Books and texts

Grimoires, magical papyri, Kabbalistic and Hermetic works and the manuals of cunning folk.

A book with a clasp: grimoires, papyri and manuals of rites, and the learned side of magic.

Magical texts are the books, scrolls and papyri that record spells, rites and lore: the Greek Magical Papyri, the Hebrew Sefer Yetzirah and the Zohar, the Picatrix, the Key of Solomon, the Grimorium Verum, the Hindu Atharvaveda, the Egyptian Book of the Dead, the Chinese Taoist ritual manuals and the grimoires of the European cunning folk. This page asks what these texts are, who wrote and read them, and why their authority is complicated.

What the texts are

Some are scripture, such as the Atharvaveda, which contains charms and healing hymns beside its worship. Some are handbooks, like the Greek Magical Papyri from Roman Egypt, which mix Greek, Egyptian and Jewish elements. Some are medieval compendia, such as the Arabic Picatrix. Many European grimoires were printed cheaply and passed hand to hand, and names such as Solomon were attached to give them credit. Some are tiny, such as a few lines on a papyrus strip folded into a case, and some run to hundreds of pages, but all were handled by a small number of people.

Readers and gatekeepers

Literacy mattered. A text of magic could only be used by someone who could read, copy and, often, read Latin, Hebrew or Arabic. That made the learned magician a figure of the elite and left village healers with oral knowledge. In Ethiopia, the debtera, a church-trained scribe, writes protective scrolls. In Java and Malaysia, Quranic and Sanskrit-derived texts are kept by family teachers. Where a text was in a sacred language, the ritual use sometimes outran the meaning, and people recited words they could not translate because the sound itself was held to matter.

Censorship and burning

Texts have been burned. The Church placed books of magic on its Index, Chinese dynasties restricted books of divination, and Qing and later authorities attacked books they saw as superstition. The Nazi regime closed occult lodges and seized their libraries. What we now know of some practices survives because inquisitors, in transcribing confiscated books, kept copies. Preservation depends on accident as well as intention: papyri survived in the dry sands of Egypt, while many paper books of village healers were lost when families moved or owners died.

Authenticity and the market

Many famous grimoires are not as old as they claim. The Sixth and Seventh Books of Moses is a nineteenth-century compilation. Scholars study such works to see how people imagined power, not to test it. Modern editions and online copies are popular, and some publishers present them as ready-to-use manuals, which the guide treats as a matter of belief and not of instruction. Collectors, museums and antiquarian dealers now trade in old manuscripts, and some forgeries sell as originals, which is another reason scholars check provenance.

Text on EveryJaadu

The entries written up so far, best known first.

RegionSouth Asia Southeast Asia East Asia Central Asia and the Caucasus Middle East North Africa Sub-Saharan Africa Europe North America Latin America and the Caribbean Oceania

PurposeProtection Healing Seeing and foretelling Luck and prosperity Love and attraction Cursing and harm Cleansing and purification Speaking with spirits and the dead Change and initiation Binding and oaths Power and authority Wonder and entertainment

WhoShamans Folk healers Priests and ritual specialists Witches, sorcerers and cunning folk Diviners and readers Mediums and the possessed Ceremonial magicians and alchemists Households and ordinary people Stage magicians Scholars and sceptics

BeliefHindu and Tantric Buddhist Jain Muslim and Sufi Jewish Christian Sikh Zoroastrian Shinto and Taoist Indigenous and shamanic African and Afro-diasporic Pagan and Neopagan Esoteric and occult Folk and village custom Secular and stage Other traditions

OccasionWeddings and betrothal Festivals Birth and childhood Death and remembrance Harvest, farming and weather New year Initiation and coming of age Illness and misfortune Journeys and voyages Everyday use

StandingLiving Revived Fading Historical Legendary Performed

OrderBest known A to Z Newest Living first

🇫🇷 FrancePlanchette A wooden device for automatic writing used in Victorian spiritualist séancesCharm · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Seeing and foretelling Historical

🇯🇵 JapanGazu Hyakki Yagyō画図百鬼夜行 A 1776 Japanese woodblock book of yōkai illustrations by Toriyama SekienText · Wonder and entertainment Historical

🇩🇿 Algeria and 1 moreAhmad al-Buniأحمد البوني المالكي A medieval Sufi scholar known for works on letter mysticism and talismansText · Power and authority · Seeing and foretelling Historical

🇫🇷 France and 1 moreNostradamus A French astrologer and physician known for a book of poetic propheciesText · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical

🇫🇷 France and 2 moreÉliphas Lévi A French writer who shaped modern occult thought and ceremonial magic.Text · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical 🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreBook of Thoth A collection of ancient Egyptian texts attributed to the god of writing and knowledge.Text · Power and authority · Seeing and foretelling Historical

🇮🇹 Italy and 2 moreKey of SolomonClavicula Salomonis A Renaissance grimoire attributed to King Solomon, detailing ritual preparations and invocations.Text · Cursing and harm · Love and attraction Historical

🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreEbers Papyrus An ancient Egyptian medical scroll detailing herbal remedies and bodily theories from around 1550 BCE.Text · Healing Historical

🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreDendera zodiac A carved Egyptian sky map now held in a Paris museumText · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical 🇪🇬 EgyptPapyrus Graecus Holmiensis A third-century Egyptian manuscript of craft and alchemical recipes written in GreekText · Power and authority Historical 🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreLeyden papyrus X A third-century Greek manuscript of alchemical and metallurgical recipesText · Power and authority Historical

🇫🇷 FranceThree Books of Occult PhilosophyDe occulta philosophia libri III A Renaissance treatise on elemental, celestial and divine magicText · Healing · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical

