About this Event
Workshop Series — Grimoire Magick:
The World’s Most Dangerous Book! — Shams al-Ma'arif — THE SUN OF GNOSIS
This upcoming workshop hosted by Toronto Thelema dives into the infamous Shams al-Ma'arif, a text whispered about, feared, banned, and relentlessly sought after. Circulating in multiple recensions and bearing titles variously translated as The (Great) Sun of Knowledge(s) and The Subtleties of Elevated Things, it resists any single fixed form.
Attributed to the 13th-century mystic-mathematician Ahmad al-Buni and his disciples, Shams al-Ma'arif is far more than a mere book—it is a blazing engine of theurgy, sacred letters, talismanic force, and an architecture of magic squares. Drawing on ilm al-ḥurūf (letter mysticism), ilm al-ghayb (knowledge of the unseen), and ilm al-raml (geomancy), it engages angels, jinn, and other unseen intelligences through divine names and invocations.
In this session, we will explore the text’s inner structure: a metaphysical system that doesn’t merely describe reality but seeks to transform the operator. In contrast to earlier astral grimoires like the Ghayat al-Hakim (transmitted into the Picatrix), Shams al-Ma'arif represents a shift toward an increasingly interiorized and potentially volatile divine science, where Names, numbers, and consciousness themselves become the arena of ascent.
Participants will connect these currents—786 and 93—tracing lines of resonance between Islamic(ate) esotericism and Thelema, including the work of the Master Therion, Aleister Crowley. The workshop will illuminate how language, symbols, and sacred mathematics function as operative forces in both historical and contemporary magical practice.
Whether newly curious or already walking between worlds, this session invites attendees to approach with intention, engage with a living tradition of magick, and explore how hidden names, talismanic arts, and divine gnosis can transform the practitioner’s understanding of reality and True Will.
Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law. Love is the law, love under will.
This is part of Toronto Thelema's monthly workshop program, open to all!
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Date: Monday, April 13, 2026
Time: 07:00 PM (EST) to 09:00 PM (EST) - Approximate
Location: Centre for Social Innovation (CSI - Spadina)
192 Spadina Avenue, Toronto, ON M5T 2C2
Kensington Market / Chinatown, Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada, North America.(We’ll keep an eye out for arrivals. Message us if necessary!)
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Toronto Thelema hosts the following:
- Monthly Informal Meetup: First Monday of Every Month at The Only Cafe
- Monthly Occult Workshops: Second Monday of Every Month at CSI Spadina
- Quaterly Public Rituals: Two Solstices & Two Equinoxes
- Esoteric Film Screenings: Third Friday of Every Month
If you're interested in occultism, esotericism, alternative religion, comparative metaphysics, perennialism, fringe subcultures, magick, morality, ethics, sorcery, tarot, oracles, divination, art, science, rituals, left-hand and right-hand paths — we would love for you to join us in our events!
You will be able to get the newest edition of our free but limited quantity mini-zine: The Thelemite! This is only available in-print. If you would like to contribute art, articles, or advertise in the zine, please contact [email protected]
Lastly, you will have an opportunity to purchase a rare copy of Liber LXV (with Commentary by Aleister Crowley) — $20.00 CAD per paperback.
All proceeds, along with any FREE WILL contributions go towards our operating costs. If you would like to donate to Toronto Thelema, you can e-transfer funds to [email protected]
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Centre for Social Innovation - Spadina, 192 Spadina Avenue, Toronto, Canada
CAD 0.00
