The Tree of Life: An Illustrated Study in Magic

Israel Regardie, Chic Cicero, Sandra Tabatha Cicero

Llewellyn Worldwide, 2000 - Body, Mind & Spirit - 513 pages

Israel Regardie wrote The Tree of Life, a book many consider his magnum opus, in 1932. It has continued to sell for decades. And no wonder. Up until the time this book was published, very little information about true high magic was available to the public.

In this book, Regardie reveals the secrets of real magic. He begins with an explanation of what magic is and, just as importantly, what magic is not. He explains that it is a spiritual study and practice which, along with forms of yoga, forms the two branches of the tree that is mysticism. Magic is not being a medium or a psychic. Then he explains the tools of the magician, what they mean, and how to use them. He explains the techniques of evocation and invocation, skrying, and astral travel. He shows how the Qabalah unites everything. He even gives a description of the secrets of sexual magick. All of this is in a clear, lucid writing style. This book is simply a must for anyone who is, or aspires to be, a real magician.

Although Chic and Sandra Tabatha Cicero were friends of Regardie and are Senior Adepts of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, what changes could they have made to this classic book? Well, they did change the spelling from British style to American. And they did change his transliterations of Hebrew into the more popular style he used in his later books. But nothing vital was changed or removed. Everything else they added was complementary to the text that was there. And what incredible additions they are! Extensive annotations throughout every chapter; over 100 illustrations; more descriptive contents pages; a glossary, a bibliography and an index. They've even added a biographical note on Regardie and the importance of this book to him and to the occult world.

This book contains some of the finest occult writing that has ever been produced. And with the new material by the Ciceros, it becomes a must-have for any magician!

Contents

• Mysticism Magic and Yoga: 3
• Negligence to Enter into Communion with Reality: 4
• A Possible Cause of this Disruption: 7
• The Real Nature of Genius: 8
• Its Root is a Spiritual Experience: 11
• Magic as the Key to Creativity: 14
• Definitions of Both Systems: 17
• Theurgists are the Light of the World: 19
• Eliphas Levi and the Heavenly Man: 22
• In Defense of the Magical Art: 27
• Man is a Child of the Gods and to Them Must He Aspire for Union: 29
• Has No Relation to Witchcraft: 31
• Bases of the Magical Philosophy: 32
• The Tree of Life of the Qabalists: 35
• The Qabalah: 39
• Relation of Egyptian Magic and the Qabalah: 41
• The Nature of Number and the Significance of Symbols: 43
• Outline of Magical Theory of the Universe: 45
• Tetragrammaton and the Four Worlds: 49
• Levis Magical Dogma: 60
• Spiritual Hierarchies in Space: 61
• Theurgy as a Conceived by Iamblichus: 65
• The Astral Light: 71
• How it is Conceived by Modern Science: 72
• The Spacetime Continuum: 74
• Two Aspects are Observed in that Light: 77
• The Moon and Mana: 81
• Amentet and the Tuat: 82
• The Use of the Divine Astral and how the World may be Transformed: 87
• Man the Microcosm: 93
• In What Way the Magicians Conceive of the Magical Hierarchies and the Human Constitution: 95
• A Minutum Mundum: 96
• The Mystical Sacrifice of the Ego: 102
• The Ascent of the Ladder of Jacob to the Summit in God: 110
• The Gods: 115
• Divine is Comprehended under Many Hypostases and Guises: 116
• The Implication of the Animal Masks: 140
• Theory and Practice: 145
• Magical Correspondences Tools and Techniques: 147
• How This Has Been Misunderstood: 148
• Magic is a Mnemonic Process: 150
• Signs and Sigils: 151
• Perfumes: 153
• True Meaning of Magical Circle: 157
• Names of God: 159
• Circle Restrains Hostile Influences: 160
• The Altar and the Lamp: 162
• Wand: 163
• Wand Symbolizes Will its Preparation and Consecration: 164
• Imagination and its Essential Formative Nature: 167
• Fawcetts Hypothesis: 170
• Loyolas Spiritual Exercises: 172
• How to Develop the Imagination for Magical Work: 173
• The Tattvas of the Hindus: 174
• The Training of the Will: 179
• A Magical Method of Increasing this Power: 180
• A Threefold Vow: 181
• Pranaynma an Excellent Adjuvant: 189
• Objections to WillDevelopment: 190
• What Causes Success in the Operations of Ceremonial?: 191
• Instance of Gross Failure: 193
• Reason Provided by Barrett: 194
• The Vibration of Godnames and Words of Power: 201
• Vibration of Godnames is Associated with Evocation of Magical Forces States Blavatsky: 202
• How to Pronounce the Magical Names?: 205
• Barbarous Names of Evocation: 207
• Examples of South American Egyptian and Enochian Words: 208
• Mode of Qabalistic Analysis: 211
• Technical Employment of the Barbarous Words: 212
• Dancing and Music: 213
• Necessity and Effect of Circumambulation: 217
• Skrying and Astral Projection: 221
• Employment in Formation of Body of Light: 222
• Educating the Subtle Body: 223
• Ritual and Assistance: 224
• Visions: 225
• How to Check Them Scientifically: 227
• Precautionary Measures: 229
• Egyptian Plans of the Astral: 230
• The Magical Pylons: 231
• How Death is Conquered and Immortality While in the Body Assured: 238
• Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram: 239
• Will and Imagination to Form the Star of Fire: 241
• The DogGuardian: 247
• The Assumption of Godforms: 253
• How this Technique Proceeds: 255
• Egyptian Deities: 257
• Masperos Triumphant Address: 258
• Invocation of Ra the SunGod: 259
• Iamblichus: 260
• The Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage: 263
• The Holy Guardians Angel: 265
• Genius and the Angels Mode of Manifestation: 266
• The Book of Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage: 267
• Full Directions in this Ancient Technique: 269
• The Steps Necessary: 270
• The Vision and the Perfume: 276
• The Invocation of the Holy Guardian Angel: 279
• Grimoires and Magical Evocation: 291
• A Rationale of the Rites of Ceremonial Evocation Introduction to Bride before the Mystical Marriage: 293
• The Building of the Pyramids: 295
• Its Correlation with Modern Psychological Research: 296
• The Magical Systemn of the Key of Solomon the King: 299
• Uniting the Egyptian Method in Practice with the Qabalistic One: 301
• The Goetia: 308
• The Book of the Angel Ratziel: 314
• Why Amateur Visions go Wrong: 317
• The Tracing of Parallels between Yoga and Magic: 318
• How Essentially They are Identical: 324
• Initiation and Group Ritual: 329
• Fundamentals of this Branch of Magical Ceremony: 330
• Commemoration: 333
• Third Degree of Masonic Fraternity: 334
• Fragments of Initiating Ritual in Egyptian Book of the Dead: 337
• Milarepa and Marpa: 339
• A Splendid Ritual in the Bacchae of Euripides: 340
• Necessity for Personal Work: 341
• An Ibis and the Uraeus Serpent: 343
• Theurgy Versus Spiritualism and Black Magic: 349
• Magical Theories Concerning Death: 350
• What Happens when Body Dies: 351
• Qliphotic Obsession: 352
• Why Mediums Resort to Fraud: 353
• How a Sincere Medium May Utilize the Magical Technique: 355
• What is Black Magic: 356
• Necromancy and Vanity: 360
• How to Employ Pentagram and Rosecross Symbols: 361
• Angelic Guardians of the Pylons: 363
• The Eucharist: 364
• Porphyry on Rising on the Planes: 365
• The Road to Ain Soph: 366
• Alchemy and the Mass of the Holy Ghost: 369
• A Secret Method of Working: 370
• Tetragrammaton and Alchemical Symbolism: 371
• The Elixir of Life and Talismanic Consecration: 374
• Prayers Hymns and Invocations: 381
• Several Examples of Each Type of Invocation from Egyptian Qabalistic Rosicrucian Gnostic Greek Enochian and Poetic Sources: 382
• Books Recommended for Study: 421
• Sources For Illustrations: 423
• Glossary: 433
• Bibliography: 487
• Index: 495

