Review - Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner by Scott Cunningham

What would The Witch Snitch be if I didn’t review a few non-fiction Wicca/Witchcraft reads as well?  Be informed!  Let go of your misconceptions.  And if nothing else, these reads are a must for authors or aspiring authors who are writing character that may follow Wicca.

Title:  Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner

Author:  Scott Cunningham 

Genre:  Adult Non-Fiction (Wicca/Pagan)

Number of pages:  240

Released:  September 8^th, 2002 by Llewellyn Publications

Description: 

Cunningham's classic introduction to Wicca is about how to live life magically, spiritually, and wholly attuned with nature. It is a book of sense and common sense, not only about magick, but about religion and one of the most critical issues of today: how to achieve the much needed and wholesome relationship with our Earth. Cunningham presents Wicca as it is today: a gentle, Earth-oriented religion dedicated to the Goddess and God. "Wicca "also includes Scott Cunningham's own Book of Shadows and updated appendices of periodicals and occult suppliers.

Positives:

-PERFECT started book for those interested in Wicca, what the word ‘magick’ actually means, those who have a friend or family member who practices Wicca, or those who are open to dissolving the misconceptions about Wicca.

-Scott Cunningham’s explanations are easy to understand and provide a real view of what Wicca actually is and how to practice it.  Although I personally love the media’s view of witches too, the real thing that I practice is not a bunch of ‘hocus pocus’.

-Has two Appendix, with one that lists Occult suppliers and the other with Wiccan/Pagan publications.  These are sometimes hard to find with just a google search, so when I was first exploring Wicca I loved this addition to the book.

Negatives:

-Honestly, I have none other than I would ecstatically enjoy if the book was longer and included even more beginner’s information.  Luckily Scott Cunningham published more than 30 other books, all of which were received positively.

Overview:

This book was one of the first that I read upon exploring Wicca.  I, myself, had lots of preconceived thoughts about what Wicca actually was.  I thought it was just a bunch of people who fooled themselves into thinking that they could turn a cup into a mouse.  Although there are those who follow a more ‘media-centered’ view of Witchcraft, that is not what Wicca really is meant to be.  We all love getting into the pop culture’s “witch”, but Wicca is an earth-based spirituality that involves the positive and negative energies of the earth.  Scott Cunningham explains that so well.

Some great quotes:

“Another fundamental point: magic isn’t a means of forcing nature to do your will.  This is a completely erroneous idea, fostered by the belief that magic is somehow supernatural, as if anything that exists can be outside of nature.  Magic is natural.  It is a harmonious movement of energies to create needed change.  If you wish to practice magic, all thoughts of it being paranormal or supernatural must be forgotten.”

“That perhaps is at the core of Wicca--it is a joyous union with nature. The earth is a manifestation of divine energy. Wicca's temples are flower-splashed meadows, forests, beaches, and deserts. When a Wicca is outdoors, she or he is actually surrounded by sanctity, much as is a Christian when entering a church or cathedral.”

Those two quotes right there could sum up why I love the book, but I’ll go on a bit more about what the book includes.  The book is divided into three sections: Theory, Practice, and a ‘beginner’s’ Book of Shadows.  With Theory, you’ll explore everything from what magic really is, deities, and Wiccan holidays.  In Practice, it takes you a step further into exercises and self-dedication.  The last section, the Book of Shadows, includes spells for many things, blessings (sort of like prayers), recipes, and explanations of crystals/runes/symbols that are used in magic.

Personally, I took notes throughout the book, marking quotes and sections I loved.  I took it a step further and actually have made a ‘scrap-booked’ journal of what I learned as I read.  His thoughts and explanation of what Wicca actually is, is spot on.  Reading this book is an eye-opener and spiritual experience. 

The greatest part?  He frequently says that this is just ‘his view’ of what it is, as in…  There is no one way to practice Wicca ‘right’.  Many religions push that thought forward, but Wicca, in a way, believes that you take what inspires or moves you and make it yours.  In my practice, spells are my meditations, aligning with the elements also consists my chakras, magic is energy that I can influence based off of what I project, and deities are symbols of these energies that exist.

Think it’s still a bunch of hocus pocus?  Think of it this way – we all can feel when someone puts out ‘negative energy’.  You have probably even heard someone say that.  Then why, if we attune our focus on the positive, can we not manipulate our own energy to what we want it to be?

Rating:

Recommended to:

-Anyone interested in Wicca for their own use or to understand a friend/family members beliefs.

-Anyone who is willing to through away stereotypes.

Anyone who is just interested and intrigued by the idea.

-Although I love books/movies with the ‘media’ idea of a witch, I would love it if an author displayed a more realistic version of what Wicca actually is in a character they develop.  So I would recommend this to authors as well.

Not Recommended to:

-No one.  I recommend this to everyone.  Everyone can use more knowledge, as what this world needs is more understanding.