Magic, alchemy and hermetic thought Books

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Book SynopsisThis is a work of fundamental importance for our understanding of the intellectual and cultural history of early modern Europe. Stuart Clark offers a new interpretation of the witchcraft beliefs of European intellectuals based on their publications in the field of demonology, and shows how these beliefs fitted rationally with many other views current in Europe between the fifteenth and eighteenth centuries.Professor Clark is the first to explore the appeal of demonology to early modern intellectuals by looking at the books they published on the subject during this period. After examining the linguistic foundations of their writings, the author shows how the writers'' ideas about witchcraft (and about magic) complemented their other intellectual commitments--in particular, their conceptions of nature, history, religion, and politics. The result is much more than a history of demonology. It is a survey of wider intellectual and ideological purposes, and underlines just how far the natureTrade ReviewThis massive and rich book is brimming with suggestions for future researchers. Clark's bibliography is itself a contribution to witchcraft scholarship. Thinking with Demons will become a classic. * Richard M Golden, Religious Studies Review, Vol 27, No 2, April 2001 *This is intellectual history at its best. Clark reads and understands the demonological writings between the late fifteenth and early eighteenth centuries on their own terms * Richard M Golden, Religious Studies Review, Vol 27, No 2, April 2001 *Clarke is showing something of a break with the historiographical trends which have prevailed in witchcraft studies over the last twenty years. * J.A. Sharpe, Renaissance Studies Vol.14, No.3. *This is a subtle exposition, informed but not distorted by an awareness of linguistic theory. J.A. Sharpe, Renaissance Studies Vol.14, No.3.a formidable intellectual achievement ... it is doubtful if any current witchcraft scholar could equal the breadth of Clark's acquaintance with both works of demonology and more recent publications. He displays deep erudition with a light touch: the book, for all its length and the profundity of its scholarship, is a pleasure to read. * J.A. Sharpe, Renaissance Studies Vol.14, No.3. *rich and exciting exposition of a belief system. * J.A. harpe, Renaissance Studies Vol.14, No.3. *Anybody who still believes that witchcraft was a marginal or unimportant aspect of European history should spend a weekend reading this book. They will emerge from the exercise with a clearer notion of what first rate intellectual history is like. * J.A. Sharpe, Renaissance Studies Vol.14, No.3. *deeply considered and weighty arguments based on dauntingly wide reading. * Ian Maclean, Stud. Hist.Phil.Sci. Vol.31, No.2. *this is an ambitious and thematically broad book which constitutes a formidable intellectual achivement. * J.A. Sharpe, Renaissance Studies, Vol.14, No.2, *Clarke is showing something of a break with the historiographical trends which have prevailed in witchcraft studies over the last twenty years. * J.A. Sharpe, Renaissance Studies, Vol.14, No.2, *Thinking with Demons, which offers a lot more than the basics, will intimidate many undergraduates, but will provide them with conclusive proof that witchcraft was not just a matter of village squabbles. It will also remind their teachers of the sheer complexity and pervasiveness of demonological thought. * J.A. Sharpe, Renaissance Studies, Vol.14, No.2, *this is an ambitious and thematically broad book which constitutes a formidable intellectual achivement. * J.A. Sharpe, Renaissance Studies, Vol.14, No.2, *it is doubtful if any current witchcraft scholar could equal the breadth of Clark's acquaintance with both works of demonology and more recent publications. He displays deep erudition with a light touch: the book, for all its length and the profondity of its scholarship, is a pleasure to read. * J.A. Sharpe, Renaissance Studies, Vol.14, No.2, *Anybody who still believes that witchcraft was a marginal or unimportant aspect of European history should spend a weekend reading this book. They will emerge from the exercise with a clearer notion of what first rate intellectual history is like. * J.A. Sharpe, Renaissance Studies, Vol.14, No.2, *This book offers a distillation of ... research, within a cogently constructed and copiously documented overall argument ... This is a book for the specialist ... Mastering such a vast body of material as early modern demonology is a huge enterprise, and Dr Clark has performed a most valuable service by his heroic struggle to make its structures and thought-patterns comprehensible. * Euan Cameron, Continuity and Change Vol 14:2 1999 *a tour de force * David Wootton, LRB 11/11/99 *It is a major accumulation of information about western European writings on witchcraft ... It will be a text consulted and cited by many subsequent scholars on witchcraft. * T. O. Beidelman, Anthropos *' ... an important book ... in every sense a magisterial work of a historian of consummate skill. Carefully researched and documented, supported by a mountainous bibliography, this is a book that should be carefully read, and re-read, by every historian of the early modern period.' * Seventeenth-Century News *This is a massive work. It covers far more ground than its title indicates...It is good, in these days of soundbites, "dumbing-down" and widespread intellectual sloth, to come upon such a monument of scholarship. The time, determination and care that must have gone into creating it are most impressive--and so is the result. The hopes and fears, doubts and certainties of the early modern intelligentsia come powerfully alive. Anyone who wishes to enter imaginatively into that mental world might well start by reading this remarkable book. * The Obsever review section *of all the books on the subject which have recently appeared, this is perhaps the most remarkable, raising our understanding of ideas about witchcraft to a new level of sophistication. It is based on massive research in teh learned literature of demonology in the period.../ ... Clark's erudition is combined with intense methodological sophistication.../ ... there is no doubt that IThinking With DemonsI will force us to reconsider the place of witchcraft in early modern ideas, and thus to think more deeply about the nature of those ideas in themselves./ Michael Hunter, Birkbeck College, London, Eighteenth Century Life, vol 22, no 2, May 1998.Important and provocative. A magisterial survey of European demonological thought from the fifteenth to the eighteenth centuries. Clark's mastery of the sources, his effective use of linguistic theory, and the originality of his interpretations make the reading of this massive, complex, and skilfully constructed book an immensely rewarding experience, one that easily repays the time and effort that one must invest in it. The most comprehensive and thorough study of early modern witchcraft beliefs in any language. * Brian P. Levack, Albion *

