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Hedgewitch: A Shamanistic Path within a Cultural Tradition
(A Magicka School Research Project)
“When the doors of perception are cleansed
everything is revealed to man as it is - infinite!”
- William Blake
In order to truly understand the path of Hedgewitchery, one must first understand the meaning, origin, and usage of the terms hedge and hedgerow. The term hedge is defined as follows by dictionary.com:
hedge/hej/
Noun: A fence or boundary formed by closely growing bushes or shrubs.
Verb: Surround or bound with a hedge: "a garden hedged with yews".
Synonyms: noun. fence - hurdle - barrier - hedgerow
verb. fence
The term hedge, finds its origins in Old High German, which was used between 500 and 1050 C.E., as hegga or hecka. It was also found to have migrated into Old Dutch between the years of 600 and 1150 C.E. in the term heggehn. Then between the years of 800 and 1200 C.E. Old Saxon, also known as Old Low German began to be commonly used and with it, the term haeg found its way into the common language of the time. From there the modern form of the word hedge, seen in use in Modern English since 1550 C.E, or hetch in the Suffolk dialect, in use since at least 1300 C.E., began it’s slow evolution into it’s current incarnation giving rise to several other modern words along the way. The Anglo-Saxon/Old English language was used between the years of 550 C.E. to 1250 C.E. and included hecg, hegge, haga, hecge and hege, as terms meaning hedge. From this dialect developed Middle English, used from the 11th century until the year 1470 C.E. and included the terms hedge, hegge, hedgen, and heggen. The old Teutonic (of or relating to the Germanic languages) stem haja- (meaning behind the hedge) gave rise to the Anglo-Saxon/Old English terms haja, and heggeræw (meaning hedgerow) which then bred the Middle English heye, haye(which would become the Modern English hay) and hagathorn, meaning literally hedge thorn, which would eventually develop into the modern term hawthorn. Other modern words which find their roots in the term hedge are hawk (hedge-bird), haggard, edge, and hag. It was during the Middle Ages that the term hedge was first used as a prefix to other words denoting that a thing belonged to or was born in the wild or remote hedges or forests. These terms, such as, hedge-priest, hedge-vicar or hedge-press referred to individuals or items as being of low, base, foreign, odd, or peculiar character or origin. In fact, the German, Raubritter (robber-barons), of the late Middle Ages were spoken of as hedge-knights, even referring to themselves as hedge riders. It would be safe to assume this was due to the fact that they road their horses through the hedgerows when they would descend from their well-armed estates to victimize the peasants by raiding their cattle, pillaging their homes and even kidnapping them for ransom.
Ernest F. Henderson in “A Short History of Germany” writes: “The knights themselves only saw the humorous side of the matter, and gloried in such names as “hedge-rider”, “highwayman,” “bush-clapper,” “pocket-beater,” and “snap-cock.”
Hedgerows are precisely landscaped, elaborate layers of vegetation which have garlanded the European countryside in an interwoven network of plant-life since the times of the Roman occupation, if not before. The Anglo-Saxons were also well known for making use of hedgerows, many ancient examples of which still exist today and the first European colonist to the New World brought with them the use of hedgerows to the Americas. Hedgerows can be comprised of many various species of plants. In North America cedar and juniper are of the most regularly used species grown in hedgerows, while in Europe hawthorn and blackthorn were the most common. Also grown into hedgerows were fruit bearing trees and shrubs which became an excellent and multipurpose source of food for humans and animals. Hedgerows may also have contained both healing, pestilent and poisonous herbs and plants alike growing within their borders, as well as many thorny bushes and while enchanting to behold, these hedgerows could well prove hazardous to any individual not granting them the proper amount of respect. Hedgerows gave shade and acted as a windbreaker, home and shelter to many species of animals including rabbits, foxes and birds, while also playing the important role in villages of “keeping the herds in and the predators out.” These large rows of carefully cultivated vegetation served as the boundaries and property lines of homesteads, villages, ditches and roadways, as well as the fences and borders of pastures, gardens, fields and farms. They were quite useful for keeping the wild life and wilderness from encroaching upon the daily life of human settlements.
