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Books by Isaac and Phaedra Bonewits
(and How to Get Them)
as of December, 2007
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After a
great deal of thought, Isaac and Phaedra have decided to cease
selling autographed books via this website. We will probably
bring copies of recently released titles to major festivals,
but it just is not cost effective to lock money into inventory
when our turnover is so slow. We encourage you to purchase our
books at your local metaphysical shop. Naturally, we will be
happy to autograph your copies no matter where you purchase them! |
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A Bookstore Note:
Isaac strongly recommends that his
readers purchase their copies of his work through their local
occult, metaphysical, and new age bookstores. However,
if you don’t have one of those, then use Amazon.com
or BarnesandNobel.com. Large chain bookstores, including
Walmart, should have copies as well. If a bookstore claims it
“can’t” get the book, let both Isaac
and the publisher know!
New!
If you live in Canada,
the United
Kingdom, France,
Germany,
or Japan
you can order Isaac’s books through your local version of
Amazon.com!
A Warning:
If you are looking for “fluffy
bunny” history or a treatment of modern Pagan and magical
beliefs and practices as if they had arisen in a vacuum, or think
that no one should ever criticise other religions for any reason
on earth, then you may find his writing a bit too “strong”
for you. On the other paw, he also tends to include subtle jokes
and very bad puns...
A Request:
If you’ve read and enjoyed one
or more of Isaac’s books, please consider posting a positive
review at Amazon.com
and barnesandnoble.com. Those reviews really effect book
sales, even in brick and mortar stores!
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Coming in Fall
2010 from Llewellyn Worldwide
The Laws of Magic: From
Antiquity to the Quantum Age
by Isaac Bonewits
The most revolutionary chapter in his classic
Real Magic will be expanded to a book-length discussion
of the twenty-plus principles that describe how magic works around
the world, with quotes from ancient writers, renaissance mystics,
Buddhist sages, anthropologists and folklorists, nineteenth and
twentieth century occultists, and quantum physicists.
This book will not be shipping
until late 2010 at the earliest.
Bookstores: The Publisher is Llewellyn
Worldwide. It will be carried by all major book distributors
and available in major bookstore chains and small shops.
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 Neopagan
Rites:
A Guide to Creating Public Rituals that Work
by Isaac Bonewits
Based on Isaac’s forty years of experience
leading public Neopagan rituals for large groups, Neopagan
Rites will provide the liturgical answers that modern
Druids, Wiccans, Asatruar, and other Neopagans have long sought.
Unitarian Universalists and members of other liberal religious
traditions will also find useful advice and practical tips about
liturgical issues that have long puzzled them. There are many
books available on how to do rituals with a half a dozen friends
in your livingroom, but this is the first book that tells you
how to do them with twenty, two hundred, or two thousand people
in a public park or temple.
Isaac goes into every aspect of liturgical
design, preparation, and performance, including a detailed treatment
of issues and factors that many ritual leaders and attendees
(and authors of other books) have never considered. How many
people will be attending your ritual? How well do they know each
other? How familiar are they with the ceremony? How much of a
worldview and polytheology do they share? What are the leadership
styles and organizational structures involved? Do any of the
participants have challenges to full participation such as mobility
impairments, sensory difficulties, or allergies? How does the
choice of location affect results? How do you effectively use
music, dance, and other arts in your ceremonies? What do you
do when things go wrong? Isaac discusses these and many more
elements of effective public worship rituals, including the polytheology
of worship and the technical vocabulary needed to understand
the concepts involved. This book will take Neopagan liturgy into
the next phase of our evolution.
Isaac has special weekend seminars and
weeklong intensives available based on this book Check his Presentations
page for details.
Don't pay over $250 for a used copy of Rites
of Worship like some folks are doing! Get a copy of Neopagan
Rites and give yourself a lovely Yule present for far
less. Here are some rave reviews of the first edition:
The Lammas 2004 edition of Pagandom’s
leading journal PanGaia, said, “The book works on
many levels: as a straightforward textbook on designing and leading
rituals, it’s
full of earthy common sense that can be applied to ceremonies
both large and small. But for readers who like their how-to books
laced with plenty of theory, this book does something that I
would not have thought possible: it explains the elements of
successful ritual design in a manner that can be applied to a
variety of Pagan ceremonies, from traditional Witchcraft to eclectic
Wicca to the multifarious strands of cultural or reconstructionist
Pagan variants.”
