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Published by Inner Traditions
Distributed by Simon & Schuster
Table of Contents
About The Book
• Reveals Jim Morrison as a shamanic initiate and esoteric teacher who used his role as a rock singer to promote the adventure of the spirit and express the power of inner experience
• Examines Morrison’s deep occult and artistic influences, including Kurt Seligmann’s The Mirror of Magic, Colin Wilson’s The Outsider, and the works of Jack Kerouac
• Draws on Morrison’s lyrics and poems, his intimate writings, and the recollections of friends like photographer Paul Ferrara and Doors keyboard player Ray Manzarek
The groundbreaking 1960s band The Doors, named for Aldous Huxley’s The Doors of Perception, achieved incredible acclaim and influence, ultimately serving as a key group in the development of psychedelic and progressive rock. At the center of it all was front man Jim Morrison, who died in 1971 at age 27. Yet, as author Paul Wyld reveals, despite Morrison’s reputation as a lewd, drunken performer, he was a full-fledged mystical, shamanic figure, a secret teacher of the occult who was not merely central to the development of rock music, but also to the growth of the Western esoteric tradition as a whole.
Wyld looks at the mystical works that inspired Morrison, including Kurt Seligmann’s The Mirror of Magic, Colin Wilson’s The Outsider, and the writings of Nietzsche and Jack Kerouac. Drawing on Morrison’s lyrics and poems, his intimate writings, and the recollections of friends like photographer Paul Ferrara and Doors keyboard player Ray Manzarek, the author makes the case that Morrison was not simply a superficial dabbler in the occult but an actual secret teacher transmitting knowledge through the golden thread stretching back to Egypt and Thoth-Hermes.
Explaining how Morrison sought to use his role as a rock singer to express the power of inner experience, Wyld shows how praxis was at the heart of Morrison’s approach, revealed in his journey through the arduous ordeals of shamanic initiation. He was a shaman, mystic, and sage—and an essential part of a great spiritual awakening to which he gave himself over fully.
• Examines Morrison’s deep occult and artistic influences, including Kurt Seligmann’s The Mirror of Magic, Colin Wilson’s The Outsider, and the works of Jack Kerouac
• Draws on Morrison’s lyrics and poems, his intimate writings, and the recollections of friends like photographer Paul Ferrara and Doors keyboard player Ray Manzarek
The groundbreaking 1960s band The Doors, named for Aldous Huxley’s The Doors of Perception, achieved incredible acclaim and influence, ultimately serving as a key group in the development of psychedelic and progressive rock. At the center of it all was front man Jim Morrison, who died in 1971 at age 27. Yet, as author Paul Wyld reveals, despite Morrison’s reputation as a lewd, drunken performer, he was a full-fledged mystical, shamanic figure, a secret teacher of the occult who was not merely central to the development of rock music, but also to the growth of the Western esoteric tradition as a whole.
Wyld looks at the mystical works that inspired Morrison, including Kurt Seligmann’s The Mirror of Magic, Colin Wilson’s The Outsider, and the writings of Nietzsche and Jack Kerouac. Drawing on Morrison’s lyrics and poems, his intimate writings, and the recollections of friends like photographer Paul Ferrara and Doors keyboard player Ray Manzarek, the author makes the case that Morrison was not simply a superficial dabbler in the occult but an actual secret teacher transmitting knowledge through the golden thread stretching back to Egypt and Thoth-Hermes.
Explaining how Morrison sought to use his role as a rock singer to express the power of inner experience, Wyld shows how praxis was at the heart of Morrison’s approach, revealed in his journey through the arduous ordeals of shamanic initiation. He was a shaman, mystic, and sage—and an essential part of a great spiritual awakening to which he gave himself over fully.
Product Details
- Publisher: Inner Traditions (September 10, 2024)
- Length: 256 pages
- ISBN13: 9798888500811
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Raves and Reviews
“An exciting and insightful overview of Jim Morrison that captures his ventures into the mystic and magical in a way that today’s generation can hold on to as their own.”
