A Practical Guide to Qabalistic Symbolism

by Gareth Knight

The Qabalah is a system of relationships among mystical symbols which can be used, as was said by Paracelsus, to open up access to the hidden reaches of the mind—beyond the frontiers of reason.

The Qabalah gives the means to penetrate behind symbolism. It is the mystical process in reverse. The Tree of Life is a comprehensive symbol encompassing other symbol systems, religious beliefs, mythologies, and provides a means of interpreting them based on abstract and universal principles.

Volume One of A Practical Guide to Qabalistic Symbolism compares Western Occultism with the Eastern systems of yoga, analyses the Tree of Life in full detail and describes the practical application as well as the theory of Qabalistic symbolism in the Western Esoteric Tradition.

Volume Two gives the most comprehensive analysis ever published of the twenty-two "Paths of Concealed Glory" that join the Spheres of the Tree of Life taking into account Hebrew letters, Astrological signs and Tarot trumps. A large section deals exclusively with the Tarot, traces the history of Tarot design and the varying systems of correspondences with the Tree of Life. It throws new light on the neglected Lesser Arcana and the little understood function of the Tarot Aces and the sixteen Court Cards.

Both Volumes, now published together for the first time, end with extensive chapters on the practical methods of "working the Tree".

Genres: Occult, Nonfiction, Magick, Tarot, Magic, Esoterica, Spirituality

598 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 1978

About the author

Gareth Knight is one of the world's foremost authorities on ritual magic, the Western Mystery Tradition and Qabalistic symbolism. He trained in Dion Fortune's Society of the Inner Light, and has spent a lifetime rediscovering and teaching the principles of magic as a spiritual discipline and method of self-realisation.

He has written around forty books covering topics as diverse as Qabalah, history of magic, Arthurian legend, Rosicrucianism, Tarot, the Inklings (Tolkien, C.S.Lewis et al) and the Feminine Mysteries, as well as several practical books on ritual magic. He has lectured worldwide and is a regular contributor to Inner Light, the journal of the Society of the Inner Light.

The group founded by Gareth Knight in 1973 is now run by Wendy Berg and known as the Avalon Group.

See: http://garethknight.blogspot.com/

Reviews

[Gregory · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has one of my favorite all-time quotes in it: "Man has made his cake, and he must eat it, every last crumb. And when he has done so, then he may slap the plate on his head and use it for a halo."

[Teleri · Rating 5 out of 5]

This outstanding, if lengthy, book should be at the core of any serious study of the Qabalah. Knight's lucid prose comes closer than any author I've read to accurate descriptions of these Mysteries. I wish to HELL I hadn't lost my copy along the Byzantine turns & coils of my life. The book is now OUTRAGEOUSLY expensive on amazon & ebay. My fixed income just cannot stretch to afford a replacement copy. I've managed to pick up another of his titles as I've rebuilt my life, but I despair of ever replacing my hardback copy of this book.

I DID find a bootleg ebook of it (google the title). I've not yet perused it to discover whether it contains any of Knight's succinct illustrations. To be quite honest, my admiration of Gareth Knight is so great that my own son is (partially, among other Gareths) named after him. SO I feel a mite guilty about owning a bootleg electronic copy of his finest book! It's kind of like owning bootleg music of a musician one both admires & has met. I sheepishly hope that Gareth Knight forgives my gaffe-not that he'd hear of it! Even so, I must excuse myself on the grounds of poverty... To readers of this review, I exhort you to buy this fine book if you can afford it and are serious about the study of Western Hermetic Magic. While it relies heavily on the Christian mythos for symbolism, simile, and even exercises, as a pagan I was not in any way offended by this esoteric usage of Christianity.

[Heidi Wiechert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Knight is very thorough in his descriptions of the abstract. I refer to this book occasionally for Tree of Life meditations or really any questions that come up about path symbolism because it truly is one of the definitive books on the subject.

[Niall · Rating 5 out of 5]

This two volume series is in my opinion one of the best pieces of literature for anyone who wants to acquaint and educate themselves on qabalistic symbolism . The first volume is the meat, so the speak , regarding the tree of life , the ten sephiroth and their attributions . Each sephira is a world unto itself , mythology. psychology, methaphor and allegory are all used to help the reader understand the sometimes very abstract and seemingly complex nature of qabalah and the tree. It is also practical with suggested techniques for meditating or contemplating the nature of a sephira . The second volume deals with the 22 paths that join the sephiroth and their attributions with an emphasis on the 22 Major Arcana of the tarot . Highly recommended for serious students of the Qabalah and Tarot.A Practical Guide to Qabalistic Symbolism

[Lynne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent book on the Qabalah.

[Maximus · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this might be my favorite book on the subject. Garden of Pomegranates and The Mystical Qabalah are both classic and are great books to start with, and I would say my enjoyment with this book is because I started with those two first. This would still be a great book to start with if you’re new to the subject, and at the same time it’s so rich and has a lot to offer readers with a larger knowledge/experience base. It marries the insightful and practical knowledge of Garden of Pomegranates and the treasure of a reference guide that Mystical Qabalah is.

The mythological analysis that Knight applies to the tree, the spheres, and paths, is incredible.

There are a few parts of the book I’m not in love with. The outdated science+mysticism parallels that don’t quite land are definitely here but not as much as some of the older works. While this book is much newer than Regardie and Fortunes’ books and it adds a much needed update to the content, you can tell it was written in 2001.

[Isobelle Fox · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of the toughest and most complex books I have ever read, but what an amazing treasure trove of information. I will undoubtedly be referencing it for many years.

[Alan · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best beginners book on the Kabbalah by far. Gareth studied under Dion Fortune in the Fraternity Of The Inner Light. This book is available as either two separate volumes or one book containing both volumes & the two in one offers excellent value for money.
A must read, if you are truly interested in learning about the Qabalah, Kabbalah or however else you choose to spell it.

[Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very thorough and comprehensible guide to the Qabalah. It’s 4.5 stars for me solely due to it being so explicitly Christian in framing and its dated attitudes towards homosexuality (the author even acknowledges as much in the forward to the edition I have). Overall though a great resource if you have the time to go through it meticulously.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book on Qabalah. Although his draconian views on homosexuality are outright wrong, he at least acknowledges this in the preface of the book in modern editions. Secondly, there’s a strong Christian bias. I don’t have too much of a problem with this but some of the concepts he uses I staunchly disagree with, such as original sin, the prime deviation, and the fall of man. With that said, the conclusions reached with those concepts are sound. I just think that one doesn’t need to use those concepts to explain man’s situation and apparent evolution. There are better ways to understand. If you’re able to separate the authors obvious personal biases, the information is excellent. This book gives the very basics of the 32 paths, but a great introduction and cursory explanation thereof.

One last thing is that the path of the Star and the Emperor are switched. I’m not sure if this is intentional to keep with his Oath or was influenced by Crowley, but the explanation of the path which should be the Star very clearly is about the Star and yet is attributed the emperor. Maybe it’s just me, I don’t know.

[Theo S · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting book but I found it extremely repetitive

[Brent · Rating 2 out of 5]

I probably read a portion of this rather than the whole thing, cover to cover...

[J Simpson · Rating 4 out of 5]

it's practical!

[Justin]

not for me