Pagan, Shinto & Spiritual Book Reviews February 2017

Diane Narraway (ed.), Lucifer: The Light of the Aeon

(2016, Black Moon Publishing)

I attended a talk on Luciferianism by author Diane Narraway at last year’s Witchfest and found it really interesting, so I thought I’d follow up by buying this book. Edited by Narraway, it is a collection of essays about Lucifer by Luciferians, the aim being to present a subjective viewpoint of Luciferianism as opposed to the more objective and academic writings that are already plentiful in the market.

I have to admit, part of the reason why I bought Lucifer: The Light Of The Aeon is because it’s one beautiful-looking book. In addition to that gorgeous cover, the inside pages are all decorated with an elaborate border and the text written in a stylised font that just manages to be attractive and unusual without being hard on the eye. The book’s design really does evoke a sense of magic and mystery… but is it just case of style over substance?

Fortunately not. The essays are thoughtful, fascinating, and enlightening. Each author tells their own experiences and views according to a particular topic on the subject of Lucifer, including how they came to become Luciferian, what they think Lucifer is, what kind of rites they may perform, and the relationship of Lucifer with other deities. I haven’t read much on the subject of Lucifer before, and I found what the authors had to say, and their interpretations of spirituality and philosophy, highly illuminating.

Much of the text in Lucifer: The Light Of The Aeon is unapologetically critical of Christianity (and indeed other organised monotheist religions). Many of those drawn to Lucifer do so after bad experiences with Christianity. That’s hardly unexpected in a book about the figure that Christians consider evil, but it is something to be aware of prior to reading. And speaking of Christianity, I noticed something interesting. Last month, a lot of the books I reviews were about Christianity. And all those books had themes in common: crisis, suffering, self-sacrifice. The personal stories in Lucifer: The Light Of The Aeon also address crisis (for many people, a spiritual discovery is often prompted by crisis), but their tone is far more triumphant and exuberant, celebrating the strength of the individual and a refusal to be a victim. Make of that what you will.

As a relative beginner on the subject of Luciferianism, I found Lucifer: The Light Of The Aeon highly informative, fascinating and enjoyable. I genuinely looked forward to reading it on my morning commute. I suspect that those with more prior knowledge and experience of Luciferianism will also find this book interesting and useful, and it’s always inspiring to read about others’ paths and interpretations of a particular form of spirituality. Highly recommended for any seekers of knowledge!