The Cyber Spellbook: Magick in the Virtual World [Paperback]

Sirona Knight (Author), Patricia J. Telesco (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 2002

From creating virtual sacred space, to using your microwave and cellular phone for spellcasting this book is the ultimate hands-on companion for technowitches everywhere. Shows how to effectively marry all the magickal potential and powers of modern mechanical gadgetry with traditional metaphysical using humor, wisdom, and old-fashioned creativity. Designed specifically to bring yesterday's insights and modern wonders back into balance. Within these pages technology does not mean the loss of spirituality or a magickal focus. Rather, it becomes the focus! The book includes: cyber spells by theme (love, health, joy), user-friendly techno-focals, cyber dedications, virtual visualizations, proactive computer conjurings, directions on how to make an online Book of Shadows, and much, much more.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Mixing modern technology with witchcraft, Sirona Knight (A Witch Like Me) and Patricia Telesco (An Enchanted Life) offer Cyber Spellbook: Magick in the Virtual World. Although thousands of Wicca enthusiasts use the Web daily for research and to meet people, they may not realize their computer's witchcraft-related properties. For example, a keyboard can represent "creative flow," with the "delete" key an instrument for banishing and the "shift" key helping one shift between the ordinary and magickal worlds. The authors explain ways to integrate technology (from cell phones to lawn mowers) with spells, making this a truly up-to-date Wicca resource.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 190 pages
• Publisher: New Page Books (May 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1564145824
• ISBN-13: 978-1564145826
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,790,073 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Patricia Telesco aka Marian Singer is the mother of three, wife, chief human to 5 pets, and a full-time professional author with over 60 books on the market, each of which represents a different area of spiritual interest for her and her readers.
Trish travels minimally twice a month to give lectures and workshops around the country. She (or her writing) has appeared on several television segments including Sightings on muli-cultural divination systems and National Geographic Today ' Solstice Celebrations. Besides this, Trish maintains a strong, visible presence in the metaphysical community including having given over 300 radio interviews from coast to coast, writings on the internet through popular sites like: www.witchvox.com, her yahoo club: www.groups.yahoo.com/groups/folkmagicwithtrishtelesco, and various appearances on internet chats and bbs boards.
Trish considers herself a down-to-earth Kitchen & folk magician whose love of folklore and worldwide customs flavor every word she writes. Her strongest ethical guidelines are honor, respect, and gratitude in all things.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Didn't quite make it, June 3, 2002

By 

Boudica (Ohio USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Cyber Spellbook: Magick in the Virtual World (Paperback)

Billed as "Magick in the Virtual World" Sirona Knight and Patricia Telesco have tried to repackage Wicca so it relates to the hard core Geeks who follow paganism. Sorry, but it didn't work. It's a book on basic Wicca, with some terms changed to seem like it is technologically spun.

While trying to take Wicca and be innovative about it's application, and by including Ethics and Integrity (which is a good move, btw), instead the attempt was thwarted by the fact that the terminology is a bit antiquated and their updated correspondences quite strange.

For instance trying to update "Charms, Amulets, Talismans, and Fetishes" they mentions AAA batteries. Well, a techno savvy environmentally concerned geek would use rechargables. Just a thought.

The "Just for Fun" insert is right off an email that has been running around the internet for a while "You might be a Cyber Witch if...".

The book has an extensive list of "Cyber Magick Deities" and their cyber-updated attributions. While I could see Zeus as the "Stock Market God", by no means is Merlin a "Deity" (IMO)but he could be the modern day Cyber Wizard as she mentions. And Juno seemed a bit "tongue in cheek" with the "Goddess of Email" attribution. I have some friends who use Juno, and I think they would disagree.

There is another whole section of "Techno-Mechanical and Household Items/Tools" which boiled down to appliance correspondences. While the logic used in attributing these things may be correct, the idea that my breadmaker should be "Fire and Earth" or my dishwasher "A modern hotsprings for implements of the Goddess...." or my hot tub "The cauldron of the Goddess..." well.... see what I mean?

There is a section on stones and on herbs, which is just the same material rehashed again. Ditto with the rituals, same basic rituals, but I was a bit skeptical about using my "mouse as a modern wand". (Visual with the cordless laser mouse in my power hand held up to north as I welcome Earth to my circle, laser light comes on red... and it just doesn't seem as impressive as a Wand or an athame...).

The spell section, again, is nothing but updated old workings that are common sense spells. Anyone who has done spell work before recognizes the rehashed spells, and it is funny to see what is substituted for what to update the material.
"The Color of Money.... Then turn on the (green) flashlight, pointing it in all directions, North, East, South, and West (in that order). Say, Lamp of money, light of prosperity, Bring fortune and wealth to me, Blessed be! So shall it be!"
While it is a grand attempt to update old traditions, it lost something in the translation.

Which is what I think happened to the whole book. While it may have been attempt to update our old practices to correspond with the modern times, some of the charm of the practice is lost. While I do use a "Bic Stick" to light a candle outdoors, substituting an electric candle kind of takes away the simplicity of the practice. I have performed "on -line rituals" with others in cyberspace, but we light candles, we use cauldrons, and we try to be as updated as possible without losing the sense of the Old. We do retire to the hot tub after and our "wallpaper" does reflect some place we would like to be.

The attempt was noble, but it lost a lot in the translation. This is one that you may want to borrow from the library, but not something I want to substitute for a good solid, well grounded (three-prong kind) book on Wicca.

6 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For Forward-Thinking, New Guard Witches, July 12, 2002

By 

Caroline Grant, A New Age Witch From California (California, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Cyber Spellbook: Magick in the Virtual World (Paperback)

This book is certain to delight New Age...As a New Age Witch who truly appreciates innovative ideas, I loved this book!!! For the first time in Pagan history, these two Witches have finally put together a book that speaks to our times. It's up to date. We all use electronics and techno-tools in our magic today--I'm keying this review on my computer, which is one of my main cyber witch tools. All witches with fully functioning and open minds will want this book handy in their libraries to refer to--after all, we live in a techno-world, not the Dark Ages. Half-brained Witches will hate it because it threatens their comfy little niche and beliefs. I'm sure there will be a lot of Old Guard, narrow minded Witches that will freak out and complain at the boldness of these authors. I SALUTE these two authors for pushing the envelope and going beyond the insipid little spellbooks with this wonderful New Age book. These authors are ahead of their times and are breaking new ground--way to go Women! Blessed be Patricia Telesco and Sirona Knight!!! May they continue writing more innovative and leading edge books for Witches like me for a long time to come.

2.0 out of 5 stars Cyber Spellbook Review, March 18, 2009

By 

A. E. Terry - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Cyber Spellbook: Magick in the Virtual World (Paperback)

I got this hoping I'd find a source of inspiration for being more of a Cyber Shaman or Witch and embracing the new with the old.

While I applaud the idea of Innovation, this book just felt too tongue-in-cheek for my tastes. There's a lot of correspondaces that are rehashed from other books, trying to say which Deities translate to modern times and what a more modern approach to them would be, making this come off as another Wicca 101 with an attempt at a Technological Flair or Twist.

And some of the ideas for modern tools and appliances as magickal tools or correspondances for use in magic is just way too hokey.

Did I get anything out of it? I got a few vague ideas and whole lot, not for me. Perhaps with some strong scrutiny, I'd use some of the spells.

The book reads like the joke is on the reader who takes the whole thing seriously. Like the authors wanted to get a book out there to fill a niche, but didn't take the sincere time to do it properly.