Picatrix 2 finally here!

My Christmas present this year came in the form of a black volume, smelling richly of leather. Volume 1 of the first English translation of the famous Picatrix came out in 2002; and since then I have been lustfully awaiting volume 2. William Kiesel had produced a marvellous book, but part two was to come later. Oft-promised publication of volume 2 kept being delayed, until finally, at the end of last year, my patience was rewarded. Volume 2 is identically bound to Volume 1 (I have the black leather edn.), and the marbled endpapers are identical - pretty good going, considering the time lag. The price is not that different from volume 1 either, at $130. If the price escalates like volume I (as it goes out of print), I would suggest buying a copy sooner rather than later.

Part II contains Books 3 & 4; and largely contain information relating to the planetary spirits; talismans and so forth, but the content is so wide and varied that it is difficult to describe in the confines of a blog. Descriptions are given of how to invoke spirits, and include the use of incenses, colors, stones, together with the necessary invocations. The book also includes incidental notes describing magical practises from pagan Mesopotamia, with for example, the properties of various plants.

Not having taken the time to call up the various spirits, I cant vouch for the efficacy of the contents yet, but the Picatrix is immensely important historically, because it represents the hermetic knowledge that existed in the Arab medieval world (The work is atrributed to pseudo Al-Majriti), and was compiled from 224 books written by "Ancient sages". Essentially, it was the Encyclopedia of its day, containing most of what was considered important, including Astrology, Philosopy, Magic and Science. Like most Arab works of importance, it re-entered Europe after the dark ages, helping to cause the renaissance and the flowering of the early universities. Alphonso the Wise translated it into Spanish in the 1200's, and despite the possession of it ensuring a speedy trip to the stake, copies were secreted among the best libraries of the day. Members of the Di Medici court read it; including Pico Mirandola and Ficino; and Agrippa of Nettesheim in Northern Europe also possessed a copy, no doubt using it as the source of much of his 3 books on occult philosophy. Casanova was led to trial on charges of possession of a copy of the Picatrix. Despite this illustrious history and centrality to European Occultism (and hence to the European Scientific tradition), it has remained quite rare to this day. The Ouroboros Press publication has made it available to English readers for the first time, and was released in a limited edition of about a thousand copies. Simply purchasing this book as a piece of History is worth the price. As an example of the bookbinder's art, it is doubly worth that. And who knows! You may even be led to the location of hidden treasures if you handle the spirits carefully, and recoup your costs!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Picatrix