This one I acquired with the massive lot I inherited from my late Uncle Joe. I am not a believer in the occult or any mode of religious thought though I like to read such works on occasion. This one is really far-out man. It is a hodge-podge collection of beliefs cobbled from Hinduism, Egyptian myth, Christianity, and medieval European lore on witchcraft including bits from classical literature such as Dante, Milton and even a definite influence from Blavatsky especially found in the repeated references to Atlantis. Of course, I’m assuming more Blavatsky’s version than Plato’s (unfortunately). All of this has some terms ripped from science & astronomy at the time (1920s) thrown into the mix.
There are a (very) few tidbits that I find relevant such as on page 24 item #47 the last sentence which reads:
As of old, so today, the cry is seldom “Save souls,” but is usually “Show us miracles.”
Then other parts of the text can be taken the wrong way (if they weren’t meant in that context already that is) such as Item #59 which refers to the “Brown Man” who was “ordained to labor in the fields” and the “Black Man” described as “the creature born into slavery”. Yikes.
There are other questionable passages in the text such as Item #90 that strikes me as slightly fascistic.
Our natures cannot be allowed to just grow, […] anymore than children can be allowed to run around promiscuously and then be expected to amount to anything; they must be trained, and there must be a thorough understanding as to who is master and who is servant. [pg.37]
Granted this passage is in the section titled The Mechanics of Magic and is referring to the discipline of magic but the metaphor is a bit of a collar tugger but not out of place.
Then there’s Item#102 pg.41. It begins:
No man who is sick should be healed merely because he has an ailment. He should learn the lesson that accompanies the disease which he has brought upon himself. To affirm health is foolishness; to find out the reason for the ailment, make right the wrong and become healthy again, is wise and proper. To be so moderate, so wise, so thoughtful, as not to become sick, is still better philosophy.
The context is you shouldn’t use magic on people who do not specifically ask per item for it but it also places blame for illness which for the most part is just plain wrong. Then the rest of the passage runs with the contextual not really relating to what it has already put forth with the blame game. This is repeated throughout the book and items don’t necessarily relate to the previous or next item either. Again, this passage can be misconstrued and has been, unfortunately, a refrain from the American right and anti-vaxxers in general.
On the other hand, some of the rich imagery was really cool in my opinion. Also, the illustrations are really neat. I especially liked the image of the "Black Morning” at the beginning of time in the text. It sent my mind off in a million directions, so there’s that.
Overall, I’m not angry or disappointed that I read it, it was a fast read although its formatting diced up any sort of narrative momentum that could have been possible. I would only recommend this if you like reading esoterica such as 19th-century spiritualism & mysticism and belief in Atlantis. Otherwise, I can’t recommend this one. ( )

This is an erudite work on the body and its various organs from the occultist's viewpoint.

The author being from an older generation, the book is immaculately well written.

The esoteric material is derived from the works of alchemists/occultists/cabalists etc.,including Parecelsus, Vesalius (the father of modern anatomy)and Robert Fludd, from the Middle Ages or perhaps older as well as from ancient Hindu texts. I found this material extremely dry and difficult to comprehend. (I ordered the book from the library only because I was interested in the chapter on the pineal gland, but then was tempted to read the whole book).

You would need to be an expert on such ancient occult matters, or keenly interested in the subject, to find the book at all readable.

One interesting point that attracted my attention, however, was that original man was reportedly androgynous and that the separation of the sexes took place in "the secondary or further course of tribal history". This fits in with revelations by Shirley Maclaine in her book "Camino" about a significant past life of hers in Atlantis.

Also of interest was the information that reptiles originally had a seeing eye at the back of their head (according to the author this can be confirmed in any geological museum) - in humans this hole has "boned over, and the eye has shrunk up into the so-called pineal gland".

The book includes many drawings and illustrations, but no photos.

To sum up, this book can be described as an overly erudite work on occultist views of the body, and as such will be of little interest to the average reader. Those with a real interest in the subject, however, may find the book fascinating. ( )