The Hedge in Hedgewitchery, however, is not a mere barrier or balustrade of flora and fauna but is in fact the border between the worlds; our concrete, material existence and the immaterial, spirit world. It has been compared to what many Pagans refer to as “the Veil” and is the border which the Hedgewitch crosses, through trance work (also known as journeying, journey-work, traveling or ‘oot and aboot’), in an effort to collect knowledge and wisdom from the spirits on the other side.
The term Hedgewitch is derived from the Anglo-Saxon/Old English words haegtessa and haegtesse, which generically translated mean hedge-rider, hag-rider, witch and witch-fury. Those who follow this path have been known as Hedge-Riders, Hedgewitches, Night Travelers, Myrk-Riders, Gandreidhs, Badbhs and Walkers on the Wind. Hedgewitchery, or Hedgecraft is not a tradition in and of itself and can be more correctly categorized as a working path within a tradition. For the most part this “working path” finds its roots in the Traditional Witchcraft and Cunning Folk practices of Europe. Although the Hedgewitch can most assuredly come from any cultural background most find their roots in a European ancestry with practices emanating from the traditions and folk lore of the ancient Celts, Slavs, Teutons, Romans, Greeks, Anglo-Saxons, Vikings and various other European cultures. Most Hedgewitches are an eclectic lot drawn not only to their own heritage for inspiration, but also to the cultures of others in a search for wisdom and understanding, and have a deep respect for the differences of other ethnicities. Neither are they opposed to modern traditions but strive for a practical and realistic blending of the old and the new. This is one of the trademarks of Hedgecraft.
It is widely believed that Hedgewitches were the original wise women of their villages and as such were the customary custodians of herbal and spiritual lore, handing down their knowledge orally from mother to daughter throughout the generations. These folk healers were of a service to their community in many ways both practical, and spiritual. They served as midwives and healers through their knowledge of herbalism or wortcunning. They offered home, crop and livestock blessings and served as consultants for planting and harvesting with their innate knowledge and intuition of nature, weather and the seasons. They earned a living through the offering of divination and prophecy, as well as through the sales of magical talismans, spells or charms of protection to ward of curses or bad luck. Those who practiced this path generally lived on the fringes of their community, either betwixt or just beyond the outermost hedgerows both physically and figuratively in that these cunning men and women tended to be outspoken and unwilling to conform to the societal norms of the day. These outsiders were both respected and feared for not only their abilities, wisdom, and knowledge, but also for their determination to speak the truth and do what was best for the community at large even when those truths and actions are not a popular concept. They were also considered odd and peculiar because of their close relationship between and understanding of nature and the spirit world. It is commonly believed that these ancient spirit workers possessed the knowledge of intoxicating and hallucinogenic herbs, the use of which allowed them to enter trance-like states and travel into the spirit world to confer with the entities of the other side, bringing back with them higher knowledge and wisdom.
A rather lengthy poem called the Havamal, discovered in a 13th century Icelandic text, the Poetic Edda, is a recitation of rune spells by the god, Odin, which he learned while hanging on the World Tree, the Axis Mundi. Known now as the Song of Spells the tenth verse is of particular interest to followers of HedgeCraft. Several translations are included here for interpretational purposes:
For the tenth I know,
if I see troll-wives
sporting in air,
I can so operate
that they will forsake
their own forms,
and their own minds.
~ Benjamin Thorpe
A tenth I know: when at night the witches
ride and sport in the air,
such spells I weave that they wander home
out of skins and wits bewildered.
~ Olive Bray
If I see the hedge-riders magically flying high,
I can make it so they go astray
Of their own skins, and of their own souls.
~ Nigel Pennick
A tenth I know, what time I see
House-riders flying on high;
So can I work, that wildly they go,
Showing their true shapes,
Hence to their own homes.
