The sun rises to the height of its power on the summer solstice, and Midsummer Eve is filled with fairy mischief and magic. Anna Franklin reveals the origins and customs of this enchanting holiday with: -Myths and lore: The gods and goddesses of Midsummer, rolling wheels, the Midsummer tree, circle dancing, and torchlight processions -Midsummer magic and divination: Fairy contact, spells, empowering magical tools with solstice sun energy, Midsummer Eve pillow divination -Traditional summertime treats: Elderflower Fritters, Gooseberry Fool, Coamhain Soup, Strawberry Wine, Heather Ale, Clary Sage Tea -Seasonal rituals: Rite of the Oak King and the Holly King, Cornish Flower Ritual, Witch Rite for Midsummer Day, Drawing Down the Sun -Midsummer herb craft: Gathering and drying herbs for magical oils, incenses, inks, and teas; herb recipes, from Amun Ra to Sun Goddess Oil - First Runner Up for the 2003 Coaltion of Visionary Resources (COVR) Award for Best Non-fiction Book

    It compares this history with present-day LGBT culture with an intent to show how the current persecution and marginalization of queer people is an extension of a history of religious intolerance.

    Through analogy with the humanities, mythology and the graphic arts, the significance of the cards is related to personal growth and individuation. The major arcana becomes a map of life, and the hero's journey becomes something that each individual can relate to the symbolism of the cards and therefore to the personal life.

    Here, acclaimed scholar Stephen Greenblatt explores it with profound appreciation for its cultural and psychological power as literature. From the birth of the Hebrew Bible to the awe-inspiring contributions of Augustine, Dürer, and Milton in bringing Adam and Eve to vivid life, Greenblatt unpacks the story’s many interpretations and consequences over time. Rich allegory, vicious misogyny, deep moral insight, narrow literalism, and some of the greatest triumphs of art and literature: all can be counted as children of our “first” parents.

    But she doesn’t even know it.Take this as a warning: if you are not able or willing to control yourself, it will not only be you who suffers the consequences but those around you, as well.New Oldbury, 1821 In the wake of a scandal, the Montrose family and their three daughters—Catherine, Lydia, and Emeline—flee Boston for their new country home, Willow Hall. The estate seems sleepy and idyllic. But a subtle menace creeps into the atmosphere, remnants of a dark history that call to Lydia, and to the youngest, Emeline.All three daughters will be irrevocably changed by what follows, but none more than Lydia, who must draw on a power she never knew she possessed if she wants to protect those she loves. For Willow Hall’s secrets will rise, in the end…

    As seekers and practitioners reclaim and restore magic to its rightful place among powerful forces for social, personal, and political transformation, more people than ever are claiming the identity of “Witch.” But our knowledge of witchcraft and magic has been marred by erasure, sensationalism, and sterilization, the true stories of history’s witches left untold.Through meditations, stories, and practices, authors Risa Dickens and Amy Torok offer an intersectional, contemporary lens for uncovering and reconnecting with feminist witch history. Sharing traditions from all over the world—from Harlem to Haiti, Oaxaca to Mesopotamia—Missing Witches introduces readers to figures like Monica Sjoo, HP Blavatsky, Maria Sabina, and Enheduanna, shedding light on their work and the cultural and sociopolitical contexts that shaped it. Structured around the 8 sabbats of the Wheel of the Year, each chapter includes invocations, rituals, and offerings that incorporate the authors’ own wisdom, histories, and journeys of trauma, loss, and empowerment. Missing Witches offers an inside look at the vital stories of women who have practiced—and lived—magic.

    And witchcraft is nothing if not a pursuit of everyday miracles."Mya Spalter has spent fifteen years among candles, herbs, cats, and spell books as an employee at New York City's oldest occult shop, Enchantments, and she's crammed all that experience teaching others the building blocks of magic into this book. In a fresh and inclusive voice, Spalter offers practical information for building your own eclectic, self-guided witchcraft practice, illustrated with beautiful black and white drawings by artist Caroline Paquita: how to set up a home altar, how to cast a love spell on yourself (which is really the best way), the many uses for candles, the differences between need and greed in money magic, and all the magical ingredients you can get at the dollar store. She covers healing herbs you might try out in your bathtub, tells stories of divination gone wrong--and right!, describes witchy holidays to celebrate with friends or covens, explains the best way to ask an Aries for a favor, and much, much more. On every page, Mya offers smart, hilarious, and, most importantly, concrete ways to incorporate intentional magic in your own life.

    Under her, women's roles were far more prominent than in patriarchal Judeo-Christian cultures. Stone describes this ancient system and, with its disintegration, the decline in women's status. Index, maps and illustrations.

