A serious question for Wiccans?

Question

I am looking for a good, solid book on the history and folklore of Wicca and its history. Without spells in it.
I want to understand its core before I dive into rituals and spells.
Serous answers only or violations will be issued.

no threats
just please no silliness.
want answers from Wiccans who can share

Didn't the Salem witch hunts target Wiccans, Pagans & Witches?
That was not 60 years ago?
Why are people using this number?

Answer 1

ARADIA Or The Gospel Of The Witches
by Charles G Leland

Before Gerald Gardner there was Charles Leland, an explorer who had it in his mind to discover and preserve the secrets of Italian Witchcraft. In seeking contact with practicing witches, he found Maddalena, who transmitted to him the teachings he was searching for. This manuscript-one of the most important manuscripts available to the Pagan community-contains those stories as they were handed down through oral tradition.

HEREDITARY WITCHCRAFT: Secrets Of The Old Religion
by Raven Grimassi

Discover the real sources of many of the traditions, beliefs, and techniques of modern Witchcraft! And what author Raven Grimassi reveals in Hereditary Witchcraft is the documented ancient roots of the Old Religion. One-by-one, Grimassi goes through the tenets of Witchcraft and shows their ancient sources. The association of the pentagram with Witchcraft goes back at least 2,500 years. The idea of the four elements goes back to a philosopher named Empedocles of Sicily in around 475 B.C.E. The practice of many covens today of having a Priestess, Priest, and Maiden can be traced back over 2,000 years to ancient Pompeii. This book is filled with history, myth, and folklore. But it is also filled with rituals and techniques that you can do. On these pages you will learn how to prepare and banish a magic circle. You'll learn rituals you can do by yourself, including those for the Solstices, Diana's Day, and Cornucopia. With this information you can become a follower of the Old Ways! Of course, one of the most famous aspects of Witchcraft is magick. Grimassi doesn't disappoint here, either. You'll learn runic magick and divination; you'll learn about doing magick with the Moon and stars; you'll learn secret symbols and the powers of herbs. If you are a Witch - or you're thinking about becoming a Witch - this is one of the most important books you could possibly have. You'll find the documentation to support the antiquity of your beliefs and the way Witchcraft is practiced today. This book is both a guide for everyday life and a resource to discover Wiccan origins.

Answer 2

Check out Margot Adler's "Drawing Down the Moon" for history, though as Riegan pointed out, it's only about 60 years old. (And yes, stay away from Silver Ravenwolf!)

Also check out Raymond Buckland. If you're looking for philosophy, "The Spiral Dance" and "The Earth Path" by Starhawk are both good, and not "spell-heavy". "The Truth About Witchcraft Today" by Cunningham is a little dated, but may also have information that you're looking for.

Mike Nichols has several good essays on the Sabbats, as well as insightful writings on other Wiccan subjects. He has a website whose URL I can't recall, but if you Google "Mike Nichols sabbats" you should find his home page.

For a broader perspective, Joyce and River Higginbotham have a couple of good books on Pagan spirituality.


"Didn't the Salem witch hunts target Wiccans, Pagans & Witches?
That was not 60 years ago?
Why are people using this number?"

No, they did not. The witch hunts targeted "people who were different" and actually targeted mostly Christians who had done something to cheese off their neighbors. They were CALLED witches, but that didn't mean that they WERE.

http://www.salemwitchtrials.com/salemwitchcraft.html

Wicca was "formalized" in the mid-1900s by Gerald Gardner.

That doesn't mean that magic and witchcraft and paganism didn't exist before then - it means that the drawing together of elements and rituals that we now call "Wicca" only happened about 60 years ago.

Answer 3

The book I received from the first Witch I ever met was Wicca The Old Religion in the New Millennium by Vivian Crowley. It's been several years since I've read it but, it was a really good book. It goes into the symbolism and meaning of the rituals. First it begins by telling the history and 'roots' of Wicca'. This may be the type of book you are looking for. Good luck on your path.
)o( Blessed Be!

Answer 4

There is no single good book on the history and folklore of Wicca.

I would suggest going to the Covenant of the Goddess Website and check out the `About Our Religion'

No offense to some who have answered but the best information you will find on Wicca is going to come from those of us who practice it.

Anyone who isn't Wiccan or a the very least a Witch that seeks to tell you where Wicca came from is either getting their information 2nd or 3rd hand or plain doesn't know what they are talking about.

Answer 5

There are a few books out there on Wicca from a historical basis.

Inventing Witchcraft by Adain Kelly
The Triumph of the Moon: A History of Modern Pagan Witchcraft by Ronald Hutton
Witchcraft From The Inside: Origins of the Fastest Growing Religious Movement in America (Llewellyn's World Religion and Magic) by Raymond Buckland
From Stagecraft to Witchcraft: The Early Years of a High Priestess by Patricia Crowther
and High Priestess by Patricia Crowther

Those are a few of my favorites. Patricia Crowther has some interesting details that none of the others have because she was there at the beginning. She knew Gardner durring the 30's and was the original High Priestess of his coven before Doreen Valiente was involved.

