Recommended Reading List

[PurpleDragonsGems]

ok..need some help....i got a bunch of books for Christmas..i was just wondering if any one had anything to say about them:


Your Book of Shadows: How to write your own magickal spells by Patricia Telesco (this one raises a red flag because of the way she spelled magic)

The Book of Ceremonial Magic by Arthur Edward Waite

Green Witchcraft: Folk Magic, Fairy Lore & Herb Craft by Ann Moura(Aoumiel)

Handfasting and Wedding Rituals by Raven Kaldera & Tannin Schwartzstein

The Encyclopedia of Magic and Witchcraft: An illustated historical reference to spiritual worlds by Susand Greenwood (this book is REALLY good so far. it has everything from Christian magic to Satianism. it also has a section on Gerald Gardner, Doreen Valiente, Alex Sanders, Raymond Buckland and the witch hunts from many different countries. )  

[Gingerbread . Coffin]

Books I'd Recommend:

Paganism by Joyce & River Higginbotham

I've never seen the book at Barnes and Nobel, but, at my local library (which was sorta surprising o_O). The book is a very nice introduction to Paganism and doesn't lean toward one tradition too much.

It's like seeing the forest AND the trees. They describe a lot of Pagan practices and a lot of Pagan traditions, without being long-winded and without forgetting the important stuff. A VERY good first book. I really do recommend it. 3nodding

Earth Path by Starhawk

This book isn't heavy into any tradition, although it does have a minimal amount of spells or example meditation exercizes to explore, but, it calls for more than just awareness on the bad shape the earth is in. She shares a lot of personal experiences, which can be easily related to your own life. The chapters are, more or less, to the point.

What I really like about this book is that she delves into the elements in a different way than Earth is North, Water is West, what elementals to invoke or archangels. Her chapters on the elements are relating aspects of the elements to "the real world" -- for example, the chapter on Earth, is about the cycle of life (more or less), composting, plant communities, plant guilds, and the chapter on Air is about the weather, and listening.

I think it's a good book, even if you're NOT pagan. The spells are few and far between, and are generally no longer than the above paragraph, so they can be easily skipped over or read for curiosities sake.  

[Gideon Starorzewski]

Condensed Chaos by Phil Hine This is the book that got me into Chaos Magic. It's a light hearted and well written overview of Chaos Magic and how to apply it to your life, although it doesn't offer alot of information on how to go about doing alot of the things covered.

The Book of Thoth by Aleister Crowley I'm actually surprised that no one has suggested anything by Crowley yet. His writing style takes some getting used to, but once you know how to recognize when he's being sarcastic it can be very enjoyable. I'm not sure I can effectively put into words my thoughts on the book yet, but if you ever plan on using his tarot deck or if you have an interest in the Hermetic paradigm, I strongly suggest reading it.

Spellcaster edited by Elen Hawke and Martin White This book is a collection of essays about the fundamentals of magic and the ethical questions involved. It's mostly of use to Wiccans, but any magician could take awaly a great deal from it, if only the philosophical and not the practical.

Learning Ritual Magic by Greer, Vaughn, and King. An excellent and practical introduction to Hermetic magic that takes the form of an eight week training course ending at self initiation.

The Book of Lies edited by Richard Metzger Another collection of essays, this one ranging from Grant Morrison's empowering and quirky essay on becoming a magician and using "Pop Magic", to an exerpt from Phil Hine's "Condensed Chaos" on initiation and shamanism, and an introduction to Aleister Crowley. The book is mostly dedicated to the subversive side of the occult and would mostly be of interest to Chaos Magicians and Satanists.  

[Lotus Poem]

For either the black or grey lists what about the Frosts? A Good Witches Bible is pretty awful but a lot still cite it as a good starting point. and it's quite controversial.  

[Pelta]

Don't know if it was mentioned yet, but Migane Gonzalez-Wippler's Complete Book of Amulets and Talismans is a wealth of information and useful items from all around the world. It's one of the most useful reference books i own for symbolism.
Recommended novels include the Terry Pratchett discworld series. Besides being fantastic fiction and absolutely hilarious in places, some things he got eeriely accurate...  

[Saint Judas Iscariot]

Someone already mentioned the Book of Thoth, but I think that most everything by Aleister Crowley should be required reading. If you are only going to read read one book by Crowley, either read The Book of the Law, of the Holy Texts of Thelema.  

[Nashoba Kaga]

Oh I love the book of handfastings and wedding rituals, they have the nicest polygamous handfastings. You also check out their book urban magick. Very interesting and funny.  

[Indefinitive]

My mother got me a book not long ago called "Wiccan Beliefs and Practices" by Gary Cantrell, which I've seen some really good reviews for. I myself have found it to be a very useful reference. I highly recommend it.  

[dark_reki]

I personally would recommend ANY book by Glennie Kindred. All her books, very celtic based, are beautifully written and they have a wonderful feel about them.

Books By Glennie Kindred at Amazon.co.uk

Blessings

Cerri x  

[godhi]

If you're going to study The Golden Bough by James Frazer, make sure that it is the unabridged edition.
The original edition was published in 1901 in twelve massive volumes plus index, but was edited down to a single volume some years later.
Unfortunately, the edited edition was forced to sacrifice so much information that the book is almost useless.
The unabridged edition can be found at some of the larger public libraries as well as at university libraries, and contains an impressive amount of information regarding the religion, folklore, and beliefs of Pagan Europe as well as many other parts of the world.
I should note that I was fortunate enough to find the unabridged edition at the Pasadena Public Library, so if you live in the Los Angeles area, check it out!  

[wiccan_guy]

well, correct me if im wrong but i havent seen anyone mention "The complete book of witchcraft" by Raymond buckland  

[Kal Eldritch]

wiccan_guy

well, correct me if im wrong but i havent seen anyone mention "The complete book of witchcraft" by Raymond buckland

I believe somewhere on the list she recomends anything by Raymond Buckland, although it should be read with a grain of salt.

As for The Magus, Francis seems largely to have plagiarized from Aggripa's Books of Occult Philosophy, The Magical Elements, and the Fourth Book of Occult Philosophy. What's worse is that he leaves his sources unaccredited, which is a big no-no for me. Aggripa's Books are probably a better candidate for reading matterial.

@Dragon_Witch_Woman: From what i've heard, Ceremonial Magick is a fantastic book. at whywiccasucks.com, the author recommends it as a first read. I've flipped through it a couple of times, but was never really able to read any of it. Needless to say, it was chalk full of graphical representations of the reading material.  

[PurpleDragonsGems]

Sovereign of Darkness

@Dragon_Witch_Woman: From what i've heard, Ceremonial Magick is a fantastic book. at whywiccasucks.com, the author recommends it as a first read. I've flipped through it a couple of times, but was never really able to read any of it. Needless to say, it was chalk full of graphical representations of the reading material.

Thank you.  

[Artemis Wolfkin]

Has anyone read anything by Christopher Penczak? A friend just gave me one of his books, and I'm looking for opinions.  

[Aesi]

"Learning Ritual Magic" by John Michael Greer, Claire Vaughn, and Earl King Jr.

This book is an outstanding introduction to meditation, a discipline sorely lacking in most magical educations currently. It is extremely thorough and not a mere technical manual, but offers valuable theory and analogies, and Hebrew translation notes.

When the authors describe the Qabalistic Cross, they define the Hebrew terms and give a good explanation of how to vibrate special words.