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From: "Helen E. Hansen" <Hehansen@rcn.com>
Newsgroups: alt.magick
Subject: Re: Abramelin question
Date: Mon, 5 May 2003 00:59:18 -0400
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"SwAmI" <too_freeMAPS@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:b94pb7$spu$1@newsg1.svr.pol.co.uk...
>
> "whatnext" <whatnext@mail.com> wrote in message
> news:99268733.0305041927.4ed87830@posting.google.com...
> > Since Abraham was the author of the Abramelin system I am assuming
> > that the original of the book "Sacred Magic of Abramelin" was written
> > in Hebrew.
> > Does anybody have this original Hebrew. A google search states that
> > the earliest translation was in German also that a book was written in
> > 1995 that discusses the various translations of the Sacred Magic. I
> > don't have that book so I am asking you all if you know where to find
> > the original Hebrew text.
> >
> > thanks in advance
>
> As far as i am aware there isn't an original Hebrew text for this book.
> Mathers translated it from a French copy he *claims* is a copy from the
> original Hebrew. The French copy is at the "Biblioteque de L'Arsenal" in
> Paris. Or was at the time Mathers wrote his copy.
>
> As you may tell from my post i am a bit skeptical this book ever had a
> Hebrew original or even that the author was Jewish.

    There is internal evidence in both the German and French texts that it
was written by someone who had only a superficial acquaintance with Judaism.
It was certainly not written by a religious Jew.
     The original manuscript was written in the late 1700's or early 1800's
in German.
There are at least two manuscripts in German at the British Museum .
Mathers translation was from the French, located at the library of the
Arsenal ("Biblioteque de L'Arsenal") in Paris.  There was a recent (1998 or
so)  publication of a redaction of these manuscripts in German.
It is available from German Book dealers,
Best Wishes,
John M Hansen