Customer Reviews

Whispers from the Woods: The Lore & Magic of Trees

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This book is subtitled "The lore and magic of trees." When I opened the package it came in and saw that I became very excited. I have always felt that trees had a great deal to teach me and looked forward to learning what I could about their magic. You might call me a natural born tree-hugger. Even before I knew about the Pagan Path, I would commune with the trees in the woods behind my childhood house. I was thrilled to be able to read a book with trees as the focus.

Unfortunately for me, the book written by Ms. Kynes seemed to be dedicated to the usage, understanding and creation of Ogham. Ogham is a style of rune system based on lines and crosshatches that symbolize a limited number of letters. According to the author, Ogham's history, origins and even pronunciation is in dispute. I'll have to admit that the author was very thorough in including as much material on the many different Ogham as she could, but much of what she presented was very dry. The book consists listing of fact after fact with little to break up the endless listings.

If you are interested in either learning to use Ogham or want a book dedicated to properties and correspondences of many popular varieties of trees, this book is an excellent resource. Part Two of the book has entries in alphabetical order of 50 common trees. Each entry consists of a few paragraphs about the tree's history, uses and mythology. The entries also include Latin names, seasonal details, various attributes and correspondences as well as what ritual uses the wood is most often associated with.

There is also an appendix entitled "Tools" that I found very insightful. I would have liked to see this section enlarged and moved to the front of the book. The directions for making the various tools (in addition to creating your own personal Ogham) deserve more than the short section in the back.

Someone who is already actively practicing can best use this book. The listings can be useful for someone who is interested in making sure they have the perfect tools for their workings. However, for this old kitchen witch, I found little of interest to me or applicable to my needs.

W. Lyon Martin Author/Illustrator of "An Ordinary Girl, A Magical Child"

Whispers From The Woods: The Lore & Magic Of Trees is an informed and informative guide to the spiritual, mystical, and metaphysical aspect of trees. Chapters discuss the basics of Celtic Ogham and tree calendars, the role of trees in ritual and spellwork, how to incorporate trees in one's meditative practice, and much more. The second half of Whispers From The Woods is an alphabetical catalog of dozens of common tree species, from Alder, Elm, and Hickory to Oak, Spruce, and Yew. Each entry discusses how the species is perceived in folklore, ritual, and pagan beliefs, and a list assigns each species special connections to specific zodiac signs, gods and goddesses of world mythology, celestial bodies, and the like. An in-depth guide like no other for wiccans, pagans, and students of metaphysics.

This book is a delightful read- it takes the concept of incorporating the spiritual aspect of trees into our daily spirituality. It talks about using tree energy, and provides fifty types of trees with good references for each to start with. I love the fact also that the author includes a ton of excercises to try out as for how you want to incorporate tree energy, instead of just one or two. She even describes how to construct wands and walking sticks for those that have never done it. This book is chock full of ideas and info, and is a great read.

This is a great example of a Wicca/NeoPagan Beyond 101 book from Llewellyn. It delves into details on one subject - trees. It uses a lot of non-Llewellyn references. When she writes about Celtic history, she uses respected (and some contested) scholarly works to gather her information. It suggests ritual uses for getting to know different trees, but doesn't give you ritual scripts. It suggests craft and divinatory ideas for working with trees and gives detailed instructions. She shows you how to get to know the trees in her book, but doesn't ignore trees in the readers bio-region.

I especially liked that nothing she wrote sounded like she was creating doctrine. She was able to present her ideas as ideas without coming off preachy or intolerant of other ideas. She was able to bring her practice of working with trees into the modern world using and re-translating, but not relying on, ancient ways to do things.

The only problem I had with the book is what I wrote Llewellyn about. It seems nit picky but she references an article about the recent creation of Celtic astrology using the tree alphabet but she doesn't delve into the details about this topic. She skims over it saying that the Oghams are a really contested topic. I really think that the creation of this idea, of Celtic astrology, would have been fascinating especially if she used the actual meanings of the translations of the names of the trees in contrast to what was invented. As I said, it's nit picky.

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this book really impressed me and taught me a good bit about the nature of trees and meanings.

Trees are the main connection people have to Nature.Trees are so important for humans,in our quest for awareness and spiritual satisfaction.We harvest trees for wood-working and building.We borrow the beautiful texture and durable strength of hardword from Nature,for our comfort and enjoyment.Yet,at some point these crafted objects will fail and crumble.Then we discard or burn them ,back into the natural world.We ,like the trees ,will be reborn and revivified.I liked this book quite a lot for its insight into the Keltic Ogham system.The wooden or stone Ogham symbols were to the ancient Celts,as what hieroglyphic papyrus was to the ancient Aegyptians.They tell us of their beliefs,knowledge,medical and spiritual concerns. Also explored are trees for ritual and spellwork.Evoking energy through wood as an 'Element of Change' and adapting Feng Shui tools for tree rituals.Trees are thee most powerful shamanistic altering tools for elevating states of conscious .There are some fifty trees discussed concerning their mundane purposes,mystic mythologies,their magickal uses,their historical past,associated folklore ,and recent archaeological discoveries.This is a wonderful book about our human spiritual kinship, with the diverse trees of the woods and forests ,around the good Earth.

Its a perfect book. If one wants to understand the importance of nature..loves nature and wants to know more, and do something about it then this is it...!!