ISSUE TWENTY-EIGHT,VOLUME THREE: DECEMBER 2008

Happy Yule! Welcome to the 28th edition of the Edge of the Circle Newsletter. This newsletter has come about as an effort to reach out to the Pagan/ Occult community (particularly in Seattle where we are based) to inform the community of what events are happening at our store. I’ve got great plans for this newsletter. Hopefully, as time goes by, it will only get bigger and better. Without further ado, welcome, and enjoy. Regards, Erica (Raven) Branch-Butler, Editrix golanv1@yahoo.com WHO WE ARE: Edge of the Circle Books is Seattle’s resource for Paganism & the Occult. This newsletter seeks to provide the Seattle community with a place to list events, post articles, and do a bit of networking. We are located at: 701 E. Pike St, corner of Boylston Ave., just two blocks west of Broadway, on Capitol Hill. Edge of the Circle Books strives to be everything that you could want in a Magical Pagan store. Open 7 days a week, Noon 'till 9pm. Call: 206-PAN-1999 ** CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS Edge of the Circle Newsletter is looking for writers and artists! Our Focus has been on the Pagan community, Sabbatic Witchcraft, Hoodoo, Western Ceremonial Magic, African Traditional Religions, Asatru and Heathenry, Wicca, Celtic Paganism and more obscure aspects of the Occult. If you have an article or art to share, please email golanv1@yahoo.com with “Newsletter” in the subject line. Please send only original material. All Copyrighted material will be honored and credited to/as the property of the original writer. SPECIAL ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: Thanks very much to Leon Reed, for the use of one of his wonderful poems. ** POETRY THE COSMOLOGY SERIES:WICCAN POEMS By Leon Reed ** SAVE THE WILD THINGS 12/19/85 R.H.U.N. Turn the force by skill of Art Rhythm of the drum, measure the dance Treasure maker, spell shaper Legend singer, lineage keeper Lift the veil of obscurity Open to the day, our art The children of the glass towers Need the magic in their lives Celebrate the seasons turning One to another in a loving circle Honor God and Goddess on their days Moon and Sun weave the years Be the shape shifter, magic maker Spirit speaker, shaman of the earthly tribe Awaken the children of the Earth Mother Here forests and animals disappear Help save the wild things Protect the fierce and free Trust and Love the natural states Bless the wonder works, save the dream Leon Reed is a long-time Elder, Bard and member of the Pagan community of Seattle, and one of the founding members of the Gorsedd of Caer Pugetia. He, along with his partner Alan are the proprietors of Travelers Tea Co, at 5O1 East Pine St, Phone 206.329.6260 ** NEW BOOKS: DANCING GOD: POETRY OF MYTHS AND MAGICKS By author Diotima This collection of poems spans the ages from the timeless sagas of the ancient gods to the modern commuter train "--it spans the human heart from the beginnings of love to the depths of grief. Diotima, author of “Refuge: Tales of Myth and Magick,” and “Banish with Laughter: Essays of Myth and Magick,” opens her notebooks to share her poetic musings, her songs of triumph and despair, her life and loves. ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Diotima was the teacher who led Socrates to an appreciation of the nature of love and its relation to philosophy and the world in general. The current author is not Diotima of Mantinea, but she does believe firmly that the dichotomy between thought and feeling, between “mind” and “heart,” has crippled Western society for far too long; she works in whatever way she can to redress that. Diotima is, among other things, a mother, a lover, an inhabitant of bookshops, a teacher, a reader, a worker... (and much less energetic than this makes her sound!). List Prics: $15.99 Paperback: 206 pages Publisher: CreateSpace (May 6, 2008) ** THE GOAT FOOT GOD by Diotima BOOK BLURB: The Goat Food God.... The Lord of the Hunt... Swift footed, keen eyed... To be approached with laughter and song... God of madness, dreams and healing... Sending armies mad and persuading young women to go on living... Beloved of all the gods, yet never resident on Olympus... Pan presents the modern reader with a series of, if not contradictions, then puzzles. Who was this deity-- and who was he thought to be? What were the people who honoured him like, and why did they seek him out? In The Goat Foot God, Diotima takes a scholarly yet idiosyncratic look at Pan, as is only befitting the subject. Using the Homeric Hymn as a base, and moving beyond it, she examines what the ancients knew and thought about Pan. She moves on to the present day and finds no less puzzlement, asking how Pan might fit in with the modern feminist consciousness. There are more questions than answers herein, but that is entirely in keeping with the eponymous subject.... List Price: $13.99 Paperback: 114 pages Publisher: CreateSpace (June 18, 2008) ** MAGICK WORKS: STORIES OF OCCULTISM IN THEORY AND PRACTICE by Julian Vayne BOOK BLURB: Enter the world of the occultist: where the spirits of the dead dwell amongst us,where the politics of ecstasy are played out, and where magick spills into every aspect of life. It’s all right here; sex, drugs, witchcraft and gardening. From academic papers, through to first person accounts of high-octane rituals. In Magick Works you will find cutting edge essays from the path of Pleasure, Freedom and Power. In this seminal collection Julian Vayne explores: The Tantric use of Ketamine. Social Justice, Green Politics and Druidry English Witchcraft and Macum The Magickal use of Space Cognitive Liberty and the Occult. Psychogeography & Chaos Magick Tai Chi and Apocalyptic Paranoia Self-identity, Extropianism and the Abyss Parenthood as Spiritual Practice Aleister Crowley as Shaman ...and much more! List Price: $22.00 Paperback: 176 pages Publisher: Mandrake (August 8, 2008) ** THE APOPHENION: A CHAOS MAGICK PARADIGM by Peter J Carroll BOOK BLURB: Apophenion attacks most of the great questions of being, free will, consciousness, meaning, the nature of mind, and humanity’s place in the cosmos, from a magical perspective. Some of the conclusions seem to challenge many of the deeply held assumptions that our culture has taught us, so brace yourself for the paradigm crash and look for the jewels revealed in the wreckage. This book contains something to offend everyone; enough science to upset the magicians, enough magic to upset the scientists, and enough blasphemy to upset most trancendentalists. List Price: $22.00 Paperback: 168 pages Publisher: Mandrake (August 8, 2008) ** WICCA MAGICKAL BEGINNINGS - A STUDY OF THE POSSIBLE ORIGINS OF THE RITUALS AND PRACTICES FOUND IN THIS MODERN TRADITION OF PAGAN WITCHCRAFT AND MAGICK by Sorita d’Este , David Rankine BOOK BLURB: The origins of the Wiccan Tradition have long been a subject of debate amongst practitioners and scholars alike. Did Gerald Gardner invent the tradition? Is Wicca a survival of a British folk magick system? Could it be a continuation of a European tradition of Pagan Witchcraft? Might it be that it evolved from Victorian ceremonial magick, or perhaps it is the modern manifestation of the medieval Grimoire Tradition? In this book the authors explore the possible beginnings of the tradition by examining the practices in the context of magickal and spiritual thought spanning thousands of years. Through setting aside the endless debates about initiatory lineages, they look beyond the personalities of the people and instead focus on what they consider to be at the heart of the tradition -- the practices. Evidence from many previously uncredited and unconsidered sources is examined. This clearly shows how all the significant component parts of Wiccan ritual and practice have roots reaching back, in some instances thousands of years, before its public emergence at the hands of Gerald Gardner in 1950’s England. They explore the sometimes surprising antecedents for key practices such as initiation, magick circles, ritual tools, the invocation of the Guardians of the Watchtowers, Drawing Down the Moon and The Great Rite. The precedents for the Book of Shadows, Wiccan Rede and Charge of the Goddess are alsoconsidered as part of this groundbreaking work. Wicca Magickal Beginnings may well answer as many questions as it creates about the true origins and nature of what is probably the most influential of the Western Esoteric Traditions today. Through combining scholarly research with practical knowledge, the authors clearly illustrate that the future of the tradition lies in utilising the rich diversity of its past, through the appreciation of its magickal origins and the untapped potential inherent in it. This book will be invaluable to anyone with an interest in the history, practices and beliefs of the Wiccan Tradition -- and its links to Paganism, Witchcraft, the British Folk Traditions and Ceremonial Magick. List Price: $24.99 Paperback: 284 pages Publisher: Avalonia; 2 edition (May 1, 2008) * A HERETIC'S GUIDE TO THELEMA by Gerald del Campo BOOK BLURB: The Heretic's Guide to Thelema provides a fresh, alternative perspective of Thelema and its evolution as a magical and philosophical system. Whether or not you consider yourself a Thelemite, practitioners of traditions, orders, covens, groves, solitudes, etc. anyone can benefit from Gerald's profound, penetrating and practical wisdom. He writes with an entertaining sanity, clarifying mysteries with a greater mystery, promoting personal evolution and deeper comprehension of the High Art. It pays to have a trustworthy adviser in and beyond the halls of Chapel Perilous. List Price: $22.99 Paperback: 444 pages Publisher: Megalithica Books (June 7, 2008) * TANTRA SADHANA: A PRACTICAL INTRODUCTION TO KAULA MAGICK by Mogg Morgan BOOK BLURB: A 'Sädhana' is an instrument that leads to a particular goal. In Tantra, it is a technical term denoting worship or spiritual practice. Tantra Sädhana is a collection of related instructional papers designed to aid the aspirant through a foundation Sädhana. Some say effective Sädhana requires an initiation (dékshé) from a qualified guru. This book is designed to act as a taster and to provide a short body of work suitable for the period of about one lunar month. In addition, the author had added several useful appendices - including the previously unpublished Tantrik Knuckle Bone Oracle. List Price: $20.00 Paperback: 180 pages Publisher: Mandrake (May 1, 2008) ** BRIGHT FROM THE WELL: NORTHERN TALES IN THE MODERN WORLD by Dave Lee BOOK BLURB: 'Bright From the Well' consists of five stories plus five essays and a rune-poem. The stories revolve around themes from Norse myth - the marriage of Frey and Gerd, the story of how Gullveig-Heidh reveals her powers to the gods, a modern take on the social-origins myth Rig's Tale, Loki attending a pagan pub moot and the Ragnarok seen through the eyes of an ancient shaman. The essays include examination of the Norse creation or origins story, of the magician in or against the world and a chaoist's magical experiences looked at from the standpoint of Northern magic.' Dave Lee coaches breathwork, writes fictionand non-fiction, blends incenses and oils, creates music and collage. List Price: $23.00 Paperback: 168 pages Publisher: Mandrake (September 21, 2008) * GODS AND MORTALS: NEW STORIES OF HELLENIC POLYTHEISM by H. Jeremiah Lewis BOOK BLURB: The gods are still around: that's the refrain that sounds throughout each of these stories. Although the roots of the faith stretch back to ancient Greece, Hellenismos continues to grow and adapt, offering inspiration and answers to the perplexing questions of life's mysteries for many individuals today. And that is what these stories are about - what it's like to practice Hellenismos today. What it feels like to recognize the presence of the gods around you. To discover the mystery of the divine, the power of love, the joy of life, the pangs of grief, the struggle with doubt, the loneliness that comes with belonging to a minority faith. You can read all about ancient Greek religion in hundreds of academic tomes - but none of them will tell you what it's really like, from the inside. The only way to do that is to hear our stories, in our own words. Stories of gods and mortals. List Price: $15.99 Paperback: 154 pages Publisher: CreateSpace (June 3, 2008) * CONJUNCTIO - A GRAPHIC GRIMMOIRE by Orryelle Defenestrate-Bascule Conjunctio presents mirrored pairs of Sacred Twins and Divine Lovers from various cultural pantheons coupled on facing pages. They are aligned in such a way that when the pages are turned the figures are United in holy conjunction by the alchemical reader. Different reflective relationships --alchymic opposites and complementaries -- are explored b e t w e e n the pages. Sequences of symbols and images interweave in a complex multi-directional pictorial and textual tapestry, as Gods, Goddesses and pantheons converge, paradigms coalesce and different magickal currents cross-pollinate in an orgiastic ancient and post-modern multicultural Sabbat of new Becomings… ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Orryelle draws upon a rich mythoscape of cross-cultural threads between different ancient traditions, interweaving them in hir work/play. Based in Melbourne Australia where he began the ever-expansive Metamorphic Ritual Theatre Company, he has in recent years performed also in Europe and the UK; while travels to India and Egypt have furthered his spiritual explorations which fuel and inspire his transformative and often ecstatic drawings, sculpture, ritual theatre and magickal music (violin and voice). He is also a ritual tattooist, seeing the body as the mutable temple of the mutable soul. A prolific sonic and visual artist, Orryelle also runs iNSPiRALink. Multimedia Press, which publishes DVDs of his Metamorphic Ritual Theatre, SilKMilK Magizain --a sampler of art, text and music from various members of the international HermAphroditic ChAOrder of the Silver Dusk which he began --and his Book of Kaos Tarot Deck. Deluxe issue: Limited to 640 hand numbered copies, 210mm x 266mm, 80 pages, double-page graphic title, 53 full page monochrome plates, illustrations, descriptive text, red cloth, dust-jacket stamped in gilt and silver. List Price: $50.00 * NECRONOMICON: 31ST ANNIVERSARY EDITION by Simon (Editor) BOOK BLURB: In the past 31 years, there has been a lot of ink - actual and virtual - spilled on the subject of the Necronomicon. Some have derided it as a clumsy hoax; others have praised it as a powerful grimoire. As the decades have passed, more information has come to light both on the book's origins and discovery, and on the information contained within its pages. The Necronomicon has been found to contain formula for spiritual trans-formation, consistent with some of the most ancient mystical processes in the world, processes that were not public knowledge when the book was first published, processes that involve communion with the stars. In spite of all the controversy, the first edition sold out before it was published. And it has never been out of print since then. This year, the original designer of the 1977 edition and the original editor have joined forces to present a new, deluxe hardcover edition of the most feared, most reviled, and most desired occult book on the planet. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Simon is a student of magic, occultism, and religion since the mid-1960s and the editor of the Necronomicon. Speaking on topics as diverse as religion and politics, occultism and fascism, ceremonial magic, demonolatry, the Tarot, the Qabala, and Asian occult systems, Simon was a frequent lecturer for the famed Warlock Shop in Brooklyn and the Magickal Childe Bookstore in Manhattan. The media events he organized in the 1970s and 1980s - with rock bands, ritual performances, and celebrity appearances - helped to promote the occult renaissance in New York City. For undisclosed reasons his whereabouts have been unknown since 1984. List Price: $125.00 Hardcover: 288 pages Publisher: Ibis Press; 31st Anniversary edition (December 1, 2008) * HORNS OF POWER: MANIFESTATIONS OF THE HORNED GOD by Sorita d'Este (Editor), David Rankine (Editor), Huggens Kim (Editor) BOOK BLURB: The raw, ancient and primordial force symbolised by horns has long had associations with mystery, magick and power. Our ancestors often envisaged their gods as anthropomorphic beings who encapsulated this wild essence. Today the gods of the bull, the ram, the goat and the stag still hold tremendous power and are invoked at rituals by a new priesthood who continue to seek the wildness of nature and the inspiration that it holds. These deities transcend the safe and known boundaries of human structure, sometimes even luring us across the threshold of the known into the unknown worlds beyond. This unique anthology brings together the work of more than twenty people, including that of dedicated scholars and modern day mystics. Through their written and artistic contributions they illustrate some of the many manifestations of the Horned God. A true cornucopia of both insightful and well researched essays takes us from the well known Celtic Cernunnos and the legend of Herne the Hunter, to the goat-footed Greek Pan, the lesser known Slavic Veles and Egyptian Khnum. Horned serpents, unicorns, the tale of the Battle of the Bulls in the Irish Táin Bó Cúailnge, the Welsh Gwyn Ap Nudd and the faery Puck are all also considered. Then a wild hunt as we journey with the mystics who share their own experiences of the gods of the wildwood and untamed beasts. Each story is as different as the person who experienced it - and each illustrating in its own unique way a Horned God who is wild, unpredictable, loving - and at heart a trickster. For those who wish to dare a bit more than others, visionary meditation journeys to explore the mysteries of Cernunnos and Gwyn Ap Nudd are included. Horns of power would of course be nothing without the horns of beauty of the feminine divine, and in the final section of this anthology the reader is presented with works exploring horned goddesses, such as the lunar horned Hekate, Selene and Artemis and the antlered Elen. Whether through the mysteries of their existence, the vast scope of their influence or the endurance of their survival through to the modern day, each contribution provides a window into the wonders and mystery of the enduring magick of the horned gods. List Price: $24.99 Paperback: 204 pages Publisher: Avalonia (July 15, 2008) * FINDING MERLIN by Adam Ardrey BOOK BLURB: Merlin: the very name summons up images ofthe wizard of Camelot--magician, prophet, and counselor to Arthur. The legend is famous but the truth is less well known: Merlin was a real historical figure, a champion of the old way of the Druids, a British man who hailed not from England or Wales, as traditional wisdom would have it, but from Scotland. Adam Ardrey, who stumbled upon some of the hidden sources of Merlin's life while researching the history of a Scottish clan, offers compelling evidence that links a very real Merlin figure into the histories of other real and prominent sixth century figures. From the time of his death to the present day, historical records relating to Merlin have been suppressed or altered by Christian writers, his true provenance and importance obscured, and his real power and influence undermined by slurs that he was a madman. Finding Merlin uncovers new evidence and reexamines the old. The places where Merlin was born, lived, died, and was buried are identified, as are the people surrounding him--his nemesis, the fanatic Mungo, and his friend, the hero Arthur. In this impressively researched and accessibly written book, Merlin leaps from the pages of legend into history. List Price: $24.95 Hardcover: 384 pages Publisher: Overlook Hardcover (September 4, 2008) * CALENDAR: DECEMBER MONDAY, DECEMBER 8th , 7-9PM CELTIC RECONSTRUCTIONIST GROUP For More Information: http://www.seanet.com/~inisglas/ SUNDAY, DECEMBER 14th 1-4PM RUNE MAGIC IN THE EDDAS AND SAGAS Elder and Younger Futharks, Rune magic in Sigdrifumal, Rune magic in Egil's Saga,Odin's Initiation. Level: Beginner through Advanced $5.00 at the door. Contact irisgateley@vib.org for reservations or further inquiries. SUNDAY, DECEMBER 21st , 7PM, AQUARIAN TABERNACLE CHURCH PRESENTS: YULE Open Circle, Free ** ONGOING: HOLY WELL CIRCLE http://www.holywellseattle.org/ Open Circle, Wiccan Meets at the Edge every Sunday from 5PM -8PM cybra@earthlink.net Subject Line: Holy Well ** SERVICES AVAILABLE AT EDGE OF THE CIRCLE BOOKS TAROT READINGS /SPIRITUAL ADVICE UnCommonSense Tarot Tarot readings by Erica (Raven) Branch-Butler Please inquire about Tarot Parties, classes and other events. Available every day except Wednesdays and Thursdays, 12:30-8.30PM. * Kelly Marjorie Kelleher Daughter of the Ancients Psychic, Healer, Muse... Thursdays at Edge of the Circle Books ** CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS Edge of the Circle Newsletter is looking for writers and artists! Our Focus has been on the Pagan community, Sabbatic Witchcraft, Hoodoo, Western Ceremonial Magic, African Traditional Religions, Asatru and Heathenry, Wicca, Celtic Paganism and more obscure aspects of the Occult. If you have an article or art to share, please email golanv1@yahoo.com with “Newsletter” in the subject line. Please send only original material. All Copyrighted material will be honored and credited to/as the property of the original writer. ** This concludes our Newsletter for this month. Look for us again on the first of January. Have a Great Yule, and Happy New Year! Sincerely, Raven Editrix, Edge of the Circle Books Newsletter golanv1@yahoo.com