Review: Dark Mirror - The Inner Work of Witchcraft

Dark Mirror - The Inner Work of Witchcraft is a book every witch should read.

There are shelves full of books on how to cast circles, how to celebrate the Wheel of the Year and how to do spells, but most of them concentrate on the outer actions rather than the inner thoughts and feelings involved. Dark Mirror redresses that.

Author Yvonne Aburrow says: "I have observed that some witches spend a lot of time getting the words and gestures right, but do not focus on what is happening in the psyche of the practitioner. That is what inspired me to write this book."

I would say, if you want your magic to work, fully engaging your mind, emotions and senses when you do witchcraft is far more important than remembering all the words correctly or doing movements accurately.

The description of Dark Mirror on Lulu says:

Inner work is a name commonly given to the inner processes that happen in ritual. It can also mean the transformation of the psyche that comes about through engaging in religious ritual. However, the best kind of inner work also has an effect outside the individual and outside the circle. When rituals are focused only on self-development, they tend to be a bit too introspective. Ritual is about creating and maintaining relationships and connections – between body, mind, and spirit; with the Earth, Nature, the land, the spirit world, the community, and friends. It is about making meaning, weaving a web of symbolism, story, mythology, meaning, community, and love. Creating a community that welcomes and celebrates diversity. Creating strong and authentic identity to resist the pressures of consumerism and commercialism and capitalism. Weaving relationship with other beings: humans, animals, birds, spirits, deities.

In some ways I liken the inner work of witchcraft to Luke learning to "Feel the Force" in Star Wars. Feeling the Force is essential for anyone who wants to be a Jedi in the movie; feeling the energy of the web of life is fundamental for anyone who wants to be a real witch. This book teaches how to do that.

The web of life, of course, includes the world around us, the cycles of nature and our relationships with others. Dark Mirror moves on from explaining how to become more attuned to our own feelings, to ways of sensing the connection between ourselves and all of these seemingly external things.

Dark Mirror - The Inner Work of Witchcraft by Yvonne Aburrow is available on Lulu:
http://www.lulu.com/shop/yvonne-aburrow/dark-mirror-the-inner-work-of-witchcraft/ebook/product-23525122.html

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