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Book of Shadows ~ Migene Gonzalez-Wippler (Llewellyn; 2005) Bibliography? Yes - Index? No - Footnoted? No This is a foray by a celebrated author of Hebrew Qabala & Santeria into the neo-Pagan world of Witchcraft. Ms. Wippler has written some handy reference books on Qabala (Kabbala For A Modern World) as well as several books on Santeria (The Santeria Experience, Rituals & Spells of Santeria, Powers of the Orishas), as well as her own version of the Sixth & Seventh Books of Moses replete with anecdotal material. Now Ms. Wippler is taking us into the murky world of Witchcraft.... Essentially you'll find the typical Llewellyn Wicca fare in the first half of the book. If you've read this once, you've read it too many times. Same old stuff, different author. Pages 36 to 41 discuss the Moon's energy aspects while it transits the different signs of the Zodiac. This is rarely discussed in Wiccan material and is of more importance than merely stating working during a waning, waxing, new or full lunar phase. I highly recommend studying this chapter if this material is unknown to you. Up to page 92, we're given the typical 101 Wiccan fare. But then we begin to get into part two of the book, The Book of Shadows: The Magic of Witches (spooky music interlude). Here is where the author begins to share anecdotal material. Her stories of her experiences. The first chapter is on Familiars and it's roughtly 2 & 1/2 pages long but she does share an interesting anecdtote about her totem the wolf. This is what Migene is famous for - sharing her own real world stories. Something that's quite missing from 99% of the Llewellyn books. In fact this is what endeared Migene to me all these years. The first book I obtained by her was Magical Spells, Rites & Ceremonies (also a Llewellyn offering) and it contained a fascinating account of how she summoned the Archangel Raphael by using a copy of the Sixth & Seventh Books of Moses and the result which wasn't pleasant for her. In other words, Ms. Wippler doesn't P-R-E-A-C-H; she gives her foibles along with her lessons! On pp. 138-139, she gives incense recipes for the Zodiac signs which is rare outside of Cunningham. Kudos to the author for this inclusion as well. On pp. 155-160, Ms. Wippler discusses the Levanah Nectar in which thru a series of recipes, she divulges Lunar lore to the reader. Sadly the remainder of the book is watered down Wicca. Even the To Overcome An Enemy spell (*gasp!*) was quite worthless. A red candle for doing in an enemy? I can see where she gets the "passion" for her candle attributes on page 162 but if I were to use a red candle, it'd be to invoke the powers of Mars and the Spirits under the control of Mars to go to war. She ends the book with lyrics from a song by the late Blues singer Screamin' Jay Hawkins. I was left feeling kind of "blah" about the whole affair. I guess I expected MORE anecdotes and personal experiences as befits this author's status. The information looks as if it could fill the spot for a 101 Novice but if you're past that stage, you may want to reserve your monies and go with several other more complete or in-depth texts on the subject. All in all I rate this book 3 out of 5 possible stars. Again its' good for an abject Novice but for the Intermediate + students, for for more meatier materials. |
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The Master Grimoire of Magicakal Rites & Ceremonies ~ by Nathan Elkana (Finbarr Book Promotions; 1982) Rare is the occult book you’ll find these days that offers little more than a lot of theory & ethics. In fact, most of those books get bought out quick and run into out-of-print status. For some reason, mainstream publishers insist on rehashing the same old theory & ethical diatribes that are so prevalent with mainstream publishers. Thankfully Finbarr is not of that mindset. This is a rare text from a United Kingdom publisher who happens to focus on “chap books” - short booklets of about 40-50 pages, softcover and saddle stapled. This book is quite large and printed on fine, heavy paper. The cover hearkens back to the late 70’s when spooky photos appeared all over the place in gothic books with a lit candle in an empty wine bottle (dripping of course), a chalice of wine, a small crystal sphere on a wooden base and some Tarot cards fanned out. The back cover is a plain tan color with the single image from the solar pantacle of Shaddai from the Key of Solomon. The binding is glue the likes of which appear in all mainstream publishing because it’s cheap. Nathan Elkana is a pseudonym for another Finbarr autor who I’m guessing is none other than Basil Crouch because Crouch owned several successful healing centers in the United Kingdom and was rumored to have his hand in some businesses over here in the United States as well. Truly Crouch was one of those Occultists who used his abilities to make himself quite wealthy. While I have no proof that Elkana was Crouch, it is a good solid guess. The book starts off with some dark philosophy and even quotes Anton LaVey as “self-styled black pope” but this is more to help you come to terms with the fact you’re going to be summoning and controlling some very strong powers - most of which will not be the fluffy bunny type of powers. Elkana is spot on with the philosophy of the classic Finbarr book - keep it simple and straightforward and make the information practical. In this modern day grimoire, you’ll find all sorts of rites, ceremonies and spellworks to get you to where you want to go in life. Elkana seems to have razed old Khemetic manuscripts for spells such as the “Ancient Egyptian Prosperity Rite” on pages 64 & 65, but he includes three gold candles in a triangle shape - for manifestation - and the incantation to be recited. Then in the chapter of Egyptian and Cabalstic Magic, Elkana offers the “Cabalistic Power & Domination Rite” on pages 80-81. Elkana shifts gears and dabbles in the making of amulets and the designs appear like Magic Squars but using letters instead. These are hand drawn and are nicely done on page 86. One is for defeating enemies and the other is for protection. Like a real workbook, Elkana offers “Master Study Points” at the end of each chapter - presumably for those who’re using the book as a textbook of Magic. The next chapter lands us smack dab in the middle of love and romance. Elkana provides some ideas on keeping your love with your partner free from outside influences. Something 99% of all mainstream New Age books totally miss. They’ll give you all sorts of recipes and what-not for trying to land that lucky guy or gal BUT fail to tell you how to keep him/her once you ensnare them. Not so here. One interesting spell on page 104 is to get a total stranger to compel themselvs to talk to you. I have tried this ritual and it does indeed work. However it does go without saying that your body language SHOULD appear open and non-threatening to the other party for the spell to work. In chapter six, Elkana offers you a whole plethora of advice on the Making of Talismans. This is an important study of this rare Occult Art. Here you’re shown various pantacles from the Key of Solomon and from The Black Pullet and instructed on their individual uses, how to make them, when to make them, how to empower them and how to use them with semi-precious stones. In fact there’s instructions on choosing your semi-precious stones included. He then takes you thru Psychic Defense and how it’s done. There’s an awfully good ritual on pages 155-156 called the “Ancient Psychic Attack Dissolving Ceremony”. Even though I highly doubt any “ancient” dude called this ritual by this name, still it serves a useful purpose. There’s a hint of Hoodoo as you’re instructed to use a lavender candle with the incantation given and the cleansing part seems to be a bit New Age-ish BUT the rite works because I have tested it both on myself and with clients. In fact, on pages 164 & 165, Elkana includes a full scale Uncrossing ceremony that I have yet to try but it looks quite functionally accurate. Now in chapter eight, he begins to get really esoteric on us. Here you’ll find discussion about old beliefs of invisibility & so-called magic carpets. Elkana points out that you can achieve BOTH of these objectives by learning to use your own powers of ‘Astral Projection’. He makes quite a case though what he is calling astral projection is in reality OBE - Out of Body Experience. Astral Travel has more to do with delving into your own internal universe whereas the OBE is all about stepping outside of your body and walking around, flying, spying on neighbors, etc. Each has its own merits. Finally there’s a couple of chapters on Health & Beauty but the final chapter is most interesting. Here you’ll find the Master Techniques to triple any spell’s or ritual’s power on pages 211-213. It’s a short but concise chapter on using these techniques and why you should perform them every time. Then he ends the book with an Occult Glossary for the magician. All in all, I found the book to be highly informative, easy to use and understand and concise without the usual preachiness found in so many modern Occult books. I rate this book five out of five possible stars. It is worth every penny you’ll spend on it. You can obtain the book at http://www.molochsorcery.com/finnbarr.html |
