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Summary: An Excellent Perspective of Modern Witchcraft
Review: I would recommend this book highly to anyone interested in the Occult Arts then Starhawk's unique approach to Goddess worship is almost poetic. She recounts experiences with her San Francisco coven that shed a very creative and pure light on Wicca. Most of the books that are available to the curious or those studying the Craft are chock full of correspondence charts, numerology, astrology, herbalism (all very excellent fields and thorough resources on any of them are indespensible); mostly left-brained cut and dried facts that leave no room for interpretation or expansion. The Spiral Dance, however, is a much more meditative work, allowing the reader to create a world within themselves that will allow true Magick to flourish. If you are tired of books that are all spin-offs of the same novice theory and practice and you feel ready to delve into more intermediate realms of the spiritual, this book is for you.
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Summary: a pleasant dance
Review: a warm, inspiring intellectual and spiritual dance that leaves the reader happily fortified. Good substance, nice language and design.Implies intelligently that ancient wisdom has relevance to modern life. Pretty useful.
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Summary: Hmmmmmmmmm...
Review: There are lots of opinions on this book, good or bad.
Good: Poetry! OK, well some may not appreciate that, but I do, being a poet. It isn't fluffbunny, IS well written, thoughtful, and overall good. (in my opinion).
Bad: Politics, badly explained feminism, group rituals, bad history.
So, I conclude that this is a good book. But if you're concerned with history, read _Drawing Down the Moon_, and if you want to read about colors and crystals and plants, pop into a New Age section that you're sure has un-fluffbunny stuff.
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Summary: This is the first book of some witches that I know
Review: Im glad this book stayed in print. Several witches that I know told me that this was their very first book on Wicca and witchcraft. I have to admit this was not my very first book on the system but it was one of my earlier books. I have to say that I really love Starhawk,s writting. She is a true Witch. This book is good for the beginner as well. She really gives good guidence. I actually had this book stolen by one of my exes and I replaced it as soon as I was able to do so. I hope this classic never goes out of print.
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Summary: Must Read for those interested in Paganism!
Review: This book is an excellent starting point for those interested in paganism, wicca, witchcraft, and goddess based religions. When people ask me about my religious path, I always tell them to read this book. It covers many of the questions asked by those new to earth/goddess based religions in a fact-filled, straight-forward manner. Starhawk is a wonderful author, making this book fun and easy to read, as well as terribly informative.
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Summary: My Favorite Witchy Author
Review: This book is the second book I have read by Starhawk. The first one I read, "Dreaming the Dark", inspired me so much that it was in a sense the starting point in my studies of the Craft. Looking back, perhaps I should have started with "The Spiral Dance", because this book is full of practical information and explanations concerning the basics of the Craft and the whole concept of The Goddess and The God. I find Starhawk's style of writing "spellbinding", and would recommend this book for all who are seriously devoted to the Wiccan way.
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Summary: One of two books that changed my life.
Review: THE SPIRAL DANCE is an inspiring book on rituals and living a spiritual life. When I first read it, I was trying to learn what Wicca was. It is still the best book I have ever read on Wiccan rituals and Wiccan life - from the heavily feminist eclectic mix'n'match side of the spectrum. If you're looking for the Old Religion, it's not here. But if you're looking to raise spiritual energy with like minded people, Starhawk will tell you how she does it, and how she's done it, and make you want to rush out to the grove and draw the Goddess down.
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Summary: A feminist disagreeing with a feminist?
Review: I finally got this book because it was one of the few "essential" books on Wicca that I had not read. Let me say first that this isn't a bad book for beginners, but I'd already grown leaps and bounds beyond my original Wicca 101 education. What I didn't like : It was a little hard to read, the frequent stops for italicized poems and visualizations threw me. Starhawk wrote this book with a more polarized sense of spirituality than I have, and she wrote about "inner female and inner male" conciousness. Having thrown Jungian philosophy out the door a long time ago, this rubbed me the wrong way. Starhawk also does nothing to bring equality to the sexes, as she recommends a feminized view of men, rather than men exploring their own unique spiritual needs. Lastly I wasn't too keen on the emphasis put on coven and group work. Very many Wiccans today don't work with or belong to a coven for many reasons. What I did like: The 10th and 20th year corrections and expansions show that Starhawk has grown, and that her philosophies are growing with her. Less emphasis is put on "inner male/female" and more emphasis is put on self discovery. The visualizations, meditations in the book are extremely helpful to someone who has mostly only had access to "spell" books because it gives a firmer foundation to base all spiritual and magical work on. Most importantly, the book focused on developing one's connection to the Divine and not on spells and special colors/stones/astrological signs. Finally, a book that helps me know my own inner divinity instead of selling love spells like a cheap roadside stand.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent for those who have had their feet on the path.....
Review: Although this is a wonderful book, I would not recommend it for those who are just starting their studies..but it is wonderfully written.
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Summary: Thank you, Starhawk!
Review: Thank you, Starhawk! You've managed to give Wicca as much embarrassing political baggage as Christianity ever had... Pagans who make their political beliefs so sacred that the thought of compromise with neighbours becomes impossible; pagans who think their neighbours too lost in "false consciousness" to be worth trying to persuade; pagans who react to questions with rage. Instead, they too await some kind of apocalyptic social upheaval, hoping it might all lead to utopia afterwards. And until the apocalypse comes, they lose themselves in a reverie of bogus history as a paranoid fantasy of persecution. If I wanted that, I'd read Butler's Lives of the Saints. Starhawk's witches and Pat Robertson's fundamentalists deserve each other.
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