Abramelin oil

Before the magician of Abramelin may command a single spirit, he must spend months in prayer and seclusion, anointing himself and his oratory with a sacred oil. This is the oil that carries that name.

Origin & Traditional Use

The Book of Abramelin is a grimoire attributed to Abraham of Worms, who claims to have learned its system from an Egyptian mage named Abramelin. Its operation is a long retreat of prayer and purification that ends in the knowledge and conversation of one’s Holy Guardian Angel, after which the infernal princes and their servants are bound by oath. The holy oil is used throughout that retreat to sanctify the operator and everything used in the work.

Uses by Tradition

Ceremonial & Occult Magick

• Consecration: anoint wand, dagger, lamen and altar cloth with a small cross of oil before first use, and again before each major rite.
• Self-anointing: touch the crown, brow and heart before invocation or the banishing ritual, as a mark that the body has been set apart for the work.
• Retreat work: practitioners attempting a modern Abramelin-style operation, or a shorter devotional cycle to the Holy Guardian Angel, anoint daily at the same hour of prayer.

Demonology & Black Magick

• Spirit seals: anoint the edge of a sigil or lamen before evocation so that the operator approaches the spirit under the authority of the angel rather than as an equal.
• Binding work: dress the candle used to swear a spirit to its task, so the oath is made in consecrated light.

A Simple Working

• Bathe and dress in clean clothes, ideally at sunrise.
• Light a white candle on a cleared altar.
• Warm a drop of Abramelin oil between your fingers.
• Anoint your brow, then your heart, then the palms of both hands.
• Pray aloud in your own words that your Holy Guardian Angel guide your work and your life.
• Sit in silence for at least ten minutes and note anything that comes to you.
• Let the candle burn down and repeat the same prayer at the same hour for seven days.

Pairs Well With

• Frankincense resin: the classic incense to burn alongside the oil during prayer.
• A white altar candle: for daily devotional work and consecration.
• Olive oil: the base oil of the original holy oil, useful for diluting a drop for larger surfaces.
• A blank journal: the Abramelin tradition stresses recording every prayer and experience.
• Myrrh resin: a holy-oil ingredient that suits the same work as incense.

Lore & History

S. L. MacGregor Mathers published the first English translation in 1898 from a French manuscript in the Bibliothèque de l’Arsenal in Paris, and the book became central to the Golden Dawn and to Aleister Crowley, who began the operation at Boleskine House beside Loch Ness in 1899 and broke it off. Mathers gave a six-month operation; older German manuscripts later published by Georg Dehn describe an eighteen-month one. The princes the magician must bind include Lucifer, Leviathan, Satan and Belial. Modern bottled Abramelin oils are named for the grimoire’s holy oil; the blend is not itself medieval.

What You Receive

Abramelin oil, available in 2 dram and 1 oz sizes.