There are two primary parts to Liber Lilith, a psychically received text that is a combination of Gnostic creation myth and practical grimoire, and a diary of a German magician who discovers a copy of the grimoire and works the rituals. It is very difficult to know whether to call this book fiction or nonfiction. The grimoire portion was dictated to me at the rate of one chapter per day, on successive days, from start to finish with no gaps. I did not attempt to edit the text, but merely recorded as I received it. The only exceptions were in connection with the Hebrew and Greek words of power, which required some work to get right, and of course the illustrations, which were done after the reception of the text.

I'm not a writer who habitually receives texts in this manner, so once I had it, I didn't really know what to do with it. I had my doubts that it would be accepted for publication in its naked form, and a few initial inquiries convinced me that I was probably correct. I decided to set it inside a fictional wrapper that would not only be more interesting to read, but would allow me the opportunity to expand on the practical aspects of the grimoire. Thus the Journal of German magician Karl Steiger came into being. Having decided to cause Steiger to find a manuscript copy of the grimoire in a second-hand bookstore in Berlin, it was necessary to write about the appearance and provenance of the manuscript. In this way, its connection with the Elizabethan sage and magician John Dee arose.

The result is a very strange mixture of fiction and nonfiction, and even I, the author of the work, cannot say where one leaves off and the other begins. Steiger himself is not real, I don't believe, yet the magic he works is quite accurate and practical, as a way of using the grimoire to initiate an intimate communion with the goddess Lilith. The description of the manuscript appears wholly fabulous, yet John Dee was noted for searching out rare occult manuscripts from all corners of Europe, and was mentioned by H. P. Lovecraft as having made an English translation of the Necronomicon. If the manuscript of Liber Lilith had indeed ever existed, it is not at all unlikely that Dee would have heard about it, and would have sought to obtain a copy.

For a number of years I kept this work entirely to myself. No one was shown it, or given the opportunity to read it. It had a profound influence on my own esoteric studies. I became much more interested in sexual alchemy and sexual energies in ceremonial magic. Perhaps the goddess Lilith herself was influencing me on a deep level. I began to draw upon the Gnostic grimoire for authority in some of my books, such as my Sexual Alchemy, and to experiment with its techniques. Eventually I tried to place it with two publishers, but it was rejected, in large part I believe due to its demonic associations. it has the earmarks of a book of black magic.

In my opinion, after living with this book for many years and applying some of its techniques on an experimental basis, it is not a book to be taken lightly. The horrifying fate of Karl Steiger, although it is a fictional account, it not beyond the realm of possibility for someone who imprudently immersed himself in the practices detailed in the grimoire. That is not to suggest that these practices have no value. They are extremely potent in arousing sexual energies. However, they are to be regarded with prudent respect.

The ritual of necromancy, which ends the grimoire portion of the text, I would sincerely hope is never put into practice, and I have prohibited its use. Even it has its points of interest, as a ritual, but only from a theoretical perspective. I was sorely tempted to cut it entirely out of the grimoire, but that would have necessitated altering the received text, and I did not wish to alter it.

This book may be enjoyed on two entirely separate levels: as a work of fiction, for its entertainment value; or as a serious manual of practical ritual magic. To those with no ritual experience, it will be relatively harmless, since they will not possess the skills to make anything of it, but those with some direct experience in ritual work should tread with care, and test the waters before jumping in head first.

I have long wished that Liber Lilith should find its way into publication, because I regard it as an important source text, and feared that it might vanish from the face of the Earth after my own death, a fate that is all too common for unpublished manuscripts, which sit in boxes neglected for decades before being thrown out by ignorant inheritors. Now that the work is between covers, it is more likely that it will endure past my own eventual demise, and in this respect I am content.

I regard myself more as the steward of the grimoire than its author, since it was given to me by some higher intelligence when I had no desire or intention to write such a text, and indeed scant experience to have even attempted it on my own. By seeing to it that it was published, I have discharged much of my duty toward it, and its unknown source.

ISBN:0-9543887-9-8. Price: £14.99 (Pounds Sterling). Starfire Publishing Limited, 2006.