Oriental Magic

ORIENTAL MAGIC

!DRIES SHAH

CONTE TS POUWOU)

by Dr. Louis Marin

xv

~kEPACE

The DHlUslon of M.gk; origins in High Asan shamanism; among the Firuls. Lapps and Amerindians; communication between peoples in prelilitoric times: Celtic legends and the drift from Asia and Egypt. Gteek:s lnd Rom:ms and this drift. Is there

• &upcmatutal power ofmagic? Field £0.. fust:hcr scientific inveso~tioJ:l.

':J.Pkr I, MAGIC IS INTERNATIONAL

I

Mco', minds work a!.J.ke in widely sepatated communities. The Ma~ of C~ittal.: the sor~cS$ ~ita of t~ Chinese bolder. AetlVlOes of litis W1tch. Mediumisnc and clairvoyant tf1lnccs of the Mongolian peoples. The: Mexicao snake-god and itS reflection in India. Uruguay and A1iatic Turlccy. Tabu and propitiation. rites; the 'Forbidden spot"': similarities of this bella in me WC1t. Object$ of nug~c. '!'he Hindus and the iZWiZ (life-force) theolf' The WOStcIfi .s:rUt.K>!res ('Black Boob of the. $oreeren') lmd then r.·w in ouc:otal magic. Diffusion of the Wax·Jtrulge of . ~pe~ ~l\$t sorcery. Established religion and ma.g~c. The • st:1a.niZauon' of the K!J of Solo",~", bram and magic. The pa11phemalill of magic; the question of the Compact.

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1, IEW·ISH WAOIC

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Role of Jewish magiciam. The Book of Si,glfs. and the ~ of ~"J. 1nnsmusion to Noah and Solomon. Figures and spells of the book. The .&0.4 of &/Nh; rabbini~ hostility to magic. The BH.u of Hm"u: Thoth and Theuth. Cicero and the thirty-su thoUS$.D.d volumes. 11J£ Zobttr: devils and spirits. Rites of Jewish lJlagic. Ab~m. son of Simon. Sacred and profane magic. T~ Trill GrilJl(li" and its ]ewishasct:iption. Other sourc~ ofWes.tero occultism supposed to derive from Hehrewsourccs. Magic in the: Bible; t~~ of JIiagic~ and their a.Ctivities. )c~ish d~.onology. Lilith. The sacred 'Word of Power'. HI toocaJ instllnCCS of magic: $al,lllmd the Witch 0 En-Dor. Elijah and the King of Damascus. The strange story of Nostradamus tho Seer. l'h.C tetminology of CabWism. The Plawnists. The method by which magic is revealed to mankind, llC THEIR DOCTRINES The nature of the mystical practice of Tasawwuf-one of the most widespread of all oriental cults. The organization of the Orders; the Brethren of Purity and the Mahdist warriors. Origins of the cult; beliefs of the Sufis: the mission of the Fakir. 'Man is destined to live a social life'. Origin of the term 'Fakir'. The halo of invulnerability, infallibility and supernatural manifestations. Miracles and powers reported of the saintship of the orders: Shahab-el-Din and his conjuration of fruits, etc.; the Night Journey to Heaven and Hell; the non-existence of time; walking on water; miracles and kardmdt; the orders. The Four Orders; theory of the creed; the Invisible Rulership; entry and initiation; the Path; stages and degrees of advancement; recitations; Sufi mystical poem of Mirza Khan. Diagrammatic representation of the Sufi Path and occult phenomena; diagram of the organization of the 'stages of power'; organization of the Chishti Order; the world Sufi hierarchy. The Eleven Secret Rules.

THE OCCULT IN BABYLONIA

~h7 ,de~on~ and sp~rits, of the Babylonians: importance of this

C7vilizatlOn 10 the di!fuslOn of magic arts. The much-neglected rites of ~e Accadlans, founders of Babylonian occultism. Assur-banl-~al's library: tablets of incantations. Roots of magical arts ~o~n 10 the ~est. P~ocess for the healing of a sick man. Descrlp~lOn of the Rite Agamst the Eclipse. Victory over enemies and thele gods. Scope ~f t?e Me~opotamian magic arts. The gods and godde~ses: their llflks With demons and adoption by other peoples. Rites of exorcism. The power words. Conjuration from the Accadian tablets. The link with the Finns.

S.

EGYPTIAN MAGIC

Connection between Jewish and ancient Egyptian magic. Moses and the duel, of the s?akes. Alc~emy traced to Egypt. Legends of the Pyranuds. MagiC not considered Black Art unless directed against the State. The purposes of official m;gic in dynastic Egypt. Country of Egypt and its effect on the rites: the ritual of the Nile. The mira~les of Khufu's magician Teta: His raising of the dead and ma~med. Ac~ount of the experiments of Teta. Thebe~ a~d MemphiS as magical centres. Greek papyri and the Egyptian lOfluence. Porphyry on Egyptian magic. The ritual of the boy with the lamp. The Book of the Dead. The Scarab and its uses. 'Binding' and 'compelling' the gods. Actual names of power quoted. Protection against hostile animals. The rites of the dead: embalming and 'opening the mouth'. Experiences of one student of the occult in Egypt. The Singing Sands and similar phenomena: Colossi of Amunoph III. Lucky and unlucky days of the Month of Thoth.

