[Book Review] Urban Magick by Diana Rajchel
Most witchcraft-related books focus on rural areas. These authors seem to operate under the assumption that the reader lives in the countryside or the suburbs.
In other words, there’s a dearth of instructional material for those of us who practice in cities. The techniques you see in more general occult texts can be adapted to urban living, of course.
But, very rarely does an author tackle the matter of city witches who wish to incorporate the city into their magic. There’s simply not a lot of published information about working with city spirits as opposed to simply tolerating them.
I currently live in Warsaw, Poland. Just prior to that, I lived in Krakow, and it was there that I performed what I now call the “Krakow Working” on the summer solstice of 2016.
In that rite, I sought a deep connection with the spirit of the city itself. With few resources at my disposal (not many books even acknowledge that cities have spirits), a lot of it was improvisation, but it remains one of my most potent workings to this day.
Afterwards, I still wished I could find more material on city spirits, and serendipity (well, Netgalley, anyways) led me to Diana Rajchel’s upcoming work on this very subject.
Diana Rajchel wrote Urban Magick for city witches like me. This book focuses on working with, rather than against, the complex metaphysical currents of the modern urban landscape.
It gives a great deal of attention to the spirits that dwell within our cities. I’d argue that it’s primarily a book for spiritworkers, albeit in an urban context.
If you’ve no experience working with spirits, you might want to hold off on picking up this book. Instead, start with some more general books to get the basics.
If you’re in an urban area, and are at least somewhat familiar with notions of genius loci, devas, and other such critters, though, this book will definitely be a welcome addition to your shelf.
Rajchel devotes quite a few pages to workings for justice, community-building, and plenty of other altruistic motives. She clearly recognizes that part of city life involves sharing our energetic space with our fellow humans.
Rajchel shows that spiritwork can and should be conducive to a harmonious existence amongst other city-dwellers.
Her book is one of several published recently which discusses workings for communal justice and equity. In our increasingly polarized world, this seems particularly timely and will likely inspire many magical activists.
I have to give this book five out of five stars, for its erudite and timely tackling of an oft-ignored topic in witchcraft and magical practice.
I think it’s just wonderful to read, and I await further books from this author. This is the book that I’d wished for when I was performing the Krakow Working, and will definitely inspire future generations of city witches.
Diana Rajchel’s book, Urban Magick will release on March 8th, 2020. You can preorder it via Amazon here, or directly from the publisher, here.
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