🇪🇬 Egypt and 5 moreHermetica A collection of ancient texts attributed to Hermes Trismegistus, covering magic, alchemy and philosophy.Text · Seeing and foretelling · Change and initiation Historical

🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreCorpus Hermeticum A collection of Greek writings attributed to Hermes Trismegistus that shaped Western esoteric thoughtText · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Historical

🇺🇸 United StatesThe Kybalion A 1908 book presenting seven principles of mental philosophy as ancient Hermetic wisdomText · Power and authority Historical 🇩🇪 GermanyChymical Wedding of Christian RosenkreutzChymische Hochzeit Christiani Rosencreutz anno 1459 An allegorical romance and Rosicrucian manifesto detailing a seven-day alchemical initiation.Text · Change and initiation · Power and authority Historical

🇪🇬 Egypt and 2 moreSibylline Oracles A mixed collection of ancient prophecies attributed to pagan prophetesses but shaped by Jewish and Christian writers.Text · Seeing and foretelling Historical 🇩🇪 Germany and 3 moreSixth and Seventh Books of Moses A grimoire claiming to reveal the hidden spells of Moses for controlling spirits and natureText · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical

🇪🇬 EgyptPapyrus of Ani A decorated Egyptian scroll for the afterlife, held in LondonText · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical

🇪🇸 SpainDirectorium Inquisitorum A 14th-century manual for inquisitors on heresy, magic, and trial procedureText · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Historical

🇩🇪 GermanyMalleus Maleficarum A 15th-century manual on witchcraft written by Heinrich KramerText · Cursing and harm · Binding and oaths Historical

🇬🇧 United KingdomWilliam Lilly A seventeenth-century English astrologer and author who shaped Western tradition.Text · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical

🇦🇫 Afghanistan and 2 moreAbu Ma'shar al-Balkhiابومَعْشَر جعفر بن محمد بن عمر بلخی A Persian astrologer whose manuals shaped medieval European and Islamic celestial studiesText · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical

🇬🇧 United KingdomMother Shipton An English prophetess and herbalist from folklore, known for predictions printed long after her death.Figure · Seeing and foretelling · Healing Historical

🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreNicholas Culpeper An English herbalist and astrologer who translated medical texts into English for the poor.Text · Healing · Power and authority Historical

🇮🇹 ItalyMarsilio Ficino A Renaissance priest and philosopher who revived Plato and blended astrology with Christian theology.Text · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Healing Historical

🇵🇱 Poland and 1 moreMichael SendivogiusMichał Sędziwój A Polish alchemist who discovered oxygen and wrote on the 'food of life'Text · Power and authority · Change and initiation Historical

🇩🇪 GermanyBasil ValentineBasilius Valentinus A pseudonymous alchemist whose chemical writings shaped early modern chemistry and hermetic tradition.Text · Power and authority Historical

🇮🇷 Iran and 2 moreJabir ibn Hayyanجابِر بِن حَيّان A legendary Islamic alchemist and philosopher whose writings shaped medieval magic and chemistryText · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Historical

🇮🇹 Italy and 5 moreSator Square A five-word Latin palindrome found in Roman ruins and medieval churchesCharm · Protection · Healing Historical

🇯🇵 Japan and 1 moreKūkai空海 Founder of Shingon Buddhism who brought Vajrayana esoteric practices from China to Japan.Text · Power and authority · Protection Historical

🇮🇹 Italy and 1 morePietro d'Abano A medieval physician and astrologer accused of heresy and magic.Text · Healing · Wonder and entertainment Historical

🇨🇳 China and 2 moreJiang Ziya姜子牙 A historical strategist and war god who helped establish the Zhou dynastyFigure · Power and authority · Cursing and harm Historical

🇨🇳 China and 1 moreGe Hong葛洪 A Jin dynasty scholar and alchemist who wrote key texts on Taoist immortality and early medicine.Text · Healing · Power and authority Historical 🇬🇧 United KingdomGrimoire (sample) A handbook of rites and names.Text · Power and authority · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa: Jean-Louis Durant (1654-1718), Public domain, source
Ahmad al-Buni: Khalili Collections, CC BY-SA 3.0 igo, source
Gazu Hyakki Yagyō: Toriyama Sekien, Public domain, source
Nostradamus: After César de Notre-Dame, Public domain, source
Éliphas Lévi: Eliphas Lévi [1810-1875], Public domain, source
Key of Solomon: Anonymous Unknown author, Public domain, source
Ebers Papyrus: PEbers_c41.jpg : Einsamer Schütze derivative work: Photohound ( talk ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Dendera zodiac: Shonagon, CC0, source
Three Books of Occult Philosophy: Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa, Public domain, source
Corpus Hermeticum: Marsilio Ficino, Public domain, source
The Kybalion: American Libraries, Public domain, source
Sibylline Oracles: Domenichino, Public domain, source
Papyrus of Ani: Photographed by the British Museum; original artist unknown, Public domain, source
Directorium Inquisitorum: Nicolás Eymerich, Public domain, source
Malleus Maleficarum: Johann Jakob Wick, Public domain, source
William Lilly: Simon Harriyott, CC BY 2.0, source
Abu Ma'shar al-Balkhi: User:Martin Kraft, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Mother Shipton: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Nicholas Culpeper: Richard Gaywood, Public domain, source
Michael Sendivogius: Łuszczkiewicz, Public domain, source
Basil Valentine: TomKidd, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Jabir ibn Hayyan: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Sator Square: M Disdero, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Kūkai: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
Pietro d'Abano: Marco Chemello (Wikimedia Italia), CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Jiang Ziya: Wang Qi, Public domain, source
Ge Hong: Hannah, Public domain, source