For the ancient Egyptians, magic wasn’t a mysterious force – it was part of everyday life. But some of the most powerful rituals and spells were said to be preserved in The Book of Thoth, written by the god of magic himself. According to legend, the book contained everything from how to speak with animals to how to come back from the dead. But its existence remains a mystery to this day.
To read a variety of translations of the Emerald Tablet, please visit this link.
To read Hermes Trimegistus’s Hermitica, please visit this link.
Episode Source Material
BOOKS
- Budge, E. A. Wallis. 2013. Egyptian Magic. Kindle. Altenmünster: Jazzybee Verlag.
- Lachman, Gary. 2011. The Quest for Hermes Trismegistus: From Ancient Egypt to the Modern World. Edinburgh: Floris.
- Barnes, Matthew. 2016. The Emerald Tablet 101. Kindle.
- Jackson, Lesley. 2022. Thoth: The History of the Ancient Egyptian God of Wisdom. Kindle. Avalonia Ltd.
- Lewis, Jon E. 2003. The Mammoth Book of Eyewitness Ancient Egypt. Carol & Graf.
- Crowley, Aleister. 1989. The Book of Thoth. 14th ed. McNaughton & Gunn.
- Jasnow, R., and K.T. Zauzich. 2005. The Ancient Egyptian Book of Thoth: A Demotic Discourse on Knowledge and Pendant to the Classical Hermetica. The Ancient Egyptian Book of Thoth: A Demotic Discourse on Knowledge and Pendant to the Classical Hermetica, v. 1. Harrassowitz Verlag.
- Johnson, Paul. 1928. The Civilization of Ancient Egypt. HarperCollins.
- Shaw, Ian, and Paul T. Nicholson. 2003. The Dictionary of Ancient Egypt. Rev. and Updated pbk. ed. London ; New York: Harry N. Abrams.
DOCUMENTARIES (FILM & TV)
ACADEMIC PAPERS
- Hagen, F. 2007. “Jasnow, R. & K.–Th. Zauzich. 2005. The Ancient Egyptian Book of Thoth: A Demotic Discourse on Knowledge and Pendant to the Classical Hermetica (Volume I & II). – Wiesbaden, Otto Harrasowitz.” PalArch’s Journal of Archaeology of Egypt / Egyptology 4 (1): 01–03.
- Bladel, Kevin van. 2006. “The Ancient Egyptian Book of Thoth: A Demotic Discourse on Knowledge and Pendant to the Classical Hermetica. Volume 1: Text. Volume 2: Plates.” Bryn Mawr Classical Review, May.
WEB/SOCIAL MEDIA/MESSAGE BOARDS
- Finaughty, Vanessa. 2014. “The Ancient Book of Thoth.” The Ancient Book of Thoth (blog).
- “The Ancient Egyptian Book of Thoth.” 2005. Johns Hopkins Department of Near Eastern Studies.
- Gilmore, Giulia. 2022. “A Pharaoh in Disguise.” Medieval Manuscripts Blog (blog).
- Jordan, David. 2021. “Prince Setna and the Magic Book of Thoth.” Egyptian Tales.
- Murray, M.A. n.d. “The Book of Thoth.” Internet Sacred Text Archive.
- McDevitt, April. n.d. “The Book of Thoth.” Ancient Egypt: The Mythology.
- Nair, Nitten. n.d. “What Was in the Book of Thoth?” Mythlok (blog).
- “The Life and Teachings of Thoth Hermes Trismegistus.” n.d. Internet Sacred Text Archive.
- “Hermeticism: The Ancient Wisdom of Hermes Trismegistus.” 2023. Eternalised In Pursuit of Meaning (blog).
- Trismegistus, Hermes. n.d. “THE TENTH BOOK, THE MIND TO HERMES.” Internet Sacred Text Archive.
- Trismegistus, Hermes. n.d. “THE SECOND BOOK, CALLED, POEMANDER.” Internet Sacred Text Archive.
- Genghis_average. 2013. “Hermes Trismegistus.” Last.Fm (blog).
- Gaia Staff. 2020. “Emerald Tablet 101: The Birth of Alchemy.” Gaia (blog).
- Mei, Armando. 2017. “Who Really Built the Pyramids of Giza? Thoth’s Enigmatic Emerald Tablets May Provide the Answer.” Ancient Origins (blog).
- Austin, Joel. n.d. “Hermes Trismegistus – Greek God, Symbol, Mythology, and History.” ToSalem (blog).
- “Hermes Trismegistus.” n.d. Unimed Living.
- Skramstad, Erik. n.d. “Aleister Crowley and the Abbey of Thelema in Cefalù.” Wonders of Sicily (blog).
- Brady, Shaun. 2023. “The Cult of Crowley.” Tidal (blog).
- Davies, Owen. 2023. “The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and the Origins of Wicca.” Yale University Press (blog).
- Coates. 2023. “Odd This Day.”
- Crowley, Aleister. n.d. “The Invocation of Thoth.”
- Jungle Jim. 2021. “The History of the Thoth Tarot.” Facebook. Practical Tarot by Jungle Jim.
- “Fragments of the Book of Thoth.” n.d. Echoes of Egypt.