~ Henry Adams Bellows
These translations lend some credence to the theory that a Hedge-Rider is a person in possession of shamanistic qualities. They have the ability to leave their own “homes” or “hedges” i.e. their bodies and “ride” or travel freely through the night, crossing the boundaries which separate our own world from that of the spirit world. This shamanistic characteristic is the most significant aspect in a definition of Hedgewitchery. Like shamans, Hedgewitches are seers and prophets, spirit workers and oracles. A shaman is an individual who crosses the Veil into that Otherworld for the purpose of communing with spirit guides, deities, and ancestors for many various reasons and through an equally varied number of techniques. The term shaman has been used for centuries by the Turkic-Mongol and Tunguska cultures of Siberia and finds its roots in the Turkic word saman which means one who knows. It is unnecessary to use the term shaman when referring to a Hedgewitch, as they each have their own cultural significance and should be used with pride by the cultures to which they belong.
Continually, throughout history wisewomen, folk healer and shamanic traditions have existed, and have never faded away as some culturally based traditions have been wont to do. In fact, in the last century a growing number of people in the western world have begun turning towards these nature based, spiritual, healing traditions and adapting them to modern life. Just since the 1980’s the interest in Wicca, Paganism, and alternate spirituality has exploded with more and more information being made available via books and the internet on a yearly basis. This insurgence of information has made a solitary lifestyle a more viable option.
Ronald Hutton in his “The Triumph of the Moon” writes: “Alongside coven-based pagan witchcraft there appeared at the end of the 1980s a formally constituted strain which catered for the solitary practitioner. It was largely given identity by the West Country writer Rae Beth, who standardized for people the delightful term of ‘hedge witch’.”
It would seem that those individuals who began using the term hedgewitch were inspired by the Middle Ages use of the word and such terms as hedge-vicar and hedge-preacher. Also during the 1980’s, terms such as Cottagewitch, Hearthwitch, Kitchenwitch and Greenwitch became more popular as a result of the public’s growing interest in the nature oriented Wiccan movement. The now non-operational Association of Solitary Hedgewitches (ASH) was established in 1994 as a networking facilitator for solitary witches. The 1990s also shepherded in an increased interest in Shamanism and shamanic practices. In response to public demand, more references to shamanic techniques as a part of Hedgewitchery found their way into many readily available publications, such as Llwellyn’s Witchcraft Today series. This series added a book by Chas Clifton to its collection called Shamanism and Witchcraft Today. By the year 2000 the meaning of the term Hedgewitch had evolved from the early ‘80s meaning of simply solitary practitioner to the more in depth idea of one who practices Shamanism, Herbalism and lives in rural, remote and wild areas. Eventually the usage of the word found its way back to a definition more in line with what is found in the Havamel.
In a Chapter titled “Dancing on the Edge: Shamanism in Modern Britain” from the 2003 work “Shamanism: A Reader” edited by Graham Harvey. Author Gordon MacLellan states: “But we do not have an extant shamanic tradition to draw upon. There are claims for surviving hedge-witch practices, some of the old covens have lasted down the centuries and there are tantalizing echoes of still fuller traditions fading with our older generations. Descriptions of the Highland seers sound very like those of entranced shamans. Folk tradition is full of spirit-catchers and witch-bottles and the proper ways of living with the spirit world of Faerie.”
In 2008, Eric DeVries states in his book “Hedge-Rider: Witches and the Underworld” that: “HedgeWitche’s cores practice is centered around the Underworld journey and therefore, around the invoking of trance.. There is NO WAY you can enter the Underworld without the alteration of your consciousness, for you will have to experience the inner to access the Underworld. That alteration is done by trance – it is the experience of the inner – without the key of trance, the door will stay fully locked. And so if you want to be a Hedgewitch you need to know how to invoke trance.”
Even Rae Beth, the woman who brought the term Hedgewitch into modern usage has stated that her spirits had spoken this word to her and she had applied it to her practice at the time without understanding and today is encouraging the use of this term to mean a spirit walker, one who knows, and a shamanic practitioner of Witchcraft. The origins of this term and this path’s modern incarnations are still pliable and being formed on daily basis.
