I loved absolutely everything about this book. (Seriously, I might as well just buy every single thing that this publisher sells.) As someone who is new to this path, I have found myself overwhelmed with all of the information out there; and some of the info contradicts itself! (Google is not always your friend.) The Witch's Book of Mysteries was an answer to all of my questions and worries concerning some of the more witchy things that I have been pursuing. So very informative, and so wonderfully written. A definite recommend!

The forward of The Witch’s Book of Mysteries, written by Jason Miller, jumps right into what the reader can expect from The Witch’s Book of Mysteries by Devin Hunter.

… “What is a Witch? It’s a tricky label. For some people witchcraft is a religion. If you worship the old Gods and follow a religion like Wicca, then for those people your are a Witch. Other People focus on the craft part of witchcraft and consider use of folk magic as the defining characteristics of a Witch. If you know the magical properties of herbs, the words of spells and the use of oils and candles and stones, then you are a Witch.”….

And, as Jason aptly states, the definition of what a Witch has all of the overlays of modern society and traditional practices rolled into one.

This is the third book by Devin in a systematic approach to introducing the experienced student to the practices of witchcraft and honing their skills into becoming a Witch. The first of the books, The Witch’s Book of Power, explored all that comprises the journey of developing your power and knowing when and how to tap into it for a sustainable and effective practice.

The Second book, The Witch’s Book of Spirits furthered developed the power of the burgeoning Witch in accessing the world of spirits, mediumship and all that is of what Devin calls the Familiar Craft. And, as promised in this third book, The Witch’s Book of Mysteries coalesces all that has preceded and the reader begins the practice of working with those of the Sacred Fires, the Grigori, and the expansion of the practitioners powers to becoming one with all of the worlds.

This is not a book for the beginner and demands of the reader a working-not theoretical-knowledge of witchcraft and all that goes into claiming the title of Witch. The book is divided into two parts and each builds upon the other in knowledge and practical application. Many of the concepts presented are not your traditional craft practices. Instead, they are a refining and adaption of concepts that include some techniques and teachings that would have been designated as disciplines for other paths.

Much like Christopher Orapello and Tara Maguire’s book Besom, Stang & Sword (read the review of this book in our February Issue), these are concepts of the Modern Witch drawing on the best of the old and propelling the seeker into a new form of witchcraft that makes use more cosmic principals.

One of the best examples of what this new craft encompasses is the definition and explanation of the a familiar concept, the Witch’s Sabbat. As Devin points out, this term has come to be associate with the eight festivals of the Witch’s Wheel of the Year. These being tied to celebrations of specific times of the year, deities and experiences largely pulled together and used as such associations by those of scholarly works and not necessarily of the craft themselves. Just this idea makes so much sense if you consider that those we considered to be practicing witch’s hundreds of years ago would not necessarily have set aside valuable time and resources to celebrate in the ways we do today. Even the Deities that may have been associated with such rites would have been culturally based.

We learn in this book that the Sabbat is an experience that occurs in deep trance or while sleeping and requires the Witch have command over his/her magical form that has the power and ability to move in its pure form of power onto the plane of the Sabbat. This requires the development of lucid dreaming, psychic awareness. and as Devin states regarding the goal…”isn’t necessarily to leave the body and travel to a different dimension, but rather to travel through the inner realms of the mind and the paths of the psyche to get to a different dimension”….I found this a telling perspective that emphasizes the reality that being a Witch is really hard work that demands knowing yourself and a very mature attitude towards stepping into your power.

Part Two of “Mysteries” focuses on taking the Witch beyond their scope of power and realms of working and issues the call to reaching beyond what is believed of the limitation of form and reach out to those Spirits and guardians responsible for creation-particularly ours-itself. These entities move well beyond the archetypal and anthropomorphic energies of specific Deities, pantheons and the traditional Gods/Goddesses. The Witch must thoroughly know who they are in all of their power and rise to stand as co-creators with those lesser known (and worked with) beings who are of support.

