Ben GruagachComments Off on Pagan Roots in the East
Paganism and occultism in the English-speaking community today owes a lot to the East. Sure, most of the borrowed Eastern ideas have been adapted and changed over the years by various English practitioners but the basic ideas themselves are from Eastern sources. We don’t have to look very hard to find things that come from the Middle East, from India,… Read more »
Ben GruagachComments Off on Pagan Booklist: Spirit Work
[Note: this article has been edited since it was first posted to include new books on the topic.] Some magickal practitioners focus on working with non-physical entities, whether these entities are described as elementals, faeries, ghosts, ancestors, angels, demons, saints, loa, intelligences, or deities. Different systems have different ways of categorizing and classifying — some are very strict about putting… Read more »
Ben GruagachComments Off on Traditions, Superstitions & Folk-Lore by Charles Hardwick (EPUB)
TRADITIONS, SUPERSTITIONS, AND FOLK-LORE, (Chiefly Lancashire And The North Of England:) Their affinity to others in widely-distributed localities; their eastern origin and mythical significance. by CHARLES HARDWICK (Originally published in 1872) Available courtesy Project Gutenberg. Other formats available for download at http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/39934
Wicca is a pretty diverse religion today with assorted different denominations (usually called “traditions”), independent covens, and thousands if not millions of solitary practitioners around the globe. What exactly makes all of these practitioners Wiccan? Historically the religion of Wicca traces to Gerald B. Gardner who first promoted and taught a form of religious witchcraft as far back as the… Read more »
Ben GruagachComments Off on The Principles of Wiccan Belief
Way back in the Spring of 1974 during a Pagan conference called “Witchmeet” in Minneapolis, MN USA a diverse group of 73 witches, representing a range of groups as well as solitary practitioners, formed what they decided to call the American Council of Witches. The group held only a single meeting before they chose to disband. At that meeting they… Read more »
Ben GruagachComments Off on “Lifting the Veil” by Janet Farrar & Gavin Bone
Janet Farrar and Gavin Bone have done it again with “Lifting the Veil” — another instant classic which will surely be recommended for years to come. A must-read for Wiccans, Witches, Occultists and Pagans wishing to explore or strengthen ecstatic and trance connections with the Divine and spirit realm. Janet and Gavin’s deep understanding of the topic and years of… Read more »
Ben GruagachComments Off on Aradia, or the Gospel of the Witches (EPUB)
Aradia, or the Gospel of the Witches by Charles Godfrey Leland was published in 1899, and is now in the public domain. It documents what Leland believed was a surviving witch cult in Italy. While its historical claims are disputed, it was influential in the development of modern Witchcraft and Wicca. This EPUB edition was formatted by Ben Gruagach.
Ben GruagachComments Off on Christmas In Ritual and Tradition, Christian and Pagan by Clement A. Miles (EPUB)
An interesting book from 1912 exploring the history of the Christian holiday of Christmas, particularly its Pagan roots. This EPUB edition obtained from Project Gutenberg. Other electronic formats of this book are available at https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/19098
Ben GruagachComments Off on The Common Book of Witchcraft and Wicca (PDF)
“Pagans don’t have a holy book, they have libraries.” – Phaedra Bonewits The Common Book of Witchcraft and Wicca was created in 2014 by Witch School, International, Inc., with the project spearheaded by Ed Hubbard. It was created specifically to be easily shared, in the public domain, without infringing on copyrights. It contains a wide variety of articles, chants, poems, ritual ideas, and… Read more »
Ben GruagachComments Off on Separating the Wheat from the Chaff: Critical Thinking Skills for Pagans
(Excerpted from “The Wiccan Mystic”, chapter four.) Information on the occult and on alternative religious paths such as Wicca is readily available now more than ever before. Most mainstream bookstores carry at least a few books with titles like “Easy Wicca” or “Casting Spells in 3 Simple Steps,” or might have a wider selection from scholarly philosophical tomes to straightforward… Read more »
