Magic, miracles, daemonology, divination,
astrology, and alchemy were the
arcana
mundi, the "secrets of the universe," of the
ancient Greeks and Romans. In this path-breaking
collection of Greek and Roman writings on magic and the
occult, Georg Luck provides a comprehensive sourcebook
and introduction to magic as it was practiced by witches
and sorcerers,
magi and astrologers,
in the Greek and Roman worlds.
In
this new edition, Luck has gathered and translated 130
ancient texts dating from the eighth century BCE through
the fourth century CE. Thoroughly revised, this volume
offers several new elements: a comprehensive general
introduction, an epilogue discussing the persistence of
ancient magic into the early Christian and Byzantine
eras, and an appendix on the use of mind-altering
substances in occult practices. Also added is an
extensive glossary of Greek and Latin magical terms.
In Arcana Mundi
Georg Luck presents a fascinating—and at times
startling—alternative vision of the ancient world. "For
a long time it was fashionable to ignore the darker and,
to us, perhaps, uncomfortable aspects of everyday life
in Greece and Rome," Luck has written. "But we can no
longer idealize the Greeks with their 'artistic genius'
and the Romans with their 'sober realism.' Magic and
witchcraft, the fear of daemons and ghosts, the wish to
manipulate invisible powers—all of this was very much a
part of their lives."