The bibliography and recommended reading at the end of the book exemplifies the care and thought that went into this book and, more importantly supports Devin’s encouragement to learn as much as you can about as much as you can to truly be informed in your own practice.

The Witch’s Book of Mysteries is a valuable resource to the advanced practitioner regardless of the form your witchcraft may take. In fact, whether you consider yourself a witch or not, the information and way in which it has been compiled is well worth reading. This is the craft that will move into the next generation of and with that statement, you will hopefully see the durability and strength of a power that is organically a creative and universal energy.

To hear more from Devin about his practices, Tradition and more:

The Modern Witch Podcast

modernwitch.podbean.com

Author: Robin Fennelly of PaganPages.org

[Book Review] The Witch’s Book of Mysteries
There’s no shortage of witchcraft (and Wicca) 101 books that explain the basics of the Craft. I've been practicing since around the turn of the millennium.

That said, I often wish there were more books that dive deep and explore more advanced material. The Witch’s Book of Mysteries, by Devin Hunter, is one such book.

This work is the third in a series focused on more advanced Craft topics. Before this one, there was The Witch’s Book of Power and The Witch’s Book of Spirits. This particular book is the most intense of the three, though all are worth picking up.

Devin Hunter has always been somewhat of a favorite author of mine. As a psychic medium and witch, Mr. Hunter teaches witchcraft and related topics. He is also the founder of the Sacred Fires tradition of witchcraft.
I myself only knew a little bit about Sacred Fires when I started reading Mr. Hunter’s books. Now, I find the tradition fascinating and colorful, and will likely be learning more when I’m able. Sacred Fires seems to be a skillful merging of several currents in modern witchery.

It draws from earlier traditions such as Feri and Dianic witchcraft, and emphasizes trancework and spirit contact. Suffice to say, it has piqued my interest! Much of the exercises and rituals draw from Mr. Hunter’s work as founder of Sacred Fires.

If you’re not interested in that particular tradition, there’s still a wealth of material in this book. It would be useful for almost any advanced witch. I do recommend caution, though. If you haven’t already mastered the basics of the Craft, much of this book will likely confound you.

Even when describing familiar tools (athame, etc), this book does so with uncommon depth. The book provides a powerful consecration ritual for each of the common witches’ tools. It is best suited for intermediate to advanced students of the Craft.

Mr. Hunter doesn’t waste time covering material found elsewhere. He writes with the assumption that his readers will already be proficient in many areas. This excited me! He devotes the bulk of this work to advanced techniques.

These include astral travel, dreamwork, and other trance-related activities. These have always been a favorite topic of mine. I've only finished reading the book a week ago, but it already has a place in my often-recommended books list.

Of course, trancework goes hand-in-hand with energy work. I thought that Mr. Hunter’s approach to energy work illuminates the subject in a unique way. Mr. Hunter gives instructions for careful fine-tuning your energy work.

The energy work exercises guide the practitioner through experimentation with their own energy. One noted example involves creating a small ball of energy and examining how it flows when set free within your own aura.
As with many things, self-knowledge is the goal. This is great if you’re looking to develop a greater awareness of your own energetic system! I was happy to see the acknowledgment that some witches will have unusually-flowing systems.

In witchery, we often stumble across techniques that rarely show up in books. The Witch's Book of Mysteries describes formalized methods for reaching those hard-to-define states. Mr. Hunter explains them as plainly as possible.

Granted, much of the experiences he hints at are too sublime for words, He does his best, nonetheless. Seeing these things codified in this manner makes them easier to understand/perform. In short, it takes the guesswork out of things, insofar as it can.

I haven’t, of course, managed to perform all, or even most, of the rituals and exercises in this book. Some need an entire year to perform. In particular, the consecration of the simulacrums (symbols of godforms) come across as an intense, year-long labor of love.

The simpler exercises were helpful in understanding the concepts Mr. Hunter describes. They seem like excellent precursors to the more complex parts. Some of the power-raising techniques seem quite simplistic at first, but hold a wealth of complication and usefulness.

