A selected translation of an early Arabic grimoire, the Shams al-Ma'arif, with commentary and illustrations.
 
The Shams al-Ma'arif, or Sun of Knowledge, is among the most infamous of Arabic grimoires, but it is little known in the English-speaking world, owing to the lack of widely available English-language editions. This edition of the Sun of Knowledge by Revelore Press aims to fill that gap, with an extensive selectiontranslated by Amina Inloes, an Islamic academic and theologian with a PhD in Islamic Studies from the University of Exeter. It includes, among many other chapters, a mystical, magical treatise on the secrets of the Arabic letters; three sections on astrology; a series of passages concerning the Ring of Solomon; and an extensive miscellany of talismans for various purposes, such as finding wealth and treasure, silencing enemies, and 'a prayer for all things'. There are illustrations throughout and an additional essay on the lunar mansions by artist and writer J. M. Hamade. This is an important contribution that will be of great interest to both scholars of medieval magic and practitioners with an interest in the sources and influences of grimoire magic.
 
Olympia: Revelore Press, 2022. Paperback, 324 pages. New.