Eden’s Viper · The occult studies collection

Witchcraft
& the Wolf Path

One course. Six books. A guided path through ritual, folk magic, protection, Wolfcraft, philosophy, and devotion.

Based on writings by Christopher Belmont Johnson and The Rites of Santisima Muerte, credited to Hoodoo Doctor.
12 self-paced lessons · Read, practice, reflect

Begin with intention

Work through the lessons in order, at your own pace. Allow around 20–30 minutes for each lesson and exercise, with extra time for the companion readings. You can complete the exercises with a notebook and ordinary household objects.

These original course lessons introduce selected themes from the six books; they do not replace the complete texts. Reading references use the books’ printed page labels or section titles. The exercises are course adaptations, not formal initiations. Spiritual claims are presented as beliefs within the source traditions.

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Each lesson opens when selected. If progress controls are unavailable, keep your exercise notes in a notebook.

01Entering the craftFoundations

Companion reading: Witchcraft Step by Step, lesson 1; The Werewolf Bible, “Werewolf Spirituality.”

The opening of Witchcraft Step by Step approaches magick through ritual, intention, and the practitioner’s experience. The Werewolf Bible also allows spiritual and psychological interpretations of practice. Together, these provide two ways to study: you may understand a rite as devotion, or examine how its symbols organize attention and behavior. Keep clear which interpretation you are using. A meaningful experience does not, by itself, establish a supernatural cause.

Begin with an intention narrow enough to act upon. “I will develop a regular study practice” is more useful for a beginner’s record than “I will gain power.” Write what you intend, what you will actually do, and when you will review it. This course’s exercises are new study adaptations; they are not reproductions of the books’ initiations or a grant of membership in a religious order.

Your practice

  1. Choose a notebook or use the private notes field below.
  2. Write why you want to study and one question you want to explore.
  3. Schedule three ten-minute study sessions this week.
  4. Record a starting observation before your first session.

Reflect: What would count as progress even if you experienced nothing unusual?

02Will, instinct & responsibilityFoundations

Companion reading: The Werewolf Bible, “The Oath of the Werewolf,” “Werewolf Spirituality,” and “Werewolf Morality.”

The Werewolf Bible places instinct, intellect, personal autonomy, and self-examination at the center of its worldview. Its language is deliberately confrontational. Study that language as the author’s philosophy: identify what a passage asks the practitioner to value, then decide whether you accept the argument. Studying a tradition does not require adopting every assertion it makes.

For this course, self-mastery means noticing an impulse and choosing what to do with it. Instinct can alert you to a need; reflection helps you assess consequences. Separate strength from control over another person. Write a personal code that addresses consent, honesty, boundaries, and responsibility for your actions. This code is your own course exercise, not an oath attributed to the source.

Your practice

  1. Describe a recent situation in which impulse and judgment differed.
  2. Name the need behind the impulse without labeling yourself good or bad.
  3. List two possible responses and their likely consequences.
  4. Write five commitments you can apply to your practice.

Reflect: When does exercising restraint express your will?

03Tools, altar & attentionFoundations

Companion reading: Witchcraft Step by Step, lessons 3–5; Wolfcraft, chapter 1, “The Tools of Wolfcraft.”

Tools give an intention a visible form. Wolfcraft describes the wolf stick as an important ritual implement connected with invocation and the wolf spirit. Its role belongs to that book’s specific system; it is not a universal requirement for every form of witchcraft. When comparing tools across books, ask what each object represents, how it is used, and what meaning the practitioner gives it.

For the course exercise, create a small study space with a notebook, an ordinary object, and a drawn symbol or battery candle. Give each item a stated purpose. This is an adapted learning altar, not a reconstruction of a formal initiation. An effective study space can be inexpensive and temporary. Putting the objects away afterward is a useful way to mark the end of a session.

Your practice

  1. Clear a small surface.
  2. Choose three ordinary objects and write the purpose of each.
  3. Arrange them so you can sit comfortably and write.
  4. Observe for two minutes, then close the session and put the objects away.

Reflect: Which part of the experience came from the objects, and which came from the attention you gave them?

04The structure of a riteFoundations

Companion reading: Witchcraft Step by Step, lesson 1 dedication; Uncrossed, “Banishing.”

The dedication in Witchcraft Step by Step uses a sequence: preparation, symbolic objects, spoken intention, quiet observation, thanks, and closure. Uncrossed presents invocation and banishing as complementary parts of a regular practice. Studied together, they show why a rite has an opening and an ending rather than only a central petition.

Build a short practice using that structure. Define an intention, arrange your space, speak in your own words, sit quietly, and close. You do not need to make a lifetime vow to complete an introductory exercise. Keep any visualizations optional. Notice ordinary experiences such as distraction, calm, impatience, or increased focus, and describe them without exaggeration.

