EDGE OF THE CIRCLE BOOKS
IS PROUD TO PRESENT
THE FOLLOWING
NEW TITLES:
THE GNOME MANUSCRIPT
Part One: Origins, Habit and Culture
By Wilmar Taal
Paperback Edition: Gloss laminate cover.Pagination: 318 pages extensively illustrated with drawings by JHW Eldermans from the original Gnome Manuscript and photographs by the author.
Publisher:Troy Books
List Price: $28.95
FROM THE PUBLISHER:
In 2000, the mysterious Dutch ‘Richel-Eldermans collection’ was donated to The Museum of Witchcraft and Magic in Boscastle where, in 2003, a Dutch speaking student assisted in deciphering some of the written materials in the collection. It was during this process that the student discovered a fascinating manuscript concerned with Dutch gnome-folklore, and alerted the Meertens Institute in Amsterdam who were happy to receive a copy of the ‘Gnome Manuscript’, as it became known, on CD-Rom.
Another Dutch student subsequently graduated on a study of this manuscript, but still there were too many questions and mysteries concerning the information J.H.W. Eldermans collected throughout his life. The staff of the Museum of Witchcraft and Magic were most interested in the contents of this manuscript, and so a decision was made to publish a series of books that present translations of the intriguing handwritten content, with comments on the origins of the manuscript and studies of the places described therein. The information was categorized and this first part as ‘Origins, Habit and Culture’ and focuses on where the gnomes came from, what they were doing and what they expressed. The second part will look deeper into the magic concerning gnomes, and the third part will deal with leftover writings by Eldermans.
Wilmar Taal is a Dutch cultural historian and author of ‘The Silent Listener – The Life and Works of J.H.W. Eldermans’ (Troy Books, 2018). He specializes in sagas, myths and the occult sciences. He lives in Koog aan de Zaan, The Netherlands, together with his wife, son and daughter and a spoilt rotten cat.
THE GNOME GRIMOIRE
The Gnome Manuscript – Part Two:
Magical Workings with Nature Spirits
By Wilmar Taal
Publisher:Troy Books
Paperback Edition: Gloss laminate cover. Pagination: 393 pages extensively illustrated with drawings by JHW Eldermans from the original Gnome Manuscript and photographs by the author.
List Price: $29.95
FROM THE PUBLISHER:
The Gnome Manuscript by J.H.W. Eldermans has been a mystery for many years. The drawings and sketches of pentacles, talismans and amulets, ritual garments and tools and methods of magic, all graced by his graceful handwriting, have been a magnet to students of the occult, but the many texts in Dutch made it difficult to understand these writings. Wilmar Taal has taken on the task of categorizing, translating and commenting on this manuscript and the second instalment of The Gnome Manuscript will take you into the world of working magic with the little people…
Being the largest part of the trilogy, The Gnome Grimoire will not only bring you the well known Solomonic magic concerning gnomes, but also open the doors to the grey circuit, the circles of unknown witches and magisters who share their knowledge of gnome magic, and for the first time translated into English. It will enable the practitioner to prepare foods that gnomes are attracted to, to build contraptions that enables you to see gnomes roaming free in the fields or to gain the aid of a gnome during the search for hidden treasure. The Gnome Grimoire is your go-to book concerning the magic with gnomes, at least Dutch gnomes…
The book is profusely illustrated throughout with over 360 drawings, talismans and examples of handwritten text by Eldermans.
**
OF CHALK AND FLINT
A Way of Norfolk Magic
By Val Thomas
Publisher: Troy Books
Paperback Edition. Pagination: 378 pages + 12 pages B&W photo plates.
List Price: $29.95
FROM THE PUBLISHER:
Of Chalk and Flint: A Way of Norfolk Magic is a celebration of the county of Norfolk and its Nameless Tradition of magic and witchcraft. The spiritual energy which informs and powers this magic wells up from the land itself and from the Chalk and Flint which have shaped the landscape, its flora, its fauna, its culture and its history. This book therefore weaves a rich tapestry of herbs and creatures, of gods, dragons, Fair Ones and merfolk, of spells, rituals and seasonal devotions. It retells some of the old stories which shape the work of the Tradition and honours the ancestors who inspire it. Yet it is a book for the present moment, and shows how working closely with the land can be an integral and vibrant part of modern life. While the book is focused on Norfolk, the principles of the magic explored here are applicable anywhere in in the world. Thus, this book provides a valuable resource, both for those with an interest in Norfolk, and also for anyone seeking insights into natural magic, witchcraft and working with the power of the land.
Table of Contents:
Introduction
Chapter One – The Lord and Lady of Norfolk
Chapter Two – Sacred Places: Stories within the Landscape
Chapter Three – Spiritual Beings
Chapter Four – The Quest of the Year
Chapter Five – Materia Magica
Chapter Six – Magical Tools
Chapter Seven – Operative Magic
Chapter Eight – A Sense of Community: Covens, Moots and Magical Groups
Chapter Nine – A Treasury of Talent
Chapter Ten – A Harvest of Norfolk
Endword
Index
**
THE WILLOW PATH
Witchcraft, Hermetics &
The Hidden Wisdom of the Magical Arts
By Kerry Wisner
Publisher: Troy
Paperback Edition: gloss laminate cover. Pagination: 300 pages, 90gsm cream paper stock, plus 20 pages of black and white photographic plates, plus line drawings and figures by the author.
List Price: $28.95
FROM THE PUBLISHER:
We are delighted to welcome Kerry Wisner to Troy Books and present the The Willow Path – Witchcraft, Hermetics
and the Hidden Wisdom of the Magical Arts. The book is the first of a forthcoming trilogy The Geassa, which presents a codification of his training and practice of the Art, focusing on Traditional Witchcraft.
Deep in the New England forests a stone circle lays hidden, nestled in a clearing high atop a mountain of granite. Formed in the pattern of the many old stone walls which dot the region it is here that the Willow Path emerges from the land itself. In nature there exists an underlying current; a continuity of wisdom and consciousness that manifests in the Magical Arts.
With roots reaching to Basque Witchcraft, the Willow Path is a form of the Magical Arts that incorporates techniques drawn across the rich tapestry of Western Occult practices. From the oral teachings of traditional Witchcraft, combined with Hermetics, the Willow Path blends these into a cohesive magical practice. Much of this material has never been published as it represents the actual methods taught to the author through personal instruction and intensive training.
This book discusses:
The other worlds and realms employed in the Art
The Stang, or Witches Staff, as the tree rising through the Worlds
Sun and Moon tides
The Witches Foot and elemental forces
Tools of the Art
Companions of the Art: Familiar Spirits
The Miller’s Stone and Cloak of Danu: the use of Numbers, colors and the directions
The Wheel of Tlachtga, and much more.
The Willow Path is a culmination of teachings that seek to carry the heritage and wisdom of the Magical Arts forward allowing one to shape reality as one would bend the osiers of a Willow itself.
**
A RING AROUND THE MOON
Witch Rites Revisited
By Nigel G. Pearson
Troy Books
Paperback Edition, Pagination; 186 pages.
List Price: $23.95
FROM THE PUBLISHER:
An initiate of both Traditional and Modern Witchcraft, the author gives here the actual rites and rituals of a working Coven, from an insider’s point of view. These rites were developed by the Coven themselves over a period of nearly a quarter of a century and give a fascinating insight into the actual workings of an initiate-only Coven. As the Coven itself has ceased practice and is no longer in existence, and a significant period of time has elapsed, the secrecy surrounding these rites may now be lifted and they are here offered as working examples, which other Covens may benefit from.
As well as giving a brief, historical overview of the origins of the Coven and the parent group it derived from – which in itself is fascinating reading – the rites detailed cover devotional, magical and festive rituals, rites for the Greater and Lesser Sabbats, rites for the God and Goddess, rites of passage and workings for solitary practice. Wherever possible, background information is given, explaining the origins and inspirations for these rites and how and why they came to be written.
In addition, there are two appendices, detailing more unusual rites practised by the Coven. In Appendix I, the author gives a unique ritual – developed from information received via trance and dream work – that takes the practitioners on a mystical journey to the mythical island of Avalon, seeking knowledge of the return of the Old Ways and what they may do to aid this return. Appendix II gives details of magical rites practised by an inner group of the Coven, working with ceremonial magic techniques and the Egyptian deities Isis and Ra.
There are many books around these days, dealing with the rites of modern Witchcraft, but very few are written from an initiated insider’s point of view. The author has 40 years of practical experience in working the Craft and, for many of those years, was the Priest of the Coven whose rites are discussed here. He helped to craft and write a great many of them and was instrumental in formulating others with the rest of the Coven.
This is a highly unusual and individual book, giving as it does a glimpse of the inner life of a single Coven over a period of nearly 25 years, its working practices and magical ethos.
**
RUNA:
The Wisdom of the Runes
By A.D. Mercer
Troy Books. Paperback Edition. Gloss laminate cover. Pagination; 162 pages.
List Price: $22.95
FROM THE PUBLISHER:
‘Runa – Wisdom of the Runes’ presents what is, without doubt, the most misunderstood, probably the most cynically abused set of runes in the history of runology. The Armanen runes have been ignored by scholars, abused by right wing extremists, and largely forgotten by students of the occult. Nevertheless, the Armanen runes are in many ways the quintessential esoteric rune row. Originally conceived of by the nineteenth-century German mystic Guido von List, the Armanen runes offer us the most esoterically charged futharks ever encountered.
As well as exploring their true history, Runa discusses the deeper significance of the Armanen runes with the intention of returning the runes to their rightful place at the zenith of true runic magic as well as their true meaning as symbols of transformation granting access into the deeper unconscious and what may lie beyond.
Runa examines each rune in detail, before embarking on a detailed exploration of the relationship between the Armanen Runes and Yggdrasil, the Germanic and Nordic world tree directly link the two, in this respect Runa is a unique text, as it is the only text to directly link the two, exploring the importance of this connection, which cannot be overstated.
**
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