Practical Kabbalah and the Kame'a

A major Kabbalistic authority himself warned that this practical branch had been spiritually impure since the destruction of the ancient Temple. Despite such warnings from within the tradition, printed formularies of practical amulets circulated widely enough to reach ordinary households — the tradition's own authorities tried to restrict it, which is itself evidence of how widespread it actually was.

Chaim Vital's warning against practical Kabbalah; the printed Sefer Raziel formulary (Amsterdam, 1701)