Guest Author - Fiona Blackwolf

The Book of Shadows is one of the most important and also one of the most mysterious of Wiccan tools. Television and movies generally portray the Book as large leather bound volumes with parchment pages full of cryptic poems, calligraphy, elaborate drawings, and bits of herbs poking out from the pages. While many of us would love to have something that exotic and lovely, most Books of Shadows are a far cry from what you see on Charmed.

A witch’s Book of Shadows is as individual as the one who keeps it. While it is possible to purchase beautiful leather-bound books, it is just as common to grab a $7.99 sketchbook off of the bargain table at your local bookstore. You can make your own Book of Shadows, or you can purchase one. (If you would like to look into binding your own book I have included links to a couple of great books at the bottom of this page.) I have even known of people who have taken inexpensive bound composition books and filled them to bursting with magical items and information.

Nowadays, it is even common to find folks who have a 3-ring binder of shadows or a disk of shadows. However, in my tradition, the Book of Shadows is a bound book which pages cannot be removed from, nor do we feel they should be. There will be mistakes and for some of us that is a great struggle to accept. But the Book is representative of who and where we are on our path, and of our growth. None of us are perfect, and the Book reflects that. My personal Book of Shadows has its share of mistakes. It shows where I was when I began it and how much I have grown since then. I am not perfect and I learn from my mistakes.

There is power in the pages that have been filled by hand. Things you have done or that you have learned are more readily committed to memory when you write them out rather than typing them. Some witches work on their Book only in the sacred space of a cast circle. Others will only use a dip pen and ink for their magical notation. And for some, the beautiful array of colorful gel pens make their pages come to life. You choose what feels best to you.

The biggest hurdle most people have to overcome is simply starting. The blank page can be so intimidating, especially with a book this important. My advice… Just start. Make a mark on the page, or glue a picture of a Goddess or God, find a poem that has meaning to you and just start. Once you have begun, and especially once that first mistake is made, you will find that it is much easier to continue.

Not sure what kinds of information to put into your Book of Shadows? Stay tuned for my next article…