The Ancient Book of Thoth

Today’s tour host is Louise Blankenship, who will be sharing a character interview with Queen Narraki Dragonsbane from Wizard of Ends. I hope you enjoy it!

The ancient Book of Thoth is one of the most controversial ancient manuscripts to date. The collection of Ancient Egyptian texts believed to be written by the god Thoth is called the Book of Thoth too, but it is not that to which I refer now… the ancient spell book that many believe to be a myth is of far more interest, IMHO (in my humble opinion).

It is said the spell book is first mentioned in an Ancient Egyptian story and its first two pages contain knowledge that enables an understanding of animals’ language and immortality, and allows the reader to perceive the gods, whom are usually hidden from mortal eyes. The original Book of Thoth, allegedly written on papyrus, apparently says that mankind is ‘halfway between the angels and gods’, and has a special role in creating objects of beauty, much like the gods. The book is said to hold the secrets of the gods… the key to vast magical power that enables the reader to enchant even the earth and heavens. Some believe the Book of Thoth is an ancient alchemists’ manual, some say its spells can predict the future and others believe it to be three separate books.

There is an Ancient Greek version of the Book of Thoth, which, to the best of my knowledge, no longer exists; at least, not in its entirety. Occultist Aleister Crowley also wrote a Book of Thoth, which includes a tarot deck invented by Crowley, who claimed that Thoth himself dictated the book to him. It’s not surprising that it’s associated with the tarot, as many believe this comes from Ancient Egypt and that the original Book of Thoth is a set of tarot cards rather than a book or papyrus. Another text, The Emerald Tablets of Thoth, has supposedly been translated to reveal the author as none other than a priest-king called Thoth from the mythical city of Atlantis. These tablets are said to be 36, 000 years old and are claimed to contain a recipe to create a Philosopher’s Stone for use in transmutation. As far as I know, none of this has been verified.

It’s generally believed that Thoth was a scribe to the gods, but some say the Ancient Egyptians believed that, without Thoth’s words, the gods would not exist. Several ancient texts say that Thoth wrote something of great scriptural importance that would eventually be discovered by someone of his bloodline. Were those references to the ancient spell book?

The Book of Thoth is believed to be buried in the City of the Dead with Prince Neferkaptah; however, to date, no one has found a trace of it. Some believe it lies beneath the giant paws of Egypt’s sphinx, and others believe it could be among the thousands of Ancient Egyptian papyrus texts that are still in the process of being translated. What we do already know is that some of these texts refer to the Book of Thoth; however, the magic referred to in these texts is not magic as we understand it. Instead, it’s said the book holds the key to understanding the world as it is rather than seeing into the future – a means of making sense of unseen things such as the seasons, illnesses, and day and night. These ancient texts also refer to spells in the Book of Thoth, but, again, not magic spells – rather, they could more accurately be called prayers. The texts do, however, make reference to man being ‘halfway to god’, which concurs with the legends. There is also mention of the Masonic ritual of death and rebirth, but no mention of the original papyrus Book of Thoth or tarot.

Only one thing is certain: unless the original Book of Thoth is discovered, no one can know for sure what lies within its pages.

Many believe that, if the Book of Thoth was discovered, it could enable us to once again live in a pristine world. However, all Ancient Egyptian stories about the Book of Thoth could accurately be called warnings, as those in the stories who find the book also find tragedy and pain. It is said that anyone who dares to read the Book of Thoth will be punished by the gods, for the gods’ knowledge is not meant for humans.

If the magical Book of Thoth exists and you discovered it, would you read it and why?