The Journey Into Spirit

Disclaimer: I received an eARC of this book through netgalley.com.

The Journey Into Spirit is an important pagan book. Death, the process of dying, and grieving is a deeply personal and somewhat taboo topic in Western cultures. In this book, Hughes brings all this out into the open and has a wonderful dialog about death, grieving, and what goes on behind it all from a pagan perspective. Hughes is well qualified to write this book as he's not only pagan but has been involved in the death business as a certified anatomical pathology technologist in the UK. Talk about a fascinating job!

Hughes blends personal stories of being close to death in with factual information about what happens when we die and where “we” go when we're no longer around. The stories are poignant and are both human and animal companion based. The book also includes personal and group rituals for saying good-bye to loved ones of all types. It's these rituals and practical advice that really put a good spin on this book and make it easy for those of us who want to include rites of passing in our practices.

The only thing I didn't like about this book was the use of the term “muggle” to refer to non-pagan/magickal persons. I love Harry Potter and the wizarding world but I really take offense to pagans who use the term “muggles” as a way to differential ourselves. Im my opinion, everyone is magical. Even if they don't believe in pagan magic.

Bottom Line: Go buy this book. It will expand your opinion of what death and dying is, what awaits us on the other side, and gives some advice about how to mourn and include death into a pagan belief system.