Unboxing Occult Books and a Tarot Deck

Introduction

This is my first Occult Books Unboxing. Not a while ago, I placed an Amazon order solely for magickal stuff. Besides a bunch of books, that also includes a very Tarot deck. Although eager to open them, I decided to wait and share this experience with others.

In the past, I made a few unboxings of clothes and a BMX bike. Yet, I never did that with books. In fact, I never thought unpacking books on the internet was a thing. Not until I saw other book reviewers and occult enthusiasts doing it.

Inspired by them, I decided to do the same with this order. First I’ll show the packages. Then I’ll randomly open each, saying a few words about the items.

Before starting, however, there are two things to note. (1) In regards, the book selection. Though focused on Qabalah-based practices, I enjoy researching various systems. Especially when the same have commonalities with the stuff I practice. (2) This isn’t a review of any of the items. It’s just unboxing and first impressions. With both covered, let’s begin…

Box 1

Book 1

Opening the bulkiest and heaviest package, I immediately notice a cover with a traditional Slavic rug.  Considered the author’s magnum opus, this is G.I. Gurdjieff’s Beelzebub’s Tales to his Grandson. Part of the All and Everything Trilogy, this is the heaviest in this order.

It’s considered essential to anyone interested in Gurdjieff’s system called “The 4 Way” or “The Work.” In fact, the author told his pupils to read it three times. And the same is advised to the readers right from the start: The first being in the most mechanical manner; the second aloud as if to another person; and the third, to actually grasp the written.

In terms of paper and overall quality, the book is pretty decent. And I’m satisfied with it.

Book 2

The second book is no other than Dr. David Shoemaker’s Living Thelema, which I wanted for so long. Since I started practicing, Dr. Shoemaker’s podcast still is one of my favorite sources of internet content on Magick.

Lectures like those on A.A.’s grades, the True Will, and especially the segment on Nuit made purchasing the book a no-brainer. So, I hope to find more about them within it. Plus, the book encourages experimentation which is something I really appreciate.

In terms of paper quality, Living Thelema has the feeling of printed on demand.

Box 2

Book 3

Opening the second box, I find two books. The first is Gurdjieff’s Life Is Real Only Then When I Am. As long as I know, this one completes previous works, also providing personal stuff influencing the creation of the author’s system. This book also appears to be (a bit) better than Beelzebub’s Tales regarding cover and paper quality.

Book 4

The second book in this box is the modern but legendary Lon Milo Duquette‘s Understanding Aleister Crowley Thoth’s Tarot. While I researched and somewhat studied the Thoth deck since I started practicing, nothing spiked my interest more than the author’s massive lecture on it.

Crafted for the modern practitioner, this book explains the Thoth deck with maximum coherence and simplicity. While Crowley has his essay on it, and I’m also waiting for it, this book is broadly recognized as equally, if not even more, essential to the deck’s comprehension.

Its cover is matte and has one of the cards depicted on it. From a production/paper standpoint, it’s arguably the best in this delivery.

Box 3

Book 5

From this box, I first pull out Dr. Christopher Hyatt’s The Psychopath’s Bible For The Extreme Individual. Who got me into the Doctor were Israel Regardie and Robert Anton Wilson. Listening to his interviews and reading some of his stuff online, I’ve been fascinated with his ideas for some time. Plus, the title of this one strongly suggests it is written just for people like me.

Being the newer edition, this includes added material and more practical exercises. Its outside quality seems to be very good. And I’d place it second after LMD’s. The (inside) illustrations remind me of those in Prometheus Rising, which isn’t strange considering that they’re both published by Falcon, Dr. Hyatt’s actual publishing company.

Book 6

Also found in the same box is Gurgjieff’s In Search of Being. This one packs all of the author’s system fundamental principles. That includes notions like those of true self-knowledge and how most people spend their time sleeping. The book also gets into the intricacies of the enneagram, which is one of the reasons I got it. Where I think I learned about it is Ouspensky’s In Search of the Miraculous. And its paper quality is quite good.

Book 7

Next in the same package, I find Meetings With Remarkable Men. Аutobiographical, this one conveys various experiences the author had with key figures on his journey. Initially, I didn’t plan to get it. Buying it, however, allowed for a significant discount. Plus, I prefer to read it first and then watch the based-on-it movie. In terms of cover and paper, I put it on par with the former and that of Christopher Hyatt.

Book 8

Last but not least, in this pack, I get Jeff Rhoades’ Hermetic Qabala. I have to say that this is the first time I have seen Qabalah written in this way. There are several main reasons why I got this book. The first is that reading excerpts from it substantially influenced my Greater Invoking Pentagram Ritual. The second, that (as long as I know) it contains information omitted in Regardie’s The Golden Dawn. And the third is that it outlines a somewhat non-traditional Pentagram formula. The author happens to be the founder of the Hermetic Order of the Round Table.

Flipping through the pages, I notice something intriguing. Though mainly Golden Dawn-based, unlike other similar like DMK’s Modern Magick, which it extensively refers to, and Donald Tyson’s Magician’s Workbook, this has all the Enochian elements taken out. So, I’m definitely eager to find some explication of that…

In terms of outside quality, I’m putting it on par with Living Thelema. And that’s because it has a much identical print-on-demand kinda feel…

Box 4

Item 1

Sent in a separate box, the last item isn’t a book, but the actual Thoth Deck. The whole story of me buying it is a bit longer. For quite a while, I wanted to get AGM Urania’s Gold Version. Yet, the same sold out on Amazon Germany from where I usually buy stuff.

Also, a good lady on YouTube showed that though incredibly beautiful, the Gold Cards tend to stick to each other. For this, I went with the classic U.S. Games deck. My first impressions are that it is also of excellent quality. Yet, I’m not going to fully unbox it but only remove the outer wrapping, leaving that for another video/post.