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Book SynopsisWinner of the IAJS Book Award 2023 for Best Theoretical BookTraditionally, alchemy has been understood as a precursor to the science of chemistry but from the vantage point of the human spirit, it is also a discipline that illuminates the human soul. This book explores the goal of alchemy from Jungian, psychological, and philosophical perspectives.Jung's Alchemical Philosophy: Psyche and the Mercurial Play of Image and Idea is a reflection on Jung's alchemical work and the importance of philosophy as a way of understanding alchemy and its contributions to Jung's psychology. By engaging these disciplines, Marlan opens new vistas on alchemy and the circular and ouroboric play of images and ideas, shedding light on the alchemical opus and the transformative processes of Jungian psychology. Divides in the history of alchemy and in the alchemical imagination are addressed as Marlan deepens the process by turning to a number of interpretations that illuminateTrade Review'It is all too easy to regard the Philosophers’ Stone as an idle metaphor or as the product of a misguided and vain alchemical obsession. But Jung’s Alchemical Philosophy demonstrates on the contrary that the Stone is something to take seriously with deep implications for our self-understanding and our connection to the cosmos. In this ambitious and comprehensive book, detailed discussions are given of Jung’s extensive research into the relationship between the search for the Stone and the greater Self, and of subsequent contributions by James Hillman with an emphasis on the soul work symbolized in alchemical transformation and on imagination as an inherent ingredient in that same transformation. The larger philosophical significance of the Stone is pursued in a nuanced treatment of Hegel’s notion of Absolute Spirit, drawing on the depth-psychological interpretations of Wolfgang Giegerich. Contemporary authors such as Derrida and Zizek are also woven skillfully into the larger tale. The book generates a complex tapestry of philosophical and psychological insights, demonstrating their dialectical co-valence. Written with a rare combination of precision and passion, this book expands the horizons of the always enigmatic relationships between matter and meaning, self and other, life and death. By the end, the reader comes to realize that the Philosophers’ Stone is not something merely chimerical but a psychical reality and an inroad into soul and spirit alike'. Edward S. Casey, Professor of Philosophy, SUNY at Stony Brook, USA'This edifying book has a double impact. The author is a philosopher and a psychoanalyst, and his book is at once a philosophical psychology and a psychological philosophy. In the first instance it reveals to its reader valuable and varied insights into the history and imagery of alchemy, demonstrating why the philosophy of alchemy has been crucial to the development of the theory and practice of psychoanalytic therapy. But this is not all. Philosophers think about thinking, and philosophy, as the book reminds the reader, is thought in the act of thinking about itself. So, in the second instance, this book shows its reader how to think about psychology psychologically, as opposed to thinking about psychology personalistically as medicine, science, spirituality, or problem-solving for ego and its difficulties. The book's doubleness rewards the reader with provocative perspectives'.David L. Miller, Watson Ledden Professor Emeritus, Syracuse University, USA'Stanton Marlan’s Jung’s Alchemical Philosophy provides a wide-ranging and profound analysis of the transformative psychological understanding of alchemy initiated by Jung. In the process Marlan brings to light the alchemists' efforts to come to terms with such binary oppositions as nature and spirit, absolutism and relativism, thought and being, and most pointedly, image and idea. Marlan provides a perspective through which these oppositions can be reconciled and he opens a new philosophical vista on alchemy which expands upon and complements Jung’s depth psychological perspective on the alchemical opus'.Sanford Drob, Core Faculty of Fielding Graduate University in Santa Barbara, California, USATable of Contents1. Philosophical Tensions in the Historiography of Alchemy: The History of Science and the History of the Human Spirit 2. The Eye of the Winged Serpent: Mercurius and Overcoming the Split in the Alchemical Imagination 3. Benign and Monstrous Conjunctions 4. Classical Development of Jung’s Ideas of Alchemy and the Philosophers’ Stone in Von Franz and Edinger 5. Innovations, Criticism, and Developments: James Hillman and Wolfgang Giegerich 6. James Hillman and Wolfgang Giegerich: Unification and Divergence in Their Psychological and Philosophical Perspectives 7. Exposition and Criticism of Giegerich’s Philosophical View of Psychology Proper and the Human-All-Too-Human 8. The Problem of the Remainder: The Unassimilable Remnant—What Is at Stake? 9. The Alchemical Stove: Continuing Reflections on Hillman’s and Giegerich’s Views of Alchemy and the Philosophers’ Stone 10. The Philosophical Basis of the Remnant in Kant’s Thing-in-Itself and in Hegel’s Move to Surpass It 11. A Reflection on the Black Sun and Jung’s Notion of Self 12. Spirit and Soul 13. The Self, the Absolute, the Stone

