by Aaron Leitch

"To understand the grimoires within their own context, we must not look at them through the eyes of twenty-first century readers with modern sensibilities. We must examine them with the eyes of the medieval magician, who lived in a world much harsher than our own…As a result, the magic employed by medieval mages to protect home and hearth was a very serious business and not for the faint of heart.

A better understanding of the grimoires can be arrived at by delving into the life and times of the magicians who wrote them. This involves an evaluation of the historical perspectives, the social and cultural realities, and the religious mindset of the world these magicians lived in, as well as a detailed exploration of magical practices outlined in the grimoires themselves. It also involves an examination of the more archaic magical practices of Babylonia, the ancient Hebrews, and the Hellenistic world—for these ancient cultures had an enormous influence on European magicians and on their magical writings.

Review
"Aaron Leitch’s Secrets of the Grimoires provides a tremendous amount of new insight into the world of the medieval mage. By clarifying the objectives and procedures covered in these texts and spell-books, Leitch sheds light upon a subject which has been greatly misunderstood for far too long."
Chic & Tabatha Cicero 

Secrets of the Magickal Grimoires
by Aaron Leitch
ISBN 0738703036
480 Pages

Available from Llewellyn Publications