Post by Nox on Jun 29, 2016 1:32:17 GMT
Hello! Nox here! This is a post about grimoires and books of shadows. Both are used by witches throughout-all witches have one. However, it’s kinda confusing, isn’t it? What are the differences between them? What makes a grimoire what it is? What makes a Book of Shadows any different? That’s exactly what this is supposed to tell you and it will surely answer any questions you may have.
Starting out, these are both journals that witches use in their craft for notes and spells. One can call it an all-in-one spellbook.
What is a Grimoire? Where did it come from?
What is a Grimoire? A Grimoire is said to be a more ‘official’ Book of Shadows. Often, Grimoires are passed down the family-the start of the witchy lineage or the official book of a Coven. You may not really recognize the word Grimoire, though, even though the Grimoire is the ‘official’ book. However, you’ve more than likely seen the image of the antique leather bound, ominously designed book with lineless pages and realistic drawings of all kinds. It doesn’t need to be that official, though!
So, where does this even come from? Grimoires have been around for quite a while, the oldest excavations being from 4-5 BC. The supposedly ‘oldest' grimoire was found in Mesopotamia, which is now known as Modern Iraq. They were used for the same things as modern grimoires, but they were instead inscribed on clay tablets rather than pen and paper. These were dated all the way back to the 4th and 5th centuries. These were found in the city of Uruk.
Ancient Egyptians actually implemented the use of incantations through magic practices they called heka. This practice, however, was heavily altered after the Macedonians invaded Egypt in 332 BC. In the next three centuries, the Coptic writing system came into play and the Library of Alexandria was opened. Egypt, at the time, was known as Hellenistic Egypt. If Hellenistic rings a bell, you may want to read up on this. It’s thought that Hellenistic books of magic heavily influenced our incantations and magic of now-instead of simply pertaining to health and protection, magic had many branches, ranging from success to sexual fulfillment.
Grimoires had many other influences by Ancient Greeks, Romans, Jews, and Early Christianity.
EDIT: A Grimoire can actually be seen as a more ECLECTIC spellbook while a Book of Shadows is seen as exclusively Wiccan. Not only that, but remember that Hellenistic applies to anything with ANCIENT GREEK INFLUENCE, so Hellenistic Egypt had many influences from the Hellenismos.
What about a Book of Shadows?
Books of Shadows are also used for information and hold directions on what to do to cast a specific spell, divination, creating a talisman or amulet. A Book of Shadows may also contain information on magical rituals and religious texts.
The earliest known Book of Shadows originates from Gardnerian Witchcraft, a modernized Wiccan belief that was brought into play in the 1940s and 50s-which was first used in Gerald Gardner’s ‘Bricket Wood Coven’. He claimed it was a ‘personal cookbook’ as it was full of recipes and instructions. He, too, recognized the importance of the Book of Shadows in history-claiming it had been in use for eons and also stating some rather interesting lore that said that witches would burn their Book of Shadows after death, so that they wouldn’t be found out as a witch.
In 1953, Doreen Valiente, a notorious woman in history known as the ‘mother of modern witchcraft’, joined the ‘Bricket Wood Coven’ and became its ‘High Priestess’. She had looked into the Book of Shadows and saw that the writings were actually from Occultist Aleister Crowley-rather than from ancient texts as Gardner has previously claimed. When confronting Gardner, he merely stated “If you think you can do better, than go ahead.” Valiente, fearing Crowley’s teachings and reputation, obliged-said motivation being to rewrite it and make it something of their own, a product of her mind and something personal.
In modern British Traditional Wicca, many traditional witches will own two Books of Shadows, one being for a coven and containing practices and rituals and another being more personal and containing a witch’s notes on herbal lore, astrology, and divination.
In Eclectic Witchcraft, a book of shadows is much less official and is mostly used for personal things. Of course, it’ll still contain rituals, spells, notes, etc. However, an Eclectic’s Book of Shadows is often very personal and won’t be passed down or used in a coven. Many modern witches actually prefer, or unknowingly use, Books of Shadows in this way.
What are they used for? Why have one?
As stated before, both books are used for notes and rituals. It’s ‘The Witch’s Journal’ and contains whatever you feel is necessary-and relevant to your craft. It can as personal or impersonal as you wish for it to be and you can do whatever you want with it, really. It’s not really productive to not have one-even if you don’t use it much. One should have a Book of Shadows/Grimoire simply because you might want to keep notes. It doesn’t have to be spells and rituals! It can actually include things such as drawings, dreams, it can even be a tarot journal. A BoS/Grimoire is yours in the end. Do whatever you want with it, really.
What's the difference between a Grimoire and a Book of Shadows?
Now to the most important question. What’s the difference?
In my own personal opinion, both are honestly too similar for them to be very different. I use the terms interchangeably, however, some witches and Wiccans may be a bit sensitive about the terms. So, I’ll just acknowledge the difference here for those who want clarity or recognition of what these mean.
