The Second Chapter

THE SECOND CHAPTER.

HEREFORE do I confess, that I, even I also, am not born a MASTER; neither have I invented this science of my own proper Genius; but I have learned it from others in the manner which I will hereafter tell thee, and in truth.

My father, SIMON, shortly before his death, gave me certain signs and instructions concerning the way in which it is necessary to acquire the Holy Qabalah; but it is however true that he did not enter into the Holy Mystery by the true Path, and I could not know how to understand the same sufficiently and perfectly as Reason demanded. My father was always contented and satisfied with such a method of understanding the same, and he sought out no further the Veritable Science and Magical Art, which I undertake to teach thee and to expound unto thee.

After his death, finding myself twenty years of age, I had a very great passion to understand the True Mysteries of the Lord; but of mine own strength I could not arrive at the end which I intended to attain.

I learned that at Mayence there was a Rabbi who was a notable Sage, and the report went that he possessed in full the Divine Wisdom. The great desire

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which I had to study induced me to go to seek him in order to learn from him. But this man also had not received from the Lord the GIFT, and a perfect grace; because, although he forced himself to manifest unto me certain deep Mysteries of the Holy Qabalah, he by no means arrived at the goal; and in his Magic he did not in any way make use of the Wisdom of the Lord, but instead availed himself of certain arts and superstitions of infidel and idolatrous nations, in part derived from the Egyptians, ¹ together with images of the Medes and of the Persians, with herbs of the Arabians, together with the power of the Stars and Constellations; and, finally, he had drawn from every people and nation, and even from the Christians, some diabolical Art. And in everything the Spirits blinded him to such an extent, even while obeying him in some ridiculous and inconsequent matter, that he actually believed that his blindness and error were the Veritable Magic, and be therefore pushed no further his research into the True and Sacred Magic. I also learned his extravagant experiments, and for ten years did I remain buried in so great an error, until that after the ten years I arrived in Egypt at the house of an Ancient Sage who was called ABRAMELIM, who put me into the true Path as I will declare it unto thee hereafter, and he gave me better instruction and doctrine than all the others; but this particular grace was granted me by the Almighty Father of all Mercy, that is to say, ALMIGHTY GOD, who little by little illuminated mine understanding and opened mine eyes to see and admire, to contemplate, and search out His Divine Wisdom, in such a manner that it became possible unto me to further and further understand and comprehend the Sacred Mystery by which I entered into the knowledge of the Holy Angels, enjoying

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their sight and their sacred conversation, from whom ¹ at length I received afterwards the foundation of the Veritable Magic, and how to command and dominate the Evil Spirits. So that by way of conclusion unto this chapter I cannot say that I have otherwise received the True Instruction save from ABRAMELIM, ² and the True and Incorruptible Magic save from the Holy Angels of God.

Footnotes

6:1 Yet the true Qabalah is undoubtedly derived from the Egyptian and Eastern Wisdom.

7:1 I.e. from the Angels.

7:2 This name is spelt "Abramelin" in some places, and "Abramelim" in others. I have consequently carefully in all cases put the orthography as it there occurs in the MS.