These are the
Entry/Intermediate-level books and
movies that we have recommended to
all new seekers that we
have encountered over the Years.
These books and films are a small
sample of the hundreds available,
but we have found them to be of
benefit and worth to those who may
not have decided exactly what Path,
( or who may possibly have chosen
multiple paths ), but still need
more real information.
These Books can be ordered from
Barnes and Noble, B.Dalton's,
Amazon.com, Walden Books, etc.
(although I think a couple are now
out-of-print), or if you travel at
all, look for older used bookstores
and you may be able to find these at
half-price or better!
Also, if you frequent any type
of Library, ( Public, or Scholastic
), you can usually order these books
through the inter-library-loan
system, it usually takes a few days
to get it in once they find one at
another location, but the time
outweighs the money when books are
steadily increasing in cost every
day...plus, you get them for 30
days, long enough to decide if you
really CAN'T live without it.
Read or watch, enjoy, and Have
fun...that's the most important
part. Remember, if you are NOT
having fun, then you're definitely
doing something wrong and probably
need to take some time to figure it
out. If you ever have any
questions that you can't find a good
answer for, feel free to write, as
we are always open to good discussions
and dialogs....and we will answer all
sincere questions, with no strings
attached.
BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR "BRITISH-AMERICAN
TRADITIONAL WICCA 101"
NOTE:
All titles preceded by ** are "must
haves" for understanding what we do,
those with more than two stars are
required reading for our students as
well.
**An ABC of Witchcraft
by Doreen Valiente
A classic, good
primer from a British perspective of
the folkloric and natural roots of
witchcraft, written by one of the
grandmothers of Gardnerian and
other mainstream Craft traditions.
Aradia, the Gospel of the
Witches
by Charles G.
Leland
The first
published account of "Book of
Shadows" material given to Leland by
a Strega
(Italian Witch). Good poetry, good
read, easy on the psyche. Reveals
past practices and the mindsets from
way back when.
****Buckland's Complete Book
of Witchcraft
by Raymond
Buckland
This is the Primer we use
for all British-American Traditional
Witchcraft Training, both Gardnerian
and Arthurian, that we practice and
Teach as a group. We use this to
begin the process of training the
students, and to introduce them to
the basic concepts and practices
that we use on a daily basis. Even
though Ray is an Elder of Gardnerianism, this book doesn't
begin to cover the details or
mysteries of BTW. If you want to
start practicing now, there isn't a
better tome to begin with.
Casting the Circle,
The Women's Book of Ritual
by Diane Stein
Circles, Groves and
Sanctuaries
by Pauline
Campinelli
An Anthology of different
people's perspectives concerning
personal practices and traditions.
**The Dancing Wu Li Masters
by Gary Zukav.... review below by
Mike Kisor...
"The Dancing Wu Li
Masters "
differs quite a bit from
The Holographic Universe,
but there is also a lot of
overlap and dovetailing between
the two. They overlap in that
the "new physics" is leading us
toward a profoundly new concept
of reality, and both books
address this. But make no
mistake about it, The
Dancing Wu Li Masters
is first and foremost a book
about physics for the layman. If
you want to learn about
Einstein's Relativity Theories,
Heisenberg's Uncertainty
Principle, Bohr's atom,
Schrödinger's Cat, or Quantum
Mechanics, i can think of no
better book to introduce you to
the topic than The Dancing
Wu Li Masters. Zukav
does more than just present the
physics, he fills in some of the
context and historical
background in which our science
developed and does so in an
interesting manner. You do not
need a scientific nor
mathematical background to
comprehend this book, only a
desire to learn about physics.
Note from Arwythur: The
basics of why magick works, the
how's, as well as the basics for
all religions, can be found in
the works of Modern Quantum
Physics... no matter what your
personal bent towards the
ability to re-create reality,
via magic or prayer.... everyone
should read this tome as well as
the other books on Quantum
mentioned....no matter which
Faith or Path you may personally
follow or believe... Arwythur.
**Drawing Down the Moon
by Margot Adler - the revised
edition -
Who's who and what's what... a
survey of the neo-pagan scene and an
introduction to the people prominent
in the circles Margo had access to.
A must for
name-droppers, beginners and Elders
alike...several traditions recounted
are no longer in existence, and she
completely ignores several of the
mainstream native Northern European
Traditions.
Goddess in Every Woman
and
God in Every Man
both books by
Jean
Shinoda Bolen.
The Psychology of
interacting with the gods. Jean is a
Jungian and has a good handle on
Archetypes and the interactions
with.
