Starting Up, learning the necro Options

I have always wanted to learn this, but I was cautioned away from this when I was 16 by a right hand path f%*! face who knew nothing about it. Now, I know a little about ritual magick, but my main specialty is LBM (lesser black magick). Basically that means shit without tools, with the exception of candles when I'm too lazy to get really emotional before I do spells, curses, and whatnot. I do a bit of astral travel, and when I do its usually exploring, talking, or sex, and battle...the latter two are the majority of time takers. My experiences are semi lucid at that. I have little knowledge of ritual or group magick because I've always practiced alone. I can control my thoughts pretty well and I meditate a lot.

The questions I present you with are...
1. Is the Necronomicon too advanced a Grimore from me?
2. What are the least amount of tools and materials I will need to do major tasks?
3. What will be the major restraint of my actions, with having the minimum, or near minimum with tools?
4. Do you have any tips for me starting up, or anything to study that will help me grip the Necronomicon better?

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Pardon the huge post, but I'm in a great mood and thought I'd share some of the information I've found helpful in starting out with the Necronomicon. There is a constant influx of questions regarding the Simon Necronomicon (and tonight, I've decided I'm the ambassador of the Necronomicon! LOL! take everything I say with a grain of salt, as I'm not much more "advanced" than you are, having just begun working with the book late last year).

In response, for starters one can find a number of online documents and various audio files available that explain details of the grimoire and practising with it, including some of the tools that you may find useful as an operator within the Necronomicon's paradigm. Most notably there is a tape of Simon going over parts of the book and giving special attention to Bandar (The Watcher) and the Walking of the Gates. These are more useful tools than anything physical you can get your hands on at this point. There are blinds in the Necronomicon, as you may know -- loopholes or limitational barriers placed on the rituals or aspects of particular rituals so that the practitioner not ready to use them will not be able to. Period. They aren't ritual tools at all (e.g., they're study guides or simply documents meant to make you think outside of the box, which is something the Necronomicon often forces you to do).

I think you'll find them invaluable however.

I don't feel this is too "advanced" a grimoire for you to use because my own experience with magick prior to diving head-first into the Necronomicon was minimal, and I've had great personal revelations and wonderful experiences with the Necro path. It's said that the Necronomicon chooses you rather than you choosing it, and perhaps this is the reason I've experienced it as a life-enriching experience; if the same is true of you then I do reccommend diving in head-first as well. Studying ancient Sumer and its culture, Babylonian texts, Akkadian seals and so forth will offer insights into this tome because many of the entities and concepts dealt with therein find their origins in Mesopotamia. For example anything by Samuel Noah Kramer will be useful, Inanna: Queen Of Heaven And Earth, the many different versions of the Enuma Elish you can find in txt, pdf and html format. Not to mention Simon's The Gates Of The Necronomicon, which I feel is a great companion to the original book itself...

all of these are tools you'll find more useful at this point in your studies than, say, a sword, a dagger, amulets, robes, etc. unless you find that such physical tools help you become attuned to the book itself and learn about it more easily. This varies from one person to the next (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif) But I do know of people who studied and worked with the book for three years or more before they started actively seeking out the various physical tools found in the Necro, such as "The Copper Dagger of Inanna", "The Frontlet of Calling", and "The Crown Of Anu".

When I started out I followed the book's advice, for example pg. 109 it says that in early rites one may find the Spirits of the 50 Names of Lord Marduk to be most helpful and highly beneficial to the operator. This is true. Each of the 50 Names has various attributes, skills and personality quirks that can aid the summoner greatly regardless of skill level. I know advanced practitioners who work with some of the 50 Names everyday, and it has helped them alot even in areas of life that seemingly have nothing to do with their practise at all. Also regular meditation and "grounding" rituals will be helpful, as will learning or developing a system of banishment and self-empowerment.

The most potent symbology in the Necronomicon that I've used for banishing is the ARRA, the AGGA, and the names of the 3 Watchers (Anu, Enlil, and Father Enki). Your mileage may of course vary. This is what's worked for me personally. The book itself, physically, has properties I'm not at liberty to speculate on at the moment, but you can banish in the name of the Necronomicon also.

As for physical tools, I started out with some incenses, two small candles, a ton of blank paper and some good pens and markers (to write down parts of the book I was working with and to create the sigils of the spirits I wanted to work with, creating mandals of calling, etc)... and that's about it. Sometimes a dagger will be helpful in banishing because it's an empowering tool that gives the operator a sense of control and superiority: it's a focal point. A weapon does not do the banishing and neither does the ritual itself, the authority of the operator is what does the banishing. Also, the incenses most commonly used are sandalwood, dragon's blood, pine and cedar. I used sandalwood in the beginning because it was a scent I was familiar with that kept me relaxed and balanced. Simon has said this is a good incense to use, coincidentally. I've had quite powerful reactions with sandalwood and dragon's blood.

Whew. That's a whole lot of info. As I said before I am NOT an advanced practitioner and what has worked for me might not work for you. I find that I am, however, a repository of information. And I'm quite adept at laying it out in a way that others will understand. So I've put all of this here for you as a source of inspiration, it's not a step-by-step "this is all you'll need and you can ignore everyone who says otherwise". I'm not trying to put myself out there like that (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif) I'm just a decent writer who's trying to demystify some aspects of approaching this system.

Some of the best posts on this board you will find invaluable:

Getting Started With The Necronomicon Excellent posts here by many interested parties (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)
Necronomicon Spirit experiences
Edunpanna's Breakdown of the 50 Names EXCELLENT Thread! Edunpanna, Ashnook, Eabatu, Nostoro Tehuti, Mystik and many others offer great information here.
Holy Angel Bandar Good thread about the Watcher.
"Blinds" within the system.
Shrine of Inanna A thread just for the mistress of the gods (IMG:style_emoticons/default/happydance.gif)
Useful Info Of All Sorts
Anu, Enlil, and Enki Very good info regarding "The Three Watchers".
Working with Enki Great information here.

Thus ends the longest post I've ever made on a forum... and I probably won't make another post for weeks. lol

Hm, not only did the links stop working but I apparently can't go back and edit my post to fix them. lol. Hmmmm...