Today you will usually find a Hedgewitch living apart from the urban confines of a city or metropolitan area, most likely on a farm in the country or in a small town near the woods. They find they are at their best when working in the wild woods or forests, but can also be found working steadily and with dedication within their own cultivated gardens and farmland. These individuals tend to work solitary or within a familial setting for the most part and although covens and group workings don’t figure strongly in a Hedgewitch’s practice, there are some situations, rituals, sabbats and techniques that require at the very least a partner, if not a group of like minded individuals to assist in the functions of the rites, as well as a safety measure. For example, in certain trance work, it is preferable and greatly encouraged that the Hedgewitch have a trusted partner or group to watch over their physical body, while their spirit is ‘oot and aboot’. For the most part you will not find a Hedge-Rider taking part in the political uprisings, skirmishes or Witch Wars of the Pagan community as most tend to stick to their own grounds and beliefs, while still maintaining pleasant associations with others in their magical community. They will often be found to have a positive and balanced relationship with their physical, mundane community as well, blessing fields and homes as in days of old, as well as offering their skills in the form of herbal healing, working their magic in the adjacent countryside and forming mutually respectful, symbiotic relationships with the natural spirits and energies within their local area. By retreating into nature in this manner, the Hedgewitch finds spiritual invigoration, balance, grounding and insight into their inner self, as well as into the world around them.
Since the path of the Hedgewitch is primarily a solitary one, there are no set degree systems to speak of. Although not considered to be necessary for this specific path, individual practitioners who come to Hedgecraft from a Pagan or Traditional Wiccan background may choose to undergo an initiation ceremony. A ceremony may be designed by the Hedgewitch themselves or they may follow one found in a book. What follows is an example of one of many possible initiation ceremonies for the budding Hedgewitch:
The Process Of Self Initiation
Imbolc is the most traditional time to perform a self-initiation Hedgewitch ceremony, but any full Moon or Sabbat will do.
Build an altar and decorate it with elemental symbols, produce of the seasons and an image of the Goddess and the Horned God.
Ask the place spirits to bless your magic and call upon your ancestors to be present and lend their wisdom.
Cast a circle and call on the power of the elements to offer you protection and to guard your magical rite.
Invoke the Lord and Lady with a simple prayer or by lighting a candle and chanting.
Dedicate yourself to the Goddess and the path of Hedge witchcraft by stating your intention to learn the ancient ways of wisdom.
Anoint yourself with sacred oil on the Chakra points, a blend of carnation, frankincense and sandalwood is traditional.
Call to the place spirits, elements and ancestors to bear witness to your solemn vows
If you wish to consecrate any tools, do so now, before thanking the spirits and opening the circles you have created.
With such a heavy emphasis placed upon the importance of nature, hearth and home within this path, several alternative names have been used to describe Hedgewitchery, although most of these names do describe some aspects of HedgeCraft in general, this path is significantly different in many ways. A Kitchenwitch, Hearthwitch, Cottagewitch, or Greenwitch may work primarily in their own gardens and homes, and is as likely as a Hedgewitch, to season their dinner with magical herbs one minute and cast a spell or brew a potion with them the next. These witches might also use trance work in some of their rituals but generally have not been set upon by the Cunning Fire. The Hedgewitch has a “fire in the head”, which has come about as a result of a calling, either by their spirits or their gods, to become an oracle, a seer, a prophet, a Hedge-Rider, “one who knows” in service to their community. A Hedgewitch must possess a highly developed sense of intuition and psychic proficiency as they must learn to trust in their spirit guides, as well as their own instincts and abilities in order to enable trance work both alone and in a group setting, depending on the work to be done. An atypical amount of self-discipline and dedication is vital to the Hedgewitch, as well as the ability to learn simply by being in nature and connecting with the spirits of nature to discover their ways. This path is profoundly dependent on an exceptional understanding of herbal lore and the workings of the natural world. Most Hedgewitches find some form of instruction necessary and will fill this need either through a home study program or through an apprenticeship under an experienced practitioner. However through it all the coven of the Hedgewitch will always consist of the animals, trees, herbs and stones of the local wild places. It is within these places beyond the hedgerows where most Hedge Riders find their sacred space.
