The Temple of High Witchcraft by Christopher Penczak © 2007 Llewellyn
Worldwide ISBN 0-7387-1165-2 480 pages Paperback $19.95 (U.S.)
$22.95 (Canada)
Over the past several years I have read (and reviewed) a number of books
by
Christopher Penczak. I haven't always agreed with him (we were trained in
very different traditions), but agreement isn't necessary. His approach
has
always been one of challenging perceptions. This latest book, the fourth
in
a series of five, continues that challenging approach.
Despite the seemingly prevalent attitude that 'anything goes" in magick;
that "spontaneous" ritual (is that an oxymoron?) is the best way to go;
and
that understanding the origins of symbols is unim****tant. Chris shows the
similarities and common bonds between ceremonial magick and witchcraft (or
Wicca, as some members of the newer generation are prone to say).
This book is not intended to teach "traditional" anything. It
deconstructs
rituals to show the how and why of their workings and to enable the reader
to tinker (knowledgeably) with them for personal use.
Many of Christopher's statements will offend traditionalists on both sides
of the Ceremonial/folk magic debate. Did Gerald Gardner invest modern
Wicca? Possibly. Did he integrate aspects of Ceremonial Magic in his
rituals? Absolutely. Does it make a difference? Who cares? He doesn't
worry about offending people. He lays his opinions and beliefs out on the
line and lets the reader decide for himself about what to believe.
Throughout this book the author stresses the im****tance of traditional
knowledge. This does NOT translate to an adherence to outmoded ways of
thought and expression, however. It means that you need to understand the
foundations of existing forms before you are able to tinker with them and
fine-tune them for yourself. As an example, if you don't understand the
complexities of a god-form (say, Mercury) you cannot simply plug in
another
god-form (say, Eleggua) without some potentially major changes to the
ritual
you are attempting to do. You need to know why things are said and done
in
a ritual to be able to make predictable changes.
As with the previous volumes in this series (The Inner Temple of
Witchcraft,
The Outer Temple of Witchcraft, and The Shamanic Temple of Witchcraft)
this
is intended to be a practical book, studied and WORKED over the course of
a
year and a day. With its CD Companion set (available from Llewellyn for
$24.95 U.S.) it expands upon the previous foundation laid down. While it
is
not strictly necessary to have read the previous volume, it builds upon
work
done in them. This is, after all, an educational series designed to
provide
a five year progression from novice to experienced practitioner.
The work Christopher lays out is not easy, nor is it intended to be. The
reader has to be willing to commit time and energy; to practice on a
regular
basis; and to be honest while doing self-evaluations.
It isn't necessary to agree with everything as written, but it is
necessary
to look at things with an open mind. If you do that, you will experience
things most witches (especially those not trained in a BTW lineage) never
experience. You will learn to deconstruct rituals from a variety of
sources
and to put them back together in a way which works for you.
The use of the CD Companion set with this volume would be a real benefit.
Although Christopher provides phonetic pronunciations, nothing makes the
words come alive like hearing them being intoned.
I will be posting a review of the CD set within the next week, so look to
that review for more information on it.
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