So at this point, you know what a grimoire is, you have chosen what to call your magickal book, you have selected your book, you’ve cleansed and blessed your book and you have an outline of what topics to put in your book and how you will organise them. Now it's time to focus on the opening pages. These first few pages in your Grimoire are very important and while you don't need all of them I would suggest that you at least do a dedication page and an about me page.
Dedication page.
One of the pages you can include in the front of your Grimoire is a dedication page. This page is a commitment from you to your book that you will learn, grow, and collect knowledge that you will then transfer to your book. This page binds you to your book.
You can call upon your Deities, your spirit guides, your ancestors, the elements, or even Mother Earth herself, to witness your dedication and to guide you in your pursuit of knowledge. But just remember that this is an oath, more than a promise that you will honour your word.
The dedication you use will always be more powerful if you write it yourself, the more of your energy you put into your book the more powerful it will be, but if you’re looking for inspiration the Flying Hedge Witch has a great post where she shares her dedication or visit my Etsy store .
You could simply write This Grimoire started on, the date, by your name (either your craft name or real name), is dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge.
Protection Page
A protection page for your grimoire is a great time to create your own
Sigil, bindrune or protection poem or spell. This page is purely to protect your book from harm or malicious intent.
Here are some inspirational ideas I found on Tumblr:
By the north, bless this book with the power of the Earth
By the south, bless this book with the power of fire
By the east, bless this book with the power of air
By the west, bless this book with the power of water
Keep this book secret from wondering eyes
and safe from the prying look,
fill it with power, ancient and wise
and let me learn and grow from this book
so I intend it, so mote it be
https://www.tumblr.com/rainywitchyvibes/155970179320/grimoirebook-of-shadows-protection-spell
For those who pry, I place this ward.
From unwelcomed eyes, this book guard.
From stealing hands, keep it hidden.
Protect this tome and its secrets written
By Earth and Air,
By Fire and Sea,
As I will it, so mote it be.
Wiccan Rede
The Wiccan Rede is a statement that provides the key moral system in the Neopagan religion of Wicca. The word "rede" derives from Middle English, meaning "advice" or "counsel", so while many think that the “Harm ye none” is the law of Wicca its name suggests that it is a mere guideline.
In its best-known form, “Eight words ye Wiccan Rede fulfil - An’ it harm none, Do what ye will.” was first publicly recorded in October 1964 in a speech by Doreen Valiente at a dinner hosted by the Witchcraft Research Association. The Rede is obviously older than that although who the original writer of the Rede is no one is sure. There have been suggestions that it may have been inspired by Aleister Crowley, who in his book Book of Law, which was written in 1904 wrote “Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law.” Along with Crowley, Gerald Gardner’s The Meaning of Witchcraft, published in 1959 in which Gardner wrote: “Do what you like as long as you harm no one,”. Both statements could be influenced by the Rede.
The Wiccan Rede:
Bide the Wiccan Laws ye must
In Perfect Love and Perfect Trust.
Live an’ let live
Fairly take an’ fairly give.
Cast the Circle thrice about
To keep all evil spirits out.
To bind the spell every time
Let the spell be spake in rhyme.
Soft of eye an’ light of touch
Speak little, listen much.
Deosil go by the waxing Moon
Sing and dance the Wiccan rune.
Widdershins go when the Moon doth wane,
An’ the Werewolf howls by the dread Wolfsbane.
When the Lady’s Moon is new,
Kiss thy hand to Her times two.
When the Moon rides at Her peak
Then your heart’s desire seek.
Heed the Northwind’s mighty gale
Lock the door and drop the sail.
When the wind comes from the South,
Love will kiss thee on the mouth.
When the wind blows from the East,
Expect the new and set the feast.
When the West wind blows o’er thee,
Departed spirits restless be.
Nine woods in the Cauldron go
Burn them quick an’ burn them slow.
Elder be ye Lady’s tree
Burn it not or cursed ye’ll be.
When the Wheel begins to turn
Let the Beltane fires burn.
When the Wheel has turned a Yule,
Light the Log an’ let Pan rule.
Heed ye flower bush an’ tree
By the Lady Blessèd Be.
