Can anyone recommend books or anything in which to help me to find my path??

There is so much out there, I am unsure of what is relevant, and what is utter tripe.

Any suggestions greatly appreciated.

Hi there

Marian Green's - a Witch Alone...13 Moons To Master Natural Magic is a nice one for starting out with. Not too heavy....and something you can work through at your own pace

BB

I've been dying to say this to someone for ages.
It's all utter tripe imo because it's other people's view on something that must come from you. Listen to yourself, listen to the universe. It's all there waiting for you.
Other than that, I like rae beth's books. Don't know why, i just do.

Have a rake through the Bookworms Forum this is a really common question

IMO you can't do better than read Pete Jennings Pagan Paths, a bit of Marian Greene and Kate West and any and all Ronald Hutton

Ahhhh yes.....Rae Beth - Hedgewitch....that's a good un!

I would say read anything and anything, but be questioning and turn the old tripometer onto full (look at the saying at the bottom of Comfrey's posts). All of the writers mentioned above have good and interesting things to say, but it is as woozle says, they are only the opinions of others. You know I really liked what you said on your other thread about spending time where there are woods and rivers......and watching the moon through her phases. You can do a lot worse than to immerse yourself in nature and work it all out for yourself.

As for finding a path......well you may already be on your path. Just because it has no name and does not look the same as the path followed by others does not mean that the path you tread is not potentially enriching. Perhaps you should go with the flow and not fret so much about what others think or looking as though you are floundering!

All the best me dear

Mike

This is not an attack on you woozle but I have to say that I can’t stand the whole “listen to yourself and do what feels right for you” replies when people ask a question such as the OP. Not only do I find it rather wishywashy but it’s kind of like saying to someone to pick a ball with a texture/colour combo of their choosing, from a box, only they have no idea what balls are available and they have to make the choice standing in a different room. Yes I agree that it is important that people should be aware that they don’t have to follow what other people do, but it helps to have an idea of what is out there. I take the opposite view to “It's all utter tripe imo because it's other people's view on something” instead I see other peoples views as being quite valuble in that through understanding and exploring the ideas of others we can better define and develop our own.

As for recommended reading I would add my recommendation to all books by Hutton. I recommend reading a book that gives a basic introduction to philosophy such as “Philosophy: The Basics” by Nigel Warburton. I would also recommend reading the works of Terry Pratchett if you don’t already.

I recommend "A Witch Alone" too. I've got no time for Hutton, I find him tedious, but I suggest you read everything that takes your fancy and pick out the bits that appeal to you and remember, there's no right and wrong, just what works for you. Like my sig says, learn as much as you can and believe none of it.

I'd suggest browsing the religion/occult section of your local library. That way you don't have to spend any money and can work out what you might want to look deeper into. Also books on local geography/history/geology or folklore can give ideas about places you might like to visit, local festivals and traditions etc.

Otherwise I'd like to second "Pagan Paths" by Pete Jennings. It gives some basic information on a number of different pagan paths and I found it useful when starting out.

Libby

Me too - just can't get into his books at all!!! Probably why I didn't do history at school - find it really interesting but find history texts soooooo boring!!


Ed

Another heretic here. I can't stand Hutton because he's biased and he makes mistakes he shouldn't for an historian. If he can't be bothered to walk down the hall and talk to a Latinist, then if he's making mistakes on the 'little' things, what else is he making mistakes on? I'm used to reading academic texts so it's not a boredom thing but his 'big book' was one of the few 'pagan' books I've actually thrown across the room for the amount of clangers in it.

I second all mentions of reading widely in various fields. After all, 'paganism' has a looonnngg history and history, mythology, philosophy, linguistics - you name it, other areas will only expand one's understanding and also, give a good cross-checking type of reference so not everything in a 'pagan' book will be taken as gospel ('scuse the term).

Right, I'll just tie myself to this stake then, shall I?

Marto

Thankyou all xx

The internet, a fabulous tool in its own right, seems to like spitting out the tripe that is aimed at the Twilight / House of Night teen market.

Will search the library on monday.

would have to agree on this recommendation. recently just bought this book, working through it in my own time and its easy to follow. it feels right for me when i am reading it but these things are different for everyone i suppose.

Look out for

Edda by Snorri Sturluson.

&

The Poetic Edda the Carolynne Larrington translation is generally available.

&

some saga's

Egil's Saga
Grettirs Saga
Erik the Red Saga

are a good start.

These all have Norse/Scandinavian spin but hold a mirror to the possibly indigenous beliefs of this country before the celtic and christian invasions.

As above, Marion Green '12 moons' is a wonderful way to start on 'your' path!