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Sexy Witch ~ LaSara Firefox It took me forever to pick this up and read it. I just could not see myself reading (yet) another book on sexuality & the Occult. Oy vay already! One of the things that I just could not fathom was reading an introduction by a (former?) porn star by the name of "Annie Sprinkles". This book just didn't appeal to me. Mind you, I'm the furthest thing from a sexual prude and many of my friends will wholeheartedly admit that, however I found the book trying to offer sexuality as both clinical and flirty in the same manner. And that's what doesn't click for me like it may for you. While it may be a great marketing gimmick to get "Ms. Sprinkles" to write (I didn't know Porno stars needed to know how to write!) the foreward but for those folks who're into porn, this may get them to at least crack the book open. The audience for the book is obviously "Wiccan" though she denies it, LaSara claims she is not Wiccan. She claims her's is "intuitive based" which comes across as "I've never been formally trained nor initiated". Though in the foreward by Ms. Sprinkles, it's said LaSara is able to fly around on a broomstick. Hah! That'd be interesting to see. As someone who practices more serious Occultism, I believe this to be the biggest stumbling block to the book itself. The author goes for the typical Llewellyn format and it just didn't seem to give me any sort of useful information that I could make use of except in a couple of the following places. First off on page 214, Firefox uses the following: "The Most Obnoxiously Option-Oriented Ritual Outline You Have Ever Seen!" and boy howdy she wasn't kidding! Though in fairness this outline is intended for those working in a GROUP setting. But the tongue in cheek humor was there. Secondly, I did rather like the way she emphasized certain things in the book by using marginal notes. These are handy spots that will help one not only learn and apply new material but recall which page something is on. Though the purist may be put off by the fact the author & publisher has taken it upon themselves to give what they feel is critical to the reader. Nevertheless I liked it. Finally I did like Appendix 3 "Informational Resources" as it offers quite a bit of material that may help the reader learn to accept themselves better and thus move on with emotional stability. Too many look to the Occult as a panacea of quick self-help techniques. Far from it though one should have a good solid self-esteem to make any sort of Sorcery work. What I didn't like about the book is the overdone use of obnoxious terminology such as listed in a Marginal Note on page 46 "A Magickal Thought: Pussy worship has been around forever." Okay is there a reason to be crude? We can't use "Vaginal"? Must we bow to the Hustler magazine mentality and excuse crudeness for reality? Okay for some but I dislike it. Personally though I feel the author & publisher allow this sort of thing for shock value. Page 229 has "Ritual 3: Pussy Power!". Along this line, I noticed a lack of "My-Dick-Is-A-MagicKal-Wand" types of spells too. Another thing I absolutely detest is the relegating of the Gods to mere "psychological archetypes" which is precisely what is done in the Western systems of Occultism. Rather than revere the Gods for who They are, it seems Llewellyn authors have to look at their concept of Deity as pure psychological instead of revering them as real beings. Sad. All in all I found the book lacking any sort of real substance and it had a strong feminine bias to it. Thus if you're a woman who's hetero, bi or gay, this book may appeal to you. For a guy, there's little in here worthwhile to read. I didn't see much in the way of depth of knowledge but rather just plain surface knowledge which anyone could glean from a number of sources. I rate this book 1 out of 5 stars. |
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Exploring the Northern Tradition ~ Galina Krasskova Okay do we need yet another Northern Traditions or worse Runic studies book? Why do I take this stance? Well the problem is that the authors of such books tend to approach the subject from a scholarly standpoint. They are wont to cite chapter and verse of archeology and sites where full blown evidence is to be found to support their theories. And since there is only so much evidence available the various authors tend to repeat the mateiral over and over and over again. It becomes as boring as reading a basic Wicca book! Unfortunately, I really didn’t find anything new in Krasskova’s offering. Not that I’m out any money - for if I were I’d definitely be peturbed with her - but rarther once you’ve read and studied the “Suggested Reading” as found in her book, you wonder WHAT someone like her has to say on the subject that’s truly unique. Because what she gives as “suggested reading” can be found in a dozen older sources which I read years ago and then did my homework then. While I am Germanic but not Asatru by any stretch of the imagination, I’d like to see more creativity going on in the proto-Norwegian fold. Unlike the Germanic Armenan lodges, the Norwegian practitioners tend to rehash the same basic information over and over again. In fact, the Norwegian Futhark scholars remind me of Christians who revere the King James Bible swearing to maim anyone who tries to apply it to their own way of thinking. The Armenan lodges aren’t so stuffy and in fact they tend to encourage creativity and self-expression thru Runic practice. Sadly the same formula holds true for the Heathen folk customs as it does for the Futhark. Blot, blot, blot. Ugh. Show me something conventional. Something unique and modern that is built upon what was done in the past. Maybe that’s why I’ve never felt the need to join the Rune Gild or Asatru in that they’re “living in the past” and remind me of S.C.A. types who recreate Medieval and Renaissance settings. Bah. I don’t want to live in the past. While I enjoy learning from the past, I live in today. The best part of this book is her chapter on Wyrd. This is often a relatively difficult subject to explain to most non-esoteric people due to the fact much has to be accepted rather than proven. And that’s due to it being heavily metaphysical rather than rational. Overall the chapter is one of the better ones I’ve read on the subject. Overall I gave this book 1 out of 5 stars as it just did not have enough anecdotal material to personalize it nor does it have anything even relatively new to ponder. It’s simply a rehash and been-there-done-that sort of thing. I hope her next offering has more to bite and chew on than this. |
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The Complete Guide to Labyrinths by Cassandra Eason Interesting subject but difficult for me to really get into. I’ve always had a fascination with labyrinths and mazes from way back when I read about the Graeco-Roman legend of the Minotaur. Later I met a man at a metaphysical festival who setup a labyrinth using stones and offered people to walk it while meditating. I found the experience to be quite uplifting and useful. One of my problems with new age books like this when the author has written over 50 books. This leads me to believe here is yet another cultural interest that they can exploit for a quick buck. Rather I prefer to read or hear about such a subject from someone who is truly passionate about the subject they’re writing of. Someone who has spent years studying and working with it so I know they DO know a lot about the subject matter as well as be able to provide some insights I may have not seen before. I didn’t get that impression here with Ms. Eason’s offering. My favorite chapter hands down was four and that is about “Making A Labyrinth” as it outlines and gives you useful illustrations on creating your own backyard labyrinth. Having always wanted my very own Stonehenge but deciding that having several ton hunks of granite hauled in and put up made me give up that whole idea. Well now having a backyard labyrinth for my very own a viable substitute. In fact, I figure I could plant the medium sized stones deep enough so that they would not interfere with the mower blades but also remain visible. Some of the other chapters that really turned me off was the integration of “Angels” and “Archangels” into the Labryrinth concept. Like this ancient Celtic device needs Angels to work? How silly is that? Then as in all new age publications, there has to be that token cahpter on "healing” somewhere. Oy! Talk about an overdone cliche! Then you find she takes the cliche’s further with the “Chakras & Labyrinths”! I felt like gagging here. Even the chapter on Labyrinth Rituals I found trite, inexcusable pap offered. I did think she had something with the essay on Enhancing your Psychic Powers thru a Dream Walk. I’ve often found Labyrinthine like mazes to be useful for Ritual Purposes though these were imagined on the Astral plane and not created physically here on our home plane. Still the uses of a Labyrinth and Dream workings is not without merit and thus the subject should be pursued in more depth. Perhaps Lucid Dreams and Labyrinths? All in all, the book was so-so to me. Again very hard to stay with it. I was constantly putting it down and picking it up again like it just did not hold my attention. The index is fantastic and very well done. The bibliography is seperated into subject categories but the downside is it again references those same old cliche loving authors of the New Age community. At fourteen dollars and ninety-five cents, I found the book to be both pricey and lacking. I rate it 2 out of 5 stars for too much New Age hodge-podge and lack of real passion for the subject. Save your shekels and pass this one up. Wait for it to hit the used bookstore bins. |
