Download or read book A Coven of Scholars written by Caroline Oates and published by . This book was released on 1998 with total page 112 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The God of the Witches written by Margaret Alice Murray and published by . This book was released on 1970 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This celebrated study of witchcraft in Europe traces the worship of the pre-Christian and prehistoric Horned God from paleolithic times to the medieval period. Murray, the first to turn a scholarly eye on the mysteries of witchcraft, enables us to see its existence in the Middle Ages not as an isolated and terrifying phenomenon, but as the survival of a religion nearly as old as humankind itself, whose devotees held passionately to a view of life threatened by an alien creed. The findings she sets forth, once thought of as provocative and implausible, are now regarded as irrefutable by folklorists and scholars in related fields. Exploring the rites and ceremonies associated with witchcraft, Murray establishes the concept of the "dying god"--the priest-king who was ritually killed to ensure the country and its people a continuity of fertility and strength. In this light, she considers such figures as Thomas a Becket, Joan of Arc, and Gilles de Rais as spiritual leaders whose deaths were ritually imposed. Truly a classic work of anthropology, and written in a clear, accessible style that anyone can enjoy, The God of the Witches forces us to reevaluate our thoughts about an ancient and vital religion.
Download or read book The Witch cult in Western Europe written by Margaret Alice Murray and published by . This book was released on 1921 with total page 316 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Triumph of the Moon written by Ronald Hutton and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2001-02-15 with total page 512 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ronald Hutton is known for his colourful and provocative writings on original subjects. This work is no exception: for the first full-scale scholarly study of the only religion England has ever given the world; that of modern pagan witchcraft, which has now spread from English shores across four continents. Hutton examines the nature of that religion and its development, and offers a microhistory of attitudes to paganism, witchcraft, and magic in British society since 1800. Its pages reveal village cunning folk, Victorian ritual magicians, classicists and archaeologists, leaders of woodcraft and scouting movements, Freemasons, and members of rural secret societies. We also find some of the leading of figures of English literature, from the Romantic poets to W.B. Yeats, D.H. Lawrence, and Robert Graves, as well as the main personalities who have represented pagan witchcraft to the world since 1950. Densely researched, Triumph of the Moon presents an authoritative insight into a hitherto little-known aspect of modern social history.
Download or read book Wicca written by Ethan Doyle White and published by Liverpool University Press. This book was released on 2015-10-01 with total page 287 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The past century has born witness to a growing interest in the belief systems of ancient Europe, with an array of contemporary Pagan groups claiming to revive these old ways for the needs of the modern world. By far the largest and best known of these Paganisms has been Wicca, a new religious movement that can now count hundreds of thousands of adherents worldwide. Emerging from the occult milieu of mid twentieth-century Britain, Wicca was first presented as the survival of an ancient pre-Christian Witch-Cult, whose participants assembled in covens to venerate their Horned God and Mother Goddess, to celebrate seasonal festivities, and to cast spells by the light of the full moon. Spreading to North America, where it diversified under the impact of environmentalism, feminism, and the 1960s counter-culture, Wicca came to be presented as a Goddess-centred nature religion, in which form it was popularised by a number of best-selling authors and fictional television shows. Today, Wicca is a maturing religious movement replete with its own distinct world-view, unique culture, and internal divisions. This book represents the first published academic introduction to be exclusively devoted to this fascinating faith, exploring how this Witches' Craft developed, what its participants believe and practice, and what the Wiccan community actually looks like. In doing so it sweeps away widely-held misconceptions and offers a comprehensive overview of this religion in all of its varied forms. Drawing upon the work of historians, anthropologists, sociologists, and scholars of religious studies, as well as the writings of Wiccans themselves, it provides an original synthesis that will be invaluable for anyone seeking to learn about the blossoming religion of modern Pagan Witchcraft.
Download or read book Witchcraft and Paganism in Australia written by Lynne Hume and published by Melbourne University. This book was released on 1997 with total page 294 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contributes to the growing literature on comparative religion and new religious movements. More specifically, it draws attention to a new religious movement. Using a multidisciplinary approcach, Hume describes the emergence of a controversial worldview which has roots in ancient ideas but whose ideology is rooted in the 20th century.
