The Sworn and Secret Grimoire

by Jake Stratton-Kent

A 'Guide to Grimoiring' is well overdue, with unqualified persons claiming to fill the gap only to muddy the waters further. Simplifying the processes involved is unhelpful; what is required is to render them comprehensible and 'user friendly' in a time where they are regaining their deserved prestige as monuments of a tradition preceding the Christian era while nonetheless rooted in it. These processes are demanding and require both work and study in order to succeed. So too the 'by rote' attitude exhibited by some writers on the subject requires a counterblast. Forging and reforging grimoires has always been a part of their real nature, in a metallurgical as well as a literary sense. Ritual composition from scratch is a neglected but necessary skill, requiring a qualified and informed approach, which the current work addresses. So too this handbook departs from the homogenised 'Solomonic' form, drawing instead on the great iconoclast and revitaliser of tradition, Paracelsus. While avoiding Christophobia, the implications for a more pagan (or pagan friendly) approach to the grimoires, compatible with the Greek Magical Papyri and other predecessor forms, are greatly increased by this shift of emphasis.
Welcome to the Night School.

Genres: Magic, Occult

120 pages, Paperback

Published July 20, 2021

About the author

Jake Stratton-Kent has been a goetic magician since 1972, making more than forty years of continuous goetic practice. His practical work integrates the magical papyri, italo-french grimoires in particular the Grimorium Verum and African traditional religions with a focus on Quimbanda and magia negra. His interest in magic spans the ancient, medieval, renaissance, and modern as well as stretching from the West to the Middle East and crucially, the New World. His scholarly approach is backed with a personal relationship with the spirits.

Reviews

[Melissa Estella · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love approaching ritual from a structured view - understanding the format in order to really internalize the ritual rather than just following instructions. So, I am already biased in favor of this book. That said, I thought it was a fantastic book and a must-read for anyone exploring grimoires, providing larger context and commentary behind why certain things are done. A short -- but valuable--read.

[Mitchell Stern · Rating 5 out of 5]

The grimoire in here is not itself as significant as Stratton-Kent’s discussion of how to approach grimoire magic. This is definitely a useful aid.

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Provides a frame for ritual practice and working directly with spirits in a number of contexts. So useful it will drive folks who only want to theorize the other way, and that's just as well.