Make Your Own Book Of Shadows

The Book of Shadows is an important tool for a witch. It is a place where you can keep records of all aspects of your magickal and spiritual journey. It is something of a diary to record your research, thoughts, spells. chants, incantations, poems, essays, recipes, even dream interpretations and aspirations.

It is a very personal thing for each person. There is no one certain way that you have to do it. Every witch creates his or her own unique Book of Shadows, so it is difficult to say how one should be written. But there are a few general outlines that most people follow. That is what this is meant to be, a general outline. When you sit down to start yours, it will take on your personality and be unique from anyone else's.

Some people believe that a BOS should be handwritten in order to transfer the energy of the writer into the spell. I agree with this to a certain extent, I do think that spells, chants, and incantations should be hand written. However, I see nothing wrong with using a computer to print out your research, herb and tree lore, history, beliefs and things of that sort. A computer can make it look nice and be much easier to assemble. If you do choose to hand write all or part of your BOS, be sure to make legibly so that you can read it later. Some people even use a computer disk to keep information for their BOS. The pages can easily be printed out for use in an actually book.

The actually construction of you Book of Shadows can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be. A very simple method is to begin with a blank notebook and start writing. Beautifully bound and covered volumes are available for purchase, if you wish. That is fine, but it isn't really necessary.

One of the simplest and most popular method is to purchase a three-ring binder and add pages. This way, you can arrange rearrange the pages as often as you wish. It is also a good idea to put page protectors so the pages do not get messed up with use. You can make your own beautiful cover for it that will be unique to yours.

This is how I make mine. I actually have 5 at this point; 3 are spells, poems, magickal ethics, and things like that. 1 is the history and lore of the Celtic tradition and the other is the history and lore of the Faery tradition. I also have separate journals for tarot and runes, as well as for my essays.

Be mindful of the laws of your tradition or coven. Keep them at the front of your book at as a reminder of what is acceptable behavior and what is not. If you are solitary or eclectic or both, you can use the beginning to write about what you think is acceptable and what isn't. Set some guidelines for yourself. If you are a member of a coven, you probably should include a copy of your dedication ceremony here also. If you have dedicated yourself to a God or Goddess on your own, this a good place to announce that as well. A simple line saying that you dedicate yourself to whatever Deity you choose is fine.

Below is a general guideline for what you might want to include. Arrange it how it feels right to you.

A dedication
Copy of your dedication ceremony
A protection spell for the book
A blessing
Table of Contents
Glossary of Terms
Pagan Traditions
Magickal Ethics (The Wiccan Rede, Law of the Three-Fold Return, etc.)
Beliefs
Wheel of the Year
Sabbats
Tree Lore
Herbalism
Moon Phases
Crystal Healing
Reiki
Aura Studies
Tools
Fairy Lore
Dragon Lore
Mythology
Paranormal Studies
Humor

Rituals & Spells:
Circle Casting
Cleansing and Consecration
Blessings
Meditations
Prayers
Candle Magick
Ritual Construction
Rites of Passage
Invocations
Chants
Music
Sabbat Rituals

Correspondences for:
Color magick
Crystal, gemstones, and minerals,
Elements
Planets and Planetary hours
Herbs, Plants, and Tress
Animal Totems
Oils
Incenses
Days of the Week
Magickal Symbolism and Alphabets
Divination Information and Studies:
Dowsing
Tarot Cards
Runes
Astrology
Scrying
Pendulum
Palm Reading
Aura Studies
Tealeaves
Numerology
I-ching
Ouiji
Recipes for:
Ritual and Sabbat Foods
Bath Salts
Incense
Oils
Candle Making
Herb Blends

If you copy your information from a book or website, remember to write down the source to refer back to later. Including a list of books and websites could also be helpful in case you want to share information with others.