Download or read book A Community of Witches written by Helen A. Berger and published by Univ of South Carolina Press. This book was released on 1999 with total page 188 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A Community of Witches explores the beliefs and practices of Neo-Paganism and Witchcraft - generally known to scholars and practitioners as Wicca. While the words "magic," "witchcraft," and "paganism" evoke images of the distant past and remote cultures, this book shows that Wicca has emerged as part of a new religious movement that reflects the era in which it developed. Imported to the United States in the late 1960s from the United Kingdom, the religion absorbed into its basic fabric the social concerns of the time: feminism, environmentalism, self-development, alternative spirituality, and mistrust of authority.
Download or read book Witches of America written by Alex Mar and published by Sarah Crichton Books. This book was released on 2015-10-20 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Witches are gathering." When most people hear the word "witches," they think of horror films and Halloween, but to the nearly one million Americans who practice Paganism today, witchcraft is a nature-worshipping, polytheistic, and very real religion. So Alex Mar discovers when she sets out to film a documentary and finds herself drawn deep into the world of present-day magic. Witches of America follows Mar on her immersive five-year trip into the occult, charting modern Paganism from its roots in 1950s England to its current American mecca in the San Francisco Bay Area; from a gathering of more than a thousand witches in the Illinois woods to the New Orleans branch of one of the world's most influential magical societies. Along the way she takes part in dozens of rituals and becomes involved with a wild array of characters: a government employee who founds a California priesthood dedicated to a Celtic goddess of war; American disciples of Aleister Crowley, whose elaborate ceremonies turn the Catholic mass on its head; second-wave feminist Wiccans who practice a radical separatist witchcraft; a growing "mystery cult" whose initiates trace their rites back to a blind shaman in rural Oregon. This sprawling magical community compels Mar to confront what she believes is possible-or hopes might be. With keen intelligence and wit, Mar illuminates the world of witchcraft while grappling in fresh and unexpected ways with the question underlying every faith: Why do we choose to believe in anything at all? Whether evangelical Christian, Pagan priestess, or atheist, each of us craves a system of meaning to give structure to our lives. Sometimes we just find it in unexpected places.
Download or read book Coming to the Edge of the Circle written by Nikki Bado and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2005-08-04 with total page 194 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Imagine yourself sitting on the cool damp earth, surrounded by deep night sky and fields full of fireflies, anticipating the ritual of initiation that you are about to undergo. Suddenly you hear the sounds of far-off singing and chanting, drums booming, rattles "snaking," voices raised in harmony. The casting of the Circle is complete. You are led to the edge of the Circle, where Death, your challenge, is waiting for you. With the passwords of "perfect love" and "perfect trust" you enter Death's realm. The Guardians of the four quarters purify you, and you are finally reborn into the Circle as a newly made Witch. Coming to the Edge of the Circle offers an ethnographic study of the initiation ritual practiced by one coven of Witches located in Ohio. As a High Priestess within the coven as well as a scholar of religion, Nikki Bado is in a unique position to contribute to our understanding of this ceremony and the tradition to which it belongs. Bado's analysis of this coven's initiation ceremony offers an important challenge to the commonly accepted model of "rites of passage." Rather than a single linear event, initiation is deeply embedded within a total process of becoming a Witch in practice and in community with others. Coming to the Edge of the Circle expands our concept of initiation while giving us insight into one coven's practice of Wicca. An important addition to Ritual Studies, it also introduces readers to the contemporary nature religion variously called Wicca, Witchcraft, the Old Religion, or the Craft.
Download or read book Palgrave Advances in Witchcraft Historiography written by J. Barry and published by Springer. This book was released on 2007-05-09 with total page 259 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the first book to offer a detailed modern survey of Witchcraft historiography. By using a broad chronological structure, from contemporary responses through to modern day, the book draws on contributions from a range of leading experts in the field to provide a much-needed overview of the area.
Download or read book The Witch cult in Western Europe A Study in Anthropology written by Margaret Alice Murray and published by Good Press. This book was released on 2019-11-19 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is a study of witchcraft based on practices in England as the author says records and information were more readily accessible, while practices in much of Western Europe are similar. The book is detailed, giving information on all aspects of the cult, including rites of passage, ceremonies and so on.
