Idries Shah got me, and Im certain, many others, started. He wrote under a variety of names - his biography of Gerald Gardner was allegedly written in the name of Jack Bracelin because he did not want to confuse his Sufi adherents. As friend and sometime secretary of Gardner, his Gerald Gardner, Witch should in my opinion be more widely read than it is. Heselton, in his subsequent Gardner books (which as he states are not necessarily researched to academic standards), has identified some anomalies in the Bracelin, but the original source is probably the best we can have on the founder of modern Wicca, and yes I do have a First Edition copy in the shop, but it is not that book which got me started. My introduction to British/Western Occultism was written under his own name, in 1957 - The Secret Lore of Magic. Once published, it was subsequently almost dismissed by the author, as he did not wish to foster or further what he saw as a dead end culture, yet it opened many doors for me. Reprinted in paperback several times, it is now out of print, and I am told it is indeed one of those that remains at the back of many an occult library shelf. We generally keep at least one copy in the shop too, but for me, it is one that has stood the test of time.
Posted on: Tue, 13 May 2014 07:15:04 +0000