Where the rippling waters go
Cast a stone an’ truth ye’ll know.
When ye have need,
Hearken not to others greed.
With the fool no season spend
Or be counted as his friend.
Merry meet an’ merry part
Bright the cheeks an’ warm the heart.
Mind the Threefold Law ye should
Three times bad an’ three times good.
When misfortune is enow,
Wear the Blue Star on thy brow.
True in love ever be
Unless thy lover’s false to thee.
Eight words ye Wiccan Rede fulfill
An’ it harm none, Do what ye will.
https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Wiccan_Rede
The Rule of Three
Otherwise known as the Threefold Law is a tenet held by some witches, Pagans and Wiccans. It is similar to the concept of Karma. Basically the Rule of Three states that whatever you send out into the universe will return to you times three. Meaning if you as a person or a magick practitioner give love, kindness and positive deeds that's what will return to you times three. But if you send out hate, harm and generally negative actions then that's what you will receive back.
Witches Creed
by Doreen Valiente
Hear now the words of the witches,
The secrets we hid in the night,
When dark was our destiny's pathway,
That now we bring forth into light.
Mysterious water and fire,
The earth and the wide-ranging air,
By hidden quintessence, we know them,
And will and keep silent and dare.
The birth and rebirth of all nature,
The passing of winter and spring,
We share with the life universal,
Rejoice in the magical ring.
Four times in the year the Great Sabbat Returns,
And the Witches are seen,
At Lammas and Candlemas dancing,
On May Eve and old Hallowe'en.
When day-time and night-time are equal,
When sun is at greatest and least,
The four Lesser Sabbats are summoned,
And Witches gather in feast.
Thirteen silver moons in a year are,
Thirteen is the coven's array.
Thirteen times at Esbat make merry,
For each golden year and a day.
The power that was passed down the ages,
Each time between woman and man,
Each century unto the other,
Ere time and the ages began.
When drawn is the magical circle,
By sword or athame of power,
Its compass between two worlds lies,
In land of the shades for that hour.
This world has no right then to know it,
And world of beyond will tell naught,
The oldest of Gods are invoked there,
The Great Work of magic is wrought.
For two are the mystical pillars,
That stand at the gate of the shrine,
And two are the powers of nature,
The forms and the forces divine.
The dark and the light in succession,
The opposites each unto each,
Shown forth as a God and a Goddess:
Of this did our ancestors teach.
By night he's the wild winds rider,
The Horn'd One, the Lord of the Shades.
By day he's the King of the Woodland,
The dweller in green forest glades.
She is youthful or old as she pleases,
She sails the torn clouds in her barque,
The bright silver Lady of midnight,
The crone who weaves spells in the dark.
The master and mistress of magic,
That dwell in the deeps of the mind,
Immortal and ever-renewing,
With power to free or to bind.
So drink the good wine to the Old Gods,
And Dance and make love in their praise,
Till Elphame's fair land shall receive us,
In peace at the end of our days.
And Do What Ye Will be the challenge,
So be it love that harms none,
For this is the only commandment.
By Magic of old, be it done!
13 Goals of a Witch
The 13 Goals of a Witch were originally written in Scott Cunningham’s book: Wicca – A Guide for a solitary practitioner, first published in 1988. They outline the ethics of Witchcraft.
The Goals were 13 Goals of the Witch
- Know yourself
- Know your craft
- Learn and grow
- Apply knowledge with wisdom
- Achieve balance
- Keep your words in good order
- Keep your thoughts in good order
- Celebrate life
- Attune with the cycles of nature
- Breathe and eat correctly
- Exercise the body
- Meditate
- Honour the Goddess and the God
Now these concepts might be Wiccan but it is easy to modify them to suit your own needs, beliefs and ethics. For example, the 13th goal is to honour the Goddess and God, if you don't believe in the Wicaan Goddes and God you could replace them with honour the Earth, honour your ancestors, honour Odin, honour yourself.
Once your opening pages are finished the only limit on what you record within your pages is yourself. Remember never stop learning, read as much as you can from as many different sources and make up your own mind about what and how to create the path you walk.
What is a Grimoire and a Book of Shadows?
Creating your Grimoire and Book of Shadows - Part 1
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