“Bonewits is one of the most articulate
and learned of Neopagan thinkers. [This] is a book that can help
both beginning and seasoned ritual leaders. ...Most highly recommended.”
(Carl McColman)
Fritz Jung, webmaster of Witchvox.com,
had this to say: “Over the years, Wren and I have attended
countless Pagan rituals—both private and public—ranging
in size from 4 people to nearly 2000. Many have been magickal
and amazing and many have been simply horrifying... We’ve
watched as over 1200 Pagans introduce themselves one by one,
the consummation of the ‘body and blood of the Goddess,’
200 Pagans waiting hours for the ‘celebs’ to finally
show up to ‘lead’ us all and a few High Priest/esses
pushing personal agendas to those trapped in sacred space. (Well,
we all have ‘our stories,’ eh? Personally, these days
we really *need* to know in advance what will be going on before
we participate.) In contrast, we have also experienced some truly
moving and magickal circles that have manifested powerful and
profound change for and within all those in attendance.
Having recently read Isaac’s Rites
of Worship, I find myself asking the obvious question: ‘Where
was this book all those years ago?’ And whereas Wren and
I have attended hundreds of rituals, I do believe that Isaac
has led/attended thousands. Based upon those years of experience,
Isaac in this book details essentially everything that you need
to know in order to present a powerful and magickal ritual. This
brilliant book will easily ‘upgrade’ the impact and
effectiveness of your rituals. Good show Isaac... Keep that good
stuff comin’ ”
Click here to order Neopagan Rites
from: Amazon.com
or BarnesandNoble.com.
Bookstores: The ISBN is 0738711993
The Publisher is Llewellyn Worldwide. It is carried by
all major book distributors and available in major bookstore
chains and small shops.
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Real Energy:
Systems, Spirits, and Substances to Heal, Change, and Grow
by Isaac & Phaedra Bonewits
 Energy.
Psi, prana, mana, chi, divine power, the tao, reiki, or “vibes,”
every system of magic and mysticism calls the energies that power
its practices by different names. Whether questioning the power
of prayer or a healing session with a Reiki master an underlying
question exists of whether this energy is all the same or if
they exist as distinctly different “wavelengths” of
some universal power?
When New Agers, occultists, spiritual healers,
metaphysicians, artists, and Neopagans talk about the “energies”
they use, what do they actually mean? Now, for the first time,
a single book discusses the vocabulary, magic, metaphysics, art,
and science of energy from a multi-model, 21st century perspective.
Isaac and Phaedra join their sixty-five years
of magical experience to produce a unique work. Lessons included
will cover the physical vocabulary of energy, the metaphysical
vocabulary of energy, how the laws of magic affect energy, and
the importance of focus.
Real Energy
will then take these lessons to the next level giving you direction
on how to understand and begin working with different energies.
Half of the book is dedicated to showing you how to work with
specific energies, including: the four elements, crystals, plants,
animals, your own body, nature spirits, ancestors, and deities
to accomplish your goals and enhance life experiences. Specific
energy work practices are also covered, including: Reiki, The
Huna System, working with “pure” ESP and PK, Feng Shui,
and the Tantra System.
Christopher Penczak, author of The Temple
of Shamanic Witchcraft and Instant Magick, says:
"Real Energy has everything you could possibly want in a
book about the metaphysics of energy--science, history, magic,
mysticism, a multicultural perspective, humor, and most importantly,
practical application. Highly recommended for anybody working
with the nebulous worlds of energy, healing, and spirits."
Oberon Zell-Ravenheart, headmaster, Grey School
of Wizardry, and author of the Grimoire for the Apprentice
Wizard, says:
"Real Energy brilliantly articulates the integral synthesis
of science and magick we have been seeking since the dawn of
the scientific revolution. Here is the foundation for a true
'meta-physics' involving living energies in a conscious cosmology
paradigm."
You can click here to order it from Amazon.com
or BarnesandNoble.com.
Bookstores: The ISBN is 1564149048
The Publisher is New Page Books. It is carried by all
major book distributors and available in major bookstore chains
and small shops.
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Bonewits’s Essential Guide to Druidism
 With a foreword by Philip Carr-Gomm, Chosen Chief
of the Order of Bards Ovates & Druids!
