Three Books of Occult Philosophy : The Foundation Book of Western Occultism

The Single Most Important Text in the History of Western Occultism

The vast store of magical lore within the Three Books of Occult Philosophy has been an essential resource for occultists since its original publication nearly five centuries ago. In this hardcover edition, editor Donald Tyson presents these writings in their complete form, free from the hundreds of errors made in the original translation and supplemented by notes and explanations to contextualize the material for the modern reader.

The most complete repository of Pagan and Neoplatonic magic ever compiled, this book is packed with material you will not find elsewhere, including copious extracts on magic from obscure or lost works by Pythagoras, Pliny the Elder, Cicero, Ptolemy, Plato, Aristotle, and many other authorities. Donald Tyson's detailed annotations clarify difficult references and provide origins of quotations, expanding upon them as necessary in order to make Agrippa's work more accessible.

As well as providing extensive insight into the foundations of the Western esoteric tradition, the Three Books of Occult Philosophy is the ultimate "how-to" for magical workings. It describes how to work all manner of divination and magic in such clear and useful detail that it is still the guide for modern techniques. And the extensive supplementary material―including biographical and geographical dictionaries and appendices―provides quick reference to many previously obscure matters in classical magic.

Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa von Nettesheim (1486-1535) was a German magician, occult writer, theologian, astrologer, and alchemist.

Editor Donald Tyson is a Canadian from Halifax, Nova Scotia.  Early in life he was drawn to science by an intense fascination with astronomy.  He now devotes his life to the attainment of a complete gnosis of the art of magic in theory and practice.  His purpose is to formulate an accessible system of personal training composed of East and West, past and present, that will help the individual discover the reason for one's existence and a way to fulfill it.