Dorothy Morrison - "Utterly Wicked: Curses, Hexes & Other Unsavory Notions"

I have not read this book yet. But I am curious about it. I mean, how does it look someone who is involved with Wicca and Neopaganism, writting and teaching how to cast curses...? What does she mean whe she says "obliterate" your toughest problems...?

Anyway... I'll read it when I finish another book that I am reading at this moment...

"Hexes, curses and other unsavory notions. Most magical practitioners won't even discuss them. Why? Because they'd much rather find a positive solution that benefits all concerned. And, there's nothing wrong with that. Occasionally, though, our problems are such that nothing in the positive solution arena will handle them. It's time to make a decision to stand tough, be strong, and take definitive action to defend ourselves.

And, if you're ready to do that-if you're ready to own that action and take responsibility for it-then Utterly Wicked is the book for you! Jam-packed with more than one hundred rituals, incantations, hexes and curses, this book is the quintessential primer for learning all those magical tricks that no one wants to talk about. Do you know the proper way to enter a cemetery? Utterly Wicked tells you how, as well as the proper methods for collecting and using graveyard dirt. Explore the little known secrets of the 11" fashion doll and see why it's become such a valuable magical tool. Then learn to prepare Hot Foot Powder, Four Thieves Vinegar, Goofer Dust, and other magical components specifically designed to obliterate your toughest problems.

Most important, though, you'll also find the tools to protect yourself, your family, and your home from ever being bothered with these sorts of difficulties again. A must have for any Witch's bookshelf!" (From Amazon.com)

Down:

"The Temple of High Witchcraft: Ceremonies, Spheres and The Witches' Qabalah" - Christhopher Penczak

Very interesting book.

It is obvious that the author makes a crossover between teachings from different magic systems. For instance, the material on the Qabalah follows orthodox Golden Dawn teaching very closely.
I say that this is a very useful book for those who are searching for a very easy to read accessible information.
However, I must say that this book does not offer very useful informations to experienced ceremonial magicians.

As a final comment, I really do not know why the title of the book is "(...) high witchcraft".

Down:

"Nocturnicon: Calling Dark Forces and Powers" - Konstantinos

A Dark Neopagan, Konstantinos has been researching the occult and practicing magick for over fifteen years. Born and raised in Long Island, New York, Konstantinos now devotes his time to writing, singing Gothic rock music, and exploring nocturnal life in New York City

Dark Magick in the sense that it is not inherently evil, but something that alot of the contemporary wiccans would shun. So if you are looking for black magick, you will disappointed. Which is why I think the other reviewers wrote as they did.

His magick is usable, and is indeed different than modern magick. I do not consider this a weakness. There are Elements in these rites if you know what you are looking at. However, death, darkness and such are chaotic. Hence the chaotic way of forming the circle. Those who understand the balance of nature also understand that light=order and dark=chaos. These rites were refreshing, and interesting to read. Some people claim he is making his own kind of magick...but is that not we all do when we write our own spells and such? Some claim he is pandering to goth mentality. Well, I suppose you could say that any other wiccan or ceremonialist is pandering to the fluffy bunny mentality also. It is a matter of perspective.

Indeed, a very useful book!

Down:

"Nocturnal Witchcraft: Magick After Dark" - Konstantinos

Nocturnal Energies differ from those of Daylight and Witches have long known how to take advantage of Lunar Powers and the spiritual entities that prefer the darkness for particular magical operations.

Down:

"Something Wicked This Way Comes: Constructing the Witch in Contemporary American Popular Culture" - Catherine Armetta Shufelt

Perhaps this is one of the biggest problems that I see in most of people who does have interest in any field of study of the unconventional sciences: The lack of interest in other fields of study that could very useful and could help to keep the mind open.   
It is sad to see the people creating their own truth and  unfortunately, closing their eyes to other issues that could be very useful for the understanding of the world that surrounds us...


Therefore, every time  that I find some interesting and intriguing text - even if does not have anything to do with the occult - I will upload it here... This is the case of this Academic Dissertation from Catherine Armetta Shufelt. 



"Something Wicked This Way Comes: Constructing the Witch in Contemporary American Popular Culture" - Catherine Armetta Shufelt

What is a Witch?

Traditional mainstream media images of Witches tell us they are evil “devil worshipping baby killers,” green-skinned hags who fly on brooms, or flaky tree huggers who dance naked in the woods. A variety of mainstream media has worked to support these notions as well as develop new ones. Contemporary American popular culture shows us images of Witches on television shows and in films vanquishing
demons, traveling back and forth in time and from one reality to another, speaking with dead relatives, and attending private schools, among other things. None of these mainstream images acknowledge the very real beliefs and traditions of modern Witches and Pagans, or speak to the depth and variety of social, cultural, political, and environmental work being undertaken by Pagan and Wiccan groups and individuals
around the world.

