The Key of the Mysteries

It's more on Levi's system of occult science than practical magic. It's alright. Wouldn't read it again

Aleister Crowley, who translated this edition, says it “represents the high-water mark of the thought of Eliphas Levi.” I discovered Eliphas Levi as a very young man, with the Doctrine of Transcendental Magic, and first began to take an interest in all of those topics. Lately, and many years later, I am reading it all over again, and I have been astonished at the clarity and wisdom of Eliphas Levi, particularly in this book. Perhaps when I first read this book I was too young to appreciate much of its wisdom. But if you have any interest in the serious ideas behind the entire heritage of “occult wisdom,” this book makes everything very clear. Very highly recommended.Of course, there is a lot of deliberate misdirection. It is an old trick, to convey the real message under cover of another point to which you are directing attention with lights and fanfare. (Compare the Art of Misdirection in stage magic.) Another common objection, made all the time by people who think they are seeking wisdom, “but this isn’t what I was looking for.” All too often people already have a whole idea in their heads, and they are looking for someone to teach it to them (“Yes; you’re right! That’s it”). But, in order to learn anything new, you have to listen with an open mind to discover the wisdom that is being expressed, often between the lines.

Normalito

Having read Eliphas Levi Transcendental Magic several years ago & appreciating his perspective on occultism, I was very pleased to find this book when searching his name in Amazon. I enjoyed his discourse into various aspects of esotericism and I found the main takeaway from this book for me, was the importance of why spiritual & religious practice is so important in life to do many people, and why it is ingrained within humanity itself. Eliphas strikes the balance well between science, faith, and reason probably better than any modem philosopher has been able to, in my opinion.

Worth its read. Recommended to anyone seeking the light and wisdom of the ages. It's a book one will want to read again and again.