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Viridarium Umbris: The Pleasure Garden of Shadow
An extensive grimorium of Wortcunning, or herb-magic, the Pleasure-Garden treats of the secret knowledge of trees and herbs as delivered by the Fallen Angels unto mankind. The book’s principal concerns are the sorcery and gnosis of the Greenwood, as arising from the varied luminaries of the Eternal Gardens of the Arte Magical. As a grimoire of Spiritual Botany, the Book is a Hortus Conclusus of text and image intended for the indwelling of these plant-spirits. The work encompasses magical practices, formulae, and mystical exegesis, all treating the respective arcana of Nature-Spirits and the powers of individual plants. Magical foci are on devotion, purity, humility, silence, solitude, and the hieros-gamos of wortcunner and plant as a tutelary relationship, in conjunction with the Mysteries of Cain, first tiller of the soil. The whole is intended as a textual reification of occult herbalism within the context of the Sabbatic Craft Tradition.
The work was initially issued in Three Editions:
Standard Edition: limited to 576 numbered copies, casebound in gilt-stamped luminescent green bookcloth.
Deluxe Edition: limited 72 numbered copies casebound in full brown goat, gold-stamped with slipcase and accompanied by the mystery-text The Epistle of the Tree, 526 pages.
Arbor Infernis Edition: This special edition edition was limited to 77 copies, casebound in Moss-green cloth with Mandrake Death’s Head blocked in gold on the front cover. Each copy is accompanied by an orginal hand-drawn talisman of coloured ink on papyrus, bearing one of 77 Emanants of the Arbor Infernis — the liminal genii of Midnight’s Eden.
The work was initially issued in Three Editions:
Standard Edition: limited to 576 numbered copies, casebound in gilt-stamped luminescent green bookcloth.
Deluxe Edition: limited 72 numbered copies casebound in full brown goat, gold-stamped with slipcase and accompanied by the mystery-text The Epistle of the Tree, 526 pages.
Arbor Infernis Edition: This special edition edition was limited to 77 copies, casebound in Moss-green cloth with Mandrake Death’s Head blocked in gold on the front cover. Each copy is accompanied by an orginal hand-drawn talisman of coloured ink on papyrus, bearing one of 77 Emanants of the Arbor Infernis — the liminal genii of Midnight’s Eden.
520 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2005
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
April 9, 2018
This is rather an encyclopaedic handbook of herbal magic than everything else, meaning, it mostly benefits the more advanced practitioner (which is not a bad thing) who wants to get concrete advice on the properties of a nearly every conceivable plant or practice. At the same time you might want to at least cursory read it from cover to cover and write down a more informative table of contents or reference-sheet to actually get from A (your intention) to B (the right page). The verbose, archaic language of Schulke is obviously not for everyone, what bothers me more is the complete lack of context of the presented information. Basically I continously asked myself: "says who?" I don't say this from any kind of scientific high horse or such, but just to point to a general problem of occult practical literature which abounds in practical teachings, giving very little experiential or historical backup.
September 9, 2014
I loved this. I'm not a big fan of herbal magick stuff, it's always too simple and superficial. This is a book that is essentially an entire magickal path around plant based magick and covered everything. I have other works by Schulke I never touched, definitely going to read them soon after this.
July 22, 2012
Daniel Schulke has written a deep, intense treatise on magick that is not for the faint of heart. Taken directly from the Cultus Sabbati, "Viridarium Umbris: The Pleasure Garden of Shadow" is an in depth look and contemplation of the witch's herbal craft. I highly recommend it for anyone who considers themselves a serious student of magickal herbalism and Craft.
September 27, 2024
Viridarium Umbris: The Pleasure Garden of Shadow stands as one of the most evocative and richly detailed works on occult herbalism ever produced, immersing readers in a world where plant spirits, fallen angels, and magical lore intertwine. Daniel A. Schulke’s grimoire is not merely a botanical guide—it is a carefully cultivated Hortus Conclusus, a secret garden of texts and imagery intended to invoke the numinous presence of the Greenwood. For practitioners of the Sabbatic Craft and those drawn to the deeper mysteries of plant magic, Viridarium Umbris offers a path through the shadows into the vibrant heart of the Green Mysteries.
Schulke’s work is not for the casual reader. Written in dense, poetic language, the book demands a level of dedication and discernment that mirrors the spiritual discipline it describes. Yet for those who are able to navigate its labyrinthine passages, the rewards are profound. The grimoire’s principal focus is on the sorcery and gnosis of the Greenwood, exploring the occult teachings delivered to humanity by the Fallen Angels and the tutelary relationship between the wortcunner and the spirits of individual plants. Schulke’s exploration of this bond goes beyond mere correspondences and recipes, delving into a devotional and mystical framework that elevates the practice of wortcunning to a sacred art.
