The duty of man is to oppose, by all the resources of his genius, the annihilation of his efforts; to counterbalance, to delay, to hold the operations of nature, which knows how to give existence to new beings only at the expense of those who preceded them. The law of man is conservation; the law of time is destruction. Man and time must therefore be in constant struggle. Unfortunately, the former is often self-sacrificing his mission to help the second one to achieve its goals, both armed with a scythe and a sword. Once on this path, man becomes more formidable because the deteriorations of time are slow; nothing hastens it, with an eternity ahead.
(L’Obélisque de Louqsor, pamphlet, by Pétrus Borel)
(L’Obélisque de Louqsor, pamphlet, by Pétrus Borel)
The breviary, a special kind of book with the liturgical texts for the Office. A book intended for convenient, everyday purposes. However, some breviaries can be hideous, even unholy. How beautiful would be the breviaries written by the Ursuline nuns at Loudon, for example. Following this unveiled tradition, the Romanian philosopher Cioran wrote his Précis de décomposition.
The new Raphus Press series, Précis, in this sense, will be focused on these contemporary small, unholy breviaries, with pieces created by the great contemporary auteurs of strange stories with a precious gift, a reliquary for our readers. Continuing along this path, we announce the fourth breviary, a collection for exquisite tastes entitled Fiendish Pamphlets, by Ramon Lasalle.
Fiendish Pamphlets, obscure papers about destruction, opuscules regarding the essence of the void. This new Raphus collection is a set of ignominious brochures, some of them originally published by Mount Abraxas Press – "Nocturnal Gardens", a piece that appears formerly at All is Full of Hell, the tribute to William Blake edged by Dan Ghetu and Damian Murphy. The great Des Lewis had some kind words about this tale here: "A delicate job like an emotional bomb disposal". The tricky, intricate creations by Mr. Lasalle are a must see for all aficionados of imaginative fiction.
Fiendish Pamphlets, a breviary (5.1 x 7.0 in.), hard cover designed by Raphus Press Immanent Headquarters at São Paulo, Brazil, printed in the Gráfica Forma Certa with imagery by Joseph Gandy and the decayed photos created by Matthew Brady's studio. As usual, this new chapbook edition will be very scarce: only 25 copies, plus some (very few) private copies. In can buy a copy below or in the Catalogue page.
The new Raphus Press series, Précis, in this sense, will be focused on these contemporary small, unholy breviaries, with pieces created by the great contemporary auteurs of strange stories with a precious gift, a reliquary for our readers. Continuing along this path, we announce the fourth breviary, a collection for exquisite tastes entitled Fiendish Pamphlets, by Ramon Lasalle.
Fiendish Pamphlets, obscure papers about destruction, opuscules regarding the essence of the void. This new Raphus collection is a set of ignominious brochures, some of them originally published by Mount Abraxas Press – "Nocturnal Gardens", a piece that appears formerly at All is Full of Hell, the tribute to William Blake edged by Dan Ghetu and Damian Murphy. The great Des Lewis had some kind words about this tale here: "A delicate job like an emotional bomb disposal". The tricky, intricate creations by Mr. Lasalle are a must see for all aficionados of imaginative fiction.
Fiendish Pamphlets, a breviary (5.1 x 7.0 in.), hard cover designed by Raphus Press Immanent Headquarters at São Paulo, Brazil, printed in the Gráfica Forma Certa with imagery by Joseph Gandy and the decayed photos created by Matthew Brady's studio. As usual, this new chapbook edition will be very scarce: only 25 copies, plus some (very few) private copies. In can buy a copy below or in the Catalogue page.
The opinion of our readers
Golden Age of Clairvoyance
"Well I have received the books today and I had certain high expectations and I must say such high expectations were well exceeded. The selectivity of the authors as I may have mentioned before (both individually and in combination) and translations are impeccable. The book design is exquisite and enhances the holistic reading experience (by way of comparison, on first seeing the books I had the same sense of elation when I had received my first Sylph Edition Cahiers a few years ago)."
(Andrew Condous)
(Andrew Condous)
"The books look really nice - I'm especially liking the full-color images inside. Very good design."
(Damian Murphy)
(Damian Murphy)
"The chapbooks are beautiful. Well done! Equally engaging for the eye and mind."
(Rachel Kinbar)
(Rachel Kinbar)
"The initial print-run of all three is, of course, low, so any interested readers should make a quick decision; because I do hope Raphus continue on their path of intriguing little translations of the recovered uncanny and esoteric."
(Mark Andresen at Pan Review)
(Mark Andresen at Pan Review)
The great weird and fantastic connoisseur, Des Lewis, made an insightful review of Black Mirror, the second chapbook in the series, available in this link.
Spiritual Meaning of the Massacres
"Many thanks for sending me a copy of The Mendicant. It really looks rather good – a bit like one of the books you read about in short stories that start off ‘Beware if you read these words... too late!"
(Stephen Cashmore)
(Stephen Cashmore)
"It's a marvelous production, and it's great that you have resurrected the remarkable title piece. I also enjoyed the pamphlet (...). Long may Raphus Press reign!"
(Chris Mikul)
(Chris Mikul)
"I am absolutely delighted with them [The Mendicant of the Books and The Sacred Abysmal Perspective]! They are both true examples of true and original creative philosophical ingenuity, originality and also design. They are fantastickal chapbooks and it is an equal delight to have been able to contribute and to assist in other ways. Although I saw the proofed editions when you e-mailed them to me, now that they are in my hands, they veritably glow and crackle and weep with their malign embers.
I shall take myself off on a sacred journey this weekend, like the early priests going to Tibet, and will immerse myself in the deep folds and ravines these chapbooks open up."
(Jonathan Wood)
I shall take myself off on a sacred journey this weekend, like the early priests going to Tibet, and will immerse myself in the deep folds and ravines these chapbooks open up."
(Jonathan Wood)