Customer Reviews

Celebrate the Earth: A Year of Holidays in the Pagan Tradition

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is the best book I've read concerning the Pagan Sabbats. It includes spells, oils, incense, feasts, and of course rituals for each holiday. The rituals are written for coven use but I've found they can be easily modified to fit solitary practice, as well. For anyone interested in Celtic folklore or just the holidays, this is the book to get.

This was the first book I ever read on Witchcraft several years ago. I enjoyed the Celtic stories behind the Sabbats, and I found a lot of information that I still use to this day. For example; the mead recipe, the "how-to" on candle and oil making, and the basic altar set-up. Although some of the spells do have hard-to-find ingredients, I found the book just plain fun. Anyway, it's not the only book I have encountered that has spells with unobtainable ingredients.

I have been searching for a good Sabbats Book for a long time. Finally, one day I came across this book. It was great! I go back to it all the time. After an information filled section on each sabbat, you will find a short story on some aspect of that holiday, followed by a section entitled Earth Magic. In this section you will find sample rituals, garb, prepartation, herbcraft, spellcraft, magical stones and lore. The rituals are for groups though, that is the only problem, but I suppose you could change them for solitary use. Earth magic also has recipies for oil mixtures and some spells to try out.

Following Earth Magic you will find the section entitled Holiday Fare. This is where you will find recipies for dishes you can make for meals or desserts. After that you will find Ancient Activities which includes crafts and lore related to the season.

Even the appendices have valueable information that will have you looking back again and again. I don't rate many books with 5 stars, only the ones I believe truly deserve it, and this book is one of them.

There is much to recommend this book to a new person. Even one that's been around awhile will find new ideas here. If one is interested in a book with a Celtic bent, this is a fine book.

However, the shear amounts of ingredients for oils, incenses, etc, is unnecessary for a successful ritual. A new person trying to follow all the recipes might go mad trying to collect everything. I guess I come from the "Less is more" school of Wicca...

It was all around a very good book. I just didn't like the fact that it had rituals for groups but none for the solitary practitioner. I think this book gave a very good understanding on the different types of holidays that are celebrated. I have started Paganism about 5 months ago and I had bought this book because I wanted to know more about the holidays. I think it is a very good book for both people interested in Paganism and for people who have been in Paganism a long time.

Celebrate The Earth/A Year of Holidays in The Pagan Tradition/
by Laurie Cabot/ with Jean Mills
This is the most spiritually uplifting book that I have had the pleasure of reading.
I keep it as a reference book and find that I often delight in refering back to it.
This is the only such book I have ever found, that includes Faery and Merfolk magic, traditions and earth celebrations!
It even includes rare knowledge on The Celtic Catti-Tribe of Ireland!("catpeople")
With a love and appreciation for wildlife, ecology & an inclusive loving spirituality-this book fills a deep intrinsic need of the soul.
This wonderful book will appeal to many people with diverse callings, such as animism, shamanism, paganism, wiccans, nature religions, faery and merfolk faiths or any harmonic combination of these and more!
It also includes teachings, original ideas, crafts, recipes and lovely line-art.
Fantastic for the learned and the beginner alike!
The loving nature of the author comes through in every line.
It is a verbal symphony for feeling the celebrating of "The Seasonal Wheel of The Year"!
It has brought me much happiness and healing and has opened my loving eyes!
A MUST HAVE! You will love this book!

This is my favorite all-time book on pagan holidays. It contains beautiful descriptions and metaphors, and her visualizations are glorious. I greatly admire the author for her depth and sensitivity.

The book came as described and you can never go wrong with anything written by Laurie Cabett. She is a very interesting woman. I met her on while I was in Salem and she is a lovely lady..

I thought the rituals in this book were quite beautiful; some of the best I have encountered for imagery and poetry. However, some of the ingredients for the spells would be extremely difficult to come by for the average practitioner (e.g. wolf's hair from a live, shedding wolf). It would be nice to have alternatives for some of these spells. The format is well done with the holidays organized symmetrically with one another. As a solitary, it would be difficult to incorporate the ritual elements into one's practice, but the beauty of it makes it well worth the time to study.

Laurie Cabot is an wonderful person, remarkable witch and, as she has proven here again, an excellent writer. Her style is clear, with interesting history, stories, insights and humor.
I'd like to see more illustrations, for the benefit of those who may not have much background in the sciences, but frankly, Laurie's writing conjures up the imagination, too.
For those who wish to ground their knowledge and experience of Witchcraft through scientific understanding as well, then each of her books are a must.