A Book of Shadows is more personal. It contains thoughts, feelings, dreams-it’s basically the definition of a journal except that it also contains spells and rituals. However, one might say that a Book of Shadows is more focused on you as a person and how you modify your craft to fit you rather than focusing on the practicality of things.
Meanwhile, a Grimoire may be more focused on your craft and how to do things. It’s a book of instructions and practices. There aren’t many personal things put into a Grimoire. It may contain information on an herb or something, but it often just contains recipes or guidelines on how to do certain things related to your craft.
How do I make one? Where do I start?
Well, first, you need something to insert your content into. Your journal, as it will be called for neutrality, can even be on the internet. However, if you want something a bit more authentic and personal, you can go for a journal. In my opinion, you don’t need a super expensive journal with any sort of intricate design. A rule of mine is “You should never spend a lot of money on your craft no matter what.” Don’t blow your money on a twenty dollar journal-rather, settle with a couple of composition notebooks. It really doesn’t have to be anything official.
From that point, you begin to write in it. If you’ve read this post to its entirety, you probably already know just what to put in it. But where do you start?
A good place to start is with an ‘About Me’ section. You probably already know who you are, so what’s the point? It gets you familiar with the things you may associate with your craft. Not only that but having something personal can increase the power that your journal contains. Here’s some things you can put into your ‘About Me’ section:
• A standard About Me page (name, place of birth, birth weight/height, time of birth, etc)
• A page dedicated to your zodiac sign (drawings, constellations, stone/metal/color/herbs/angel/deity/musical tone/etc. correspondences)
• Your zodiac birth chart and traits (calculate here)
• Your birth tarot cards, and info about the cards (calculate here)
• Information about crystals you feel particularly drawn to (chemical equations, structures, uses)
• Information about herbs you feel particularly drawn to (illustrations, magical and medicinal uses). If you have a garden, take a moment to talk about your gardening practices here.
• Deities you feel drawn to (if applicable) - discuss history, myths, correspondences
This is a great place to start and it helps you get used to writing in your journal.
What goes into a Grimoire/Book of Shadows?
While reading this post probably explained a lot of things quite well, you may still be confused on just what to put in your journal. But fret not because there’s a lot of references for that. A good starter would be:
Leaf Rubbings
Pressed flowers
Sketches of Crystals, Herbs, Flowers, ect.
Correspondences for Crystals and there magickal properties.
Correspondences for Herbs and there magickal properties.
Sketches of the constellations as well as there correspondences.
Jot down your dreams and what they mean to you (or make a dream diary separate from your BOS/Grimoire).
Altar diagrams
Candle Correspondences.
Keep track of the Lunar cycle and write down what each phase means to you and which phase is best to do which spell/ritual.
A list of deities you incorporate into your practices.
Whatever sacred days you participate in and what you do to honor them.
About your beliefs.
About the path you follow.
Prayers
Chants
Information on the elements and their correspondences.
Herbalisim
Divination practices
Tarot readings
Runes
Recipes
Healing salves
Potions
Teas
Spells
Other religious teachings that inspire you.
Communicating with spirits and writing down their messages.
Any psychic practices or studies
The angels you incorporate in your craft.
Astrology
Your zodiac. Maybe monthly horoscopes?
How to garden by the phases of the moon.
What are the dos and don'ts of keeping a Grimoire/Book of Shadows?
Technically, since a jounral is entirely yours and it’s up to you what you do with it, there aren’t really any real ‘rules’ of keeping one. Honestly, just treat your journal like you would any other book. Avoid getting it wet, keep it out of areas where it could easily fade, etc. That’s all.
What are some beliefs that go with having a Grimoire/Book of Shadows?
You’re allowed to add in your own beliefs, but here’s some pretty common ones:
• You must write your journal by hand-this allows for your energy to charge and make the journal and spells/rituals within more powerful
• The book of shadows is normally associated with the design of the dragon’s eye and tree of life. The Tree of Life is actually based on the Celtic version of the Kabbalah Tree of Life. Dragon’s eye works for protection and security.
• It is often believed that a Book of Shadows is merely a ‘spellbook’, written in foreign texts that can’t be deciphered for the life of anyone, however, they’re really just whatever a witch wishes them to be.
• Allowing people to write in your journal takes the power away from it. Only you should write in it.
How do I make my Grimoire/Book of Shadows 'mine'?
Some suggestions:
• List information about your deities/rituals/beliefs/holidays/etc
• Make it into your craft journal if you want! Keep track of your progress as you continue on with your craft!
