What book to give to a very young student?

[Desecrated]

I have a relative that stops by sometimes and she has a little boy at around 6-7 years old.
Last time he noticed a bag of herbs hanging in my window and asked what it was?
I'm not used to having kids around so I kinda just blurted out "oh, that one is to keep negative spirits away"..
And his reaction was somewhere between slightly scared and very curious.

Yesterday it was time for round two. He saw my swords... and well, an avalanche of questions came out of the boy. And I think I might have answered them a bit to truthfully at the time.
Anyway, we ended up in the library and he kinda asked if he could have any books about magic. I told him that I have to think about it, and ask both of his parents first and so on...

Sooooooo?
What the heck do I give him?
I know some of you have kids and grandkids. So I thought some of you might have some experience in this.

[Shinichi]

Grimm's Fairy Tales. The Edda's. The Kalevala. The Icelandic Sagas.

Kids that young don't need to learn practical magic or serious magic theory. Most children that age aren't yet smart and mature enough to know what to do with it, and those who figure out they have one talent or another don't have the mental fortitude and maturity to manage it yet. They can, however, learn Lore. The Lore will teach them about different kinds of spirits, different kinds of magic, and many other things besides. And if they want to practice and engage in more serious learning when they get older, well. That's something for them to do when they are older.



~:Shin:~

[Haelos]

Children can learn to meditate.
Look at all the temples in the East, who initiate their children at very young ages.

Im a firm supporter of Shinichi's Fundamental Development as a prime initiatory resource for all ages. I've got several copies of the PDF printed out to offer as gifts to my friends and students.

Don't teach your child magick. Teach them conscious living.

[Desecrated]

Grimm's Fairy Tales. The Edda's. The Kalevala. The Icelandic Sagas.

Kids that young don't need to learn practical magic or serious magic theory. Most children that age aren't yet smart and mature enough to know what to do with it, and those who figure out they have one talent or another don't have the mental fortitude and maturity to manage it yet. They can, however, learn Lore. The Lore will teach them about different kinds of spirits, different kinds of magic, and many other things besides. And if they want to practice and engage in more serious learning when they get older, well. That's something for them to do when they are older.



~:Shin:~

Maybe a tiny bit too much murder and rape for a 7 year old.
But there should be some "viking mythology" for children that isn't to harsh. It's a good start.

[Shinichi]

Maybe a tiny bit too much murder and rape for a 7 year old.

The Bible has the same and worse, and I was forced to read that mess long before I reached the ripe old age of 7. [tongue] I'm sure you also know some more recent and more local Lore, right? Have some fun and be a Storyteller. Tell the stories yourself, leaving out the bits you or his parents don't want him to hear yet. Then tell him about the books he can read when he's ready to dig in deeper.

One of the biggest mistakes adults of this era make is underestimating their children. If he shows interest, holding him back does nothing but hinder his growth as a human being. What is more immoral than that? Just guide him through it if you're worried for some reason. If he embraces Lore now and really learns it though, he'll be all the better for it if he pursues the mysteries later on.



~:Shin:~

[Desecrated]

Maybe a tiny bit too much murder and rape for a 7 year old.

The Bible has the same and worse, and I was forced to read that mess long before I reached the ripe old age of 7.

That is kinda what I want to avoid.

I'm sure you also know some more recent and more local Lore, right? Have some fun and be a Storyteller. Tell the stories yourself, leaving out the bits you or his parents don't want him to hear yet. Then tell him about the books he can read when he's ready to dig in deeper.

I don't really like kids that much, I rather just give him a book and have him go away.

One of the biggest mistakes adults of this era make is underestimating their children. If he shows interest, holding him back does nothing but hinder his growth as a human being. What is more immoral than that? Just guide him through it if you're worried for some reason. If he embraces Lore now and really learns it though, he'll be all the better for it if he pursues the mysteries later on.

Had it been my kid. No problem.
But since it's not, I rather be overly cautious.

[sidenote]

It's interesting when you mention the bible, brothers grimm, and I was also thinking about other scandinavian folk lore vs more established fiction.
I think if a kid shows up at school talking about ghosts and trolls, it would be okay if they had read that in harry potter, but not so okay if they read it in some obscure book nobody heard of.
There is a higher level of appetence with already established violence then if it comes from an unknown source.

