First Steps In Cm, Where do I begin? Options

Greetings!

I think there are some misconceptions of people who watch magicians. We do not do banishings and invocations, adorations and attunements every day just to build up our strength so we can summon a super cool spirit to give us money and women. Everything we do, we do for a reason. We are constantly searching and grasping for somthing higher. Our work is not a means to a end. Our work, our journey is the reason.

So to get to the point, yes if you need something mundane done then a spirit can do it for you, but any magician worth his salt will know five other ways to do it also without evocation. So the question is why evoke? When you work with a spirit, regardless if it is a demon, planetary, archangel, or whatever, you are working with a part of yourself and a part of the universe. You are unbalancing a part of yourself in a controlled situation to create change in yourself and the universe. Contact, work with, strengthen, purify, and balance these are the goals.

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"Except Adonai build the house, their labor is but lost that build it".
Unless you have a strong foundation your house will fall.

Here is my advice.
Stop everything you are doing. Begin the work as a true beginner. I know advanced rituals such as the hexagram rituals and the Opening by Watchtower seem like fun but if you have to ask then you are not ready yet. At this stage you will gain nothing from them.

Begin to do the LBRP morning and night and nothing else. If you would like you could also do the MP but this is all. Write a ritual journal after every ritual you do. Write down what you did, what it felt like when you did it, and what it felt like after the fact.

I promise you once you cut everything else out you will learn more than you thought possible. To discover the effects you must isolate it from everything and then study it from every angle. Study the LBRP and it's symbolism. Try different variations of visualizations and movement. Find out what works best for you. While you are doing this the effects of the ritual will become a part of you. It will open up your astral senses and build up your aura to develop you circle. The MP will also begin to imprint the God names upon your aura which will begin to align you with the divine energies. The effects will be profound.

The work of a beginner is a minimum of six months but no longer than a year. While you do this ritual work you should also begin to study the material. Memorize the hebrew letters. Become familar with the tree of life. Learn the signs of the zodiac. Learn how to meditate.

Most of all when in doubt keep it simple.

Middle Pillar

LBRP

Recommended Reading List for Ceremonial Magick


I. Old School
1. Three Books of Occult Philosophy by Henry Cornelius Agrippa
2. Dogme et Ritual de la Haute Magie by Eliphis Levi
(the new editions are named Transcendental Magic)

These two are the source material for most of the Golden Dawn and western mystery tradition.

II. Basic Hermetics
1. The Kybalion by Three Initiates (not old but new, but a great intro)
2. The Hermetica by Hermes Trismegistus (several translations, take your pick)
3. Emerald Tablet of Hermes Trismegistus (several translations)
4. Initiation into Hermetics by Franz Bardon (for a different view)

III. Qablalah
1. Mystical Qabalah by Dion Fortune
2. A Garden of Pomegranates by Israel Regardie
3. The Chicken Qabalah by Lon Milo Duquette (I have never read this one but everyone recommends it so I added it to the list)
4. A decent Tarot deck (your choice)

IV. Reference
1. Godwin's Cabalistic Encyclopedia by David Godwin
2. 777 And Other Qabalistic Writings of Aleister Crowley
3. The Golden Dawn by Israel Regardie
4. The Essential Golden Dawn by Chic Cicero, Sandra Tabatha Cicero (only if you are interested in Golden Dawn)

V. Theory and Damn Fine Reads
1. Magick in Theory and Practice by Aleister Crowley
2. Book 4 by Aleister Crowley
3. The Tree of Life by Israel Regardie
4. The Middle Pillar by Israel Regardie

Now this list is no where near completed, I consider these the corner stone of a magicians library. The beginnings but a grand one, really with only half this list you would be a great magician.

Now beginners on a budget, listen up! PDF files are your best friends, find as many as you can till you can afford the real thing. Many of the books I have listed can be found on sacred magick main site as well as many many more.

For the pure beginner I would recommend:
1. Modern Magick by Donald Michael Kraig
This will explain the basics and give you a good foot hold to spread your wings, next purchase
2. The Golden Dawn by Israel Regardie
This will have all the rituals to keep you busy for years as well as material to memorize.
For basics of Qabalah grab:
3. The Mystical Qabalah and a tarot deck. Expand as needed.

These three alone should keep you busy for some time.

My last bit of advice, once you think you are starting to understand and know a bit, read Magick in Theory and Practice. Then reread it once a year and watch it grow as you do.