Customer Reviews

Wicca: A Year & a Day: 366 Days of Spiritual Practice in the Craft of the Wise

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book opens with the lesson of the Cauldron of Cerridwen. Each person who looks into Her cauldron sees the wisdoms they will need to follow the "Path of the Wise". This book takes a very unique look at a persons dedication to this path by creating a day to day guide for the dedicating solitary to learn the wisdoms they will need to follow the Wiccan path. Yes, this book focuses on the practicing solitary and is intended as a training guide to help you through the sometimes tough initial "Year and a Day" dedication that so many books only suggest you do. This book actually takes you there.

Timothy Roderick is a British Traditional Wiccan, who's previous books cover many aspects of Wicca, including working with the dark of the moon as well as familiars. He is a teacher of the occult, shamanism and mysticism. He is the founder of the "Earthdance Collective", a Wiccan community where he has been their spiritual director for over a decade. He comes to this book with some very impressive credentials and it shows in his work.

The book's layout is quite simple; it goes by each day. The exercises are not long or drawn out, but rather simple, concise and yet they cover much information. Day 1, for example, discusses Earth-Centered Spirituality, covering a little history, a simple exercise in connecting with the earth, and a simple set of questions designed to explore the exercise as well as exploring yourself. There are also little "dialogue boxes" designed to anticipate some questions or create a "sidebar" discussion for you to ponder further. Following "Day 1" is a list of items you will need for the next 30 days; a shopping list if you will of basic supplies.

Each day unfolds with a new topic, a new aspect or some new exercise to explore or think about. As I wandered through the material presented, I liked the way it was laid out, each day setting up for another lesson further along. Discussing words, discussing symbols, building on these words, finding acceptance in your own life for these words and symbols. It seems very basic and yet it is necessary when you are looking at a completely new spiritual path and new structure for your life.

The lessons become more advanced yet never too long or too boring. The material is very expertly explained, broken down to its simplest form, allowing the reader to keep up with the material without experiencing an information overload. Every month there is a "Contemplative Day" for the reader to experience, to explore and digest the material learned.

There are Devotional Days, honoring specific Deities, learning their stories, exploring Them and feeling Their energies.

While the book can be started at any time, Mr. Roderick does mention that traditional start time is sometime between Samhain and Candlemas (Imbolc). I found that the Sabats are all covered together in one section/month, rather than stretched out over the course of the book. This would allow the reader to start whenever they felt ready, rather that being restricted by the seasons or a calendar.

The book covers the daily topics well. They are good overviews of the topic. The exercises are well chosen for the beginner, as is the way the topical material is handled. Yes, this book addresses the average beginner. Yet it is not bound by that restriction. There is much information in here that would serve the slightly more advanced student, one who may have had basic studies and is looking to round out their studies with additional material. Yes, there are even a few "gee, I didn't know that" moments in this book for me.

The book contains illustrations of hand motions, tools, symbols, crafts, cards and more. The material covers a variety of topics from runes to alphabets, herbs to astrology. The material discussed covers a wide range of topics from tools to ritual basics to building power.

I really love the idea of this book, the way it is laid out and the material that is covered. It follows a very logical progression and is well thought out in that respect. Mr. Roderick writes in a style that is clear, in an easy to follow manner that is kept light and reasonable for the beginning practitioner.

If you are a solitary looking to start your year and a day dedication and do not know where to begin, start by checking into this book and see if you don't agree that this is a very good tool to get you started and on your way. I think you will actually find yourself following this book through to the end and you will get more out of this book than you thought possible. I do recommend this book for anyone looking for a very practical guide to the experience of the Wiccan "Year and a Day" personal dedication. boudica

This book is a great introduction, but some things should be kept in mind. First off, this isn't a series of lessons in Wicca in general, it is a set of lessons within a specific, very traditional, view of Wicca. That's fine, so long as you know where the author's coming from. As such, I'd strongly, strongly recommend supplemental reading with this book - Cunningham/McLeland during the introductory lessons, Farrar during the section on the deities, Nichols/Campanelli during the lessons on the Sabbats, Lipp during the elemental and circle-casting chapters, and so on. A 'read during this month' section every thirty days would have improved this lesson plan immensely.

Second, Mr. Roderick likes to include obscure things without explaining why. He includes sets of sigils to be carved on the magical tools without explaining why or what they represent. He gives chants in obscure languages without providing meanings (including the infamous Bagabi chant, which is most likely gibberish written by a 16th century playwright for the sake of sounding cool, nothing more.)

