A quest for the source of power threatened to doom the land of Xanth As a ruler of a country steeped in enchantment, King Trent was naturally curious about the source of its magic. It made sense to order Bink, the only one of his subjects immune to supernatural harm, to undertake a quest to discover the wellspring of Xanth’s uniqueness. From the beginning, Bink and his companions, Chester the centaur and Crombie, the soldier transformed into a griffin, were harried by an unseen enemy determined to thwart them. Even the power of Good Magician Humfrey, together with Bink’s protective talent, scarcely saved their lives. Then when Humfrey and Crombie turned against him, all seemed lost. But Bink's ingenuity and luck prevailed, and he reached his goal. The King’s orders had been carried out . . . But the King had not expected Bink’s next act—to destroy utterly the magic of Xanth!

King Trent orders Bink to find out about the source of Xanth's magic.

An exploration of how magic can be found within all human activities • Offers a “magical-anthropological” tour from ancient Norse shamanism to the modern magick of occultists like Genesis P-Orridge • Looks at how human beings are naturally attracted to magic and how this attraction can be corrupted by both religious organizations and occult societies • Examines magic as it relates to psychedelics, Witchcraft, shamanism, pilgrimage, Jungian individuation, mortality, and the literary works of Beat icons like Burroughs and Gysin Since the dawn of time, magic has been the node around which all human activities and culture revolve. As magic entered the development of science, art, philosophy, religion, myth, and psychology, it still retained its essence: that we have a dynamic connection with all other forms of life. Exploring the source magic that flows beneath the surface of culture and occulture throughout the ages, Carl Abrahamsson offers a “magical-anthropological” journey from ancient Norse shamanism to the modern magick of occultists like Genesis P-Orridge. He looks at how human beings relate to and are naturally attracted to magic. He examines in depth the consequences of magical practice and how the attraction to magic can be corrupted by both religious organizations and occult societies. He shows how the positive effects of magic are instinctively grasped by children, who view the world as magical. The author looks at magic and occulture as they relate to psychedelics, Witchcraft, shamanism, Thee Temple ov Psychick Youth (TOPY), the panic rituals of the Master Musicians of Joujouka in Morocco, psychological individuation processes, literary “magical realism,” and the cut-up technique of Beat icons like William S. Burroughs and Brion Gysin. He explores the similarities in psychology between poet Ezra Pound and magician Austin Osman Spare. He looks at the Scandinavian Fenris Wolf as a mythic force and how personal pilgrimages can greatly enrich our lives. He also examines the philosophy of German author Ernst Jünger, the magical techniques of British filmmaker Derek Jarman, and the quintessential importance of accepting our own mortality. Sharing his more than 30 years of experiences in the fields of occulture and magical anthropology, Carl Abrahamsson explores ancient and modern magical history to reveal the source magic that connects us all, past and present.

Once upon a past. . . . Millie had been a ghost for 800 years. But now, restored by the magic of Xanth, she was again a maddeningly desirable woman. She could have had any man she wanted . . . except the one she did want, Jonathan the zombie. To grant Millie her desire, and to prove his right to rule Xanth in the future, young Magician Dor embarked on a quest for the elixir which would restore Jonathan to full life. But the potion could be found only in the past . . . so, through a magic tapestry, to the past he went, taking over the body of a barbarian warrior. The first person he encountered there was Jumper, a giant spider—a nightmare monster, but a staunch friend and much-needed ally in peril-haunted, ancient Xanth. Then Dor met Millie—800 years younger, but just as lovely. And he realized that, in his new body, he was no longer twelve years old . . .

The Fenris Wolf is a research journal focused on the human mind, developments in comparative magico-anthropology, and on the occultural implications and applications of these fields of study. This volume contains material by Genesis Breyer P-Orridge, Frater Achad, Timothy O'Neill, Philip Farber, Kendell Geers, Sasha Chaitow, Derek Seagrief, Vera Nikolich, Alexander Nym, Vanessa Sinclair, Stephen Sennitt, Antony Hequet, Patrick Lundborg, Henrik Dahl, Angela Edwards, Jason Louv, Kasper Opstrup, Peter Grey, Antti Balk, Kjetil Fjell, Sandy Robertson, Adam Rostoker, Emory Cranston, Manon Hedenborg-White, Sara George and Carl Abrahamsson, on topics as diverse as Aleister Crowley, Rudolf Steiner, Anton LaVey, Sar Peladan, Fernand Khnopff, Marcel Duchamp, Robert Heinlein, William Burroughs, Brion Gysin, Wilhelm Reich, Thelema, Satanism, Symbolism, psychoanalysis, Dada, apocalyptic witchcraft, psychedelic philosophy, visionary book covers, Cannabis, artificial human companions, sacred prostitution, German Expressionist cinema, slam poetry, independent universities, extraterrestrial influences, astrology, sexual magic, science fiction and more...

Though his work was little known outside Italian intellectual circles for most of the twentieth century, anthropologist and historian of religions Ernesto de Martino is now recognized as one of the most original thinkers in the field. This book is testament to de Martino's innovation and engagement with Hegelian historicism and phenomenology--a work of ethnographic theory way ahead of its time. This new translation of Sud e Magia, his 1959 study of ceremonial magic and witchcraft in southern Italy, shows how De Martino is not interested in the question of whether magic is rational or irrational but rather in why it came to be perceived as a problem of knowledge in the first place. Setting his exploration within his wider, pathbreaking theorization of ritual, as well as in the context of his politically sensitive analysis of the global south's historical encounters with Western science, he presents the development of magic and ritual in Enlightenment Naples as a paradigmatic example of the complex dynamics between dominant and subaltern cultures. Far ahead of its time, Magic is still relevant as anthropologists continue to wrestle with modernity's relationship with magical thinking.

A talking sword, an Academy for Mages, and terrifying demons everywhere? This term is going to be intense. I grew up scavenging for discarded mage tech my uncle could sell, while trying to avoid the monsters in the Scraps. Not the best upbringing, but at least I had my little brother Briar and my best friend Sterling. At night we'd lift our eyes to the magnificent floating city of mages, watch the sparkling lights and dream of magic and wonder. Then one day the unthinkable happens: my uncle sells me to a nobleman with a death wish, who wants me to infiltrate the prestigious academy of magic pretending to be a mage, and more alarmingly, a lady. The first would be difficult enough, without any real magic, the second seems even more impossible. I've never worn a dress in my life. But nobody asked my opinion. I get in, thanks to a clever piece of mage-tech, but it's only a matter of time before someone uncovers that I'm a fraud and exposes the charade. My professor, Markus Du Lac, is already suspicious, and the impossibly handsome prince, sixth in line for the throne, seems strangely fascinated with me - more than enough to make me the sworn enemy of the girl who's courting him. Thrust into a world of magic, I must fool the Academy's faculty and students into proving I'm one of them. But not all is as it seems in the shining kingdom of mages. Secret dangers hide around every corner, which threaten to change my life forever. As I search the school's library for valuable treasure and forbidden archives, I'm shocked to discover I have more magical talent than I realized. Even if I succeed my mission and escape with my life, things will never be the same. The Source of Magic is a young adult fantasy adventure suitable for ages 13 and up. Fans who enjoyed Rachel Carter's Black Mage series and Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy will love this sprawling magical academy setting full of monsters, mages, murder and romantic intrigue.