Certainly a space within the home is set aside for the storage of magical tools and supplies, with an indoor altar setup, perhaps, for emergencies, but direct contact with the natural elements is vital in Hedgecraft and most followers prefer to setup their sacred space as close to nature as possible. In the private garden of a Hedgewitch, you will more than likely find a permanent altar constructed from an old log or a large rock aligned with the four elemental directions. The altar, situated either in the northernmost or center section of the garden, will be surrounded by healing herbs and magical trees festooned with wind chimes and witch bottles, while fountains or standing stones define the quarters and a fire pit acts as a source of light. Those Hedgewitches without such a private space will set up temporary altars in secluded parks or woods, surrounded by the ancient energy of towering trees. Their fires are lit on fire-proof dishes to protect the local plant life and all trace of their presence is removed at the completion of their rites. Although, Hedgewitches are very adaptable and have no problem melding the traditions of old with this new era of invention in which we live today, most prefer to work as traditionally as is possible. In this respect, most Hedgewitches do not cast a circle in the Wiccan sense of the word, since they consider all of nature sacred. They may however, have other ways of defining their working space such as the laying out of a compass rose or “Plough the Bloody Furrow”.
The Bloody Furrow, also known as the Bloody Acre, the Moat or the Well is any area where energies from The Bloody River (conduits of the Creationary or primal energy which flow between the worlds and run in invisible ley lines or “streams” along or just below the surface of the Earth) tend to pool or collect. The presence of these ley lines can be acknowledged or maneuvered into a field of protection around a ritual area through the act of dragging one’s foot or digging tool around the area and visualizing the gathering of this Bloody River into the ditch or depression that has been created. This is known as “Plough the Bloody Furrow”, “digging the well”, or “laying the moat.” Through methods such as this the Hedgewitch can root out the magical and natural forces of a place and use them to call the energies of the spirit world into their working space. Centered within this space is generally found, a symbolic depiction of the World Tree, or Axis Mundi. It is here that an opening within the Hedge is created through which the Hedge-Rider will pass to travel into the wilds of the Otherworld. The tools of a Hedgewitch are also not as abundant as those of most Wiccans. They tend to keep tool usage to a minimum relying on their inherent adaptability to make use of what is readily available in the moment. However, when tools are used they tend to be handmade and/or extremely practical in nature such as a walking stick, pruning shears, or a Stang. These are a few examples of the laying out of ritual space and the use of tools, but as each Hedgewitch is unique, so their work and the way they go about their rites will be also.
Similarly the moral codes followed by the Hedgewitch will also be unique to the individual practitioner as they tend to develop their own code of right and wrong depending on their own personal beliefs and some adaptation of the philosophies “Do What Is Needed” and “Know Thyself.” They do not tend to follow the Wiccan Rede of “Harm None” because the Hedgewitch understands that sometimes in life and in magic, harm is necessary in order to foster true healing. The Hedgewitch themselves must facilitate an emotional mission of healing and understanding in order to truly define who they are now, who they wish to become and what they believe. Without having come to these realizations the Hedgewitch, or any pagan for that matter, can never hope to emphatically form a functional system of magic or experience any form of spiritual awakening. The Crooked Path refers to a path which meanders across the countryside with many twists and turns moving around the natural landmarks, rather than stomping through them in a straight and unrelenting line. This path waves back and forth between the left and right-hand paths wandering through the grey areas as opposed to following decidedly only the black or the white. It is this path which the Hedgewitch prefers to walk, for there is no light without darkness, and there is chaos where there is no balance.
In this way, the Hedgewitch shapes their path to suit themselves, their personalities and their mores. By knowing themselves, the Hedgewitch learns the extent of their own gifts, talents and limitations and when called upon to serve their community can operate within these abilities for the benefit of all. Some will focus on herbalism, wildcrafting and wortcunning, while others study midwifery or animal husbandry. Many will also make it their goal to be adept at crystal healing, energy work, divination and other forms of prophecy. While not all witches follow this “path within a path” those who do consider spirit flight to be the most important area of study, over all. The purposes for this spirit-flight are as individually unique as the practitioner but range from communing with ancestral dead, spirit guides, and plant or animal Totems to healing the sick and near death and “calling them back” from the other side, as well as divination. Hedgewitches often refer to these spirit flights as “Walking the Hedge,” “Riding the Hedge,” “Oot and Aboot,” “traveling,” “journeying” or “Crossing/Jumping the Hedge.” They often tend to keep one foot in the ethereal mists. The things they see and experience in this otherworld will often lead to changed perceptions and viewpoints regarding the physical world and what may be considered an odd or eccentric personality by most mundane folk. It has been said that the call of the Cunning Fire can either make you a Hedgewitch, a poet, a madman or some strange combination of all three.
