The Middle Pillar: The Balance Between Mind and Magic [Paperback]

Israel Regardie (Author), Chic Cicero (Editor), Sandra Tabatha Cicero (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 8, 2002

The classic book on working with the energy of the body for spiritual purposes, The Middle Pillar by Israel Regardie, is now more complete, more modern, more usable, and better than ever.

The exercise known as the Middle Pillar was devised by the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. Regardie expanded upon it and made it public over 60 years ago in the first edition of this book. Since that time, the exercise has been altered and adapted for just about any spiritual use you could think of. It is a mainstay of many Western traditions of magic.

Now in its third edition, The Middle Pillar is better than ever.  It has been edited by Chic Cicero and Sandra Tabatha Cicero, close friends of the late Regardie and senior Adepts of the Golden Dawn. They have also added new material in a separate section that more than doubles the size of the book with their valuable insights and knowledge.

* Includes the complete original text, with nothing eliminated
* Spelling has been standardized to Western traditions
* Each chapter now has a title to identify its content
* The Ciceros's notes to each chapter add insight and history to Regardie's work
* Modern and clearer illustrations have been added
* New, a further exploration of the relationship between magic and psychology
* New, more than five techniques to enhance relaxation
* New, the Middle Pillar and the Chakras
* New, versions of the Middle Pillar exercise in Egyptian, Greek, and Gaelic
* New, a shamanic version of the Middle Pillar
* New, how to use the Middle Pillar to charge talismans and do healings

The Middle Pillar is now expanded to what it always should have been, a thorough, accessible examination and extension of the single ritual that has become the very embodiment of magic. Get The Middle Pillar and learn the real secrets of magic.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Sixty to seventy years ago the validity of psychology as a science was hotly contested. A young Israel Regardie took another debated subject, magic, and showed that it could be seen as a subdivision of psychology. He even said psychotherapists could use techniques of magic in a clinical setting for the benefit of patients.

In his classic book, The Middle Pillar, he reveals both the techniques that could be used and how they could benefit psychologists. The Middle Pillar exercise has also become one of the most important rituals in all of Western magic. As such, there has been much growth in the practice of this exercise over the years.

That's why I'm pleased that Chic and Sandra Tabatha Cicero have added an incredible amount of notes to the complete original text in this book and more than doubled its size with new contributions not published elsewhere. Now, the third edition of The Middle Pillar is the best, most complete ever.

Read the Ciceros's notes for a fuller understanding of the original text. Then read their new material, filled with meditations, exercises, and rituals you can use. Beyond a doubt, this is now the definitive version of The Middle Pillar. Get your copy today.

About the Author

Francis I. Regardie, born in London, England, November 17, 1907; died in Sedona, Arizona, March 10, 1985.  Came to the United States in August 1921, educated in Washington D.C. and studied art in school in Washington and Philadelphia.  Returned to Europe in 1928 at the invitation of Aleister Crowley to work as his secretary and study with him.  Returned to London as secretary to Thomas Burke 1932-34, and during that time wrote A Garden of Pomegranates and The Tree of Life.

In 1934 he was invited to join the Order of the Golden Dawn, Stella Matutina Temple, during which time he wrote The Middle Pillar and The Art of True Healing, and did the basic work for The Philosopher's Stone.

Returning to the United States in 1937 he entered Chiropractic College in New York, Graduating in 1941, and published The Golden Dawn.  Served in the U.S. Army 1942-1945, and then moved to Los Angeles where he opened a chiropractic practice and taught psychiatry.  Upon retirement in 1981, he moved to Sedona.

During his lifetime, he studied psychoanalysis with Dr. E. Clegg and Dr. J. L. Bendit, and later studied psychotherapy under Dr. Nandor Fodor.  His training encompassed Freudian, Jungian and Reichian methods.


Chic and Sandra Tabatha Cicero are Senior Adepts of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn.  They share an enthusiasm for the esoteric arts.  They live in Florida with their cat, Lealah, where they work and practice magic.



Sandra Tabatha Cicero is a Senior Adept of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and holds a bachelor's degree in Fine Arts.  

Product Details

• Paperback: 312 pages
• Publisher: Llewellyn Publications (September 8, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1567181406
• ISBN-13: 978-1567181401
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 7 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #62,226 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #77 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Earth-Based Religions > Witchcraft
  • #77 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Earth-Based Religions > Wicca

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

83 of 89 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't know if I hate it or like it...., December 12, 1999

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Middle Pillar: The Balance Between Mind and Magic (Paperback)

I love the original version of the Middle Pillar. It made "magick" a real form of "yoga" for me. Doing the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram is great, and the Middle Pillar itself really charges up your "aura" with energy. The feeling of energy is sort of like the feeling of qi energy from doing tai qi or qi gung, but at a different "level."The last edition of this work (that was by Regardie alone) had a nice cover with the spheres superimposed over the body, which really helped the visualization.

