Customer Reviews

Communing with the Spirits: The Magical Practice of Necromancy Simply and Lucidly Explained, with Full Instructions for the Practice of That Ancie

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1 star:		(1)

 

 

While it is true that the author is very 'positive' minded when dealing this subject this does not mean that all of his methods or techniques within the book are 'invalid'.

I've been summoning Spirits thru methods of evocation since 1987 and I've not been 'possessed' by such a spirit. Frankly, the author's herbal potions and such in the back of the book are quite on the money. The techniques outlined for summoning spirits are not the old traditional methods but then again, these are not the traditional spirits from medieval grimoires.

In the Latin-American traditions of Sorcery, such as Quimbanda, Candomble, Vodoun, Santeria, Macumba and the like, Spiritism is seen as a regular Occult practice.

I'd give this book a solid try and learn from the author.

Peace Power Prosperity!

This is Not a book for Everyone!! The Author himself stresses over and over again not to get involved in this art unless you first have a solid grounding in the fundamentals of "basic magic". This book gives an excellent introduction to the art of Necromancy and is full of exercises to do to contact the Spirits of the Dead. This is not a Hollywood rendition of Necromancy, nor is it the "Satanic Demon Possession", and "Dark Arts" we have been warned of by overzealous, fanatical preachers of righteousness. After reading this book you will come away with a clear understanding of what Necromancy is, (and is not). Gone are the "Thees and Thous" of some other necromanic manuscripts I have seen. This is in modern, plain, everyday English. Chapters include: Magic and Spirits of the Dead, Personal Characteristics of a Necromancer, Meeting Your Ancestral Spirits, Obtaining a Divinatory Spirit, Advanced Summoning, as well as chapters on "Operative Spirits", "Working Spirits", and even a chapter on "Writing the Silent Dead". You will gain valuable information on "spiritual protocal" the hierarchal workings of the Spirit World as well as the "temperments" of Spirit Beings. You will want to read this book before venturing into the land of Necromania. This book includes Incense Recipes and even gives instructions on Moving Spirits of the Dead from Place to Place. I gained a healthy respect for this practice and and fuller understanding of how a lot of normal people practice this art without even realizing it. Ancestral Spirits, Shrines, it's all here. An easy read, from "Teacher" to "Student". With patience you will learn "True Necromancy!!!"

The author of this book states clearly, it is not for everyone. In order to be of instructional value one must meet the criteria for this work and follow the method chapter to chapter throughly completing each with patience. If one does NOT have the required qualities, inclination or maturity this book is NOT for them. It is NOT for the curious or for intellectual stimulation. This book is for the functional practicising spiritualist.If you are not a spiritualist your comments only reflect your incompatibility with the subject under discussion. I commend the author and the publisher for putting this information within reach of those who can benefit from it.

Having spent about thirty years involved with various magical practices, including several varieties of theurgic and thaumaturgic necromancy, I must iterate: "I pity the fool who trusts this book!" Coleman's "white light," namby-pamby viewpoint that most spirits of the dead are water-sipping vegetarian naifs could easily get a practioner possessed, haunted, or seriously harmed by a spirit who doesn't appreciate being summoned from beyond and then patronized by some fool who read this book and then THOUGHT he or she understood necromancy. This book is DANGEROUS! Most people's ancestral spirits may be generally kindly disposed towards them, but a few weeks on "the Coleman diet" would turn even the sweetest spirit into one very angry, very vindictive ghost.

Coleman is either patently ignorant of most Western historical accounts of necromancy (which generally involve a lot of blood and/or food and alcohol offerings) and the vast bulk of Voodoo/Santeria/Umbanda/Candomble wisdom which has been gathered over generations and is readily available in most large metropolitan areas of the Western Hemisphere and elsewhere, or else he is deliberately imposing his own sanctimonious pseudo-Deist outlook on what is LITERALLY a deadly serious matter.

I have no doubt that people have achieved remarkable success with Coleman's methods, but I also have little doubt that they were either self-deluded or else misled by "the trickster spirits" of whom Coleman (sensibly) warns his readers.

Coleman repeatedly hammers home the message: get a teacher! I would agree, adding but one caveat: make certain that your tutor in necromancy doesn't follow Coleman's other advice.

This is an extremely interesting and carefully designed treatment of some methods of working with spirits, meant for use by mature and sensible people with considerable previous experience in magic. I particularly value the author's insistence on the slow, gradual development of one's own skills. Someone who is impulsive and impatient by nature probably ought not to attempt the program of work that Coleman describes.

Just what these spirits may be, will always be controversial. Are they parts of the necromancer him(her)self, something like Jung's semi-autonomous complexes? Are they parts (archetypes) of something like Jung's collective unconsciousness? Are they the souls or spirits of other human beings, either living or dead? Are they other-than-human incorporeal beings, of one or several kinds? Are they denizens of the Other Places, who occasionally enter the confines of Our World? Do a few of them occasionally come from High Reality, beyond the parameters of time and space? Are they just apparitions, as will often appear in a psychomanteum constructed and used along Raymond Moody's lines? Are they, perhaps, something beyond any of these possibilities? -- Indeed, are some of them one thing, others another, yet others a third thing, and so on? I see no way to answer these questions with absolute certainty.

Whatever the spirits may be that one encounters by Coleman's methods, they seem to be very skillful in adapting to (or exploiting) the expectations of those who encounter them, presenting themselves just as the necromancer hopes (or fears). Some of them clearly want to be summoned, for their own unknown purposes (which will not be the same as the necromancer's purposes), and will make themselves extremely appealing to achieve their aims.

This means that deep self-knowledge, grave dispassion, and a good measure of caution are needed for this work.

The first edition was published in a quite limited number of copies, but there is now a revised edition with additional material, which I have not yet seen.

One of the best books that i've read on Necromancy. This book wipes the floor with other books that deal with the subject. Why?..because its beginner friendly and its to the point, a book such as this cannot be overlooked.

While I don't really intend to use all of his methods, I found Mr. Coleman's treatment of the subject and his instructions quite valuable. I particularly enjoyed the idea of keeping your divinatory spirit in a rice bowl in your closet! ;)

I read it in a week, and translate in in another! This book is absolutely fantastic and help's a lot! Buy it, cause it's a good investiment to your life and family, but forget the spiritual taboos...

I raised a whole army of the undead to take over the world. You can to if you read this book. It was also loads of fun.

great sniff bags, this is a good boo