The Necronomicon [Mass Market Paperback]

Simon (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 1980

In the past 31 years, there has been a lot of ink—actual and virtual—spilled on the subject of the Necronomicon. Some have derided it as a clumsy hoax; others have praised it as a powerful grimoire. As the decades have passed, more information has come to light both on the book's origins and discovery, and on the information contained within its pages. The Necronomicon has been found to contain formula for spiritual trans-formation, consistent with some of the most ancient mystical processes in the world, processes that were not public knowledge when the book was first published, processes that involve communion with the stars.

In spite of all the controversy, the first edition sold out before it was published. And it has never been out of print since then. This year, the original designer of the 1977 edition and the original editor have joined forces to present a new, deluxe hardcover edition of the most feared, most reviled, and most desired occult book on the planet.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Simon is a student of magic, occultism, and religion since the mid-1960s and the editor of the Necronomicon, Simon was a frequent lecturer for the famed Warlock Shop in Brooklyn and the Magickal Childe Bookstore in Manhattan for more than ten years before his sudden disappearance in 1984, speaking on topics as diverse as religion and politics, occultism and fascism, ceremonial magic, demonolatry, the Tarot, the Qabala, and Asian occult systems. He also conducted private classes for the New York City OTO during this period, with a focus on Enochian magic, "Owandering bishops," and Afro-Caribbean occult beliefs. An ordained priest of an Eastern Orthodox church, Simon has appeared on television and radio discussing such topics as exorcism, satanism, and Nazism. The media events he organized in the 1970s and 1980s -- with rock bands, ritual performances, and celebrity appearances -- helped to promote the "occult renaissance" in New York City. After decades of study in European, Asian, and Latin American cult centers, this book marks his first public appearance in more than twenty years.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Avon (March 1, 1980)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0380751925
• ISBN-13: 978-0380751921
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (240 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #23,320 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #1 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Religion & Spirituality > Occult > Magic
  • #2 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Religion & Spirituality > Earth-Based Religions > Wicca
  • #2 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Religion & Spirituality > Earth-Based Religions > Witchcraft

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

75 of 83 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You people are missing the point., January 7, 2005

By 

Scarybug - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Necronomicon (Mass Market Paperback)

OF COURSE THE BOOK IS FAKE! OF COURSE THERE IS NO REAL NECRONOMICON!

It wasn't written to fool you, it's just for fun! So you can say "I have a copy of the Necronomicon!" It's a prop! It's not a hoax, it's not a religious text, it's not a "real" grimoire.

It does, however, read like a "real" hermetic, enochian, or kabbahlistic spellbook. Many of the same themes are present, the seals and gates correspond directly to the kabbahlistic sephiroth, for instance.

The two main differences here are.

1. The Sumerian pantheon is used instead of a Hebrew or Greek pantheon

2. The books is much darker and forboding. The reason for spellcasting here is not to advance in your workplace or get a new lover, as in most modern "real" spellbooks, instead it is supposed to be used to gain power from the "Elder Gods" (the good guys) to keep "The Ancient Ones" from destroying the mortal world.

The beggining and ending written by "The Mad Arab" are a great homage to Lovecraft. This is for entertainment.

If you like the way you get scared reading Lovecraft's stories, you might like to read this book. If you love occult sigils you will love this book. If you're writting horror or fantasy stories, you might find this book useful as inspiration. If you want to learn a bit about Sumerian mythology (you know, MARDUK, slayer of TIAMAT, and all that), there's some of that in the introduction too.

I really enjoyed this book.

Actually the "real" Necronomicon is "The Egyptian Book of the Dead" which is a pretty complete translation of hieroglyphs from the papyrus of ANI which, written about 1500 - 1400 BCE. and aquired by the British Museum in 1888. This book won't give you magic powers either, but it's an authentic religious text.

44 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For those of you who want to believe, March 20, 2000

By 

[e-mail] (Fl,USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Necronomicon (Mass Market Paperback)

I tell you, I owe this book a great deal. It gave me an interest in Mesopotamian Theology that I have kept for 10 years now. I discovered the Necronomicon in high school, and it is, most certainly, a fabrication. But it's a pretty good fabrication, I'll give it that. Now I have never read any of Lovecraft's works, but I'm sure that Simon borrowed a great deal more from the translations of Sumerian cuneiform tablets that have become increasing available in the past 50 or so years than he ever did from the Lovecraft's mythos. In fact, some of writings in the Necronomicon, such as the Maklu and the Magan text, are very similar to actual Sumerian and Babylonian manuscripts. In other words, Lovecraft's Necronomicon was a myth by his own admittance. However, Simon's Necronomicon is, at least in part, based on a religion that was very real and practiced for thousands of years. Personally, I am at least pleased to see a book create such a resurgence of interest in a system of believes that has been close to dead for such a long, long time. However, for those of you who are interested in taking the contents of this book to a more personal level, there are far more accurate sources to look to, although I'm sure Simon's work would be best in captivating your interests.

45 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars FORGET THE BOOK - THE REAL HOOTS ARE THE NAIVE REVIEWS...., November 9, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Necronomicon (Mass Market Paperback)

LOVED both Crowley and Lovecraft since childhood... how nice to read a creative grimoire that has some of the "spirit' of both! Does it work? Of course, if you make it so. "Alice in Wonderland" is a great grimoire if you approach it properly (ask any quantum physicist). Is this or any of the other "Necronomicons" a work of fiction? Who cares? Remember, Crowley often used fiction and poetry as prime source material and Wicca was reconstructed by an anthropologist or two in the 1950s (despite all the bogus "family tradition" people who suddenly appeared in the '60s). Even so, these arts really DO work - it's not the veracity of the reputed source that makes your Magick work, it's your MIND and your SPIRIT!........ On the lighter side, check out the many reviews below and the reviewers' constant trumpeting of their esoteric credentials... "I'm Frater Hoo-Ha and I've read my Lovecraft"...."I'm a Certified Crone, and these others don't know what they're talking about," etc., (methinks they do protest too much.) Remember, gentle Sabrina-and-Buffy-watchers, everybody else has already read the same mass-produced books (on magic or by Lovecraft) that YOU have read! Oh, well...