Product Description

The definitive magic reference book for Witches, Wiccans and all devotees of the magical arts. This is the real version of the archetypal master spell book of fantasy that has a place in our collective imagination.The spell book also contains a brief history of and basic precepts of magic, plus material about the tools of Witchcraft. Sales Handles: / Today there are many books of spells for specific needs and occasions for the practising Wiccan/witch, but no comprehensive and inclusive magic reference book exists. / This is the magical equivalent of a prize and inspirational cookbook: nothing is too basic to be explained and yet sophisticated tastes as well as emergency situations are catered for. / The book goes beyond merely the Wiccan tradition to include a multitude of eastern and western magical traditions whilst fulfilling the archetypal fantasy of the grand grimoire (master spell book). / From Merlin and Grimm's fairytales, to Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter and Disney's Sorcerer's Apprentice, plus countless other fantasy stories, the master spell book has a place in our collective imagination. This book is that fantasy made real.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #27808 in Books
• Published on: 2004-03-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 1108 pages

Review
Previous publications: Earth Mother Magic: Ancient Spells for Modern Belles (Fair Winds Press, 2001) Emergency Magic! 150 Spells for Surviving the Worst-Case Scenario (Fair Winds Press, 2002) Spells: The Anthology (Seventh House Publications, 2002)

About the Author
Judika Illes' introduction to magic and mysticism was at 6 years old. She became a professional tarot card reader in 1988, became certified in aromatherapy in 1999, was a tutor at the Australasian College of Herbal Studies, and has taught multi-cultural studies, world mythology, tarot and magic to children and adults. She lives in Los Angeles.

Customer Reviews

Probably the most comprehensive book of spells ever.
Looking for a spell book? But tired of all the Fluff? Then this is the book for you. It contains spells on every subject you are ever likely to need.

This book starts with an introduction to it contents and a brief but comprehensive guide to some of the things mentioned in the spells, then it just delves in to page after page of spells divided in to categories.

If you only ever buy one spell book then this should be it.

book of shadows and then some!!
I bought this book with feelings of both trepidation and hopefullness, having bought what seemed to be good books only to find them to be pure window dressing. Then this huge brick of a book turned up. If you're purely looking for a book based on the wiccan or celtic shamanism, be disappointed. If you're a true practitioner of the ancient arts in all it's wild glories and colours, you're in for a delight. Every part of the world's ancient lores appears in this book: sidhe, celtic, shamanism, voodoo & houdou, wicca...even some very dubious curses.
From either a practical or purely research based interest, this book is a treasure. It now has pride of place on my bookshelf! Well done indeed, Judika Illes!!

Wonderful reference book.
This book is fabulous, it is a collection of spells/charms from all different paths, not just witchcraft and is a wonderful reference book, and just something to thumb through.

This is not a "how to" book, and there are some rather naughty and even down right nasty hexes in this book - although some merely give you the idea of what the spell was suppose to do, without actually giving you all the details. Novices should be aware that this book will not tell you how to perform magick or how to work spells, although - essentially its a wonderful social history of spell craft through the centuries from all different paths - and yes down right amusing. Some of the spells definitely have the "ick" factor and are hilarious, others are quite shocking even disturbing.

Excellent book for sitting cosily with a cup of tea on a rainy day and thumbing through. If you want to use any of the spells you'll probably need to do a fair bit of research as there are many unfamilar herbs/oils/ointments etc and really, in terms of using it for spell craft, it comes into its own as a book that provides inspiration.

It should be noted too, that this is not a book written for or about Wicca.