I had not, prior to reading this, investigated the concept of “Treading the Mill.” I was surprised to realize I’d been doing it often for some time, unaware that there was a term for it.

Coined by Robert Cochrane, Treading the Mill involves raising power through constant movement around a circle. This helps to induce and sustain a trance state, which is a step towards jumping the hedge. The latter phrase, in case you’re unfamiliar with it, refers to soul flight or astral projection.

I usually dislike it when authors coin new terms in their work. Not so here, where Mr. Hunter coins a term or two. He provides vocabulary for topics that would otherwise be difficult to discuss. In particular, the term “Witches’ Dream” encompasses phenomena that are hard to quantify. The phrase is a welcome addition to the existing language of occult works.

As to what the “Witches’ Dream” is? Well, you’ll have to read the book to learn about that. And? I highly recommend it.

I’m giving this book five out of five stars. It’s quite a rare gem for intermediate to advanced students of the Craft!

Disclaimer: I received an arc of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Weave the profound practices of Witchcraft into your daily life and experience the power of transcendental magic with The Witch's Book of Mysteries. Devin Hunter explores the core elements of spell and ritual work and outlines techniques to help you deepen your Witch Power and further develop your relationships with familiars, guides, spirits, and gods. Sharing meditations, exercises, spells, and rituals from the author's personal Book of Shadows, this book includes teachings on Energetic Self-Orientation, the Witch's Eye, the Witch's Tree, and Quintessence to help witches take their magic to the next level.

This book is part of a larger series and I can’t help but wonder if I would have appreciated the book more if I was familiar with the author’s other works. This is the last book in a three part series and I think the publishing company should have made that more clear. I was definitely intrigued by the information here. This is not made for the average reader or individuals new to the craft.

At times this book completely lost and and I glazed over reading it. The use of certain words made me feel the author was trying to elevate the text, but it just lost me. I don't know if reading the books before it (I didn't realize it was part of a series) would have helped me grasp it better. It wasn't all out of my grasp - there were a few helpful lessons and exercises for me...it just wasn't all something I felt was directed toward me.

The best word I can think of to describe this book is . . . specific.
It wasn't poorly written, I am just uncertain who the audience is. I don't regret reading it as there were a few insights that spoke to me, but overall it was hard to understand for someone outside of its circle of influence. The author has written other books and I can only assume those who read and benefited from those will also enjoy this one! The marketing is more broad than I believe necessary or appropriate for the average interested reader.

The Witch's Book of Mysteries is a guidebook for witches of some sort. The author Devin Hunter dived deep into what it means to be a witch and explains everything a witch ought to do. I personally didn't fint the book as interesting as I thought I would. It was a bit monotonous I quickly lost focus while reading it.

I received this book in exchange for an honest review.

First, sorry for my possible English mistakes.
Although third in series this book can be foolowed and understood in it's own right. But experience and knowledge from first two books can be helpful or if you have any experience with some other occult systems. In this book new system of magic is presented in so called "Sacred Fires" tradition. So you have chance to be involved with fresh esoteric current which maybe doesn't have reputation of some well known "witchcraft" traditions but it gives you correct theories and practices from the start. There are some excellent methods (for ex. how to visit famous sabbath, how to meet witchcraft king and queen, new and incerdible potents way of charging your wish, talisman, amulet deriving from works of Andrew Chumbley...), there are some amazing rituals about space, energy, time, matter magicks and how to incorporate them into your own works. Of course, these teachings can be used within your own tradition to more effective practice and for better understanding. There are also some excellent explanations about insights into different traditions for ex...At the end of the book there is very logical and bold conclusion from Devin which in these sceptic days maybe it will be not received well, but to each his/her own as they say. Also remember that these rituals are not "set in stone" so if you don't have some ingredients I recommend that you explore more "energetic" way to do them. There are few good books from Llewellyn about that, like Holistic Energy Magic. So now you can explore, read, and for practice you have all what is needed for The Witch's Book of Mysteries.