Hedge Witch
by Rae
Beth
Practice from the point of
view of the
solitary Hedge Witch, or natural
healer/charm maker.
The Herb Book
by
John Lust.
If you only buy one herb
book,
this is it. Recipes, treatments, a
good survey of background info on
most
aspects of herbs by the late
renowned expert.
**The Holographic Universe
ISBN#
0-06-092258-3
Also
Mysticism and the New
Physics
ISBN#
0-140-19328-6
by Michael Talbot
YOU MUST BUY THESE
BOOKS!!!!
They explain EVERYTHING
and how it works...in simple Terms
and Easy, ( YES EASY ) Quantum
Physics... everything that the
Person seeking enlightenment could
ever possibly want to know...
explains everything left out of the
other sciences, religion, and
Philosophy. This book gave me, (
Arwythur ), the personal Epiphanies
that allowed me to go beyond my
Environment and Genetics to reach a
place where the whole Damn thing
made sense... and it will work for
you as well, if you can only let go
and allow it to happen...My personal
first choice along with Buckland's
Complete book of Wicca...these two
books will allow you to do
everything and anything your
heart/mind desires.....no matter
WHAT your Path or Denomination... It
even works for the Other Mainstream
Faiths.
**The Magickal Year
by Diana Ferguson
Thea uses this
as one of her resources for the
history of the Holidays, and as a
guide for writing Holiday rituals. A
must have for the working HP or HPS
involved with a teaching group.
Includes Myths and the foundational
elements of the Craft Holidays, and
how they were morphed into what we
know and celebrate today.
Magical Rites from the
Crystal Well
by Ed Fitch
A
long-time
old-time Elder in the Gardnerian
Tradition, and several other
traditions, wrote
these rites for his outer court
coven. This is the complete volume.
Some of
this material was printed by others
under the name of "The Book of Pagan
Rituals" in combination with some
ceremonial material.
The Master Book of Herbalism
by Paul Beyerl
A magikcal herbal
written by an herbalist and wiccan
elder, founder of a wiccan seminary.
The Modern Craft Movement
by Charles S. Clifton
Clifton both
interviews and writes about
contemporary wiccan groups and
individuals.
A Modern Herbal
(two volume set)
by Mrs. M. A. Grieve
A classic
reference
for those wanting more depth,
especially in gardening and
medicinal uses,
also used as a reference for
folklore of plants by many later
authors.
Modern Rites of Passage
by Charles S. Clifton
This volume
in
Clifton's series for Llewellyn
prints rites of passage used by
contemporary wiccan groups for
handfastings, Births, deaths, and
other transitions.
Motherwit
by Diane
Mariechild
A classic manual of
psychic
development by a prominent Dianic
elder.
Natural Magic
by Doreen Valiente
A little book of
essays on
how the different aspects of magick
work.
**Positive Magic
by
Marian Weinstein
Positively the
best ever
treatment of ethics and dealing with
the cosmic lawyers of magick,
written by a Dianic elder who won
notoriety as the USA's first wiccan
stand up comedienne.
**Practice of MAGIC,
An Introductory Guide to the
Art
by Draja
Mickaharic
The author of **Spiritual
Cleansing wrote in this
primer his views on
the various practices of magic and
requirements for success.
The Rebirth of Witchcraft
by
Doreen Valiente
Her perspective
on the main craft movements in the
USA and Europe.
** Spells and How They Work
by Janet and Stewart
Farrar
A good source for understanding the
structuring of spells, both simple
and complex, with good examples and
explanations.
The Spiritual Universe
by Fred Alan Wolf, Ph.D.
Explains
the Soul, the how's and Why's, from
the Scientific perspective. A
little hard to follow at times, it
has excellent explanations with
illustrations. This book answers
many of the questions asked about
the Soul and is valuable to any and
all religious denominations. A must
for those seeking Religion, God, and
the Soul in Quantum Physics.
** Sprial Dance -
the revised edition-
by
Starhawk
A
guide and
Book of Shadows compiled by Starhawk
and her covens during years of
practice,
written from the eclectic Dianic
perspective.
** Spiritual Cleansing
by Draja Mickaharic
An elder in
several
types of magickal traditions
gathered the best and simplest
protection,
cleansing, and houscleaning spells
and techniques from the various
traditions he practices.
Deceptively simple, these techniques
have handled everything from dark
atmospheres up to otherworldly
intrusions, and been used
comfortably by
everyone from Wiccan elders to
Christians.
