Observations placeholder
Abraham the Jew - The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abra-Melin the Mage – Flying ointment
Identifier
024409
Type of Spiritual Experience
Background
A description of the experience
The Book of the Sacred Magic of Abra-Melin the Mage - Abraham the Jew [translated by S L MacGregor – 1975]
….tells of a personal experience with flying ointment:
At Lintz I worked with a young woman who one evening invited me to go with her, assuring me that without any risk she would conduct me to a place where I greatly desired to find myself. I allowed myself to be persuaded by her promises.
She then gave unto me an unguent with which I rubbed the principal pulses of my feet and hands, the which she did also, and at first it appeared to me that I was flying in the air in the place which I wished, and which I had in no way mentioned to her.
I pass over in silence and out of respect that which I saw, which was admirable, and appearing to myself to have remained there a long while, I felt as if I were just awakening from a profound sleep, and I had great pain in my head and deep melancholy. I turned round and saw that she was seated at my side. She began to recount to me what she had seen, but that which I had seen was entirely different. I was, however, much astonished, because it appeared to me that I had been really and corporeally in that place, and there in reality to have seen that which had happened. However, I asked her to go alone one day to that same place, and to bring me back news of a friend whom I knew for certain was distant 200 leagues.
She promised to do so in the space of an hour. She rubbed herself with the same unguent, and I was very expectant to see her fly away; but she fell to the ground and remained there about three hours as if she were dead, so that I began to think that she really was dead. At last she began to stir like a person who is waking, then she rose to an upright position, and with much pleasure began to give me the account of her expedition, saying that she had been in the place where my friend was, and all that he was doing; the which was entirely contrary to his profession. Whence I concluded that what she had just told me was a simple dream, and that this unguent was the causer of a phantastic sleep.