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Magical Pathworking: Techniques of Active Imagination by Nick Farrell While I'm not an overt fan of "pathworking", I have to say it does have its objective uses. Typically I've found pathworkings to do little on the physical or Astral planes regardless of which author is claiming otherwise. Pathworking is a fancy name given to a guided meditation. The main difference is that a pathworking is usually constructed along Qabalistic lines of thought and uses more often than not Hermetic symbols whereas a guided meditation can be a simple affair to get you to realize you snore in bed. From an inner psychology aspect, the usage and implementation of a well executed pathworking can help you to acknowledge misplaced feelings and to challenge your own fears and phobias. This is done by objectively linking the fear or phobia to a symbol and then learning to deal with the symbol's energy or using Alchemy to transmute it into something more constructive in your mind. This artform is nothing knew as Dion Fortune's crew have used pathworking as a main focus since the beginning of the 20th century. Others such as Dolores Ashcrowft-Nowicki have authored books on the subject as well and these would make good reading in addition to Farrell's book if you're of the notion to explore this time honored practice yourself. In all fairness I should clarify that what you experience on the inside landscape of your mind's pathworking can alter your perceptions and insights on the outside. It's just that a normal pathworking event will not alter a dignitary's way of thinking just because you imagine it so. That would involve you having to do a ritual/spell and empowering it in some way. Still if you sufficiently alter your own psyche strongly enough, you'll find plenty of changes on the outside of yourself for you to experience. Farrell offers a simple but fun experiment he calls "The Five Dollar Experiment" on page 21. It's a variation on his "Basic Visualization" lesson from the previous page. He's giving you advice on how to manifest $5 from an unexpected source to prove to you this works. After you've mastered this, he offers a technique taught to him by David Goddard and it is to help you from ever having to be in financial need again. Well thought of advice! One of the things I like about Farrell is that he's not ashamed to tell you that he learned a technique or idea from someone else to which he gives credit. THAT is rare in an author these days! Then Farrell offers you some practical advice on building your own inner kingdom. This is a terrific idea as it can be a springboard for a variety of creative ideas during your life. And these don't have to be all "metaphysically" oriented either. One can certainly use their inner kingdom to bounce ideas off of such as talking to other dignitaries or intelligent magical beasts for advice. In the new age circles, there has been the art of creating a magical laboratory where you go to shut out the world to give yourself some time to think, plan and get your creative juices flowing. Farrell gives you much the same and offers plenty of advice on creating this inner world for you to romp around in at your leisure or when you absolutely MUST have an answer. Another great chapter in this book that I highly recommend you read several times over is how to use your imagination to change your psyche. While it's true that's the fundamental focus of the whole book, here Farrell points out in specific detail an outline of steps on using your psyche to make majore changes in your life. He even discusses using this technique for helping someone who's been abused all their life. While not a panacea per se, this section can have life altering affects. However Farrell is wise to point out that no pathworking is completely 100% safe and especially where those involve altering your perceptual patterns to such a degree. All in all, I have to rate this book a four star manual. It's offering a lot even though it's coming from an ultra reserved esoteric order-ish background. Of course there's a bibliography and unfortunately no index. Thus make sure you have your highlighter and Post-It-Notes handy so you can mark those particulars that you find helpful for later finding. |
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Making Talismans: Living Entities of Power by Nick Farrell Gotta tell ya, if you enjoy crafting Magical items and talismans just happen to be one of them, then you'll want to get this book. While I have been recently delving back into the pre-Rennaissance talisman making processes, I have to say I have great respect for the author of this work. Why? Well first off he's innovative. At least as for what he's penned in his book and where he obtained that knowledge, I can't say for certain. He's a member of the Esoteric Order of the Golden Dawn (EOGD), the Society of Light (SOL) and Builders of the Adytum (BOTA). Thus he could have picked up varying levels of techniques from many sources and teachers and then again he may have invented much that is new. One thing I highly dislike about Llewellyn authors is their need to always have to go back to the beginning. Chapter two is about "A Brief History of Talismans" - brief my eye! That lasted from page 13 all the way to page 44! Ugh! Just what everyone wants to learn, history lessons from yet "another" Llewellyn book author. Then his chapter three is "Names of Power" and we get more of that until page 60! You see, if Llewellyn wasn't worried about page count, they could trim off 36 pages! The next chapter delves into something a little more meaty and that's "Neo-Pagan Talismans". Talk about something you just don't see everyday listed in a table of contents! And this is a terrific chapter up until Mr. Farrell get's to page 73 where he starts in with his own version of how the Gods from various pantheons line up to each of the seven major planets. Sorry folks but if you're just using it as a basis for talisman making, then fine adopt it but do NOT think that the Egyptian deity Ra equates exactly with the Greek Apollo or Norwegian Frey. This is typical new age author shoddy information giving! Each God/dess must be studied in its entirety and weighed on its own merits. There are aspects between these three Gods that more than likely would cause them to openly war with one another should you introduce them. So just because they share a single planetary rulership does not mean they're exactly alike. If you doubt me, then do some research on your own and learn about the Gods from other non-Occult sources. Chapter Five is weak because it's on "Angels and Talismans" and frankly most of the offered information here can be found most anywhere else in Ritual Magic literature. Chapter Six is called "Snaring the Power of the Planets" and it too is somewhat weak. He does show you how to plot the seals of the Spirits and Intelligences of the Planets on the Magic Squares that belong to each Planetary power. If you've never seen this before, you may want to read that chapter pretty heavily. The last thing in this chapter is *yawn* Planetary Hours - again found in hundreds of other books too. Chapters Seven and Eight are well worth your time to read. Here he gets into color and coloring thoughtforms. The section of Flashing Tablets should be read but again this information can be found in any number of other texts on Ritual Magic. Eight gets into drawing the talisman and here he really shines! He discusses shapes as well as new ideas such as layering the talisman and using the lightning bolt from the Four Worlds. Plus he offers up some traditional symbology you can make use of for your own talisman. Finally chapter Nine is about "Consecrating the Talisman" and it's standard Ritual Magic procedure though with a couple of fine twists to it. And Chapter ten is all about how to determine if your talisman is indeed working! |