Utilizing social construction theory, this study examines the “historical process” of the construction of stereotypes surrounding Witches in mainstream American society as well as how groups and individuals who call themselves Pagan and/or Wiccan have utilized the only media technology available to them, the internet, to resist and reconstruct these images in order to present more positive images of themselves as well as
build community between and among Pagans and nonPagans.

Down:

The Luciferian Path: the Witches Sabbat - Michael Ford

Down

Luciferian Sorcery and Set Typhon - Michael Ford

Down

The Witch Cult of Zos vel Thanatos - Michael Ford

Down

Portable Magic: Tarot Is the Only Tool You Need - Donald Tyson

Down

Familiar Spirits: A Unique System of Power Glyphs - Donald Tyson

Down

Seidr Magic - Ed Richardson

Of all the reconstructed systems of archaic magickal practice, Seidr seems to be one of the most misunderstood. This is partly because of its sinister reputation, and partly because of sexist notions that only women ever practised divination. All too often Seidr is mistaken for the craft of the Volva, where in reality (if such a notion is useful) the Volvas were only part of a far wider practice. In order to make sense of the collection of beliefs and practices which make up Seidr, some definitions shall be considered, followed by a look at some of the practices involved and their implications. This whole essay shall illustrate examples found in the myths of Northern Europe.

Seidr literally means 'seething' or 'boiling' and has much in common with shamanism and other forms of primitive magick. Indeed it is highly likely that Seidr is an adaptation of shamanic practices to suit the culture and times, when primitive society evolved discovering religion, agriculture and metallurgy. However, Seidr is not a religious practice; it is a magickal practice which is where some of its sinister reputation originates. Jan Fries explains that the Seidr magickians would sell their craft, which makes them something akin to occult mercenaries. Its use is always pragmatic and is reflected as such in the myths. The myths play a vital role in understanding Northern magick as they show how the Aesir, Vanir, Giants and Humanity used magick to deal with problems, hinting at techniques that may be useful today.

Down

The Dark Side of the Moon - Basil Lacroix Aka Basil Crouch

Down

Against The Neopagans - Julius Evola

Extracted from "Grundisse" by Julius Evola The Misunderstandings of the New "Paganism".

"(...) It is perhaps appropriate to point out the misunderstandings that are current at the moment in some radical circles, who believe that a solution lies in the direction of a new paganism. This misunderstanding is already visible in the use of terms such as "pagan" and "pagandom". I myself, having used these expressions as slogans in a book that was published in Italy in 1928, and in Germany in 1934, have cause for sincere regrets. Certainly the word for pagan or heathen, paganus, appears in some ancient Latin writers such as Livy without an especially negative tone. But this does not alter the fact that with the arrival of the new faith, the word paganus became a decidedly disparaging expression, as used in early Christian apologetics. It derives from pagus, meaning a small town or village, so that paganus refers to the peasant way of thinking: an uncultured, primitive, and superstitious way. In order to promote and glorify the new faith, the apologists had the bad habit of elevating themselves through the denigration of other faiths. There was often a conscious and often systematic disparagement and misrepresentation of almost all the earlier traditions, doctrines, and religions, which were grouped under the contemptuous blanket -term of paganism or heathendom.

To this end, the apologists obviously made a premeditated effort to highlight those aspects of the pre- Christian religions and traditions that lacked any normal or primordial character, but were clearly forms that had fallen into decay. Such a polemical procedure lead, in particular, to the characterization of whatever had preceded Christendom, and was hence non-Christian, as necessarily anti-Christian."

Down

 Notes & Updates:
---------------------------------------

1 -) To think about:

1.1 - Paradox definition: 
"(...) A paradox may be described as: ‘an idea which seems to conflict with conventional logic’. Strategic planning has acquired such a conventional logic, or set of paradigms, which enables its practitioners to structure and understand their activities. However, some years of being a practitioner has convinced the author that good management and good planning often violate these principles. It is necessary to restate them, or frequently to invert them, to obtain a useful structure for successful planning."

Long Range Planning, Volume 19, Issue 6, December 1986, Pages 21-24
John Robinson

Note: 
"theoretical paradoxes and potential problems that occur when the ideas and beliefs of Nature Religion adherents (specifically Wiccans) are juxtaposed with many believers' utilisation and seeming dependence on the technological (read: non-natural), hyper-real communication medium of the Internet for communicating and developing their nature-based ideologies, for the enhancement of their experience of Wiccan practices through ritual, and for community creation and growth."

Witcha: A Book of Cunning - Nathaniel Harris

Down