Double Book Launch - Clavis Goêtica & Rosicrucian Magic
Introduction
So let’s get this out: Spirits do not do goêtic sorcery, and neither do they do Rosicrucian Magic. I was hoping this was clear, but fear it might be necessary to point this out again. In the very same vein, nature does not do mathematics, nor even physics. And yet, we find perfect equations and powerful formulas woven into each grain of sand or cosmic wave arriving at our telescopes.
The truth is, humans are awe-inspiring dragomen: We decipher, we translate and we appropriate. Unfortunately, we also tend to forget that everything that remains with us, after such complex processes of investigation and research, is no longer the actual subject we aimed to investigate, but our very own way of making sense of it.
This is no different in Western Magic: This craft is an art and science invented by humans, with the intention to expand human agency, to partake and to co-create in realms that otherwise do not invite us in. Magic in all its forms is a cultural artefact. That fact makes no statement about its inherent power, functionality, or beauty; it only helps to distinguish that the beings we aim to create proximity with (i.e. spirits in all their forms), they do not use the same tools of engagement from their end. Humans, as I said, are an awe-inspiring dragomen.
This week I have the very rare opportunity to share two new books with you. They grew and materialised in completely separate ways through my practical work and historic research over the last decade. They also found entirely different pathways into publishing with two excellent partners, Hadean Press and TaDehent Books. And yet, they chose to come alive and be available for purchase on the same day, without anybody actively pursuing this. It simply happened, like magic likes to do.
Let me tell you a bit about both books. Just enough so you know what to expect, and whether they are for you.
Clavis Goêtica
Clavis Goêtica obviously represents the darker, chthonic underworld aspect of this dual book launch. However, just like Rosicrucian Magic, it is a book written by a practitioner for practitioners. Its purpose is to continue the important work Jake Stratton-Kent started with his Encyclopedia Goetia: To liberate goêtic practice from the artificial confines of Medieval grimoire culture, to break away from the orthodoxy of Solomonic Magic, and to open instead new pathways into this ancient craft. I wrote the book in the form of several essays, intentionally diverse in color and context, some of them deeply personal, others entirely focussed on historical analysis and accuracy.
The purpose of Clavis Goêtica is precisely not to offer you ‘a key’ to magical operations with the spirits of the chthonic realm, but to enable you to find your own keys really anywhere. As pointed out above: Spirits do not do goêtia, humans do. Therefore, what should determine efficacy and entry points of our craft is not at all any kind of human sense of lineage, tradition or ‘correct practice’ (orthopraxy). What should guide our magical call and touch instead, is the echo we are receiving back from the realm of the spirits.
As a magical practitioner, who works with an open hand, we have no reason to distrust the spirits we will encounter on our journey, just like we have no reason to trust them either.
Neither false intimacy nor rigid control can offer any safety on this path. Wishful thinking, one way or the other, has no place in our art and science. What we are focussed on instead is to work as unbiased as possible, upheld by our independent sense of critical thinking and accountability, driven not by what we want to be real, but by what we consider to be possible.
In this spirit, Clavis Goêtica introduces us to authentic magical workings of the underworld. That is, magic with bones and skulls, from caves and riverbanks, under the moon, with stained hands. We will explore an array of magical operations, that all draw us into the world, that invite us to partake. Each one of these magical workings are meant to reaffirm our position as a living, breathing, fleeting component of a vast spiritual ecosystem, that we jointly uphold together with myriads of spirits.
Clavis Goêtica was released in three versions: hardcover, softcover (£ 20) and epub (£ 15). The softcover and epub versions are available directly via Hadean Press or at most internet book retailers. The hardcover edition has now sold out; it was released April 27th 2021 in a limited edition of 300 books. A second print run is being prepared.
Rosicrucian Magic
Rosicrucian Magic, on the other hand, is not primarily focussed on drawing in the spirits from the surrounding spheres. Instead, it offers a collection of essays which all explore what it means to be human.
Now, answering that question as a shamanic-magical practitioner is impossible without speaking about the beings we co-exist with, the patterns we share, the realms we co-habit. Thus, to understand what is quintessentially human we have to familiarize ourselves in particular with the angelic realm.
This by no means is an arbitrary choice or an expression of personal judgement: I love my work with chthonic spirits, speaking to the beings in my skulls, sitting in a cave, travelling the underworld, learning about the ancient past and sensing the echo of archaic beings. Yet, what I experience in such magic as a human being is otherness, not humanness. Reversely, I can choose to travel towards the inside, not the outside: These are the moments when I commune with my Holy Daïmon, when the world is turning silent, when my consciousness is falling away, blending effortlessly into hers/his, like a stone sinking into a river. These are the moments when I – just like many others before – get a glimpse of the vast responsibility we hold as humans.
The purpose of Rosicrucian Magic is not at all to be a comprehensive primer. Rather than a broad sweep, the book aims to be a short sharp pinch: A reminder for some, a new insight for others, that the most powerful tool any mage will ever is hold the integrity of their intent and actions.
Knowingly or not, we all choose whether the crown we wear will be made from crystal, thorns or ashes. What determines our life’s path, our magical journey, more than most other factors is the simple decision how we like to hold ourselves against the world. How we show up, when the storm comes and the lion roars at midnight. – If I can contribute to anything at all with this humble book, I hope to inspire you to think in greater terms of yourself, and to willingly live up to that responsibility. Like only humans can.
Of course, in any context the term Rosicrucian deserves particular explanation. And so, that is what we are offering in the first chapter of this book. You can find an overview on the other chapters on the image above.
Rosicrucian Magic is now available on all Amazon platforms, and soon at other internet book retailers. It’s hardcover retail price is $41.90 (or £33.99 / €37.99). The kindle eBook version is available on Amazon for $11.53.
Acknowledgements
Finally, I want to point out a few things: Both books contain sections you might have read online, here on theomagica.com, but which have never appeared in print before. Both books, of course, also feature ample new research and pragmatic exercises derived from my own practice.
Furthermore, both books contain new and absolutely stunning occult images of no other than José Gabriel Alegría Sabogal. I feel deeply grateful for having the opportunity to see some of the work I initially saw in vision or old manuscripts, through his inspired art. What an astonishing sight it is! I am also simply happy to share it with you.
Lastly, let me point out that any money made from both books – which is anything but a fortune – remains with the publishers, Hadean Press and TaDehent Books. I am hopeful to be able to contribute to their excellent work and that these funds enable them to undertake more exciting projects in the future.