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Bookviews Book Reviews |
4-15-2005 |
Romantic Guide to Handfasting: Rituals, Recipes & Lore by Anna Franklin |
The idea of this book is to offer a planning guide for anyone looking at having a pagan handfasting ritual. The author has laid out the basic components of putting together a modern handfasting with all the romantic trimmings. There is a lot here on tradition and background. The opening of the book gives a good basic overview of handfastings and their historical background. Also further along in the book the author covers are some wedding traditions from various countries. The author includes a kind of “checklist” for organizing your event. Tips include budgeting, members of the wedding party, family and friends and writing your own commitment. The ritual part contains two basic rituals, one being pagan, or very general, and the other being “Wiccan” or path specific. The idea is that you take the basics and embellish it to suit your own spiritual or ritualistic needs. Further along in the book there are blessings, poems, and other ideas for these embellishments. Ms. Franklin has even included a “hand parting” ritual. The balance of the book contains the “embellishments” to add to your handfasting. Covered are various Gods and Goddesses that you may want to include in your ritual along with some background on those discussed. There is also a chapter on picking a date in accordance with phases of the moon, time of day, particular holiday, and specific month or day. There are “themes” presented for your celebration. Everything from “simple pagan” or “formal Wiccan” to Viking, Roman or culturally based wedding traditions, these basics will give you something to think about and possibly consider adding to your celebration. There are correspondence tables for woods for brooms, if you are going to include this in your handfasting. There are color correspondences for dresses and clothing, discussion on cords, the veil, rings and a correspondence table for gemstones. There is even a “Victorian Language of the Flowers” list. And of course, there is magical plant lore and some basics on wreaths, bouquets, and incense and oils. The author includes a section on recipes for cakes and goodies you may want to have at your reception. All include ingredients that have some romantic or magical correspondence. There are some more complex recipes for wines, wine blends and mead which will require varying degrees of skill. And there is a section on spells and charms; little workings to assure a successful handfasting and future for the bride and groom. There are samples of handfasting certificates, invitations
and some appendices on anniversary gifts and some “Useful Addresses” most of
which are in the The romance indicated in the title is provided by the bride and groom as they leaf through the guide and choose those things that will represent their lives together and prepare a ceremony that will provide meaning to them specifically. The romantic materials are in the handbook for them to reference. The history and background section is a very good explanation of what a handfasting is all about and where it originated. This can be helpful to the couple when they explain to their family and friends why they are choosing this type of wedding ceremony. This book is more about making the preparations for a handfasting than about the ritual itself. This is a guide, a resource for the bride and groom to use for planning the extra touches for their special day. Its focus is pagan and Wiccan handfastings, and it does offer many basic ideas which can be built upon by a couple who know what they want and just need something to walk them through the process. The basics are here. The book allows for you to pick and choose from some very extensive tables of extras that can make your handfasting both magical and romantic. This book is a good choice for couples looking for a handfasting resource. Reviewed by Boudica |
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The idea of this book is to provide the reader with points of meditation and inspiration based on the seasons of the year and Celtic sources. The author takes the viewpoint that the Celts lived in harmony with the seasons and the cycles of the year and uses literature and writings to provide brief vignettes for the reader to focus on. This book is a lovely presentation. A small, hard covered book, the dust jacket is a colorful Celtic knot work, but if you remove the dust jacket, the hard cover is embossed with the title and more Celtic knot work. Each page is graced with a Celtic knot “watermark” in light grey that is not distracting but repeats the Celtic theme on every page. A very lovely presentation overall. The book is pocket sized, making it easy to take along. And the meditation pieces mostly cover one page, sometimes two at most. This allows for brief meditations if the time is limited, say at lunch time or early morning. The mediations are mostly derived from myths and legends of the Celtic people. The author is well qualified in this area, as she is a Celtic scholar with several books published on this topic, founding member of a theater group specializing in presentations of Celtic myths, and an accomplished harpist who has a number of recording of Celtic music to her name. Some of the material may have a lead-in to the meditative passages. Shapeshifting, for example, is basically outlined, and then a poem on shapeshifting is offered for meditation. I found this to be a nice addition to the material. The meditations are grouped according to their content, focusing on the four seasons. As the Celts were very seasonally focused in their practices, the material presented is well placed for the associations. Each section is introduced with some background, a basic overview of the holidays associated with the season, and some facts that explain why some material