Grimoire

A grimoire is a type of book of European magical lore, generally dating from the mid-Late Middle Ages (XIII) to the XVIII century, and very few date from before the 13th century. Such books contain astrological correspondences, lists of angels and demons, instructions for covens, casting incantations and spells, mixing medicines, invoking supernatural entities, and making talismans. Little is known about the origin of many of the magical formulas although it is likely that they are the result of translations of Eastern Arabic magical lore fused with Western elements.

Etymology

The word «grimoire» comes, according to the Royal Spanish Academy, from the French term grimoire, and this is in turn from an alteration of grammaire, «grammar», according to the Trésor de Langue Française. This is partly because, in the Middle Ages, Latin "grammars" (books on Latin diction and syntax) were central to school and university education, while non-church books were suspected by the unlettered majority to be magical. In this way, "grammar" also denoted, for both literate and illiterate, a basic teaching book. Not to be confused with the breviary, prayer book.

Another version of the origin of the word, much more currently accepted by magic practitioners themselves, maintains that the word «grimoire» comes from the Italian rimario which means "composition of verses& #3. 4;. Over time the word would have changed to grimario and later to the current grimoire. Italian medieval magicians believed that composition in verses favored magical operations to be more powerful. For this reason, they were called "incantesimo" (enchantment) because for their development they used poetry and singing.

Historical Grimoires

Design taken from the grimorio Black hen for the invocation of a demon.

The Honorary Pope's Grim1760.

The Key or the Key of Solomon, French edition of the centuryXVIII of this famous grimorio.

• Liber aneguemis (Book of laws), also known as The Book of the Cow (Liber Vaccae), The Cow of Plato or "Activarum Liber Institutionum". XII-XIII century. Appropriately attributed to Plato. It is one of the oldest known grimorios and which served as inspiration for other later grimories and alchemy treatises. It is a Latin work based on the translation of the Arabic work Kitab an-nawamisof the centuryIXwhich was supposed to be the Arabic translation of a hellenistic text written by Plato. It includes indications for the creation of living beings from fluids and body remains of men and animals, as well as rituals and enchantments. It's probably also been called Proprietatibus membrorum animalium, although there is the possibility that the latter will be another medieval work of similar themes and that did not come to our day, but that is mentioned in some treaties of the time.
• Albanum Maleficarum, centuryXwritten in Arabic. Published in Latin in 1601. It indicates how to obtain the Supreme Wisdom through the intercession of Caprico, Emperor of the Magi, and which is presented in the form of white goat.
• The Picatrix, centuryXIII. Translation of the Arabic work Gāyat al-hakīm. It deals with the influence of the cosmos, the spirits and the forms, of how to catch them.
• The Heptameronby Pietro d'Abano in 1290.
• The Munich Manualof the centuryXV. It presents indications for the invocation of demons and requests favors.
• The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abra-Melin the Wizardin 1458.
• Clavicula Salomonis, centuryXV, probably reissued from an older medieval writing. It is likely that starting from this grimorio the writing of the The Lemegeton, (introduction: Ars Goetia).
• The Secret Grim of Turiel1518. Very controversial edition of Max Turiel.
• The Great Grimwritten in Venice in 1522 by the Italian Antonio Venitiana del Rabina. His first edition was printed in Italy in 1612.
• The Antipalus Maleficorum Comprehensuspublished in 1555 by Johannes Trithemius.
• The De praestigiis daemonum1577. Written by Johann Weyer. Pseudomonarchia daemonum)
• The Soyga Book, also entitled Aldaraiaa treatise of magic in Latin of the centuryXVI, one of whose copies was owned by the island scholar John Dee.
• The GaldrabókIcelandic grimorio. It's a century compendium.XVII.
• The Lemegeton Clavicula Salomonis or The Lesser Key of Solomonof the centuryXVII.
• The Liber Juratis, Grimorium Honorii Magni or Book of the Honorary Pope III. Published in Rome in 1629.
• Enchiridion Leonis Papae or Book of Pope Leo III. Published in Rome in 1660.
• The Greater Key of Solomonin 1641.
• The Great Albert and the Little Albert, two grimorios allegedly written in the centuryXIII by the medieval dominic Alberto Magno. They were published in the centuryXVIII.
• The Black Gallina (of the French work The poule noirein 1740.
• The Book of San Cipriano or Ciprianillo, allegedly written in 1001 AD. It was announced in 1885 by the librarian Bernardo Barreiro.

