The Book of Shadows is a modern descendant of the ancient grimoire, a written collection of information on occult subjects, including but not limited to instructions for spellwork, ingredients, and ritual actions; invocations to deities, magickal symbols, divination techniques, and correspondences for herbs, crystals, and oils. Covens often have a Book of Shadows which is passed to members upon initiation, but solitary witches generally create their own Book of Shadows based on study and experience.
Today a witch may maintain a Book of Shadows as a journal or diary, separate from her grimoire of magickal workings, or her Book of Shadows may include her grimoire within it. Many witches have multiple Books of Shadows, due to the length of their time within the Craft, or perhaps to capture different types of information.
The actual book used for your Book of Shadows may be handmade or store-bought. Some witches even keep their Book of Shadows on their computer. Whatever you choose, make sure to select a size that will fit on your altar, and be easy to work with during a ritual.
Once you have selected a book for your Book of Shadows, you should consecrate it and place an enchantment on it to protect it from prying eyes. And you should always keep your Book of Shadows in a safe place.
In this age of computers, whether or not the Book of Shadows should be handwritten is an area of great debate. When entries are handwritten, part of the energy of the witch is infused into the book. If you are of an artistic nature, you can beautifully embellish handwritten pages with your own artwork. However, for longer rituals, or those not artistically inclined, preparing pages on a computer may be a better option. Whether you choose to handwrite or type your Book of Shadows pages, make sure you use a font size and style that is easy to read by candlelight.
So what should be in your Book of Shadows? Well, the Book of Shadows can include anything associated with your practice of the Craft: sabbat and esbat rituals, spells, invocations for deities, rules governing magick, runes, magickal alphabets, correspondences, divination techniques, properties of herbs and crystals, dedication rites, consecration rituals, spell results, meditations, visions, oil and incense recipes, or anything else you feel would benefit your practice.
My Book of Shadows is a Leuchturm1917 large hardcover notebook, with dotted grid pages, in black. Leuchtturm journals have an index in the front for easy reference, and the dotted grid pages make writing and artwork easy to position on the pages. Most of my pages are handwritten and decorated. However, for some longer rituals, I have typed and decorated the pages on my computer, then printed them on parchment-style paper, and pasted them into my Book of Shadows, securing the edges with witchy washi tape.
I have a second, leather-bound, diary-style journal for recording daily witchy activities, meditations, and general thoughts about the Craft, and a third, small journal to record outcomes and results of spells, allowing me to track my successes and failures.
My Book of Shadows has a protective enchantment on it, and lives in my “witch box” with other tools like my athame, censer, and candle holders. Every time I open it, the smell of incense, herbs, oils, and candles immediately transports my thoughts and puts me in a witchy frame of mind, ready for magick.
Featured image from http://etsy.com
Sources:
Cunningham, Scott. Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner. Llewellyn Publications, 1989.
Robbins, Shawn and Leanna Greenway. Wiccapedia: A Modern-Day White Witches Guide. Sterling Ethos, New York. 2011
Chamberlain, Lisa. Wicca Book of Shadows: A Beginner’s Guide to Keeping Your Own Book of Shadows and the History of Grimoires. Wicca Shorts, 2015.