The most renowned (or notorious) Druid priest
in North America, Isaac has spent the last four decades devoted
to Druidic study. Now, he imparts his wisdom through this elegant
and thoughtful tour of ancient and modern Druidism. With scholarship
and wit, Isaac explores the Paleopagan, Mesopagan, and Neopagan
Druids, and helps to demystify their origins, their rituals,
and their prayers.
This book provides a complete overview of
Druidic history, from its origins amid the Proto-Indo-European
peoples, to its extermination by the Roman Empire and the Roman
Church, its revival by fraternal organizations in the eighteenth
century, and its triumphant renaissance as a polytheistic earth
religion in the twentieth century. He discusses many historical
notes and ritual details not found in other books on the topic,
including the dangerous links between pubs and the founding of
Druidic organizations. He also offers opinions on the nature
of Druidism, Druidry, and Draíocht and speculates
on their future evolution.
Bonewits's Essential Guide to Druidism is a unique and engrossing introduction to a people
and a spirituality that retain their relevance and fascination
today.
For an in-depth review by the Reformed Druids
of North America’s leading scholar, see the Lughnasadh
2006 edition of A
Druid Missal-any at the main RDNA website (about
three-quarters of the way down that page).
You can click here to order it from Amazon.com,
or BarnesandNoble.com.
Bookstores: The ISBN is 0-8065-2710-2.
The Publisher is Citadel Press/Kensington. It is carried
by all major book distributors and available in major bookstore
chains and small shops.
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Bonewits’s Essential Guide to Witchcraft and
Wicca
 The latest
version of Isaac’s controversial book on all the things,
real and imaginary, that have been called Witchcraft over the
last 1500 years is now out from Citadel Press.
Like previous editions, it includes a foreword
and appendix by Ashleen O’Gaea (author of The Family
Wicca Book), a succinct summation of Wicca’s true origins,
a glossary, a recommended (and not!) reading list, an analysis
of where Wiccan ritual came from (and how and why it works),
and an introduction to Wiccan duotheology. It also contains a
new appendix by Jenny Gibbons on current scholarly information
about the Burning Times, plus some corrections and expansions
of Isaac’s previous opinions, based on new research. This
book is the fruit of the author’s over thirty years of Wiccan
study and practice and will be quoted and argued over for years
to come.
Here is a page of rave reviews
of the current and previous editions.
You can click here to order it from Amazon.com,
or BarnesandNoble.com.
Bookstores: The ISBN is 0-8065-2711-0.
The Publisher is Citadel Press/Kensington. It will be
carried by all major book distributors and available in major
bookstore chains and small shops.
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The Pagan Man: Priests,
Warriors, Hunters, and Drummers
 This
is the first book directed to Pagan men that isn’t exclusively
focused on Wicca—instead, Isaac chose to include Norse,
Egyptian, Santerian, Greek, and Celtic Reconstructionists together
with a wide variety of Wiccan paths. Among the topics not mentioned
in the title are Pagan men as fathers, as members of men’s
groups, and as members of sexual minorities, as well as some
controversial quotes from Pagan men on Pagan women and a chapter
of ritual materials specifically for Pagan men.
Who are the men who’ve chosen the Pagan
path? They’re fathers, sons, brothers, and lovers, warriors,
healers, and poets. They come from every background and profession,
and they’re blazing trails into new social, cultural, and
political territories, defining themselves in a faith community
traditionally seen as dominated by women—yet they've been
there all along!
Isaac Bonewits, one of America’s leading
experts on ancient and modern Paganism, breaks new ground with
this fascinating portrait of the fastest growing religious movement
in the Western world. Drawing on interviews with over forty Pagan
men—and his own forty years in the Neopagan community—he
explores the issues and desires that have led tens of thousands
of men to embrace Pagan spirituality. He examines the ways in
which men have created, added to, and benefited from the Pagan
experience, incorporating their own rituals, rites of passage,
and symbols. The Pagan Man offers novices and experienced practitioners
a wide range of practical information on every aspect of the
Pagan lifestyle, including:
- Today’s most popular Pagan traditions
- Sages, wise men, and well-known Pagans of
our time
- Bardic circles, drumming circles, and other
Pagan gatherings
- Drumming, dancing, and calling down the Gods
- The nine virtues, codes of chivalry, and
other core Pagan beliefs attracting men and boys today
- Pagans and the Goddess—women as partners
and Goddesses
Frank, engaging, and inspirational, this book
encourages Pagan men of every stripe—Wiccans, Druids, Norse
Pagans, and even Masons—to step away from the shadows and
stereotypes, and joyfully celebrate their own special relationships
with the Gods and Goddesses of the New Old Religions.