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Madame Endora’s Fortune Cards ~ featuring artwork by Christine Filipak Are you a fan of card oracles for your divination but sick and tired of the complexity of Tarot? Perhaps you, like me, enjoy the Gypsy Witch Fortune Telling deck but feel the artwork sucks? Well here’s where both worlds meet and mesh quite well! Fortune Telling cards are merely oracles like the Tarot or I Ching, Dominoes, Astragals, etc. Unfortunately when I first got into the Occult, there seemed to be a snobbishness attached to Tarot as the “true” way of divination by the Wiccans I had met. Everyone seemed to eschew the “fortune telling” path and snubbed it as “the way of the Gypsy” which was somehow beneath them. Funny though how many Ceremonial Magickians such as the late Israel Regardie disdained using Tarot as an oracle of the future. Oh well the cycle of snobbery continues.... When I got into serious study of Sorcery, I began asking the others who I considered to be Sorcerers what they used to divine with. Most said they used regular playing cards. I met a couple who swore by the oracle “Gong Hee Fot Choy” which is based loosely on a regular cards meet Chinese symbology system. Then there was the little old lady who insisted she got the finest results with Murray Hope’s “Way of the Cartouche” which is symbolism based on Egypt. So I purchased these systems and enjoyed them but nothing really clicked with me. Oh you’ve never had that feeling have you? Then I met another colleague in Sorcery who got some really good results using the “Gypsy Witch Fortune Telling” deck. He insists on using this on all his clients and for every reality check he needs. Thankfully my ex gave me hers and I used them for some time after that. It was okay but just didn’t really click with me. I even tried the Creative Whack Pack deck developed by Roger Von Oerch also the author of “A Whack On the Side of the Head” and the follow up “A Kick In the Seat of the Pants”. Using this deck to help me solve some creativity issues, led me to read his accompanying booklet and I discovered you can use this deck for divination too. LOL It wasn’t until I bought the “Answer Deck” at Barnes and Noble that fortune telling decks made a lot more sense to me. No need to learn loads of complex symbolism here. The meaning of the cards is quite self explanatory and you merely read them in relation to where they lay. Then when one of my colleagues mentioned she bought the new Madame Endora’s Fortune Telling deck, I was hooked. The artwork by Christine Filipak is vivid in detail! The colors are striking and easily catch the eye. The allure of this deck over the previous ones mentioned is that the colors and symbolism touch me thru my love of the ages gone past. The Answer Deck is a simplistic black/white/red color scheme with symbolism that is from modern times. This doesn’t touch the esoteric side of me as well as Madame Endora’s deck does. The cards are rich in detail and cover many things such as the four elements but also uses Egyptian and Celtic symbols. Yesterday I did a divination using it & the Four Winds Spread and got Fortune, Earth, Water, Hourglass and Sphynx. The Sphynx was in the East - place of what is to come - and the meaning of the Sphynx is “be cautious of your word choice”. Very appropriate in consideration to the question I used to get my reading. I just do not use the shuffling method they suggest in this deck. I prefer to shuffle several times and then speak my question out loud and while face down slide thru the cards until I reach one that is impelling me to pull it out from the deck and lay it still face down in the appropriate location of the spread. Sometimes I fan the cards out in a straight line all face down and then choose the cards while my hand hovers over certain spots while my mind focuses on my question. Once the cards are situated in the spread, then do I turn them over and read them. I have to give Madame Endora’s Forunte Cards a solid five out of five stars! They are awesome! You will love them. Get them from www.monolithgraphics.com and tell them Moloch sent you. ;) |
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Advancing the Witches’ Craft by Lord Foxglove Sick & tired of Wicca 101 crap being offered by mainstream publishers? Then order this book, read it, absorb it and DO THE WORK! I think you’ll like it as much as I did. As a side note, I have to admit, I’m not one for fluffy Wiccan titles and “Lord” Foxglove smacks of a fluffy bunny title for the author’s name. While I realize it’s not easy to come up with a metaphysical name, let alone a cool sounding one, nevertheless using the title of “Lord” is both pretentious and pompous. If nothing else, it causes me to think of everyone in the Society for Creative Anachronism who run around calling each other “Lord” or “Lady”. To bring that sort of pretentious thinking into the mainstream Neo-Pagan movement is both silly and tarnishes the Neo-Pagan image. Aside from that, I’m quite impressed with Foxglove’s work. First off, this is NOT your typical 101 Wiccan offering. Foxglove even says as much in the foreword where he eloquently points out what the book is not. Thus if you’re a beginner, hold off on reading this (for a while at least) until you have the basics of meditation down pat. One of the nice things about this book is that it doesn’t require the typical Wiccan tools or even a temple setting to work from. All you need is a strong set of empowered visualization skills & the desire to advance yourself. Foxglove has taken the initiative to create some meditations for the Intermediate level Wiccan to practice and master. The whole of his system centers around the “Shadow Self” which at first glance would cause your average fluff bunny to freak out thinking this is a “dark, left hand path” book. In fact, Foxglove discusses this on page 26 where he says: “So much emphasis has been placed upon the separation of these energies as ‘good’ or ‘evil’ that it has become second nature to view them as such. It is now up to you to erase the dogma that Hollywood, society, and the religions of jealous gods have forced down our throats where these energies are concerned. It is time to purge yourself of this deception once and for all. Lose their concept of these energies, realize your own concept, and the truth will stand naked before you.” Well said! It’s about time that a Pagan author with some stones stand up and speak the obvious. Balance requires an integration of both sides of polarity NOT just the positive/light/good/happy side of life. To do that psychologically sets one up with a false sense of security that all one has to do is either ignore - or worse - repress their dark side natures when in fact doing just that will cause far more bizarre ways for your dark side nature to emerge. Foxglove has done a fine job of creating guided meditations (included on the accompanying CD) to help the Intermediate level Wiccan to develop their inner world concept. The meditations are well written, concise and they lead one to the goal they’ve been written to accomplish. I took an evening prior to retiring for the night and put the CD into my portable player, laid down in a darkened room and went thru them while visualizing and feeling the emotions that each meditation evoked. The production quality of the CD exceeded my expectations. Foxglove’s voice is both even and well tempered for the listener as it blends well with the background music and tones. All in all, I highly recommend this book for all Metaphysical practitioners but it’s definitely a must-have for the Wiccan community especially when there are so many redundant Wicca 101 texts offered by the mainstream publishers. I give this book five out of five stars for completeness, production quality, information level and professionalism. |
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High Magic by Frater U. : D.: This text is a course book on the subject of Ritual Magic as given by a well known and well respected Chaos Magician. The focus of the book is definitely Chaos Magic with a minor mix of traditional Ceremonial Magic also known as “High Magic”. The material is presented in a unique style meaning instead of a traditional lesson format, it is presented by starting off with “Practical Sigil Magic (I)” then onto “Introduction to Ritual Magic (I)”, “Introduction to Ritual Magic (II)”, “Elemental Magic”, “Planetary Magic (I)”, and so on. Of course this seems to be an attempt at reconciling the traditional forms of Ritual Magic with some of the modern concepts & techniques of Chaos Magic. Okay so you’re wondering “Does this work?” Yes if you accept the combination of merging of both paradigms. However if you’re a fundamentalist who adheres to the “traditional” ways of either system, then of course you’re not going to satisfied. Chaos magicians will (most likely) not like the approach as many of them are content to stay on the cutting edge of exploratory Magic instead of regurgitating old material. Then again, I can’t say that for certain but rather it’s a feeling from the Chaote literature I’ve read over the years. Some things I didn’t care for such as the idea that a Magician has “25 Tools” as referenced on page 119. Such things as “The Headband”, “The Sandals”, “The Hat”, “The Phial”, “The Chain”, “The Mask”, and etc., just aren’t normally considered to be “magical tools” in any ordinary sense. Though my discontent stems from the fact I operate within my own Sorcery paradigm and use a minimum of tools while I also consider ANYTHING to be a tool capable of being used by a competent