A little bit of history for you to get started with, though it was originally publisized in the 1950's, Wicca was originally created in the 1930's by Gerald Gardner. The religion is a combination of several different pagan concepts, like celtic, italian, stregherian, and more, along with a heavy dose of western ceremonial magick ritualism taken from Hermeticism and Thelema. Many people will say that Aliester Crowley has a lot to do with the creation of wicca, I will agree he was an influence especially on the ritual system, but really had very little direct connection to it. Gardner had only met Crowley 3 times before Crowley's death in 1947, though the two shared corresspondences for several years. Most of Crowley's influence was in helping Gardner to develope the ritual system for Wicca, partly because Gardner had no gift for poetry, and Crowley was a noted poet of his era, and helped Gardner work out the wording for some of the rituals. Hope this helps a little.

Answer 6

If you're looking for history, I absolutely recommend Triumph og the Moon by Ronald Hutton. It's an academic work, full of things like endnotes so you know where he's getting his information. It is, however, dense reading. The first chapter is deadly dull. Please don't give up on the first chapter. It gets much better as you get through it!

I also quite like 50 Years of Wicca by Frederic Lamond. He was a member of Gardner's coven.

I will back up what several others have already said. Wicca is a modern, 20th century religion. They had nothing to do with what happened at Salem.

Answer 7

Ok I can honesty recommend this book.

www.witchcraftshop.co.uk/

Click on shop then books. Click on Wicca.
There is a book called 50 Years of Wicca that is good.

Also go back and click on Reference. scroll down to
TOWARDS AN ACADEMIC STUDY OF BRITISH WICCA
AN INVESTIGATION INTO ITS ORIGINS

Dissertation by Jo Harrington M.A

The latter book I've read and is definitely history. She had her book reviewed by several well known people including Ronald Hutton who wrote Triumph of the Moon.

I hope this helps.

EDIT: Wicca isn't an ancient religion, it was started in the 50's. This is a wonderful reason for you to find reputable history books on Wicca. The witch hunts were more about power and money than witches. The people who were killed were innocent victims of greedy people.

Answer 8

Actually, for the very best information (which is still being pieced together), I recommend that you attend PantheaCon next year - nearly every year a MOST educational talk is given on Wicca/Gerald Gardner/Alex Sanders, etc. by people who have spent YEARS tracking down Gerald's original Priestesses, the source material that Gerald used, and so on.

PantheaCon 2008
February 15-18 at the DoubleTree Hotel in San Jose

The website for it is not finished yet, but check back as time goes on.

Answer 9

Wicca is a relatively young religion, starting with Gerald Gardner less than 100 years ago. Before that, its all heresay as to what Wicca was about.
http://www.unorthodoxdirtchildren.com/reading.html here are some good books to read through

Answer 10

You'll be hard pressed to find such a book. Today's modern witchcraft was brought about by two separate men on two separate - yet similar - paths. Gerald Gardener and Alexander Sanders.

Both set off to writing "how to" books. But very little in terms of history since they were making it up as they went along.

I'm sure this will unsettle a lot of people but... They both loved nudity and ritual. So they took, essentially, a type of "Black Mass" from Aleister Crowley. Both men were students of his. They made it their own and spun off their own versions of witchcraft from that.

That's why you find the chalice, the bell and the paten among Wiccan articles. Along with candles and incense. All trappings of Catholicism. Items for saying mass. That's why so many young Catholics find transitioning from one to the other very easy.

Even the term "Blessed Be" comes from a Catholic prayer called the Divine Praises. An ancient manuscript for Anchoresses (solitary consecrated women) tells them to say their "blessed be" many times a day. These anchoresses (and anchorites - very few of them) were the wise women, herbalists and prophets of their day.

You'll find too that many of the things that come out of England about witchcraft are actually about religious persecution in general. So many of the books I'd read about witchcraft - as it pertains to hidden cabinets and hidey holes - I later discovered came about due to Catholic persecution. Those of the Puritan mentality STILL today call us (Catholics) witches and sorcerers.

The term Wicca is very VERY recent. It is the "politically correct" term. Many will say they are Wiccan and do not do witchcraft. So there has evolved a distinct split between those who do magic - or as some use the term magick to equate the difference between showmanship and spells - and those who simply worship nature.

I agree with the person above. Cunningham's books are a wonderful read. I had one small publication of his about modern witchcraft which may be the closest thing to an answer that you'll get.

I hope his link works...
http://www.amazon.com/Truth-About-Witchcraft-Scott-Cunningham/dp/0875423574

There are many ways to be wiccan. They are all quite different. You need to read a lot. Decide where you want to be. Go from there. The library will be a good source for you.

Know too that the "burning times" are not ended. I believe India put 100 accused witches to death last year alone.

http://www.indiadaily.org/entry/family-of-5-beheaded-for-witchcraft-in-assam/

Edit:
Some below have recommended Buckland. I know someone who dealt with him directly on Long Island. I would avoid his books as the man is unhinged.