Download or read book Coming to the Edge of the Circle written by Nikki Bado-Fralick and published by OUP USA. This book was released on 2005-07-14 with total page 194 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Imagine yourself sitting on the cool damp earth, surrounded by deep night sky and fields full of fireflies, anticipating the ritual of initiation that you are about to undergo. Suddenly you hear the sounds of far-off singing and chanting, drums booming, rattles "snaking," voices raised in harmony. The casting of the Circle is complete. You are led to the edge of the Circle, where Death, your challenge, is waiting for you. With the passwords of "perfect love" and "perfect trust" you enter Death's realm. The Guardians of the four quarters purify you, and you are finally reborn into the Circle as a newly made Witch.Coming to the Edge of the Circle offers an ethnographic study of the initiation ritual practiced by one coven of Witches located in Ohio. As a High Priestess within the coven as well as a scholar of religion, Nikki Bado-Fralick is in a unique position to contribute to our understanding of this ceremony and the tradition to which it belongs. Bado-Fralick's analysis of this coven's initiation ceremony offers an important challenge to the commonly accepted model of "rites of passage." Rather than a single linear event, initiation is deeply embedded within a total process of becoming a Witch in practice and in community with others.Coming to the Edge of the Circle expands our concept of initiation while giving us insight into one coven's practice of Wicca. An important addition to Ritual Studies, it also introduces readers to the contemporary nature religion variously called Wicca, Witchcraft, the Old Religion, or the Craft.
Download or read book Ember Quartet Digital Collection written by Sabaa Tahir and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2021-06-29 with total page 1804 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Journey deep into the Martial Empire and into “one of the best fantasy series of the last decade” (Buzzfeed) with the complete An Ember in the Ashes quartet by #1 New York Times bestselling author Sabaa Tahir. For the first time together, all in one place, this ebook bind-up includes each complete book of the beloved epic series: An Ember in the Ashes, One of Time Magazine’s 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time A Torch Against the Night, A New York Times bestseller, A USA Today bestseller, A Wall Street Journal bestseller A Reaper at the Gates, An Entertainment Weekly Summer Reads pick A Sky Beyond the Storm, One of Amazon’s Best Young Adult Books of 2020 Praise for An Ember in the Ashes: “Sabaa Tahir spins a captivating, heart-pounding fantasy.” —Us Weekly “This novel is a harrowing, haunting reminder of what it means to be human—and how hope might be kindled in the midst of oppression and fear.” —The Washington Post “An Ember in the Ashes mixes The Hunger Games with Game of Thrones...and adds a dash of Romeo and Juliet.” —The Hollywood Reporter Praise for A Torch Against the Night: “The stakes here are high and the plot runs like a well-oiled machine, ratcheting up the tension with every chapter.” —NPR.org “An adrenaline rush till the very last page.” —Buzzfeed "This sequel has a darker tone and even higher stakes than its predecessor, setting the stage for a thrilling conclusion." —Publishers Weekly, starred review Praise for A Reaper at the Gates: “The book deftly handles serious issues like the costs of genocide and war. Both action-packed and emotionally engaging, A Reaper at the Gates is the perfect summer read.” —The Washington Post "Tahir has created another compelling story that defies readers to stop turning the pages." —Booklist, starred review Praise for A Sky Beyond the Storm: “Tahir’s exquisite storytelling doesn’t miss a beat… This series is an epic hero’s journey, with love, adventure, and magic woven throughout. Recommended for every young adult collection.” —School Library Journal “In A Sky Beyond the Storm, Sabaa Tahir so expertly draws the reader into the lives and thoughts of her characters that their every emotion—anger, pain, love, longing—races through your heart with each turn of the page. A breathtaking conclusion to this incredibly rich and rewarding fantasy series.” —Seira Wilson, Amazon Book Review
Download or read book In Search of the New Forest Coven written by Philip Heselton and published by . This book was released on 2020-09 with total page 316 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1954 a book was published which claimed that witches were not just some historical oddity but that the author, retired civil servant, Gerald Gardner, had been initiated into a witch coven in the New Forest, Hampshire, England in 1939. Many dismissed his claims, but Philip Heselton, who has been investigating the story for over 20 years, is convinced that what Gardner wrote about the witch coven was essentially true. He has found that the New Forest coven was started by a group of esoteric students in the early part of the 20th century who believed in reincarnation and that they had been witches in a previous lifetime. Philip Heselton has uncovered the likely membership of the coven and has brought them to life as never before.