One of the most compelling aspects of Viridarium Umbris is its treatment of plant magic as both a solitary and intensely personal endeavor. Schulke emphasizes virtues such as humility, purity, and silence—qualities that he positions as prerequisites for engaging authentically with the arcana of Nature-Spirits. His descriptions of rituals and practices are designed to establish a living relationship with these spirits, making the book more of a guide to inner transformation than a simple manual of spells.
The grimoire’s mystical exegesis touches on the figure of Cain, the first tiller of the soil, casting him as a central figure in the tradition of wortcunning and plant sorcery. This theme of the tiller, the one who shapes and is shaped by the land, runs throughout the text, informing the magical and philosophical underpinnings of Schulke’s work. By linking Cain’s story to the plant mysteries, Viridarium Umbris reinterprets and expands the traditional narrative, situating the reader within a larger mythic landscape where plants are not merely tools but spiritual allies in the pursuit of gnosis.
The book’s visual elements, including illustrations and symbolic imagery, are not merely decorative but integral to the grimoire’s purpose. They serve as keys to unlocking deeper layers of meaning, inviting the reader to engage with the material in a meditative and experiential way. Schulke’s use of image and text together creates a work that is as much a talismanic object as it is a written document.
Viridarium Umbris is a masterpiece of esoteric herbalism, bringing together the lore of the Sabbatic Craft, the powers of the Greenwood, and the sacred teachings of the plant spirits into a coherent and potent system of magical practice. It is not a book to be read lightly but one to be studied, contemplated, and lived. For those seeking the hidden paths of the Pleasure Garden of Shadow, Schulke’s grimoire is both a guide and a companion—one that will continue to reveal its secrets for years to come.
Schulke’s work is not for the casual reader. Written in dense, poetic language, the book demands a level of dedication and discernment that mirrors the spiritual discipline it describes. Yet for those who are able to navigate its labyrinthine passages, the rewards are profound. The grimoire’s principal focus is on the sorcery and gnosis of the Greenwood, exploring the occult teachings delivered to humanity by the Fallen Angels and the tutelary relationship between the wortcunner and the spirits of individual plants. Schulke’s exploration of this bond goes beyond mere correspondences and recipes, delving into a devotional and mystical framework that elevates the practice of wortcunning to a sacred art.
One of the most compelling aspects of Viridarium Umbris is its treatment of plant magic as both a solitary and intensely personal endeavor. Schulke emphasizes virtues such as humility, purity, and silence—qualities that he positions as prerequisites for engaging authentically with the arcana of Nature-Spirits. His descriptions of rituals and practices are designed to establish a living relationship with these spirits, making the book more of a guide to inner transformation than a simple manual of spells.
The grimoire’s mystical exegesis touches on the figure of Cain, the first tiller of the soil, casting him as a central figure in the tradition of wortcunning and plant sorcery. This theme of the tiller, the one who shapes and is shaped by the land, runs throughout the text, informing the magical and philosophical underpinnings of Schulke’s work. By linking Cain’s story to the plant mysteries, Viridarium Umbris reinterprets and expands the traditional narrative, situating the reader within a larger mythic landscape where plants are not merely tools but spiritual allies in the pursuit of gnosis.
The book’s visual elements, including illustrations and symbolic imagery, are not merely decorative but integral to the grimoire’s purpose. They serve as keys to unlocking deeper layers of meaning, inviting the reader to engage with the material in a meditative and experiential way. Schulke’s use of image and text together creates a work that is as much a talismanic object as it is a written document.
Viridarium Umbris is a masterpiece of esoteric herbalism, bringing together the lore of the Sabbatic Craft, the powers of the Greenwood, and the sacred teachings of the plant spirits into a coherent and potent system of magical practice. It is not a book to be read lightly but one to be studied, contemplated, and lived. For those seeking the hidden paths of the Pleasure Garden of Shadow, Schulke’s grimoire is both a guide and a companion—one that will continue to reveal its secrets for years to come.
June 30, 2025
necessario e completo per gli appassionati di wortcunning ed arte verde etc etc. purtroppo troppa concentrazione sulla parte abramitica e poco sul resto
July 31, 2011
The compleate book of herbal sorcery and the best of of the author, as it does not limit itself to his own particular tradition's symbolism and instead presents a full working grimoire of the Green Arte.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews