Ellen Cannon Reed
Ellen Cannon Reed (21 March 1943 – 7 October 2003) was the most widely known priestess of the Isian Tradition of Witchcraft. She lived in Southern California and wrote widely (most famously the book The Witches' Qabalah). She was also the founder of the Internet Relay Chat Channel #witchcraft on Undernet.org network.
She was married to Christopher Reed, with whom she did not have any children.
She died on October 7, 2003 from leukemia.[1]
Ellen and her husband Chris ran an annual Pagan gathering called "Pacific Circle" every summer for over 20 years at the Bandido Group Campground, Angeles National Forest in the hills high above Los Angeles; later it was moved to Gold Creek Ranch in Sunland, California.[1] They hosted a monthly gathering called "Moontalks" for many years.
Reed was the co-creator of "The Witches Tarot", a widely used tarot deck combining Wiccan elements with traditional Qabalistic symbols and imagery, for which the artwork was done by Martin Cannon. She is also the author of several other books.
Her companion book for The Witches Tarot includes meditations and methods of working with the deck, as well as a new way of reading Tarot, and a complete description of The Witches Tarot deck. Both the deck and the book are noteworthy for being the first to combine the Qabalistic symbolism and elements drawn from Wicca, in a way that speaks to Pagans.[2]
She had begun work on a companion volume to Pagansong,[3] but it unfortunately remained incomplete at the time of her death.
Bibliography
- The Witches Tarot. Llewellyn's Modern Witchcraft Series. Llewellyn Publications. 2002. p. 320. ISBN 978-0-87542-668-6.
- The Goddess and the Tree. Llewellyn's Modern Witchcraft Series. Llewellyn Publications. 1985. p. 71. ISBN 978-0-87542-666-2.
- The Witches' Qabalah: The Pagan Path and the Tree of Life. Llewellyn Publications. 1991. p. 192. ISBN 978-0-87728-880-0.—this is a revised and significantly expanded version of her earlier book, The Goddess and the Tree: Witches Quabala, Book 1.
- Circle of Isis: Ancient Egyptian Magic for Modern Witches. Career Press. 2001 [1991]. p. 320. ISBN 978-1-56414-568-0.
- The Heart of Wicca: Wise Words from a Crone on the Path. Weiser Books. 2000. p. 133. ISBN 978-1-57863-174-2.
- Invocation of the Gods: Ancient Egyptian Magic for Today. Llewellyn's Practical Magick Series. Llewellyn Publications. 1991. p. 297. ISBN 0-87542-667-0.
- Pagansong Volume 1. Solar Crown Publishing. 1998. p. 204. ISBN 978-1-885569-11-0.—a Song book for Pagans
References
- 1 2 "Ellen Cannon Reed: A Priestess Remembered". Archived from the original on August 7, 2010. Retrieved May 19, 2012.
- ↑ "Amazon.com: The Witches Tarot Book (Llewellyn's Modern Witchcraft Series): Ellen Cannon Reed: Books". Amazon.com. Amazon.com. Retrieved 2009-05-22. For each card in the deck, the book includes a complete description, as well as a discussion of the meaning of each element represented in and by the card: this includes an associated Hebrew letter, color, scent, and gem, as well as astrological and Qabalistic path correspondences. Illustrations include the 22 Major Arcana cards (as depicted in the deck's artwork by artist Martin Cannon), each of which is discussed in greater depth as author Ellen Cannon Reed examines the direct correspondence between these cards and the paths on the Qabalistic Tree of Life. Ms. Reed's sourcework shines in this book, which draws upon multiple Qabalistic sources in combination with her own background as an experienced High Priestess in an initiatory Wiccan Tradition.
- ↑ "Hymn to Brigid -Traditional Gaelic -Pagan Music -Willow Firesong's Circle of Firelight". Willow Firesong's Circle of Firelight. Retrieved 2009-05-22.