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Practical Guide to Qabalistic Symbolism

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Gareth Knight has put together perhaps the most complete assessment of Qabalistic symbology yet published in one book, both for the Tree of Life and the Tarot. As such, it's value to beginning students of Qabalah cannot be overstated. Be this as it may, Knight sometimes uses the book as a soapbox for trumpeting his particular Christian/Scientology brand of Qabalistic dogma, which may leave many libertines out in the cold. He also mistakenly considers Gematria unnecessary to the understanding Qabalistic symbology (!) and tends to beat up Aleister Crowley needlessly while embracing the Master's exchange of the Tarot cards The Emperor and The Star in accordance with Liber AL vel Legis (an allusion to L. Ron Hubbard's Thelemic roots, methinks). However, in spite of these drawbacks, Knight presents the Qabalah lucidly and with great erudition, in a language which is suprisingly accessible to all newcomers. He even dares to show how the Christian Mysteries are relevant to Qabalistic philosophy, often considered taboo in esoteric circles. One of the best features of the book is Knight's thorough comparative analysis of numerous Tarot symbologies, including those of A. E. Waite, Aleister Crowley, and Paul Foster Case. This is definitely an important work which belongs on every Qabalist's bookshelf.

Looking at the physical object that is this book, and comparing it to 99% of other 'occult' books on the typical mass-market shelf, one gets the sense that the Practical Guide is a little different. Knight has written an intense examination of the qabalistic tree of life. Unlike many of the Do-it-yourselfer books on occultism out nowadays, Knight focuses on esoteric *meanings* of the symbolism, rather than spell formulae and such. Therefore, the Practical Guide has a refreshing quality of weightiness and depth lacking in other works.

On the other hand, Knight himself attacks 'deviant' behaviours such as homosexuality in a prejudiced and bigoted manner. Some of his other comments could also be construed as racist. Furthermore, his discussions of the qabalistic spheres and paths often lapse into abstruse ramblings which are difficult to make heads or tails of. Refreshing in its depth, thankfully not superficial, but offensive and sometimes hard to follow. Worthwhile read for anyone interested in qabala.

And the cover crushes anything published by Lewellyn like a grape.

A Practical Guide To Qabalistic Symbolism by author and modern occultist Gareth Knight is a comprehensive reference, encompassing Volume 1: On the Spheres of the Tree of Life and Volume 2: On the Paths and the Tarot, showcasing the power of Magick and the applications of Qabalah. Diagrams, tables, black-and-white illustrations and extensively annotated explanations help lead readers through the fascinating, sometimes conflicting and hidden meanings of the skill, art, and practice of Qabalah in this most thorough guide. Highly recommended for serious students of the Qabalah, magick, and metaphysics.

Even though the word PRACTICAL is part of the title, this book is still very difficult reading for the uninitiated. In my case, a teacher helped open me up to the delights of this book, revealing a powerful world waiting to be explored. I wouldn't recommend this book to beginners, but I suspect this tome would soon be in their libraries once they establish a basic foundation within themselves.

This is the best book on Qabalah I've yet read!! Even though it was written over thirty years ago, it seems SO much more modern and clear, by comparison to other books on the subject. Unfortunately most of the other books on Esoteric Qabalah that I've read were written prior to 1950 and often come across as quite cryptic. This is the first book I've found that does away with the "cloak and dagger" secrecy which prevented most prior writers on the topic from disclosing anything resembling a straightforward explanation.
Also, I was pleased to see that Mr. Knight apologized in his 2001 Forward to the book, for his past views on homosexuality and Scientology.

Mr Knight is very thorough in his discussion of the Quabala.
I believe his material would be a wonderful supplement to Gray's Qaballistic Concepts. The beginning student should read Gray first and then progress to Knight's methods..Mr Knight gives lengthy and learned insights to a reasonable and sane approach to the studies..I highly recommend his book. Both authors were connected to Dion Fortune, whose group is still active today..We need more men like these to point the way to the new generation of seekers.

My serious interest in occult literature began during work on my MA English. At that time a friend of mine (another university student) was an outstanding chemist who enjoyed writing fiction. We would meet occasionally and compare ideas. His fiction invariably centered on debunking any remnants of medieval, "demon-haunted", religious, occult thinking still persisting into the twenty-first century. He sought, through his fiction, to disabuse us of our fantasies. He was always humorously disheartened to learn from me - fresh from the Humanities side of our university - that many of our greatest English authors (Spenser, Marlowe, Shakespeare, Tennyson, TS Eliot, WB Yeats, James Joyce, Thomas Pynchon) were well-versed in occultism, and that the psychology of occultism was so integral to Western culture up into the twentieth century that any serious appraisal of English literature demands at least a nodding familiarity.

Hence this review.

This work by Gareth Knight is his most authoritative, and takes its place on any well-stocked reference shelf with the works of Peter De Abano, Frater Achad, Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa, Dante Alighieri, Anonymous (author of Meditations on the Tarot), Roberto Assagioli, St Athanasius, Franz Bardon, Francis Barrett, St Bernard of Clairvaux, HP Blavatsky, Jacob Boehme, St Bonaventure, Giordano Bruno, Raymond Buckland, WE Butler, Joseph Campbell, Paul Foster Case, Catherine of Siena, John Climacus, RS Clymer, Aleister Crowley, Deng Ming Dao, John Dee, Melita Denning and Osborne Phillips, Lon Milo Duquette, WF Evans, Abraham Ibn Ezra, Steven A Fisdel, Dion Fortune, Marsilio Ficino, U.D. Frater, David Frawley, JG Frazer, Sigmund Freud, Matityahu Glazerson, Johann von Goethe, William G Gray, Gurdjieff and Ouspensky, Steven Guth, Charles F Haanel, Manly P Hall, Robert M Haralick, Iamblichus, St Ignatius, St John of the Cross, CG Jung, Aryeh Kaplan, Aaron Leitch, Eliphas Levi, William Lilly, Joseph Lisiewski, Georg Lomer, Jason Lotterhand, SL MacGregor Mathers, Adam McLean, Draja Mickaharic, William Oribello, Kala Pajeon, Papus, Joseph H Peterson, DovBer Pinson, Proclus, PB Randolph, Rankine and Skinner, Israel Regardie, Frances Rolleston, Carroll Runyon, Mouni Sadhu, Gershom Scholem, Sepharial, Austin Osman Spare, Adin Steinsaltz, Doreen Sturzaker, Thomas Taylor, Isaiah Tishby, Donald Tyson, Rabbi Chaim Vital, AE Waite, Robert Wang, Samael Aun Weor, WW Westcott, Bill Whitcomb, Abraham von Worms, and Rabbi Simeon bar Yohai.

Gareth Knight examines each of the thirty-two paths of the Hermetic Kabbalistic Tree. His assignations are those of the traditional Golden Dawn (exclusive of Crowley's improvisation on the fifteenth and twenty-eighth paths, which Knight considers "has not stood the test of time"). There is no fluff in this book. The book is beefy and pure protein, though at times Knight verges perilously close to the circular prose of AE Waite. Another proviso is that, in just a few instances, Knight's exegesis of certain paths veers toward generalities ignoring specifics.

A highly commended, useful, and outstanding reference on Western Hermeticism.

this book gives you a whole chunk of sybolism and interpetation you can use in many ways,that probably keep you busy for very good wile. good book to beggin to study on, practical and resourceful