Your practice

  1. Write a one-sentence intention for today’s study.
  2. Arrange your study space and take a few comfortable breaths.
  3. Read your intention aloud, then sit quietly for two minutes.
  4. Say that the session is complete, put materials away, and record your observations.

Reflect: How did having a clear ending change the experience?

05Timing & correspondencesFolk magic

Companion reading: The Little Book of Folk Magic and Witchcraft, pp. 10–12; Witchcraft Step by Step, lesson 1.

A correspondence is an association used within a ritual system. The Little Book connects days with planetary influences and colors: Sunday with the Sun and yellow; Monday with the Moon and white; Tuesday with Mars and red; Wednesday with Mercury and purple; Thursday with Jupiter and blue; Friday with Venus and green; Saturday with Saturn and black. These are the book’s mappings, not a claim that every tradition uses the same chart.

The book associates the waxing moon with constructive work and the waning moon with diminishing or removing. Use these ideas as a symbolic scheduling framework. For example, a Wednesday study session can draw on the book’s association of Mercury with learning and communication. Keep the distinction between a chosen correspondence and a demonstrated physical effect.

Your practice

  1. Choose a goal involving learning, creativity, or an everyday habit.
  2. Select one day and color from the book’s system.
  3. Explain why that combination fits your intention.
  4. Schedule a practical action alongside the symbolic observance.

Reflect: What changes when you choose a correspondence deliberately instead of collecting many unrelated symbols?

06Petitions & everyday actionFolk magic

Companion reading: The Little Book of Folk Magic and Witchcraft, contents: business, employment, love, and peaceful-home workings; Witchcraft Step by Step, lessons 7–9.

The Little Book organizes many workings around everyday concerns. That structure offers a useful lesson: begin with the need, then select a form for expressing it. A petition states the intention; an object can serve as a reminder; an ordinary action gives you something observable to carry out. Avoid treating a symbolic act as a replacement for the work the goal requires.

This course’s paper-token exercise adapts the idea of a portable reminder without reproducing a charm recipe. Write a goal that concerns your own behavior, fold the paper, and place it where you will notice it. For a peaceful home, your practical action could be a calm conversation or an agreed quiet hour. For employment, it could be preparing an application. Review the action, not only the hope.

Your practice

  1. Write one specific goal on a small piece of paper.
  2. Add an action you can complete within seven days.
  3. Fold the paper and keep it in a notebook or envelope.
  4. After seven days, record what you did and revise the plan.

Reflect: Which part of the outcome was within your control?

07Uncrossing & grounded observationProtection

Companion reading: Uncrossed, introduction, “Spotting Negative Energy,” “Banishing,” and contents.

Uncrossed discusses magical defense through cleansing, meditation, protective objects, and ritual. It also proposes divination to identify a crossed condition. In this course, that proposal is studied as the author’s belief, not as a reliable way to establish that a curse exists or identify a person responsible for misfortune. An unsettling feeling or a run of bad luck is not proof of an attack.

A protection practice can still have a place as a symbolic expression of boundaries. Start with what you can observe: a conflict, a disrupted routine, an unwanted message, or a crowded room. Address the practical issue directly. If you choose a symbolic closing gesture, use it to mark your decision to return to ordinary activity rather than repeatedly checking for hidden threats.

Your practice

  1. Describe a concern using only observable facts.
  2. List at least two possible ordinary explanations.
  3. Choose one practical boundary or organizing action.
  4. Tidy your study space and write a short closing statement in your own words.

Reflect: How can a protective practice support confidence without encouraging repeated fear-based checking?

08Meditation & the reflective journalProtection

Companion reading: Uncrossed, “Meditation”; The Werewolf Bible, “Werewolf Spirituality” and contents: “Werewolf Meditation.”

Meditation appears among the practices in both books. For this course, begin with a brief attention exercise rather than attempting an altered state. Sit comfortably, keep your breathing natural, and notice contact with the chair or floor. When your attention wanders, name the distraction briefly and return to your surroundings. You do not need to suppress thought or produce visions.

A useful journal separates observation from interpretation. “I pictured a wolf” is an observation about an image in your mind; “a guardian contacted me” is a spiritual interpretation. You may record both while keeping them distinct. A third column, ordinary context, can include mood, interruptions, or expectations. This makes the record useful even when your interpretation changes later.

Your practice

  1. Set aside three quiet minutes.
  2. Notice your feet, the surface beneath you, and sounds nearby.
  3. Write three headings: observation, interpretation, context.
  4. Make one brief entry under each heading and return to your usual activity.

Reflect: What can you confidently describe without needing to decide its ultimate meaning?

09The wolf as a spiritual symbolWolfcraft

Companion reading: Wolfcraft, introduction and chapter 1; The Werewolf Bible, “Werewolf Spirituality.”