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Book SynopsisMuch has been written on witchcraft by historians, theologians, philosophers, and anthropologists, but nothing by scientists. This book aims to reappraise witchcraft by applying to it the advances in cognitive sciences.The book is divided into four parts. Part I (Deep History) deals with human emotions and the drive to represent witches as evil female agents. Part II (Historical Times) focuses on those rare state and church repressions of malefice, which, surprisingly, did not feature in Islamic lands. Modern urbanization dealt a blow to the rural civilizations where accusations of witchcraft were rife. Part III (In the Laboratory) applies neuroscience to specific case studies to investigate the personification of misfortune, the millenary stereotype witch = woman, the reality of evil, and the phenomenon of treasure hunting. Part IV (Millenials) wonders whether intentional malefic hatred in a closed chapter in the history of humanity.An Anatomy of Witchcraft iTable of ContentsPart 1: Deep History Introduction to Part One. 1. Towards Homo Sapiens 2. Reciprocal Altruism 3. Prehistoric Women 4. Primary Emotions: Fear and Anger 5. Social Emotions: Empathy-Shame-Envy 6. Drives: Eros 7. Drives: Seeking 8. Evolved and Abandoned: A Standstill Psychology? 9. Looking for Witchcraft 10. Defining Evil Witchcraft 11. Redefining Evil Witchcraft Part 2: Historical Times Introduction to Part Two. 12. Visions of the World 13. Witchcraft and Power 14. A Long Walk: Towards a Magic-Religion Dichotomy 15. Greece and Rome: The Complementarity Between Magic and Religion 16. Greece and Rome: The Ambiguous State Control of Witchcraft 17. Christian Transformations: The Nuclear Fallout 18. Early-Modern Witch-Hunting: A Cognitive Puzzle? 19. The Disenchantment of the World 20. The Other Monotheisms: Jewish and Islamic Part 3: In the Laboratory Introduction to Part Three. 21. Case Study 1: The Personalization of Damage 22. Case Study 2: Ambiguities of Malefice: The Evil Eye 23. Case Study 3: The Reality of Malefice 24. Case Study 4: The Stereotype: Witch=Woman 25. Case Study 5: An Envious and Factional Community 26. Case Study 6: Anatomy of Witchcraft 27. Case Study 7: Treasure Hunting or the Simulator Brain Part 4: Millennials Introduction to Part Four. 28. A Look from the Above. Conclusions

