• Traces the origins and core concepts of sacred geometry from ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Britain through the Renaissance and modern science• Reveals how geometric forms, proportions, and measurements shape sacred architecture, ritual objects, and esoteric symbolism• Applies foundational principles such as the Golden Section, Platonic solids, and ad quadratum methods to understand the connection between spiritual practice and cosmic orderSacred geometry is a un...

A comprehensive account of the rich folk culture preserved in the rural secret societies of the British Isles• Describes the secret rites, ceremonies, and initiation rituals of guilds and rural fraternities such as the Shoemakers, Horsemen, Toadmen, Mummers, and Bonesmen• Explains their use of masks, black face, and other disguises to avoid persecution• Draws not only on scholarly research but also the author’s personal contacts within these still living traditions

Learn how to use the principles and practices of natural magic for personal development and spiritual empowerment• Offers detailed descriptions of the magical properties of minerals, animals, plants, and the earth’s cycles and how to use them in your own practice• Explores the magical laws of nature and how to guide your inner energy to work in concert with cosmic energies• Details how to design your own ceremonies, practice elemental meditations, and craft your own...

• Examines the Eight Directions and the powers of their Winds, the Tides of the Day, and the eightfold year of modern Pagan practice• Explores geomancy practices, how to work with spirits of place, and the power of mountains, rivers, caves, standing stones, and crossroads• Shares spiritual exercises, including runic practices and divination techniques, as well as how to craft your own magical toolsIn this guide to the Way of the Eight Winds, Nigel Pennick explores t...

• Provides a full explanation for each character of the Celtic tree alphabets and their historic variants, including each symbol’s corresponding trees, colors, birds, cryptic codes, and esoteric inner meanings• Explores the use of Celtic tree alphabets in spiritual invocation, divination, and symbolic art as well as the practice of Ogham cryptography• Explains how, like Norse Runes, each Ogham character is a meditative symbol in its own right and offers the possibility of d...

The first comprehensive study of its kind, this fully illustrated book establishes Paganism as a persistent force in European history with a profound influence on modern thinking.From the serpent goddesses of ancient Crete to modern nature-worship and the restoration of the indigenous religions of eastern Europe, this wide-ranging book offers a rewarding new perspective of European history.In this definitive study, Prudence Jones and Nigel Pennick draw together the fragment...

Traces the history of good fortune traditions from sacred divination to modern gambling• Reveals how dice were originally considered sacred objects of divination and details the techniques and meanings of a dice oracle• Looks at medieval grimoires for fortune-telling and other divination traditions, including those using cowrie shells, bones, coins, cards, sticks, and stones• Examines how dice became a means of gaming and gambling and how gambling g...

Explores how runes relate to the cycles of time• Looks at the meanings and temporal qualities of the 24 runes of the Elder Futhark and their rapport with ancient timekeeping and star-reading methods• Examines the runes’ relationships with the planets, the stars, the seasons, and the precessional year• Provides charts and calculations to discern which rune is the primary influence on a particular day, week, month, season, or year, as well as methods ...

An exploration of the traditional rites of auspicious building and crafting• Explains the ceremonial beginnings and Hermetic principles in the laying out of foundations not only for sacred buildings like temples but also for homes and barns• Examines the principles and ceremonies of electional astrology and details how to compute natural time, as opposed to clock time• Shares examples from ancient Egypt, Iran, India, and Europe that range from the S...

• Reveals how mask rituals are akin to shamanic journeying and allow the mask wearer to personify an ancestral presence, spirit, deity, or power• Examines animal guising and shows how mask customs are tied to creation myths and the ancestral founders of a people, tribe, city, or nation• Looks at morris dancers and mummers in the UK, Krampuslauf and Perchtenlauf in Germanic areas, the Gorgon myths of Greece, Norse Berserker rituals, and the annual Black Forest rite to awaken...

• Looks at the age-old spiritual principles, folklore, and esoteric traditions behind the creation of magical objects as well as the use of numbers, colors, sigils, geometric emblems, knots, crosses, pentagrams, and other symbols• Explores hundreds of artifacts, such as hagstones, Norse directional amulets, car hood mascots, objects made from bones and teeth, those connected with plants and animals, charms associated with gambling, and religious relics• Includes photos of a...

A comprehensive look at the history and practices of rural English witchcraft• Explores witch’s familiars and fetches, animal magic, and the forms of witchcraft practiced by rural tradespeople, such as blacksmiths, herbalists, and artisans• Offers practical insight into spells, charms, folk incantations, herbal medicine practices, amulets, sigils, and tools of the craft• Details the evolution of public perception of witchcraft throughout England’s history, including...