In The Circle: Crafting the Witches' Path

by Elen Hawke

Daffodils dance in a chilly spring breeze . . . a butterfly alights on a sunny marigold . . . sleepy autumn energy moves through an apple tree . . . in a winter garden, a redstart greedily strips berries from holly. And so the seasons rise and fall, the wheel of the year turns, and the sacred circle of birth, death, and regeneration goes on. This simple and beautiful guide combines author Elen Hawke's personal accounts of sabbats and moon rites with clear, common sense instruction that makes witchcraft accessible to anyone who wishes to enter the circle. Journey through the Moon's phases and the eight seasonal festivals; gain an understanding of Goddess and God; learn how to build a shrine, perform ritual, and collect or make magical tools. Evocative and poetic, In the Circle will take you deeper into your inner core, the place where you can connect to the spirit of Nature and to your own innate knowledge. Tree and bird, stone and star The spirituality of witchcraft is experienced through the world around us, through Nature and through the bodies in which we live. The sense of the divine is not remote from the world, but is part of one's own being. To be a witch means living in harmony with the ebb and flow of the seasonal tides and the cycles of Sun, Moon, and weather; to have a love of everything that lives, a respect for and sympathy with tree and bird, stone and star, as well as our fellow humans. This is expressed through aligning oneself with the unfolding patterns of the ritual year, and the monthly waxing and waning of the moon. Witches believe that working in harmony with these cycles will nourish the spirit of the land while aligning their own spiritual development with the soul of Nature. -Elen Hawke

Genres: Witchcraft, Paganism, Spirituality

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

I'm a writer, photographer, artist and musician and play guitar and Gaelic wire harp. I am also a tarot reader, an astrologer and a Druid. My life has been exciting and varied, encompassing many different occupations including barmaid, farm hand, teaching English as a foreign language in Istanbul and working with teenagers in an inner city school, plus travel to countries such as Iran, Greece, Turkey and Afghanistan. I studied for a BA Honours degree in graphic design at art school and hold an HNC in Photography and Digital Imaging. I've lived in the Middle East, Cyprus, Germany, Holland and Brittany and now live with my partner and family in the beautiful city of Oxford, England.

Reviews

[Jenett · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are things I very much like about this book - in particular, I love the interweaving of experiential descriptions (the book begins with a description of a ritual, and further descriptions are interlaced between explanatory chapters.) The language is lovely and evocative, and it shows a variety of different ritual and magical experiences.

However, on re-reading it, I realised I'd forgotten that it's got a few flaws, too - in particular, a number of details are, if not outright wrong, at least a little iffy. (These are mostly historical, not practical, though.)

I still recommend it, but with caveats that I recommend it more for feel than for detail.

[Tasha Thibodeau · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is special to me because it was the first book on Wicca, I read and purchased.
The author, Elen Hawke has a beautiful way with words and the book creates an atmosphere of magick around you. It is informative and will take you through rituals, the Goddess and God, magickal tools, working with magick, Sabbats, and many other witchy topics. The rituals are clear and easy to reproduce. Like other reviewers have mentioned some historical references are a little inaccurate, however that aside, I would still give this book 5 stars because of the tone and the way it makes you feel like a witch. I highly recommend it to anyone interested in learning about Wicca.