Religion and spirituality are being transformed in our late modern and secularising times. New forms of belief proliferate, often notable for not being limited to traditional systems of reference or expression. Increasingly, these new religions present worldviews which draw directly upon popular culture - or occulture - in fiction, film, art and the internet. Fantasy and Belief explores the context and implications of these types of beliefs through the example of the Otherkin community. The Otherkin are a loosely-affiliated group who believe themselves to be in some way more than just human, their non-humanity often rooted in the characters and narratives of popular fantasy and science fiction. Challenging much current sociological thinking about spirituality and consumption, Fantasy and Belief reveals how popular occulture operates to recycle, develop, and disseminate metaphysical ideas, and how the popular and the sacred are combining in new ways in today's world.

Mythical creatures drawn largely from medieval travellers' tales, but encompassing civilisations from the Sumerians to the Wild West.

The unicorn is a symbol of purity. Treat your readers to quotes from literary and historical sources, abundant images and illustrations, and a fascinating narrative about the history of the majestic unicorn.

The mythic creature expert and author of Phoenix takes readers through a bestiary of sea monsters featured on the famous 16th century map Carta Marina. In the sixteenth century, sea serpents, giant man-eating lobsters, and other monsters were thought to swim the waters of Norther Europe, threatening seafarers who ventured too far from shore. Thankfully, Scandinavian mariners had Olaus Magnus, who in 1539 charted these fantastic marine animals in his influential map of the Nordic countries, the Carta Marina. In Sea Monsters, mythologist Joseph Nigg brings readers face-to-face with these creatures and other magnificent components of Magnus’s map. Nearly two meters wide in total, the map’s nine wood-block panels comprise the largest and first realistic portrayal of the region. But in addition to its important geographic significance, Magnus’s map goes beyond cartography to scenes both domestic and mystic. Close to shore, Magnus shows humans interacting with common sea life—boats struggling to stay afloat, merchants trading, children swimming, and fisherman pulling lines. But from the offshore deeps rise some of the most terrifying sea creatures imaginable—like sea swine, whales as large as islands, and the Kraken. In this book, Nigg draws on Magnus’s own text to further describe and illuminate these inventive scenes and to flesh out the stories of the monsters. Sea Monsters is a stunning tour of a world that still holds many secrets for us land dwellers, who will forever be fascinated by reports of giant squid and the real-life creatures of the deep that have proven to be as bizarre and otherworldly as we have imagined for centuries. It is a gorgeous guide for enthusiasts of maps, monsters, and the mythic. “[A] beautiful new exploration of the Carta Marina.”—Wired

Here Is the Book Merlin Could Have Given a Young Arthur...If Only It Had Existed. Oberon Zell-Ravenheart shares magickal practices in his new book Companion for the Apprentice Wizard. Unlike his first best-selling book, Grimoire for the Apprentice Wizard, which focused on the lessons one must learn to become a Wizard, Oberon focuses on taking you to the next level by putting those lessons to use with hands-on magickal training. Chapters are based on the Departments of Oberon's Grey School of Wizardry: Alchemy Beast Mastery Ceremonial Magick Cosmology and Metaphysics Divination Healing Lifeways Lore Mathemagicks Metapsychics Nature Performance Magic Practice Sorcery Wizardry Wortcunning Inside you will find materials and exercises from the vaults of the Grey School, and instruction from the faculty. Step-by-step instructions are provided for: How to make a Wizard’s wand How to make your own runes How to make a pocket sundial How to make and use a firebow How to make the milky way galaxy How to make your own amulets and talismans Potions for all purposes How to conjure illusions and create special effects And many other amazing projects... Companion for the Apprentice Wizard also includes a number of hand-drawn, full-page diagrams of magickal objects to copy, cut out, and assemble, including: Spinners for psychokinesis A Planetary Hour Calculator The Mariner’s Astrolabe A winged dragon A model of the mystic pyramid A model of Leonardo da Vinci’s Ornithopter