abramelin s oil

8/20/2019 Abramelin s Oil

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amelin oil, also called Oil of Abramelin, is a ceremonial magical oil blended from aromatic plant materials.

name came about due to its having been described in a medieval grimoire called The Book of Abramelin written

Abraham the Jew. The recipe is adapted from the Jewish Holy anointing oil of the Tanakh, which is described in

Book of Exodus attributed to Moses.

amelin oil became popular in the Western esoteric tradition in the 20th century after the publication of the

L. MacGregor Mathers English translation of the Book of Abramelin, and especially via Aleister Crowley, who used

milar version of the oil in his system of Magick. There are multiple recipes in use today and the oil continues

e used in several modern occult traditions,

icularly Thelema and the Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica.

redients and methods of preparation

re are, especially among English-speaking occultists, numerous variant forms of Abramelin Oil.

amelin oil

he English translation by Steven Guth of Georg Dehn’s edition, which was compiled from all the known German

nuscript sources,the formula reads as follows:

e one part of the best myrrh, half a part of cinnamon, one part of cassia, one part galanga root, and a quarter

he combined total weight of good, fresh olive oil. Make these into an ointment or oil as is done by the chemists.

p it in a clean container until you need it. Put the container together with the other accessories in the cupboard

er the altar.

h’s translation of the recipe may be incorrect. The German sources clearly list “Calmus” or “Kalmus”. Guth has

slated these as “galanga root”. Taking this into account, the five ingedients listed by Abraham of Worms in The

ok of Abramelin are identical to those listed in the Bible. Only the proportions are slightly different (one-half

us one part of calamus).

he first printed edition, Peter Hammer, 1725, the recipe reads:

mm Mhrrhen des besten 1 Theil, Zimmt 1/2 Theil, soviel des Calmus als Zimmet, Cassien soviel als der Myrrhen im

wicht und gutes frisches Baumöl…” (Take 1 part of the best myrrh, 1/2 part cinnamon, as much calamus as cinnamon,

assia as much as the myrrh in weight and good fresh tree oil…)

e that the proportions in this edition have been changed to conform with the recipe for Holy anointing oil from



e thou also unto thee principal spices, of pure myrrh five hundred [shekels], and of sweet cinnamon half so much,

en] two hundred and fifty [shekels], and of sweet calamus two hundred and fifty [shekels], And of cassia five hundred

ekels], after the shekel of the sanctuary, and of oil olive an hin: And thou shalt make it an oil of holy ointment,

ointment compounded after the art of the apothecary: it shall be an holy anointing oil.

muel Mathers’ Abramelin oil

ording to the S.L. MacGregor Mathers English translation, which derives from an incomplete French manuscript copy

he book, the recipe is:

u shall prepare the sacred oil in this manner: Take of myrrh in tears, one part; of fine cinnamon, two parts; of

angal half a part; and the half of the total weight of these drugs of the best oil olive. The which aromatics you

l mix together according unto the art of the apothecary, and shall make thereof a balsam, the which you shall keep

glass vial which you shall put within the cupboard (formed by the interior) of the altar.

four ingredients listed by Mathers in his translation of The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage are

rrh, Cinnamon, Galangal, and Olive oil. The word that he translated from the French as “Galangal” is actually the

d “Calamus.” The other extant manuscripts also list “Calamus” as the ingredient. It is unknown if Mathers’ use of

angal instead of Calamus was intentional or a mistranslation, but it was to result in several notable changes,

uding symbolism and use.

ce Cinnamon and Cassia are two species of the same Cinnamomum genus, their doubling up into one name by the translator

he French manuscript is not unexpected. His reasons for doing so may have been prompted by a pious decision to avoid

licating true Holy Oil, or by a tacit admission that in medieval Europe, it was difficult to obtain Cinnamon and Cassia

eparate products.

amelin oil made with essential oils

ecipe for Abramelin oil using essential oils is as follows:

half part Cinnamon essential oil

1 parts Myrrh essential oil

1 part Calamus essential oil

part Cassia essential oil

one-quarter of the foregoing total weight Olive oil



ce ancient perfumers and apothecaries never compounded their fragrances by mixing essential oils in such large ratio

h respect to carrier oilsbecause the original formula was to be distilled after maceration, not beforeit is possible

estore the proportions to something like what they might have been if maceration and distillation had occurred “according

he art of the apothecary”:

half part Cinnamon essential oil


1 part Calamus essential oil

1 part Cassia essential oil

parts Olive oil

s is a highly fragranced oil that may be applied to the skin in more liberal amounts; it is a close, modern approximation

he oil described by Abramelin to Abraham of Worms.

cerated Abramelin oil

ecipe for Abramelin oil based upon the French manuscript:

4 parts Cinnamon bark quills, reduced to powder

2 parts Myrrh resin, finely ground

1 part Calamus chopped root, reduced to powder

half of the foregoing total weight Olive oil

mixture is macerated for one month, then decanted and bottled for use, producing a fragranced oil suitable for anointing

portion of the body, and will not burn the skin. It may be applied liberally, after the manner of traditional Jewish Holy