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Book SynopsisScience and Magic in the Modern World is a unique text that explores the role of magical thinking in everyday life. It provides an excellent psychological look at the subconscious belief in magic in both popular culture and society, as well as experimental research that considers human consciousness as a derivative of belief in the supernatural, thus showing that our feelings, emotions, attitudes and other psychological processes follow the laws of magic. This book synthesises the science of ânaturalâ phenomena and the magic of the âsupernaturalâ to present an interesting look at the juxtaposition of the inner and outer selves. Fusing research into psychological disorders, subconscious feelings, as well as the rising presence of artificial intelligence, this book demonstrates how an engagement with magical thinking can enhance oneâs creativity and cognitive skills.Science and Magic in the Modern World is an invaluable resource for those studying consciousness,Trade ReviewEugene Subbotsky is one of the most forward-thinking intellectuals of our time. In this provocative and far-reaching text, he draws upon 40 years of research on magical thinking in both children and adults to develop his thesis: that magic and magical thinking are inseparable from our daily and worldly existence. He uses this thesis to explain concepts ranging from video game addiction to schizophrenia, from art history to advertising, and from placebo effects to suicide bombers. This book will cause readers to reconsider any notions that magic is but a fleeting childhood pastime. Professor Jacqueline D. Woolley, The University of Texas, USA Eugene Subbotsky has written a thoroughly engaging and thought-provoking book on magic and the supernatural. He combines psychology, neuroscience and philosophy to demonstrate how magic, the supernatural and magical beliefs play a surprisingly important role in many unexpected areas of our lives. Science and Magic in the Modern World, challenges many popular misconceptions about magic, and it will transform your thoughts and beliefs about magic. This book deals with challenging and complex theoretical issues, but its style and writing make it a thoroughly enjoyable reading experience. Dr. Gustav Kuhn, Goldsmiths, University of London, UK Table of ContentsPrefaceIntroduction [1][2]Part I. Magic in the MindChapter 1. The Magic Crystal of Rene Magritte: Art as a Window in the SupernaturalChapter 2. The Invisible reality: Consciousness as a Gaze in the Magical WorldChapter 3. The Barrier for Robots. Subjective Experience as a Magical PhenomenonPart II. The Supernatural in Science and ReligionChapter 4. Miracles in Law: Magical Underpinning of Physical UniverseChapter 5. The Pull of Eternity: Hope for Immortality as the Belief in theSupernaturalChapter 6. Religion and the Belief in the SupernaturalPart III. Magical thinking in Politics, Economics and EducationChapter 7. Under the Spell: The Case of RussiaChapter 8. Watching the Impossible: Educational Effects of Magical ThinkingChapter 9. Games with the Supernatural: Magical Reality in Everyday LifeEpilogue: Imagining the UnimaginableBibliography

