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Yeah, I realized after I'd written that last night that I really hadn't said anything specific about the book itself. Oops.
It's strength is that from the get-go Cooper takes great pains to say that this should be regarded as a kind of science, and that mythological entities really don't figure into the deal, other than being Jungian archetypes one might employ. Also, he preemptively counters any fundamentalist arguments of such practices being "evil" (which is a meaningless in this context) by saying that even the language in the Bible can be read as endorsing a reach towards becoming God. In the end, however, he says that one has to disown oneself of certain ideas in favor of more self-actualized ones, come up with one's own set of symbols, and that someone else's spells, far more often than not, will do one not a lick of good since it won't mean the same thing to you that it means to them.
He then launches into a discussion of techniques, which he's stripped down to their essentials, and urges new practitioners to be solid with each before proceeding to the next. He begins with what I guess would be a meditation for activating the chakras as corresponding to the central aspects of the Qabbalic Tree of Life, and explains what each's significance is and why they make sense. He then describes exercises for creative visualization, which leads into the construction of one's inner temple, which is followed up by suggestions for one's physical workspace. From there he goes into the construction of the encircled cross, which eventually becomes the Cosmic Sphere, and what each of the cardinal points of said sphere represent and how they are used in workings. So at this point he's pretty much laid the groundwork for "booting up the OS," and from there talks a bit about how to "navigate the desktop." (These metaphors are mine, not his.) There's some discussion of casting sigils and creating servitors, and while I'm certain there are major items I'm leaving out (I'm at work), that is essentially the sum of the first hundred+ pages of this book, which I intend to reread with the intent of doing the work as prescribed. There are some diagrams, and some examples, and tips on proper headspace and such.
I'm not doing it enough justice, but I must say that I sense that what I've read is "true," and said "truth" is structured well enough that I feel I at least have a working knowledge of the topic. There is no flowery language to somehow lend it extra mystical "credence"; I can tell that his primary concern is comprehension rather than obfuscation, thus he debunks certain aloof attitudes prevalent in the art that he feels are counterproductive or downright ridiculous.
As an extra little bit of legitimacy, it should be noted that Cooper apparently lives in Northampton, UK. One would think he's had contact with Alan Moore, but whether they've found their views more compatible than not is anyone's guess.
So, that's my piece. Thoughts, questions, comments, sneers?
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