Author: Christopher Penczak Trade Paperback, 442 pages
Publisher: Llewellyn
Publication date: 2004
List: US$17.95
ISBN: 0738705314 Price & More Info: Click Here
|
Christopher Penczak is one of those rarities in the field of Pagan/Wiccan
authors. Like many authors, he tells the reader to experiment to find what
works for the individual. Unlike many authors, however, he admits to many
initial doubts when he began his studies. Too many authors say something
like "I knew right away.", and even though I can empathize with that
position, it is not the most common response. It is far more common to
question the reality of what is experienced; to dismiss successful spellwork
as coincidence; to see unsuccessful rituals as "proof" that magick isn't
real.
Unfortunately, one of my personal bug-a-boos rears its head in this book
once again -- typographical errors. Now, I realize that I am not reading
these books for a living, but if I were I would want each book to be as free
of errors as possible, and there are way too many mistakes to gloss over.
Most of them are simple, but that is no excuse. By no means the first (nor
the last) such error is on page 215, in "Psychometry". The second sentence
starts out "The reader holds and object." when it should be "The reader
holds an object." Every time I come across such an error, it jars me out of
my rhythm. There are other instances where a word has been dropped and,
while that is not a problem for an experienced individual, it could be a
cause of confusion for the less knowledgeable.
Christopher supplies plenty of examples when he assigns exercises. And,
most importantly in my opinion, he explains his reasons for doing things the
way he does while still encouraging individual experimentation.
Christopher provides a lot of information which is available in any number
of other sources. However, he also provides alternative information if that
doesn't connect for you. He also provides a lot of encouragement for the
beginner to experiment and find the connections that work for the individual
student.
While I don't always agree with his statements and beliefs (we have had
widely differing training and experiences), I do have to acknowledge that he
presents a unified, consistent system. Unlike many authors, he makes no
attempt to do it all in one book. This is the second book in what, I
assume, is intended to be a five volume series. This allows him to devote
plenty of time and space to explaining his reasoning. Each volume is
capable of standing on its own, but they do form an interlocked chain which
should, in my opinion, produce well-trained, well-grounded practitioners.
He provides a self-administered test in the first appendix. While there are
no right or wrong answers here (most of the questions center on feelings and
opinions), taking this test will help you to define your understanding of
the Craft. Whether you are reading this book as part of your own training,
or simply to see how another person feels about the topics covered, this
text is a valuable resource.
Appendix Two provides some sample chants for the seasonal rituals, while the
Bibliography is wide-ranging enough to be valuable to almost anyone. It isn't terribly extensive, but it runs the gamut from Laurie Cabot (Christopher's first teacher) to Donald Michael Kraig -- and believe me that is quite a
gamut.
He has created a CD companion to this work (which I have not heard). It
provides the individual with an opportunity to have an audible guide through
many of the meditations and exercises in this book. It is available from
Llewellyn (ISBN 0-7387-0532-2) as a four CD set for $24.95. While I can't
recommend it, since I haven't heard it, I suspect it would be a useful
companion to this book.
Reviewed by Mike Gleason
|