Six Ways: Approaches & Entries for Practical Magic

I wanted to review this book when I first received it, really I did. And I tend to give short shrift to gushing reviews by folks who “are only 20 pages in but just had to review.” Yet.Author Aidan Wachter invites you to work, not just skim along with the brain. And he is so disarmingly honest, so elegantly serious, so downright magical in a way that makes you believe (perhaps for the first time) that magic is really real, that his readers will fall under his spell to respond in kind. But working the work takes time, and effort. To do justice to this book means it will take me years to finish it. (And I just might be a magician by then.) I thought I’d offer a review in the meantime.If you want real, hard-won, practical information on how to live a life engaged with magic, from someone who works deeply and with a minimum of fanfare, here is pure gold. No attempts to convince you of theories, or even of the reality of the author's own experiences. At every turn you are encouraged to find your own experiences, and to rest easily with the uncertainties of exploration. I felt a sense of relief as I read this book. The man behind the curtain is for real.The book opens with a request—to articulate why you are reading it, before reading further—and gives gentle guidance to clarify your thinking. Refreshing, and immediately useful--being clear with oneself and one's desires is the first magical discipline. (Contrast with Paul Huson’s opening assignment to say the Lord’s Prayer backwards, a challenge wrapped in layers of mystique and muddy motivation, in my book, though you are of course free to disagree.) I had to stop and think and write for a good while before turning to the next page, though the effort was worthwhile. And so it’s gone, as I wend my through the book.There are exercises aplenty, and those I have worked with have been rich. Aidan covers all the bases while freely admitting his own palette of strengths and non (there’s little on card divination, for example). Like a true way-finder, he knows the terrain intimately enough to strike out off-trail; he knows his power spots and how to return to them. With winsome humility he offers a treasure trove of maps to those just setting out, or who need a signpost or two on their on-going journey. I’m grateful Aidan Wachter took the time and care to note down his distilled understanding in this finely-crafted book.

This is a book that provides many possibilities for performing magic but doesn't overwhelm you. What I like most about the book is that the chapters are short, to the point, with little filler. When he describes a technique where there is another great reference, he gets to the salient points and then refers you to a more detailed source if that is something you want. He also gives credit where credit is due to other practitioners and authors. A quality I don't often find in other magicians.I also like how you can mix and match techniques. He doesn't bowl you over to make it sound like you have to do it a certain way. You can really be creative with his approach. His Chaos Magic background really shows here.I liked his sections on sigils, servitors, talismans, vessels, offerings, and weeding out to be the most useful for me. But the entire book is really good and you will find something that can enhance your toolbox. When he talks about calling up spirits on page 20 using invocation or evocation, he makes it sound so simple and sensible that your imagination runs with all the different ways you could possibly use it.The book is straight-forward and an easy read. However, it is complex enough to wet your appetite in trying other approaches. This is one you can read again and again.For his next book, I would like to hear more of Aidan's magical philosophy. It is definitely in this book, but such discussion could help the magician.Excellent work. Well done!

It's elegant the way that Wacher presents this spiritual path. The presentation is compassionate, non-judgemental and delivered in a relaxed manner with smile and a wink at times. By the end, I was left with the impression that I sat down and had a conversation where I asked Wacher to tell me how he approaches his path. In turn Wacher tells me without ever trying to impose it.His own path derives from exploring many different magical paths and taking from each what was needed, but unlike other sources, this is not a grab bag of appropriation. Wacher studied each of these paths and understands their context. While he doesn't always explain the context or cosmological source material, he generously credits them and provides sources for additional study.This is a great strength. As someone who has spent some time studying in this arena, I recognize the sources and don't need them spelled out again. Doing that would have detracted from the books message, which is ultimately, this is not complicated, anyone can do it and there's no reason not to be doing it right now.I wrestled for a while with this as a source for a beginner. I suppose it depends. I'm a person that wants to read *everything* before I get started and while I find that useful in the long run, it often means that I delay starting to the point where I might not start at all. I also think that as a beginner I'd have been skeptical or dismissive of the early exercises in the book aimed at working on removing self-limiting thought - this is me and not remotely everyone. So, I that if I were a beginner, I would have missed the value in this book. But for many beginners it would be a a great starting point. Beginners that took up the practices would find their value and have a working practice in a short amount of time. This practice would also be a fully formed path, but refreshingly sparse, allowing room and probably desire for further study, and the ability to add what is needed and let go of what isn't.Refreshingly sparse is such a key feature to this path. I don't know how many other books or spiritual systems describe a "simple working" and then go on to list 20 necessary tools and items, 2 hours of prep work and it all needs to happen during the 1 night a month that the moon is at the right aspect.As someone who has been doing this in a variety of forms for over 20 years, I can say that it is a kick in the butt to remind me what is important and to make me re-evaluate what I'm doing and not doing. While I frequently fail to be the magical/spiritual minimalist that I aspire to be, I think it's at the heart of everything and I have not found a better presentation than in Six Ways.