“Magic works best when the magician understands the mechanics of their own mind.”
Today we’re going to hit the psychology of a magician. These are unconventional books that don’t usually fall into the area of occultism, but are essential in helping you understand the inner game of the occult. Let’s get into it.
My first book is Inner Work: Using Dreams and Active Imagination for Personal Growth by Robert A. Johnson. He’s also the author of He, She, and several other great works. Robert was a Jungian analyst, along with a couple of other disciplines combined inside his work.
What makes this piece so essential—and one of my cornerstone recommendations—is the subject of active imagination and the unconscious. This work helps us understand dreams, how to interpret them, and how to get started in the practice of active imagination.
He walks us through essential stages, from beginning to deeper exploration, including how people try to fake active imagination only to realize the psyche cannot be deceived. Once we start logging and analyzing these processes, it opens up a communication doorway between ourselves and psyche. The practicing magician can easily become deluded by fan fiction-level occultism and forget the critical role of the mind. This book offers practical tools and sets the framework to ritualize imagination.
My second book is a classic that came to me by accident: Outwitting the Devil: The Secret to Freedom and Success by Napoleon Hill. You may know Hill from Think and Grow Rich. According to the preface, this book was withheld by his family for fear it might tarnish his reputation.
In it, he speaks with a metaphorical or archetypal devil. Whether real or symbolic, the insights are incredibly relevant. Once you begin using magical tools and inner work, your psychic communication opens up. Hill’s “devil” explains how unconscious drifting is the tool used to sap people’s life force. How often do we delay action on ideas that come from our higher self? This book helps you confront that tendency.
The next book is Joseph Campbell’s classic The Hero with a Thousand Faces. If you’ve followed the Cult of You, you know I dive deeply into Campbell’s work, especially as it relates to the Tarot and Tree of Life.
Campbell was a professor of mythology who synthesized global myths into one recurring pattern—the Hero’s Journey. This pattern is foundational to storytelling in film, marketing, and spiritual growth. Understanding it lets you better navigate your personal mythology and place within your own initiatory arc. If you’re practicing active imagination, this book will contextualize the mythic components of your psyche.
The final recommendation is Tony Robbins’ Awaken the Giant Within. I understand the hesitation—his style isn’t for everyone—but the underlying psychological models he introduces, particularly neuro-linguistic programming (NLP), are indispensable.
NLP was created by Richard Bandler and John Grinder and is based on modeling peak human behavior and emotional states. Robbins packages these into accessible practices that can radically improve health, wealth, and relationships. When you apply NLP to magical operations, your rituals become neurologically aligned, and your results improve.
He even talks about therapeutic tools that map perfectly onto magical practices. For example, associating a pillow with a father figure in therapy mirrors magical object association. This makes magical tools neurologically real, beyond faith or tradition.
These books won’t teach you spells, but they will build the foundation to make your magic work. Too many jump into grimoires before doing the inner work. These works help you build a powerful psychological base to unlock the deeper forces within.
Adam is the founder and host of the Cvlt of You and the creator of the Secret Science occult system.
He holds various occult lineages as well as initiatory levels in orders such as the Golden Dawn, The Dragon Rouge, Freemasonry and the Rosicrucian Order, as well as several other lesser known groups and covens.
Founder of the Order of Delirious Saints and CTO of Sinappsus International.
Adam boasts mastery in over 65 different tech stacks and languages. He is also a master NLP practitioner, hypnotist, Shamanic BDSM facilitator and Shibari healer.
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