Post by theoccultchrist on Aug 24, 2006 1:51:27 GMT -5
A Book Plug/Review and also a Segment from Said Book:
got ahold of this book I've been wanting for the better part of a month now.
So far I've read about the first 25 pages including the introduction..and it is T3h Awesome!
www.amazon.com/gp/product/0738705470/sr=8-1/qid=1153771497/ref=pd_bbs_1/103-3132407-6075853?ie=UTF8
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
As women search for feminine inspiration in male-dominated religions, so Penczak seeks a place for men in Wicca, a largely female-centered tradition. Penczak, a practitioner of the craft and author of many books about Wicca and magick, explores masculine images, wisdom and practices within witchcraft to help men walk the "path toward empowerment as a son of the Goddess." Readers interested in the masculine side of Wicca will enjoy not only a succinct cataloguing of gods and male ritual but also general rituals and spells associated with witchcraft (including an intriguing spell for binding bullies) and a detailed code of Wiccan ethics. Each chapter includes helpful sidebars that detail everything from the devil to the story of the god Horus, as well as a series of practical exercises, reflections and guided meditations designed to help the reader explore and develop his identity as a witch (the term Penczak prefers to warlock or wizard). Penczak draws from his personal journey of finding Wicca to shape his discussion, sometimes successfully, and at other times reveals biases (in particular about feminism) that may be off-putting to women readers. For men already interested in Wicca, yet who associate witchcraft exclusively with women, Penczak offers answers and a new angle for men to embrace the masculine side of this tradition. (Apr.)
Copyright ? Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Book Description
Wicca 101 for young men.
Wicca is a spiritual path open to all. Yet young men may have trouble identifying their place in this seemingly female-dominated religion. Without many male role models, how can one become empowered as a son of the Goddess?
Christopher Penczak, who learned about Witchcraft and magick in his late teens, offers guidance to all the young men out there who are curious about Wicca. This much-needed masculine perspective on the Craft discusses divine masculinity found in ancient myths, male energies, and rites of passage. Penczak also describes the fundamentals of Wicca, including the rule of three, the Wiccan Rede, spellcraft, rituals, holidays, and Witchcraft ethics.
Solstice Blessings of Creativity!
2:44 PM PDT, June 21, 2006
After enjoying many Amazon Blogs here by some of my favorite authors, I thought I would begin one myself and take this opportunity to reach out to the readers. Email, websites and blogs have made communicating with the magickal and healing communities so much easier, as you get to learn a little bit more about me, and I get to learn more about you. I think back to when I began, and there was no real chance of contact with authors unless you saw them at a book signing or event. Its an amazing world we live in today.
On all the holidays, I get reflective, and this solstice is no exception. I remember spending on intense summer writing my first book, City Magick, in my basement, at an ancient computer. Though it was a tough time and I had no clear direction in my life other than finishing the book, it was also a great summer and a time of enjoyment. I began writing because the gods induced a swift and extreme career shift for me.
When I was working in the music industry in the Boston area, I kept getting messages in meditation from the Goddess, asking me to teach more. I didnt want. I never really envisioned myself as a spiritual teacher or a writer. I was a musician. I was an artist. I was a witch, but I didnt feel a calling to minister as clergy to others, or to teach others. I was asked to lead a meditation group once a month, and I did for fun, but that was about it. I wrote for a few local journals, and eventually became the publisher to a small metaphysical newsletter, but it was another thing I did just for fun. In retrospect, I guess they were preparing me. After many requests that seemed more like demands from the Goddess, I said yes to teaching. And the next week, got laid off from my job.
That was near Imbolc. I spent quite a while trying to figure out how I was going to live. Should I move to NYC or L.A. for the music industry, because nothing much else was going in Boston? Should I get a temp job? The temp jobs I was set up for all mysteriously vanished. Or should I teach and write? I put up a flyer for meditation classes and got a lot of sign ups. I took my notes on magickal techniques in Boston, and made them into my first book, City Magick. I realized that for me, writing was an extension of what I was teaching and that was what I truly enjoyed. It is part ritual, even if there is no formal ritual involved, part service, part performance and all around just fun, at least one most nights. By the time Midsummers hit, I was almost done my first book and embark on my new life in the world of publishing.
Writing has opened a whole new world of teaching for me, because it has not just been about me sharing information, but the challenge to learn more myself. The books, as they are being written, share things with you. Most are based on classes Ive taught for years now, but each lesson reveals a new twist, a new way of doing things, or jogs a memory of a students unique experience in the class and something I should share in a book. The readers have submitted great feedback and experiences and new ideas that always make me look at things differently. The books, particularly the Temple of Witchcraft series, have allowed me to share my teachings and ideas with a greater number of people than I ever thought possible.
Writing has been a magickal doorway that has opened my life up to so many new possibilities. I look at each writing session, each project as a ritual, an act of magick and I feel blessed with all the changes it has brought me. If you have an idea you want to share, I urge you to pick up your pen (or better yet, the keyboard) and share it. We each have something to express, to share, to give to the world. We often dont find the books that completely speak to us, so we need to share our vision. We live in an amazing time where we have so many opportunities to share our words. Let this day of solar beauty and light inspire you. Take a chance and share your voice with the world.
