Creating a Book of Shadows for a LHP Witch

Ask Black Witch Coven:

“Do you have a template for a Book of Shadows, and how do I keep my book of shadows organised?”

Greetings,

Today I would like to add my spin on the new comers classic issue of “How to make the perfect BOS”. BWC often receives questions about creating and maintaining the “correct” BOS, so today I will share a few ideas that has helped me along the way.

I totally understand how confusing it is when you step into witchcraft and you need to learn everything fast, so you can become a wizard by next week (I am joking). To start my answering of this question, I want to take a formal look at the definitions of common terms used to describe a “BOS”. You will hear all three of these words used from time to time.

Grimoire – a book of magic spells and invocations
Book of Shadows – a book containing religious texts and instructions for magical rituals found within the Neopagan religion of Wicca, and in many pagan practices.
Journal – (verb) write in a journal or diary

So a BOS for the modern occultist or witch is really a fusion of all three. As pagans (“….a person holding religious beliefs other than those of the main world religions”), we wish to document rituals, practices, common terms and information on spiritual items we may use in our BOS. We also will write our spells and invocations, and journal our experiences, so to improve our skills, and so on. I will still refer to this book as a BOS, and I mean this to be my personal “Book of Shadows”.

Now, let us look at the history of the BOS.

A Book of Shadows (BOS) is normally considered “The bible’’ of the modern witch coven. It contains basic beliefs, rituals, charms, spells, and incantations. There is no authentic definitive BOS edition, since the form and scope of the book differs from coven to coven.

The normal procedure is for a witch to copy the work in her own handwriting and “destroy the original”, but in many covens, copies are made without destroying the original. However, no copy is intended to be kept by a witch who leaves the coven, and this rule is enforced by various threats and curses.

Today we can easily find the contents to many Wiccan tradition BOS through their own published works. The average modern Book of Shadows is derived from the one constructed by Gerald B. Gardner for use in his Witchcraft group in Great Britain during the 1940s and 1950s. He borrowed heavily from the writings of Aleister Crowley, especially for the third degree. During the 1960s and 1970s various Witches mixed the Gardnerian Book of Shadows with material from modern occult and folklore texts.

Did you know……The Gardnerian Book of Shadows was actually released in 1964 by a hostile ex-member, and over the years additional variations on the text have been published, as have new Books of Shadows inspired by it. Wide circulation was given to Lady Sheba’s Book of Shadows, released in 1973.

BWC began online many years ago, as a communication tool for coven members only. We would share spells, rituals, herbs, etc, with each other via the convenience of the internet. Security was “loose” but it did not matter as we did not have an online following (nothing was offered to the public). Therefore, you could say that BWC had an online BOS/Grimoire. As we grew in popularity, we removed most the content unsuitable for the wider community, and tamed the website to please the hosting companies (it was much harder to talk about hexing and cursing 10 to 15 yrs ago without having the hosting company completely remove your website and the content!)

Each BWC witch has their own BOS, tailored to suit their own style of magic and their own tradition. Many people believe that I am a High Priestess and dictate the rules of BWC – this is not true. I am Luciferian. I believe you must find your own spiritual path. Even if many BWC members are Luciferian, it is ok for all of us to be at different stages of development. Therefore, each members’ BOS will be different, and a reflection of their CURRENT spiritual practices.

As you may not have a coven to copy the contents for a BOS, you will look to BWC to ask for ours. I hope I have now explained why this is not possible.

BWC suggests that you step away from following the WICCAN BOS formats, and start your own – something that works for you. Just grab yourself a reference BOOK such as the Gardnerian Book of Shadows, where all the important yet generalized items for practice are listed. You don’t need to re-write the content in your own BOS. It is such a waste of time. If you have a passion for art and a touch of OCD, like Lady Hannah, then make your BOS a sparkly feast for the eyes (no disrespect to Lady Hannah). Use these traditional books as reference books only. As you maybe practicing LHP methods, you will have conflicting uses and beliefs from the Wiccan BOS.

To be clear, even on the LHP, there is NO correct BOS templates to follow. You are not missing out by creating your own book. In fact, I believe that if you tailor your BOS from the beginning, you will be a stronger occultist, as you will have a personalized BOS that is relevant and that works for you. That is all that matters.

Blessed Beast,

Savannah