The Book of the Vishanti, that storehouse of occult wisdom, said to contain every counter-spell known to the mystic arts [ST 116] exists in but one copy, that being at present in the library of Stephen Strange. Far be it from the intent of this humble compilator to presume to duplicate the immense wealth of knowledge said volume contains -- but greater would be my shame should i let pass into unending oblivion those lesser spells & enchantments which the deathless Vishanti have seen fit to allow Dr. Strange to reveal, if not to the world at large, then at least some small, select portion thereof.posted by zamboni at 1:42 PM on August 9, 2011 [3 favorites]
There have been throughout the years several questions raised by students of the theurgic arts as to whether the magic of the Vishanti (and thus of Stephen Strange) is "good" or "evil" -- indeed, it has even been stated that the Book contains only spells of defense, not offence [ST 148] -- in manifest contradiction to the evidence. The root of the problem lies in the fact that human beings, limited as they are in outlook, have presumed to cast the Vishanti in their own strictured mold, and this being a fruitless task, no end of "moral" confusion results.
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The Vishanti are most often referred to as eternal, blessed and deathless, but in at least one instance [ST 120] their fury is also invoked. Rather than attempt to sift the shifting sands of morality's Maya, i shall let the words of the noted occultist Arthur Edward Waite speak for my translation of the Vishanti texts as they did for his own work on the Clavicula Solomonensis:
"I have ruled out, as will be seen, the distinctions which have subsisted between the good and evil side of the arts and processes ... because the two aspects dissolve into one another and belong one to another in the root that is common to both ... [but] it should be observed that experiments which have for their object an interference with the free will of another person ... are essentially evil experiments."
Let this warning be a word to the wise. and let it serve as notice that i have included in this volume, for the sake of completeness only, the spells used by Baron Mordo, the dread Dormammu, and the unspeakable Umar (as well as those invoking such dubious entities as the supreme Satannish). Any spells not of Stephen Strange's utterance are marked as such in the margin. [like this.]
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In addition to incantations, this volume also contains a complete list of spirits, forces and sacred spaces, with references to their use as invocatory aids; a catalogue of ritual and power objects; a short treatise on magical time travel; and a list of other dimensions, their landscapes, the nature of their inhabitants, and other needful knowledge for those who would travel to them.
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posted by The Whelk at 10:58 AM on August 9, 2011 [8 favorites]