Be well,
Christopher Penczak
got ahold of this book I've been wanting for the better part of a month now.
So far I've read about the first 25 pages including the introduction..and it is T3h Awesome!
www.amazon.com/gp/product/0738705470/sr=8-1/qid=1153771497/ref=pd_bbs_1/103-3132407-6075853?ie=UTF8
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
As women search for feminine inspiration in male-dominated religions, so Penczak seeks a place for men in Wicca, a largely female-centered tradition. Penczak, a practitioner of the craft and author of many books about Wicca and magick, explores masculine images, wisdom and practices within witchcraft to help men walk the "path toward empowerment as a son of the Goddess." Readers interested in the masculine side of Wicca will enjoy not only a succinct cataloguing of gods and male ritual but also general rituals and spells associated with witchcraft (including an intriguing spell for binding bullies) and a detailed code of Wiccan ethics. Each chapter includes helpful sidebars that detail everything from the devil to the story of the god Horus, as well as a series of practical exercises, reflections and guided meditations designed to help the reader explore and develop his identity as a witch (the term Penczak prefers to warlock or wizard). Penczak draws from his personal journey of finding Wicca to shape his discussion, sometimes successfully, and at other times reveals biases (in particular about feminism) that may be off-putting to women readers. For men already interested in Wicca, yet who associate witchcraft exclusively with women, Penczak offers answers and a new angle for men to embrace the masculine side of this tradition. (Apr.)
Copyright ? Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Book Description
Wicca 101 for young men.
Wicca is a spiritual path open to all. Yet young men may have trouble identifying their place in this seemingly female-dominated religion. Without many male role models, how can one become empowered as a son of the Goddess?
Christopher Penczak, who learned about Witchcraft and magick in his late teens, offers guidance to all the young men out there who are curious about Wicca. This much-needed masculine perspective on the Craft discusses divine masculinity found in ancient myths, male energies, and rites of passage. Penczak also describes the fundamentals of Wicca, including the rule of three, the Wiccan Rede, spellcraft, rituals, holidays, and Witchcraft ethics.
Solstice Blessings of Creativity!
2:44 PM PDT, June 21, 2006
After enjoying many Amazon Blogs here by some of my favorite authors, I thought I would begin one myself and take this opportunity to reach out to the readers. Email, websites and blogs have made communicating with the magickal and healing communities so much easier, as you get to learn a little bit more about me, and I get to learn more about you. I think back to when I began, and there was no real chance of contact with authors unless you saw them at a book signing or event. Its an amazing world we live in today.
On all the holidays, I get reflective, and this solstice is no exception. I remember spending on intense summer writing my first book, City Magick, in my basement, at an ancient computer. Though it was a tough time and I had no clear direction in my life other than finishing the book, it was also a great summer and a time of enjoyment. I began writing because the gods induced a swift and extreme career shift for me.
When I was working in the music industry in the Boston area, I kept getting messages in meditation from the Goddess, asking me to teach more. I didnt want. I never really envisioned myself as a spiritual teacher or a writer. I was a musician. I was an artist. I was a witch, but I didnt feel a calling to minister as clergy to others, or to teach others. I was asked to lead a meditation group once a month, and I did for fun, but that was about it. I wrote for a few local journals, and eventually became the publisher to a small metaphysical newsletter, but it was another thing I did just for fun. In retrospect, I guess they were preparing me. After many requests that seemed more like demands from the Goddess, I said yes to teaching. And the next week, got laid off from my job.
That was near Imbolc. I spent quite a while trying to figure out how I was going to live. Should I move to NYC or L.A. for the music industry, because nothing much else was going in Boston? Should I get a temp job? The temp jobs I was set up for all mysteriously vanished. Or should I teach and write? I put up a flyer for meditation classes and got a lot of sign ups. I took my notes on magickal techniques in Boston, and made them into my first book, City Magick. I realized that for me, writing was an extension of what I was teaching and that was what I truly enjoyed. It is part ritual, even if there is no formal ritual involved, part service, part performance and all around just fun, at least one most nights. By the time Midsummers hit, I was almost done my first book and embark on my new life in the world of publishing.
Writing has opened a whole new world of teaching for me, because it has not just been about me sharing information, but the challenge to learn more myself. The books, as they are being written, share things with you. Most are based on classes Ive taught for years now, but each lesson reveals a new twist, a new way of doing things, or jogs a memory of a students unique experience in the class and something I should share in a book. The readers have submitted great feedback and experiences and new ideas that always make me look at things differently. The books, particularly the Temple of Witchcraft series, have allowed me to share my teachings and ideas with a greater number of people than I ever thought possible.
Writing has been a magickal doorway that has opened my life up to so many new possibilities. I look at each writing session, each project as a ritual, an act of magick and I feel blessed with all the changes it has brought me. If you have an idea you want to share, I urge you to pick up your pen (or better yet, the keyboard) and share it. We each have something to express, to share, to give to the world. We often dont find the books that completely speak to us, so we need to share our vision. We live in an amazing time where we have so many opportunities to share our words. Let this day of solar beauty and light inspire you. Take a chance and share your voice with the world.
Be well,
Christopher Penczak