For this Halloween-themed entry, we are moving away from affordable ebooks to investments for your bookshelf. If you’re enjoying the Zodiac Rising series and want to dive deeper into esoterica, secret knowledge, astrology, alternate histories, and the supernatural, I have some recommendations from my bookshelf.
Affiliate links ahead.
Secret Teachers of the Western World by Gary Lachman
This book is at the top of the list because it is a masterwork. I’ve bought it twice. Lachman tells us we can acquire knowledge through intuition as well as through our modern predominant mode, analysis. (Remember the left-brain right-brain dichotomy that was trendy a while ago? See Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain). Throughout history there have been people who gained and shared knowledge in a way that our analytical, science-oriented brains do not easily comprehend. These are mini-biographies of those people and what they have taught us, but we may have forgotten.
Bonus: the author a.k.a Gary Valentine was the bass guitarist for Blondie. Yep.
A Treatise on White Magic by Alice A. Bailey
What library of occult treatises is complete without Alice A. Bailey? Her legacy continues through the Lucis Trust who extended her copyright and publish her work. This is the least abstruse of her books.
Here is the link to her entire collection: click here, all with the very distinctive blue covers with white font. Those who know will recognize that you dabble in esoterica if you display this collection on your shelves.
Codex Seraphinianus by Luigi Serafini
Warning: Check the price before you one-click this book.
This illustrated tome will become the conversation piece of your occult bookshelf. Decipher it if you can. Otherwise, enjoy the artwork. I’ve got a copy here with me.
The Occult by Colin Wilson
I’ve not read this one, so here is the blurb:
Colin Wilson’s great classic work is a comprehensive history of mystery and “magic”. His genius lies in producing a skilful synthesis of the available material; clarifying without simplifying, seeing the occult in the light of reason and reason in the light of the mystical and paranormal. It is a journey of enlightenment – a wide-ranging survey of the whole subject and an insightful exploration of Man’s latent powers. Republished two years after the author’s death and with a new foreword by bibliographer Colin Stanley, Wilson brings his own refreshingly optimistic and stimulating interpretation to the worlds of the paranormal, the occult and the supernatural.
While we’re at it, check out Watkins Publishing for more great books by an esoteric publisher.
The Head of God: The Lost Treasure of the Templars by Keith Laidler
Yes, the thesis of this book is that the Templars lost the preserved head of Jesus Christ. And the author knows where it is. There are photos. I don’t need to say anymore. But I’ll say one more thing: this is the horrifying and riveting version of The DaVinci Code.
Supernature by Lyall Watson
This book from the 1970s is chocked full of anecdotes you want at the ready to spar with your skeptical friends. If you can find a copy, buy it.
Tibetan Book of the Dead translated by Robert A. F. Thurman
This is the translation you need. Learn the important processes for a successful death. This book teaches you how to prepare your soul for the trials it will face through the transition to the afterworld. Your guide to enlightenment.
The Earth Chronicles by Zecharia Sitchin
And finally, a boxed set that no esoteric library is complete without. If you thought you were in-the-know after watching every episode of Ancient Aliens, think again. This is the foundational text of the ancient astronaut theory. These books will revolutionize your conceptualization of the past.
I have so many more books to share, but this list will get you started.
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