Witchcraft From the Inside: Origins of the Fastest Growing Religious Movement in America - Softcover

Buckland, Raymond

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1567181015 ISBN 13: 9781567181012

Publisher: Llewellyn Publications, 1995

Synopsis

The word Witchcraft has been misunderstood for centuries. In the past 500 years, millions of people have faced persecution, torture, and even death after being accused of practicing Witchcraft.

For many people the word "Witch" still conjures up images of secret spells and diabolical midnight rituals. So what exactly is Witchcraft (also called Wica or Wicca), and how did it evolve into one of today's fastest-growing religions?

Witchcraft From the Inside presents the history of Witchcraft―from its roots in ancient fertility religions, to the madness of the Malleus Maleficarum and the European Witch trials, to the growth of modern Wicca in Britain and the United States. Essays contributed by leading Wiccan authorities explore the present state of Wicca and provide a glimpse into the future of this peaceful nature religion.

Author Ray Buckland studied Witchcraft under Gerald Gardner, the man largely credited for the revival of Witchcraft and the establishment of Wicca as a modern religion. Mr. Buckland was instrumental in bringing Gardnerian Witchcraft from England to the United States and is considered to be one of the leading American authorities on Witchcraft.

In the following excerpt, Mr. Buckland explains the mundane truths behind the seemingly horrific ingredients of the legendary "witches' brews".

We know, from Shakespeare and other sources, that the Witches threw into their pots the most gruesome ingredients, right? There were things like the tongue of a snake, bloody fingers, catgut, donkey's eyes, frog's foot, goat's beard, a Jew's ear, mouse tail, snake head, swine snout, wolf's foot, and so on. Pretty disgusting by the sound of it―if you take them at face value! In fact these were all the most innocuous of ingredients: normal plants and herbs.
Today all plants have a Latin name, so that they may be distinct and positively identified. Yet years ago they were known only by common, local names. A plant or herb might be known by one name in one part of the country and a quite different name in another part of the country. And these names were colorful ones, frequently given to the plant because of its looks, color, or other attributes.
In the above list, adder's tongue was a name given to the dogtooth violet (Erythronium americanum); bloody fingers was the foxglove (Digitalis purpurea); catgut was the hoary pea (Tephrosia virginiana); donkey's eyes were the seeds of the cowage plant (Mucuna pruriens); frog's foot was the bulbous buttercup (Ranunculus bulbosus); goat's beard was the vegetable oyster (Tragopogon porrofolius); Jew's ear was a fungus that grew on elder trees and elm trees (Peziza auricula); mouse tail was common stonecrop (Sedum acre); snake head was balmony (Chelone glabra); swine snout was the dandelion (Taraxacum dens leonis); and wolf's foot was bugle weed (Lycopus virginicus). So the seemingly fearsome concoctions that the Witches mixed up in their cauldrons were nothing more than simple herbs going into a cookpot!

About this title

Review

This is a complete history of witchcraft, including its origins in prehistory, its decline in the dark ages and its rebirth in the 20th century, as collected by an insider rather than a detached observer. I found the book to be well researched and documented, which more than did justice to the subject matter. While I enjoyed the information accumulated in a cover-to-cover reading, Witchcraft from the Inside is also a valuable reference tool.

From the Publisher

Author Ray Buckland really knows the truth about Witchcraft. He has publicly defended Witchcraft for more than three decades. He was the first person to introduce Gardnerian Wica into the United States, and created the first really new Wiccan system (Saxon) in 1973. He has written over thirty books books on Wicca, Voodoo, and the occult.

Witchcraft From the Inside is your complete guide to the past, present, and future of Witchcraft. See how the ancient pagan traditions developed over time and how they were forced underground with the rise of Christianity. Learn how the religion was resurrected in the 1950s, and why it grew and developed into one of the fastest-growing religions in the world.

Once again, Ray has done an inestimable service for all Witches and Pagans. Witchcraft From the Inside is in invaluable resource for anyone interested in the real truth about Witchcraft.

Edition details

• Publisher: Llewellyn Publications
• Publication date: 1995
• ISBN 10: 1567181015
• ISBN 13: 9781567181012
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 3
• Number of pages: 212