In order to enter trances and similar altered states of consciousness which enable them to “Walk the Hedge” Hedgewitches may use any number of techniques included but not limited to visualization, meditation, drumming, dancing, chanting, and breathing exercises or ethenogens. There is much controversy surrounding the use of ethenogens and this is not a technique to be utilized lightly. It is highly dangerous and definitely not a “short cut to the Mysteries” of the Wildworld. Those practitioners who undertake this particular technique do so only after years of practiced learning and study of slowly increased ointment potencies. Many foolhardy young Pagans have “jumped into the deep end” and discovered there were serious consequences to their actions. These ointments used to induce the sensation of flying are extremely poisonous compounds created with strong alkaloids like belladonna, hemlock and aconite. They can produce dangerous physiological side effects such as irregular heartbeat, impaired mobility, labored breathing, vertigo and mental confusion. DO NOT attempt to brew or make use of flying ointments unless you are being assisted by a professionally trained and highly experienced herbalist, many of the ingredients are poisonous, and just allowing them to come into contact with the skin can be extremely harmful. The danger that goes along with the use of ethenogens cannot be emphasized enough.
There is much historical evidence for the use of psychoactive plants in the spiritual practices of the ancient worlds. Of particular interest to this specific path would be the flying ointments which were in use in the Middle Ages and possibly even before. In a 12th Century text, known as the C. E. Law of Vastgotaland there is a section which refers to a person called a myrk-rida. This particular myrk-rida is described as wearing a troll skin, to make her recognizable to the residents of the Otherworld. The indeterminate state or limbo of the Hedge-Rider’s location between the worlds of the material and immaterial is reinforced by the timing of the ritual which is traditionally held on an equinox, when the day and night are equal. In other cultures references to those who made uses of these flying ointments can be seen. In Portugal, for example, the Bruxsa is a witch who ventures out at night as a large sinister bird. (Note: The Hedgewitch has been commonly associated with both ravens and geese.) While in Germany, the Hexe, is thought to be a shape-shifting witch who would venture out at night to suck the milk from goats. It is this particular branch of folklore that gave rise to the classically evocative image of the hag riding across the night sky astride a broomstick. The origins of this collective image of a witch lay not to far from the truth. Originally, the broomstick, or riding-pole, was carved at one end into the form of an erect penis and then concealed with straw and/or birch twigs. The other side would end in two forked tines. These became a representation in ritual, of the phallus and horns of the Horned God of the Woods-a god of harvest, fertility and plenty. It’s rather interesting to note that eventually broomsticks would evolve into the common modern wand.
Hedgewitches are capable of finding, utilizing, and traveling effortlessly into caol ait, a Gaelic term which describes the “thin places” between worlds. Almost every culture has its own name for these ‘tween places. They are known by the Celts as faery roads, to the Dutch as death-roads. In English they are known as coffin-paths and corpse roads, while the Germans call them geisterweige. In Holland they are dood wegan, and the Saxon term is daeda-waeg. An experienced Hedgewitch is capable of opening these “thin places” even between the High Days, or Hallowed Feasts when the Hedge is known to be at its thickest. The Hedge is found to be the most easily crossed over on the Cross-Quarter Days, Samhain, Imbolc, Beltaine and Lughnassadh, of which the thinnest Hedge is found on Samhain. Interaction between the worlds is the easiest on this day especially. Other than for their significance in “Hedge Riding,” a Hedgewitch may or may not follow the Sabbats and Esbats depending upon their own personal beliefs and traditions. They do, however, follow the nature of seasons, weather and the cycles of flora and fauna very closely and are highly adept in their knowledge of these forces.
