One of the most important tools for any Witch is a journal. It is so important that some traditions give their version of this journal a special name, like Book of Shadows or Grimoire. Your journal though is neither of these things, at least not to start. A magical journal isn’t just a record keeping device, it is itself a magical tool. Throughout your practice, you may have many. Let us start with one.
The Difference Between a Journal and a Book of Shadows
Some traditions claim a Book of Shadows as a closed practice. It is a specific collection of information related to a specific tradition that has nothing to do with me. Thus, I hesitate to talk about it. But the term has entered the public consciousness and, as such, probably needs to be addressed.
A Book of Shadows is a compendium of knowledge that you have gathered from various places. In some traditions, a group has a Book of Shadows that new initiates copy and that only initiates are allowed to see. It contains information passed down from the elders and may be added to as the group experiments and gains new information. The important thing here is that the Book of Shadows is a reference book. It is a living document that continues to grow and evolve, but it is not the mess I hope your journal will become.
Your Book of Shadows may contain rituals, prayers, chants, songs, correspondences, recipes and spells. It may tell you how to use and care for your magical tools and how to set up your altar. It is there to guide you. It is a record of your tradition and is there for you whenever you need to look something up. Or jot something down you want to remember forever and maybe pass on to your fellow Witches one day. There may be annotations in the margins. You might write down the dates you did certain things; how you feel about things; substitutions that had to be made and how that worked out and who stood in for which parts on certain rituals. But the meat of the book is reference and instruction.
Your journal is there for you to scribble on and sketch in. Some things in your journal may end up in your Book of Shadows one day, but much of it is not. Likewise, your Book of Shadows isn’t much concerned with the map of your house you sketched when you used a pendulum to find your keys. Or all the scribbling you did sorting out that sigil for that one spell. Or the dreams you wrote down. Or your experiments with automatic writing. Or that interesting reading you did. Your journal wants all of that and more. And when it’s full, if you have a Book of Shadows, you can copy the good stuff in there and stick the rest in a box somewhere. Then start with a nice, fresh journal.
The Difference Between a Journal and a Grimoire
A Grimoire is specifically a book of spells and rituals. There may be recipes and perhaps an Appendix with some references. The biggest difference between Grimoires and Books of Shadows is that Grimoires seem to be more specifically the purview of a single person and whatever spiritual practices are involved are simply assumed, rather than spelled out. That is, a Grimoire written by a Jewish sage isn’t going to explain how to be a Jew, but assume you already have that information, likewise those by Christian Monks. And many of the most famous Grimoires were, in fact, written by Jewish scribes or Christian Monks.
What Kind of Book is my Journal?
Your journal is informal, so feel free to choose an informal notebook to house it. I find Back to School season the best time to stock up on journals, both fancy and not so fancy.
I prefer a large, unlined, wire-bound book. Wire bound so I can fold it back and flat and it has its own built in writing surface. A big sketch book because I am sometimes in the mood to write big. Or small. Or to make squiggles and sketches and arrows and bubbles. And lines limit me. I like a nice medium weight paper and a solid cover so I can abuse my journal and take it out into nature or into the kitchen. Spills soak in and don’t dissolve anything. And since it’s big, it’s less likely to disappear into the couch cushions and cease to exist for my ADHD mind.
You may prefer lines. You may like a smaller, more portable journal. You may find a flip top steno pad to be more productive. Or maybe you want something more aesthetically pleasing. You choose what you like and what is more comfortable and enjoyable to write in. It can be as simple as $1 wire bound notebook for school children or as fancy as a hand-tooled leather refillable planner style notebook. Your main consideration is that it is comfortable and easy to write in.
Ten Things that Go in Your Journal
1. Your Spells
The first thing you should do when you decide to cast a spell is to write it in your journal. Write your statement of intent across the top of the page and then use that page to brainstorm. List your correspondences, possible dates, ingredients, etc. and notes on any research you do. Be sure to include websites and books you find useful for future reference.
2. Good (and bad) Sources
Speaking of writing down websites and books you find useful for future reference; you should also be keeping track of shops you like, people you meet, and events you are interested in going to, like ConVocation or the Witches Ball. If you are a wild harvester, keep track of where you find things and if you’re a gardener, keep track of your intentional plantings as well. And take the time to give each of your sources a private review. Sometimes you don’t what works for you, but you know what doesn’t, and keeping track of this can help you filter down to the good stuff.
3. Your Recipes
The thing about recipes, for me, is that I rarely agree with anyone’s recipes. If you’re collecting recipes, write them in your journal as you get them, or as they come to you and then annotate them according to your opinions and experience. I have a kitchen journal specifically for messing about with recipes. If you aren’t food obsessed like me but you do some cooking or crafting of salves, powders and such for magick, you can keep track of those in your magickal journal. Remember to take notes on what works, what doesn’t and what you’d like to try next time instead.
4. Divination Tools
You can use your journal to aid your divination by drawing a spirit board or pendulum board in its pages. You can use a pendulum or a planchette and feel free to just attach it to the book with a ribbon or a bit of string. I also have maps of my house and yard to help me find lost things, decide where to place certain plants and wards.
5. Divination Results
You should also be recording the results of your readings and various other divination efforts. If you are working divination particularly right now, you may want a specific journal just for recording your progress with your divination method of choice. If not, you should still record your occasional readings somewhere. This is a good spot for that.
5. Your Dreams
If you are specifically doing dream work, you will probably want a dedicated dream journal. If that’s not your particular focus right now, you should still write them down somewhere and your magical journal is a good place for that.
6. Portents
People are often going online to ask what this or that means, crows and birds of prey are often involved. The thing about portents is that they are often only really clear in hindsight. The best way to sort this out is to write them down when they happen and then look back later.
7. Stuff You Made Up
I like to write stories, poems and chants to accompany my rituals and such. These go in my journal and get refined and revised, sometimes over the course of years before I am ready to share them with anyone outside the Circle. Into the journal with them.
8. Stuff you heard
Do you ever hear or read something so profound that you feel like a previously unknown bit of the universe just got cracked open to your view? Write that down. Put it in your journal. Because no matter how deep and profound it was, you’re going to forget it. And if it struck you as brilliant when you first discovered it, you will find new facets every time you go back and read it again.
9. Stuff you Learned
When you are researching a specific area, it is good to take notes. Your journal is a good place to keep these. Remember to keep track of your sources.
10. Flat Objects
Pressed herbs, fliers from events you’ve been to and, of course, sticky notes can also have a home inside your journal. I recommend using painter’s tape to secure them so they don’t go flying when you open it up too quickly and so you don’t end up ripping the pages if you decide to take them out later. These objects add a whole new level of sensory delight to reviewing your journal later and can trigger memories and insights. I particularly enjoy pressed herbs and flowers in my journal.
When Your Journal is Full
It is time to look back on it and review your journey of the past months or years.
If you have a Book of Shadows or Grimoire, you may have things in the journal that you feel are fleshed out enough to be permanent etched in your more formal book.
If there are things you explored in your journal that have been left unfinished, you should copy that information into your new journal so you can complete the now. Maybe you completely forgot about some projects or lines of inquiry you were working on and you’d like to jump back on those again. Or not.
Once you’ve reviewed your old journal and copied what you need into your new journal, put away the old one somewhere. I would never dispose of an old journal, but if you want to, go ahead. Or burn it ceremonially. Whatever feels right.
Happy Journaling.
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