The history of magic : including a clear and precise exposition of its procedure, its rites and its mysteries

By Eliphas Levi (Alphonse Louis Constant).. Translated, with a preface and notes, by Arthur Edward Waite.

Preface to the English translation. Introduction. Book 1 - The derivations of magic. 1 Fabulous sources. 2 Magic of the Magi. 3 Magic in India. 4 Hermetic magic. 5 Magic in Greece. 6 Mathematical magic of Pythagoras. 7 The holy Kabalah. Book 2 - Formation and development of dogmas. 1 Primitive symbolism of history. 2 Mysticism. 3 Initiations and ordeals. 4 The magic of public worship. 5 Mysteries of virginity. 6 Superstitions. 7 Magical monuments. Book 3 - Divine synthesis and realisation of magia by the Christian revelation. 1 Christ accused of magic by the Jews. 2 The witness of magic to Christianity. 3 The devil. 4 The last pagans. 5 Legends. 6 Some Kabalistic paintings and sacred emblems. 7 Philosophers of the Alexandrian school. Book 4 - Magic and civilisation. 1 Magic among barbarians. 2 Influence of women. 3 The salic laws against sorcerers. 4 Legends of the reign of Charlemagne. 5 Magicians. 6 Some famous prosecutions. 7 Superstitions relating to the devil. Book 5 - The adepts and the priesthood. 1 Priests and popes accused of magic. 2 Appearance of the Bohemian nomads. 3 Legend and history of Raymund Lully. 4 On certain alchemists. 5 Some famous sorcerers and magicians. 6 Some magical prosecutions. 7 The magical origin of Freemasonry. Book 6 - Magic and the revolution. 1 Remarkable authors of the eighteenth century. 2 Thaumaturgic personalities of the eighteenth century. 3 Prophecies of Cazotte. 4 The French revolution. Phenomena of mediomania. 6 The German illuminati. 7 Empire and restoration. Book 7 - Magic in the nineteenth century. 1 Magnetic mystics and materialists. 2 Hallucinations. 3 Mesmerists and somnambulists. 4 The fantastic side of magical literature. 5 Some private recollections of the writer. 6 The occult sciences. 7 Summary and conclusion. Appendix - Author's preface prefixed to the first edition

'The works of Eliphas Levi on the science of the ancient magi are intended to form a complete course, divided into three parts. The first part contains the Doctrine and Ritual of Transcendental Magic; the second is The History of Magic; and the third will be published later under the title of The Key to the Great Mysteries.'

Hardcover