This reverence for nature is typically seen as the only belief systems most Hedgewitches follow as HedgeCraft in and of itself is not seen as part of any specific religion. Anyone from any culture, religion, or succinctly non-religious background can be a Hedgewitch. The major difference between Hedgewitchery and Traditonal Witchcraft is that most Hedgewitches feel no attraction to or compulsion for the inclusion of the various ceremonial and religious aspects of Traditional Witchcraft. In this manner, it is also not necessary for the Hedgewitch to worship any particular deities. Depending on the individual, the Hedgewitch may choose to worship the Gods or Goddesses of their own ancestry and historical culture or any culture of their choosing for that matter. They may work with spirit guides, land and nature spirits, Totems, or their own Fetch, as well as the Mighty Dead and ancestral spirits. Any combination of the above is also typical of this path and depends entirely on the unique beliefs of the individual practitioner.
For more information on this subject, there are a great many publications available for the avid reader and wisdom seeker. This list is alphabetized by title and is by no means exhaustive, but it gets pretty close. The information available in the following publications represents the beliefs of each respective author. Whereas the author of this essay makes no claims in support of or against the ideas represented therein and has not read every volume listed below. Peruse at your own risk with an open mind, a grain of salt and a heart within, through which you have learned to Know Thyself.
The Ages of Gaia: A Biography of Our Living Earth – James E. Lovelock
Ancient Herbs – Marina Heilmeyer
Aradia: or the Gospel of the Witches – Charles G. Leland
The Basic Essentials of Edible Wild Plants and Useful Herbs – Jim Meuninck
The Brothers Grimm Fairy Tales
Call of the Horned Piper – Nigel Jackson
The Complete Book of Herbs: A Practical Guide to Growing and Using Herbs – Lesley Bremness
The Complete Works of R.J. Stewart
Craft of the Wild Witch: Green Spirituality & Natural Enchantment – Poppy Palin
Crossing the Borderlines: Guising, Masking, and Ritual Animal Disguises in the European Tradition - by Nigel Pennick
Cunning-Folk and Familiar Spirits: Shamanistic Visionary Traditions in Early Modern British Witchcraft and Magic - by Emma Wilby
Earth Spirit Living: Bringing Heaven and Nature into Your Home – Ann Marie Holmes
Ecoshamanism: Sacred Practices of Unity, Power and Earth Healing – James Endredy
Element Encyclopedia of Witchcraft: The Complete A-Z for the Entire Magical World – Judika Illes
Encyclopedia of Natural Magick – John Michael Greer
The Essential Guide to Herbal Safety – Simon Mills
The Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries – WY Evans Wentz
The Forager’s Harvest: A Guide to Identifying, Harvesting, and Preparing Edible Wild Plants – Samuel Thayer
Gaia: A New Look at Life on Earth – James Lovelock
Garden Witchery: Magick from the Ground Up – Ellen Dugan
Green Pharmacy: The History and Evolution of Western Herbal Medicine – Barbara Griggs
Green Witchcraft Series by Anne Moure
The Healing Power of Celtic Plants: Their History, Their Use, and the Scientific Evidence That They Work – Angela Paine
Hallucinogens and Shamanism - by Michael Harner
Healing Wise (Wise Woman Herbal Series) – Susun S. Weed
Hedge-Rider: Witches of the Underworld – Eric de Vries
Hedge Witch - by Rea Beth
Herbs of the Northern Shaman – Steve Andrews
Hoodoo Herb and Root Magic – Cat Yronwode
The Horn of Evenwood – Robin Artisson
How Do Witches Fly? A Practical Approach to Nocturnal Flights - by Alexander Kuklin
Irish Witchcraft – Lora O’Brien
