Book Review – Seven Spheres by Rufus Opus

Hey Occulties,+

As promised, here is my book review of Seven Spheres by Rufus Opus

Five-stars*, highly-recommended! A useful primer not only for the Hermetic magician, but for any student of the occult.

Written in an affable and perspicacious tone, Seven Spheres adeptly describes the influence of the seven traditional “planets” of the occult (Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn,) and how, through ritual and practice, the student can use each to positively impact their own lives. The rituals are easy enough for the beginner to use, while being powerful enough for even the most practiced magician to find useful as well. The final chapter on talisman creation and maintenance gives invaluable information not only for those who would create a talisman but for those who have purchased such an item (and who often are unaware of the proper protocol for using such items.)

Hermetics can be, in my opinion, a confusing paradigm for many beginners – it’s hard to know where to start, and many of the traditional grimoiric texts are medieval or ancient and difficult for a modern audience to digest. While there are a few books out there which offer a very thorough description for the modern reader, they are perhaps too thorough or too traditional, and might “turn off,” a contemporary seeker. Instead of suggesting 200 pages of diagrams, months of tool-creation, or weeks of fasting and prayer, Rufus Opus gives his readers instant access to starting full initiation into the seven spheres (planetary influences) of the Hermetic and magical world.

As a long time fan of RO’s blog,** I had high expectations of this book, and was not disappointed. I recommend this book to all. 🙂

~Cat

+Still adding my 2014 posts. Sorry. December was overwhelmingly busy – I was working 14+ hour days at the job, which wasn’t leaving much time for writing. 😦

*RO should have written this with ink made from the blood of the “legs” of Abrasax, so I should technically remove 2 stars for him using normal ink and shit. I also asked him to rub my copy on his mystical chest hairs but he didn’t. I did not subtract a star for that, either, because apparently I’m a nice person sometimes. Also, if you’re incapable of understanding this asterisked paragraph is humor, go punch yourself in the crotch for lacking a sense of humor.

**Rufus Opus has a blog which you can access here.