Spiritualism and Necromancy: Now Available!

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This is a rather nice work that primarily relates to demons and demonology, from the particular perspective of the fire and brimstone Methodist path that, in the 19th century, was at war with spiritualism. In the foreword, I had to make it clear to the reader that as an occultist I reject some of the anti-spiritualist materials here, although the first sections primarily deal with fraud mediums and is accurate.

According to this work, many mediums and self professed clairvoyants are indeed contacting spirits- but those spirits are evil demons from Hell instead of the souls of the dead or elemental forces. The religious arguments made here simultaneously make it clear that some spiritualists are not evil but rather misled, even if they are still bound for Hell.

104 pages.

Death and the Afterlife: Now Available!

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This book is a strange one even by my own standards; it should be duly noted that due to censorship (and the deplatforming raids which have become a hallmark of the last few years) I have redacted a section of the book begrudgingly. You can find the original scans here if you wish and view this taboo knowledge for yourself about the races of mankind.

Andrew Jackson Davis, the author, wrote several works from the perspective of a clairvoyant. In this book he claims to have communicated with spirits and also to have seen the afterlife, which in his visions is rather varied, changeable, and wondrous, with rivers of light and many more wonders. For those intrigued by history it should be noted that this is one of the early works that would later form the backbone of eugenics-era philosophy without itself being eugenic in manner. Such philosophical writings would eventually give rise to the modern world.

166 pages.

The Talmud: Now Available!

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This little booklet is a fairly good guide to the basic understanding of the Jewish Talmud- rather than provide a massive and complex overview (as many works on Judaism) it condenses things pretty nicely and was meant mainly for the casual studier of religion more than for those intending to become experts- indeed the original edition had several dozen pages of ads for similar works- common at the time (which are useless now of course.)

It gives a bit of discourse on the difference between the Jewish writings themselves and the opinions and interpretations thereof, remarking that in many cases the latter is preferable as the former is so difficult to understand otherwise.

77 pages.

Ancient Cures, Charms, and Usages of Ireland: Now Available!

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This particular book is an interesting combination of work that delves into folklore, civics, and what might be considered, beyond the strictly folkloric, spook stories, some of which are fairly fantastical in nature. Crafted at the end of the 19th century, it encourages the invasion of Ireland by the United States to liberate the island from British tyranny, and at great length condemns the English almost in entirety.

For occult purposes the lore of interest here is threefold; first, a treatment of simple remedies, often herbal or in the form of Christianized incantations. Second, fairy lore, significant in bulk. Third, folk stories involving both the dead and witches in a great deal of sometimes quite morbid detail. I must admit several of the stories about dead brides were bizarre even by my standards. It caps itself off with a nice little series of proverbs, which are sometimes religious.

186 pages.

The Irreconcilable Gnomes: Now Available!

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This little booklet is an interesting fusion of two bits of content, courtesy of Rosicrucian leader Reuben Clymer. The first two thirds of the book are essentially dialogue with a gnome (the elemental spirit, not a little man with a red hat!) on the nature of reality, from the FRC's perspective, of course. The last third deals with grimoires- notably the Grand Grimoire, Black Pullet, and Grimorium Verum, offering some brief explanation and their usefulness in practicing spiritually. This is slightly odd since it also subjugates the Enchiridion to the Grand Grimoire, but it's a good read nonetheless.

48 pages.

The Dwarfs of Mount Atlas: Now Available!

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This is a nice little anthropological booklet that details the presumed existence of a tribe of abnormally small tribe of individuals living in some of the mountainous regions of the Atlas range in central Morocco. Funnily, it is technically possible such a group existed at the time, potentially having splintered off genetic pygmy groups in Central Africa. If such is the case, sadly, it is entirely likely the group succumbed to genocide or disease.

This tribe was apparently, if real at all, worshiped by some of the local inhabitants and was considered to have various magickal qualities including the imparting of good luck to locals when present. A fairly important bit of lore for those of us who are inclined to believe in the spiritual; things are not always entirely as they seem.

48 pages.

The Divine Mystery: Now Available!

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This is an extremely interesting (and somewhat odd) little work that comes courtesy of the man who led the Rosicrucian FRC order (and fought with AMORC) for quite a large part of his life. Apparently interested in most sub-fields of occult lore, Clymer is known mostly for straight philosophical lore, but here has compiled three technical components into one work; a heavily altered variant of Sinistrari's "Demoniality", a short number of philosophical passages mentioning gnostic lore, and then a series of bits of actual dialogue between Jesus and the Virgin Mary on spiritual topics, which conforms to the FRC's own ideology. Altogether the work is well worth reading, and its insinuation that the Virgin Mary was impregnated by a salamander, (a fire spirit) is perhaps heretical to main line christianity but interesting nonetheless.

104 pages.

Scottish Folklore: Now Available!

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This work is not, strictly speaking, occult in the main sense- however, folklore is often spiritual to an extent, and with this work, that is definitively the case. Written at the end of the 19th century, it contains anecdotal stories by the author- tales he heard or things he witnessed as a youth in Scotland. Some of the tales are hilarious, some bizarre, and a few touch on occult or cryptozoological topics such as the tendency of the old to tell spooky stories of kelpies and hags to small children (which the author- apparently a Reverend- deemed to be dismaying and bad for their spiritual development.) There's one oddball tale here involving the local madman forcing a schoolboy to march around the town reciting a Bible story, at the hazard of a beating. The Christian nature of many of the stories (and the author) gives the work a decidedly pseudoreligious bent.

As I state in the foreword, some passages are in Scottish language- which is not fully the same as modern English (substantial numbers of terms are used that the average English or American reader would not understand.) For these passages I suggest sounding them out, and they can be more easily understood than simply reading them. Sometimes the context of the terms together makes the meaning clear. Altogether a good work, if a bit on the strange side.

170 pages.

Pagan Mythology: Now Available!

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This book is one of those happy titles that I enjoyed reading for its content in the informational and entertaining sense as much as for editing; it contains two pieces of content- pagan lore (Greek and Roman) first, and then a late 19th century analysis of the same in the sense of its connection to social and political topics- for example ideas such as tyranny, liberation, the way in which a royal court operates, and so forth. There are many examples given and the lore goes beyond the topical and is quite descriptive. The sections on Bacchus and Prometheus are particularly interesting.

79 pages.

Flower Lore: Now Available!

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This is one of the most comprehensive works I've edited- a near 200 page compilation of lore all related to the botanical, paired frequently with poetry and Shakespearean verse, with more than a few references to civics (at the time the idea of a national flower was apparently hotly debated- it does mention my own state, Vermont, choosing the red clover as state flower- which it still is!)

The number of references within mythology are impressive- especially Greek mythology and some of the Christian iconography of yesteryear- including of course perhaps the most famous with Saint Patrick and the four leafed clover. As an interesting aside there's one little patch of white clover here on my property that spawns four leafed clutches at about a hundred times the normal rate (must be a mutant) and once I found one with seven in there. Altogether, this is a fine work, and right down my alley as a botanical enthusiast and lover of spiritual folklore.

190 pages.

A Tryal of Witches: Now Available!

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This little work is quite nice, and comprises two sections; a longer one that is a verbatim reprint of a 17th century witch trial, and second to that a short appendix with a few notations about the subject at large. I have decided to leave it in its original 19th century reprint form, with regards to the proceedings, which of course are in 17th century old English, archaic terms and all, because it is an important primary source document about persecution, and these days everyone should study more about moral panics and hysteria.

35 pages.

Werwolves; Various Folklore: Now Available!

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This is an excellent book, full length and in depth, produced by Elliott O'Donnell, a rather well known figure from the era- indeed, I just got done editing another of his works on spirits.

The lore here takes, mostly, the form of various folk tales from various cultures as far ranging as the Netherlands, France, and Siberia- some of them are quite entertaining short stories, and the author (who claims to have experienced several phenomena spoken of herein) mostly stands aside in general approval of the idea of lycanthropes while the stories tell themselves verbatim.

196 pages.

The Devil: Now Available!

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This little work is a nice little addition to the spiritual library being amassed here- it isn't about magic though, it's actually a reformist tract from the godfather of agnosticism aimed at bringing the idea of Hell and Satan low. It's a pretty good two pronged argument too, since it focuses on the rational (contraditions in the Bible, etc) and the emotional (the ethics of such a concept being real.) It should be noted that this is technically a long speech- an oratory- put to text and is not a stand-alone booklet at all, per se.

39 pages.

The Kybalion: Now Available!

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This fine work is quite well known and is a book I'd planned to edit for a couple of years, having heard of its existence but never actually read it. Well written if a bit dense, and quite enigmatic, the Kybalion purports to have been created by three initiates into the Hermetic secret, and contains multiple sections ruminating on the nature of existence, vibration of matter, the nature of thought, creation, and so forth. It's a philosophical work and claims itself to be merely the introductory text of this mystery tradition, passed orally from master to student since antiquity.

The author or authors of the work remain unknown and I am unsure any comprehensive study has attempted to compare its linguistic style to other contemporary individuals. Altogether, the work is quite good, and an interesting read- although its habitual use of upper case letters can be a bit jarring. I decided to leave that intact for authenticity.

115 pages.

The Witch Persecutions: Now Available!

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This small work is a compilation text and combines multiple sections each containing a primary source on various instances of persecution related to the witch trials. Burrs' work does not contain all of these pieces of lore verbatim- several of the longer sections are truncated and one omits passages from a lengthier manuscript. It is nonetheless of great use to those studying the period of history in which burning witches was in vogue. Notable here is a smuggled letter from one condemned to his son in the Bamberg proceedings, telling that those who accused him and even the executioners were sympathetic and understood the trials to be nonsensical, but nobody spoke for fear of reprisal on themselves and their friends and families.

50 pages.

Echoes of the Orient: Now Available!

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And now comes one of the most recognizable works released within Theosophy; an early work, "Echoes of the Orient" by the esteemed William Quan Judge.