Here’s what some reviewers have said:
“Characteristically exciting, original,
perceptive, and challenging.” (Ronald Hutton, Author, Triumph
of the Moon)
“I like Isaac’s work because it
is direct and incisive but often laced with his distinctive brand
of humour. The questions he tackles are deeply serious but he
believes we can have fun while exploring them. An excellent book!”
(Philip Carr-Gomm, Chosen Chief, OBOD, Author, The Rebirth
of Druidry)
“A timely and necessary book, a vitally
important book in the emerging Post-Feminist Pagan literature,
general in scope so as to be informative and widely relevant,
personal in voice so as to be genuine, communicative, and just
plain useful. Hopefully it will inspire imitators, but will retain
permanent value.” (Harold Moss, Founder, Church of the Eternal
Source)
“What a glorious testament and vindication
to all the dedicated men in our Pagan community whose devotion
to the Goddess and Her avatars—the women in our lives—is
our all-consuming passion.” (Oberon Zell-Ravenheart, Founder,
Church of All Worlds, Author, Grimoire for the Apprentice
Wizard)
“Once again Isaac dares to go where few
others have gone before, namely into the hearts and minds of
Pagan men. An excellent survey of the issues and themes facing
Pagan men of all traditions. Great for men starting on the path
who want to know what they are getting into and experienced practitioners
who are looking for a fresh perspective on Paganism.” (Christopher
Penczak, Author, Sons of the Goddess)
“A must read for Pagan men and women
everywhere, The Pagan Man is a valued and useful resource
for Pagan men and women to use in achieving a better understanding
of themselves as Pagans and as a guide in improving their religious,
social, sexual, personal and family lives.” (Searles O'Dubhain,
Founder, www.summerlands.com)
“A well researched book offering fresh
insights on what it means to be a Pagan man. Isaac offers a captivating
glimpse of the world of male spirituality.” (Kerr Cuhulain,
Author, The Wiccan Warrior)
“Bonewits, possibly the best-known and
most widely acquainted of living Pagan writers, provides introductions
to Celtic, Druidic, Norse, Egyptian, Hellenic and other forms
of modern Pagan practice, and how the differing polytheologies
impact the individual male in the communities growing out of
those practices. As always, his fluent style is punctuated with
a reverent irreverence by which the highly approachable author
refuses to take himself too seriously. He presents his important
material with a smile rather than a stern grimace, and the reading
is much the better for it.” (Ramfis S. Firethorn, Author,
Blindfold on a Tightrope)
“Isaac Bonewits proves, once again, that
he’s one of the greatest Pagan scholars and authors in our
community today. The Pagan Man covers ground too often
neglected—the role of men in the growing Pagan religions—with
accuracy, elegance, and just a touch of humour. Bravo!”
(Dagonet Dewr, Exec. Dir., Pagan Pride Project)
You can click here to order it from Amazon.com,
or BarnesandNoble.com.
Bookstores: The ISBN is 0-8065-2697-1.
The Publisher is Citadel Press (Kensington). It is distributed
by all the major book distributors.
| Errata: On pages 185 and 186, in the men’s ritual of
“Building the Temple,” there is an editing error. The
psychic structure of the temple is a three-dimensional Golden
Rectangle, so only two of the walls should be squares,
while the other four sides should be identical golden rectangles. |
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 Rites of
Worship: A Neopagan Approach
This book is
now Out of Print!
A new edition has been published by Llewellyn
Worldwide, under the title Neopagan Rites. See above for
more information.
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Authentic Thaumaturgy
 Isaac’s book on magic for fantasy role playing
(“FRP”) gamers, out-of-print for many years, was republished
in a Second Edition in 1999. Originally a rewrite of Real
Magic for FRP gamers, the book now discusses the major innovations
in game magic theory that have developed during the 1990s, especially
the GURPS® and the Magic: The Gathering®
systems, as well as a great deal of polytheological materials
on magic and religion not included in Real Magic.
