good intro but lacks detail

books:


	• Signs, Symbols & Omens: An Illustrated Guide to Magical & Spiritual Symbolism Raymond Buckland Llewellyn Publications, 2003 - 264 pages average customer review:based on 9 reviews view larger image
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Very Good Book!!

This is an excellent, well written, easy to understand and browse, thoroughly enjoyable book. i gave it 4 stars because there weren't very many omens covered, but if you want this book for things like magical alphabets or ancient scripts or sybols and their meanings, id definitely suggest it!

good intro but lacks detail

When buying this book I was impressed with the broad amount of different cultures and symbols used. While there is a lot of visual references listed, there would be times that I would question how much this author really knew about certain subjects, and in some cases I could have seen where better visual representations could have been used. I was also disappointed in the section covering Japan, and felt it had missed some key points. So while this may be a good place to start, I would not take all the information to heart.

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covers a lot of cultures

This is an excellent introduction to ancient symbols from across many cultures: egyptian, aborigine, buddhist, celtic, greek, native American, chinese, roman, etc. I emphasize that this is an introduction to these since you could find whole books on the symbolism of each ofthese cultures. The section on celtic ones for example is only 5 pages long and rather skimpy as are the others but at least you can get your feet wet and then seek other books where you want to gain more depth. The images throughout the book are hand drawn but seem to be pretty well done. Throughout each chapter there are short stories/information relating to why certain symbols were used, roles of men and women in society, beliefs that the culture carried and that are expressed in the symbols. Overall a good book - having good breadth, just a little short on depth. I think the title is a little misleading since this is more about ancient cultural symbols (which I was looking for) and less about magic which the subtitle infers. I think this is a god starting point for further research.

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reviews: page 1, 2

As human beings, we live in a world of symbols. From traffic signs to the very letters that comprise these words, symbols are woven into every aspect of daily life. Since prehistoric times humans have used symbolic representation to communicate with each other and with the divine.

In Signs, Symbols & Omens, leading occult authority Ray Buckland describes the form and meaning of over 800 symbols from ancient and modern religions, magical traditions, and indigenous cultures around the world:

? Alchemy
? Ancient Egypt
? Astrology
? Australian Aborigines
? Aztec and Mayan
? Buddhist
? Celtic
? Ceremonial Magic
? Chinese
? Christian
? Freemasonry
? Gnostic
? Greek and Roman
? Hindu
? Islam
? Judaic
? Magical Alphabets
? Native American
? Norse
? Rosicrucian
? Runic
? Shinto
? Sikh
? Travelers
? Voudoun
? Witchcraft
? Omens

Understand the symbols used throughout human history and gain a deeper appreciation for the depth of the human experience and the vast uncharted realm of the collective unconscious.

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