The Witch of Forest Grove

Most people, especially North Americans, associate the word “shamanism” with Native American spirituality and practices.  But the word actually applies to a type of practitioner and shaman literally translate as something along the lines of “mystical person with magical powers”. Shamanism is not restricted to Siberia nor to Asia, nor to Native tribes in North America. Shamanism is found wherever Animism lives and, as most cultures started off as Animists, shamanism can be found within almost every culture — including the pre-Christian Celtic and Germanic tribes.  If you’ve ever been interested in shamanism, but thought you couldn’t get away with it as you follow a Celtic path, these books are for you! These books are not modern made-up systems. The following books are based on years of research and study to find the shamanism within Celtic culture that early monks so easily erased from history.

Book of the Cailleach: Stories of the Wise Woman Healer
by Gearoid O’Crualaoich

The author explores oral lore and storytelling to uncover the bean feasa, the wise women and healers of pre-Christian Ireland and their practices which are very shamanistic in nature. He explores their nature, their beliefs, their practices, and their overall importance to their communities. O’Crualaoich also provides a rich body of lore in the full tales he includes in this work.

Cunning Folk & Familiar Spirits: Shamanistic Visionary Traditions in Early Modern British Witchcraft and Magic
By Emma Wilby

By British she really means mostly Scottish. This is a ground-breaking work that shook the world of modern witchcraft by proving a link between early modern European witchcraft and shamanism. This wasn’t a new idea, but Wilby was one of the first to provide evidence to match the claim, evidence one can’t ignore! She compares the beliefs and practices of UK Cunning Folk to ancient and modern Shamanic practitioners. Although this is an academic study, the modern witch and shaman can easily glean practices and ideas from the work as well as insight. As Wilby’s work is full of Scottish slang you might want to have the Dictionary of the Scots Language at hand. My tip is to say the Scottish phrases out loud just as they are spelled to better understand what they mean.

The Gaelic Otherworld
By John Gregorson Campbell

This is a modern compilation of John Gregorson Campbell’s two classic works: Superstitions of the Highlands & Islands of Scotland from 1900 and Witchcraft and the Second Sight in the Highlands & Islands of Scotland from 1902. Campbell was a fluent Gaelic speaker and also a well-known folklorist in his time.  These two works compiled together are based on the material he gathered in the field from the 1850-60s before his death in 1891. The Gaelic Otherworld is of value for those practicing Celtic shamanism as it is a practical book of beliefs and superstitions of the rural peoples of Scotland as well as the practices of their witches, fairy doctors, healers, wise women, and seers. It contains spells, incantations, healing remedies, beliefs, and practices. Whereas the previous books mentioned are more theology-based, this one will allow you to get your hands dirty –especially when used along with Alexander Carmichael’s Carmina Gadelica.

Singing with the Blackbirds: The Survival of Primal Celtic Shamanism in Later Folk-Traditions
By Stuart A. Harris-Logan

This wonderful work is by a traditional folk healer and Gaelic speaker. His research is astonishing and honest and I can’t believe more people haven’t heard of or read this work published in 2006.  Stuart explores Gaelic oral and written lore to uncover the existence of shamans in ancient Celtic cultures and he finds them! He is also very thorough in uncovering and describing their practices, abilities, ritual costume, ritual tools, incantations, spells, as well as the famous deeds of Celtic shamans long forgotten. A definite must read for would-be Celtic Shamans!