Since 2021, I’ve exclusively been reading books that directly contribute to my spiritual development. Don’t misunderstand, I love all sorts of books and have read very, very widely. I used to run a literary book group for queer women that had over 1,000 members, and I have an undergrad degree in English literature. I’m not one of those people who’s going to say that reading fiction is a waste of time, or that books from the canon should be given special consideration…nothing like that.
As I’ve said often, “one size fits all is a gotdam hurtful lie.” I’ve written a lot about my struggles and about my spiritual evolution. For over 30 years, I’ve proudly claimed the title of “witch” as a signifier of a spiritual practice that is fierce and old and originates within the earth and the sky and the very molecules of being.
For me, being a witch is also about life as a sort of protest against the status quo. It means standing up for and with the disenfranchised and fighting the powers that be, especially when they’re not aligned with the good of the earth and its inhabitants. It means honoring the memories of all who were ever persecuted, who were ever burned, for daring to stand up for themselves.
I’m not Wiccan. But I don’t gatekeep. If someone tells me they’re a witch, I believe them, regardless of their practices.
So, yeah, no green skin, no eye of newt. Those are the stereotypes made up by the dominant class to cast aspersions on those who dare defy them.
And that relationship between us, the witches & other outcasts, and the dominant class brings us to the subject at hand — or rather, within.
The Altar Within by Juliet Diaz is a book that I suggest right away to women who study with me. I’m a spiritual mentor & coach for women, and my mission in life is to help women empower their magical selves. There’s really no better textbook (at least until I write one! Just kidding. Sort of.) for this stuff than this holy book.
The Altar Within is a devotional to self that will ultimately bringinto focus the being you have always been. It offers a practice meantfor us all, in this new world, in these revolutionary times, a practicewhere decisions aren’t about you or anybody else — they are spiritual,connecting us back to the stillness of the galaxies, the Divine Selfwithin. (from The Altar Within)
Who is Juliet Diaz?
Juliet Diaz is a well-known (dare I say celebrated? I think I dare.) figure in the witchy/occult community. Her books and decks are widely known, and I really enjoyed her previous book, Witchery: Embrace the Witch Within. She’s also an advocate and activist for her communities. In other words, she’s my kinda witch.
The Altar Within
I’ll give you my elevator pitch breakdown of the book, but honestly, you should read it. For reasons that will become clear, I’m going to be quite general.
Colonization happens when one huge, organized group of people come in like a bulldozer and take over another, perhaps less militaristic & organized people, subjugate them, and force them to assimilate or die. Perhaps you can think of some examples from history.
VERY generally speaking, and especially in the modern (meaning, in this case, the 18th century forward) world, the colonizers are monotheists and the colonized are another type of monotheists, or possibly polytheists or animists. Pagans. Followers of “primitive” religions, spiritualities, and traditions.
The colonizing culture generally imposes its own state or state-ordained religion on the colonized people as a means to inflict a very effective method of control: an internalized representative of the colonizer — the colonizer’s god living in the brain of the colonized as a constant judge. He sees you when you’re sleeping. He knows when you’re awake. It’s a really effective way to break the spirits of people and make them, or at least their descendants, willing subjects. Bootlickers, as it were.
What does all that have to do with The Altar Within? Well, as it turns out, everything.
The Altar Within focuses on decolonizing your own spirituality. It’s about focusing on the divinity within you, honoring that spark, that connection with the divine, above all other things. Throwing off the shackles of the multi-billion dollar industries that tell us “you’d be cute if you lost 20 pounds” or “most women your age have 2 kids. You don’t have any? Doesn’t that worry you? We recommend this pill!” Or “if he doesn’t spend 3 months of his salary on a rock for your hand, he doesn’t really love you.” You know. Things like that.
This book is about deprogramming all that crapola and tuning instead into the divine, the goddess, the queen, whatever you want to call her/him/it/them inside you. The one who whispers empowering wisdom to your soul rather than beating you over the head with messages that make you anxious.
It’s awesome and it’s empowering and I love it.
Why it’s Extra Important to Read The Altar Within
I don’t know Juliet Diaz. I am what you may call a “fangirl” of hers; however, at nearly 50 years old that moniker doesn’t quite fit me. That being said, I feel the need not only to let you know how empowering this book is, but also that it is not in any way anti-white, in spite of what several reviews have indicated.
When Diaz writes of colonizers, she means just that. Either those who directly participated in the colonization (ie systematic rape and genocide) of people or those who have that colonizer mindset. And plenty of people today do. They’re not all white, but I’d wager that most of them are. Just as not all people who kill their spouses are men, most of them are. If you feel the need to say “not all men,” maybe you should look at that tendency in yourself, you know?
I am a white woman. I am, I recently discovered, 98.7% genetically from the UK, so, yeah. I’m pretty white. I didn’t feel triggered or judged or hated on or anything in the slightest while reading (honestly, devouring) this book. I certainly didn’t feel the need to yell “not all white people!”
So, if you’re looking for a book that celebrates your white heritage, look elsewhere. And, again, maybe take a look at yourself in the context of the larger world.
If, on the other hand, you’re a person who accepts the fact that, simply by dint of growing up in the modern world, your brain — and likely your spirituality — has been colonized, you’ll probably like this book. And if you’re looking for a book that will empower you as a person, that will help you fall deeply in love with yourself and your own capacity to live magnificently and fully in this incarnation, this is the book for you.
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