Leechcraft: Early English Charms, Plantlore and Healing – Stephen Pollington
Leechdoms, Wortcunning, and Starcraft of Early England: A Collection of Documents, for the Most Part Never Before Printed, Illustrating the History of Science in This Country Before the Norman Conquest. Volumes I; II: III – Thomas Oswald Cockayne and Charles Singer
The Magical Household – Scott Cunningham
The Magical Garden: Spells, Charms, and Lore for magical Gardens and the Curious Gardeners Who Tell – Sophia and Denny Sargent
Masks of Misrule: The Horned God & His Cult in Europe – Nigel Jackson
The Meaning of Herbs: Myth, Language & Lore – Ann Field
Natural Magic – Doreen Valiente
Natural Witchcraft: The Timeless Arts and Crafts of the Country Witch (Natural Way) – Marian Green
The Nature Path – Starhawk
Nine Worlds of Seid-Magic: Ecstasy and Neo-Shamanism in North European Paganism – Jenny Blain
The Other Side of Virtue – Dr. Brendan Myers
Pagan Visions For A Sustainable Future – Ly de Angeles Emma Restall Orr, Thom van Dooren
Persephone’s Quest: Entheogens and the Origins of Religion -by R. Gordon Wasson
Peterson First Guides: Trees – George Petrides, Olivia Petrides , Janet Wehr
The Philosophy of Natural Magic – Henry Cornelius Agrippa, ed. L. W. de Laurence
The Pillars of Tubal Cain – Nigel Jackson
Plant Spirit Shamanism: Traditional Techniques for Healing the Soul – Ross Heaven, Howard G. Charing, and Pablo Amaringo
Popular Magic: Cunning-folk in English History – Owen Davies
The Practical Handbook of Plant Alchemy: An Herbalist’s Guide to Preparing Medicinal Essences, Tinctures, and Elixirs – Manfred M. Junius
Psychedelics Encyclopedia – Peter Stafford
Psychedelic Shamanism: The Cultivation, Preparation & Shamanic Use of Psychoactive Plants – Jim Dekorne
Real Middle Earth: Exploring the Magic and Mystery of the Dark Ages - by Brian Bates
The Roebuck in the Thicket: An Anthology of the Robert Cochrane Witchcraft Tradition – Evan John Jones, Robert Cochrane, and Michael Howard
Sacred Gaia: Holistic Theology and Earth System Science – Anne Primavesi
The Secret Garden: Talking Beetles and Signaling Trees: The Hidden Ways Gardens Communicate – David Bodanis
The Secret Life of Plants – Peter Tompkins, Christopher Bird
Secrets of East Anglican Magic – Nigel Pennick
The Self-sufficient Life and How to Live It – John Seymour
Shamans – Ronald Hutton
Shamans/Neo-Shamans: Ecstasies, Alternative Archaeologies and Contemporary Pagans -by Robert J. Wallis
Shamanism: Archaic Techniques of Ecstasy – Mircea Eliade
Spellcraft – Robin Skelton
Spiritwalking – Poppy Palin
Traditions And Hearthside Stories Of West Cornwall – William Bothell (an old Celt)
Veterinary Herbal Medicine – Susan G. Wynn
Walking With Spirit: A Guide to Working with the Otherworlds – Poppy Palin
The Way of the Green Witch: Rituals, Spells, and Practices to Bring You Back to Nature – Arin Murphy-Hiscock
The Way of the Hedge Witch: Rituals and Spells for Hearth and Home – Arin Murphy-Hiscock
White Magic: And the Cunning Folk – Karen L. O’Brien
Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner by Scott Cunningham
The Wild Plant Companion: A Fresh Understanding of Herbal Food and Medicine – Kathryn G. March
Wild Witchcraft: A Guide to Natural, Herbal and Earth Magic – Marian Green
Witchcraft Medicine: Healing Arts, Shamanic Practices, and Forbidden Plants – Claudia Muller -Ebeling, Christian Ratsch, Wolf Dieter Storl ph.D
The Witching Way of the Hollow Hill – Robin Artisson
SOURCES
http://www.paganlore.comhttp://www.paganinthetropics.blogspot.comhttp://www.sallymorningstar.comhttp://susansblog.yuku.com/topic/364#.T8Ac1sXvmSohttp://walkingthehedge.net/wildgeekhang ... &Itemid=94http://www.dictionary.com
