Abrahadabra Press is pleased to be able to offer titles by authors James and Nancy Wasserman to our customers in the U.K. and Europe now including signed copies of James’ new book In the Center of the Fire, A Memoir of the Occult 1966 – 1989 before they are available anywhere else over here!

Other titles include To Perfect This Feast: A Commentary on Liber XV The Gnostic Mass by James and Nancy Wasserman and The Slaves Shall Serve: Meditations on Liberty by James Wasserman

 

In the Center of the Fire, A Memoir of the Occult 1966 – 1989

by James Wasserman

ISBN: 978-0892542017

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About this book

An autobiographical account of life in the New York occult underground of the 1970s and 1980s. The author was a central figure in the vibrant occult scene that blossomed in Manhattan during that period and played a significant role in the development of interest in Aleister Crowley in the United States, being actively involved in the publishing Crowley’s works and in the struggle between Marcelo Motta and Grady McMurtry, as well as being the founder of Tahuti Lodge of the O.T.O. In addition to offering a detailed historical view of events, the book also presents “a bird’s eye view of the 1960s hippie culture and its excesses of sex and drugs, and rock ‘n roll-along with an account of some of the personal transformations and penalties such a lifestyle brought forth.” An interesting and entertaining first-person perspective on this vital period of occult history, by Jim Wasserman, who has gone on to become well-known as a writer and speaker on the occult, Templars, esoteric Freemasonry and kindred subjects. NEW book. Fine in fine dust jacket.

 

To Perfect This Feast: A Commentary on Liber XV The Gnostic Mass 

by James and Nancy Wasserman

(Brand new, revised second edition)

ISBN: 0978-0-9718870-3-9

 

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About this book

This second revised edition has been reformatted to a more convenient 6 x 9 trim size. Most important, the paperback binding is smythe-sewn for lifetime durability.

While the most important content remains unchanged, we have buttressed our arguments for our more traditional methods of Mass performance. To this end, we have licensed a 1933 photograph of the sole Gnostic Mass Temple as it was set up during Aleister Crowley’s lifetime.

Aleister Crowley wrote the Gnostic Mass in 1913. He described it as the central ritual, public and private, of the O.T.O., the first of the ancient orders of antiquity to embrace the teachings of theBook of the Law. Received in 1904, the Book of the Law proclaims a new set of spiritual directives for the modern era.

Crowley envisioned the Gnostic Mass as a celebration of the wedding of scientific truth and religious aspiration. The message of the Mass, as a symbolic template of the teaching of the Book of the Law, eschews the irrationality, superstition, and restrictive dogma characteristic of previous revelations. The Mass is designed to lead celebrants to an appreciation of the glorious nature of reality.

Crowley anticipated that the Mass would be a regular part of the activity of O.T.O. groups worldwide (before becoming even more widespread). Today it is regularly celebrated by a fraternal order that flourishes in over fifty countries.
Drawing on nearly half a century between them of performing the ritual—and the countless classes and training sessions they have conducted during their O.T.O. careers—James and Nancy Wasserman offer a detailed examination of the mechanics of the Mass. Their purpose is to outline a means to perform the ritual according to Crowley’s instructions. And they provide missing keys to its geometrical intricacies.

Their point by point instructions will be of interest to ritualists, congregants, and students of Crowley, as well as those interested in Gnosticism and the activities of modern spiritual movements. The authors have striven to understand the meaning of Crowley’s text—penned in the white-hot fury of his inspiration—and to extract the relevant spiritual teachings and performance keys embedded within.

In addition to a detailed commentary, they offer a corrected, uninterrupted Mass Missal suitable for use by individuals and groups interested in working with the ritual, along with valuable insights into magical ceremonies in general, and the Gnostic Mass in particular.

 

The Slaves Shall Serve: Meditations on Liberty by James Wasserman

224 pages, 6 x 9 inches, paperback

ISBN: 0-9718870-1-2

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About this book

A battle is raging for the soul of America, and it is of critical interest to the survival of true freedom worldwide. Conceived in liberty, this nation of still-free men and women totters on the brink of surrendering its fundamental values of individual responsibility and self determination.

On the domestic side we exchange our privacy and personal autonomy for the chimerical security of a cradle-to-grave society; internationally we abdicate our ability to act autonomously in our national interest, and in accordance with our most cherished principles.

Why are we squandering the precious jewels of the greatest political experiment in human history? How, and by whom, are we being seduced into ceding that which we should treasure above all else our most fundamental liberties? Finally: what actions can thoughtful citizens take to protect and regain their personal freedoms?

