Scottish Witchcraft: The History and Magick of the Picts (Llewellyn's Modern Witchcraft Series) [Paperback]

Raymond Buckland (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 8, 1991 | Series: Llewellyn's Modern Witchcraft Series

From the ancient misty Highlands of Scotland come the secrets of the solitary Witchcraft practice of the mysterious early Keltic people. PectiWita emphasizes living and blending of magick into everyday life. Here, for the first time, are full details of this solitary branch of the Old Ways, their celebrations, talismans, song and dance, herbal lore, runes and glyphs, and recipes.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Llewellyn Publications (January 8, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0875420575
• ISBN-13: 978-0875420578
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #895,348 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

In 1962 I came to the U.S. from England, where I'd written comedy scripts and was personal scriptwriter for a popular British comedian. Interested in the occult for over fifty years, in the past forty years I've had over forty books published (fiction and non-fiction), with nearly two million copies in print and translated into seventeen foreign languages. I've received awards for my work and had books featured in several national book clubs. I was Technical Director for movies, working with Orson Wells and William Friedkin (director of The Exorcist). Of Romany descent, I'm an authority on Gypsies and have written several books on them. I've lectured at colleges and universities and been the subject of articles in newspapers and magazines: New York Times, Los Angeles Times, New York Daily News, New York Sunday News, National Observer, Cleveland Plain Dealer, Look Magazine, Cosmopolitan, True, and others.

I've appeared on national television and radio talk shows and been on BBC-TV, England, RAI-TV, Italy, and CBC-TV, Canada. I appeared extensively on stage in England and played small character parts in movies in America. I taught courses at colleges and universities and have been a featured speaker at conferences and workshops. I'm listed in reference works including Contemporary Authors, Who's Who In America, Men of Achievement, and International Authors' and Writers' Who's Who.

Latest books are The Weiser Field Guide to Ghosts, The Spirit Book, Buckland's Book of Spirit Communications, Wicca For One, and Cards of Alchemy. A DVD version of my Wicca video has also recently been released: Rebirth of the Old Religion. A prolific author, I'm currently working on my autobiography. Today I live on a farm in north-central Ohio. Photo Credit: Gregory Ford

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars It has it's good points..., July 1, 2001

By 

"wolfe001" (New Mexico, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Scottish Witchcraft: The History and Magick of the Picts (Llewellyn's Modern Witchcraft Series) (Paperback)

After reading quite a few of the other reviews of this book, I thought I should toss in my opinion...

The spirit of this book (as based on Aiden Breac's teachings) follow fairly closely to the tradition that I was raised in by my mother, who grew up in the far north of Scotland. The idea that the Scottish pagan tradition is a solitaire one is very true, and the methods put forward are workable in any solitaire trad.

I will grant, on the other hand, that Buckland went overboard as usual. That I know of, the only pre-roman alphabet ever found in use in Scotland was Ogham, so I have no idea where he came up with his others. Also, the idea of a set formula of spells was never taught to me, so I don't think that this was a part of the trad. But I expected these things from Buckland as his goal is to give the masses what they want.

My point is that there are some jewels of wisdom in ths book that are of great use to any student of pagan traditions, and especially to a student of Scottish traditions.

29 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Another Fraud, March 1, 2001

By 

Christopher S. Thompson (Portland, Me USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Scottish Witchcraft: The History and Magick of the Picts (Llewellyn's Modern Witchcraft Series) (Paperback)

I'm sure this will be dismissed as another "negative comment"- in some circles, trying to find out the truth is always "negative". But the facts speak for themselves. Look up Buckland's "Pictish spiral writing". First, note a few points- 1)Pictish was a Celtic language. If you doubt this, check any current academic work on the Picts 2)his alphabet includes letters which don't exist in any Celtic language 3)nothing like this writing has ever been found carved anywhere in Scotland. Again, check any academic work.

Now, take a closer look at the letters themselves. The "a" looks like an "a", written as a spiral. The "b" looks like a spiral "b". The same is true for all of the letters. This is not an historical Pictish alphabet, it's a childish code.

I'm sure this won't shake anyone's faith. Fundamentalists will keep thinking the world was created 6000 years ago, and their neopagan counterparts will keep buying nonsense and believing it. But these aren't mistakes, they're lies. And what kind of spirituality can you build on a lie?

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A WONDERFUL BOOK FOR THOSE WITH WISDOM!, December 2, 2000

By 

Kyle (Denham Springs, Louisiana United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Scottish Witchcraft: The History and Magick of the Picts (Llewellyn's Modern Witchcraft Series) (Paperback)

A great book that i have used so many times the cover is falling off! Dr. Buckland got the information to write this book from the late Aiden Breac "a real life Scottish Witch" who lived all of 92 years,this book is anything but a fluff wicca book,this is a book that focuses predominantly on solitary ritual,and can be adapted to small circles of hedge witchs.For the uninformed, Pictish and Scottish are virtually one and the same,being that the Scots interbred with the Picts to the point of total absorption.In my opinion you cant go wrong with this book, but its important to know that the rituals are mostly for out of doors. True to Life PICTISH WITCHCRAFT IS WHAT YOU GET HERE.