practitioner. Other parts of the book reminded me of an attempt to piece together a system such as what Don Kraig offered in his Modern Magick & what Don Tyson put forth in his The New Magus. In fact, put those two books together and sprinkle in some Chaos techniques and you have this book pretty well covered. Now the good Frater does shine when it comes to explaining theory. For instance on page 45, he advises the practitioner to adhere to some practical rules when formulating their “statement of intent” (the condensing of the rite’s purpose) by saying: “Outrageous goals that clearly surpass your own sphere influence. Although magic is much more powerful than you might think, it’s not omnipotent. Charging sigils for ‘world peace’ or ‘wiping out international terrorism’ is a sheer overestimation of your abilities. Of course you can always do things like this to satisfy (or pacify) your own conscience... I must concur with the wisdom offered here. Unfortunately I too have been a part of many groups who’ve taken it upon themselves to attempt to right all wrongs with Magic and usually those wrongs committed on a grand scale or worse those groups who wished for "world peace". Other highlights to the book include his essay on “Applied Paradigm Shifting” (beginning on page 71) which is a seldom explained technique of shifting beliefs from one belief structure to another or what the god Frater calls a “reality dance”. Another excellent explanation is the use of the “Death Posture” for charging sigils beginning on page 137 because this technique may be adapted into anyone’s Magical paradigm. Then when you get to page 237, you begin to learn a terrific empty hand technique called “The Magical Gaze”. While this technique is excellent to put forth in a book such as this, it is nothing knew. Rather U.: D.: has taken the liberty to introduce some theory and technique for an ages old practice for the reader’s benefit. Another aspect of this manual is the inclusion of a couple of well written essays on “Money Magic” and that is a subject much missing from modern Occult literature! My fondness for the book truly comes out in all of the practical exercises U.: D.: suggests the reader put themselves thru. There are no demands that the reader has to do these rather the exercises are there for those who’d enjoy trying their hand at bettering their grasp of the Occult realities of Magic. All in all, the manual is a good introduction for the newbie to high magic and yet offers some pretty good exercises that an intermediate level Initiate could make use of. It depends on whether you wish to learn something different from a Chaos perspective or not. If you’re stuck comfortably in a traditional framework, then skip this manual however if you’re open to something new, and aren’t interested in spending hours surfing the Net or joining Chaos newsgroupsa trying to decipher their chatter, this is a pretty good book to acquire. I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars. |
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Circles of Power by John Michael Greer Probably Greer's best work to date. I have to say I'm a fan of Greer's even though I have disliked a couple of his other works but this book should be read and studied by those who're interested in working ritual magic. I say should be because every ceremonial magical text is generally suggested to be obtained and read by the novice if you take a look at the average website on this topic. Sadly though many of those sites don't mention this book and I'm not sure why. The book is from a straightforward Golden Dawn approach to the Western Mystery Tradition & ritual magic. Oh I hear the groans now but let me say that the rites are pared down to their core and stripped of all that ballyhoo traditionally associated with the G.: D.: material! That alone is worth the time to read thru this manual. Also like Kraig's "Modern Magick", "Circles of Power" is intended to be a manual used by the solitary practitioner though it can be adapted easily enough for group workings. Is there anything in here that's not covered elsewhere? Not really and yet he does touch on some interesting aspects regarding the Telesmatic Imagery techniques usually only mentioned in other works. Also he does a nice job of explaining the rituals and why they're used instead of just saying "practice this three times a day for the next two years" and leave it at that. One of the best things about this book is the simple language the author uses to express his views and understanding of the subject which in most cases one has to really struggle at first to get the gist of. Not so here. For instance, on page 109 under the heading of "Contemplation" Greer writes: "The central factor in contemplation, and the only aspect of it that can be called a 'technique' at all, is bare intention." Nicely said. Now if you read Israel Regardie's book on the Golden Dawn, it's not written as simply as that. Why? The style evoked by Regardie - and sadly other ceremonial magical authors - is one of the snooty scholar. "Either keep up with me or give it up" tends to be their way of weeding out those who aren't worthy of the "many petaled lotus". For a novice student, Greer's simple language is a God-send. Had I had this book back in 1988 when I started my inquiries into Ritual Magic and G.: D.: material, I think I'd have made a lot more progress. One thing I wasn't happy about is the lack of detailed analysis of the Sephiroth's correspondences. For instance there's no mention of the scents listed for each sephira. So if you had only this book at your disposal, you wouldn't know that tobacco is the traditional scent used for the sephira of Geburah. I have to wonder if the author's intention was to use this book in conjunction with say Regardie's "Golden Dawn" manual. Another oddity offered in the book is the line drawing of the magical sword. On page 206 a trident is shown but it is referred to as a sword. Why I haven't a clue. Perhaps the company made an error in line drawings, I don't know. The trident is normally used in ritual magic and is rarely mentioned outside of the Solomonic grimoires so its inclusion here leaves a mystery to be answered by the author. In the chapter about Evocation under the heading of "Dealing With Spirits", the author provides some excellent advice on dealing with the Spirits. Pages 243-247 should be read several times before the novice runs off casting his circle of power to summon the Spirits of Riches and Wealth. Mind you Greer does not give you duck billed platitudes on ethics unlike some of the other authors on this subject, rather he gives you some good, solid, clear ideas to think about regarding dealing with the Spirits themselves. Finally I give him five stars on this effort. This is a subject that is very difficult to digest into one simplified work as this but Greer has made some strides doing so. I highly recommend this book to all who're interested in the subjects of Ritual Magic, Evocation or the Golden Dawn. |
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Earth Divination Earth Magic: A Practical Guide to Geomancy by John Michael Greer Since I'm both a fan of Greer and of Geomancy, I have to say I really enjoyed this book. For most of you not in the know, Geomancy is a form of divination that came from the Arabic countries and was first talked about in Peter de Abano's "Heptameron" which is often attributed to Henry Cornelius Agrippa who compiled the mammoth work "Three Books of Occult Philosophy". Geomancy is related to the "Earth". It was traditionally used by drawing a box in the sand or loosely tilled soil with a stick. Then the diviner would focus on the question and make random stabs with the stick inside the box. Depending on if the total stabs was an even or odd number, a Geomantic figure was being created using a series of four lines of dots. And this same procedure would continue fifteen more times until a total of sixteen rows of dots had been tallied. If you think THAT's tough, then the manner in which the Geromantic characters are made will baffle you. The first sixteen lines were split into groups of four and thus you had the Four Mothers. Then you took the top line of dots of each Mother in order & from that you get the Four Daughters. Then you add the Daughters to get the Nephews. (Still with me?) THEN you add the Nephews to get the Right and Left Witnesses. Finally you add the Witnesses together and you got the Judge. Actually once you've created the dots and all the figures two or three different times, it becomes rather simple to remember how. Complicated? Yes. Easy to do? Yes with repetition. The tricky part is how you apply the Geomantic figures to the Medieval Astrology chart. This is a square chart where you take each figure and place it according to the outline in the book. This is standard procedure and it too becomes rather easy after five or six times of making a chart. Now you might ask, "Well if the Judge is the final outcome, why go to the bother of putting the figures in specific houses of the chart?" Because thru the use of Astrology and it's Aspects (squars, conunctions, oppositions, trines, sextiles, etc.) you