The Complete Book of Incense, Oils and Brews (Llewellyn's Practical Magick) (Paperback)

by Scott Cunningham (Author) "MAGIC IS A BYPRODUCT of the oldest science-far older than astronomy, chemistry or biology..." (more)
Key Phrases: household incense, combustible incense, herb magicians, Full Moon, Black Pepper, Bergamot Mint (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
One of the secrets of real magic is that it is controlled by the mind. The more things in your ritual to help your mind associate with your goal, the more powerful your ritual may be. Colored candles, scented oils, natural incenses, and more all add to the impact of the magic you wish to do.
But how do you know which incense to burn? Is it possible to add scented oils together to get a more powerful oil? And how do you make your own, appropriately-scented tools?
The answers to questions like these and hundreds more can be found in The Complete Book of Incense, Oils & Brews by world-famous author Scott Cunningham. This is a greatly expanded and rewritten version of The Magic of Incenses, Oils and Brews. It includes over 100 new formulas, proportions for each element of the recipes (the most requested feature from his previous book), how to substitute ingredients, and much more. Besides the formulas, it also includes the exact methods of making all of these scented tools, including how to extract the essences from the herbs.
Each one of the formulas is precise and easy to make. Do you need luck? Take 2 parts vetivert, 2 parts allspice, 1 part nutmeg, and 1 part calamus, grind them together as finely as possible, then sprinkle the powder in a circle around you, beginning and ending in the East and moving clockwise. Sit within this circle and absorb the powder's energies. Also included are other ways to use magical powders that will have you coming up with your own ideas for them, too.
There is a legion of recipes for incenses. There are three for the sun and two for consecrating talismans. There are incenses for each of the astrological signs and ones to help you study better and gain success. You'll also find incenses for each of the planetary influences. There are four for Saturn alone!
This compendium of magical lore is a vital tool for every magical person on any magical path, whether you are a beginner or an expert.




From the Publisher
I still often think of Scott Cunningham. His contributions to the occult make him one of the most important spiritual people of the last century. His books on Wicca have gently, lovingly, and thoroughly introduced more people to Witchcraft than just about anyone else.
But while Wicca was his spiritual path, it was natural magic that revealed his deep understanding and broad knowledge of herbs and their magical powers. His books on these subjects have become the de facto sources for all sorts of magical people. Already, The Complete Book of Incense, Oils & Brews (an expanded and rewritten version of The Magic of Incenses, Oils and Brews) is owned by over 150,00 readers. You should own it, too.
Today, there are two major trends in magic: natural and ceremonial. They have different methodologies to get the same results. Neither is better, they are just different. The "best" one is whatever you can successfully use.
But there is an interesting thing about these two systems: They both use incenses; they both use scented oils; they both use scented baths and magical teas. That makes this book applicable to any system of magic you may follow!
Besides giving the formulas for hundreds of the scented magical tools, Scott also reveals how you can easily make substitutions in the formulas. In this way, even if you are out of a particular herb to use as you compound your own incenses, oils, powders, and so forth, you will still be able to make magic.
Yes, you will find recipes for scents to use when doing magic for initiations, love, exorcisms, money, health, talismans, elemental energies, astrological energies and for many of the goddesses and gods. But by studying this book you will be able to develop your own, unique recipes and formulas. You will understand how these herbs really work.
And that, my friends, is real magic!




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Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Llewellyn Publications; 2nd edition (September 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0875421288
• ISBN-13: 978-0875421285
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (101 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #18,487 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

95 of 100 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must-have reference book!, May 4, 2000

By A Customer

This is one of my favorite books by Scott Cunningham. He explores so many different methods of magickal creation that there is something for everyone and more. If you want to learn more about making your own incense, brews, potions, powders, inks, soaps, tinctures, oils, herbal baths,etc., YOU MUST BUY THIS BOOK. Each section is informative and full of recipies, explanations, suggestions, and warnings. The chapter on substitution is excellent and the charts and appendixes are helpful as well. The book's tone is more instructional rather than spiritual, especially compared to Cunningham's other books. If you are looking for in-depth information about magical herbs and oils, I highly recommend reading Cunningham's Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs and The Magic of Aromatherapy in addition to The Complete Book of Incense, Oils, and Brews.

30 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic resource!!, December 9, 2002

By	"fluffy20109" (Manassas, Virginia United States) - See all my reviews

If you are looking for a book on Incenses, oils, inks, soaps and more this is an absolute MUST HAVE!!! I couldn't say enough positive things about this book, an excelent addition to any witchcraft library, and FULL of benificial advise. Clear directions on how to make an entire book full of incense, oils ointments,inks, tinctures, herb baths, bath salts, brews, ritual soaps (solid & liquid), Sachets or herbal charms, powders, and there are chapters on substitutions and the considerations for making those substitutions. A chapter on empowering rites, on propotions, on creating your own recipes....
Just an all around wonderful reference book, and not a bad read either. All in all a real 10!! You finish reading a chapter and wish there was more, this book is an essential part of my library, and if you are a serious practitioner, I recomend it as an essential buy for yours...enjoy!! Blessed Be.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great Charts, Adequate Recipes, October 16, 2004

By	Theia (Carrboro, NC United States) - See all my reviews

This book is designed for those with little experience with paganism, or at least with pagan herbalism. It does a great job at explaining the basics of pagan herbalism. It explains the uses of incense, oils, and brews in pagan life and ritual and the ways they are constructed and charged. Most importantly it desbribes the attributes of each common herb and provides complete and informative charts organized by element, by planetary influence, and by area (protection, love, healing, etc.).

It covers incenses, oils, soaps, tincintures, sachets, and brews. The major drawback of this broad coverage is that no one area is covered as fully as possible. The recipes in particular are barely adequate. Each chapter gives dozens of recipes, but most have only a sentence or two of explaination. And they merely rehash the information given by the the charts.

The information is useful, but not significantly different than that found in many other pagan herbalism books. If you do not own such books I recommend this book. It is as direct and useful a beginner text as exists. If you do, don't expect to learn much more from this. Happy Brewing!