• Cleanse and Consencrate your journal (will be making a post about that soon)
• You can also organize the journal how you see fit
• You can decorate it as well
• Perhaps make multiple copies of your grimoire-a full sized, pocket sized, and digital one-whatever makes you feel secure
SOURCE 1 || SOURCE 2 || SOURCE 3 || SOURCE 4 || SOURCE 5 || SOURCE 6
Starting out, these are both journals that witches use in their craft for notes and spells. One can call it an all-in-one spellbook.
What is a Grimoire? Where did it come from?
What is a Grimoire? A Grimoire is said to be a more ‘official’ Book of Shadows. Often, Grimoires are passed down the family-the start of the witchy lineage or the official book of a Coven. You may not really recognize the word Grimoire, though, even though the Grimoire is the ‘official’ book. However, you’ve more than likely seen the image of the antique leather bound, ominously designed book with lineless pages and realistic drawings of all kinds. It doesn’t need to be that official, though!
So, where does this even come from? Grimoires have been around for quite a while, the oldest excavations being from 4-5 BC. The supposedly ‘oldest' grimoire was found in Mesopotamia, which is now known as Modern Iraq. They were used for the same things as modern grimoires, but they were instead inscribed on clay tablets rather than pen and paper. These were dated all the way back to the 4th and 5th centuries. These were found in the city of Uruk.
Ancient Egyptians actually implemented the use of incantations through magic practices they called heka. This practice, however, was heavily altered after the Macedonians invaded Egypt in 332 BC. In the next three centuries, the Coptic writing system came into play and the Library of Alexandria was opened. Egypt, at the time, was known as Hellenistic Egypt. If Hellenistic rings a bell, you may want to read up on this. It’s thought that Hellenistic books of magic heavily influenced our incantations and magic of now-instead of simply pertaining to health and protection, magic had many branches, ranging from success to sexual fulfillment.
Grimoires had many other influences by Ancient Greeks, Romans, Jews, and Early Christianity.
EDIT: A Grimoire can actually be seen as a more ECLECTIC spellbook while a Book of Shadows is seen as exclusively Wiccan. Not only that, but remember that Hellenistic applies to anything with ANCIENT GREEK INFLUENCE, so Hellenistic Egypt had many influences from the Hellenismos.
What about a Book of Shadows?
Books of Shadows are also used for information and hold directions on what to do to cast a specific spell, divination, creating a talisman or amulet. A Book of Shadows may also contain information on magical rituals and religious texts.
The earliest known Book of Shadows originates from Gardnerian Witchcraft, a modernized Wiccan belief that was brought into play in the 1940s and 50s-which was first used in Gerald Gardner’s ‘Bricket Wood Coven’. He claimed it was a ‘personal cookbook’ as it was full of recipes and instructions. He, too, recognized the importance of the Book of Shadows in history-claiming it had been in use for eons and also stating some rather interesting lore that said that witches would burn their Book of Shadows after death, so that they wouldn’t be found out as a witch.
In 1953, Doreen Valiente, a notorious woman in history known as the ‘mother of modern witchcraft’, joined the ‘Bricket Wood Coven’ and became its ‘High Priestess’. She had looked into the Book of Shadows and saw that the writings were actually from Occultist Aleister Crowley-rather than from ancient texts as Gardner has previously claimed. When confronting Gardner, he merely stated “If you think you can do better, than go ahead.” Valiente, fearing Crowley’s teachings and reputation, obliged-said motivation being to rewrite it and make it something of their own, a product of her mind and something personal.
In modern British Traditional Wicca, many traditional witches will own two Books of Shadows, one being for a coven and containing practices and rituals and another being more personal and containing a witch’s notes on herbal lore, astrology, and divination.
In Eclectic Witchcraft, a book of shadows is much less official and is mostly used for personal things. Of course, it’ll still contain rituals, spells, notes, etc. However, an Eclectic’s Book of Shadows is often very personal and won’t be passed down or used in a coven. Many modern witches actually prefer, or unknowingly use, Books of Shadows in this way.
What are they used for? Why have one?
As stated before, both books are used for notes and rituals. It’s ‘The Witch’s Journal’ and contains whatever you feel is necessary-and relevant to your craft. It can as personal or impersonal as you wish for it to be and you can do whatever you want with it, really. It’s not really productive to not have one-even if you don’t use it much. One should have a Book of Shadows/Grimoire simply because you might want to keep notes. It doesn’t have to be spells and rituals! It can actually include things such as drawings, dreams, it can even be a tarot journal. A BoS/Grimoire is yours in the end. Do whatever you want with it, really.
What's the difference between a Grimoire and a Book of Shadows?
Now to the most important question. What’s the difference?
In my own personal opinion, both are honestly too similar for them to be very different. I use the terms interchangeably, however, some witches and Wiccans may be a bit sensitive about the terms. So, I’ll just acknowledge the difference here for those who want clarity or recognition of what these mean.