The original edition of Authentic Thaumaturgy
had a profound effect on the FRP community in the 1980’s
and became a favorite of many Dungeon Masters (game referees)
and players. The new edition has attracted the same kind of attention.
There is now an eBook version (PDF) of
Authentic Thaumaturgy available, courtesy of the folks
at Steve Jackson Games’ eBook department: e23!
You can download a free 8-page preview to check out the Table
of Contents and the Introduction.
You can click here to order it from Amazon.com,
or BarnesandNoble.com.
Bookstores: The ISBN is 1556343604.
The Publisher is Steve Jackson
Games. It is distributed by all the major book distributors.
Excerpts from
Authentic Thaumaturgy
can be found on this website, as well as on the publisher’s
website.
Here is a page of Reviews of A.T..
| For those of you who have already purchased
A.T., here’s some typo corrections:
In Table 5.1 (on page 52), the percentile numbers for
Clairolfaction should be “64–65.” In Table
5.2 (also on page 52), the percentile numbers for Amplifying
should be “31–45” and for Flair should
be “01–30” — the former typo is over 20 years
old! If you role the same number twice while determining a character's
psi talents, just role again. |
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Real Magic
 Isaac’s first book was
an interdisciplinary examination of global patterns of magical
and religious beliefs and practices, compared with the results
of parapsychological research and common sense. Topics covered
included the twenty-odd (!) Laws of Magic, over forty varieties
of psychic talents, magical focusing techniques, Neopagan Witchcraft
and Druidism, etc.
Real Magic has
been used by Neopagan teachers (and others) since 1971 as the
perfect beginner’s introduction to the occult.
PanGaia, the
leading English-language Pagan journal, declared Real Magic
the third most respected classic Pagan book in print (behind
only Starhawk’s Spiral Dance and Scot Cunningham’s
Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner) according
to a committee of 33 Pagan authors. Dagonet Dewr (editor of PanGaia’s
sister publication, newWitch Magazine) said:
“Groundbreaking and thought provoking,
this seminal work of magical theory was perhaps the first logical,
rigorously sensible look at magic: how it works, why it works,
and how you can use it. No serious student should miss the chance
to enjoy Bonewits’ precise and dryly amusing prose. Special
attention should be paid to how Real Magic handles the
interplay of magic and morality, as well as the clear, concise,
and brilliant simplification of the universal laws of magic.”
Ordering information: The ISBN is 0877286884.
You should be able to get Real Magic from most mainstream
bookstores and (of course) from any occult or esoteric bookstore.
It is carried by most New Age and secular book distributors.
Real Magic is available directly from Red Wheel/Weiser,
PO Box 612, York Beach, ME, USA 03910. Voice phone is 1-800-423-7087.
Fax phone is 1-207-363-5799 (Eastern time). Credit card ordering
is possible by voice phone, fax, or by email.
You can click here to order it from Amazon.com,
or BarnesandNoble.com.
Bookstores: The ISBN is 0877286884.
The Publisher is Red Wheel/Weiser/Conari. It is distributed
by all the major book distributors.
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The Druid Chronicles (Evolved)…
 …were partly
written and partly edited by Isaac in the early 1970’s.
They included much of the history, customs and liturgies (at
least the Pagan materials) of the Reformed
Druids of North America and their branches. This has
been out-of-print for many years. A few years ago, a new edition
was incorporated into a senior thesis called A
Reformed Druid Anthology, which was updated in 2003
and posted as a series of PDF files at that link, by former Carleton
Arch Druid Michael Scharding.
If you can physically visit Northfield, Minnesota, you might
want to see the Carleton College Archives’ Modern
Druids Collection. According to College Archivist, Eric
Hillemann, “The Modern Druids Collection includes the
archives of the Reformed Druids of North America, and in particular
of the Carleton grove, as well as a reference collection on other
post–1963 druidic groups (RDNA offshoots and others) consisting
of donated publications and other material.” Supposedly,
St. Olaf’s College across the street from Carleton also
has a small collection of Mesopagan
Druid materials which may have influenced the founders of
the RDNA.
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| Copyright © 2007 c.e., Isaac
Bonewits. This text file may be freely distributed on the Net,
provided that no editing is done, the date is retained, and everything
in this notice box is included. If you would like to be on one
or more of Isaac Bonewits’ emailing lists, click
here to get subscription information. |
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Isaac & Phae say:
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