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Magie - Ingram Academic — Ceremonial Magic

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⚜️ Ceremonial Magic −19%

Magie - Ingram Academic

Name: Magie - Ingram Academic
Price: 410.00 USD
Availability: InStock
ISBN: 9783110254204

✍️ Otto, Bernd-Christian

Reader Score

4.6

(2 reviews)

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📚 WHAT THE BOOK IS ABOUT

A 711-page German historical study tracing the concept of magic across 2500 years of Western religious thought.

This volume reframes academic discussions surrounding magic by investigating how diverse historical figures defined and applied the concept across two and a half millennia. By focusing on texts from late antiquity to the present, Otto analyzes how Jewish, Christian, and Muslim scholars, alongside philosophers and practitioners, used the term to establish religious boundaries. The text treats magic not as a fixed phenomenon, but as a dynamic label tied to Western identity formation.

Key Themes

history of the magic concept western religious identity formation philological and historiographical analysis

Literary Context

Originating in late antiquity and stretching to the present day, this study examines Western religious history through ancient, early modern, Enlightenment, and Romantic sources, detailing how Jewish, Christian, and Muslim traditions shaped cultural definitions of magic.

Otto, Bernd-Christian

📚 all books by this author (3) →

Difficulty

●●● Challenging

Recommended For Fans Of

James Frazer · Max Weber · Keith Thomas · Ritual Studies

⚜️

Ceremonial Magic

🏛 de Gruyter 📖 711 pages 📔 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 in Collections

⚗️ Magick Studies

📝 Description: Magie - Ingram Academic

Bernd-Christian Otto offers a connected account of how the concept of magic developed across twenty-five centuries of Western religious history. Published by de Gruyter, this 711-page German hardcover examines the term's evolving meanings, evaluations, and functions from late antiquity through to the modern era. Otto traces how the idea was understood and debated by ancient poets, ancient philosophers, early modern humanists, Enlightenment thinkers, Romantics, and self-described magicians, as well as Jewish, Christian, and Muslim authors. Rather than offering a single definition or searching for an underlying essence, Otto uses a philological and historiographical approach to establish magic research as an academic field. The text demonstrates how societies used the concept of magic to construct religious norms, shape identities, and establish mechanisms of inclusion and exclusion. Otto's historical method addresses a long-stagnant academic debate by grounding the study of magic in the concrete contexts of Western religious tradition. This scholarly work suits researchers, historians, and readers interested in comparative religion, Christian theology, archaeology, and the relationship between religion and science. It is not intended for practitioners seeking spellbooks, ritual guides, or practical instruction in magick studies.

💎 Expert review

“

💎

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 4.6/5

★★★★★

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

4.6

Based on 2 reviews

Arthur P.

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

📜 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?