Wolfcraft presents the wolf spirit as central to its ritual path, while The Werewolf Bible permits both spiritual and psychological understandings of werewolf-form practice. Preserve this difference when studying them together. One text’s devotional language need not erase the other’s interpretive flexibility. Claims about ancient origins should be recognized as claims made by the author rather than independently established history here.

For a beginner’s adaptation, work with a chosen quality instead of pursuing literal transformation. You might associate the wolf with alertness, persistence, or companionship. Those are symbolic choices in this exercise, not a complete account of animal behavior. Imagine that quality briefly, then translate it into an everyday act. No substance, smoke, animal material, or physical ordeal is needed for this exercise.

Your practice

  1. Choose one quality you personally associate with the wolf.
  2. Sketch a symbol for it or write its name.
  3. Imagine acting with that quality in one ordinary situation.
  4. Open your eyes, orient to the room, and choose a small action to carry out.

Reflect: What is the difference between adopting a useful symbolic role and making a claim about physical transformation?

10Building a personal symbolic vocabularyWolfcraft

Companion reading: Wolfcraft, contents: elements, herbal magick, power animals, stones, and deity prayers; chapter 1.

Wolfcraft arranges much of its material by tools and correspondences. Rather than memorizing every association at once, build a small reference that records where an association came from. Separate a correspondence found in a named chapter from one you invented or borrowed elsewhere. This preserves the identity of the tradition and makes later comparison possible.

For this course, use drawings, written names, or ordinary objects to develop a five-entry symbolic vocabulary. You do not need to collect herbs or reproduce historical cures. The exercise studies symbolism, not ingestion, remedies, or exposure to smoke. A simple stone can become a reminder of persistence because you deliberately assigned that meaning; that personal assignment should remain labeled as your own.

Your practice

  1. Choose five symbols: a color, shape, object, animal image, and word.
  2. Give each a meaning and mark it “personal” or name its source.
  3. Write one way each could support attention during study.
  4. Remove any item whose purpose you cannot explain.

Reflect: Which correspondences belong to the source, and which belong to your developing practice?

11Studying Santísima Muerte devotionDevotion

Companion reading: The Rites of Santisima Muerte, pp. 2–5.

The Rites of Santisima Muerte presents a particular devotional approach centered on relationship, prayer, an altar, and the author’s treatment of white, red, and black robes. The author recommends beginning with the white form and emphasizes prayer spoken from the heart. Read these as teachings within this booklet’s approach, not rules that speak for all devotees.

This topic has its own devotional context and should not automatically be merged with Wolfcraft. You can study it without making a commitment. Compare the idea of addressing a sacred figure with the self-directed symbolic exercises earlier in the course. If you choose to write a prayer, use your own words and make no promises you do not intend to keep. Observation and respectful study are also valid ways to complete this lesson.

Your practice

  1. List three features of devotion described in the reading.
  2. Explain how devotion differs from selecting an object for a spell.
  3. Write either a respectful study reflection or a short prayer in your own words.
  4. Note which teachings belong specifically to this booklet.

Reflect: How can you study several paths without treating their sacred figures and practices as interchangeable?

12Your working grimoireIntegration

Companion reading: Course synthesis drawing on all six books; original capstone exercise.

A working grimoire is most useful when it records what you actually studied, why you chose a practice, and what happened. Compile the earlier exercises into a small personal manual. Include your intentions, code of responsibility, tool meanings, a brief ritual structure, one correspondence chart, a protection reflection, and a distinction between source teachings and your own adaptations.

Finish by designing a seven-day practice around one modest goal. Use the structure you learned: prepare, state the intention, focus, close, act, and review. Keep the practice repeatable. At the end, assess consistency and what you learned rather than awarding yourself supernatural certainty. Course completion records self-study; it does not confer initiation, clergy status, or membership in the Werewolf Cathedral.

Your practice

  1. Collect your notes from all eleven earlier lessons.
  2. Write a five-step practice and name its source influences.
  3. Choose one practical action and a seven-day review date.
  4. Write a final reflection: what you accept, question, and want to study further.

Reflect: What will you retain, revise, or leave behind as you continue?

The companion shelf

Six books, distinct voices

  • Witchcraft Step by Step — Christopher Belmont Johnson. Foundations, tools, and ritual forms.
  • The Little Book of Folk Magic and Witchcraft — Christopher Belmont Johnson, 2012. Correspondences and everyday workings.
  • Uncrossed: Breaking Curses, Hexes and Jinxes — Christopher Belmont Johnson, 2014. Magical defense and protective practice.
  • Wolfcraft: Summoning the Wolf Spirit — Christopher Belmont Johnson, 2013. Wolfcraft tools and symbolic systems.
  • The Werewolf Bible — Christopher Belmont Johnson, 2010. Philosophy, identity, and spiritual or psychological interpretation.
  • The Rites of Santisima Muerte — credited to Hoodoo Doctor. A particular approach to devotional practice.

Use your own copies for companion reading. This course includes no full-book reproductions or public PDF download links.