is included in the section. Material is taken from a variety of sources, and while some are easily recognized, others will be new to you and are just as delightful. From the story of Finn mac Cumhail to poetry that the author reworked from some ancient Celtic poems, the material presented is varied and does offer points for meditative contemplation and some personal soul searching. There are meditations on some plights of various heroes and heroines, Celtic symbols, various Deities of the Celts and their stories and deeds, stories of the fairies, seasonal holidays and some delightful short poems. An example, which I found very appropriate for its ability to invoke meditation on several levels, comes from the “Autumn” section: “After the delight of summer A beautiful passage, and very much one to invoke much contemplation, not only about the season, but also on life itself. The conclusions you draw on this material will be your own. The author does not suggest any kind of “right or wrong” material, but merely provides the food for the thoughts you will come to on your own. This is a book to draw your own thoughts about, and maybe reflect on in your own personal life. This is a lovely work, and if you are drawn to the Celtic traditions, and find meditation a part of your life, this book will provide some material that will compliment your life style. If you are curious about Celtic literary works, or just want a book of some interesting material for occasional reading, again, this book can provide a good starting point to your reading. I very much recommend this title for your library. Reviewed by Boudica |
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David Rankine has been practicing magick for 25 years. His book Magick Without Peers was the handbook for his correspondence course on Progressive Witchcraft, a hands on primer. This book continues in the same vein, giving you some further study in some material that Mr. Rankine has developed over and above conventional practices. This book assumes you have some grounding in basic magical practices. It would be a good to have some idea of what the Hebrew alphabet has to do with the Qabalah, and how it works with gematria, or better yet, have an idea of what gematria is. It would also be a good idea to know a little about thought forms, a touch of Magic Squares, advanced mantras, and maybe some basics in the 9 Gates. From these foundations David Rankine takes us a step further, exposing us to some “out of the box” thinking on these particular essentials to basic magic practice, and gives us something to ponder and possibly incorporate into our own practices. He also includes some “found” techniques he has devised from his own ponderings and practices, and he explains those rather well. Some topics of interest include The Prime Quabalah, The Kalas, The Mantra of Becoming, Magickal Ingestion, Magick Squares and so much more. There is much to digest here, and I am going to give but a brief overview. The Prime Qabalah is a look at gematria (Hebrew Numerology) applied to the English alphabet and using the 26 prime numbers. Mr. Rankine has some interesting results, which give one cause for reflection. Well worth checking out. The Kalas chapter is interesting, being based on the concept given by Kenneth Grant. Mr. Rankine has developed his own 16 Kalas (five elements and eleven Astrological Planets) and gives all the properties and attributions of each. From his explanation of what the Kalas are (cycles of energy), to the explanation of each Kala, he presents us with an extraordinary new working that many will find fascinating. If you work with Kalas, you will want to check this section out. The Mantra of Becoming is a discovery of Mr. Rankine, incorporating a root mantra of Kia with some variations that progress on the magical “ia” and incorporate the next four Hebrew letter, L, M, N, and S. This revelation yields some very interesting analysis from the gematria aspect of the mantra, and Mr. Rankine goes a bit further to show the relationships suggested by the gematria analysis and gives us a very interesting mantra to work with. Magickal Ingestion I found so basic that I wondered why someone else had not thought of it before. In Egyptian, Heka is magic. It is the spoken word that makes magic manifest. The ancient Egyptians would take a spell, and write it on a piece of papyrus and dissolve it in beer and drink it, imbibing the spell as part of themselves as well as being a working. Bringing that into the present, writing our working, or sigal, or spell on food, writing our intent on a magical cookie, writing blessings on the cakes for ritual with various methods would be an excellent idea to bring the magic and the magician closer together, as suggested by Mr. Rankine. He gives some ideas, some uses and a whole new insight into “you are what you eat”. Much to ponder here and discover. Magick Squares are the basis for much of our magical workings, be it talismans or creating sigals for personal work. The squares are based on the astrological information from hundreds of years ago and include Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Sun, Venus, Mercury and the moon. However, since the discovery of Uranus, Neptune and Pluto, there has been no one who has updated these squares. Mr. Rankine gives us his version of the squares using the Prime Qabalah and also includes Earth, which seems to have been neglected by the astrologers of the past. Again, more interesting material to ponder over, chew up, and possibly incorporate into our own magical workings. Note that if you do not understand the material discussed here, it is because this book is not a basic primer, and you are not at fault. This can get to be very deep, covering some more advanced material and concepts that knowledgeable practitioners will understand. I found this to be refreshing, and a bit challenging, as there was material here that went