Introduction to Magic, Volume II: The Path of Initiatic Wisdom

Authentic initiatic practices, rituals, and wisdom collected by the UR Group The “Gruppo di UR” was a group of Italian esotericists who collaborated from 1927 to 1929. The purpose of this group was to study and practice ancient rituals gleaned from the mystery traditions of the world, both East and West, in order to attain a state of superhuman consciousness and power to allow them to act magically on the world. They produced a monthly journal containing techniques for spiritual realization, accounts of personal experiences, translations of ancient texts, and original essays on esoteric topics. The group included a distinguished line-up of occultists, neo-pagans, freemasons, Anthroposophists, orientalists, poets, and members of high society.  This volume, the second in the series, complements the first one, yet they are not strictly sequential, and their contents can be read in any order. Volume II shares authentic initiatic wisdom and a rigorous selection of initiatory exercises, including instructions for creating the diaphanous body of the Opus magicum, establishing initiatic consciousness after death, and the construction of magical chains (the enchained awareness of initiates). It offers studies of mystery traditions throughout history, presenting not only the principles themselves but also witnesses to them and their continual validity today. This series shows that the “Magic” of the UR Group meant an active and affirmative attitude toward individual development, handed down from a “primordial tradition” and discernable in alchemy, Hermetism, esoteric religious doctrines, indigenous practices, Tantra, Taoism, Buddhism, Vedanta, and the pagan mysteries of the West.  

Table of Contents:
Foreword: The “Magical” Gruppo di UR in Its Historical and Esoteric Context by Hans Thomas Hakl Introduction to the Second Volume PART 1 I.1 PYTHAGORAS • The Golden Verses I.2 ARVO AND EA • The Esoteric Doctrine of the “Centers” in a Christian Mystic 1 I.3 ABRAXA • Ritual Magic PART II II.1 Instructions for Magical Chains Individual Instructions for Preparation First Instructions for the Chain Instructions for a Later Phase II.2 IAGLA • Subterranean Logic II.3 PIETRO NEGRI • On the Western Tradition 1. Devaluation of the Pagan Tradition 2. East, West, and Christianity 3. The Initiatic Tradition in the West 4. The Roman Tradition 5. Roman Initiatic Wisdom 6. The Legend of Saturnus 7. Etymology of Saturn 8. Addenda 9. Agricultural Symbolism in Rome PART III III.1 HAVISMAT • Tradition and Realization III.2 OSO • A Solar Will III.3 PIETRO NEGRI • The Secret Language of the Fedeli d’Amore III.4 ABRAXA • Solutions of Rhythm and Liberation III.5 LUCE • Opus Magicum: The Diaphanous Body PART IV IV.1 ARVO • Vitalizing the “Signs” and “Grips” IV.2 EA • Initiatic Consciousness beyond the Grave IV.3 Various Commentaries The Magic, The Master, The Song PART V V.1 IAGLA • On the “Corrosive Waters” V.2 ARVO • Ethnology and the “Perils of the Soul” V.3 On the Art of the Hermetic Philosophers V.4 Various Commentaries Desire in Magic -- Meaning of the Ritual -- Feeling and Realization -- Anticipations of Physical Alchemy -- On Shamanic Initiation PART VI VI.1 Experiences: The “Double” and Solar Consciousness VI.2 EA • On the Metaphysics of Pain and Illness VI.3 LEO • Notes for the Animation of the “Centers” VI.4 ARVO • Kirillov and Initiation PART VII VII.1 HAVISMAT • Notes on Ascesis and on Anti-Europe VII.2 MILAREPA • Excerpts from the Life of Milarepa The Demon of the Snows -- The Song of Joy -- The Song of the Essence of Things VII.3 ARVO • The Magic of Effigies PART VIII VIII.1 EA • Esotericism and Morality VIII.2 NILIUS • Medicine and Poison VIII.3 Turba Philosophorum: The Assembly of the Wise VIII.4 Various Commentaries Corporealizing Consciousness -- On “Mortification” -- On Power PART IX IX.1 ABRAXA • The Magic of Creation IX.2 PIETRO NEGRI • On the Opposition Contingent on Spiritual Development IX.3 Some Effects of Magical Discipline: The “Dissociation of the Mixed” PART X X.1 The Contrast between Positive Science and Magic: Positions and Solutions X.2 ABRAXA • The Magic of Conjunctions X.3 OTAKAR BŘEZINA • Perspectives X.4 Various Commentaries Prodigies and Former Times -- Sexual Magic PART XI XI.1 BRENO • Notes on Occult Morphology and Spiritual Corporeality XI.2 ZAM • A Pagan Magical Spell XI.3 ARVO • On the Hyperborean Tradition XI.4 The Golden Flower of the Great One XI.5 Various Commentaries Woman and Initiation -- Ex Oriente lux Index