Since the 18th century there has been a small sector dedicated to the sale of false or poorly translated grimoires (most of them the original texts are in French or Latin, and are very rare). However, there are accurate translations of most of the books listed.

At the end of the XIX century some of these texts, such as that of Abra-Melin and the Keys of Solomon, were claimed by para-Masonic magical organizations such as the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and the Ordo Templi Orientis. Aleister Crowley, a great promoter of these groups, gave rise to basing various modern movements on them such as Wicca, neo-Satanism, and Chaos magic.

The Vynich manuscript could also be a grimoire, although its text has never been deciphered, so it has been postulated that it could be a centuries-old fraud.

The satanic bible and Aradia or the gospel of the witches could just as well be considered "grimoires" modern, as they contain descriptions of rites and/or spells.

Fictional grimoires

Among the most famous fictional grimoires, the following stand out:

• The Necronomicon and Pnakotic Manuscripts, two of the most important fictional grimories created by American writer H.P. Lovecraft and incorporated corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus hab corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus hab corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus corpus of the Myths of Cthulhu.
• Dhol chants and Pnakotic fragments, grimorios created by Lovecraft and Hazel Heald incorporated into the myths of Cthulhu.
• De Vermis Mysteriis, fictional grimorio created by Robert Bloch, referenced by the American writer H.P. Lovecraft, being incorporated into the myths of Cthulhu. It's the grimorio that has more apocryphal versions. It is also mentioned by Stephen King in the story The Mysteries of the Wormfrom the collection The threshold of the nightand in the novel Revival (2014).
• Cultes des Goules, fictitious grimorio created by Robert Bloch for the Myths of Cthulhu. It contains a tribute to the American writer August Derleth as it is the work of Count d'Erlette.
• The text of R'lyeh, Confessions and Fragments of Celaeno, fictional grimories incorporated into the Cthulhu myths created by August Derleth.
• Unaussprechlichen Kulten and The village of the monkey, two grimorios created by American writer Robert E. Howard for the Cthulhu Myths. Both are also mentioned by H.P. Lovecraft.
• Them Seven Hsan cryptic books and Cthäat Aquadingen fictional grimories incorporated into the Cthulhu myths created by Brian Lumley, English writer.
• The Book of Eibon, fictitious grimorium created by Clark Ashton Smith. It is the name most quoted by the writers of the Cthulhu Myths, outside the Necronomicon, and the only one who is named by all the writers.
• Carnamagos Testamentcreated by Clark Ashton Smith and incorporated into the myths of Cthulhu.
• Las Revelaciones de Gla'aki, fictional grimorio incorporated into the Cthulhu myths created by Ramsey Campbell, English writer.
• The Book of Iod, fictional grimorio created by Henry Kuttner for the novel set in the myths of Cthulhu The bells of horror (1939) and published under the pseudonym of Keith Hammond.
• The On the projection of the soul, fictitious grimorio created by Henry Kuttner for the story set in the myths of Cthulhu Hydra (1939) detailing the formula for performing astral trips without losing the sanity or breaking the connection with the physical body.
• Eltdown clay, fictitious grimorium created by Richard F. Searight for the Cthulhu Myths.
• Zanthu tablets, fictitious grimorio created by Lin Carter for the story The Purple Offering of the Myths of Cthulhu. The tablets relate the different forms of worship carried out in Mu to different gods.
• In the Black Clover saga the grimorio is the book in which all the spells known by the owner are recorded and each magician has a personal one.
• The Darkhold of Marvel Comics, also known as the book of the condemned, has made recurring appearances in the stories of the characters involved in magic and the supernatural.

Celebrity Collections

• The grimorios of Alonso de Verlanga (1602)
• The hermetic collection of Giraldo Paris (1604)
• The Astrological Collection of Juan Ramírez (1621)
• The forbidden books of Patricio Sinot (1622)
• The Bibliographic Treasures of Fray Diego Velázquez (1646)
• The collection of Pedro Felipe José Bravo (1748)

Other meanings

• It is also called grimorio a set of signs for deciphering, gibberishes and, in derogatory tone, dark work or text, complicated or undecipherable.