Triple Goddess
by
Addam McLean
Voices from the Circle
edited by Prudence Jones & Caitlin
Matthews
Two leaders of British
traditions have gathered a series of
essays by
elders of different traditions as
they describe and comment on their
paths.
Voices of the Goddess
edited by Caitlin
Matthews
Another
set
of essays, by women elders.
The Way of the Goddess
by Ly Warren Clark
Wheel of the Year
by Pauline Campinelli
Festivals and
practice.
When God Was a Woman
by Merlin Stone
The hidden history
of Goddess
worship. This is the book and
author that all the others quote.
**A Witch Alone
by Marion Green
A British elder
compiled a cycle
of thirteen meditations with
exercises for the solitary witch, in
a path
paralleling the year's training of
an initiate.
**The Witches' God
by Janet and Stewart Farrar
Two
elders of the
"Alexandrian tradition" write on the
God aspects and rituals for them.
**The Witches' Goddess
**Eight Sabbats for Witches
**The Witches’ Way
by Janet and Stewart Farrar
Two
elders of
the "Alexandrian tradition" write on
the Goddess aspects and ritual for
them.
Janet and Stuart Farrar’s two books
that give the rituals for the sabbat
celebrations and other important
rituals of Alexandrian British
Traditional Wicca presented and
explained in detail. These two books
are presently
printed by Phoenix Publishing as
**The
Witches’ Bible
ISBN
0919345921
At 550
pages, this
is not wicca 101 material.
** What Witches Do
By Janet and Stewart
Farrar
A very
informative book, with many
photographs of several of the
elements of BTW, such as the Osiris
& The Goddess positions of the HPS
upon the Altar. A Classic that will
augment the rest of your BTW
library.
The Women's Encyclopedia of
Myths and Secrets
by
Barbara
Walker
Over ten years of research
went into this comprehensive
encyclopedia
of the history and background of the
evolution of women's history...
everything
from how the Biblical leaders tried
to surpress Goddess worship in the
cultures around them, to events of
the Burning times. A course in the
rewriting
of history, all from thousands of
historical sources.
Zen and the Art of
Motorcycle Maintenance
by
Stephen Praige
The remembering and re-evolution of
a personality that had been
destroyed
by shock treatment as it reemerges
and tries to come to terms with the
personality that replaced it for a
time. A good example of unguided
shamanic reintegration and it's
dangers.
FICTION:
although written as fiction, several
of these Authors have taken the
elements of their Craft from the
real world and blended it with a
sense of the surreal. Sometimes
these authors were restricted by the
Laws of the Land, so there fore hid
their Craft teachings into these
stories. We enjoyed them, hopefully
you will also...
The Mists of Avalon
by Marion Zimmer Bradley
The
Arthurian cycle as
seen through the eyes of the women
involved-Ygraine, Morgan le fey, and
Guinevere.
Bradley is a Craft Elder
and Ceremonialist, and she
incorporates many esoteric traditions into the
background of the novel.
The Sea Priestess, Moon
Magic, and The Secrets of Dr.
Taverner. (3 books)
by Dione
Fortune
Dione
Fortune broke away from the Golden
Dawn to form her own Society of
Inner Light because she kept
returning to Paganism. The first two
novels are
in large part autobigraphical
accounts of her priestesshood, and
Secrets
is a collection of short stories
based on the cases handled by her
teacher
and mentor.
She also wrote
The Winged Bull, The Goatfoot God,
and Deamon
Lover, besides her many
instructional books.
**Johnathan Livingston
Seagull
and
Illusions: Adventures of a Reluctant
Messiah
by Richard Bach
**Lammas Night
by Katherine
Kurtz
A Science fiction
authoress who is
also a Craft Elder fictionalizes her
research on the craft connections
and
sacred kingship observances of
England. Set in World War two.
Movies....."For a
Like Mind"
A selection of our favorite
Craft-related films, for
viewing and discussing.
MINDWALK
-a
Nuclear Physicist, a
Poet, and a
Politician who have
been thrown
togeather by chance
discuss the nature
of reality, what we
are doing to the
Earth, and how
taking personal
responsibility is of
vital importance. A
very good exposition
of atomic physics
and ecology.
SORCERESS
-A true story of how
a Dominican Monk
hunting heretics in
13th
century France
misunderstands the
local Wise Woman,
and the customs of
her
village. The main
characters must deal
with their own past
wounds and
mistakes in order to
deal with each other
compassionately.
