Customer Reviews

Magical Tattwa Cards: A Complete System of Self-Development (Boxed Kit)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Right from the beginning, this isn't a new-age book. These teachings come for an ordained member of one of the ancient swami orders of India, and one of the most prestigious ones to boot. These teachings weren't cooked up by some new-age enthusiast over the last few years, they are literally a thousand years old and are still around cause they work.
(What I'm telling you is true, not the usual hype found in these gee-whiz customer reviews.) The part of the book that had the most dramatic effect on me was the section about opening your third eye. There are probably around eight visual exercises, to be done consecutively. They aren't difficult. I would actually do them while listening to old movies every evening (you can't watch the movie because these excercises train your vision). The good doctor says to start out doing them ten minutes at a time. I eventually went to twenty minutes at a time. After a few weeks of this I came in one evening, into a dimly lit room, looked at my eight-year-old daughter and...guess what? Saw her aura. No joke. Some time after that I went to a lecture and not only saw the man's aura but the colors in it. Of course, you have to keep doing the exercises to make the change permanent. How can this be true, you're asking yourself? (skepticism is good). They work because the exercises gradually change the rods and cones inside your eyes and allow you to see an expanded spectrum of light.
Let's get one thing clear--for most of history these things have been secret. In most traditions you would have to hang around for years to learn this.
This is not the only thing in the book. There's also a very cool oracle. He teaches you how to use it and also a short tantric ritual to clear your mind before consulting it. A tantric ritual? Try getting something like this from most ordained tantrics. It can't be done. It's yours for the taking. This is very sophisticated stuff, the real deal.
There are also sophisticated exercises to develop your chakras. In fact, the whole gist of Indian Tantra is contained in this book; unlike most books on tantra which are either vague or preachy or academic and dry as dust, this one is a how-to book that he somehow makes highly entertaining. Mumford really is a treasure and this is his most accessible book. It's not only profound, it's actually fun. But what's most impressive about it is its totally, completely AUTHENTIC.

This kit should be a required purchase for any yogi-in-training, witch, ceremonial mage or anyone who wants to change their lives for the better. I've thumbed through various psychic development manual and self-help "cookbooks" on positive thinking, etc. and haven't seen any exercises or advice that is direct, clear, practical, and REALISTIC like the Tattwa kit. Dr. Mumford spends only 1 chapter on background info. on Indian use of Tattwas and the rest of the book is comprised of exercise upon exercise. He doesn't repeat himself over and over, tell you to do things he hasn't done himself or without telling you why. You don't have to buy anything else or spend money on his other books or tapes to make this one work for you. If anything, Dr. Mumford is rather unassuming given his credentials. There are no new-age terminologies, feel good 'fluffiness' or abstract concepts. Lastly, you don't need to do the exercises for months before seeing the slightest results. Results, though small at the beginning, are seen from day 1. And if you read ahead like I do, you'll get excited at what you'll be able to do by the end of the book IF you do everything consistently. You only need 10-15 min. a day to do them. This is one of Llewellyn's hidden gems!

[Tattwas are like psychic elevators, psychic circuit boards, a bridge between the conscious & the unconscious mind. It is based on the five elements of Earth(Square), Water(Crescent) , Fire(Triangle) , Air(Circle) & Ether(Oval). They are used for , Divination, Scrying , Chakra Activation, Shaping the Future, OBE, Lucid Dreams & Developing Clairvoyance,]

Some chapters of the book are very hard to follow & confusing. In chapter six , page 202, it is very clear that the author has made a mistake & somehow the publisher missed it . Ether Seed of Water is denoted by a crescent inside an oval, instead it is represented as a triangle inside an oval, which belongs to Ether Seed of Fire. I double checked the latter & previous chapters since Im new to this subject, & it was evident & obvious , that mistakenly, the author has drawn the wrong elemental shape. This is significant & critical, because if anyone is new to the subject of Tattwas cards (like me), will get very confused & will end up practicing the Tattwa cards incorrectly, which according to the author, must be done in a very specific & correct way for optimal effect!!!

I also had mixed emotions about the Tattwa cards. It is great fun using these cards. According to the author, the cards must be introduced to the subconcous / unconcous mind, by a process he calls "unconscious assimilation". This is done by keeping the Tattwa on a white piece of paper, & staring at it for 1-2 minutes, then the card is removed & one continues gazing at the white paper. Soon an image of the card will develop & appear on the white paper, even though it has been removed. The illusory image appearing in the white paper is spectacular & vivid. This is particularly helpful for people, like myself, who find visualization hard to achieve. This is something like an automatic visualization. You do not have to make any effort to visualize the Tattwa shape, just gaze at it, look away, & it will appear, its that simple. A job well done making the cards shapes & colors, but the cards are not durable & bend very easily. Actually this is the first set of cards I ever purchase, but I have seen & used better set of cards that are more durable.

