Product Description

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!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #70887 in Books
• Published on: 2000-12-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 552 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781567181326
• Condition: USED - VERY GOOD
• Notes:
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Review
"The Tree of Life presents a massive amount of material that brings together ancient wisdom and modern magical experience." -- Bodhi Tree Book Review, Winter 2001/Spring 2002

From the Publisher
Have you ever heard of Elbert Hubbard? After being a soap salesman he founded the Roycrofters (part of the handicraft movement) and the Roycroft Press, which printed magazines and books filled with inspiration and information. He was popular in the early 1900s. Most people today have never heard of him.

On the other hand, you've probably heard of Israel Regardie. About his book, The Tree of Life, famous occultist Dion Fortune wrote, "…it is going to be one of the classics of occultism." She was right.

The Tree of Life was a book of its time. And just as poor Elbert is pretty obscure today, so, too, are many of the references in Regardie's book. It was time, not to change the book, but to update it for modern readers.

The ideal people to do this were Chic and Sandra Tabatha Cicero, Senior Adepts of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and respected writers and lecturers. The actual changes they made were few — they Americanized some British spellings and carefully turned the transliterations of Hebrew into the modern system that Regardie used in his later books. But that was just the beginning.

Next, they made numerous explanatory notes for each chapter so that everyone can now fully understand the book. Then, to make it easier to use and more valuable they added a glossary, a bibliography, an index, and information on each chapter for the contents pages. To show its importance, they included a biographical preface giving information about Regardie and the book. And finally, to make it even more attractive, they've added over 100 illustrations. Now, this classic from the year 1932 is again a classic for the 21st century. Elbert Hubbard may be forgotten, but this book is fresh and lively. Again, if you get a book on real magic, this should be it!

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 Pomegranates and 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 Pillar and 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.
Chic and Sandra Tabatha Cicero are Senior Adepts of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn.  They share an enthusiasm for the esoteric arts.  They live in Florida with their cat, Lealah, where they work and practice magic.

~ Sandra Tabatha Cicero is a Senior Adept of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and holds a bachelor's degree in Fine Arts.  

~

Customer Reviews

A Great Book before, Now even better
Bravo to the Ciceros for making Regardie's classic text even more usable for the 21st century reader. I'm glad they changed Regardie's old spelling of Hebrew words like Sephiros to Sephiroth to make them conform with the way modern magicians say these words! Sure, you can still buy the old Weiser edition, but if you do, you won't be getting over a hundred illustrations, great footnotes, a table of contents that you can ACTUALLY read, a 50+ page glossary of magical terms, and a comprehensive index. I know which edition I use more often, and it isn't the Weiser one!

Foundation Source Book
I've read the material contained in The Tree of Life a hundred times in a hundred other books. Those books are a but a shadow of this one. Each of those others list this one in their bibliography while they try to re-tell it as well. None have succeeded. Those other books have their place, but this very well written tome is at the foundation of modern magick.

There are a couple of things I might mention to the potential reader. Though containing a good explanation of the Qabalah, contrary to the title, the book is really about Ceremonial Magick in its many forms. At times, Regardie approaches the subject as an apologist arguing around Blavatsky's Theosophical Society's tenants, which were the fashion at the time of the writing. The debate is mostly lost on modern readers but doesn't detract from the work and is completed in the early chapters.

Regardie's only stumble, in my option, is his chapter on alchemy, the last "narrative" chapter of the book. Here Regardie describes the art of alchemy as a spiritual process only and doesn't delve into the possibility of an actual chemical practice. Regardie's book The Philosphers's Stone carries on this narrow interpretation that the author later admitted, I believe, didn't wholly encompass the craft.

As for the Ciceros' contribution to the work, I can't comment since I'm unfamiliar with earlier editions. However, I found the pictures, footnotes and corrections meaningful and helpful for the most part. Where they weren't helpful, I ignored them. Feel free to do the same.

It's also good to see a Llewellyn book not printed on paper-towel quality stock, but durable bonded paper. A book this good should last. A hard copy would be the only improvement upon the printing.

I wholly agree that if Regardie had done nothing else but write The Tree of Life, the world of magick would be forever in his debt. The only other book I can think of that impacted the magick world as much as this one, is Regardie's own Golden Dawn. This book belongs in every magickal library and deserves to be read no matter how well you think you might know the material.

Regardie's book is invalueable to the student of the occult.
Regardie's Tree of Life is invalueable to the student of both Qabalah and magic, introducing us to the methods employed by Aleister Crowley, the Golden Dawn and the Goetia. Regardie has extensively studied rituals of the Ancient Egyptians and Greeks and outlines simple formulas for performing the most complex rituals founded upon ancient knowledge. Also outlines the Augoeides working.