– James Riordan, coauthor of The New York Times bestseller Break on Through
“Paul Wyld’s new book, Jim Morrison, Secret Teacher of the Occult, is a fascinating read that delves deep into the stormy rocker’s more mystical motivations. Wyld’s vividly interpersonal research reveals a side of Morrison that few have considered, one with tremendous relevance to our tumultuous times. This book is not only for fans of The Doors but for anyone intrigued by the spiritual aspects of rock music—a primal force that has impacted global culture in both overt and esoteric ways. Wyld’s compelling work sheds light on Morrison’s hidden influence as occult preceptor which echoes to this day.”
– Casey Rae, author of William S. Burroughs and the Cult of Rock ’n’ Roll
“Anyone who has listened to The Doors with any attention knows that they were something more than a rock band. Their music hit some deep, primal spot in the archetypal layers of consciousness and sent their listeners off on journeys of mystery and discovery. From reading Paul Wyld’s account of the mystical, magical, and esoteric influences on Jim Morrison and his music, one gets the impression that the infinite was never far from his sight. It’s no surprise that he wanted to ‘break on through to the other side’—and that the ‘other side,’ whatever it might be and whatever might inhabit it, wanted him to do just that.”
– Gary Lachman, author of The Secret Teachers of The Western World and Maurice Nicoll: Forgotten Teach
“As a teenager, Jim Morrison’s poetic irrationality and The Doors’ psychedelic explorations ignited a deep catharsis within me. Jim’s words and musical genius activated something primal—lighting my fire and transporting me to another world. Now, reading Paul Wyld’s deeply revealing account of Morrison as a secret teacher, I understand the profound effect The Doors had on my budding spirituality. Wyld has given readers a specialized chronicle of Morrison’s spiritual development, rich with modern and historical voices about art, the occult, mysticism, and consciousness. On a journey of vast imagination and creative insight, Wyld reveals a picture of Morrison that transcends the popular vision of him as a sex object, beyond the drunken and lewd performer. We see Morrison as the mystic he was, attempting to shake his audience out of complacency into a state of profound aliveness. Wyld evinces the complexities of Morrison’s vital existence as a poet, shaman, mystic, and sage, and at the same, a Dionysian maelstrom struggling against tides of cultural conformity. Jim Morrison, Secret Teacher of the Occult is more than a biography of an idiosyncratic artist; it is a guidebook for those experiencing the unavoidable crises that accompany spiritual awakening.”
– Marlene Seven Bremner, artist and author of Hermetic Philosophy and Creative Alchemy and The Hermeti
“Paul Wyld reveals Jim Morrison’s true nature and his much-deserved place among the many who have journeyed to the other side to see beyond the limits of a society mired in materialism. In this extensively researched work, Wyld weaves Morrison together with the great poets and travelers in an undeniable story of the deeper spirits he served. His poetic gift, which resonated with so many of his generation, is a torch that is relit in this new telling of the life of the Lizard King.”
– Magick Altman, author of Magick Tarot: A Journey of Self-Realization
“Morrison was more than just a rock star. He was a man searching for the deeper meanings of life, using his music, performances, and poetry as vehicles for exploration. As Wyld argues, his influence stretches far beyond his music, continuing to inspire those looking for something more meaningful in a world that often feels disconnected from spirituality. For anyone intrigued by how art and mysticism intertwine, this book offers an eye-opening experience that reframes Morrison’s life profoundly and excitingly.”
– Chris Jones, Overly Honest Reviews
“I happily recommend this book to any student of shamanism, but particularly to those who study sacred patterns, archetypes and symbols. This book is not a regular biography but rather a study of the transformative inspiration that swept one man onto the spiritual journey to Self. When shamans take this journey, they awaken archetypes and become blended with universal patterns of the macrocosm. It is a mystery we recognize at a deeper level but do not always consciously comprehend.”
– Lesley Crossingham, New Dawn Magazine
“. . . a fascinating look into Jim Morrison’s life, and his exploration of the Occult and Hermetic mysteries, coinciding with his musical career and well-known use of psychedelics and other drugs. . . . Spiritually, this is a tour-de-force of Hermetic and Occult philosophy and you may find yourself connecting the dots, so to speak, making some of the more obscure wisdom teachings more accessible through not only this book, but through Morrison’s works in theater, music and art.”
– The Modern Merlin, PaganPages.org The Modern Merlin, PaganPages.org
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