| Title | : | Wicca Magical Deities: A Guide to the Wiccan God and Goddess, and Choosing a Deity to Work Magic With |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Kindle Edition |
| Number of Pages | : | 126 |
| Publication | : | First published June 29, 2016 |
Perhaps the biggest difference between Wicca and other religions is the belief that individuals can do more than simply pray to a supreme, all-powerful deity and hope that things will work out to their benefit. Wiccans understand that individuals can actually co-create with the forces of nature by linking their own personal energy with the divine through ritual and magic. But what is “the divine” when it comes to Wicca? Who are the Goddess and the God, and where did they come from? Why do they have different names in different Wiccan traditions, and how do you begin to work with them in your personal practice?
Magical Deities, by best-selling author Lisa Chamberlain, answers these questions and more. Going beyond the usual brief introduction to the God and Goddess found in many beginner guides to Wicca, Lisa covers the origins of the Wiccan deities, as well as their varying manifestations among different Wiccan traditions. What’s more, she explains the difference between traditional duotheism and more eclectic polytheistic practices, both of which are found among the diversity of forms within this dynamic religion. You’ll find advice for learning to forge your own spiritual connection with the divine masculine and feminine, and introductions to sixteen ancient deities who often function as “aspects” of the God and Goddess within Wiccan practices. Finally, you’ll find ideas for honoring and working with these deities in your magical practice—and make no mistake, having the assistance of the gods and goddesses of the Universe is an enormous boon in the magic department!
Foundations in Wiccan Concepts of Divinity and Magic
For many practitioners who keep to the traditional duotheistic concept of Wicca, the ancient deities are “aspects” of the “supreme” Goddess and God and don’t have a role to play on their own. For those who fall into the category of “eclectic” Wiccans, the inclusion of ancient deities is more polytheistic. Eclectics often have personal relationships with “patron” gods and/or goddesses, who may be included in ritual practice alongside the God and Goddess. In both approaches, deities may be called upon for assistance with specific magical aims. But it’s not simply a matter of speaking a god’s or goddess’ name in your spellwork—you need to develop an understanding and personal relationship with your chosen deities. Magical Deities will help you to do just that, with valuable information including:
The history of the Wiccan Goddess and God and their evolution through various traditions
An introduction to the Triple Goddess and her three aspects: Maiden, Mother and Crone
Introductions to the Sun God, the Horned God, the Green Man, and the Holly and Oak Kings
How to represent the God and Goddess on the Wiccan altar
The mythology, cosmology, and magical practices of the ancient cultures that gave rise to Wicca
The most popular deities of the Egyptian, Roman, Greek, and Celtic pantheons
Advice for choosing deities to work with, and magical goals and methods specific to each one
The paths to connection with the God and Goddess, or to any of the deities “borrowed” from other cultures are as multiple and varied as the people who worship them.
Wicca Magical Deities: A Guide to the Wiccan God and Goddess, and Choosing a Deity to Work Magic With Reviews
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Interesting and informative. While I don't share the same beliefs about many aspects, I am always interested to learn about different beliefs and many other topics!
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In this book author tells us about a few main deities of Greeks-Romans, Egyptians and Celts. I was very happy to find Bastet since she is my main deity I work with. Also I could learn about Celtic Gods that I never knew of. Celtic Gods were something I wanted to know more of and here I had a chance. I recommend this book to everybody who are looking for a deity to worship or simply want to read a short stories and few Gods.
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A Great Starting Point
A really easy to read, quick guide to the most popular Egyptian, Greek, and Celtic gods and goddesses. Get this if you're curious and don't know where to start, plus it's on Kindle Unlimited! -
Great for a beginning understanding of the god and goddess!
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I really liked this! It's a pretty brief overview, so it's definitely targeted to beginners. However, I learned a lot of interesting historical information! Its focus is on contextualizing the deities in their culture and time period, which is an approach I see less often (or at least less rigorously historical) and I appreciated it.
Chamberlain makes the point several times that throughout history people have adopted, coopted, altered, and combined the gods and goddesses of other cultures they came into contact with, addressing one of the modern concerns about "appropriation" in Wicca.It may seem odd to some to "borrow" a deity from another religion to worship in a Wiccan context. However, as we will see in the following overviews of the ancient cultures they are borrowed from, the adoption of deities from another religion isn't at all a new practice.
