Lehrich C. I.

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//-->The Occult MindMAGICIN THEORYAND PRACTICECHRISTOPHER I. LEHRICH:. 1:IUniverSityCORNELL UNIVERS'tTY PRESSITHACA AND LONDONCopyright2007by Cornell UniversityAll rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in a review, this book, or partsthereof, must norbereproduced in any form withollt permission in writingfrom the publisher. For information, address Cornell University Press, SageI-[ouse,512EaSt State Street, Ithaca, NewYork 14850.I:irsr publishedby Cornell UniversityPressFor Sarah, who puts magic i" my life2007Printed in lhe United Sencs of AmericaI,ih..;,r)'ofCongn.:ss Car:lloging-in-Publication DarnLchrich, ChrisrophcrI.The occult mindp.CIll.magic in theory and practiceIChristopher 1. uhrich.Includes bibliographical rcfcrenccs andindcx.ISBN 978-0-801+-+538-5 (clothl.alk. paper)Magic.2.Occultism.1.Title.BFr6I1·L+35 2007133.4'3-dc22Cornell University Press strives to use environmentally responsible suppliersand materialstothe fullest extent possible in dle publishing of its books. Suchmaterials include vegetable-based,low-VaCinks and acid-free papers thatare recycled, rorally chlorine-free, or partly composed of nonwood fibers. Forfurther information, visit our website at www.comcllprcss.corndl.cdu.Cloth printing109R76S-ICONTENTS•••••••••List of Ill'ustrationslXXlPreface1}Egypt1848821321582The Ley of the Land3The Theater of Hieroglyphs4The MagicMUSCUlll5Tarocco and Fugue6Dc(mon)constructiOI1NotesBibliographyIndex183223239ILLUSTRATIONS...••••••9398991011The main hall of me museum at me Collegio RomanoHieroglyphs and their alphabetic detivations23 Egyptian hieroglyphics translated by Athanasius Kircher4Fanciful originsof Chinesecharacters5 Ocrult chains linking the sciences6 Classification from the musical ennead scale7 Kircher's music-making arkI07109lIZ1258 The Egyptian labyrinth9 Tarot card of the Hermit, c. ]69010136136Tarot card of the Hermit, c.1910PREFACE•••••••••Modern academe does not recognize a discipline devoted to the analyticalstudy of occult, magical, or esoteric traditions. Work in these areas, thoughon the increase, remains hamperedbyvarious methodological and politicalblinders. The primary difficulty is simply explained: work on magic is tighdyconstrainedbythe conventions of the discipLines in whichitis locally for-mulated. Early modern magic, a preoccupation of the present work, receivestreatment within the narrow limits of intellectual history and the history ofscience. Most books adverttonormative modes of evidence, analysis, andinterpretation in those historical fields. Sociological and andlropologicalstudies similarlypreselltthemselves in traditional disciplinary styles. Andsome important potential contributors, notably philosophers, have not asyetseen a reasonto join the conversation.Academic scholars working on magic have often been strikingly anxioustosituate themselves indisputably within a conventional disciplinary frame-work, as tbough thereby to ward off dlC lingering taint of an object of studystill thought disreputableifnot outright mad. Many have encountered hos-tility, or amused disdain) from colleagues in more accepted fields. Thus it isno surprise that scholars of magic bend over backvvard to demonstrate justhow "straight" they are.But it should no longer be necessarytodefend studies of magic, given thelong line of distinguished predecessors in several disciplines. In the historyof ideas, Eugenio Garin, Carlo Ginzburg, Paolo Rossi, D. P. Walker, andPrances Yates laid an eminently reputable foundation on which others havehllilt. In the history of science, Brian Copenhaver, Allen Debus, WalterPagel, David Pingree, and many others have legitimated previollsly dis-dained materials as essential to understanding the foundations of science. In.111I'hropology, surely the name of Claude Levi-Straussbyitself grants suffi-cient legitimacy, whatever one thinks of his conclusions, to say nothing ofI.ucien Levy-Bruhl, Stanley Tanlbiah, and Robin Horton. In the history ofreligions, Jonathan Z. Smith has continually grappled with magic, as have indilll:rent' ways and :In.:as Ilans DieterBeLL;Christopher Faraone, Fritz Graf, [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]