About the author

Francis I. Regardie, born in London, England, November 17, 1907; died in Sedona, Arizona, March 10, 1985. Came to the United States in August 1921, educated in Washington D.C. and studied art in school in Washington and Philadelphia. Returned to Europe in 1928 at the invitation of Aleister Crowley to work as his secretary and study with him. Returned to London as secretary to Thomas Burke 1932-34, and during that time wrote A Garden of Pomegranatesand The Tree of Life. In 1934 he was invited to join the Order of the Golden Dawn, Stella Matutina Temple, during which time he wrote The Middle Pillarand The Art of True Healing, and did the basic work for The Philosopher's Stone. Returning to the United States in 1937 he entered Chiropractic College in New York, Graduating in 1941, and published The Golden Dawn. Served in the U.S. Army 1942-1945, and then moved to Los Angeles where he opened a chiropractic practice and taught psychiatry. Upon retirement in 1981, he moved to Sedona. During his lifetime, he studied psychoanalysis with Dr. E. Clegg and Dr. J. L. Bendit, and later studied psychotherapy under Dr. Nandor Fodor. His training encompassed Freudian, Jungian and Reichian methods.

Bibliographic information

• Title: The Tree of Life: An Illustrated Study in Magic
• Authors: Israel Regardie, Chic Cicero, Sandra Tabatha Cicero
• Editors: Chic Cicero, Sandra Tabatha Cicero
• Edition: illustrated, reprint
• Publisher: Llewellyn Worldwide, 2000
• ISBN: 1567181325, 9781567181326
• Length: 513 pages
• Subjects: Body, Mind & Spirit / Magick Studies; Body, Mind & Spirit / Occultism; Body, Mind & Spirit / Witchcraft; Religion / Judaism / Kabbalah & Mysticism