Not taken as an attack at all.
I absolutely don't mean 'do what feels right'. You don't DO anything. Doing comes from books. You don't need to do anything. If you want belief you have to find it in yourself, you have to know what you believe and that comes from understanding what is around you, your place in things, how you fit and how everything else fits. You can't get that from doing anything, certainly not by waving the arms. The only thing to do maybe is perhaps as others have said read up on anything and everything, but that just falls down to education.
Look around you, everything you see forms part of whole. THAT is what you have to find where you are in that whole, how it works, IMO and no book can tel you that. That comes from thinking, feeling, experiencing.
Unless of course you just want a god of some sort, and a 'religion' to feel part of and some arm waving practices just to feel good about yourself and have something to believe in. Then by all means read rae beth or marion green. IMO

This is a big problem imo, the 'what's out there' idea. What is out there is mostly without foundation, mostly fantasy. Out there is about practices not about belief. If you want to learn about witchcraft great, read all the books available go to the witchy supermarket and get some trinkets, but you don't get belief from a supermarket in the same way as you don't get it from a book. If you read a book and then decide that, say, Thor is the god for you, then that's just fantasy.
If you read up on Him because you like the idea/figure/personality as described in a book or books, you're interested in archeology and runes, like the whole norse idea, boats, sword and the like, look good in a thorshammer and so then ask said deity to pop in for tea, that, no offence to anyone intended, is pure bolix. That's inventing god and belief based on what others tell you and what you like. IF however, you 'get a god' who perhaps acts a bit odd, tells you he is Thor and then you go and find out about him (though I still don't agree with doing that), at least the basic contact is possibly real.
The way I have been seeing this is that, if you you have an interest in egypt and egyptology you are more likely to start to believe in egyptian gods simpy because that's what you like. IMO you have to stay away from that sort of approach. That's just me though of course.
The hard part, or maybe the easy part if you're lucky, is finding the god, finding the belief. The easiest part is finding out about all the trappings.
I've lived for 30 years with a nameless goddess (am I alone in this? woozle wonders). What would change if I put a name to her? Nothing real. I'd just have other people's ideas on how she should appear, how she should behave and maybe, worst of all, how I should behave.
I'd find that everyone is an authority on my goddess and instead of experiencing her as she is, I'd start to endow her with characteristics gleaned from the mental wankings of other people.
A question to provoke thought (not ire) , how come Thor or Ra, for example, if they exist as named gods, don't exist in Thailand too or Borneo or Kent? Could it not just be that these are invented names and consequently invented characteristics suited to the historical period and not relevant to the actual god at all but perpetuated in books?

Just because I'd like Woozle to choke on his morning tea/coffee, I'd just say this atheist agrees with him. But provisionally.

I believe (there's that word again!) that things actually catch one's interest for a reason. So I see life as a path ( oh, quelle 'Hallmark') in a quite literal sense. One is walking along and something catches your eye (or ear or imagination). Sometimes, it starts to recur and sort of haunt you. THEN you start to look into it a bit deeper. But then, I also believe that that is the story, the narrative, the accretion if you will, of a person's life. It's how people fall in love with a career, a person, a place and so on.

I say: wait and it will come to you. Look and you will look too hard with ideas you already have which may blind you to something completely new and outside your usual thoughts or orbit which might be the 'thing' that speaks most deeply to you if you listen. The more I use this approach, the faster 'things' are coming in on me. It's strange and wonderful and really, unexpected. As soon as I stopped letting preconceived ( or conceived and constructed by someone else) ideas, the more new info. started occurring. Really.

Marto

It was meusli actually. The effect would have been good if i hadn't already swallowed.

I in my turn, agree with you, more or less. I like the choice of the word 'haunt'. A good starting point.

I love this idea, and personally, I think I would credit his books with opening my mind to different ways of seeing things. Can't say I've answered much through them, but I have opened a lot of questions I wouldn't have considered. Which is much more interesting

I just caught the last 20 minutes of Colour Of Magic on Sky 3..I didnt even know it was on
David Jason looked like I imagine Rincewind

I'd go with 'read what seems to answer your questions that you may have'. I wouldn't confine myself to 'pagan' books either. I've read up on bits of early history of UK, psychology (lots of that actually), read up on different pagan traditions and all sorts of things, including tarot books, I ching, runes (although I find them the most difficult)...

just have a really good hunt around, maybe starting with something that will actually help you with the questions you have already.

fizz

Another vote for Pete Jennings here too. "Pagan Paths" is a nice little book that outlines a bit about most of the more common pagan paths and traditions.

I also like "Hedgewitch" by Rae Beth and "A Witch Alone" by Marian Green. They are both about the solitary witch's path but if that appeals, both are good books.