The BOS

Fact and Fiction

There are so many misconceptions on what a Book of Shadows is and

what it is not. The media and even some books on Wicca portrays the
BOS as a mysterious, leather bound book which has a power of its own
and also a lot of dust in its pages.
Lets do a reality check. Wicca and Witchcraft are Earth Spiritual paths,
tied in with fertility and the land itself. The idea that a Book of Shadows
is handed down from generation to generation is ludicrous in most
cases. The 'country folk' up to about a hundred years ago did not even
know how to read and write!
So what is a Book of Shadows then?
Well, in simple terms the Book of Shadows or BOS is the Witches'
notebook or personal Spell Book. No two Books of Shadows should be
the same, not if they belong to a real witch anyway!
The idea of the modern spell book probably comes from Gerald
Gardner. Many of the myths dates back to the time when Gardner first
started his 'Wiccan' Coven back in the 1940's. Wiccans copy their first
Book of Shadows by hand from that of their HP (high Priest) & HPS
(High Priestess). The book should constantly be added to and should
evolve as the knowledge and experience of the Witch evolves.
Legend has it that Gardner started his first book shortly after joining
the New Forest Coven and he had several versions of the book, which
are all names according to the year he finished it. So you have 1949,
1953, 1957, and 1961. It is also worth noting that there was very little
ritual in the first two versions, and only when Gardner teamed up with
Doreen Valiente as his HPS things started to change.
It was Valiente who added to the BOS the Charge of the Goddess and
most of the poetry. It is also interesting to note that many witches who
claim their Books have been handed down for centuries face the
problem that it has modern material such as Valiente's Charge and
some of her other work in it. Lady Sheba's Book of Shadows is one
such book, and should be avoided!
Its also worth noting that Gardner had an estimated eight Books of
Shadows, which explains why there is more than one group claiming to
have his original. Gerald Gardner would not have liked the way in
which the Book of Shadows has today been turned into a dogma and
set of absurd rules for modern Pagans and Wiccans. He wanted people
to think about what they were doing, and borrowing from methods
used by the Golden Dawn he would switch bits of rituals around on

purpose, or include errors on purpose to make people think about what

they were doing and saying.
It didn't work and even today I often come across books and websites
with blatant errors. If only everyone would sit down and think about
their practices!
Now, saying that the Book of Shadows in Wicca is not all that old
doesn't mean that there aren't other books, which are. There are many
Mediaeval Grimoires kept by educated Ritual Magickians and
Astrologers. The Books of John Dee, who is well known for being the
Astrologer to Queen Elisabeth I and for his work on Enochian Magick, is
a good example. Some of his books can be viewed in the British
Museum today.
Now, to make it even more confusing, the Book of Shadows is
sometimes referred to as the Book of Lights and sometimes to as the
Black Book. (Liber Umbarum). It is thought that the term 'Book of
Shadows' originated with Idries Shah, one of Gerald Gardner's first
initiates, and that it refers to a Middle Eastern form of divination.
Today many people in the United States follows a tradition called 'SeaxWicca' which originated with Raymond Buckland, and is said to be an
Anglo-Saxon Tradition. (Raymond Buckland was a Gardnerian Wiccan,
and when he moved to the USA he started the Gardnerian Tradition
there and eventually founded his own tradition.) In Seax-Wicca the
Book of Shadows is called 'The Tree' a reference to the magickal
Yggdrasil, or World Tree of Norse Mythos.
So what does it look like?
Well, of course it can look all mystical, leather-bound black and dusty,
but at the same time it can be just a normal notebook. I have several
books in my possession, which can be classed as Books of Shadows.
They range from black leather covered, handwritten to computer
printouts kept in files. I also have some prettier notebooks with
handmade paper, which I use to record personal spell workings and
another for keeping records of oracular work.
Your Book of Shadows can look anyway you want it to, the more work
you put into it, the more special it will be to you! From a practical
viewpoint a ring folder is probably the best. You can easily add pages,
replace pages which becomes damaged (water/candle wax etc) and
you can also photocopy pages for other members in your Coven! So
there are many advantages!

So what will your Book of Shadows contain?

Well, if you are Wiccan then your book will contain the rituals and
spells which you copy down from the main Coven book, and then you
will add your own spells and rituals to it. You might have several books,
If you are working by yourself, either by choice or due to the lack of
finding a suitable Coven in your area, you should still keep a Book. In
such a case obviously you will not have spells and rituals to copy from
your Coven, but you can record what you are learning from books, the
Internet and talks. You can record any spells that you have tried,
writing down the method and the outcome. If Wicca is your chosen
path then you may benefit from looking through a few good books on
Wicca and copying the rituals, spells and techniques that you want to
use into your own Book of Shadows. You can of course write your own
rituals, invocations, spells and experiences down in your book too
Once you start performing seasonal rituals, full Moon rituals or
magickal workings, you should also start your own Book of Shadows.
How you do this, is completely up to you, whether you are in a
group/coven or working solitary, you should make sure that you are
comfortable and proud of the way you keep your Book of Shadows as
this will help encourage you to always write up workings, rather than
putting it off.
You will need:
1. A blank notebook
I would recommend a A5 or A4 size with a hardback cover with enough
pages to last you at least a year, you can decorate this in anyway that
pleases you. I often use cast away bits of fabric to cover notebooks
which are to serve as a Book of Shadows, or interesting recycled gift
wrapping!
or
1. A lever-arch or other file & a quantity of paper.
If you are going to use a ring-binder file I would recommend you use
plastic filing pockets for your work or that you re-enforce the holes in
the paper to ensure that it won't tear easily. There is nothing as
heartbreaking as seeing your handwritten work deteriorate due to your
filing system!! Remember that your Book of Shadows is going to be
used, over and over again and you still want it to be in one piece in ten
or twenty years time!
2. A Pen / & if you are going to be creative a set of colored ink pens /
pencils.

Next you will consecrate your Book of Shadows.