beyond my own basic knowledge. I love a book that can teach me something new, or send me out looking for the basics so I can kick my own working knowledge up a notch. Mr. Rankine did an excellent job of explaining the concepts he is suggesting, and included illustrations for much of what he discusses, and but for a few places where I had no working knowledge of what he was discussing, I did follow most of what he wrote. And after a bit of backtracking and research, the material I was not familiar with did fall into place. The mark of a good teacher is his ability to make the unfamiliar understandable, and Mr. Rankine succeeded. If you are looking for new material for your own practice, if you are looking at what other working magicians are doing and are interested in some new concepts and ideas; if you want to challenge yourself with some new aspects to the magickal practices, then this book will definitely give you something to chew on. Again, this is not a magic 101 book, but is intended for those who have gone beyond that. This book is a wondrous look at another man’sdiscoveries and practices. Reviewed by Boudica |
The Art of Ritual ~ Creating and Performing Ceremonies for Growth and Change by Renee Beck & Sydney Barbara Metrick |
This book is a reprint of a book from 1990 which has been updated. However, not having seen the first version, this new edition is very much up to date, and the material covered is as useful today as it was in 1990. The author’s idea for this book is to introduce basic ritual practice to those who are looking to enhance their spiritual life. It is meant for the practitioner who wants to work their own rituals, is looking for material that is not “path specific” (within the pagan paths) and needs a beginning point to work from. The book is broken down into 10 chapters, covering much material. I have to say that the authors took the time to put together their introduction and explanations of what ritual is, what roles it can play in your life and the history and mythology of ritual. It is well researched, clearly explained and covers the first two chapters. Each chapter ends with a “Self Exploration” box, which is a review of the material covered and gives you pause to reflect on what the material means to you, how it can be applied in your life, and how you are progressing. The authors suggest at the beginning of the book for you to keep a “journal” and this is also a point for reflective meditation on your journal entries. There are also margin “notes”, being quotes from various authors regarding the material covered. Material from Joseph Campbell, Richard Wilhelm, and others occasionally grace the margins bringing a bit of outside observation to the material provided by the authors. The book is also peppered with some nice black and white graphics, adding a bit of grace to the material and book. It is a very nice presentation, overall. While the authors did not make this book path specific to keep open your own personal spirituality, they do have certain elements in the book that may or may not be part of your own personal spirituality. They associate the elements of ritual to the four elements and essence, or spirit. They use the pentacle as the diagram for these elements. However, they do suggest you “personalize” your symbols, using that which is meaningful to you. They also provide some good correspondences tables which are offered as a basic guide. The chapter on “Crafting and Consecrating tools” is a mix. How well you are able to handle “arts and crafts” projects will greatly affect your participation in this chapter. Also, some of the “tools” are created in the kitchen, and depending on how well you relate to the project will determine your choices here. However, they do cover some very basic tools, making “dream pillows”, incense and various types of candles. The “Consecration” process is simple enough and can be used both for what you make and what you man “find” to add to your tool collection. There is a chapter on creating your own “altar” and again, it is very basic. But the option to add whatever it is that you relate to spiritually will yield a very lovely altar presentation. There are “themes” given for your altars, falling into the categories of “Beginnings”, “Merging”, “Cycles”, “Endings” and “Healings”. While the categories seem self explanatory, there are subheadings that explain this further and are well laid out and clear in their purposes. Sydney Barbara Metrick is a PH.D. in expressive arts therapy. Ms. Beck is a licensed therapist. The reason I add this here is that once you get into the rituals area of this book, it becomes clear that the rituals are creative, thoughtful and intended to enable you to gain the maximum benefits for personal growth and development. There is a chapter on “Ritual Guidelines” that also includes a worksheet to help you layout your ritual, focus on your intent, be creative with the purpose yet allows you to analyze the entire process after you have completed the ritual to see where you benefited as well as where you can improve. The worksheet follows the entire process of the ritual, and is a great guide to working a ritual that will mean the most to you. The worksheet is a wonderful addition to the process and for the beginner it is a very valuable tool. In the chapter on “Applications of Ritual” the authors suggest rituals for various personal needs, from quitting smoking to business relationships, depression issues to obsession issues. It is a really good section on ideas for various personal goals and spiritual needs, and is, again, well thought through. The end of the book contains a short “Conclusion” chapter tying it all together, and two appendixes covering correspondences, two rituals for spring for single practitioners or for groups, a glossary and a bibliography. There is also an index for quick references. If you are considering adding ritual to your life for personal growth and discovery and you are not going to be path specific, this is a wonderful jump off point for you to start with. All the basic elements of personal ritual are here for you to consider and explore. All that is needed is you. Reviewed by Boudica |
