Bookshelf: Magister Officiorum (Julio Cesar Ody)

I`ve just received my copy of the much-anticipated Magister Officiorum, brought to us by Julio Cesar Ody and Scarlet Imprint. The book was put out in three editions: 72 copies of the Limited Edition, hand bound in quarter vellum, black cloth boards, edges gilt, ribboned, and presented in a slipcase, 900 copies of the Standard Harback, black cloth stamped with dagger device, textured red endpapers and black dust jacket and the unlimited paperback Bibliothèque Rouge edition.

Although I was not among the fine people who got to the 72 fine bound copies, I was among the lucky ones that got a signed copy from the author himself, for which I am more than grateful. Adding to that the fact that he agreed to a very objective review on my part without the threat of being cursed if I`m too critical, I can only be satisfied and relieved.

Magister Officiorum is not a book on magic. It`s a book of magic.  Without having the pretense of being a dark work that promises you unparalleled techniques and secret keys to the magical realm and the unleashing of the infernal armies, without being flashy and pompous in its presence, the book is a grimoire. A concise manual of Solomonic Magic as it is understood in the traditional, practical sense. 

Despite Julio`s expertise in syncretic initiatory systems such as Makaya and Obeah, he does not fall into the trap of eclecticism that sometimes characterises modern workings of the Solomonic Cycle. Although he is very well aware of the historical connections between the Goetia spirits and the Canaanite religion, he does not overlay the latter upon the former, nor does he try to reverse-engineer the Lemegeton practice in an ATR manner to better suit his fancy. Obeah is Obeah and Solomonic Magic is Solomonic Magic.  Although private practice may evolve in similar fashions in many ways, the Magister Officiorum tells a tale of rigorous traditional practice that is respected thoroughly and then worked to one's needs. 

In reading a modern-day grimoire we do not only get a glimpse in the mind and soul workings of a contemporary practitioner, but we can also trace the model and backbone of other works akin to it. 

Many grimoires, such as the Elements of Pseudo-Abano, The Key of Pseudo-Solomon and the Books of Pseudo-Moses have been transmitted to us with a varying degree of fidelity, but with smaller and often disregarded experiments, minor rites and practices. Without being exterior to them, these rites are often original creations of the author or scribe that worked the system and are included in his Liber Officiorum (book of rites) in order to be rendered effective.  As well as we can witness in the case of Frederick Hockley, Ody`s book chronicles just such examples of minor workings or rites brought about by his experiences in the practical application of the system. At least one example, the Image of Frimost, is strangely reminiscent of the work On Images of Zael (Sahl ibn Bishr) in it`s direction and detail. All well and good if it weren't for the fact that I did not publish this translation anywhere to this date. 

The Sefer Mafteach Shlomo, the Munich Handbook and the Florentine Manual are filled with such experiments that baffle the academics: they seem to be related textually to the grimoire proper and share a paradigm with the rest, but they have no previous sources or textual occurrences. Where do they come from and who authored them?  Magister Officiorum answers this very question and takes us through the mindset of the practitioner much as it functioned 400 or 500 years ago, a truly remarkable exercise in cognitive anthropology.

Minus Points: Apart from minor errors (such as The Munich Handbook being called Colorno 849 instead of CLM 849), the book does not contain errors as I see it. This being said, it`s practice-oriented and the rigorous academic researcher will not be provided with copious footnotes regarding the pages on which the cited information is given in the work mentioned. Also, my profession as a bookbinder begs me to lament one detail: the book as an object by itself is not practically designed, but aesthetically: it opens with difficulty. This is due to three reasons: 1. the paper is thick, and although it has a luscious  and pleasant feel, it tends to remain rigid. 2. The spine is straight and thick, as most hardbacks produced today and cannot afford much flexibility and 3. although the book is sewn in signatures, the hot glue used to fasten it was put on copiously in the thought that it might be more resistant. Any binder knows that the lesser glue we have on a spine the more flexible it will be and the more glue we put on the more resistance it will have to being opened flat. 

Plus Points: although not academically inclined, Ody`s recommended reading list is packed with serious works on the subject he delves into, with critical editions by Joseph Peterson, Stephen Skinner, Daniel Harms, Richard Kieckhefer and Ioannis Marathakis. The writing manner is concise, straightforward, practical and with no modern conceptual additions to the traditional material (unnecessary kabbalistic interpretations, spiritual speculations or guided and/or induced visualisation. The book itself, apart from the issue of opening flat, is beautifully executed, Singer`s illustrations are clear and well drawn, the proportions beautifully chosen and the gilding kept to an elegant minimum. 

All in all, a must-read for any researcher that can gather the strength to admit that magic is not a long-dead discipline to be studied from old books but a tradition that has been practiced without interruption from the very first manuscripts of it`s seminal works to the more recent endeavors of contemporary studious practitioners. 

Scarlet Imprint: Magister Officiorum

Glitch Bottle interview: Stepping into the Circle

Julio`s Blog: Crossing Sun

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