Third, Mr. Roderick has an overly strong fascination with certain specific essential oils - specifically rose and jasmine - which are some of the most expensive essential oils available on the market. Following his recipes would have cost hundreds of dollars when much cheaper alternative recipes are available. Do yourself a favor and buy a copy of Cunningham's 'Incense, Oils, and Brews' and 'Magical Aromatherapy' to go with this book, and use alternative recipes or formulate your own.

Anyway, I DO recommend this book to anyone looking for a well-planned, organized approach to learning Wicca, but I recommend using it as a framework, supplemented with your own study and carefully, intelligently altering the exercises as you may find necessary.

This book is almost a perfect guide for the beginner, because it provides daily exercises that introduce you to the Gods and Goddesses, the solar and lunar holidays, and general Wiccan philosophy. For someone like me who needs structure to keep them motivated, this book is really helpful. However, you should take Roderick's information with a grain of salt. I have caught a couple of factual errors in the first 50 pages, such as listing "Dianus" as one of the Horned God dieties. Dianus is not a real, historical god but a composite of Celtic and other European pagan gods. He first appeared in Margaret Murray's "Witch-Cult in Western Europe", which was poorly researched and lumped all pre-Christian European religions together. I would recommend this book as an exercise guide to teach you magical techniques, but you should do your own research if you want actual facts.

I head a study group that uses this book. It's a great introduction, and set up so that you'll have a full closet by the end of the year.

However, it does have it's drawbacks. Some days are slow, or seemingly pointless. Other days you'll be asked to get up at 6 am or go out in the middle of the day, with no warning the day before. Other times you'll be asked to go through a whole formal ritual simply to "feel the wind" This is, in my opinion, a frivilous use of power and energy. Since the book is written so that you can start at any time. The lessons on the Wheel of the year are "smushed" together, and get tedius. It's hard to celebrate yule when your physical wheel is still in Mabon!

This will also be an expensive endevor. Luckily, I work at a pagan/herb shop that supplied the group with what it needed at a reasonable price, and the group members split more high priced items like oils. You will have a complete closet at the end of your year, but it will not come cheap. He also tends to ask the impossible (there is no such thing as "essential cucumber oil") and he doesn't reassure you that it is okay to make substitutions or skip certain things.

I would reccomend this book as a good reference book, but I wouldn't try to follow it exactly, or do everything it asks.

I agree with Spooky Kitty; check Roderick's facts on some things. His views that a circle is not meant to contain spiritual or magical energy counters just about everything I've ever been taught or read. Also -- and this may be strictly a typographical error -- he shows the same direction for invoking Air and invoking Water, and the two elements are reversed on the elemental Pentagram. Air should be on the left; water on the right, according to Donald Michael Kraig's "Modern Macgick."

And one of its huge lacks is a table of contents. The index isn't sufficiently specific to be of much use.

On the other hand, I thoroughly enjoyed the suggestions for different ways to celebrate each Sabbat, and the various ways to work with the Elements and Elementals. I thought his introduction to Tarot and the Runes were very good.

The book is thoughtfully done, and if it weren't for some of the errors I would give it four stars rather than three.

I am an Elder in a British Tradition who is running a training coven. It can be difficult to find current books with enough consistently high quality to recommend to my students as training material, though I would like them to be able to expand past some of the solid "classics." Timothy Roderick has provided such a book! I have been using it in a number of ways; as a daily "homework" assignment it sparks great discussion. I have also referred students to particular days or seasons as solo work to supplement what we are doing in Circle. While it can't; and isn't designed to; replace the work of a Ritual leader, it has noticeably helped my students focus their individual development and find a framework from which to ask the questions and do the exploring. And I enjoyed one of his seasonal rituals enough to adapt it for one of our Circles! I highly recommend it as a solid, basic-through-intermediate (and beyond in some areas) text!

As the owner of a large pagan bookstore (Crone's Cupboard), and the High Priestess of Golden Thread Grove Church--ATC, I have had opportunities to read hundreds of Wiccan books and I would rate this one among the best. Over the past 20 years I have taught thousands of year-and-a-day students and I have some understanding of what that takes. Most books fall far short of accomplishing the task. Some teach technique, but lack wisdom. Some teach Wiccan ritual, but neglect the basic and solid psychological and mythological understandings of what the rituals mean and what they do. Timothy Roderick's "Wicca: A Year & A Day" has it all. He lays it out in a deceptively simple format using exercises that are easy to do and lessons that can be clearly understood. Before long, the reader has been touched and educated in technique, mythology, psychology and wisdom without even realizing it. This book has the ability to produce well-rounded and powerful witches capable of wielding the magicks without endangering themselves or others. I enthusiatically recommend this book to anyone wishing to go deeper in the Craft.

