{"product_id":"the-meaning-of-witchcraft-1","title":"The Meaning of Witchcraft","description":"\u003cp class=\"PDq2pG_selectionAnchorContainer\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Meaning of Witchcraft \u003c\/em\u003ewas Gardner’s final book and functioned as a sequel to \u003cem\u003eWitchcraft Today\u003c\/em\u003e (1954). Where \u003cem\u003eWitchcraft Today\u003c\/em\u003e introduced the idea of a surviving witch religion to a broad public, \u003cem\u003eThe Meaning of Witchcraft\u003c\/em\u003e is more expansive and defensive: Gardner explained what witchcraft means from the standpoint of someone presenting himself as a practicing witch, while also arguing for its antiquity, symbolism, ritual logic, and religious legitimacy. \u003cspan class=\"contents\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"PDq2pG_selectionAnchor\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe book covers subjects including the witch cult in Britain, witches’ beliefs, alleged Stone Age origins, early British religion, Druidism, Roman and Saxon witchcraft, “magic thinking,” symbols, the Black Mass, and Gardner’s rebuttal of hostile claims about witchcraft. It ends with material on the future of the religion and appendices. \u003cspan class=\"contents\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGardner’s core historical theory—that modern witchcraft represented a direct survival of an ancient pagan fertility religion—was heavily influenced by Margaret Murray and is no longer accepted by most historians. But even where the historical claims fail, the book remains a primary source for the self-understanding and public presentation of early Gardnerian Wicca. This first edition is in very good condition.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Sam Osborne","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46539403460744,"sku":null,"price":375.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0722\/9695\/6040\/files\/ChatGPTImageSep17_2026at12_42_29PM.png?v=1789674202","url":"https:\/\/obscurabibliotheca.com\/products\/the-meaning-of-witchcraft-1","provider":"Obscura Bibliotheca LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}