Throughout the history of human society, people have merged and adopted deities from those they can into contact with, blending aspects of their own religion with that of the new one. This can be seen today in Ireland and Latin American, for example, where pagan gods have been made into Christian saints.
I appreciated her perspective on the question of addressing gods and goddesses outside of your inherited spiritual practices or regions. I would definitely pick up more of Chamberlain's books if I come across them. -
I usually hate History books, but not this book though i skimmed through certain god and goddesses i wasn't so keen on. Osiris and Isis to the win. And thank god for Rick Riordan, so that I actually knew what they were talking about. Can't think of a better person than Riordan to have taught me about Egyptian, Roman, Greek mythology in the most interesting way. And for all my Percy love, i thought my choice would certainly be a Greek Deity, but here iam rooting for Egyptian beliefs and all. That's one thing about Wicca, it never forces its decisions on you, you have your own choice based on what you connect with and nothing is wrong or right. If I didn't know the path i chose was right already, maybe now I know for sure.
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Very good intro to deities
I always enjoy Lisa Chamberlain’s writing. She doesn’t make assertions without including opposing views or exceptions to consider, and she always makes the reader aware of the limits of knowledge that exist on any given subject.
That said, she managed to include a wealth of knowledge on deities in clear and concise language, and this was an enjoyable and easy read.
My only wish is that she had also included Norse gods, as I am interested in them and also they are rather widely revered in Wicca today. I am not saying she overlooked them—again, she stated the limits of what she was sharing in this book very clearly—but because I would have enjoyed to read her writing on them. -
Great read! Whether you are pagan, wiccan, an atheist or just interested in mythology this book covers the main Pantheons; Greek/Roman, Egyptian, and Celtic as well as an introduction to the triple goddess. I couldn't put it down, and have since bought two other books by this author. She is very comprehensive and doesn't simplify things but it is easy to understand. I'd recommend to anyone interested in this subject.
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A brief look into some of the more common deities found today, from Egyptian, Greek/Roman, and Celtic. I enjoyed reading the little mythology found here, but I found there was no information about how to actually FIND a patron deity. No tips or suggestions. Though I guess if a mythos here captures your attention, then it's a start and a way for you to look deeper in to it. Which I guess is the whole point of such beginner books that Lisa writes.
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This is a good overview of deities. If you are looking for something with a lot of "deity options" I'd say this isn't it. This is very much broad and the deities that I work with were not in here. Which is fine for what I needed the book for, but if you are brand new and looking for specific deities, just be aware that this is kind of a "most popular" kinda thing. The information about history etc is very good and easy to understand.
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Who can I turn to?
I found this to be a useful introduction to the origins of several deities of the ancient world. As well as a really nice overview of the cultures that gave birth to them. This is an excellent place to begin your search for a deity to work with.
I also like that MS Chamberlain adds a short listing of other source books. -
Informative read.
This was a wonderfully informative read. This is great for beginners or those looking to refresh their knowledge. It is written clearly and broken down in such a way that even if you are unfamiliar with the deities you will understand. It helps to create a solid information base as you journey along your path.
Blessed be. -
Insightful
As an aspiring Wiccan path follower, I found this book very insightful. Lisa's books are inspiring most of my work currently, and I've read several. Her books are definitely a useful reference for just about anything you want to know. If the specific thing isn't in the books, I still feel like the author points the reader in the right direction to find the answers. -
A good review of information
A generally good review of information and a great starting point. Wish my kindle version had an index of where certain themes of deities are mentioned and such things. -
Basic introduction
This is very basic but a good introduction to the Wiccan understanding of deity. It includes brief discussions of some of the more popular gods and goddesses. I would recommend this entire series to anyone new to Wicca. -
Beginner guide
Great beginner's guide to god\dess wicca. Loved the history given. Brief overview of the Sabbats as well as magical practices. Nice.glossary of names and associations. -
very informative, well laid out
Must read basic for anyone building their first alter or trying to decide which deities to work with and represent in their practice. Well thought out and laid out with helpful charts. It’s very basic, but not in a bad way - excellent for beginners -
Very instructive for a base knowledge on gods and goddesses.
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Me recuerda a esa web o blog que todos abrimos cuando llevábamos un año en esto