Upbeat ending.
SECRET
OF ROAN INISH
-Beautiful Irish
land and sea scapes
are the background
setting for a heroic
girl who searches
for her lost
brother. Mythology,
love
of nature, and Irish
music weave a
haunting tale of
faith and the
journey to
find the true self -
walking between the
modern world and the
ancient one.
THE
GODDESS REMEMBERED
- A documentary
exploring cultures
of the past who
honored Goddesses in
their worship of the
divine. Good visual
images and
well done narration.
THE
BURNING TIMES
-Feminist
scholars put
togeather this
acclaimed
documentary
about the period of
European history
when madness filled
the air and
persecution against
women and minorities
was carried out in
the name of
religion.
MESSAGE
FROM THE ELDER
BROTHER
-Elders from Earth
centered cultures
try to speak to the
rest of us about
being out of balance
with the Earth and
what
we can try to do to
keep from destroying
the Earth and
ourselves.
THE
FISHER KING
-Two men crushed by
modern culture,
connected only by
fate
and synchronicity,
help and heal each
other by interacting
with the
Archetypes embodied
in the Arthurian
quest for the Holy
Grail. Some
profanity and a
little nudity.
THE
OCCULT EXPERIENCE
- A sometimes
sensationalized
survey of well-known
people in the Pagan
and Earth centered
faiths in the early
1980's. Margo
Adler as a narrator,
Selena Fox, Z.
Budapest, Luisa Tesh,
Herman Slater,
Anton Lavey, Michael
Aquino, Alex
Saunders, Janet and
Stewart Farrar, The
Society of Isis,
Austrailian pagans,
and one intense
sequence of an
attempted exorcism
of the Deamon of
Rebellion by
Evangelicals. Spotty
but
interesting.
THE
WICKER MAN
-
Arwythur's review:
(Expanded version)
A policeman
investigates the
disappearance of a
child and discovers
an Island culture
keeping the old ways
of European
Paganism. Did the
Islanders sacrifice
the child? What is
the secret of the
Maypole? Why must a
movie about pagans
always be a horror
movie? Full female
nudity in several
scenes and one
character dies.
(note-get the longer
version over
100 minutes. The
shorter version of
eighty minutes has
some great pagan
speeches cut out.
Not the nudity, but
the philosophy got
cut!)
Granny
Meg's Review: (the
original movie, the
Expanded version)
(Christopher Lee,
Edward Woodward,
Elke Sommers) A
policeman
investigates the
disappearance of a
child and discovers
an Island culture
keeping the old ways
of European
Paganism. Did the
Islanders sacrifice
the child? What is
the secret of the
Maypole? Why must a
movie about pagans
always be a horror
movie? Full female
nudity in several
scenes and one
character dies.
(note-get the longer
version over 100
minutes. The shorter
version of eighty
minutes has some
great pagan speeches
cut out. Not the
nudity, but the
philosophy got cut!)
THREE
SOVERIEGNS FOR SARA
-
An account of the
Salem Witch trials
in which one woman
was aquited and
recompensed for the
"inconvenience" of
being accused
of being a witch.
EXCALIBUR
-A
great mythic
treatment of the
Arthurian tale.
Somehow plastic
armor, heavy-handed
dialogue and choppy
scene changes
combine to raise the
hair on the back of
your head. Idyllic
scenes are
beautiful, Wasteland
and
battle scenes are
not for the
squeamish.
WHAT
DREAMS MAY COME
-A
new release, this
movie of gorgeous
scenes from
classical art deals
with death, grief,
loss, and accepting
responsibility
for creating your
own reality. Be
prepared to cry.
GROUNDHOG DAY
-
Comedy based on
being given a second
chance, and a third,
and a forth, .....
One character is
caught in his own
ego untill he
decides to reach
beyond himself,
attaining his desire
through love for
another.
THE
THIRTEENTH WARRIOR
-
Drama of the clash
of cultures between
Moslem, Nordic
Viking and Stone Age
gives sympathetic
treatment to Heroes
and Honor and a
glimpse of Pagan
attitudes to death
and the afterlife.
The
MATRIX Trilogy
-
As close to the
reasonings that Bach
wrote of in
Illusions, but from
a computer
standpoint. A must
see in order to
bring the ideal of a
created reality to
the minds of those
who can only see in
two demensions. The
possibilities, that
we live in a reality
that was fabricated,
or possibly even
just agreed upon.
Good scenes of
fighting, sometimes
overwhelms the
Philosophy.