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Advanced Wiccan Spirituality, Volume 1: Revitalising the Roots and Foundations
The spiritual and esoteric traditions that inspired the original founders of Wicca. Here is historical , philosophical proof that this modern form of witchcraft is not just about spells and potions, but has great spiritual depth and is based on a strong ethical foundation. This incomparable resource utilizes models such as the Tree of Life and the Tarot, along with many practical exercises, to guide the reader through a journey of self-discovery about the development of Wiccan traditions, including information on * Jungian psychology * the seven planes * healing methods * sexual energy * advanced circle casting techniques * a radical revision of the Pagan Wheel of The Year
- GenresWicca
Paperback
First published March 1, 2004
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August 28, 2020
Four stars for being the only book for beginners that I feel confident in recommending, despite some details that I don't prefer.
I bought this book a long time ago, possibly in 2003 at the time of its publishing, since I bought this from a major book chain. I thought I knew what Wicca was them and wasn't interested, but thought "advanced" material would help me. In the end, it didn't - I didn't know enough about Wiccan practice to implement the principles in this book.
I completely forgot about this book,. I began training in a coven of traditional Wicca in 2009 because I was actually very interested in the Qabalah (the High Priest was very knowledgeable) and I took the "package deal". I had no idea I would fall in love with traditional Wicca, and 10 years later, and now being involved in a coven of my own, it is just fascinating to reread this book.
I write this review in 2020 because I have decided to keep this book despite a bookshelf purge. I think it's the best beginners book on Traditional Wicca that I have ever read, explaining how the reader can take their practice to the next level. It does not have rituals or herbal recipes. It instead emphasises discipline and practice in a way that is rarely discussed in the glamorous, click-bait world of Wicca and Witchcraft.
Edit:I would be surprised if this book is still available for purchase, which is too bad. This book is still available to order. It reconciles the Wicca that became popular in the 70s with today's increased desire for knowledge,and the more common understanding of ceremonial magick and grimoire work. This book begins to illustrate the special placethat traditional Wicca holds as an initiatory mystery tradition, a ceremonial magical system, and a beautiful religion devoted to the old gods and nature. After e-mailing the publisher, I learned that Saunders passed away a few years ago, and I'm sorry we won't ever see a follow-up to these works.
What I really appreciate:
- The suggestions of using Myers-Briggs for self-analysis; The emphasis work on the personality as part of the craft, on self-development and the process of initiation.
- Discussion of the Scourge and the Kiss, and the Five-Fold Kiss. These are important parts of Traditional Wicca. I've seen people have terrible reactions to them, and which made me realize they are no longer commonly discussed in today's books about Wicca and Witchcraft, nor the values they embody.
- The chapter about the Wheel of the Year in using a 12-fold instead of an 8-fold division. I don't agree with exluding the 8-fold division and feel that the author neglected important aspects of the tradition, but the reasoning and discussion is a good read. (In my opinion, the mysteries of the 8-fold year have less to do about the real manifestation of the physical seasons, but of the calculated movement of the sun, the Solar Mysteries and the roots of Wicca in Ceremonial Magic. Saunders does develop on the importance of Qabalah to Wicca in this book.)
- The discussion of the rainbow bridge. In 2003 I found the use of rainbows to be kind of tacky. Today they evoke much more spiritual images to me, including the psychopomp messenger goddess Iris of Greek mythology, who is meaningful to me. I now read Saunders' discussion as a rainbow bridge as a very accessible vehicle for transformation and liberation in Wicca. It may not be Gardnerian or Alexandrian, but it taps into the right currents and symbols of the Western Mystery Tradition. I would continue the conversation about "The Hermit" by exploring "Temperance".
- Books with one chapter on "Sex Magic" are a pet peeve of mine. That said - this one is alright in terms of theirt, particularly the discussion of polarity. It is important to note that different traditions of Wicca will perform the Great Rite to manifest polarity in very different ways.
What I don't appreciate:
- The chapter about how to cast the Celestial Circle. It's a decent outline, but I object to the techniques, pentagrams, elemental order, etc. It won't hurt to try it.
- The Healing chapter should have been omitted, in my opinion. Healing is very specialized. While the desire and drive to help others is indeed very important in Wicca, energetic techniques are best left for the Masters.
- The emphasis of the Celtic tradition, which I think was really due to the trends of the 90s/early 2000s.
I realize this will make me unpopular but I'm not confident that Wicca can be made to be accurately Celtic. I would prefer to leave the Celtic out of it for a couple of reasons. A great many Celtic goddess names seem to be a part of the tradition, but many other themes, customs and values of the Celts do not line up.
