First of all, what is a Book of Shadows, or BoS for short? To put it as simple as possible, it is the diary of a Wiccan/Witch, filled with anything deemed important on one's path.
Why is it called a Book of Shadows? There are a few theories, but essentially, it is a book that is hidden to other people, filled with secrets and mysteries. And yes, usually a Book of Shadows is quite private and wouldn’t be read by anyone else other than oneself. But of course this is up to you if you would like to share your BoS - as I have seen many do on Instagram and YouTube - then don’t let anyone tell you not to!
Where to start?
All you need is a writing medium. A notebook, a Diary, or even your phone or a blog works! Chose whichever you are most comfortable with. And yes, you CAN have multiple ones, for example, I have one for very organized basic information, another for my rituals and spellwork experience, and yet another for dreams (which is on my phone!)
It is really up to you, be as creative as you want! Don’t hesitate to glue cutouts in, or keep it minimal, whatever works.
What goes into a BoS?
Really anything that you think is important on your journey! I like to have the first few pages to be more generally useful knowledge, such as The Wiccan Rede, the Elements, the Runes, Tarot card basics, the Basic outline to a Ritual, and of course the Sabbats and the Deities I work with. Perhaps brainstorm some ideas on what you want to write into your Book of Shadows!
A few ideas to help you get started:
- A book blessing
- 13 Goals of a Witch
- The Wiccan Rede
- Your path
- The Pentagram and the Elements
- The Sabbats
- Grounding Ritual
- Moon Phases
- Altar Setup & Tools
- Crystal properties
A note about Book of Shadows vs Grimoires:
A Grimoire is more of a general book and often described to be less personal compared to a Book of Shadows. A BoS often contains dreams, conducted rituals, a book blessing and so on, whilst a Grimoire might only contain correspondences, etc. But of course, they are still very similar and if you prefer the term Grimoire over BoS then don't hesitate to use that instead!