If you have a bunch of spellbooks laying around and have no idea how to utilize any of the spells in them, you will probably be helped by reading this book.
This book has two parts. The first is titled "A Course in Spellcraft." It discusses a vast amount of topics, including: belief in magic, magical symbolism, high and low magic, black and white magic, and so on. There's a whole chapter on the psychology of magic. (The author is a professional psychologist.) This chapter introduces the reader to using self-hypnosis for entering trance and higher states which are then to be utilized in spellwork. This is a very important part of magic in general, and I think this is presented well in the book itself. The final chapter discusses all the steps required in casting the spells in Part II. (There are 33 fairly workable spells in that part of the book.) Throughout Part I other important concepts are discussed, such as: The Law of Pretending, Designing a Well-Formed Intention, and casting a magic circle.
Now, I'll talk about Part II, "The Spells." While most of the spells in this book are well thought out and presented (I have about eight spells marked for future use), some seem dangerous (physically) and outright hypocritical. First, in the spell "Attracting Money, Long-Term," one of the ingredients that is asked for is "a drop or two of mercury." He does mention to be careful with it and provides a substitute, but it still seemed like a stupid idea in the first place. Second, the spell "Attracting Someone for Fun and Lust," is targeted at a specific person and so is the spell that comes after it, "Attracting the Right Love Partner." Now, I personally don't have a problem with this, but since the author has chosen to call his book "white magic" (his terminology, not mine) then at least hold up to your own standards. He does mention something about the spell not working if anybody is going to get hurt by it. I have no idea what kind of logic follows that kind of thinking. He's basically saying: "Here's a spell to attract a specific person, but it's not going to work if anyone is going to get hurt by it." Say what? That's like saying, "Here's a spell to get $1,000, but it's not going to work if you plan to use it for 'evil' things."
Overall, a very good introduction to spellcasting in general. Even though I think some parts of it are hypocritical (see previous paragraph), I still think it's a worthwhile purchase for anyone interested in spellcraft. It gives one a fairly good foundation in general spellcasting. After successfully working the spells in this book, you will be confident enough to start using other techniques of practical magic, and that's the whole point of the book in the first place.
Recommended.
-Ater
J.F. O'Neill's Foundations Of Magic: Techniques & Spells That Work provides beginners with a guide to making magic - and it doesn't even require belief to work. This secular spell book gathers techniques from both magic and modern psychology, blending the two to create everyday spells which require psychological preparation to work. From editing old memories to locating true love and luck in lie, the combination of psychology and magic makes for a powerful force.