In his newest book, James Wasserman examines these urgent questions, presenting a cogent, intelligent, and often-alarming picture of our nation’s situation both nationally and globally. This revealing collection of essays, the product of ten years of study and contemplation, is supplemented with lengthy appendices of the primary reference materials that underlie the author’s bold assertions.

Readers will fearlessly explore the modern plague of collectivism, especially as embodied by the United Nations; learn the true political, historical, and spiritual roots of the September 11th attacks; revisit the Waco massacre without averting their glance; witness the cynical manipulations of the civilian disarmament movement; and be invited to contemplate the role of transcendent values in the battle to preserve and maintain personal freedoms. In terms that are lucid, passionate, balanced, scholarly, and often witty, the author shares his idealism, his outrage and his hope.

James Wasserman is the author of The Templars and the Assassins: The Militia of Heaven (Inner Traditions), a religious history of the Crusades, and of the beautifully illustrated Art and Symbols of the Occult (Inner Traditions). He is the producer of the widely acclaimed benchmark edition of The Egyptian Book of the Dead: The Book of Going Forth by Day (edited by Ogden Goelet and published by Chronicle Books).

“I am much impressed. The work should be required reading for those who think — rare as they may be. It is as we have noted ‘preaching to the choir,’ but then so is the Declaration of Independence.”

- Colonel Jeff Cooper, USMC (Ret.)

“I can’t praise this book more highly. Buy it. Read it. Buy more and give the copies to your friends. Recommend it to everyone! I have been waiting for a book like this for a LONG time and am overjoyed that it is now available. Destined to be a classic in the literature of freedom.”

— Steven J. Greenwald, Ph.D.

Foreword

They who would give up essential liberty for temporary security, deserve neither liberty or security.
-Benjamin Franklin

I wonder if the brilliant Franklin could even have imagined our modern political discourse and its apparent goal of transforming society into both a nursery and a nursing home under the dual mantra of “Education and Healthcare.” This collection of essays, written over the last ten years, attempts to presage the consequences of such a philosophy. It is written from the point of view of an unabashed individualist who believes the freest society will bring forth the greatest good for the greatest number. If you are looking for a government plan to save your life or ease your burden, you might wish to seek elsewhere.

The book is divided in two parts. The first half is a series of my essays on Liberty and Tyranny. The second half presents the reference material for my assertions in the first.

Steps Along the Way discusses some of the personal transformative experiences that brought about my own passionate interest in government and political ideology.

An Introduction to Politics is an overall look at the competing ideologies at work in the modern world. Statism and collectivism are defined and contrasted with libertarianism and individualism.

Waco: A Modern Tragedy highlights the quintessential modern embodiment of America’s embrace of statism. Eighty-six people died in the name of a $200 tax stamp, while the world’s media endlessly parroted its government-written script.

September 11, 2001 Remembered is a very topical follow up to my earlier book The Templars and the Assassins: The Militia of Heaven,which studied the concept of religious murder in both Islam and Christianity during the Crusades.

Pulling Liberty’s Teeth further analyses the efforts of modern collectivists to overturn the unique freedoms on which America is based. It focuses on the campaign to strip American citizens of our unalienable right to defend life and property.

Goddesses, Guns and Guts presents my understanding of the need to embrace transcendent values as a means of enforcing the self disciple required to function as a free person. Its title implies its universality and open ended possibilities.

Suggested Actions offers some ideas to expand your personal freedom, communicate the importance of freedom to others, and asks some questions designed to stimulate thought beyond the confines of the modern media trance.

Liber Oz, a statement published by the English master Aleister Crowley during World War II, presents what I consider to be the ideal statement of the political rights of any individual courageous enough to live up to the responsibilities freedom entails.

The three appendices are divided between source materials of alternate political visions. I call appendix one The Language of Freedom. It includes the most important American founding documents as well as all amendments to the Constitution.

Appendix two is called The Language of Tyranny and provides a comprehensive look at the U.N.’s founding materials and treaties. I guarantee you will be amazed at both the sheer hubris and banality of what you will be reading. I have typographically highlighted or lightly annotated the most egregious examples.

Appendix three is called The Language of Treason. It publishes a Kennedy administration policy paper presented by the president to the U.N. in 1962. It unambiguously exposes the goals of  those who seek greater involvement with the U.N.

Finally I include a lightly annotated list of the 50 best books I recommend to any reader who cares to further his or her studies of these issues.
My fondest hope for this book is that the ideas expressed may find points of resonance within readers sufficient to encourage each to meditate on the personal value he or she places on freedom.

 

About the Authors