, such as the one which was poured on Aaron’s head until it ran down his beard. It is not, however, made “according unto

art of the apothecary”, since it is not distilled after the maceration but decanted into bottles.

hers’ Macerated Abramelin oil

king Abramelin oil according to Mathers’ translation of the French manuscript requires compounding the oil from raw ingredients.

ratio given in the book is as follows:

4 parts Cinnamon bark quills, reduced to powder

2 parts Myrrh resin tears, finely ground

1 part Galangal sliced root, reduced to powder

half of the foregoing total weight Olive oil

s mixture is macerated for one month, and then using an apothecary s perfume press the oil would then be separated and bottled



use. The result is a fragranced oil suitable for anointing any portion of the body, and it will not burn the skin.

essential oils are approximately 2% of raw ingredients on average, it is possible to make the oil this way using essential oils,

multiplying the total weight by 25 [50 for total weight, divided by 2] for the olive oil quantity or enough olive oil to ensure

the essential oils are completely dissolved. This will have the same effect of the oil no longer burning the skin. Once dissolved

olive oil will change from green to silver in colour.

wley’s Abramelin oil made with essential oils

ly in the 20th century, the British occultist Aleister Crowley created his own version of Abramelin Oil, which he called “Oil of Abramelin,”

sometimes referred to as the “Holy Oil of Aspiration.” It was based on Mathers’ substitution of Galangal for Calamus. Crowley also abandoned

book’s method of preparation which specifies blending Myrrh “tears” (resin) and “fine” (finely ground) Cinnamoninstead opting for pouring

ether distilled essential oils with a small amount of olive oil. His recipe (from his Commentary to Liber Legis reads as follows:

8 parts Cinnamon essential oil


2 parts Galangal essential oil

parts Olive oil

wley weighed out his proportions of essential oils according to the recipe specified by Mathers’ translation for weighing out raw materials.

result is to give the Cinnamon a strong presence, so that when it is placed upon the skin “it should burn and thrill through the body with

ntensity as of fire.” This formula is unlike the grimoire recipe and it cannot be used for practices that require the oil to be poured

r the head. Rather, Crowley intended it to be applied in small amounts, usually to the top of the head or the forehead, and to be used for

intment of magical equipment as an act of consecration.

ubly consecrated Crowley oil of Abramelin recipe

possible to add 1 part of a previously consecrated batch of the Crowley version of Abramelin oil to each new batch. This can be done for

gical reasons and does not change the proportions of the ingredients.

mbolism of the ingredients

ny traditions of magic work with plant materials, and most also assign some symbolic meanings or ascriptions to these ingredients.

he Jewish tradition, from whence came the original Biblical recipe upon which Abramelin Oil is based, the Olive is a symbol of domestic felicity

stability, Myrrh (which contains opioids) is believed to be sacred to the Lord, Calamus is known for its sweetness and phalliform fruiting body

stands for fertility and for love, while Cinnamon is favoured for its warming ability.

oodoo folk magic, these symbolisms are somewhat changed: Myrrh and Olive remain the same, but Cinnamon is for money and luck, and Calamus is us

weetly control others. (The Matherian alternative, Galangal, is employed in protective work, especially that involving court cases.)



wley also had a symbolic view of the ingredients that he found in the Mathers translation:

This oil is compounded of four substances. The basis of all is the oil of the olive. The olive is, traditionally, the gift of Minerva, the Wisdom

of God, the Logos. In this are dissolved three other oils; oil of myrrh, oil of cinnamon, oil of galangal. The Myrrh is attributed to Binah, the

Great Mother, who is both the understanding of the Magician and that sorrow and compassion which results from the contemplation of the Universe.

The Cinnamon represents Tiphereth, the Sun — the Son, in whom Glory and Suffering are identical. The Galangal represents both Kether and Malkuth

the First and the Last, the One and the Many, since in this Oil they are One. […] These oils taken together represent therefore the whole Tree

of Life. The ten Sephiroth are blended into the perfect gold.

amelin oil in occult tradition

original popularity of Abramelin Oil rested on the importance magicians place upon Jewish traditions of Holy Oils and, more recently, upon Mathers’

slation of The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abramelin the Mage and the resurgence of 20th century occultism, such as found in the works of the Hermet

er of the Golden Dawn and Aleister Crowley, and has since spread into other modern occult traditions.

ause it derives from the formula for Jewish Holy Oil, Abramelin Oil also finds use among Jewish and Christian Kabbalists who are not specifically

forming the works described by Abraham of Worms. However, the oil can be used in the course of ritual activities outlined in the book by Abramelin

Mage in order to obtain the outcomes he promised those who successfully applied his system of “Divine Science” and “True Magic”, namely, the gifts

light, treasure-finding, and invisibility, as well as the power to cast effective love spells.

abramelin s oil

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