To clarify: There is extraordinary mystical value in Celtic systems - I love "The Bardic Journey" by Yvonne Owens for delving into this especially beautifully. I just don't think it's right to explain Wicca primarily in reference to Celtic systems. I would argue that Wicca is more related to Ceremonial Magic then it is Celtic mysticism, based on Gardner's involvement with the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and Thelema. While Saunders mentions Gardner in the book and many other tools of ceremonial magic (qabalah, magical squares, etc.), he doesn't discuss this important connection.
Current trends in Wicca and Witchcraft today are very different than those of the 90s and early 2000s, and the Celtic emphasis has waned. Interest in Wicca has waned, which is truly too bad - I'll write more about that someday.
I bought this book a long time ago, possibly in 2003 at the time of its publishing, since I bought this from a major book chain. I thought I knew what Wicca was them and wasn't interested, but thought "advanced" material would help me. In the end, it didn't - I didn't know enough about Wiccan practice to implement the principles in this book.
I completely forgot about this book,. I began training in a coven of traditional Wicca in 2009 because I was actually very interested in the Qabalah (the High Priest was very knowledgeable) and I took the "package deal". I had no idea I would fall in love with traditional Wicca, and 10 years later, and now being involved in a coven of my own, it is just fascinating to reread this book.
I write this review in 2020 because I have decided to keep this book despite a bookshelf purge. I think it's the best beginners book on Traditional Wicca that I have ever read, explaining how the reader can take their practice to the next level. It does not have rituals or herbal recipes. It instead emphasises discipline and practice in a way that is rarely discussed in the glamorous, click-bait world of Wicca and Witchcraft.
Edit:
What I really appreciate:
- The suggestions of using Myers-Briggs for self-analysis; The emphasis work on the personality as part of the craft, on self-development and the process of initiation.
- Discussion of the Scourge and the Kiss, and the Five-Fold Kiss. These are important parts of Traditional Wicca. I've seen people have terrible reactions to them, and which made me realize they are no longer commonly discussed in today's books about Wicca and Witchcraft, nor the values they embody.
- The chapter about the Wheel of the Year in using a 12-fold instead of an 8-fold division. I don't agree with exluding the 8-fold division and feel that the author neglected important aspects of the tradition, but the reasoning and discussion is a good read. (In my opinion, the mysteries of the 8-fold year have less to do about the real manifestation of the physical seasons, but of the calculated movement of the sun, the Solar Mysteries and the roots of Wicca in Ceremonial Magic. Saunders does develop on the importance of Qabalah to Wicca in this book.)
- The discussion of the rainbow bridge. In 2003 I found the use of rainbows to be kind of tacky. Today they evoke much more spiritual images to me, including the psychopomp messenger goddess Iris of Greek mythology, who is meaningful to me. I now read Saunders' discussion as a rainbow bridge as a very accessible vehicle for transformation and liberation in Wicca. It may not be Gardnerian or Alexandrian, but it taps into the right currents and symbols of the Western Mystery Tradition. I would continue the conversation about "The Hermit" by exploring "Temperance".
- Books with one chapter on "Sex Magic" are a pet peeve of mine. That said - this one is alright in terms of theirt, particularly the discussion of polarity. It is important to note that different traditions of Wicca will perform the Great Rite to manifest polarity in very different ways.
What I don't appreciate:
- The chapter about how to cast the Celestial Circle. It's a decent outline, but I object to the techniques, pentagrams, elemental order, etc. It won't hurt to try it.
- The Healing chapter should have been omitted, in my opinion. Healing is very specialized. While the desire and drive to help others is indeed very important in Wicca, energetic techniques are best left for the Masters.
- The emphasis of the Celtic tradition, which I think was really due to the trends of the 90s/early 2000s.
I realize this will make me unpopular but I'm not confident that Wicca can be made to be accurately Celtic. I would prefer to leave the Celtic out of it for a couple of reasons. A great many Celtic goddess names seem to be a part of the tradition, but many other themes, customs and values of the Celts do not line up.
To clarify: There is extraordinary mystical value in Celtic systems - I love "The Bardic Journey" by Yvonne Owens for delving into this especially beautifully. I just don't think it's right to explain Wicca primarily in reference to Celtic systems. I would argue that Wicca is more related to Ceremonial Magic then it is Celtic mysticism, based on Gardner's involvement with the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and Thelema. While Saunders mentions Gardner in the book and many other tools of ceremonial magic (qabalah, magical squares, etc.), he doesn't discuss this important connection.
Current trends in Wicca and Witchcraft today are very different than those of the 90s and early 2000s, and the Celtic emphasis has waned. Interest in Wicca has waned, which is truly too bad - I'll write more about that someday.
Displaying 1 of 1 review