I agree with the sentiment that kids can handle more then modern society puts on them. But I also remember reading some really horrible stuff as a kid that probably should be kept out of the hands of children.
Agatha christie - 'Ten Little Niggers' was probably not the most appropriate book to have at a grade school library. Not only is the title horrible, but the entire book is about murder and psychological terror. I think I was 9 when I picked it up and read it for a school report.

[Nahemah]

Have some fun and be a Storyteller. Tell the stories yourself, leaving out the bits you or his parents don't want him to hear yet. Then tell him about the books he can read when he's ready to dig in deeper.

One of the biggest mistakes adults of this era make is underestimating their children. If he shows interest, holding him back does nothing but hinder his growth as a human being. What is more immoral than that? Just guide him through it if you're worried for some reason. If he embraces Lore now and really learns it though, he'll be all the better for it if he pursues the mysteries later on.

I think this is excellent advice. I do understand your caution, though, Des.

However, it seems a little like maybe the chance to teach directly has come your way, I like syncronous happenings, so I'd go with that, if I was you, in this matter. Perhaps you might find it a challenge or even fun if you try? I used to pass on stories to other kids, but I edited them slightly if they were of the more adult or scary type, not into sugary fluff or owt, but just a little creative wording to simplify. Kids do understand rage, fear and pain as well as joy, kindness and pleasure, relateable terms can be found. Think time is creative, makes your brain work harder.

I grew up on the local tales and some from further afield and funnily enough, it was my great uncles and great granny who were the story tellers, as we call it here: braw canter's wae silver tongues. [as English friendly as I can translate too, sorry] I tell my grand kids the same stories I told my kids and I got them from my grand forebears who heard them from theirs. I see it as a solemn duty to keep that alive.

Maybe you could restart a tradition, or encourage a new old one?

We should do things that challenge us, I'm not big on lots of kids together, but usually find one, especially one who is already keen will be easy to work with. They ask questions and can be surprisingly sharp at times. It might be fun.

[Desecrated]

I taught karate to kids when I was younger. It's rewarding, but it takes too much time and effort.

[Desecrated]

BTW:

I found this when googling around:

https://shopsatan.com/products/the-sata ... activities

[Caerdon]

You could just get a book of myths and legends. You can find alot of them that are more than appropriate for children. They generally go through the Greek and Scandinavian legends before branching out to others.

However you should also talk a bit about some of your practices (not getting into teaching him any magic) as he seems interested in it. Just some of the more every day benign stuff. Perhaps get him doing some meditation and calming exercises. Nothing too extreme but something light that can start a foundation in case he decides to pursue magic later down the road. If anything it'll help him relax and concentrate as he gets older.

[math1061]

That was a cute and interesting part. You became a child once again if you're talking with kids.

6-7 year old. Why not give him a coloring book instead?

[fraterai]

I was in the library today and I saw this purely visual book

https://www.amazon.com/Magic-Western-Tr ... 0500810087

It reminded me of the style of books that got me into all the things i'm into when I was a kid, those "coffee table" book of informative pictures. This contains some from the Medieval alchemical art to actual photographs of some Golden Dawn tools, and shows a few automatic drawings by Spare, tree of life, and my favorite, drawings from the Grimoire manuscripts. It seemed pretty appropriate for a kid, I saw one painting of an egyptian goddess with exposed breasts...but nothing more extreme than an art book or museum would have. It was actually well organized and could really serve as a useful background/intro to the topic for anyone, especially a child

edit: Oh the hardcover has the exact image i was talking about on the front of it. the one in the lib was lacking dust cover tho, so yea.

[TruthSeeker_]

A child of that age should be reading Harry Potter, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Hobbit ect. I don't see it as ethically correct to intentionally provide a child with occult books which might end up stumping his intellectual growth. I was fortunate enough to have discovered the wonders of science, philosophy and litterature before eventually approaching, albeit carefully, the paranormal world and the occult. I had accumulated an intellectual baggage and life experiences prior which have proven very useful in my studies.