radioactive fungus- it's not like the people in the monitoring center really communicated with anyone else in the plant- Sally had just assumed that the filters were clogged by a dead muskrat or some other unfortunate animal had drowned and gotten sucked in, its corpse slowly dissolving into sediment as it flattens against their water intake. She didn't know shit about water systems anyways- who cares?