A Book of Shadows is more personal. It contains thoughts, feelings, dreams-it’s basically the definition of a journal except that it also contains spells and rituals. However, one might say that a Book of Shadows is more focused on you as a person and how you modify your craft to fit you rather than focusing on the practicality of things.
Meanwhile, a Grimoire may be more focused on your craft and how to do things. It’s a book of instructions and practices. There aren’t many personal things put into a Grimoire. It may contain information on an herb or something, but it often just contains recipes or guidelines on how to do certain things related to your craft.
How do I make one? Where do I start?
Well, first, you need something to insert your content into. Your journal, as it will be called for neutrality, can even be on the internet. However, if you want something a bit more authentic and personal, you can go for a journal. In my opinion, you don’t need a super expensive journal with any sort of intricate design. A rule of mine is “You should never spend a lot of money on your craft no matter what.” Don’t blow your money on a twenty dollar journal-rather, settle with a couple of composition notebooks. It really doesn’t have to be anything official.
From that point, you begin to write in it. If you’ve read this post to its entirety, you probably already know just what to put in it. But where do you start?
A good place to start is with an ‘About Me’ section. You probably already know who you are, so what’s the point? It gets you familiar with the things you may associate with your craft. Not only that but having something personal can increase the power that your journal contains. Here’s some things you can put into your ‘About Me’ section:
• A standard About Me page (name, place of birth, birth weight/height, time of birth, etc)
• A page dedicated to your zodiac sign (drawings, constellations, stone/metal/color/herbs/angel/deity/musical tone/etc. correspondences)
• Your zodiac birth chart and traits (calculate here)
• Your birth tarot cards, and info about the cards (calculate here)
• Information about crystals you feel particularly drawn to (chemical equations, structures, uses)
• Information about herbs you feel particularly drawn to (illustrations, magical and medicinal uses). If you have a garden, take a moment to talk about your gardening practices here.
• Deities you feel drawn to (if applicable) - discuss history, myths, correspondences
This is a great place to start and it helps you get used to writing in your journal.
What goes into a Grimoire/Book of Shadows?
While reading this post probably explained a lot of things quite well, you may still be confused on just what to put in your journal. But fret not because there’s a lot of references for that. A good starter would be:
Leaf Rubbings
Pressed flowers
Sketches of Crystals, Herbs, Flowers, ect.
Correspondences for Crystals and there magickal properties.
Correspondences for Herbs and there magickal properties.
Sketches of the constellations as well as there correspondences.
Jot down your dreams and what they mean to you (or make a dream diary separate from your BOS/Grimoire).
Altar diagrams
Candle Correspondences.
Keep track of the Lunar cycle and write down what each phase means to you and which phase is best to do which spell/ritual.
A list of deities you incorporate into your practices.
Whatever sacred days you participate in and what you do to honor them.
About your beliefs.
About the path you follow.
Prayers
Chants
Information on the elements and their correspondences.
Herbalisim
Divination practices
Tarot readings
Runes
Recipes
Healing salves
Potions
Teas
Spells
Other religious teachings that inspire you.
Communicating with spirits and writing down their messages.
Any psychic practices or studies
The angels you incorporate in your craft.
Astrology
Your zodiac. Maybe monthly horoscopes?
How to garden by the phases of the moon.
What are the dos and don'ts of keeping a Grimoire/Book of Shadows?
Technically, since a jounral is entirely yours and it’s up to you what you do with it, there aren’t really any real ‘rules’ of keeping one. Honestly, just treat your journal like you would any other book. Avoid getting it wet, keep it out of areas where it could easily fade, etc. That’s all.
What are some beliefs that go with having a Grimoire/Book of Shadows?
You’re allowed to add in your own beliefs, but here’s some pretty common ones:
• You must write your journal by hand-this allows for your energy to charge and make the journal and spells/rituals within more powerful
• The book of shadows is normally associated with the design of the dragon’s eye and tree of life. The Tree of Life is actually based on the Celtic version of the Kabbalah Tree of Life. Dragon’s eye works for protection and security.
• It is often believed that a Book of Shadows is merely a ‘spellbook’, written in foreign texts that can’t be deciphered for the life of anyone, however, they’re really just whatever a witch wishes them to be.
• Allowing people to write in your journal takes the power away from it. Only you should write in it.
How do I make my Grimoire/Book of Shadows 'mine'?
Some suggestions:
• List information about your deities/rituals/beliefs/holidays/etc
• Make it into your craft journal if you want! Keep track of your progress as you continue on with your craft!
• Cleanse and Consencrate your journal (will be making a post about that soon)
• You can also organize the journal how you see fit
• You can decorate it as well
• Perhaps make multiple copies of your grimoire-a full sized, pocket sized, and digital one-whatever makes you feel secure
SOURCE 1 || SOURCE 2 || SOURCE 3 || SOURCE 4 || SOURCE 5 || SOURCE 6