Download or read book His Dark Magic written by Pat Esden and published by Lyrical Press. This book was released on 2018-12-11 with total page 251 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Its power is legendary. It can fulfill every impossible magical desire. But for one young witch seeking redemption, the Northern Circle coven will challenge her skills—and her heart—beyond measure. One tragic impulsive mistake made Chloe Winslow an outcast to her influential magic family. As a medical student, she wants to combine science with sorcery to heal those she hurt and right her wrongs. But brilliant, charismatic Devlin Marsh re-routes her plans with a once-in-eternity offer: membership in the exclusive Northern Circle, a mysterious Vermont coven known for pushing the limits. Enthralled by Devlin and their mesmerizing mutual attraction, Chloe makes a dangerous sacrifice to help the Circle’s high priestess awaken Merlin himself—and learn his timeless cures. But a foreshadowing soon causes Chloe to doubt the Circle's real motives, as well as Devlin’s . . . Now Merlin's demonic shade is loose in the human world, while Chloe and Devlin's uneasy alliance will pit them against ancient enemies, malevolent illusions, and shattering betrayal. And with the fate of two realms in the balance, Chloe must risk her untried power against a force she can't defeat—and a passion that could destroy her. Praise for Pat Esden and her Dark Heart Novels “Esden creates a world of incredible atmosphere.” —RT Book Reviews “This is a fantastic book. Pat Esden is extremely skilled at creating a tense atmosphere and spooky setting. I’d recommend this book to anyone who likes a good story with suspense, romance, and a super cool world.” —Pintip Dunn, New York Times bestselling author, on A Hold on Me “It's a unique paranormal twist on the gothic novel, complete with old family secrets, bloody dilemmas, steamy guy with hidden truths, all set in an vast manor built along the foggy shores of Maine. For anyone in love with Daphne du Maurier. Or if you're just tired of the same old paranormal fodder out there, this one is a nice and refreshing read.” —Rachel A. Marks on A Hold on Me
Download or read book Solitary Pagans written by Helen A. Berger and published by Univ of South Carolina Press. This book was released on 2019-08-12 with total page 203 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An exploration of the increasingly popular phenomenon of solitary practice within contemporary paganism Solitary Pagans is the first book to explore the growing phenomenon of contemporary Pagans who practice alone. Although the majority of Pagans in the United States have abandoned the tradition of practicing in groups, little is known about these individuals or their way of practice. Helen A. Berger fills that gap by building on a massive survey of contemporary practitioners. By examining the data, Berger describes solitary practitioners demographically and explores their spiritual practices, level of social engagement, and political activities. Contrasting the solitary Pagans with those who practice in groups and more generally with other non-Pagan Americans, she also compares contemporary U.S. Pagans with those in the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada. Berger brings to light the new face of contemporary paganism by analyzing those who learn about the religion from books or the Internet and conduct rituals alone in their gardens, the woods, or their homes. Some observers believe this social isolation and political withdrawal has resulted in an increase in narcissism and a decline in morality, while others argue to the contrary that it has produced a new form of social integration and political activity. Berger posits the implications of her findings to reveal a better understanding of other metaphysical religions and those who shun traditional religious organizations.
Download or read book Witching Culture written by Sabina Magliocco and published by University of Pennsylvania Press. This book was released on 2010-11-24 with total page 278 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Taking the reader into the heart of one of the fastest-growing religious movements in North America, Sabina Magliocco reveals how the disciplines of anthropology and folklore were fundamental to the early development of Neo-Paganism and the revival of witchcraft. Magliocco examines the roots that this religious movement has in a Western spiritual tradition of mysticism disavowed by the Enlightenment. She explores, too, how modern Pagans and Witches are imaginatively reclaiming discarded practices and beliefs to create religions more in keeping with their personal experience of the world as sacred and filled with meaning. Neo-Pagan religions focus on experience, rather than belief, and many contemporary practitioners have had mystical experiences. They seek a context that normalizes them and creates in them new spiritual dimensions that involve change in ordinary consciousness. Magliocco analyzes magical practices and rituals of Neo-Paganism as art forms that reanimate the cosmos and stimulate the imagination of its practitioners. She discusses rituals that are put together using materials from a variety of cultural and historical sources, and examines the cultural politics surrounding the movement—how the Neo-Pagan movement creates identity by contrasting itself against the dominant culture and how it can be understood in the context of early twenty-first-century identity politics. Witching Culture is the first ethnography of this religious movement to focus specifically on the role of anthropology and folklore in its formation, on experiences that are central to its practice, and on what it reveals about identity and belief in twenty-first-century North America.
