Celebrate the Earth: A Year of Holidays in the Pagan Tradition

by Laurie Cabot, Karen Bagnard (Illustrator), Jean Mills

Published to coincide with the Pagan holiday Samhain on October 31st, this new title by a renowned author and Witch will appeal to spiritualists and environmentalists alike as it celebrates the eight holidays in the Pagan tradition.  The Pagan origins of many of our everyday traditions, including the Winter Solstice and Spring Equinox, are celebrated here as holidays that spring from the seasons of the earth. Wit its practical suggestions for enjoying seasonal renewal, Celebrate The Earth blends all the richness and ancient lore of Witchcraft with how-to advice to create a modern-day celebration of nature.  For each holiday, it offers instructions Earth magic--sample rituals, preparation, garb, herbcraft, spellcraft, and magical stones, for promoting love, romance, and healing. Holiday fare--recipes and menus to prepare. Ancient activities--crafts and games passed down through generations. Also included is a list of sources--an extensive bibliography, plus lists of specialty shops and mail order catalogs.

Genres: Spirituality, Paganism, Wicca, Nonfiction, Witchcraft, Religion, History

288 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1994

Reviews

[Vanessa Opal · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my first books; great book to have! Goes through the Wheel of the Year in order, complete with meanings/significance of each holiday, traditional rituals to follow, AND recipes, spells and more for each day. Love love love it.

[Kathleen Garber · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been searching for a good Sabbats Book for a long time. Finally, one day I came across this book. It was great! I go back to it all the time. After an information filled section on each sabbat, you will find a short story on some aspect of that holiday, followed by a section entitled Earth Magic. In this section you will find sample rituals, garb, prepartation, herbcraft, spellcraft, magical stones and lore. The rituals are for groups though, that is the only problem, but I suppose you could change them for solitary use. Earth magic also has recipies for oil mixtures and some spells to try out.

Following Earth Magic you will find the section entitled Holiday Fare. This is where you will find recipies for dishes you can make for meals or desserts. After that you will find Ancient Activities which includes crafts and lore related to the season.

Even the appendices have valueable information that will have you looking back again and again.

[Eve · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my all time favourite books on paganism! I really enjoy Laurie Cabot's work and have a few of her books. Each Sabbat is covered, ideas for altar set up, food, activities etc. are all presented to the reader. Ms. Cabot is known as Salem's Official Witch and she doesn't fail to deliver. I enjoy her style of writing, it is informative and easy going. This is a wonderful book that I have read and re-read numerous times throughout the years, the pages and cover are tattered from years of repeated use. I even bought a second, newer copy...just in case lol If you are just starting out on this path, this book will be a valuable resource for you!

[Gwyndyllyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really, really fun book. I love it because of its creative ideas for celebrating the holidays. Very whimsical.

[Memie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Laurie is a very intelligent woman and this book is well written about the holidays from the colors to wear to the God/Goddesses for each celebration.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Laurie Cabot writes a great book with detailed rituals and ideas for each Sabbat. I have been referring to it first all year! She really gives you some wonderful ideas for what to wear, what herbs to use, ideas for food, and many other incredible ideas! Love this book!

[Cass · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was good for what it is. Cabot wrote a wonderful account of celebrating sabbats through Celtic tradition. Some of the rituals and spells were a little much in my opinion, but I’m sure they’d be helpful for someone who is more ceremonial based in their practice.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a great fairly in-depth look at pagan or Wiccan holidays. I think it could have been more concise and it was quite dry, but isn’t a bad option for anyone looking to learn more about paganism or the wheel of the year.

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my used book sale impulse buys, and not quite what I expected. A wealth of information about the rituals and celebrations of eight holidays, along with some recipes.

[Heather K Veitch · Rating 5 out of 5]

A re-read of an essential classic.

[Heidi’s Zee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oldschool natuurreligie-heksenpraat, over de 8 jaarfeesten. Soms met wat inzichten.