Triumph of the Moon

by Ronald Hutton

 

 

 

     If you are a fan of history, especially the history of Neo-Paganism and modern witchcraft, this is the book for you. You need to be one who doesn't mind the details.  A true history lover thrives on details, and searches footnotes and bibliography to verify their accuracy.  Triumph of the Moon overflows with details.  In many respects, it is the Goddess's cookbook. If modern paganism is to be looked at as a creation of the last hundred years, Triumph of the Moon looks into all the myriad of ingredients that went into this creation.  It is utterly and completely fascinating, if you enjoy history or cooking or even science, if you enjoy anything that is connected to causes, effects, and a hodgepodge of luck.

At the same time, it is not a light book or beachware reading. I find myself going back to it again and again, rereading parts.  There is far too much in it to soak up with one read. 

    Triumph of the Moon is somewhat hard to describe.  It comes at Neo-Paganism from every angle imaginable.  From the perspective of the literary, the folklorist, the ceremonial magician, the church, the anti-witch demagogue, and then often back to the literary again.  There is an endless merging of perspectives throughout the narrative as older ideas are transformed by newer ones, and newer ideas are changed again by older ones.  The matrix continues to shift in the creative mist of writers, authors, the religious, and the mundane.

    The high holy names of Graves, Murray, Crowley, and Leland of course are there, preparing the ingredients for the key chef to arrive on the scene. About midway through the book, Gardner finally arrives. The master cook ready to create his masterpiece.  Does he base this work of art on ancient tomes from the past, from a vibrant oral tradition, from a creative imagination, or from simply deceit and desire to control.   Myth, conjecture, probabilities are all thrown around with no clear decision made.  Hutton is clearly a skeptic, but he is willing to give different points of view their expression.  No matter who one believes, the story of Gerald Gardner and his creation in the kitchen is a most fascinating one. The post Garnerian apostles are then looked at.   Different reactions to Gardner's revival of witchcraft are touched upon as well, from the hostile to the more friendly.  The craft leaders of the fifties, sixties, and seventies are explored and discussed. The movement of traditional witchcraft from England to the States is also examined in one chapter.  

      The book ends with an examination of the possible future of Neo-Paganism and witchcraft.  It looks at the spread of the movement which is exponential.  It compares Neo-Paganism to some other spiritual events like Charistmatic Christianity and the New Age movement. Both of which are spreading very quickly. 

      Triumph of the Moon is a scholarly history of a religion or group of religions that are growing at a tremendous speed.  Hutton shows why this is occurring. The cultural, literary, socio-economic, and spiritual forces were at just the right place at the right time to accomodate such growth.  And since modern paganism is a creative work in progress, these factors are shaping her even as we speak.   

    The full title of this book is Triumph of the Moon, a history of modern pagan witchcraft. This title demonstrates one of its strengths and one of its weaknesses.  For although the book does touch somewhat on Druidry, Asatru, and other forms of modern Paganism, the focus is clearly on Wicca. 

     One final question might occur to the reader of this book.  Why would an emiment historian who clearly is a skeptic, though not a cynic about relgious matters, focus his attention on the topic of Neo-paganism and both its origin and future?  Perhaps Hutton chose this focus because it had not yet been done. In fact, he alludes to this reason at the very end of the book.  Yet, there is another reason that comes up in some of his other writings, in essays that become a bit autobiographical.  In a book of essays entitled Witches, Druids, and King Arthur, Hutton discusses briefly about his background.  To quote from page 269 of this book: "The simplest and most fundamental was that I had been brought up a pagan.  The form concerned was not that of pagan witchcraft, but had much in common ground- in parallel terms about the same that is shared between the Anglican and the Pentacostal in Christianity. (Wicca representing the latter end of the spectrum)."  So perhaps we can look at Hutton as the first real Pagan historian. One hopefully to be followed by many who desire to explore their roots and discover where one's familial beliefs come from.