The Elements of Ritual: Air, Fire, Water & Earth in the Wiccan Circle

This was a very useful book about the how's and why's of ritual. It was packed with information. Well written and concise; however I only gave it 4 stars because it was mainly written with those who practice in covens in mind. I was disappointed that there wasn't much about solitary ritual. Overall a good book. That was the single thing I didn't like about it.

I found this book educational and primarily targeted to those learning the Craft. As the cover suggests it focuses primarily on the "elementals," air, water, fire, and earth from a Wiccan perspective. Deborah explains clearly why things are done the way they are, providing understanding instead of merely giving recipes or how-to instructions. I would suggest this book for novices who are working with a coven or teacher. It will help the novice to understand why the teacher does things in a particular way and not some other way, what options might be chosen instead, and how that would change the ritual. It could provide a basis for discussion of the ritual design with the teacher. It's a good "text book" if you will for a teacher to assign to her or his students. For a more experienced reader it has a broad perspective and descriptions of other ways to do the same thing that you may not have thought about in a while.She discusses the mythological difference between directions, elementals, and guardians. Why, for example, do many Wiccans limit directions to 4, leaving out up, down, center, spirit, in, out, forward, backward, or any others that some groups add? Deborah Lipp often gives more than one example of how you might do the same thing rather than just "do it this way." She explains why you might choose each version. In reviewing the book I found that she reminded me of several aspects of ritual that I had learned years ago but had not thought of recently and I enjoyed the review of principles.In part "Elements of Ritual" is similar to a lot of other beginner books of which we have seen too many over the past few years. However, Deborah Lipp's offering is one of the best of those, and is aimed at more serious students than your run of the mill "teenage witch" book. Yes, those who are focused on one particular tradition will find things to disagree with, as you will with any book written by anyone but yourself, but that's where you have a talk with your teacher or priest/ess about how your practice differs from hers.As another reviewer already said, the advanced student of the Craft might be more interested in reading Grey Cat's "Deepening Witchcraft," or some others targeted on a more advanced audience. For a beginner's textbook that includes why as well as what and gives alternatives, "Elements of Ritual" is pretty good.

This is a must have for anyone intending to write their own rituals, or who want to know the 'why' behind the rituals they do! Firstly the Author introduces you to the Elements of Air, Earth, Water and Fire. She explains the significance of each, and gives some basic concepts about each, listing the directions, tools etc associated with them. Basic stuff you think, but she adds her own theories that she has gained through experience, and while she doesn't try to 'convert' you to what she thinks, it certainly makes you think and widens your perceptions!She then goes through each step of a basic ritual outline, and not only explains how to do the steps (what she terms as the 'Earth' sections), but also the theology (Air), mythology (Water), and mysticism (Fire) behind each of those steps. The way she has linked these to the Elements is very clever, but also helps you to become better acquainted with each Element, as well as give good order and balance to the book.Some of the insights she gives into the craft have really opened my eyes, and reaffirmed what I believe - but gave me a way to express it.She is a big one for balance and polarity, and ensures that each step of the ritual explained is not only balanced, but makes sense and is balanced as a whole.The only reason I haven't given this book 5 stars was because she was very 'coven' focused, and I enjoy practicing as a solitary. It is also obvious that she comes from a very 'formal and ritualised' background, and while that is very helpful when wanting to learn about the steps and meaning of ritual, I choose to practice differently.All in all, I'm VERY glad that I spent the money on this book, and can see myself referring to it over and over again!

What can I say...I LOVE this book. I've known how to do the "basics" for years, and now that I have read this book - I feel like I was missing something the whole time. Everyone always worries..."am I doing this right", that most of the time they don't get a chance to ask "why", or "what exactly is the purpose of this...". The Elements of Ritual gives us the chance to have those questions (and more) answered in a way that is easy to understand, and makes sense. It takes us through...step-by-step, each of the core parts that make up Wiccan ritual, and explains each one from the point of view of the 4 elements ( Air...why we do it; Water...what is the mythology behind it; Fire...what is the meaning of it; Earth...how we do it). It does an excellent job of dispelling some common "myths" associated with Wiccan ritual - such as the idea of "sacrifices". Did you know your ritual isn't really complete without one? (I can hear the collective GASP - "Wiccan's don't do sacrifices!" To which I answer..."but what is a sacrifice?") Truly I wish I had read this book a long time ago. If you are anything like me...just reading through the first couple of chapters will have you going, "Oh...I get it now!!!" Truly, I can't say enough good things about this book. Overall it is an invaluable tool for advancing one's practice. I highly recommend this book to everyone, not only to read...but also to be included as an essential book in one's resource library.

Very good book about this matter

My wife is a practising Wiccan so this was a perfect gift (along with the Hermes Statue and the other book Solitary Wicca for Life). She spends hours reading these, taking notes and things and leaves me to get on with watching the rugby or whatever. All round winning combination!

Un capolavoro. Davvero immancabile nella biblioteca di una strega

verry good

In love with every single page!All Wiccan basics very well explained in detail. An amazing view of Ritual.Just finished ;)