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Well
it’s really hard to screw up a calendar and thankfully Llewellyn hasn’t done
that thus far! The calendar is colorful with nice artwork so it’s pleasing to
the eye. Each
month has a theme and is written by an individual such as January’s is about
doorways and is written by noted author Raven Grimassi whose works on Wicca
& Stregha are popping up all over the place. One
of the better essays in the calendar is not attached to a month but follows the
calendar proper and is by Yasmne Galenorn. Here she talks about honoring the
Ancestors and setting up an Ancestral Shrine, something I HIGHLY reocmmend to
any Pagan. In the Neo-Pagan community, it seems the ancestors are only shown
homage once per year whereas in the African diaspora, one’s Ancestors are shown
homage daily. My hats off to Ms. Galenorn for admitting she too honors her
Ancestors in the morning and before retiring. And
the essay on the Orisha, Yemaya as the Lady of the Oceans, was nicely done by
Denise Dumars. Here she mentions how you can petition the Queen of the Oceans
with a simple ritual and it looks to me like Denise did her homework. The
calendar itself is useful to have around with the planetary data, Moon phases,
and which Astrological sign the Moon is currently in all helps to facilitate
your Magical practices – especially if you’re observant of such things. All in all, I found the calendar to be terrific to add to your temple wall OR like me where I have my office. Plus at a price of only twelve dollars and ninety-five cents, it’s a nice piece of art to hang. I give it 5 out of 5 stars. Reviewed by Moloch |
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After
reading this totally redundant offering, you have to ask yourself, “Is Ray
Buckland, one of the most celebrated Wiccan authors, hurting for money?” This
book really had a hard time keeping my interest. It’s got a pretty cover and
that’s about it as far as I’m concerned. This
is just a shortened form of his classic big blue covered “Compleat Book of
Witchcraft” adopted for a singular individual. Whoopee. Definitely NOT worth
the price of fourteen dollars and ninety-five cents in my opinion. The
chapterson Magic were culled from his previous works such as “Practical Color
Magic” and his candle magic book. Gods Ray, with all your years of practice and
your lifetime of study, can’t you offer something more to bite on than this
pathetic piece??? This
shows me that even big name authors lack the balls to delve deeper into the
mysteries OR are too damn stingy to share anything deeper than surface
knowledge that can be found anywhere else. For instance both Marian Green and
Scotty Cunningham both wrote excellent books on the solitary path years ago.
Fine time for Mr.Ray to jump on the bandwagon long after the fact. All in all, I rate this book 1 star out of a possible 5 and I’m being MORE than fair here. If I didn’t respect Mr. Buckland so much, I’d be calling for him to be drawn and quartered. Save your money and spend it elsewhere. If you already bought this book, give it away to some newbie. Reviewed by Moloch |
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Just
what the neo-Pagan community needs, another culinary cookbook. While Trish does
an excellent job with her writing talents, surely the subject matter couldn’t
be more benign? Is this yet another new age fare brought out to merely take up
space on B&N bookshelves? You know with all the Pagan food recipes in the
various occult books, you’d presume that when Joe and Mary Sixpack thumb thru a
Pagan book, they’d figure we do little more than relax, visualize and eat! This
now begs the question as to WHY there are no Ceremonial Magic culinary
cookbooks out in print? Why there are no Vodu culinary cookbooks or Shamanistic
culinary cookbooks? These practitioners eat too don’t they? Or is this truly a
superfluous subject that only Wiccans seem to have in common? My
take is that food is a very individualistic thing. Putting together a culinary
guide that covers all the recipes I’ll ever want is tempting however due to
personal tastes as well as spontaneous hankerings for a certain “something”
makes that a bit of a dream. For instance I have your typical Pillsbury &
Betty Crocker cookbooks that I’ve picked up from yard sales over the years plus
several other books dealing with Oriental cuisines and Hispanic foods as these
two latter cuisines are my favorite. Given
the cheeky names of her subjects such as “Casseroles Coven-Craft”, “Barbecues
and Blessed Be’s” and my personal favorite “Prayerful Poultry” (I’ve never seen
any poultry pray), Trish tries to be serious by inserting folklore, legend and
customs about how the various ingredients were used or prepared or outright
shunned in various cultures. Some
of the recipes actually do look tasty but again the tongue-in-cheek names are
almost hystericaly “Make It Count Beans” reminded me of the oncoming flatulence
episodes of if you’re gonna pass wind, make it count even though she was
speaking in terms of “bean counters”. LOL All
in all, it’s a cute book at best but not one I’d take all that seriously to aid
your magical practices. Though this IS a “kitchen witch’s” guide still I don’t
know of too many Wiccan practitioners who’ll be waiting until the right Moon
phase before preparing Solar Goose or Self Control Cabbage. The book does offer an index and bibliography and at twelve dollars and ninety-five cents I thought it a bit too much even with the interspersed folklore that I found interesting. I give this book a solid two out of five stars merely for it’s whimsical attitude of Wicca and culinary creations. Reviewed by Moloch |