Hola, I have been wanting to start my book of shadows for a while now ... I know what goes in it, but could someone list topics/ a index from to help get me going? And also.. Do people suggest Internet book of shadows or hand
Written (I'm really bad at spelling) ahaha! Advise?!
You could write it either on a computer or hand written, it does not matter. However, I would prefer a actual book in front of me and there are many things you could write in there such as personal experiences and writing entries sort of like a diary, research you think is useful, magickal correspondents, spells, potions and whatever you feel is right. Hope this helped! :)
A BoS, in my opinion, can contain any sort of information you would like to keep for future reference. It depends on whether you are planning on handing it down to your children or your apprentence/student one day or if its just for later reference. Personally I write all of the information that I comb through on a daily basis in regular notebook binders until I can experiment with them, meditate on the thoughts of it and make sure they will become part of my magical workings before I put them in my "BoS" type book. Its also my opinion that the book itself becomes magical in and of itself, to the point that if you touch it you can feel the power or to put it another way, when you touch it, it immediately puts your mind in a state of focus to be able to manifest your will in the physical world. I would strongly suggest you make your BoS or at least add things to it that feels powerful and magical to you. I feel that if you put just random spells in it and any other nonsense that you don't feel power from that it isn't doing the book justice and you could get more out of it. If you intend to hand down your book to another or want others to read your rituals and practices one day then by all means put it in there :0) Personally, I don't have ant rituals that I know by heart in my book because I don't really need it in there and I don't intend on handing it down to anyone, mostly because I believe that in order to get the most out of ritualized magic is to customize it to you and what you want to honor or accomplish... so I would teach my student the understanding of the fundamintals/basics of magic as i believe is true and then tell them to make his/her own ritual based on what makes them feel is the most powerful to them. I feel that its much more than just a book, it becomes what you make it and can be a very powerful tool in many different ways but it always comes down to what YOU want and what feels right to YOU :o) I have everything from spells to tea recipes to words that I find very powerful. For me for instance, I will try a spell, write out what I want to accomplish, figure out all the things I feel is important(herbs, colors, plants, days, phase of the moon/planets etc), plan out every detail, make notes of how I feel, how I felt during the spell, anything that I can think would/could be pertainant to the outcome, keep notes of how quickly things changed, any noticeable signs that could be Parr of the results i may choose to cast again with certain tweaks until i have a solid powerful result and then, only after I feel its worthy, will it go into my book. I make notes on certain herbs or any other words or things that I feel is VERY powerful and the notes on the results and how I used them. I leave all of the regular notes as and things in other notebooks or books I have. That what I have in mine and my thoughts on it :) But it comes down to what you want. I hand write all of my stuff in and do what ever feels right and powerful to me. Good luck and have fun! :-D
A real Book of Shadows will have your very own personality and "feel" that is uniquely yours. As I write this post Im contemplating an idea about writing a complete book for beginners through advanced about creating your very own magickal journal that would not serve as your written record of your magickal progress but also to enhance the very rituals and spells you create through your own hand writing.
I've always believed that having a physical book is ideal but you can most certainly use a virtual diary on your iPad or PC. Even using your smartphone as a book of shadows on the go is quite creative. However, having that a real book brings to life everything that you are magickal. Below are two images from my original Book of Shadows with page inserts from circa 1987.
This was purchased at an art supply store in my city. It's main use was intended for art students since the pages are acid free and would last many years to come as opposed to a regular notebook. Thus, a sketch book is great for any book of shadows.
the Pentagram was drawn with a felt tip blue pen. I hard drew the pentagram and then added some glue. I sprinkled some glitter (Its lame i know but, hey - its suppose to be magickal right?).
This is a page from the opening ritual for calling the watchtowers. It was the first rite I had to learn upon initiation from my Gardnerian group. As you can see, I enjoyed drawing and writing but kept pages simple.
Even though i do not practice Wicca anymore that doesn't mean my book will never be in use. Its a part of me literally. As I become better at all my magickal adventures so does my book or books become empowered throughout the years. Now go and find that book that's calling your name.
