History and Practice of Magic [FACSIMILE] (Paperback)

by Lida A. Churchill (Author), Paul Christian (Author) "I COMPLETED in 1839, with Charles Nodier of the French Academy, a book of reminiscences on the antiquities of Paris, that throne of so many..." (more)
Key Phrases: Gilles de Laval, Elias Ashmole, Great Pyramid (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Partial Contents: At the Gates of the Supernatural; The Mysteries of the Pyramids; Ancient Oracles, the Sibyls and the Fates; Magic from the Beginning of the Christian Era to the End of the Middle Ages; Supernatural Sciences and Curiosities; General Theory of the Horoscope; General Keys of Astrology. Numerous charts and diagrams. Several rare rituals are included. This massive work on magic should be in every magician's library.

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Kessinger Publishing reprints over 1,500 similar titles all available through Amazon.com.

Product Details

• Paperback: 644 pages
• Publisher: Kessinger Publishing, LLC; Facsimile edition edition (November 26, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1564594718
• ISBN-13: 978-1564594716
• Product Dimensions: 10.7 x 7.3 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #806,568 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very good, February 10, 2007

By	Eric Orion "Eric Orion" (Arizona, Malkuth) - See all my reviews

I didn't think I was going to like this book, but it is very, very good. I have a library of esoteric books, mostly classics, and have the problem of running into the same information over and over again. Not the case with this book. I also thought this would be a book written from an outsider's view, but the respect that Mr. Christian shows his subject its figures reveal that he is a true student. His portrayal of initiation into the Egyptian Mysteries and the life of Julian stand out as exceptional sections of the book. This is a classic work.
In LVX

7 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect for understand key elements of majic tools, June 11, 1999

By A Customer

I believe that Paul Christian's book is one of the best I have ever read. Though it is sometimes hard to understand and someone may have to reread it a few times. I found it a key element in understanding astrological aspects and the tarot in view. The book is very indepth and helps one to understand. Though it is not a step by step book it will help one to dive into the mystic world a little easier. If one knows how to work the aspects of astrology and the meaning of tarot they can help to become a more spiritual person. But remember it is one thing to read something. It is another thing to actually apply it to real life.

5 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Incredible History of not only "magic", but the occult/supernatural in general, May 28, 2006

By	Altmed (California United States) - See all my reviews

I was lucky enough to find a boxed set of the 1st translated American edition, which if you can find one, I'd highly reccomend over the paperback version. Covers the old witches sabbaths, medieval herbal medicine, different types of divination (in the old ways), fairie culture from many places around the world, palmistry, the Black Books & their spells, the pope (Honorius) turning to magic (as well as a prominant Rabbi, Psalms as a spell, comparitive eastern & western magic (as well as Tibetian as a separate section), voo doo, pstchic research, the switch from a matriarchal society to patriarchal (the hostile take-over in todays words), magic from the beginning of Christianity, Ancient oracles, the pyramids, Indian thoeology and
the supernatural in science from the beginning as a basis of science & I could go on and on... but this book has just about everything you'd ever want to know about "Magic" (the supernatural/ spiritual type) and it's influence in Christianity (men taking over society, etc.) and even how our "science" is interpreted - even today. Even though this book was originally published in 1963, it gives one a LOT to think about!

Even Christ used what people today (and then) think of as magic and asked that we follow in his footsteps to heal the sick, feed the poor, etc.

Being a Christian, I thought it would be basically heiricy, but after reading it, it got me to study my Bible more and more (as well as to question the KJV's circumstances in it's interpretation, and had me go back to translating my Bible I'd grown up with, and thus realize that so-called, "magic" as many look at it today is not at ALL what it appears to be, and many a witch from the old school would be pretty pissed at some of the "neo-wicca" stuff going on today.

It was interesting that, also with the deletion of so many books with Christ's words were burned (but many survived with other copies that were hidden many times over to ensure they'd be preserved) in his time, and some even before his time up to around 100 years or so after his (Christ's) death. It's made me a stronger Christian and challenged my beliefs and changed others after much research and prayer. Not by what was written in this book, but research I did into Christian texts (and comparative religions) BECAUSE of this book! I've come to the conclusion that we are all ONE, and ONE with Christ, God, Buddah, Allah, whatever you call God. What an insight! Amazing!!! A MUST READ for ANYONE who takes their religion &/or faith seriously!

Amazing books! If you can only get the paperback copy, get A copy! Follow up and it will probably change your life. Don't believe everything you read from an incomplete and skewed version of the Bible! Keep researching, praying and although the KJV helps as an introduction, it has many inaccuracies in it that I believe were put there intentionally, as well as missing books that were intentionally left out and those holding copies of these biblical texts that didn't agree with the king's view at the time were burned, as were many of the copies. I'm glad I read this. I never expected to get much of anything but a history lesson about witchcraft out of these two volumes. I got SO much more!