Despite my frustration with the book's lack of clarity, I must give it a 4 for the following reasons. The philosophy of Samkhya or the Five Element Theory is a vast subject that existed for over 2500 years & has been condensed into a 270 pages book, (theory + practice), & I feel, the book could not have been presented in a simpler way. Even though some chapters in the book are confusing & hard to follow, it is not incomprehensible. I had to read some chapters more than once to understand them, so I eventually did understand what the author was trying to say. It is also, so much fun using the Tattwas & gazing at its spectacular colors. Only 2 weeks after purchasing & using the Tattwas , I recall my dreams more often than I used to, & I have had one lucid dream

This is a profound method of both creating a foundation, and finding the right first steps to take on any spiritual path. It is easy to read, easy to understand, and offers a wide variety practices which are not only easy to perform, but can produce vivid experiences that will astound anyone who practices them. It really does make me wonder how such simple exercises can have such an impact, but they do. It will be some time before I finish this book, because I go slower than the author precautions, so as to stay away from trouble. Though it would seem oversimplified to someone who just thumbs through it, the author just has a special talent for doing just that. I do not use it for the divination, but ALL of the information is of a high quality.

I've never heard of these cards until I read Edain McCoy's book that dealt with how to use the tattwas as gates to the world of astral travel. When I saw Dr. Mummford's book mentioned in her book I eagerly snatched up the book and card kit. Ashamed to admit it, but I'm not one to have an attention span for longer then 5 seconds but the cards did help my lucid dreaming and probably would have had more profound results if I had stuck witht the exercises. Right now I'm returning to the tattawa's because of my need to get in touch with the element of earth after badly hurting my knee. the exercises are interesting enough that I'm eager to return to them. No more am I a skim the book person. This time witht the help of the tattawa's I hope to have results bigger then lucid dreaming.

I just got a copy of "Magical Tattwa Cards" and the accompanying book within the past 3 months. I've worked alot through the past 2 decades with Tarot & Runes, but these cards in their simplicity allow the reader to access very deep levels of their own physical and spiritual bodies. The flashing tablets allow the cards to stay with you during meditation. I have found them quite valuable in divination, and much more so for meditation. When holding the image in your mind, you won't be dissapointed with your meditation. I have several other titles/tapes of Dr. Mumford's and I find them all to be frank speaking, and very accessible. I encourage other seekers of things esoteric to get this card/book set. I think you will like it! 131

These cards will be helpful for those interested in astral travel, rising on the planes, working with elementals and working with enochian flashing tables. The color production of these cards is excellent. A powerful system in it's own right.A must buy, a good spiritual investment.

This book is intended to be praticed in my opinion esentialy from begining to end, although with a few exceptions. I have not personaly finished this book because I have been working from it, since in my opinion it is better to gain direct experience, rather than being an arm chair magician so called, who has just theretical understanding with no real direct expirience.I must quickly point out that this book is no quick fix, but it is by no means one of those old esoteric Tomes (thankfully) that has exercises which promise success if your lucky, on your death bed. It has a section on Divination, Scrying, meditation and what I noticed was a section called shaping the future, Which from My understanding is similar to Austin Osman Spare's Sigil Magic. This Book is truly a pratical book which to me is very important for someone like me that had little expirience before. People with more expience in magic should also find this book interesting as it deals with a subject (tattwas) which few have writen practically about although the tattwas were used and Writen about By the Hermetic Order Of The Golden Dawn. But this is NOT the same system. As Donald Tyson Says Occult knowledge is earned it is never recieved.

The cards are well made. The exercises are ok at first, but after a few chapters later, its totally waaaaaaaaaaay confusing. The author makes it sound so easy to do the excercise. I think he's forgetting that most people who really wants to learn about Tattwas are beginners. The description and the instructions for the excercise isn't well written and a bit dry. The author seems to be really facinated with the end results of the exercise. I can just picture him saying "Hoorah!"... I stopped after Chapter 4, since he's going on a much faster pace and makes everything easy. He had been studying this for decades and expect someone without much background to jump up and shout "Yeh!well, not quite. Tattwas are quite complicated since it deals with the unseen forces and can act as a doorway to the elemental realm of the astral. I gave this 3 stars because of the card itself. If you practice Magick, then using the cards to enter the Astral Realm helps. I try not to think about the book, since its not that useful - for some of you with more talent might find it useful, as for me a beginner not quite. The cards are beautifully made and can be used with other instructions (if you can find one).

Scrying with the Tattwas was a practice widely utilized by the Golden Dawn. It provides great training in astral sight and travel, as well as, a great depth of personal introspection and transformation.
Dr. Mumford's book is a definite classic and the tattwa cards are absolutely brilant in color, using the flashing color techniques of the GD. His exercises are simple yet practical, and the system of tattwa divination is simple and comprehensive. You can start working the system as soon as you start reading the book, very few occult practices are so easily approachable.
This box set, however hard to find it may be, is worth every penny you spend on it.