can gain a LOT of useful information about the question and questioner that you may otherwise overlook. Actually Geomancy is a LOT easier to use and learn than the standard 78 Tarot cards! There's only sixteen standard Geomantic figures too. Plus the fact Geomancy is related to one particular element and all it governs: Earth. This includes careers, employment, physical health, home, love, real estate & land holdings, wealth, money, jewels, fame and fortune, etc. These areas are governed by the Gnomes of whom Ghob is the Elemental King. So why haven't people made more use of this system? Well the complexity for one thing. It's quite daunting at first but if you persevere, you'll see it's quite easily used. Unfortunately however this form of divination does take time to perform thus it does not lend itself so easily for those who'd like to use it at a Psychic Fair. Greer offers some tips on making the castings quicker but he really shines when he shows you how to construct a box with a lid to put in sand or loose crumbled dirt for your divination. Plus he offers you some excellent ideas for using Geomancy together with Magical workings. I've read almost all of the books dealing with Geomancy over the years and I have to give credit to Greer for making this book easily readable and quite usable. I rate this book five stars on a five star scale for it's treatment of a particularly confusing subject and the versatility of the subject matter for other things aside from divination. It does include a pretty decent bibliography as well as a handy index which is always helpful. |
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Inside A Magical Lodge: Group Ritual in the Western Tradition by John Michael Greer Finally a decent book on forming a group in a modern, esoteric, manner. Prior to this book, there hasn't been much on the structuring of a formal magical lodge/order outside of a few Wiccan Circle types of books. The closest I've come across is the late William G. Gray's "Inner Temple Magic" and that had more to do with WHAT to do while in a magical order than it did about forming one. Part of the problem with such books is that little is offered as guidance on dealing with the people within such a group. The group dynamics is usually overlooked so the seeker looking to gain some knowledge running a group and not just forming one is often left to his/her own devices on dealing with people. This makes for a blind leading the blind type of situation - at least emotionally - and usually what occurs is that the rest of the group is leaderless. In the Satanic oriented groups, the leader is often encouraged to lead with an "iron fist" or "it's MY way or the highway" as pointed out by Rev. Yaj Nomolos in his book "The Magic Circle". Whereas in the Ritual & Ceremonial Magical traditions, the heavy handedness is not always conducive to a smooth running operation. Fortunately this book offers some simplistic thoughts on dealing with people within the lodge and mainly that is covered in Chapter 2. What this book does offer is pretty solid material on WHY one should want to formulate a lodge and WHAT kind of structure the group should have. The book starts out with pretty basic historical information on who the Freemasons were and why they came to be. This was based on the Medeival Guilds that were formed around trades and craftsmen. What follows next is the jump from the Freemasons to the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and it's not like we haven't heard of that particular order before. Greer also points out the foundation of what a Magical Lodge really is and offers to the interested party: structure, symbolism, magic and secrecy. In chatper 2, he nails it on the head when he writes "A magical lodge can take many forms and be many things. If it's going to function at all, though, there's at least one thing it has to be: a group of people who are able to put together the resources of space, time, and material needed for the lodge's work and who can do so with a minimum of bickering, confusion, and hurt feelings....A group that can't manage at least this much isn't going to likely to last long or get far." This fact has caused many lodges (and covens) to peter out long before they really could begin all over this very fact. When we get thru the next three chapters on each of the foundations of symbolism, magic and secrecy, Greer has done a pretty decent job of offering more than mere platitudes in which to live by. He has explored very real concepts such as the group's egregore which helps to keep the nucleus of the group together. Then he tackles initiation and why this should be an important step to getting into a lodge. Finally he discusses the practical uses of secrecy and how this can benefit the group's continued focus as it progresses along. The next part of the book covers the forming of a magical lodge. Greer uses a mythical group of personalities who opt to form their own lodge using alchemy as a framework. This is a useful teaching method and it allows Greer to give a better explanation of the various intricacies of sorting thru the mess of trying to form a core lodge group. He calls this group "The Order of the Athanor" and as we follow the formation of this group, we see some of the pitfalls and highpoints of forming and operating this group. One of the pitfalls of lodges has always been the monetary dues contributions from its members. This is a sore point for many would-be lodge members because of their current financial situation which most deem financially strapped. Unfortunately, unless one has an ideal temple in their home, it takes the combined efforts of an entire group contributing money to rent a hall big enough to support a group. For example, if say you or I were to invest in building a comfortable working space such as an insulated and climate controlled pole barn, there is not only the initial cost of such a building and land to worry about but also the ongoing day-to-day maintenance to deal with. Utilities and upkeep usually are a drain on one person and without the group kicking in some sort of monetary support, the person in question will more than likely come to resent the fact that she or he has to foot the bill. And if one tries to keep meetings in their home, the same sort of thing eventually happens. Greer also discusses some of the more esoteric rites that are available outside of just initiation and one of them is the working of Invisibility. This subject has been covered in Greer's prior work "Circles of Power". He takes this subject and lucidly explains the concept and how to do it sort of approach that many aspiring magicians drool to be able to accomplish. All in all, this book is highly recommended with five stars because the author has chosen to tackle a very neglected subject and offers some very practical advice on forming a group. So much so that even Wiccans wishing to form a coven would be well to research from this book. |
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Natural Magic; Potions and Powers from the Magical Garden by John Michael Greer Over the years, I've run into Hermetic Magicians, Ceremonial Magicians, Enochian practitioners and etc., all of whom have told me that they wish they had a modern compendium of herbal lore and data to use for their practices. The result had been to resort to "low magic" traditions such as Wicca or Santeria to obtain valid herbal lore and techniques. Truth be known, the answers they often sought were found available in their own backyard. The idea of "Natural Philosophy" as discussed by the Medieval magicians and philosophers has often been overlooked by modern magicians due to the idea that much superstition was underlying that magical paradigm. Truth be told, much of "magic" had its origins in superstition and it is amazing how later that modern science has confirmed many old superstitions to have some validity. Natural Philosophy is Natural Magic or the understanding of the physical world and how it relates to the universe thru various means such as the law of sympathy. Greer has done an "ok" job. While his book is not "in-depth" or encyclopedic, still it is a source that the modern magician can reference. Sadly the drawings of the plants themselves are little more than mere illustrations or line drawings which are hardly enough for one to take with them out in the wilds and choose the exact herb, stem or root alone. In Medieval times, a student may take a nature walk with his teacher and be shown first hand the flora and fauna thus the line drawings would then serve only as a reminder of the shape of the plant. Today however, a nature guide or botanist is almost needed for someone to find the plant in the wild. Preferred would be color photos of the herb as it is growing wild in its natural environment. After all, this is the age of Kodak. The herbs are indexed alphabetically and that is helpful in itself. A cross reference index to the Latin names of the plants would be helpful as well. The Tables of Correspondence are very helpful in that they can help when one is looking for like attributes in different plants. He does give some folklore usually from