Shaping Formless Fire: Distilling the Quintessence of Magick

SHAPING FORMLESS FIRE is Stephen Mace s distillation of magick down to the basics of psychic energy manipulation. Its application does not require the assimilation of any symbolic or theogonic scheme, and none is offered until the last chapter. What the book does offer is a technique that enables an open-minded exploitation of one s own psychic energy. We focus power through our attention, and with the technique of magick we may begin to focus both the entirety of conscious attention and its unconscious biases into the accomplishment of our wills. One striking feature of psychic energy dynamics is how analogous they are to physical energy dynamics. Every action brings on an equal and opposite reaction in psychic interactions as well as mechanical ones. Physical energy going to entropy works a lot like desire going to satiety. You can t get something for nothing is a psychic affirmation of conservation of energy. And yet the book affirms that magick can never be science. Science demands objectivity, measurement and replication, but psychic energy is the energy of the subjective, defies calibration, and its effect is upon the unrepeatable now. And its instrument is unique, the magician s own Self, which he or she must hone to a fine edge. SHAPING FORMLESS FIRE offers instruction for making a sound beginning, and a clear look at what is apt to come after. When people do the work, a whole realm of power opens up for their recognition and manipulation. And when they do not, power remains to manipulate them, just as it always has. Deep understanding is not required to start. Persistence of effort is essential to get anywhere at all.

Stephen Mace was introduced to the study of sorcery in 1970, when a Tarot reading predicted an imminent disaster in his life. Three days later the State Police raided his apartment, confiscated his stock and trade, bound him with handcuffs, and locked him in their tomb/womb for six weeks. In the years since, he has dedicated himself to the discovery of the fundamental dynamics of the art, the better to empower individuals to defy the oppression of the State Apparatus. To this end, he has written several books, including Stealing the Fire from Heaven, Taking Power, and Seizing Power.