The problem I have with this new edition is that Regardie tends to run a little long-winded, and his style is a little dated (originally written in the '30s!). However the original book was mercifully short. The Ciceros have added their own even more long-winded material. To top it off, they are somewhat scholarly to the point of distraction (but at least they edited Regardie's material to conform the spellings of the Sephiroth to traditional Western occult usage). The point of the Middle Pillar is, DO IT. Not study it. (I also have a personal irk. They are strongly Golden Dawn in outlook, and Judaeo-Christian on top of that, while some of the best works out there today are in the Thelemic line of practice. It's as though they are afraid to mention the "Crowley" word, although Regardie's main if not only magickal influence was Crowley.)

On the other hand, as a reference work, the Ciceros footnotes to the original Regardie material are sometimes excellent. Also, some of their additional material is truly helpful, although probably overwhelming for a beginner.

My advice for a beginner (and I have a friend in this predicament) is to just read chapters 3, 4 and 5 at first, since these lay out the actual practice. Save the rest for later, don't confuse yourself.

If you want a really well-rounded curriculum for self study, I highly recommend the two books by Ophiel - Art and Practice of Astral Projection and Art and Practice of Creative Visualization (this second book looks like a "seven laws of success" book on the surface but is much deeper than it appears at first - it is really about how we create our whole world and how we can take an active hand in increasing positive results). The Astral Projection book essentially gives you something fun to work on after mastering the Middle Pillar, which is all about "building a body of light." (The Astral Projection book also has the best explanation of the different forms of astral bodies - etheric, low astral, high astral, mental, causal.) And these two Ophiel books are SHORT!

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Adds depth & insight to Kraig / alternatives for neo-pagans, January 27, 2001

By 

J. Ambrutis (Presque Isle, Maine) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Middle Pillar: The Balance Between Mind and Magic (Paperback)

While some may criticize this book for being outdated and unnecessary for the beginning adept, what they miss is the different perspective that Regardie brings to this work, that Donald Michael Kraig tends to gloss over. That is the connection of psychology and the workings of the mind to magic.

While "Modern Magick" from Donald Michael Kraig is one of the very best ways for a student of esoterics to start out, by the time they hit the second or third chapter, and have practiced the Cross and Pentagram exercises a few weeks to at least to get the feel of it, they should then have this book in hand and ready to read, to fill in the blanks and provide a different perspective. To do so not only deepens the understanding of the work, and provides valuable insight, but Kraig even recommends doing so in "Modern Magick".

While the differences in the two perspectives may be small and subtle, I think they're of tremendous inner value. For example, in the Cross, Kraig instructs to visualize a gleaming ball of light descending from heaven said to represent "Divine" energy, implying energy and representation of an outside source, while Regardie instructs that it should be viewed as a representation of your higher self, your higher genius, implying a more internal source. Are these two perspectives actually SAYING anything different, in reality, No. But from the standpoint of understanding the many aspects of the energies, and from the visualization standpoint, they could make all the difference in the world to the student starting out on his own. Use Kraig for a simple, easy to follow instruction, and Regardie for a deeper understanding and fine-tuning of the work.

What the Cicero team brings to this work is almost two fold. Their notes and comments through Regardie's original text add tremendous value. Most certainly *read the endnotes with the content* to do otherwise will mean that you miss some things, especially when he gives his rendition of the Cross (right shoulder vs. left, etc). However "Part Two", the section written by the Ciceros, with the exception of one or two chapters, is pretty much fluff. Not necessarily bad fluff, but much that can be skipped, unless you're a life long wiccan or pagan looking to bring this work into your practice, and really can't expand your mind enough to work with the Hebrew and Archangel names in the rituals.. then by all means their Egyptian, Gaelic, Greek, and Shamanistic rituals versions should be tried.

Overall, it's a valuable work, providing insight to information you may find elsewhere, but with a rather unique perspective.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An expanded edition of a classic, December 9, 2000

By 

J. French "93 93/93" (Oakland, California United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Middle Pillar: The Balance Between Mind and Magic (Paperback)

The Middle Pillar is one of Regardie's best works. It lucidly explains the correlation between the Tree of Life and the human body, and how certain energy centers are activated for magick. This edition expands on the original. Included are the musical notes for the various rituals, versions of the rituals in languages other the Hebrew, and an essay on Regaries feelings about psychology. The hope is to present basic magical technique as a dovetail to therapy. The additional material contains good information in this area, mostly based on conversations between the Regaride and the Cisoeros. As occultism and psychology are both interests of mine, I loved this book. Recommended for intermidiate magicians and psychotherapists.