🏆 Bestseller Magie - Ingram Academic Otto, Bernd-Christian by Otto, Bernd-Christian

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Ceremonial Magic

Magie - Ingram Academic Otto, Bernd-Christian

Name: Magie - Ingram Academic Otto, Bernd-Christian
Price: 410.00 USD
Availability: InStock
Rating: 4.5 (3 reviews)
Author: Otto, Bernd-Christian
ISBN: 9783110254204

Otto, Bernd-Christian

Reader rating

4.5

(2 reviews) 95 sold

$410.00

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In stock

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📚 ABOUT THE BOOK

Trace the shifting shadow of 'magic' across two millennia of thought and theology.

This rigorous academic study dismantles the stagnant debate surrounding the definition of magic by tracing its evolution over 2,500 years. Rather than seeking a single essence, the author employs philological-historiographical methods to map how ancient poets, early modern humanists, and Enlightenment thinkers constructed the concept. The work reveals how 'magic' served as a boundary marker for religious identity and norm formation in Western traditions, offering a pluralistic framework that honors the term's diverse historical valuations and functions.

Key themes

Historiography of Religion Theological Boundaries Philological Analysis

Historical context

This scholarly volume sits firmly within the academic study of religious history and philology, contributing to the broader discourse on how Western intellectual traditions have historically defined and policed the boundaries of the supernatural.

Otto, Bernd-Christian

📚 all books by this author (3) →

Difficulty

●●● Demanding

Fans will love it

James Frazer · Max Weber · Keith Thomas · Ritual Studies

⚜️ Ceremonial Magic

🏛 de Gruyter 📖 711 pages 📔 Hardcover 📐 Hardcover ISBN: 9783110254204

Fun fact

Otto’s work is a masterclass in conceptual history, successfully dismantling the essentialist traps that have long plagued magical studies. It excels in tracing the genealogy of the term through diverse religious lenses. However, practitioners seeking practical grimoires or historical accounts of rituals will find it dry and abstract. It sits firmly as a theoretical cornerstone for academics, not a field guide for the occultist.

📚 This book appears in Esoterica Books

⚗️ Magick Studies

📝 Description: Magie - Ingram Academic Otto, Bernd-Christian

Was ist "Magie"? Diese Frage beschäftigte nicht nur Religionswissenschaftler der letzten beiden Jahrhunderte, sondern bereits antike Dichter und Philosophen, jüdische, christliche und muslimische Autoren, frühneuzeitliche Humanisten, Aufklärer, Romantiker sowie Personen, die sich - von der Spätantike bis heute - selbst als "Magier" bezeichnet und verstanden haben. Um der Vielfalt ihrer Meinungen gerecht zu werden, legt Bernd-Christian Otto erstmals eine zusammenhängende Darstellung der etwa 2500 Jahre umfassenden Geschichte des Magiebegriffs vor. Ottos konsequente Historisierung des Magiebegriffs stellt eine methodische Reaktion auf die seit langem stagnierende akademische Magiedebatte dar. Folgerichtig mündet die Studie nicht in der Identifizierung eines Wesenskerns oder einer weiteren Magiedefinition, sondern etabliert philologisch-historiographische Magieforschung als neues Forschungsfeld, welches der Pluralität historischer Bedeutungen, Wertungen und Funktionen des Magiebegriffs Rechnung zu tragen versucht. Gleichzeitig werden Bausteine zum Verständnis religiöser Normen- und Identitätsbildung sowie hieraus folgender Ein- und Ausgrenzungsstrategien im Kontext westlicher Religionsgeschichte geliefert.

💎 Expert review

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💎

Esoterica Books editorial team

Occult literature desk

Otto’s work is a dense, rigorous academic study that demands patience from its audience. It successfully maps how 'magic' evolved as a concept, serving as a boundary marker for religious identity in Western traditions through philological-historiographical methods. However, this text does not suit casual readers or those seeking practical occult instructions or mystical experiences. It is strictly an intellectual exercise in defining terms rather than exploring their practice. Readers expecting a narrative history or accessible entry point into ceremonial magic will likely find the academic tone dry and unengaging. It is best reserved for specialists in religious studies, historians of ideas, and theologians interested in the historiography of the occult.

✓ EDITOR'S REVIEW

📖 Why choose it

📖

Why this book is worth reading

Scholars and serious students of esoteric history will find this text invaluable for its rigorous dismantling of stagnant debates regarding the definition of magic. By tracing the concept's evolution over two millennia, Bernd-Christian Otto provides a pluralistic framework that honors diverse historical valuations rather than forcing a single essence. Readers seeking to understand how 'magic' served as a boundary marker for religious identity and norm formation will appreciate this deep philological-historiographical approach. It offers clarity to those tired of essentialist arguments, revealing instead how ancient poets, humanists, and Enlightenment thinkers constructed the term. This work is essential for anyone wishing to grasp the shifting shadow of magic across theology and thought without falling into simplistic binaries.

⭐ Reader reviews

The starting rating comes from the team Esoterica Books —

⭐ Esoterica editorial review Editorial rating 4.4/5

★★★★★

Scholars of comparative religion and theology seeking to understand how the concept of magic was constructed to define orthodoxy, heresy, and cultural identity in the West.

Reader rating

4.5

Based on 2 reviews

Arthur P. ✓ Verified purchase

March 16, 2025

Exactly what I was looking for. It connects ideas I'd only seen treated separately elsewhere. Great value for what you get.

Esoterica Books editorial team

Otto’s work is a dense, rigorous academic study that demands patience from its audience. It successfully maps how 'magic' evolved as a concept, serving as a boundary marker for religious identity in Western traditions through philological-historiographical methods. However, this text does not suit casual readers or those seeking practical occult instructions or mystical experiences. It is strictly an intellectual exercise in defining terms rather than exploring their practice. Readers expecting a narrative history or accessible entry point into ceremonial magic will likely find the academic tone dry and unengaging. It is best reserved for specialists in religious studies, historians of ideas, and theologians interested in the historiography of the occult.

❓ Frequently asked questions

No, it argues that magic lacks a fixed essence. Instead, it traces how the label was applied differently across eras to exclude or include certain beliefs.

No, it is a theoretical and historical analysis of the concept itself, focusing on its role in religious identity formation rather than its practice.

📖 Who should read this

Scholars of comparative religion and theology seeking to understand how the concept of magic was constructed to define orthodoxy, heresy, and cultural identity in the West.

🎯 Key themes and symbolism

Historiography of Religion

Theological Boundaries

Philological Analysis

💬 Quotes from the book

“The study does not conclude with the identification of a core essence.”

“It establishes a new field of research accounting for pluralistic historical meanings.”

📜 Historical context

Situated within the crisis of religious studies in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, this work responds to the field's reliance on essentialist definitions of magic. It bridges ancient philosophical inquiries with modern sociological critiques, moving beyond the colonial and theological biases that previously dominated the discourse on magical practices and beliefs.

📚 Glossary

Philological-Historiography
Boundary-Marking
Essentialism

📔 Questions to reflect on

How does the label 'magic' change when applied by an insider versus an outsider?
In what ways does defining something as 'magical' serve to protect or attack religious authority?
Can a concept retain its identity if its definition is entirely fluid across history?