European sources and none from other traditions such as Latin-American ones. The dire warnings about Part 3, the Natural Magic Workbook is better in that it does give one a small dose of "how to use" the plants in magical workings. This is illustrated thru sachets, dream pillows, amulets and the like. Greer also gives due credit (a rare thing these days from book authors) to Franz Bardon, author of _Initiation Into Hermetics_, on how to make Fluid Condensers which are magical elixirs involving the use of gold tincture. Finally the book ends with discussions on gardening whether you live in the country or city and a "brief" discussion on Alchemy. In fact, if he's so inclined, Greer should consider a second book to expand on what he's presented as Natural Philosophy and Alchemy to take the material further. I also would have liked to read some of his own personal anecdotes mixed in with the book. This is a trait that many Llewellyn authors seem to share. They show up and throw up information all over you without conversationally explaining how they used such material in their own lives and how it turned out. But books that try to be "textbooks" are often lacking in that aspect. Too bad the textbook approach by such authors really isn't much of a textbook, rather a mere overview. Unfortunately, this book doesn't fill in the gaps for a greater understanding of Natural Philosophy like Greer did for Golden Dawn style ceremonial magic with his previous book, _Circles of Power_. |
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Witchcraft: A Mystery Tradition by Raven Grimassi Few books on the subject of Witchcraft come along that I'm willing to doff my hat too mainly because so many are pedantic in their offering. This book is not one of those pedantic offerings but rather a well written and useful theory books that is so lacking in the Wiccan community. This is not a cookbook or "how-to" manual. What it is makes it all the more desirable for the budding and mid-level Wiccan practitioner to want to own and study. One of the things I have to give Grimassi is his due on covering the balance of the Wiccan cosmology. Most Wiccan books tend to focus solely on the divine feminine aspects and the chief reason for this is that many of the authors of Wiccan books are feminists. Thus the divine aspect of the male is either ignored (usually) OR relegated to little more than a masculine "escort" companion. The chapter on the "Witches God" I found useful and entertaining. For instance, I chuckled at the thought of the looks of horror on the faces of so many fluffy bunnies when they see the inverted pentagram in the pages of a Llewellyn book on the Craft! Actually Grimassi uses the symbol merely to point out the idea of the look of Hercules' ritual death position which according to Grimassi was inverted. When we get into Chapter Five, "Exploring the Inner Mysteries", Grimassi offers up front a skull and crossbones and how it symbolizes the "guardianship and power over the realm of death". At last, a Wiccan book that doesn't eschew the mysteries of Death! Sadly this is an aspect that is so lacking in modern Wiccan literature but is NOT neglected in Wicca's cousin the religion of Vodu where a Lord of Death is given His respect and dignity at every ceremony. Next the author takes us thru standing stones and sacred groves or that which we need to find peace in our workings. The idea that the stones retained all which they witnessed and that groves of trees harbored the Spirits of the Gods themselves. (Another concept that is found in other cultures.) Two other subjects covered by Grimassi are that of Summerland and Reincarnation both of which are not covered in any real depth but at least he makes an attempt to help the reader delve more into the concepts of each instead of just paying lip service to the notion as so many other Wiccan authors tend to do. The next two chapters were reminiscent of Stewart Farrar's "Eight Sabbats For Witches" as Grimassi tries to offer more than an overview of each sabbat and the meaning behind its importance. Not since Stew Farrar has this subject been dealt with in any real depth and due to the lack of written evidence on neo-Celtic sources, this does not help make it any easier for Grimassi to explain the spiritual significance underlying each one. I for one would like to see Raven take his time and research this area of Wiccan lore more in depth perhaps even with a book devoted solely to the spokes of the year. The rest of the book delves into other areas that are worthy of study for the Wiccan. One of the interesting things about Grimassi is that while I don't consider him a scholar in his research, I do consider him to be a valid reconstructionist. Why? Because some of his theories & conclusions just do not convince me when he points to historical evidence (sic). Too much of this material is skewed by minimal accounts and smacks of way too much personal interpretation. The bibliography is not full of other Llewellyn books and thus lends more credibility to Grimassi as a researcher for this work. This in itself is a refreshing break from your typical Llewellyn offering. One sore point though is in the section on "The View from Colleges and Cauldrons" where Grimassi quotes from one of $ilver Ravenwolf's books and he was doing so well up to that point! In my advanced, un-edited copy, there was no index so I'm not sure if the finalized version does indeed have an index. All in all I rate this book four stars and recommend it to anyone who wants to get a valuable overview of the mystery aspects of the Craft of the Witch. |
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The Wiccan Mysteries by Raven Grimassi Lest anyone thing I’m always hard on Wiccan books, here is a real gem! I was truly delighted to see this compilation of the Mysteries of the Craft laid out under one cover in a very lucid and respectable manner. If you don’t have this in your collection, go and obtain a copy. If I had to choose only THREE Wiccan books (thus far produced) that I would want to own, I would have to say “What Witches Do” by Stew Farrar is one; Dorene Valiente’s “Witchcraft For Tomorrow” is the second; and finally THIS book by Raven Grimassi as the third and final choice. Mr. Grimassi does a fine job of culling the various Mysteries of the Craft beginning with the Roots of Witchcraft and the Principles and Beliefs. Here he tackles what are the core beliefs and roots of modern day Witchcraft. Redundant perhaps for some but to not include it in such a theoretical text would be inexcusable. While I found the “Sacred Wiccan Texts” to be something of a misnomer since much of the Craft was/is oral, still his rendition of the core elements such as the Charge of the Goddess from Farrar, to the Witch’s Creed as put forth by Valiente to the Invocation of the Horned God by Sheba. Each ends with Grimassi’s commentary which he offers to help Newbies and Initiates alike make better understanding for use later. The Wiccan Deities chaptere was well done and here again is the first time I bumped into how he shows the differences between the Stag-Horned God, the Bull-Horned God and the Goat-Horned God. This I had heard from various sources but never before pictured artistically and since I’m quite visually oriented, this definitely made an impact on me. The book also covers such subjects as Planes of Existence, Wiccan Rites, Magical Arts, the Celts and Their Mysteries. Women’s & Men’s Mysteries all the way to Living the Mysteries. Whole books could be written about each subject in great depth however for the sake of brevity, I felt that Mr. Grimassi did a splendid job glossing over each in only a few paragraphs each. Enogh to whet the young Witch’s appetite for me I’d speculate. I was both schocked and surprised by Llewellyn spending the money to put in an index to this manual. That is something that ALL Llewellyn books sorely need. I found the index to be useful especially at times when referring to a previous subject while reading thru the manual. The bibliography is moot as it holds the redundant Wiccan authors that appear in almost all Llewellyn books on the subject. All in all, I found the fourteen dollars and ninety-five cent price tag to be a bit much but the publisher seems to think spending fiften dollars for a book nothing. Well for this one it’s palatable. Why? Because if you wanted to do nothing but study the Greater and Lesser Mysteries of the Craft, you’d have to buy a ton of books to get what’s been compiled and offered in this book. I rate this manual a solid 5 out of 5 stars. Add this one to your collection. |
