By: Aisling Bronach of House Shadow Drake

In Wicca, the Book of Shadows is a book in which beliefs, rituals, ethics, laws, spells, chants, and sometimes even diary notes are recorded. Gardner supposedly received the Book of Shadows in fragmentary form during his initiation in 1939. He then published some rudimentary rituals in his novel, "High Magic's Aid." Subsequently, the Book of Shadows was expounded upon using revisions and additions by Doreen Valiente and Aleister Crowley. Before Gardner, there is no known record of a Book of Shadows. Many traditionalist Witches claim that a similar book is kept - but it is never called a Book of Shadows. As far as written historical records show, the closest published book that resembles Gardner's Book of Shadows was "Aradia: Gospel of the Witches" by Charles G. Leland in 1899. Although Gardner appears to have used concepts proposed in Leland's work, Gardner and Leland held no relational ties together.

Resource

Guiley, Rosemary Ellen. "The Encyclopedia of Witches and Witchcraft." (NY: Facts on File, 1989).