Falcon Feather & Valkyrie Sword: Feminine Shamanism, Witchcraft & Magick (Llewellyn's Women's Spirituality Series) [Paperback]

D.J. Conway (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 8, 1996

This book tells how to reclaim your innate magical power and take control of your destiny. With this work women can regain those long-forgotten secrets and strengthen their connection with the Goddess through the array of rituals, practical exercises, guided journeys and magical techniques presented here. It focuses on magical practices geared to the special needs of women who may use the shamanic powers and magic of ancient women from the Norse regions, Middle East, Greece, India and the Celtic areas. The book reveals how to: discover why women-only groups can perform magic that male-female groups cannot; find over 50 spells specifically created to answer the needs of women; and use the runes, ogam alphabet, shamanic stones, and Egyptian hieroglyphs for divination and magic.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

A native of the Pacific Northwest, author D.J. Conway has studied the occult fields for over 35 years. Her quest for knowledge has covered every aspect of Paganism and Wicca to New Age and Eastern philosophies; plus history, the magical arts, philosophy, customs, mythologies and folklore. In 1998, she was voted Best Wiccan and New Age author by Silver Chalice, a Pagan magazine.

Conway is the author of  more than 20 nonfiction  books including: Celtic Magic (Llewellyn), Dancing with Dragons (Llewellyn), Mystical Dragon Magic (Llewellyn), The Ancient Art of Faery Magick (10 Speed Press), and The Little Book of Candle Magic (10 Speed Press).

She lives a rather quiet life, with most of her time spent researching and writing.

 

Product Details

• Paperback: 338 pages
• Publisher: Llewellyn Publications; 1st edition (May 8, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1567181635
• ISBN-13: 978-1567181630
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,576,720 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Loved the strength and beauty., September 14, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Falcon Feather & Valkyrie Sword: Feminine Shamanism, Witchcraft & Magick (Llewellyn's Women's Spirituality Series) (Paperback)

I really loved this book, I felt it had a lot to offer as a modern take on ancient traditions. The feminist message was refreshing and really made me feel strengthened and heartened. I liked her prayers for strength in mind and body, as well as her discussion of a woman's different stages in life as it relates to various northern Goddesses. I just like this author a lot - I also have her Moon Magick and it's written in much the same way as this book - a lot of prayers, light history, rituals and thoughts organized in segments. This one also has simple drawings which I really enjoyed and felt were powerful for some reason. I think it's the simplicity and unpretentious flow of her thoughts that I like so much. It's an action book, and a book for thinking about your own path to strength.

As a young woman who lives in a conservative rural area, I found her words to be uplifting and empowering. I see and hear a lot of prejudice and negativity directed towards women here (as well as in mainstream culture) and her prayers and rituals make me feel less alone. I wish more authors would write feminist takes on wicca and magick - they make me feel strong when I'm feeling discouraged.

I wouldn't reccommend this book to people who are looking for important works on runes or any in depth witchcraft, though it does touch on those subjects lightly. I reccommend it more for women who are looking to take action about their own paths through introspection and ritual. I think with your own imagination, you could take her ideas and run with them, creating for yourself deeper reflections on her already interesting ideas. All in all, I think this book helped me to be a stronger, and more honorable woman - so I appreciate this book a lot.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Bad Norse Dianic wicca with a pronounced female chauvenist., September 18, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Falcon Feather & Valkyrie Sword: Feminine Shamanism, Witchcraft & Magick (Llewellyn's Women's Spirituality Series) (Paperback)

Incredibly disappointing work by DJ Conway, who normally can actually write. The bias in this book was so bad that I literally threw it across the room several times while reading it. Coming from someone who can easily stomach Z. Budapest and the ecofeminists, thats saying a lot. I was hoping to learn something about shamanism and spirtual growth from a woman's perspective. Instead, I got a hodgepodge of bad wymyn's hystory (owing entirely too much to The Chalice & the Blade) some divination techniques, some very odd meditations and a lot of anti-male propaganda. Despite the fact that she wrote another book on different belief systems, her knowledge of belief systems as used in this book is pitiful. Where is the woman who wrote _Moon Magick_? The writing was also disjointed and there were sections where it almost appeared that the polemics had been inserted after the text.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting and informative...but a bit harsh..., August 4, 1998

By 

Helen Clark "Red1332" (PA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Falcon Feather & Valkyrie Sword: Feminine Shamanism, Witchcraft & Magick (Llewellyn's Women's Spirituality Series) (Paperback)

While the information within about the rituals, shamanistic practices and other such things geared towards women's spirituality were most useful, and in fact a very welcomed thing, it seemed to me that Conway spent far too much time on the ills of the male species. In a religion that prizes balance, she says that women can do by themselves without men in entirety. While I do not necessarily argue with her on this, the tone suggested that one was to completely do away with their masculine side to empower themselves. As stated before, the rituals, pathworking and meditations within were very wonderful, addressing all sorts of occasions in a woman's life. However, while she covered death, perhaps it would have been better to also include a ritual for the mourning of a lost or miscarried child, as this happens to so many women. But aside from these things, the book is a good source for inspiration and a building-block for further working in feminine spirituality.