About the Author :
A controversial philosopher and critic of modern Western civilization, Julius Evola (1898-1974) is considered one of the foremost authorities on the world’s esoteric traditions. He wrote widely on Eastern religions, alchemy, sexuality, politics, and mythology and published many books, including Revolt Against the Modern World.

Review :
“The formulas that Evola transmits, and the complex listing of the causes and effects that accompany them, seem to me so important, not only for spiritual life but for the use of all the faculties, that I know of no human condition that they cannot improve, whether in the case of the man of action, of the writer, or simply the person in the toils of life.” “A dazzling and interesting, but very dangerous, author . . .” “One of the most difficult and ambiguous figures in modern esotericism.” “Eros and the Mysteries of Love invokes the rich sexual symbolism of religious myths and mysteries throughout history, from the I Ching to the Kabbalah, to illustrate the redemptive power of the sexual act.” “Introduction to Magic, vol. I, should be standard reading for any serious academic or practical student of occultism. . . . Experienced occultists will welcome it as a breath of fresh air and a journey into little discussed territories.” “The collection of essays in Introduction to Magic, vol. I . . . cover the practical, the theoretical, and the unclassifiable, such as the Mithraic Ritual of the Great Magical Papyrus of Paris, the only ritual from the ancient Mysteries to have survived intact.” “Revolt Against the Modern World is destined to remain an essential work and frame-of-reference for anyone seriously involved in native European spirituality.” “Disgusted by the cruelty and artificiality of communism, scorning the dogmatic, self-centered fascism of his age, Evola looks beyond man-made systems in Men Among the Ruins to the eternal principles in creation and human society. The truth, as he sees it, is so totally at odds with the present way of thinking that it shocks the modern mind. Evola was no politician, trying to make the best of things, but an idealist, uncompromising in the pursuit of the best itself.” “Men Among the Ruins is Julius Evola’s most notorious work: an unsparing indictment of modern society and politics. This book is not a work for complacent, self-satisfied minds . . . it is a shocking and humbling text that will be either loved or hated. Evola’s enemies cannot refute him; they can only ignore him. They do so at their peril.” “In Ride the Tiger Evola shows, unintentionally but with passion, why European Tradition may not be able to match East Asia in riding the tiger in today’s world. It lacks a spirituality for today’s mundane world, tempered by the harsh realism of Daoism and the practical disciplines of Confucianism.” “Evola . . . had a clarity of mind and a gift for explaining tremendously difficult concepts in nonacademic language. . . . His descriptions of subtle states and the practices that lead to them are as lucid as these difficult subjects allow.” "An impressively informative and exceptionally well organized and impressive study, Introduction to Magic: The Path of Initiatic Wisdom is unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and academic library Metaphysical Studies collections. Also very highly recommended is Julius Evola's Introduction to Magic: Rituals and Practical Techniques for the Magus, which is volume one of this outstanding two volume body of work." "An impressively informative and exceptionally well organized and impressive study, Introduction to Magic: The Path of Initiatic Wisdom is unreservedly recommended for personal, professional, community, and academic library Metaphysical Studies collections. Also very highly recommended is Julius Evola's Introduction to Magic: Rituals and Practical Techniques for the Magus, which is volume one of this outstanding two volume body of work." “Evola offers real information about initiatic traditions. The information he presents resonates credibly with my accumulated knowledge from other sources and from my personal experience. From Pythagoras, through Christian Mysticism, Hinduism, and Hermeticism, Evola spells out the roots of traditions that spawned currently-popular “New Age” practices. Essentially, he is telling readers how to elevate “astral” curiosity into spiritual growth that transcends the boundaries of the physical plane from generation to generation.”