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Book SynopsisThe Alchemy Reader is a collection of primary source readings on alchemy and hermeticism, which offers readers an informed introduction and background to a complex field through the works of important ancient, medieval and early modern alchemical authors. Including selections from the legendary Hermes Trimegistus to Robert Boyle and Isaac Newton, the book illustrates basic definitions, conceptions, and varied interests and emphases; and it also illustrates the highly interdisciplinary character of alchemical thought and its links with science and medicine, philosophical and religious currents, the visual arts and iconography and, especially, literary discourse. Like the notable anthologies of alchemical writings published in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, it seeks to counter the problem of an acute lack of reliable primary texts and to provide a convenient and accessible point of entry to the field.Trade Review'Linden's introduction to the collection and the headnotes accompanying each selection, which testify to Linden's long experience and wide reading in the history and texts of alchemy, will help make this a much-used volume.' British Society for the History of ScienceTable of ContentsIntroduction; Part I. Ancient Texts: 1. Hermes Trismegistus: The Emerald Table (Tabula smaragdina); 2. Plato: from the Timaeus; 3. Aristotle: from the Meteorology; 4. Pseudo-Democritus: from the Treatise of Democritus on Things Natural and Mystical; 5. Anonymous: Dialogue of Cleopatra and the Philosophers; 6. Anonymous: from Leiden Papyrus X and the Stockholm Papyrus; 7. Zosimos of Panopolis: Of Virtue, Lesson 1-3; 8. Stephanos of Alexandria: from The Great and Sacred Art of the Making of Gold; 9. Anonymous: The Poem of the Philosopher Theophrastos upon the Sacred Art; Part II. Islamic and Medieval Texts: 10. Khalid ibn Yazid: from Secreta Alchymiae; 11. Pseudo-Geber: from Of the Investigation or Search of Perfection; Of the Sum of Perfection; and His Book of Furnaces; 12. Avicenna: De Congelatione et Conglutinatione Lapidum; 13. Albertus Magnus: from the Libellus de Alchimia; 14. Roger Bacon: from the Radix Mundi; 15. Nicolas Flamel: from His Exposition of the Hieroglyphical Figures; 16. Bernard, Earl of Trevisan: A Treatise of the Philosophers Stone; 17. George Ripley: The Epistle of George Ripley written to King Edward the 4; Part III. Renaissance and Seventeenth Century Texts: 18. Paracelsus: from Of the Nature of Things and Paracelsus His Aurora; 19. Francis Anthony: Aurum-Potabile: or the Receit of Dr. Fr. Antonie; 20. Michael Sendivogius: from A New Light of Alchymie and A Dialogue between Mercury, the Alchymist and Nature; 21. Robert Fludd: from Mosaicall Philosophy; 22. Gabriel Plattes: A Caveat for Alchymists; 23. John French: preface to The Divine Pymander of Hermes Mercurius Trimegistus in XVII Books; 24. George Starkey/Eirenaeus Philalethes: The Admirable Efficacy, and almost incredible Virtue of true Oyl; from An Exposition Upon Sir George Ripley's Epistle to King Edward IV; 25. Elias Ashmole: Prolegomena to the Theatrum Chemicum Britannicum; 26. Robert Boyle: from An Historical Account of a Degradation of Gold Made by an Anti-Elixir: A Strange Chymical Narrative; 27. Isaac Newton: The Key (Keynes MS 18); The Commentary on the Emerald Tablet (Keynes MS 28), King's College, Cambridge; Glossary; Bibliography; Index.

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Book SynopsisJoseph Ennemoser (1787–1854) was an Tyrolean doctor, who was a forerunner of Freud in his belief in the connection between the mind and physical health: his interest in psychology led to investigations into the paranormal. This English translation of his 1844 work was published in 1854.Table of ContentsEditor's preface M. H. Howitt; Author's preface; 1. Of magic and its branches in general; 2. Theoretical views on magic among the ancients; 3. Magnetism among the ancient nations, especially the Orientals, Egyptians, and Israelites; Index.

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Book SynopsisJoseph Ennemoser (17871854) was an Tyrolean doctor, who was a forerunner of Freud in his belief in the connection between the mind and physical health: his interest in psychology led to investigations into the paranormal. This English translation of his 1844 work was published in 1854.Table of Contents4. Of magic in mythology; 5. The magic of the Germans; 6. Mystic doctrines, and endeavours after a philosophical elucidation of the magic of the middle ages; Appendix: Apparitions; Haunted houses; Dreams; Second sight; Trance and somnambulism; Ecstasy; Prediction; Divination; Witchcraft; Vampires; Amulets and charms; Narcotics; Fairies; Spiritual manifestations.

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Living the essence of her teachings, Mia is the voice for Mother Nature. Very few people carry the kind of high magik Mia does; it doesn’t get any bigger. This book will teach you how to dialogue with all life and master the art of communicating with the universe.” —Sah D’Simone, author of Spiritually Sassy“Mia has single-handedly brought the cool factor back into witchcraft to reach an entire generation with an important arcane art. She is a woman whisperer with magic at her fingertips.” —Regena “Mama Gena” Thomashauer, author of Pussy: A Reclamation“Mia Magik is my #1 resource for all things magic. Everyone’s favorite witch on Instagram and beyond, she is a fairy-tale queen come to life. Her book is dearly needed.” —Sahara Rose, author of Discover Your Dharma

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Book SynopsisThe first book to consider British history from a magical perspective, and how these arcane magical themes developed over time.Trade Review‘A remarkable book … an inspiration from the heart of the Shire’ -- Robert Plant

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