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Light from the Shadows: A Mythos of Modern Traditional Witchcraft by Gwyn This is one of the better books on Witchcraft I've had the pleasure of reading in some time. Fully footnoted and annotated it also offers a comprehensive bibliography that draws on non-standard authors - which is rare in the publishing world of Wicca. There is much meat and potatoes in this book although if you're looking for a how-to-do-it approach, you'll have to look elsewhere. GWYN's approach is more of informational and background material much of which covers how traditional Craft workers do things in merry old England. Some of the sources GWYN draws from include authors of articles found in past issues of Mike Howard's English magazine, The Cauldron. Still the sources are both eminent and scholarly and she (I'm presuming GWYN is a 'she' - the book does NOT offer anything about the author's background) uses them to validate her points. One of the best chapters is the 12th which is on "Making Traditional Magick". (Interestingly enough, for a traditionalist, she hops onto the modern bandwagon of spelling Magic with a "k" which is just irritating to the rest of us who use the traditional spelling) In this chapter, GWYN discusses a wide variety of folk practices including one of the most abhorred by modern Wiccans, Necromancy. An interesting note from chapter 12 is that there allegedly was a magazine published in 1791 called "The Conjurer's Magazine" and it had articles on ceremonial magic, astrology and alchemy. Now this would be an interesting find to come across in our modern day if one could discover an issue or more of such an old magazine. GWYN also mentions the home-grown grimoires with titles like "The Devil's Plantation", 'The Secret Granary" and "The Book of Cain" all of which would be hunted by modern practitioners. These grimoires according to GWYN were books owned by "cunning folk" who were mainly country practitioners like modern rural Witches and southern Hoodoo Conjurers. In other chapters, GWYN pulls in a LOT of information on the more traditional aspects and roles of the Goddess, the Horned God, the Crossroads and it's functions in the Craft PLUS she even goes so far as to mention what types of tools are used and how they differ from the more Americanized Wiccan traditions. I have to give this book four stars and would've given it five stars had it offered a background on the author. |
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Exploring Scrying: How to Divine the Future and Make the Most of It by Ambrose Hawk I have had the pleasure of knowing and conversing (thru E-mails) with Ambrose Hawk for a few years now. He is a member of my own online discussion group as well as a continued contributor to the online site, A Mystical Grove. This is a little book with a good solid message. It’s about helping you to open your creativity thru the use of an old technique called Scrying. In case you’re wondering Scrying is another term used by the Occult community for “seeing that which is yet unknown” usually thru a device of some sort such as a pool of ink, a mirror or crystal to name a few. The book is chock full of ideas, tips, & hints to help you facilitate a better understanding of what Scrying is and how to use it. While not only helping you discover the future, Scrying also goes to help you learn to focus your mind. This alone is worth the time and effort it takes to learn to Scry. Another important aspect that is often overlooked on this very subject is the use of Scrying to help one become more creative. For instance, take a problem or challenging situation you’re facing and focus your mind onto your speculum with the problem right there in front of you. Let it sit there and allow your mind a free rangeof possible alternatives. You will be surprised at what will pop up! Some of the ideas may not be useful to you at all however, many will be OR can be adapted to be useful! One of the best chapters in here is Chapter 6 which is about choosing your Speculum – the device used to Scry with. Ambrose discusses the various potentials using the traditional crystal ball and whether you should or not opt for glass or real crystal. He also discusses the pros and cons of a dark surfaced mirror. Then you get him later discussing using wine in a bowl as a speculum. He goes on to give you some of hs own lessons in exercises and how ritual interacts with the Scrying art. Plus he shares with you some subtle things like what you may see but is careful not to plant ideas in your head which is precisely the thing you DON’T want. Rather Ambrose allows you to make up your own mind. All in all, I found the book to be useful and insightful. It had an index and biblilography and even had a short bio about the author at the very end. The book doesn’t have any redundant material other than maybe basic relaxation exercises but for the most part, it’s a complete and fairly tight book on the subject. At only twelve dollars and ninety-nine cents, I felt it rated 5 out of 5 stars of a book on this particular subject. It held my attention and offered much in the way of practical applicatons. Get this one and add it to your collection but most of all, study it and DO the work! |
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Spellcaster: Seven Ways to Effective Magic -- Edited by Elen Hawke & Martin White Originally I was excited about having the opportunity to read and review the advanced copy of this book. My reason is that it is a collection of essays by seven authors called The Spellweaver Collective and these include Martin Duffy, Anna Franklin, Elen Hawke, Poppy Palin, Morgana SidheRaven, Martin White and Leah Whitehorse. No one I had ever heard of prior to this book so in my revelry I figured no names mean some new thinking. *sigh* Sorry to say my exuberance was soon abated. Chapter 1 by Leah Whitehorse entitled Song of the Star is pretty much your standard old introductary material and viewpoints. She did capture my attention on pp. 18-19 where she puts the shoe on your foot by asking you a series of questions to get you to think about what it is you want in a lover or material security - two things we all want in our lives. Where she left me cold was on page 19 when she said: "The first step to the working of a spell is not defining the spell; it is the decision itself whether to work magically. Actual spells are a last resort." Excuse me? What is the point of bothering to learn to cast spells if they are, in fact, the last thing you're to do? Whitehorse seems to be coming from that New Age Mentality of "Karma" whereby you must not exercise your will on the Universe since you may "interefere" with the life path of another. Baloney! Then Ms. Whitehorse herself is unethical in her intention to draw buyers of this book in the hopes they can better their lives with spells to only to tell them "Uh-uh-uh! You better be careful because you may interefere with another's will!" The whole of Magic IS interference! A spell or ritual is intended to agitate the ether and move forces to help YOU the spellcaster gain what it is you truly desire! Then on page 20, we see where Ms. Whitehorse says: "Forcing my will also assumes that I have no trust in the greater pattern..." Hunh? Sorry but this smacks of the religious dogma from the Christian belief to 'trust in Jesus, He will provide!' If she's buying into that, then obviously her metaphysical concpt is far more skewed than I want mine to be! Sorry but I don't trust the "greater pattern" as life has shown me to be full of "unknown X factors" in the form of hindrances, walls, blockages, crossed conditions and the like. These I prefer to remove so I can walk my way thru life with little hindering my way. From Ms. Whitehorse's way of thinking, one has to consider ALL possible alternatives first, take action to try them all to see which ones actually work and THEN if nothing comes of it, try weaving a spell! Not only is this a daunting task to the advanced practitioner (let alone a novice!) but with considering ALL possible alternatives and trying them all, you're likely to not need to do any Magic to begin with. So then dispense with the Occult altogether and move on into Goal Setting and Humanistic Psychology in lieu of Magic. If this isn't bad enough, Ms. Anna Franklin continues on with this nonsense in Chapter 5 The Eightfold Ways of Magic where she gives you this massive guilt trip over the desire to have a designer coat. She wails: "Can you estimate all those possible future lives and destinies that will never be fulfilled, and all those children who will never be born, and all because you stirred the forces of the universe to get yourself a designer coat? Still not guilty? You might be responsible for the deaths of more poeple than Hitler, but it doesn't count if it was only by magic does it?" What???!! This is a highly outrageous and absurd lamentation that this woman has put forth! I'm sorry but I do not consider her a Witch in ANY sense of the word as she is too scared to put any portion of her power to use. I wonder if she has any guilt trip over the bugs that die when her automobile kills them as she cruises down the road? Or the countless lives she sacrifices each time she showers? What about the bacteria that is killed off by her body's defenses? Absurd? No more so than her Hitler assertion. Sadly every chapter has the token "Karma" duck-billed platitude by these self-appointed "Spellweavers". You can waste your money on this horrid little tome and feel guitly if you wish but I for one am extremely pleased I will NOT have this ridiculous collection of worthless essays taking up valuable shelf space in my private library! On page 152, Ms. Frankli |
