The Element Encyclopedia of Witchcraft: The Complete A–Z for the Entire Magical World. Judika Illes
diabolical book
Although it is now a notorious book and many avoid it for fear of being tainted by association, The True Grimoire is a particularly fascinating example of the grimoire genre. It is unusual in that grimoires virtually always assume that practitioners and readers are exclusively male: The True Grimoire uniquely contains some instructions offering variations depending upon whether the magician is male or female. It is also comparatively respectful towards demons. Instead of merely commanding and compelling, the reader is informed that such powerful spirits won’t do anything without payment. This may be construed as referring to offerings or sacrifice and indeed, pretty disgusting instructions are included for preparing a sacrificial goat, although these instructions correspond to no spiritual traditions’ notions of sacrifice.
Diabolical or not, whoever wrote The True Grimoire must have been a book-lover. Among the various demons and their powers that The True Grimoire identifies is Humot who, the text assures, will instantly provide the conjuring sorcerer with any book he or she might demand.
The World’s Greatest Magician Black Herman’s Secrets of Magic, Mystery, and Legerdemain
The author, who called himself “Black” Herman Rucker, was an African-American stage magician, herbalist, and hoodoo doctor. He remains highly unusual because he is among the very few to have successfully integrated simultaneous careers in legerdemain and true magic. Since the European witch-hunts, both these traditions have eyed each other with suspicion and hostility. Although each derives from shamanic arts, many practitioners of either art perceive their craft as diametrically opposed to the other.
Rucker published a monthly magazine from his Harlem headquarters and was famed for providing winning lottery numbers. Like many magicians, Rucker cultivated a glamorous image and origins. He claimed to have been born in Africa and to have learned mystic traditions in his travels around the world, including stops in Paris, London, China, India, and Egypt.
This is not a handbook of instructions for commanding and compelling; however it was written by someone who was familiar with the genre, particularly with those grimoires that combine folk healing with practical charms and spells.
Just because Black Herman’s grimoire is modern doesn’t mean it isn’t steeped in mystery and confusion. The book consists of two parts: a preface and a body of main text. The preface is dated 1925, however no book in the form in which it presently exists has ever been found with a publication date earlier than 1938.
To further add to the confusion, there is also a nineteenth-century grimoire known as Herman’s Book on Black Art. It has no relationship to Black Herman’s Secrets of Magic other than a confusing similarity in titles. The identity of the older Herman remains unknown; that book hews to more traditional grimoire material and has been classified as a necromancer’s manual. The World’s Greatest Magician Black Herman’s Secrets of Magic combines parlor tricks and legerdemain with spells, charms, horoscopes, lucky numbers, and Christian ritual.
See DICTIONARY: Conjure; HALL OF FAME: Black Herman Rucker.
Library of the Lost
These are the books you can’t read. You certainly might want to; they were packed with metaphysical, magical, and spiritual wisdom, but you can’t because they don’t exist anymore. Now, books, even in the best of times, are fragile and perishable things. Paper burns, gets ripped or wet. Bindings break. Sometimes books that are too loved just fall apart eventually. However, that was not the fate that befell these books. These books were deliberately and systematically destroyed because someone with the authority to do so didn’t want you or anyone else to read them.
The New Testament indicates the existence and suppression of magical texts. According to Acts 19:18-20 Paul encouraged his Ephesian converts to burn their vast collections of magical books. How vast were these collections? Their worth was estimated at fifty thousand pieces of silver at that time. And In 1501, a papal bull authorized the burning of heretical and profane books.
It’s impossible to describe most of what was destroyed because nothing remains to tell, not even knowledge of existence. The following works and collections, however, are among the most prominent members of this library of the lost.
Alexandria’s Library
Once upon a time, the Royal Library of Alexandria, Egypt is believed to have been the largest depository of written work in the ancient world. It’s estimated that at its peak it held between 400,000 and 700,000 scrolls, including Aristotle’s own personal collection donated by one of his students. Allegedly, the Library possessed a copy of every book then in existence. How was this accomplished? Theft.
The Library belonged to the Pharaoh, whose word was law. All visitors to Alexandria were required to surrender any books in their possession. Copies would be made and the copy returned to the rightful owner, while the original was retained by the Library. Visitors didn’t even have to enter the city. The Library was authorized to remove any books (scrolls) found aboard ships docking at this major port city on the Mediterranean; once again, copies were made and given to the owner.
All that remains of the Alexandria Library is information regarding its policies and the names of some of its titles, a little taste of what was lost. In addition to books of general interest, the Library possessed vast stores of metaphysical works from ancient temple collections throughout Egypt, Greece, Judea, Libya, Mesopotamia, and Nubia.
The Library is believed to have been founded during the third century BCE by Pharaoh Ptolemy II. There are various versions of how the library was lost. The version most commonly circulated until recently suggested that during Julius Caesar’s invasion of Alexandria, the Egyptian fleet was burned with the fire spreading to city and library. Much of the old royal city of Alexandria ended up underwater following a series of earthquakes. Only recently has technology been developed to enable archeologists to study these ancient submerged ruins. The old city has been recreated and mapped more accurately than ever before. It’s now believed that Caesar’s military actions did not destroy the library itself; instead it’s believed that warehouses filled with books, perhaps intended for export, near the Alexandria docks were burned instead.
Before modern archeology, much of what was known about ancient history was filtered through the eyes of Christian monks who translated, wrote, and edited history texts. Booklovers themselves, they may have preferred the notion that Caesar was responsible for this waste and destruction. (Even reports that still hold Caesar responsible acknowledge that attempts were made to rebuild or further enhance the Library. Marc Antony allegedly gave his lady-love, the scholar pharaoh Cleopatra, a gift of 200,000 books for what was essentially her library.)
The Royal Library was finally shut and destroyed during the late fourth century when all other Pagan temples were destroyed. Theophilus, the second Bishop of Alexandria, requested authorization from the Emperor in 391 to destroy all aspects of Paganism and that was the end of the Library. Exactly what happened to the Library is unclear, however the Temple of Serapis was destroyed by a Christian mob that burned all texts found within the shrine.
Druid Books
Very little is known today about the Druids and even less is completely understood; we’re not even 100 percent sure of exactly who they were or what their function was in Celtic society. (Yes, yes, I know. You can read a book that will definitively, absolutely identify the Druids, their beliefs, rituals, and actions; afterwards, you can pick up another book that will give you some other definitions and explanations. Many definitive versions exist.) Most of what we do know is filtered through the writings of Romans like Julius Caesar, who encountered them under less than friendly circumstances.
The standard explanation for our lack of knowledge regarding Druids is that they didn’t write, therefore left no information behind. Celtic society was either non-literate or it was felt