Evoking the Divine: How the Graeco-Egyptian Magical Papyri Rekindle My Ancestral Flame

There are books that inform. Others that inspire. But rarely does a text like Evocating the Gods by Christopher A. Plaisance do both—while also reaching into your ancestry and whispering, “Welcome back.”

The Graeco-Egyptian Magical Papyri (PGM) are among the most fascinating and complex magical documents of the ancient world, blending Greek, Egyptian, and even Mesopotamian spiritual systems into a vibrant theurgical tapestry. In this work, Plaisance unpacks the structure, philosophy, and performance of divine evocation, revealing how ancient magicians called upon gods to appear—not metaphorically, but actually, to manifest their presence.

Reading this as someone with Mediterranean roots felt like something ancient stirring within me. These were not just old rituals—they were ancestral tools. Invocations to Isis, Helios, and Thoth echoed the cultural and spiritual identities my forebears would have known and perhaps practiced. The rituals call for precision, heart, and humility—the very principles many of us still carry in modern spiritual work.

Whether you’re a scholar of Hermetic magic, a practitioner of theurgy, or someone seeking to reconnect with ancestral pathways, Evocating the Gods is more than a book—it’s a key to awakening the divine memory within