    In his new book, Aslan takes on a subject even more immense: God, writ large.  In layered prose and with thoughtful, accessible scholarship, Aslan narrates the history of religion as a remarkably cohesive attempt to understand the divine by giving it human traits and emotions. According to Aslan, this innate desire to humanize God is hardwired in our brains, making it a central feature of nearly every religious tradition. As Aslan writes, “Whether we are aware of it or not, and regardless of whether we’re believers or not, what the vast majority of us think about when we think about God is a divine version of ourselves.”   But this projection is not without consequences. We bestow upon God not just all that is good in human nature—our compassion, our thirst for justice—but all that is bad in it: our greed, our bigotry, our penchant for violence. All these qualities inform our religions, cultures, and governments.   More than just a history of our understanding of God, this book is an attempt to get to the root of this humanizing impulse in order to develop a more universal spirituality. Whether you believe in one God, many gods, or no god at all, God: A Human History will challenge the way you think about the divine and its role in our everyday lives.Praise for God   “Breathtaking in its scope and controversial in its claims, God: A Human History shows how humans from time immemorial have made God in their own image, and argues that they should now stop. Writing with all the verve and brilliance we have come to expect from his pen, Reza Aslan has once more produced a book that will prompt reflection and shatter assumptions.”—Bart D. Ehrman, author of How Jesus Became God   “Reza Aslan offers so much to relish in his excellent ‘human history’ of God. In tracing the commonalities that unite religions, Aslan makes truly challenging arguments that believers in many traditions will want to mull over, and to explore further. This rewarding book is very ambitious in its scope, and it is thoroughly grounded in an impressive body of reading and research.”—Philip Jenkins, author of Crucible of Faith

    The Chalice and the Blade tells a new story of our cultural origins. It shows that warfare and the war of the sexes are neither divinely nor biologically ordained. It provides verification that a better future is possible—and is in fact firmly rooted in the haunting dramas of what happened in our past.

    Illustrated throughout with captivating artwork in glorious color, it examines fairy legend and lore through the ages and leads us into fairy cities, landscapes, rings, and paths. Find out what clothes they wear (fairies can be fussy about their dress), what they like to eat and drink, and what plants and animals they cherish. Discover the secrets of fairy festivals, and the various names they like to be called—including the Little Folk and Good Neighbors. Altogether, it’s a privileged glimpse into a paradise that vibrates at a different frequency than ours…and that few can ever see.

    Psychoanalyst Jean Bolen's career soared in the early 1980s when Goddesses in Everywoman was published. Thousands of women readers became fascinated with identifying their own inner goddesses and using these archetypes to guide themselves to greater self–esteem, creativity, and happiness.Bolen's radical idea was that just as women used to be unconscious of the powerful effects that cultural stereotypes had on them, they were also unconscious of powerful archetypal forces within them that influence what they do and how they feel, and which account for major differences among them. Bolen believes that an understanding of these inner patterns and their interrelationships offers reassuring, true–to–life alternatives that take women far beyond such restrictive dichotomies as masculine/feminine, mother/lover, careerist/housewife. And she demonstrates in this book how understanding them can provide the key to self–knowledge and wholeness.Dr. Bolen introduced these patterns in the guise of seven archetypal goddesses, or personality types, with whom all women could identify, from the autonomous Artemis and the cool Athena to the nurturing Demeter and the creative Aphrodite, and explains how to decide which to cultivate and which to overcome, and how to tap the power of these enduring archetypes to become a better "heroine" in one's own life story.

    But what about a wheel of the year for the rest of us pagans and witches? As a witch living in sunny South Florida, longtime hereditary witch Temperance Alden has often felt at odds gearing up to celebrate Yule, for example, when it is 76 degrees and sunny outside.Year of the Witch will help readers create their own intuitive practices in harmony with the climate, culture, and local spirits where they live. It’s of interest to witches coming off the Wiccan path and looking for a more personal approach to celebrating the rhythms of nature. Year of the Witch covers all aspects of this new, seasonal practice: The origins of the neo-pagan wheel of the year and why it is still so relevant today Culture, historical facts, and traditions associated with the major ceremonies Basic principles of land-based magick How to intuitively connect to the nature below your feet and the local gods Being a custodian to the land and its impact on our spiritual practice

    Their narratives, themes, and characters address and provide answers to eternal questions: where do we come from, how do we live, what do we believe in? This fascinating book explores the major myths and legends across the world, from Classical mythology to Eastern beliefs, and from American legends to African folk tales. The stories are retold in compelling detail, while key aspects of each myth are considered: their meaning, purpose, and power; the main characters; and their importance to modern culture.Special illustrations and photographs combine with informative text, family trees, and a focus on themes such as creation, death, and the afterlife. From Gilgamesh to Quetzalcoatl, Heracles to Pan Gu, Myths and Legends provides a full and captivating reference guide to the worlds of mythical beings, mortal heroes, and immortal gods.

    A Book of Pagan Prayer provides the pagan community a comprehensive and thoughtful selection of prayers - and shows readers how they too can create their own. After an introduction on why to pray, author Ceisiwr Serith explores how to pray through words, posture, dance, and music. He explains how to prepare for and compose prayers, how to address and honor the deities, and how to conclude a prayer. Serith also answers important questions, such as: Why should pagans pray? Should prayers be spontaneous? What are offerings about? Is all this just trying to buy the gods off? Gathered from many traditions - including Celtic, Germanic, Egyptian, Greek, and Zoroastrian - this guide includes nearly 500 sample prayers organized by purpose: for the family and household; times of the day, month, and year; life passages; thanksgiving, grace, and petition; as well as litanies and mantras. Whether offering a blessing, celebrating new life, safeguarding travel, or honoring the seasons, readers will discover timeless pagan prayers for worship, spiritual connection, and personal relationship with the gods.