"Creative Ritual: Combining Yoruba, Santeria, And Western Magic Traditions is a basic instruction manual for creating individual magic rituals. Creative Rituals links together various spiritual and philosophical doctrines through their common bond of a higher beneficial guidance and allows students to work with rituals within the context of their own spiritual beliefs and practices. Before his death in 1993, El Obatala was an initiate of both Yoruba and the Western Mystery Tradition. In Creative Ritual he provides step-by-step instructions covering all the basics: psychic preparation, cleanliness and balance, casting a circle, creating an altar, choosing ritual objects, blessing and consecrating ritual objects, using crystals to empower rituals. Divination using cowry shells, playing cards or a pendulum are also featured as well as a table of correspondences so readers can customize effective rituals for each specific purpose. Creative Ritual is a fitting memorial to an experience and ably practitioner of the metaphysical arts of magic and ritual." --Midwest Book Review