6.

JU- JU LAND OF THE TWIN NILES

Author's year in the Sudan, unravelling magical rites there. The Nyam-Nyam a?~ their i~iti~tion, into t~e sphere of magic. Methods of tra1;01ng and diSCipleship. Casting spells for clients. The Spell of Victory. The use of the magical whistle. A plantcollectin~ expedition. Love charms, how they are cast. Badges and eqUIpment of the student-sorcerer. The Fish Tabu as a mag~c~l rite. Auto-hypnosis in th~ Sudan. How to identify a ~aglc1an. ,Mungo-the ect~plasffi1c force. Men and girls in ritual danclOg. Solomon's MlOes. Rites of the Kafirs.

8.

Pre-Islamic Arabia; later contribution of the Arabs; spread of occultism under the Arab Empire; the system of magic of Rhazes; other Arab authorities; the genii and the lycanthropes. Ibn ~haldun and magic: Pure Magic, Talismans; the 'power from within the magician'-mana-akasa again. The first scientific commentary on magic. The making and use of talismans of metal according to certain aspects of the stars. Power and Talismans. The Swastika and its adaptations by the Arabs. The making and use of the knot in cursing. Fairies and compelling the power of jinni. The Word of Power. Important treatises on magic among the Arabs. '

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THE ARABIAN CONTRIBUTION

LEGENDS OF THE SORCERERS

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The story of EI-Arab: his strange activities. Was he in control of lightning? What can be learned from oriental tales about ma~cians? Sadoma, the magician of Baghdad. His converse wit spirits in the trackless desert. The magical Roc; travellers and the magical repasts. Emotion and mental powers raised to higher pitch. Unbalance or greater balance? The Golden River and its spirit. SiItim, the sorcerer, taking any form he chose. The story of Siltim and his beloved. The search for the Elixir of Life. Story of the locksmith and the hearts. Himalayan Leopard Powder against hunger and disease. Story of the English Vampiress. Encounter with a magician. EI Ghirby and the Golden Head.

10. CALLING THE SPIRITS

Evocation of spirits comes within a strangely identical system among many peoples. It is the same in all systems of High Magic.

93

CONTENTS

Chapt,r

Chapt,r

reproduced in full detail. The second alchemi~t: Aquil Kh:m. Meeting, apprenticeship. The process. Collectln~ the magIcal juice' the discipline of the goldmaker; collecung the clay. Making the fire and the crucible of clay. Silver into gold. What the alcheniist thought of his powers.

The stages in .the Evocation. Raising spirits, according to shamans, witch-doctors, sorcerers of China and Japan. The Chaldean system. Words of Power for calling the spirits. Formula to call spirits, according to a Graeco-Egyptian document. The oldest known formula for consecrating the circle of evocation. African methods of calling departed magicians. Names of the Hours, names of the Signs, rulerships of the hours of day and n,ight. Asian sorcerers and sorceresses in their calling the devils. The method of calling the King of the North, traced from Smomomcma~~ , II. IRANIAN MAGIC

A NEW THOUGHT-FORCE?

MAGICAL RITES OF THE ATHAR VA VEDA

The connection between akasa and life-force. Hypnosis, magnetism and related phenomena. The experiments in the West: Roucous and the faith-healers. Electrical discharge from the fingers. us MtJladilS ,t I, Magnliis11l; generat!ng current; .the paial1d. with the activities of Fakirs; the nec:esstty for controll~ scientific investigation; report on an experIment; the hypnotlc trance. The work of Professor Rhine; Louis de Wohl an.d the dangers of charlatan.ism. Sunspots and the Harvard Comnuttee.

rOJ

Persia and the effect of the Arab conquest. The influence of neighb?uring magical beliefs on the Persians. The O(,an oj Mystlrlll, and the preparation of the magician. Description of the dedication and rites of the sorcerer; formulae and names of the spirits to be called. Materialization of the spirit; dealing with the spirit; method of 'flying by magic'; storms raised; rich made poor; ugly made beautiful; arguments against alchemy. The dillS; the magical mountains; the Tobo trees, like those of Paradise.

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16.

IIO

The Secret Book of the Brahmins; the Veda is White Magi~ Spell for Everlasting Life; Charm for lengthen.ing life; health charms. and invocat}ons: the Inv?cation to the Plants; panacea for all tIls; the making of the Talisman of Force; the Protection spe!l of the Srakv:a Charm;