Altogether it is a broad overview of 1. What Theosophy is, 2. What Theosophy believes, and 3. A mild refutation of some criticism aimed at the same. It should be noted that Judge was vice president of the rapidly expanding order at the time and that Theosophy would not only significantly expand after the writing of this book but spawn multiple significant offshoots, influencing politics despite being apolitical and being conjoined to the proro-eugenic movement.

70 pages.

Practical Occultism: Now Available!

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This is an excellent work delivered in the form of multiple lectures rather than as a single stand-alone book. It is at once an early example of pro-spiritualist literature and a brutal attack on then-mainstream religious sentiment regarding seances, ghosts, and other similar topics. Refuting the concept of Heaven and Hell in favor of spiritualist explanations, this book is one of a number of texts from the era which would lay the groundwork for the 1910s and 1920s explosion of occult societies that would recede only to give birth to the new age in the hippie era of flower children and apocalyptic atomic paranoia. Highly recommended for both practitioners and history buffs.

 125 pages.

The Secret of the Success of the Ouija Board: Now Available!

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This short booklet is an exceptionally bizarre one in which a pair of women living in early 20th century Alaska utilized the then-modern Ouija Board and attempted to communicate with spirits, deriving two basic meanings: First, that the board works in part because of its occupation by what we would now call hidden folk (dwarves, elves,) and secondly that the Ouija Board is a "telegraph to God." This reference shows its age- a decade later it might have been called a telephone. In any case, it's definitely worth a read, and the rest of its technically folkloric content is, divorced of a Ouija Board, perhaps more authentic in manner.

27 pages.

Materialized Apparitions: Now Available!

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This work is quite interesting and refers to various experiences and experiments performed by the author with regards to seances at the time for some years running. The main focal point is none other than the now infamous Anna Fay, was eventually outed as a fraud by Harry Houdini, among others- indeed not that many years after this work sought to use her as evidence of a spirit world.

Nonetheless it is of value- all the content connected just with the theoretical side of spirituality remains intact even to this day in a theoretical sense- although it is generally considered bunk because of its association with the same mediumship circles this work refers to. A fine bit of work exemplifying the spiritualism movement and of great interest for its description- accidentally- of very refined parlor magic.

82 pages.

Imperialistic Council of the Magi: Now Available!

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Of all of the odd arcana I've encountered during half a decade editing occult works, this takes the cake for the most odd of all. Invoking none other than Eliphas Levi, it purports to tutor the reader in how to become a magi. Here I insert an opinion; this work is typical of the era (and for a couple decades after) and is more like the Book of Forbidden Knowledge than it is a standard occult philosophy guide, only without some of the bric-a-brac inclusions and advertisements for crystals and self help guides.

That isn't to demean the work however- it's a fun albeit short read, and the various teachings it employs aren't inauthentic in and of themselves and roughly correlate to Theosophy and similar movements from the period. Highly recommended both for lore and laughs!

51 pages.

Ghostly Phenomena: Now Available!

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This is a rather strange little book and contains a compilation of tales about ghosts and encounters of the same, starting with the authors' own recollections, then tales related to him, and finally some of his opinions on various spiritual phenomena. The author, Elliott O'Donnell, has been generally considered a fraud because of his unwillingness to produce these third parties for scrutiny but I doubt it, personally, based on his open refutation of things like mediumship and automatic writing which could have made him far more cash than simply inventing spook stories. Embellishment aside, I have to assume some of his experiences were genuine.

The work also includes some passages about haunted trees and ghostly mariners, which involve some secondary works which the reader may find useful.

108 pages,

General Update Time!

It's time for the very first update of the year- I won't do these as frequently, probably, because some of the content gets a bit redundant.

First; I have managed to acquire a dozen or so new works I did not have before, for editing. I have enough material to last me through 200 editions, which is the end goal for this year.

Second: Because of my surge of work in December (which I will continue through this month also) I am well ahead of the curve- a lot of the remaining works I hope to release are fairly short and most are in good condition so replicating and editing them will be quicker than for works in poorer conditions or which are quite long. (I like to release works that most consider too short to be worth editing.)

Third: At some point I am going to take a good long look at the Grand Albert and consider releasing it as I did for the Petit Albert: It is important to note that there are two Grand Alberts in circulation, one of which is not a folkloric document and has nothing to do with occult workings.

Fourth: It seems sales have recovered from their lull post-Createspace and may even have risen, possibly because of the huge number of new titles released in December. Since income from crowdfunding is down across the board for most people who create content at all it makes sense to surge on ahead with what has been my primary income anyways; namely, literature.

Fifth: I hope to write a few works of my own in 2019- a couple occult topics and perhaps some spooky fiction.

Onward with the year!

Animism, the Seed of Religion: Now Available!

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This is of interest potentially to two groups of people; the occultist will here find some interesting folk tales and spiritual rites from cultures then being actively studied at the height of the colonial era, and the history buff will find in these pages an interesting but sometimes outdated colonial perspective on non-European cultures. It focuses mostly on African lore but also on India and makes some mention (in the naturalistic period post-animism but prior to semimodern religion, as the theory then held) to the Mesoamericans. The categorical system isn't entirely accurate, but it is applicable and useful.

60 pages.