I bought the book with the hope of having a semi-formal exploration of witchcraft. I felt it likely that this would be a good path for me, but I didn't want to be one of those people who buy a spellbook and a pentacle and proclaim herself a witch without any grounding in what that really means. I felt that by doing a true year-and-a-day dedication before really beginning to do spells, etc, would give me a solid base- and thi sbook does provide that (I am about halfway through). I have found that I sometimes have to fudge the sequence of the days, for example, every three weeks or so, you will encounter a "day of silence", during which you are not supposed to speak. Which for me means a weekend day- there is no way I could get away with not speaking at work! Fortunately, my boyfriend and friends are all very supportive, so I've had no trouble outside fo work with it.

I also found that I was due to start Samhain at the time of Summer Solstice... which I founf irritating, so I divided the lessons surrounding holidays and redispersed them over the year so that they actually line up with their holiday seasons (I just noted the days on the calendar). Bear in mind each holiday has about 7 to 9 days associated with it, in the book. I arranged it so that the "culminating" spell fell on the holiday itself, but noticed also that he teaches you to make the oil and incense to use during the holiday spells on the day following the spells themselves, which required flipping days around, again.

Also found the inclusion of sigils without explanations regarding their meaning somewhat exasperating, since they don't appear to be standard across the board. It *has* encouraged me to explore other texts in search of meanings for the sigils, which I believe is making me a much more educated and effective witch-in-training, but I still haven't found all of them. I am a little leery of using them to consecrate holy objects if I don't even know what they mean.

I do not, however, complain about some things being tricky to find, or being difficult or inconvenient to do, such as watching the sun rise, or keep periodic days of silence- after a fashion, I believe that if it were all very very easy and convenient, it would lose some of its allure and effectiveness. You must work for it, and I appreciate that the book includes some more complicated tasks.

Overall, it's proving to be a very effective book, but you will have to work to get through it. All I can say is that if you're serious about learning, that isn't really a bad thing.

Since I have embraced my belief in the Wiccan way of life, I have read and bought many books on the subject. This was the first book I bought that really broke down the basics. Even though I had a previous ritual that I created from other books, this book took topics important to a witch and broke them down so the beginner TRUELY understands their meaning. If you follow the book, you will most likely do things out of "season" with the Sabbots, but the author takes steps so that each Sabbot has purpose and understanding for when you DO do them. I will admit that when I did start the book, I was somewhat advanced enough to skip a bit, and I started my training with the book around when I would hit a major Sabbot. I can't emphasize enough if you are intersted in Wicca at all, to get this book. I found each day in the book to be very informative and insightful. There are meditations to connect with various aspects of the Goddess in her phases as well as for the Gods that compliment her. It gives a "grocery list" for the following days so you are ready for the activities. It allows time for journal entries that allow for introspective analysis of your individual feelings. It also helps you create incense and oils specific for the Sabbot. It gives a great introduction to the elements and their characteristics. It helps you understand how they can be of assistance to your ritual. And it explains the equipment for performing a real ritual. If you are a beginner... I highly recommend adding this book to your repetoire. In fault... there are a few places where the book does not recognize solitary witches but for a coven... but it is VERY sporadic and I'm sure you are smart enough to change the language! ( which you should do to make it YOURS!!)...not anywhere near enough to avoid the book... editoral error? If you have dedicated yourself to Wicca, this book will only enhance your understanding.

I would say the only useful information as such are the writing assignments. There is little to no explanation of the how and why you do things such as the sigils you carve, the reason to use certain incense or herbs, and the choices in substitutions are limited if there at all. This is compiled of a number of pricey 'shopping lists' that remind me of when you read a magazine written by a supplement company that then lists all their supplements. This is not a book for the sort who like to think for themselves, and instead is less for a solitary witch trying to fill in the gap of formal instruction then a number of lessons which get so wrapped up and contradictory in themselves as to make someone set the book aside entirely.

There are good self reflection exercises, but they can be found in every other Wicca 101 book. Overall I would pass on this book, perhaps get it at the local library so you can see if it appeals to you. Otherwise you'll spend a fortune in supplies that you would rarely use or may not find are too your liking.